Chapter 166: Emperor Ning’s Obsession
The woman could only watch helplessly as the gu worm was crushed into a puddle of bloody pulp. Catching the faint metallic scent drifting up to her nose, and glimpsing the man walking over from the corner of her eye, she collapsed straight onto the floor.
As the footsteps drew closer, Wu Heng turned around. Without even looking behind him, he slipped back into his seat in one smooth motion.
The much-rumored Ning Bizhen then arrived in front of them. He wore the calm, gentlemanly air of someone entirely at ease—no trace remained of the fact that just two minutes earlier, he had been with Shen Miao—
“I heard about your arrival an hour ago,” Ning Bizhen said pleasantly, taking the initiative to start a conversation. He even had someone bring over an extra chair for himself. After sitting down, he continued with a smile, “At first I thought the guards were talking in their sleep. I didn’t expect you to be this young.”
Under the table, Lin Mengzhi kicked Xie Chongyi, signaling him to say something to Ning Bizhen.
Xie Chongyi thought it beneath him. His upper body remained perfectly still while, under the table, he kicked Xue Shen hard enough to make his calf cramp. You go.
Grimacing in pain, Xue Shen adjusted his glasses but still didn’t respond to Ning Bizhen.
Ning Bizhen swept his gaze over everyone at the table. He had already accurately judged who among them possessed abilities and who did not. Pressing his lips into a faint smile, he said, “I’ve heard that you’re talented in many arts as well. Is that true?”
The table remained silent. Xue Qi grabbed a handful of salad and stuffed it into his mouth.
Ruan Silian tried to speak, but Dou Lu held her back.
“I also heard that one of your friends is skilled at hairdressing. So, I have an impudent request.”
All the pressure shifted onto Shen Ping’an.
Shen Ping’an quietly put down his chopsticks. “I…”
“Tell me, tell me,” Ying Liuquan suddenly stood up in flustered haste. Dragging his chair with him—scrape scrape thud thud—he pulled it right next to Ning Bizhen. “Your Majesty Ning, please speak to me. I’m these children’s teacher.”
Ning Bizhen extended his arm straight out. “I don’t like people standing too close to me.”
“Oh—oh, sorry.” Ying Liuquan dragged his chair back and sat down two meters away.
Only then did Ning Bizhen turn to speak with him.
“And how should I address you, Teacher?”
“I’m surnamed Ying. You can call me Teacher Ying.” Ying Liuquan was dressed in an old-fashioned plaid cotton shirt, layered with an earthy brown sweater vest. The legs of his gray suit trousers were far too wide for him—it wasn’t so much that he was wearing the clothes as the clothes were hanging off him. At best, he looked reserved and scholarly; in truth, he was wooden and shy. “Except for a few of them, most are my students.”
“Oh, then you’ve worked very hard.” Ning Bizhen put on a look of sudden realization. Leaning back in his chair, he unconsciously revealed the bearing of someone long accustomed to a position of authority. Even as he spoke words that suggested empathy, there was no real emotion in his eyes.
Ying Liuquan waved both hands repeatedly. “No, no, it’s nothing. It’s only right, only right.”
Beneath the dining table, more than a dozen legs were tangled together in silent chaos.
—Who’s worked hard? Say that clearly!
—We’re the ones who’ve worked hard, okay?
—Teacher Ying really has some nerve!
“Then could you persuade your student to give my lover a haircut?” Ning Bizhen crossed one leg over the other, wrinkling his nose as if displeased. “I’m not very satisfied with any of those barbers.”
Ying Liuquan’s gaze slowly shifted toward Shen Ping’an.
Under the table, several feet kicked Shen Ping’an gleefully.
—The royal barber.
Shen Ping’an’s expression didn’t change as he kicked back at each of them in turn.
Ning Bizhen folded his hands over his kneecap and shook his head in vexation. “Although no hairstyle looks bad on Shen Miao, that’s only because Shen Miao himself is so good-looking. His looks have instead become their excuse to cover up their lack of professional skill.”
After receiving no response for quite a while, Ying Liuquan answered somewhat awkwardly, “You may need to obtain my student’s own consent. I can’t make decisions for them.”
Hearing this, Ning Bizhen blinked. He stared at the young man in front of him for a long moment before letting out a contemptuous smile. “If you can’t make the decision, then what exactly are you doing here talking to me?”
Ying Liuquan’s face flushed bright red with embarrassment.
“Xiao Zhen.” The sound of a chair moving came from that side, and Shen Miao walked over. “Don’t make things difficult for them.”
As he appeared, Wu Heng noticed that everyone around seemed to visibly relax.
Shen Miao didn’t have an overwhelmingly superior face; Wu Heng was face-blind yet strangely precise at judging the attractiveness of every face. Still, Shen Miao’s first impression struck him as unmistakably clear—likely due to the poised elegance in his manner, as if strolling through a garden, or perhaps the distinct aura any skilled actor naturally carries.
Under the table, Xie Chongyi finally sent a kick toward Wu Heng. It wasn’t hard, but the warning was unmistakable.
“What are you staring at?” he asked silently with his lips, seeing Wu Heng glance his way.
Wu Heng picked up the slice of steak in front of Xie Chongyi and lowered his head, lost in thought.
Nearby, Ning Bizhen’s voice floated into his ears.
“Your birthday is coming up, isn’t it? Of course I want the whole city to celebrate it for you.”
“Have everyone perform for you.”
“You’ve been unhappy for too long. I want you to be happy.”
Wu Heng didn’t touch the food on his plate. He was absorbed in thought, and after a while, he looked toward Shen Ping’an.
He could communicate secretly with Shen Ping’an without making a single sound.
Understanding his intention, Shen Ping’an asked Ning Bizhen, “When would you like me to cut Mr. Shen’s hair?”
Everyone else at the table froze. Lin Mengzhi even whispered, questioning whether he had gone mad—cutting hair for these two lunatics? Cutting hair was fine, but…
Shen Miao’s finely arched brows knit together in disapproval as he looked at Shen Ping’an, but Ning Bizhen merely smiled brightly. “The night after tomorrow.”
After a brief pause in thought, he added, “And the performances?”
He didn’t give anyone else a chance to respond. Pointing a finger at the dog under the table, he said, “If you refuse, I’ll slaughter it.”
Shukui straightened up, arched its back, bared its teeth, and in the blink of an eye, expanded in size, overturning the dining table above it.
“Alright.”
Who said that? Lin Mengzhi’s eyes went wide—there’s a traitor!
Wu Heng felt Ning Bizhen glance at him. He didn’t lift his eyes, speaking evenly, “We can perform for Mr. Shen, but as the hosts, you need to handle our meals and lodging. We don’t have much money to stay at your base for a few more days.”
At that moment, Ning Bizhen’s full attention was on Shen Miao, who was still shaken by the dog. Without hesitation, he said, “Fine. I’ll have someone arrange it.”
After saying this, he glared at the dog once, then hurriedly took Shen Miao with him and left.
Before leaving, Shen Miao glanced back at everyone at the table with a complicated look, but it was quickly hidden as he was pulled away.
“Why are we going to cut his hair? Why are we going to perform for him?”
Ruan Silian ignored the noise of the world around her. She circled the table and reached the woman still slumped on the floor, helping her to stand. “Are you alright?”
Once the woman steadied herself, the man seated next to her also quickly got up to support her. But she suddenly grabbed Ruan Silian’s wrist, and her gaze was fixed instead on the long-haired youth who had just rescued her.
“You really plan to go to Mr. Shen’s birthday banquet… and cut his hair?” The woman’s face was as pale as paper. “Do you know what happened to the people who styled Mr. Shen’s hair before? They’re all dead!”
Several people looked toward Shen Ping’an, who returned the gaze to Wu Heng.
“Why does Ning Bizhen like Shen Miao so much? It seems like he’s lost all reason,” Dou Lu muttered in confusion.
The woman, along with a few servers, lifted the dining table that had been knocked over by the dog and gathered the bowls and chopsticks that had fallen. She seemed hesitant to speak at first, but eventually she said, “You really want to do this… knowing the risk?”
“Before the apocalypse, Emperor Ning was a fan of Mr. Shen. He attended every one of Mr. Shen’s stage plays, and at every business event, he would do everything he could to show up. Even on every flight Mr. Shen took, he would travel on the same plane.
At the very start of the apocalypse, they were both on a flight back to Hanzhou when the controls failed and the plane crashed. Everyone on board died—except Emperor Ning. Carrying Mr. Shen’s body, he walked toward Hanzhou. Along the way, Emperor Ning was parasitized by a mutated gu worm, which, as a result, saved Mr. Shen. Afterward, they returned to Hanzhou, and Emperor Ning has loved Mr. Shen ever since.”
“What kind of fan? Just a stalker. He never treated Mr. Shen as a person. If he truly loved him, could he have denied him freedom? Could he have implanted a gu worm in his body?” The man beside the woman scoffed at this so-called love.
“Don’t say that,” the woman whispered, warning him.
“So I advise you not to go. Emperor Ning’s obsession with Mr. Shen is extreme. He would do anything for him. No matter how skilled you are, he’ll never be satisfied,” she said.
“That’s all I have to say. Take care of yourselves.”
The woman grabbed the coat hanging on the chair and, linking arms with the man, left the dining hall.
Wu Heng stroked the dog’s head that had bumped against him, lost in thought.
“A’Heng, can you tell us why you agreed to Ning Bizhen’s request? I feel like he’s dangerous.”
Wu Heng slowly lowered his eyelids. “Isn’t it because we couldn’t get into the core area before? Now we can.”
Lin Mengzhi’s eyes blinked rapidly. “…Damn!”
“Mr. Shen… how pitiful.” Xue Zhi suddenly spoke up. “I think I remember this Ning Bizhen. He was on trending news once—because of a car incident involving Shen Miao. Shen Miao’s driver got scared and had an accident with Shen Miao in the car, but Ning Bizhen was unharmed and even received a so-called ‘heroic deed’ commendation. It was only later that Shen Miao’s fan club clarified: he wasn’t a hero at all, but the instigator of the accident.”
“Shen Miao must be disgusted right now,” Dou Lu said.
Considering the strange noises just now from the corner of the restaurant, everyone’s appetite disappeared. Being pinned down in public by a former stalker—
They were still young, and none of them could calmly accept something like that happening to themselves. At worst, it would end in an all-out confrontation.
“No wonder he kept helping us earlier. Mr. Shen is a good person,” someone murmured.
Wu Heng, however, had no interest in these people or their stories. He spotted a waiter and asked to have several steaks packed to take away.
Just as the waiter turned, a loud crash of shattering glass came from downstairs, followed immediately by a woman’s piercing scream that tore through everyone’s ears.
Everyone still in the restaurant rushed to part the plants on the terrace and peered down curiously.
A man in a suit lay face-down on the street below, completely motionless.
“Isn’t that the companion of the sister from earlier?” Xue Qi said, leaning on the damp terrace.
Soon, bright red blood began flowing from under the man, pooling around him, forming limbs and a head. After a few glances, it crawled quickly to the side, diving into a gap in the sewer grate and disappearing.
At that moment, the woman appeared next to him. She was a water-type ability user, capable of operating in Zone A; her level could hardly be low. Yet now, she could do nothing but kneel and cry uncontrollably.
“Ning Bizhen did this,” Xue Shen said as he climbed down from the terrace.
“What? Dare to act but not take responsibility?” Lin Mengzhi’s eyes were red. This struck him harder than many other things—it was Hanzhou, their home.
Looking out, the entire city was divided into strict hierarchies by towering walls. Mist drifted across the river, heavy vehicles roared across the bridges, and through it all, a woman’s heart-wrenching cries echoed. Most of those present felt a deep ache in their hearts, yet they had no choice but to submit to the law of the jungle that governed this world.
X and Betta were waiting in the hotel. X sprawled across the bed in a careless star shape while everyone else was away. Betta remained in its tank. Its tail, a gradated blue, was larger than its body and floated in the water like layers of gauze, while its body was a transparent pink. The blue fins and pink body blended seamlessly, creating an almost magical effect.
“Why is there so much water on the table?” Dou Lu noticed as she placed the packed food down, seeing the tablecloth soaked around the fish tank. “Qiu Li, do you throw tantrums in your sleep too?”
The betta fish leapt out of the tank, landing on the floor. The boy standing there bore several fresh scratches on his face—not deep, but clearly recent.
“That stinky bird did it.” After they left the hotel, X had crouched by the fish tank, using both its claws and beak to try and scoop the fish up to eat.
Wu Heng walked to the bed, bent down, and ran his hand over the unmoving bird—it was indeed wet.
“Time to eat,” he said expressionlessly.
X immediately sprang from the bed.
Wu Heng lightly smacked its beak.
X spread its wings and walked back and forth on the bed, as if challenging Wu Heng to a spar.
Nearby, Qiu Li opened the takeout container. In an instant, the bird leapt from the bed onto the table, mouth open, signaling Qiu Li to feed it.
Wu Heng sat down at the foot of the bed. Xue Shen leaned against the window. “It won’t be long. Ning Bizhen should send someone to fetch us soon.”
Dou Lu hugged a pillow while sitting on the carpet. “But there are plenty of people in the Hanzhou base. Are we really the only ones with talent? I don’t buy it. What we call ‘talent’… only Xue Zhi and Xue Qi are decent.”
Wu Heng pulled a handful of the restaurant’s dried meat from his pocket, munching as he spoke. “He has his own motives. We have ours. We’ll see what happens once we get in.”
“What if Ning Bizhen traps us all at once?”
“My and the class monitor’s abilities are higher than his. Leading you guys out shouldn’t be a problem,” Wu Heng said, glancing at Xie Chongyi.
Xie Chongyi lounged lazily on a nearby sofa. Catching Wu Heng’s gaze, he smiled faintly. “When disaster strikes, everyone flies solo.”
“Wow, Class Monitor, are you really just going to leave A’Heng to fend for himself?!” Lin Mengzhi exclaimed, hands on his hips in protest.
“I’m not looking out for you,” Xie Chongyi replied.
Xue Shen, undisturbed, continued, “The one in the most danger is Shen Ping’an. Shen Ping’an, watch yourself. This haircut isn’t going to be easy.”
Shen Ping’an was taking tools out of his bag, piece by piece. “I know.”
Dou Lu rolled her eyes, seemingly lost in thought. Suddenly, she flung the pillow she was holding, straightened her back, and her expression lit up. “Jing Ke assassinating the King of Qin?!”
Wu Heng walked past her and sat down on the same sofa as Xie Chongyi.
He murmured, “I want a quick battle—ideally within a month—to reach Deathlands.”
Xie Chongyi propped his hand against his temple, a faint smile playing on his lips. “And then?”
Wu Heng leaned closer to Xie Chongyi, his voice firm. “I want to have a home with you.”