Chapter 34: Can’t I Be a Little Willful? Kill Them All!

Huo Yan put his head back and looked at her. “Sit.”

Bai Lu waved her hands frantically. “No, no, it’s fine, I’m good standing.”

Second Master Yin: “Sit?”

Bai Lu immediately plopped down in her seat.

Second Master Yin: “Stand?”

She shot back up, standing at attention as straight as a soldier.

“Sit.”

“Stand.”

After a few rounds, Huo Yan said, “Stop scaring her. She’s timid.”

Bai Lu glared at him in distress. “Don’t talk nonsense! Shut up! Mr. Huo isn’t scaring me. We’re just playing around! You must be blind if you think otherwise!”

Oh, the celestial man is indeed as kind as he is beautiful! Even when he’s in trouble himself, he still tries to help her. She couldn’t let him offend the richest man just for her sake!

Second Master Yin clutched his stomach, laughing until he was sprawled out. “Oh my god, hahahahaha… I can’t, I just can’t. How is she timid? She’s got plenty of nerve.”

Huo Yan gave a soft chuckle. “Mm. Bai Lu, you can go back now.”

Bai Lu blinked at him in desperation, signaling that since the richest man hadn’t dismissed her, she couldn’t leave.

Second Master Yin: “Go.”

“Rest well! I’ll make sure the crew keeps quiet and doesn’t disturb you!” Bai Lu gave a ninety-degree bow and slipped away as fast as she could.

“Hahahahahaha… Oh my god, I’m dying here…”

As soon as she returned, Director Zhang lowered his voice and asked, “Who was that? You looked terrified just now.”

Bai Lu smiled awkwardly but politely. “It’s better if you don’t know.”

Director Zhang shook his head. “No way, now I have to know.”

Bai Lu smiled faintly. “Do you know my fan Ye Jingyan?”

Director Zhang: “Of course! He comes from quite the background. I heard from Yu Fuqing that his family has been close with the richest man’s for generations—”

He clearly realized something, his expression turning to horror as he stared at her.

Bai Lu nodded, confirming his guess.

Director Zhang began trembling, just as she had moments before.

Serves him right. She hadn’t wanted to say, but he insisted on knowing.

Luckily, the flight was already more than halfway through, with less than an hour left. Knowing that Director Zhang would be suffering alongside her made Bai Lu feel much better.

As they neared landing, Tang Xing pulled back the curtain and asked, “Would you like to disembark with us ahead of the others?”

Bai Lu shook her head emphatically. “No, thank you, sir. I’ll leave with the rest of the crew!”

Tang Xing hesitated for a moment. “Ground staff said your schedule seems to have leaked. There are a lot of fans at the airport waiting for you. Inside and out, it’s all fans. If you want to slip away, it won’t be easy. Master Su said you can take his car.”

Bai Lu hesitated, and Tang Xing shook his head at her slightly.

Bai Lu mouthed, “Mr. Huo?”

Tang Xing shook his head again, very firmly.

Bai Lu understood the richest man’s hint not to ride in the same car. “Thank you, sir! Thank you! Sorry for the trouble!”

Second Master Yin was almost doubled over with laughter.

Oh my, this little jester—how can she be so entertaining!

Huo Yan placed a mask over Second Master Yin’s face. “Stop scaring her.”

Second Master Yin: “…”

When Bai Lu returned to first class, the richest man had already put on his mask, hiding the terrifying scars that covered his face.

The mask, its material indiscernible, gleamed with a cold, silvery light, exposing only a pair of wild, frenzied eyes.

Bai Lu didn’t say a word, standing obediently in place.

The richest man lifted his gaze to her. “What now? My face is covered. Are you still scared?”

Bai Lu hesitated for a long time before stammering, “With it covered, I’m even more frightened.”

The richest man asked, “Why?”

“It’s not really your scars that scare me. The first time I saw them, I was startled, but it’s not like you chose to have them. Just like Shen Xinluo was born brainless—things beyond human control aren’t frightening.”

The celestial man explained to the richest man, “She uses the name Shen Xinluo as an insult.”

The richest man: “I see. So what are you afraid of?”

“Afraid of you—” Bai Lu’s instincts warned her not to speak the truth, not to admit she was terrified of those mad, destructive eyes of his.

She changed course naturally. “Afraid of the name Huo Yan.”

The richest man nodded. “Huo Yan doesn’t have a good reputation.”

Bai Lu: “Just rumors, really. I’ve heard so many that—I guess I started to believe them—”

“Rumors are true,” the richest man admitted calmly. “Huo Yan is ruthless—no mistake about that. The Huo family is a vast clan. Counting all the branches, there are sixty or seventy in my generation alone. Now, after Huo Yan’s purges, only a dozen or so remain—those content to stay in their place.”

Bai Lu: “…”

The celestial man looked at her, genuinely concerned she might be frightened.

Bai Lu shot him a furtive, reassuring glance.

The richest man asked, “Are you afraid of Huo Yan?”

Bai Lu thought for a moment. “Yes. But if I were Huo Yan, I’d have finished them all off—every last one.”

The celestial man looked at her with a changed expression. “Bai Xiaolu?”

Bai Lu replied, “I’m not just saying this to please the richest man. Really, with so many collateral branches, I couldn’t possibly keep track of them all. There would always be someone I’d miss. And if one of them turned out to be a traitor, my own family would be in danger. Traitors don’t come stamped with the word across their foreheads.”

“What’s more, the ones who look most obedient and compliant on the surface are often the most likely to rebel. Just because someone bows their head doesn’t mean they’re really docile—they might just be biding their time, waiting for the right moment. If I were already the richest man, why not be a bit willful? Can’t be bothered to investigate one by one—just get rid of them all. Saves trouble, saves money—not having to support a bunch of useless people.”

The celestial man coughed. “Bai Xiaolu, you’re still so young.”

Bai Lu shrugged. “Age doesn’t mean much. It’s what you’ve been through that matters.”

He fell silent.

The richest man gave a cold laugh. “Yes, you’re just like Huo Yan! No wonder Huo Yan likes you! Tang Xing, let’s go.”

Tang Xing immediately pushed the richest man’s wheelchair away.

Only then did Bai Lu realize that the plane had long since landed smoothly.

She rubbed her nose and sidled over to the celestial man. “Wait, Su, why does the richest man talk about himself as if he weren’t the richest man? Is he… having another episode? Split personality?”

Huo Yan reined in the smile at his lips. “Don’t ask about him. Come on.”

Bai Lu let out a breath of relief. “I’m not even curious about the richest man. I’m only curious about you. Will you go with me? I’ll make you a star!”

Huo Yan realized he’d somehow grown accustomed to her, no matter what the conversation, always circling back to her ambition to launch his career.

A black rabbit’s one good trait: persistence.

“Ah!” Suddenly, Bai Lu exclaimed, grabbing his sleeve and shaking it hard. “Su, did you hear that? The richest man just said he likes me! He likes me! The richest man is my fan! I’ve really made it—imagine, even the richest man is my fan!”

Huo Yan glanced at her beaming, excited face and smiled faintly.

Another virtue of the black rabbit: easily satisfied.