Tomb raiding: A mere 20 is nothing!

"As expected of the Nine Gates, their efficiency is truly impressive."

Shen Mingchao gently stirred the black coffee in his cup with a porcelain spoon, his gaze falling on Xie Yuchen, who was sitting opposite him, looking restless.

A hint of interest flashed in his eyes.

It's quite rare to see the usually calm and composed Master Xie so flustered and flustered.

"What? You didn't expect me to come directly to you?"

Shen Mingchao took a small sip. There wasn't much sugar in the coffee, and the bitterness spread across her tongue, which was just enough to keep her awake.

She put down her coffee cup, too lazy to beat around the bush, and got straight to the point: "You don't really think I don't know what you've been doing behind the scenes, do you? Our Boss Xie is really rolling in money. Tell me, how many of these shops around here have you bought? Or have you bought them all?"

Before Xie Yuchen could explain, Shen Mingchao continued speaking on his own.

"Never mind, let me guess."

"That fruit shop on the corner, right? The clerk who peels sugarcane there every day looks familiar... is that a vest?"

"The cashier at that supermarket across the street looks familiar. Next time you go, please pass on a message to him: if you're going to impersonate someone, at least make it look convincing. At the very least, dye your hair silver; it's too obvious."

"And this coffee shop, the staff here also look familiar. Tell him, 'Don't hide that long hair, even with a hat you can't cover it up.'"

"besides...."

That's where we stopped abruptly.

Shen Mingchao's smile vanished completely, and he coldly questioned, "What? You're no longer a passerby NPC, and now you've changed your playstyle, switching to role-playing?"

Xie Yuchen opened his mouth, but his throat felt dry and tight, and in the end, he could only remain silent.

He was speechless, because Shen Mingchao was absolutely right.

"We...we just..." Xie Yuchen gripped the corner of the table tightly, his voice tinged with a barely perceptible panic, "...just wanted to be closer to you."

"and then?"

"so what?"

Shen Mingchao's eyes turned completely cold: "You should also know who did what happened recently, Xie Yuchen. Let me tell you the truth: the documents I submitted before were just an appetizer. I have other evidence in my hands."

"so--"

She suddenly leaned down and looked Xie Yuchen in the eye at close range, close enough to see the emotions in each other's eyes.

The next moment, she turned her head and whispered in a voice that only the two of them could hear.

"I am now in conflict with you and can be considered your enemy. If you have any backbone, you should sever ties with me and go your separate ways."

The warm breath, like a fine feather, gently brushed against my ear, bringing a tingling, itchy sensation.

Xie Yuchen's mind went blank for a moment, and he could no longer hear what was said afterward.

He instinctively turned his head, and all he could see was that face so close to his.

Very strange.

There was clearly a gap between the two.

She was saying the most resolute words, pushing him to the opposite side.

But he still couldn't stop his heart from trembling.

"No, the Ming Dynasty."

After a long silence, Xie Yuchen slowly raised his eyes, a deep stubbornness surging within them. His voice was hoarse: "We will never be enemies."

The certainty in his words startled Shen Mingchao.

She then shook her head self-deprecatingly: "Xie Yuchen, as the head of the family, you should understand one thing. Human hearts are the most fickle thing. You just say a few words and promise me forever. Do you think I'm so easily fooled? What can I trust about someone who has used me before?"

"No, I didn't mean to lie to you."

Seeing that words were not enough, Xie Yuchen pushed a neatly bound stack of documents in front of Shen Mingchao.

When he looked up again, his eyes were full of seriousness.

"I've heard that Qi Qiu once gave you his entire fortune; Mingchao, I can do the same."

Shen Mingchao's gaze fell on the stack of documents, and he sneered, "Ha, do you think I'm some kind of money-grubber? You've been a boss for so long, do you think you can solve everything in this world with money?"

"no."

With a serious look in his eyes, Xie Yuchen finally revealed his feelings: "Mingchao, I love you, that's the truth."

This was something Shen Mingchao hadn't expected.

Her fingers curled almost imperceptibly, and even her blinking frequency increased.

In this deathly silence, both of them were in agony, and the atmosphere gradually became tense.

Not knowing how to react, Shen Mingchao turned his head away.

It wasn't until she felt a stinging pain in her palm that she snapped out of her daze, followed by a backlash of emotions.

Shen Mingchao frowned and questioned, his words dripping with unseen barbs: "Xie Yuchen, do you know how old you are? Do you know how old I am? Calling you 'brother' doesn't make you seem like yourselves uncles at all? If you put your minds to it, you could have fathered me. Don't you feel ashamed to say these things to me?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she reached for the still-steaming cup of coffee, raised her wrist slightly, and poured the dark brown liquid down, completely soaking the open documents.

"No, thank you. I find it dirty."

His tone was light and casual, yet every word was piercing.

Xie Yuchen lowered his eyes, looking at the soaked documents, a subtle pain rising in his heart.

This swear word isn't just about the document.

Right.

Feelings that are not pure from the beginning are indeed dirty.

But it's alright.

The coffee wasn't poured over his head.

She showed mercy.

Xie Yuchen had just thought this when he never expected that a few words would soon pierce his heart like a sieve.

Shen's eyes were cold, and his tone was chilling.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing."

"As far as I know, the Xie family suffered a devastating tragedy many years ago. You were still young at the time and had no choice but to take over as the young master, and then gradually began to take over the family business."

"But the Xie family was not at peace at that time. There were undercurrents and crises everywhere. Many eyes were on your position, wanting to bring you down."

"You are too young, your foundation is not stable, you do not have enough strength to resist, and you cannot be sure what is pointed at you outside the window every day."

"The eyes of a spy? A sniper rifle to assassinate you? Or perhaps various concealed weapons."

"So you developed a habit from a young age of covering your room window with a black cloth to block your view and prevent being spied on by people or forces outside the window, thus protecting your privacy and safety."

After calmly finishing his statement, Shen Mingchao, seeing Xie Yuchen's increasingly stiff expression, continued with a slight smile.

"Well, there's something I need to ask you."

"Xie Yuchen, are you going to become the person or thing you once hated the most? Are you going to become those unseen eyes outside the window, making me, like you, cover the window with a black cloth?"

These few words were like a sharp sword, piercing straight into the most vulnerable part of Jie Yuchen's memory.

Absolutely perfect, a single, decisive strike.

If the coffee spilled on the document was merely a minor damage, then these words truly pierced the heart.

Xie Yuchen's face paled, and at that moment he suddenly felt a little breathless.