Chapter 645: What Are You Trying to Do to My Wife?! |
Soft methods wouldn't work with this type. Time for the hard approach.
Cheng Shi smirked coldly and shifted the embedded scalpel three inches closer. That did the trick—Alo Manni spotted the flash of merciless indifference in his eyes, blanched, and hastily reined in her dripping desire:
"You'll let me go if I talk?"
"That's right. Talk and you walk."
"Wonder what he stole from you?" She sighed, all enthusiasm drained. "Don't look at me like that—I'm guessing. He's a repeat offender. He steals from Shi Lolin herself. Must've stolen something of yours, for you all to go through this much trouble.
Though I can't figure out who you people are.
Fine, fine—stop glaring! I'm scared. I'll stop asking.
Honestly, nothing really happened that night. Just a drunk slapping a prostitute twice. That's it."
"..."
Plenty of people sold their bodies and souls—but few acknowledged it so openly. The four players' gazes turned peculiar. Wang Mou's expression even bordered on admiration as he said, inappropriately:
"You have a clear understanding of yourself."
"Is that a compliment? Then thank you." Alo Manni tittered behind her hand, then explained cheerfully: "But it's not that I know myself clearly—I know my clients clearly.
I don't see anything wrong with devoting myself to Corruption. It's just that whenever I call myself a 'prostitute,' my clients get rather... excited. So...
You understand—pleasure shouldn't be repressed. If they like it, I say it more.
That night was the same. When Ad Ric pulled me out, I already knew he was plastered. A miner who could barely feed himself, planning some 'beautiful future' with me? Ha—adorable.
But the customer has needs. I can't refuse. Who knows if he had money stolen from Shi Lolin in his pockets?
Even if I can't steal it back or take it by force, earning back that stolen money counts as serving the Brotherhood, doesn't it?"
"..."
"..."
"..." Cheng Shi's gaze shifted. He decided Alo Manni was a genius.
'No—everyone in Falling Gate is a genius!'
"So I played along, performing the scene he wanted.
I'll admit—Ad Ric's character is awful and so is his drinking, but his acting wasn't bad. Drunk, he fully unleashed his desires and cast me as his wife. Tch—I've played many men's wives, but never a client's own wife.
His words were sincere. Touching. He painted my dream of a warm little home so vividly. I'd never imagined someone could want exactly what I wanted, know everything I loved.
But I quickly realized I was overthinking. This rambling drunk was probably just using sweet talk to weasel out of paying.
He must have researched me. He had ulterior motives.
After chatting all night, I was tired. Didn't want to keep performing. So I told him that if he didn't pay, I'd leave to attend to other clients who needed pleasure. And that's when the bastard hit me!
His fist was bigger than my head—swung straight at my face without warning. I was terrified. Thought I'd die right there by the Crystal Pool. But he didn't follow through.
His eyes in that moment were so complex. So bitter. So full of regret. For just an instant, I nearly lost myself in those heartbreaking eyes.
In that moment he wasn't the petty thief Ad Ric. He was a real man. A man of magnetic... someone else's... husband.
No wonder my clients always want me to play someone else's wife. So this is what it feels like...
It's nice.
But then he did hit. He pulled back his fist, pushed me to the ground, and smacked the dirt next to my face... fine, fine—I'll tell the truth. He didn't actually hit me. He just slammed his palms on the ground beside my face.
The rumor was Shi Lolin's invention—to squeeze extra benefits from her brother. Today's clinic visit was also her idea.
Those guys owed too much and stole too much. They've got to pay something back, right?
We eat less than they do, but we still have to eat. So I don't think there's anything wrong with what we did. Do you?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Silence filled the room.
This shanty woman was describing her own embarrassments—yet delivered them with the flair of someone gossiping about strangers. At peak enthusiasm, she even flaunted her desires, treating the four men before her as anything but threats.
Every sentence was explosive. Even these seasoned players couldn't immediately formulate a response.
Cheng Shi went blank. He dug at his ear, blinked rapidly: "So the head of the Extreme Desire Brotherhood—Shi Lolin, who runs the shanty district—is mining captain A Rad's sister?"
"Obviously?" Alo Manni nodded as if this were the most natural thing in the world, then added with mild surprise: "You know her? She's done business with you?
Tch—selfish woman. Such good customers, and she doesn't refer them to me?
Dear gentleman, considering how thorough I've been today—I even sold that old hag out—would you... consider patronizing my business?"
"..."
Cheng Shi's face darkened. Lip twitching, he raised his hand and chopped her unconscious on the table.
That done, he turned to Qin Xin. His meaning was clear: he wanted Qin Xin to weigh in on whether Alo Manni was lying—without revealing his own Master of Deception ability.
But Qin Xin either genuinely misread him or deliberately misread him. With an amused curl of his lips, he broke from his usual composure to crack a joke:
"Need me to step out?"
"?????"
'Buddy—when I type five question marks, it's not me who has a problem. It's you. Big problem.'
Cheng Shi was speechless. Qin Xin laughed heartily. Only after a good while did he nod: "I believe this... mm, this young lady wasn't lying."
Of course she wasn't. Her delivery while telling the story radiated more confidence than everyone in the room combined.
Li Wufang and Wang Mou both nodded. Though Alo Manni's account differed drastically from the bystander version Cheng Shi had shared, something fishy clearly lurked beneath the surface.
To get to the bottom of it, they'd have to wake the other half of this love story.
All eyes turned to Cheng Shi. No time to waste—he pulled out the Lush Horn Crown, strapped it on, and fired a healing spell at Ad Ric.
The long-dead miner revived in the wash of restorative power. When his eyes opened and found four men huddled around a woman on a table, he shot to his feet, crossed the room in two strides, and placed himself between them and Alo Manni—expression thunderous, arms spread wide in desperate protection.
At the same time, this miner locked eyes with the strangely-dressed men before him. Afraid yet brave, he trembled out:
"What are you trying to do to my wife?!"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Cheng Shi went numb. Ad Ric's reaction said more than a thousand words. But still...
'Bro—could you maybe engage your brain before you open your mouth? Listen to what you just said. Does that sound right to you?'
But nobody cared about the miner's soap-opera dialogue anymore. Everyone saw the anomaly. Cheng Shi had genuinely found the lead. This Ad Ric had clearly been affected by the trial—trapped in a Time anomaly that explained the discrepancy between his perspective and everyone else's.
So he was the "Discrepancy" the trial had described?
But which Discrepancy was he—past, present, or future?
The group's eyes lit up with excitement. They stared at Ad Ric in unison, eager to extract more secrets.
But four men's gazes were far too aggressive. The man who'd been so brave a second ago instantly broke into a cold sweat. His legs buckled. He stumbled backward, waist hitting the table edge, and swallowed hard—trying to look tough but turning ghostly pale:
"What are you... trying to do to me...?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Cheng Shi's eye twitched violently.
'Like I said—corpses are way more pleasant than living people.'
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