Chapter 44
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Chapter 44: Gaining Respect
“Just bear with it for now. She’s my boss’s daughter—I can’t exactly kick her out.” Heli patted Mi Xiaoliu’s head reassuringly. “Don’t be sad, you don’t smell at all. She’s just talking nonsense.”
“You’re saying that to my face?” Gloria scoffed, tossing Mi Xiaoliu’s bedding onto the floor before snatching the fresh set Heli had prepared. “And don’t tell my mom I’m here. As for that kid—if he dares get near me while I’m asleep again, I’ll castrate him.”
“Mmm.” Heli nodded, watching her leave.
Then, without hesitation, she pulled out her phone and dialed the board chairman directly:
“Your daughter is in my custody.”
Silence. Maybe bad reception?
Just as Heli was about to hang up and redial, a response finally came:
“I knew you were up to no good. How much do you want?”
Heli: “??”
It took half the day to explain and salvage her job, but the chairman showed no intention of retrieving her daughter—just instructing Heli to keep Gloria from running off for the next two days, even granting her a temporary leave.
Though tempted by the extortion opportunity, Heli knew the difference between a one-time payout and long-term benefits.
Scooping up the cat, she guided Mi Xiaoliu to the desk in her room and pulled out an elementary textbook. “Your homeroom teacher mentioned your… academic situation. Tell me to tutor you when I can.”
Since she delivered meals to Mi Xiaoliu daily, the whole class assumed she was family.
The second-grade material confirmed her suspicions: while unfamiliar, it wasn’t the utter gibberish Gao Hongsheng had described.
Thirteen years old, but education halted at seven. Not too late to catch up.
Bridging the gap from elementary to middle school would be tough, but not impossible—Mi Xiaoliu showed no resistance to learning.
She was a blank slate, indifferent to concepts like fun or boring, absorbing whatever was taught without feline defiance.
Heli turned to Circle (Quanquan), who’d been meowing resentfully since she’d dragged Mi Xiaoliu away from that near-mouse snack.
As a researcher, she knew how to discipline a cat.
From her pocket came a three-mira laser pointer. A flick of the red dot, and the cat’s pupils dilated in instant obsession. Now, to teach it the futility of pursuit—
“Slap!”
A small hand smacked where the dot had been—Mi Xiaoliu’s right palm.
Bewildered, she watched the dot “jump” onto her hand.
Heli: “…”
This was supposed to train the cat.
Following the plan, Mi Xiaoliu caught the dot by covering the emitter, then mimed eating it. Strangely, alongside the cat’s begrudging respect, she seemed to regard Heli with newfound awe too.
“Sleep alone tonight. I’m pulling an all-nighter.”
Despite the leave, her work wasn’t just for money.
“Smelly.” Mi Xiaoliu pointed at the smoke-infested bedding Gloria had dumped on the chair.
“Use mine. I’ll wash yours tomorrow.”
Only then did Mi Xiaoliu remove her glasses and Demon Eye Killer (Lenses).
Heli’s brow arched at the lenses. “Mind if I study these?”
Silence. Just those eerie, beautiful eyes staring back.
“I’ll pay you one—no, five hundred mira.” She fanned out the bills.
The Demon Eye Killer (Lenses) were promptly surrendered.
Yet under scrutiny, they seemed… ordinary.
“So,” Heli ventured, “thoughts on that big sister?”
“Hate her.”
“Her personality is grating…” Nodding, Heli turned off the light. “Sleep early. I’ll walk you to school.”
Back in the living room, she tossed the lenses into a case and uncorked a vial of murky liquid.
Like I have time for cosmetic research.
—
April’s night—neither cold nor hot—was perfect for strolls.
Thanks to Tian Xing Dao (Uphold Justice on the Behalf of Heaven)’s sabotage, municipal funds and donations were funneled into repairing surveillance cameras. Yet no matter how durable or discreet, the vigilantes’ ability users always found and destroyed them.
Result? Neglected public fixtures, like the broken bridge lamp now contributing to a drunkard’s plunge into the shallow creek below.
A crowd gathered on the bridge, watching the flailing man. No one intervened—no law mandated risking hypothermia for strangers.
Jim, passing by, glanced over and snorted disdainfully.
Who drowns in 1.4-meter-deep water?
He pulled out his phone to check the time—
“9:53 PM, Fanzui City, XX Bridge. Astonishing—a crowd watches impassively as a man struggles underwater, the chilly spring wind mirroring society’s indifference. Let’s interview a bystander—”
A glamorous reporter shoved a mic in his face. “Sir, why are you just spectating?”
“Huh?” Jim blinked.
Didn’t someone call the police?
“Have you considered that before help arrives, the victim might exhaust himself or cramp? While someone suffers, you treat this as entertainment—”
Jim flushed crimson.
“Earlier, you reached for your phone. Were you planning to film and upload this?”
“I was checking the—”
“Ah, timing how long he’d last?”
Pre-recorded segments allowed… creative editing. In a ratings-driven industry, ethics could wait until her career took off.
Stammering, Jim suddenly sprinted and leapt—
—splashing spectacularly into the 1.4-meter depths, flailing alongside the drunkard while screaming for help.
By the time rescuers arrived, the female reporter had vanished. His Durian 14 was waterlogged (Hopefully salvageable), and all he wanted was a hot bath.
Shivering, he barely noticed the masked girl blocking his path.
“Hey.” Her voice was hushed. “Saw your heroic dive. You’ve got a justice streak, right? Ever heard of Tian Xing Dao?”
“Tian Xing Dao?”
“Not interested.” Jim turned away.
“No opinion on the ‘Uncrowned Kings’ and their moral blackmail?” She jogged after him, certain assets bouncing prominently.
(“Uncrowned Kings”—an old moniker for media elites who once monopolized public opinion.)
Jim’s gaze locked onto the assets. “Actually… I’m very interested.”
