C16 A Sense of Crisis Struck Him

After completing the side mission, a reward of 20 dream value points was granted. The host's current dream value tally stood at 320.

Zhou Ming had a sinking feeling that he had stirred up major trouble. With the crowd around him, he seized the moment to make a quick getaway.

By the time Ming Xuanyang picked himself up off the floor, Zhou Ming was nowhere to be seen. The spectators, sensing the tension, quietly exchanged a few words before scattering. Ming Xuanyang was clearly furious, and nobody wanted to be the target of his wrath.

"I'll kill you!" Ming Xuanyang bellowed, his foot shattering the marble beneath him. He had never experienced such a profound humiliation. A nobody had the audacity to slap him publicly, and to add insult to injury, he was knocked to the ground by that very slap. Murderous intent flared in Ming Xuanyang's eyes as he vowed to find the man responsible and subject him to endless torment.

Meanwhile, Zhou Ming and Lin Xiaowu were blissfully unaware of Ming Xuanyang's murderous intent. They had made their way to the nearby market and were haggling with a pork vendor.

"Boss, can you cut the price a bit? This pork looks so thick, it seems like it's been water-injected!" Zhou Ming lifted a piece of pork, eyeing it skeptically while intentionally raising his voice.

"Young man, you shouldn't make such accusations lightly. You need to be responsible for your words," the vendor, a somewhat portly middle-aged man, said as he mopped the sweat from his brow, feeling the gaze of the other customers on his stall.

"Lower the price?" Zhou Ming glanced around purposefully before fixing his gaze on the vendor.

"Alright, you win. Let's settle on 25," the vendor conceded, weary of Zhou Ming's relentless bargaining. The price of pork, initially 30 per pound, had been haggled down to 25. Selling pork wasn't easy with customers like Zhou Ming.

After the transaction, Zhou Ming, grinning from ear to ear, carried a hefty chunk of pork over to Lin Xiaowu. "Let's head home."

"Brother Ming, why did you say the pork was waterlogged?" Xiaowu asked, puzzled by the earlier exchange.

"Because I'm broke," Zhou Ming replied with an embarrassed chuckle. The pork was simply too pricey, so he resorted to a bit of trickery. Indeed, he was broke, jobless, and reliant on his sister for support.

"Brother Zhou Ming, about that card..."

Lin Xiaowu was about to mention the substantial sum of money on the card when Zhou Ming cut her off.

"That's my sister's money," he said with a wry smile.

"Ah? So, Brother Zhou Ming, does that make you the proverbial kept man?"

Lin Xiaowu's voice trailed off as she realized her mistake. A kept man is someone who relies on a wealthy woman, but Brother Zhou Ming was relying on his sister's wealth. Wait, if his sister is wealthy...

"Are you making fun of me?" Zhou Ming asked, feeling rather insignificant. The term 'kept man' seemed to fit uncomfortably well.

Lin Xiaowu sheepishly stuck out her tongue, not daring to make another peep.

Zhou Ming couldn't help but marvel at Lin Xiaowu's unique way of thinking. Having such a character around certainly made life more interesting.

Back at home, Zhou Ming ventured into the long-neglected kitchen.

Watching Zhou Ming bustle about, Lin Xiaowu was filled with a sense of coziness. She wished life could always be this way.

Suddenly, her eyes misted over. Leaning against the wall, she crouched down and hugged her knees as silent tears began to fall.

About half an hour later.

"Brother Zhou Ming, your cooking is absolutely delicious," Lin Xiaowu mumbled, her words muffled as she shoveled rice into her mouth.

"Mind your manners," Zhou Ming chided, wiping a grain of rice from her face. She was quite the character, eating with the voracity of a starved wolf.

"Mm-hmm, Brother Zhou Ming, have some too," Lin Xiaowu urged, forking a piece of braised pork into his mouth.

"Cough, cough! Are you trying to kill me?" Zhou Ming sputtered as the pork made a perilous journey down his throat, nearly choking him.

"Oh? I'm so sorry!" Lin Xiaowu blurted out, her apologies tumbling over one another.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Zhou Ming gave Lin Xiaowu an exasperated look and stood up. "Remember, eat with grace and chew slowly, alright?"

"I got it, I got it," Lin Xiaowu affirmed, biting her chopsticks and focusing intently on the plate before her, nodding without looking up.

Who could be looking for him? Was it possibly Lang Ruoyi? Zhou Ming speculated about the visitor. It didn't make sense for his sister, Zhou Youyou, to be back at this hour, and it was too early for Lang Ruoyi to be collecting the rent.

Upon opening the door, Zhou Ming's brow furrowed.

A woman with an icy demeanor stood on his doorstep, her gaze fixed on him with stern scrutiny.

"Who are you?"

Upon seeing the woman, Zhou Ming inwardly groaned, realizing he was under investigation by the Watchtower.

The woman was none other than Ming Shuang, who had saved Zhou Ming's life that very night. Today, she donned a white dress that, coupled with her austere beauty, made her appear as pure and lovely as a white lotus.

"I'm Ming Shuang. Cut the act. I found out all I need to know about you with a simple search."

Ming Shuang held out her phone to Zhou Ming, his personal details plainly visible on the screen.

"Fine, what do you want?"

Zhou Ming had no interest in idle chatter, especially with someone from the Watchtower likely there about the human experimentation.

Ming Shuang pocketed her phone and inquired, "Are you responsible for what happened at the processing plant?"

"Huh? Processing plant? Is there even one there? All I saw were heaps of horrifying fingers—it was so revolting, I ended up throwing up everywhere."

Zhou Ming feigned bewilderment, acting as if he was clueless about the incident.

As Zhou Ming spoke, Ming Shuang scrutinized his eyes, trying to detect any sign of deceit.

To her frustration, Zhou Ming seemed genuinely ignorant, his eyes brimming with confusion. She couldn't discern whether he was being truthful or not.

"So why did you go to the derelict area alone at night? Don't tell me you were contemplating suicide. If that were the case, a rope would suffice."

Ming Shuang replayed the details of that night in her head, noting an abundance of red flags. Would someone intent on suicide head to the derelict area? And who ventures there in the dead of night? At the time, Zhou Ming appeared to be an average person—if she hadn't rescued him, he would have perished in that forsaken place long ago.

Ming Shuang's statement left Zhou Ming at a loss for words. With a sense of resignation, he spread his hands and said, "I did go to the derelict area that night, but I truly have no knowledge of the factory."

"I don't believe you."

Ming Shuang shook her head, pulled out her phone, and played two videos for Zhou Ming. The first showed him transforming to rescue Lin Xiaowu, and the second captured him single-handedly taking down over ten burly men. Setting down her phone, Ming Shuang smiled and asked, "Anything you'd like to say?"

"What do you want from me?"

A chill settled in Zhou Ming's heart; it was clear the Watchtower wouldn't let this slide. He had anticipated this day would come, but he hadn't expected it to arrive so swiftly.

Ming Shuang's gaze was icy. "Tell me, what do you know about human experimentation? And why did the factory vanish? If you don't, I'll have to report your activities."

"The one thing I despise is being threatened. Do you really think I wouldn't kill you?"

Zhou Ming's voice grew colder. Regardless of whether this woman reported him, the Watchtower was bound to catch up to him eventually. This thought ignited a fierce intent to kill within him.

"Go ahead and try."

Ming Shuang remained composed, confident that Zhou Ming was no match for her; otherwise, she wouldn't have needed to intervene that night.