In this cyberpunk era, why are you still playing the traditional villain?

He thought for a moment and then said, "Why don't you come yourself? The old man is in the next room. If you can shoot him dead, maybe I'll consider it."

As he spoke, he gestured to Su Lin, who understood and handed him a pistol.

"I……"

He Yuqiang stood there, gun in hand, at a loss. After a long while, as if he had made up his mind, he gritted his teeth, got up, and walked towards the door.

Anyway, the old man doesn't have many days left to live, so perhaps...

Unfortunately, he hadn't taken more than two steps when Su Lin kicked him back, sending him sprawling to the ground.

"Damn it, you're really going?!"

Xu Shi asked incredulously, "You really wouldn't do that to your own father, would you? Have you no humanity left?"

"To tell you the truth, Uncle He passed away last night. We couldn't save him... It's a good thing he died sooner, otherwise it would have been even more painful for you to be so angry that you died of grief."

He only learned of this news at the meeting just now, and to be honest, he felt a bit of a sense of shared sorrow – He Jiayuan, this elder, had no conflict with him, the only problem was that he didn't discipline his son properly, and in the end, he ended up like this, which is quite regrettable.

"...Xu Shi! You fucking bastard!"

He Yuqiang was stunned for a long time before he realized that Xu Shi was playing a trick on him. This gave him a bit of courage from somewhere, and he roared as he got up and frantically pulled the trigger at Xu Shi.

Then came the embarrassment.

The gun was empty.

"There aren't many people as stupid as you, Qiangzi."

Xu Shi chuckled, "We're so close, how could I possibly give you a gun with bullets?"

"But you actually wanted to kill me, that really hurt me... How can I forgive you now?"

Su Lin rolled her eyes. The young master's perverse sense of humor was truly excessive. Even with an enemy, torturing and toying with them like this was going too far…

"No, no, no! No!"

He Yuqiang was already somewhat dazed. The seed of evil that had been planted in his body earlier was now amplifying his fear to the extreme. He begged for mercy incoherently, "Old Xu, I was just confused for a moment. We used to be friends, right? Can you give me another chance? We even had a party together just two weeks ago..."

"That reason isn't enough, let's find another one... hmm?"

Xu Shi was admiring his good brother's backbone when he realized something was wrong as he listened. "Who threw a party with you two weeks ago?"

The truth is, my buddy hasn't had a party in ages. Isn't his sister at home just as appealing?

But He Yuqiang's words clearly exposed a problem.

"You fucking didn't invite me to your Impart, huh?!"

Xu Shi displayed unprecedented anger, and before He Yuqiang could react, the snake's head was already pressed against his forehead.

"Now I have no choice but to kill you."

boom--

"I remember some people saying they'd rather play by themselves than include him."

Su Lin couldn't help but complain, "Now you're saying they didn't call you 'you'... Are you the legendary double standard, young master?"

Whether I go or not is my business; whether he invites me or not is his problem.

Xu Shi smiled and said that, in the end, the reason for killing He Yuqiang was not that. The so-called anger was just an act. In reality, it was not that exaggerated.

It's all just for the sake of the show.

"But now that he mentioned it, I'm actually thinking of opening one... Could you help me make some arrangements?"

"There are already a lot of people in the house."

Su Lin said helplessly, "Young Master, are you serious?"

"Homegrown flowers never smell as sweet as wildflowers."

Xu Shi teased her a bit more before she stopped, "Alright, whether we open it or not, we still have to finish what we need to do right now... We've had enough of the appetizers, it's time for the main course."

The Shen siblings were indeed the main course, and Chairman Xu was even more meticulous in his preparation.

The cell door opened, revealing that both men were restrained by special shackles—specifically designed to prevent them from activating their abilities, and the effect was remarkable.

However, it seems a bit unnecessary... because Shen Qin, the main combatant, is still somewhat dazed, sitting there blankly without moving, clearly indicating that the effects of the sedative have not completely dissipated.

"Good heavens, how much did you inject her with?"

Even Xu Shi himself was a little surprised when he saw it, and he frowned as he looked at Su Lin.

"About...that much?"

Director Su gestured.

"Even an elephant might not need that many, right?"

Xu Shi found it hard to tell whether this was unintentional or deliberate. "If you really turn her into an idiot, you'll be responsible for taking care of her for the rest of her life."

"I know I was wrong..."

Su Lin muttered something.

"...Is there any water? At least give my sister some water, okay?"

Upon seeing Xu Shi arrive, Shen He's reaction was unexpectedly calm. "For such a large conglomerate, is this your way of treating guests?"

"You don't consider yourself a guest, do you, Young Master Shen?"

Xu Shi clicked his tongue and shook his index finger. "Speaking of which, this isn't the first time we've met... Why do you seem even more childish than last time?"

"Whatever you say."

Shen He paused, avoiding the question, "Could you find a doctor for Xiao Qin? If you hadn't used her to blackmail me before, I wouldn't have failed so easily."

"Yes, yes, I will take good care of her."

Xu Shi narrowed his eyes and smiled, "But judging from what Young Master Shen is saying, you seem quite unconvinced?"

What does "if I hadn't been threatened" even mean? He didn't agree with that statement at all; it sounded like he was blaming Shen Qin for all the failures...

The fact is that even without Shen Qin, Shen He still couldn't change anything—Xia Ke'an's prediction, the double crushing of the virtual and real worlds, including arranging for Lin Yue to capture him, which one wasn't a better arrangement?

Or rather, given such a disparity in strength, unless one is the kind of exceptional individual depicted in the original story, it would be strange if Shen He succeeded. To be honest, Xu Shi's focus was no longer solely on his so-called opponent, but rather, as the old aunt had previously stated, to seize this opportunity to consolidate the chaos among all parties and reap substantial benefits—that was the more worthwhile thing to do.

This is a fact that anyone with eyes can see, and even Shen He himself is well aware of it... It's just that his pitiful pride is causing him to stubbornly cling to this excuse.

Thinking about it this way, Xu Shi found it funny.

You can fool your buddies, but don't fool yourself too.

Besides, he came here today to show Shen He his true colors. If the other party were really like He Laosan, crying and begging for mercy right away, it would be much less fun, wouldn't it?

That's when.

Hurried footsteps could be heard outside the cell.

Along with this came Xia Wuyou's call, "Xu Shi? Xu Shi, are you here?"

Oh?

Xu Shi was taken aback, but his expression quickly became amused.

Looking at Shen He again, at first glance he seemed unchanged, but it was obvious that there was an unconscious increase in sinister intent in his brows.

It seems that some things don't fade with time, but rather continue to ferment and escalate.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 177 Only One of You Can Live

If we can't meet again with tears in our eyes, can we at least blush?

Xu Shi had been curious about this question, so he pinched Xia Wuyou's cheek and asked with interest, "Why are you here?"

"I……"

Xia Wuyou looked at him strangely upon hearing this.

Didn't you send me?

Originally, the war had just ended, and the post-war repair and reconstruction could be left to the subordinates. The field team wouldn't have anything to do. She even said she was going out for a stroll with her aunt. But before she even finished lunch, she received a call from Xu Shi.

He knew that Supervisor Xia would come if he called, but when he arrived, he found out it was about this very thing.

Being as clever as she was, she immediately understood what Xu Shi meant and couldn't help but want to roll her eyes at him.

This guy is so mean, deliberately trying to provoke Shen He again? Okay, Xu Shi is a bad guy to begin with... but what's the point of doing this?

In her opinion, she had completely broken off with Shen He a few months ago. Anyway, she doesn't have any feelings for Shen He now, so why would he?

It really is true.

If Shen He could still calmly talk to Xu Shi just now, he might not be able to now—at least his murderous gaze and increasingly rapid breathing are impossible to hide, clearly indicating that he has been emotionally stirred up by Xu Shi's actions.

It's clear he's still resentful of Xia Wuyou's previous "betrayal"... To be honest, it would be a miracle if he could let it go, since there's old grudges and new ones, and his sister Shen Qin's capture was partly her doing.

Otherwise, why would we call her here, right? (doge)

Honestly, Xu Shi suddenly thought that if he had managed to turn the tables on Shen He when he had interacted with all the female leads, wouldn't a happy ending for the whole family be more entertaining?

Unfortunately, that won't happen—aside from Xia Wuyou, who already had some dealings with Shen He, who else knows who Shen He is? If we just invite them over to watch a free show, that would be far too boring.

However, even if it's just Xia Wuyou alone, the effect seems to be quite good.

"Never mind, it's a workday, so it's only right that you come."

Thinking this, Xu Shi's smile grew even more playful. Killing someone by destroying their spirit is really fun... As he spoke, he hugged Xia Wuyou a little tighter, "So you're here to see him off on his final journey? Are you going to stay here and watch?"

"You're hopeless."

Xia Wuyou glanced at him and complained in a voice only Xu Shi could hear, "What's wrong with you? You're acting like it's the real deal..."

But she didn't reject the embrace, so despite her complaints, her body readily snuggled closer, and she obediently nodded, "Mmm."

"...You slut!"

Seeing her like this, Shen He finally couldn't hold back anymore. His eyes turned red, and he roared.

Although he didn't want to admit it, he couldn't deceive himself. Even after their falling out, he still harbored a possessive desire for Xia Wuyou.