I'm on the Ark, and I start out as Gretchen.

"?"

As Pado placed the items in front of her one by one, Wen Yue was now somewhat bewildered.

However, this state did not last long. After realizing what the odds and ends on the table were, a hint of danger crept into her gentle smile.

Of course, this slight danger does not only apply to Pado.

"..."

After taking a few breaths to compose herself, Wen Yue turned to look at Pado again and said:

"Through Xiao Chen and the others, I have also come to understand your personality, Miss Padofelis, so I think I don't need to keep you in suspense."

"These things aren't even valuable items. Can you tell me why you went to all this trouble to acquire them?"

Admittedly, the pipe and the expensive cigarettes on the table might be worth some money. However, Wen Yue didn't think it was worth it for someone to go to such great lengths and risk offending the city lord to acquire them.

Is this a cover-up for the main purpose? Or something else? Wen Yue was a little unsure for a moment.

"Uh, you're curious about that... Well, of course it's for fame." Hearing this, Pado scratched her head awkwardly before answering.

"Reputation? Then what you did before was also...?"

Pado's answer surprised Wen Yue slightly, a hint of astonishment flashing in her eyes.

She had imagined that the person in front of her would give all sorts of answers, or even come up with all sorts of outrageous reasons to lie to her, but she never expected to receive such an answer.

This made her wonder if there was some kind of ranking system among the thieves.

"More or less. Apart from a few items I like, most of the goods I've brought in before were for this purpose." At this point, Pado relaxed, choosing a small sofa furthest from Wenyue's seat to sit down, and continued:

"After all, it's easier to get work once you've built up a reputation, isn't it?"

"Are you still taking jobs? Or are you stealing?"

To be honest, Wen Yue was completely stunned by what Pado said.

"Oh, don't put it so harshly. I usually call this kind of business 'stocking'! As long as you have enough money, I can get you anything!"

As she said this, Pado's long tail swayed proudly behind her.

She wasn't exaggerating when she said this; now that she has other identities supporting her, she really can get anything for the "boss".

Even if Wen Yue wanted the Ursus Emperor from next door, the cat could kidnap him! The main feature is unlimited money; they'd even give you a meteorite from the sky.

"Is anything really okay?"

Hearing Pado's confident words, Wen Yue's eyes flickered slightly, and she asked softly.

Although she didn't believe that Pado could really steal everything, the person in front of her seemed to have a very good "business ability" at the moment.

Surely no one really thinks the Governor of Lungmen's house is so easy to break into, especially with such a silent and completely undetected infiltration.

"Of course! We're a business based on honesty. Would you like to give it a try?" As she spoke, Pado stroked her chin and thought for a moment before adding, "For you, we can give you a 20% discount on your first time!"

"Hmm... if you promise not to pursue the matter this time and not to issue a warrant for your arrest."

"For items like that, I can give you a 5% discount, but not 4%! 4% is the lowest I can go!"

"Ha~"

Looking at the adorable little guy in front of her, wearing a hood and gesturing with his finger as he tried to sell something, Wen Yue couldn't help but chuckle. Then, in a teasing tone, she said:

"Miss Padophilia actually cares about something like a wanted poster?"

"I'm not afraid, but it's troublesome. Since I can move around openly outside, why should I hide? Once a wanted poster comes out, even if I'm sunbathing or sleeping outside, someone will probably be watching me."

Faced with Wen Yue's teasing, Pa Duo helplessly shrugged and replied.

She's genuinely unafraid of arrest warrants, given her strength, but they can still cause real trouble.

"Then how should I contact Miss Padofelis?" Wen Yue asked, narrowing her smiling eyes.

Wen Yue admitted that she was somewhat tempted at that moment. The girl in front of her didn't look very old, and if she could use her and train her...

Of course, all of this is based on the premise that her identity is safe and her background is clean, so she will still find out some things that need to be investigated.

"Well, you can leave your contact information, or you can contact me through Swire."

"Then let's exchange contact information."

"Alright, now that we've finished discussing these things, let's talk about what's on the table." As she spoke, a dangerous glint reappeared on Wen Yue's gentle smile.

P.S.: Sorry it's late, I had writer's block and revised it several times. And to that girl named Ellie, I only stay up late because I don't have school, but if you have exams, don't stay up all night. There's no need to stay up all night reading novels.

Besides, I'm a good-for-nothing who doesn't keep his word, so what am I waiting for? I always think I can do it, but in reality, I'm slow at writing and my drafts are garbage. Last night, I stared at the piece of crap I wrote, but I was too embarrassed to publish it.

Chapter 53 Wen Yue's Personal Experience

"Alright, now that we've finished discussing these things, let's talk about what's on the table." As she spoke, a dangerous glint reappeared on Wen Yue's gentle smile.

"Hmm... If I tell you where I hid these things, Governor Wei Yanwu won't hold it against me, will he?" Looking at Wen Yue, whose expression had turned dangerous, Pa Duo stroked her chin and asked softly.

The reason why the cat chose these things as targets is because it is relying on, or rather betting, that Wei Yanwu is afraid of his wife and therefore dares not publicize it.

Now that his wife has found out, if she reveals all the hiding places... someone will definitely hold a grudge against her.

Upon hearing this, Wen Yue smiled even more gently and said in a "soft" tone, "Don't worry, with me here, he won't do it."

"Then you can speak freely."

Then, Pado stopped dawdling and began to reveal all the hiding places she had found in various secluded spots throughout the house.

……

At the same time, on the other side——

A dragon male, leisurely sitting in his office flipping through documents, suddenly sneezed uncontrollably, then felt a strange chill run down his spine...

---------

"Heh~ Thank you for telling me these locations, Miss Padrephilis. Since you like these things on the table, you can take them with you when you leave later." After silently memorizing the corners that Padrephilis mentioned, Wen Yue smiled and said to the person in front of her.

"Well, that won't be necessary. Since you've already found out, taking just this will be enough."

Upon hearing Wen Yue's words, Pado, unusually, did not excitedly agree as usual. Instead, she gracefully bent down and took a blue Lungmen coin from the pile of "trophies" on the coffee table.

"If you only take this, then Miss Padofelis's trip will have been in vain." Wen Yue couldn't help but tease the girl as she watched her actions.

She hadn't forgotten the purpose of this trip that Pado had mentioned before. If it was just about taking a Lungmen coin that didn't mean anything, wouldn't that fail to achieve her initial goal?

“No, not at all, Madam. I have already achieved my purpose.” As she spoke, Pado blinked her beautiful heterochromatic eyes, a sly smile flashing across her face.

Since she had a fairly good understanding of the person in front of her and the faults of those in positions of authority, there were some things that Maomao did not intend to hide from Wen Yue. As for beating around the bush... she was even less adept at that, so she might as well tell the truth.

"Oh? How to say it."

Having roughly figured out Pado's personality through their conversation, Wen Yue didn't try to probe her further but instead chose to ask directly.

“Because, my goal from the very beginning was to let the ‘big shots’ know about me.” With that, Pado removed the cat mask from her face, smiled at Wen Yue, and continued:

"As for why we targeted these things, it's because we're betting that this big shot, the Governor of Lungmen, will suffer this loss because of his wife!"

"Even if they might hold a grudge against me behind my back, they wouldn't make a big deal out of it."

After hearing Pado's explanation, Wen Yue, who was sipping her tea, showed a hint of surprise in her eyes, then put down her teacup and said:

“Miss Padophilia is quite frank with me. But aren’t you afraid of losing your bet?”

"Losing a bet is indeed troublesome, at that time..."

"I might have to find a way to escape then. However, I don't think the chances of losing are high." Upon hearing this, Pado gently shook her head and answered seriously.

"Heh~ I didn't expect Miss Padoflis to believe so much in our relationship." Hearing Padoflis's confident words, Wen Yue couldn't help but narrow her eyes slightly.

Although she had heard rumors of Pado's intelligence-gathering abilities before, it wasn't until now that Wenyue truly felt them. Outsiders only knew that the couple had a good relationship, but they didn't know the specifics or how they found these "contraband items"...

The possibility that Xiao Chen provided the information had already been ruled out in her previous investigation. This almost proved that the person in front of her obtained the information through their own abilities, but that made it even stranger... Could it be that there was something wrong with the person around her?

Wen Yue felt that after this incident, it was necessary to conduct a thorough investigation and rectification.

Furthermore, she discovered that her initial understanding of Pado's concept of "reputation" seemed to be flawed...

"Of course, it's because you two have a very good relationship!" After hearing Wen Yue's words, Pado didn't say anything more, but just smiled and moved on from the matter.

After all, what could she say? To tell the truth, to tell the people in front of her that she learned about them from games? Who would believe that? Rather than telling the unbelievable truth, it was better to let these meticulous politicians guess and investigate for themselves.

Honestly, although my conversations with Fumizuki are going smoothly, I don't really like or know how to deal with smart and thoughtful people like her.

If it's like what Ellie did, it's fine; she's just teasing "herself" without any malice. But if it's the kind of thing with a purpose, the overt and covert probing, it really annoys Pado.

"..."

After Pado changed the subject, Wen Yue didn't press the issue. Instead, she changed the subject, asking about the misunderstanding she had just discovered:

"If Miss Padophilia comes here to buy goods for fame and to gain a 'potential' employer, is that why you did those things in the slums?"

"The slums? Do you mean helping those people, or the candy store?" Seeing that Wen Yue didn't press further, Pado breathed a sigh of relief, then gently touched her chin and asked.

"Can you tell me about both?"

Upon hearing this, a hint of curiosity flashed in Wen Yue's eyes.

Actually, she had only asked about the former that Pado had mentioned, but she was also quite interested in the latter.

After learning about Pado's "purpose," Benyue subconsciously categorized the theft incident involving [Rat King] Lin Gerui as being the same as her own—just to gain exposure and acquire another "potential customer."

But after thinking about her previous investigation more carefully, she realized something was wrong... Who recruits "potential customers" like that?! This infuriated Lin Gerui so much that she searched the entire slum for people.

"Ah, if you want to know everything, I can tell you. I'm helping those people in the slums because I want to do something within my power."

"As for the candy store..."

P.S.: It's time for another update from the underworld. There's only a little bit left before this event ends.

Chapter 54: Leaving and Eden's Current Situation

"Ah, if you want to know everything, I can tell you. I'm helping those people in the slums because I want to do something within my power."

"As for the candy store..."

At this point, Pado paused slightly, took out a handful of candies from her pocket and placed them on the coffee table before looking at Wen Yue and continuing, "Look, aren't these candies sparkling and tempting to collect?"

"..."

Looking at the candies with pretty wrappers on the coffee table, Wen Yue fell into a brief silence... That's it?

You went to so much trouble to steal from someone's candy store, making everyone angry and searching for you everywhere, just for the candy?