The simple yet luxurious decor suggested a preference for a minimalist style. The room was devoid of unnecessary ornaments, with each item placed precisely where it belonged.
It possessed a metallic texture, appearing somewhat stark yet comfortable.
The person on the bed had their head wrapped in bandages, with a large cartoon bandage plastered on their face. They lay quietly under the covers, clutching a pillow tightly. Their slightly curled hair, disheveled from sleep, stuck out in various directions.
Beside the bed, someone sat on a sofa not far from the bed, silently watching the person on the bed. They held a glass of wine, its red liquid swirling gently within.
As if sensing they were being watched for a long time, the person on the bed furrowed their brow and slowly opened their eyes.
Wen Bai's vision shifted from blurry to clear, and he met the gaze of the person opposite him.
The person on the sofa drained their glass of wine and asked naturally, "Awake? How do you feel?"
Wen Bai dazedly reached up to touch the wound on his forehead, feeling the gauze wrapped around it, and frowned.
The other person let out a chuckle, stood up, put down the glass, and came to the bedside.
Bending down, they gently pinched Wen Bai's chin between their index finger and thumb, lifting it to examine him closely. "There are glass shards inside the wound. It will hurt more if not treated promptly."
This was the first time Wen Bai had seen the face of the person in front of him clearly and soberly. Their first meeting had been in a dimly lit bar, and yesterday he had fainted before getting a good look.
Slender eyebrows, a straight nose. Each feature, viewed individually, seemed exquisitely sculpted and visually striking. Together, they created an exceptionally gentle appearance. A smile made it incredibly easy to let down one's guard. Such a face could easily gain someone's trust.
Up close, it was even more so, slowly overlapping with the person in his memory.
Wen Bai couldn't help but turn his head away, his gaze inadvertently falling on a metal tray not far away. It held blood, gauze, and a pair of small tweezers.
After a brief pause, he threw off the thin quilt and got up, heading straight for the door before the man could react.
The man lightly rubbed his index finger and thumb and turned around. "Leaving already?"
Wen Bai nodded.
The man raised an eyebrow, watching the person about to leave with amusement. "Not even a word of thanks?"
Wen Bai's hand fell on the doorknob, and without hesitation, he said, "Thank you."
With that, he turned the doorknob.
"Then I won't see you out."
Before the door closed, this sentence drifted from inside.
The house appeared to be very large. The room he was in was at the end of the corridor. Wen Bai walked through the long corridor, heading out. The immense house was eerily silent, with no other people encountered.
However, in such quietness, the slightest sound became remarkably clear.
"Thump, thump, thump..."
A faint sound emerged.
"Thump, thump, thump... Thump, thump, thump..."
The rhythmic knocking grew louder, as if someone was banging on a door.
He traversed the corridor and descended the stairs.
From this position, he could see the main door downstairs. Opening it meant he could leave.
The "thump, thump, thump" sound continued. Wen Bai tilted his head to listen closely; it was coming from the first floor, the rhythm becoming more urgent.
Wen Bai descended the stairs step by step. He was still feeling a bit dizzy, so he walked exceptionally slowly.
Once downstairs, he glanced back. The man hadn't come out and was likely still in the room.
Ignoring the increasingly urgent knocking behind him, he simply opened the main door and left.
Stepping outside, he realized it was a villa.
He hadn't expected this person to be so wealthy.
Wen Bai patted his pocket. The 200 yuan was still there. The sky was beginning to lighten.
Wen Bai asked coldly, "Who was he?"
"A friend of a friend of the male lead, named Su Ying. He's a doctor. He appeared here tonight because he was passing by on an emergency call. As an edge character in this world, far from the protagonists, other information is unknown."
"Unknown?"
"Because I'm being pursued, my permissions have been revoked, and much information cannot be accessed. However, as long as the plot deviates from the main characters, I can hack into this world's database, obtain more information, and gain permissions for future worlds."
After a brief silence, Wen Bai concluded, "So you can't do anything right now?"
This time, it was the system's turn to be silent. It was the first time in its existence that it had been questioned like this, even when it had been lazy. But this was an undeniable fact.
The atmosphere became heavy. Wen Bai, as if unaffected, did not dwell on the topic. "Do I have a job?"
The system, eager to salvage its image in the eyes of its fugitive partner, immediately responded enthusiastically, "You had two jobs before. You worked as a waiter in a restaurant during the day and at a bar at night. The day before you arrived, your father went to the restaurant where you worked as a waiter and caused trouble, taking your wages. The restaurant fired you. However, he didn't find where you worked at night. You still have unpaid wages there, and today is payday!"
The system finished in one breath, awaiting some praise from Wen Bai.
Wen Bai simply and coolly asked for the address.
Arriving at the bar where the original owner worked, it was daytime, and there were few people inside. Only one person was cleaning the seats, the floor looking freshly scrubbed with water stains.
The lively establishment of the night, stripped of its nocturnal charm and lighting, appeared desolate in the daylight.
"I've come to collect my wages. Who should I see?" Wen Bai asked the cleaner directly.
The cleaner looked at Wen Bai with surprise.
The original owner had lived cautiously, fearing that any offense might cost him his job, always smiling at everyone. To others, he seemed like a person who was amiable to all.
Why was he speaking so sharply today?
The cleaner, feeling perplexed, pointed inside.
Wen Bai, having gotten his answer, walked in.
The cleaner muttered to himself, "So impolite too. Did he eat something wrong?"
Wen Bai was unaware of the cleaner's thoughts. He was only here to collect what was rightfully his.
He walked into an inner room. The door was ajar. Indeed, someone was inside, as discordant sounds could be heard as Wen Bai approached.
Wen Bai's steps halted, his brow furrowed deeply. He was just here to get his wages, and he had to encounter this?
"Brother Tianzong... you promise... don't forget what you promised me," a soft male voice said.
"At a time like this, you're still thinking of other things? It seems I'm not trying hard enough," a teasing, deep voice replied.
What followed were various unpleasant sounds.
The other voice could no longer form a complete sentence.
Wen Bai did not disturb them, leaning against the wall and waiting impatiently.
"Host, you're just standing here?"
"I haven't gotten my money yet."
"Won't it be bad if you're discovered?"
"No."
"That's good, because you've already been discovered."
"..."
Upon hearing this, Wen Bai looked towards the ajar door. He saw that the two people inside had switched positions at some point. From this angle, he could see a bare back and a man facing him, revealing half his face. The expression was filled with lust, his wild and predatory gaze fixed on Wen Bai, as if Wen Bai were the object of his desire.
This gaze made Wen Bai uncomfortable. He shifted his position so that the people inside couldn't see him.
When the sounds inside finally stopped, the door opened, and a young man walked out, meeting Wen Bai's gaze.
Although they had never met, the man looked somewhat familiar.
The young man glanced at Wen Bai from the corner of his eye, challenging him with the gaze of a victor.
Wen Bai, bewildered, ignored the man and prepared to go in to collect his wages.
"Damn, this guy's eyes look so much like yours!"
Wen Bai: "..."
It was a wide path, yet the man deliberately bumped into Wen Bai's shoulder.
Wen Bai, already injured, saw stars and reached out to steady himself against the wall.
This body was truly too weak.
Recalling the system's words and the man's expression while he was engaged in that act, Wen Bai walked in with a grim expression.
The man's shirt was open, revealing his wild physique and the muscles on his chest.
The scent still lingered. Wen Bai hesitated for a second, contemplating leaving. Then he remembered he only had 200 yuan in his pocket...
Wen Bai decisively spoke, "I'm here to collect my wages."
The man's playful gaze lingered on Wen Bai, noticing the prominently bandaged head. "Oh? I thought you had other business."
Yes, there was indeed other business.
Watching the man casually open a drawer, he took out a small stack of money and pushed it across the table. "What happened to your head? How did you get hurt?"
Wen Bai took the money and quickly counted it, answering the question with a non-sequitur, "I quit, by the way."
"001, did he shortchange me?" He wasn't sure of the original owner's salary.
"Host, no, it looks like a little extra."
"Hmm?" As long as it wasn't less, Wen Bai put the money in his pocket, lest the man change his mind.
The man leaned closer, reaching out to cup Wen Bai's head. "Who did this?"
His voice held a hint of anger.
Wen Bai calmly looked at him. "My dad."
"001, was the original owner friends with him?"
001 quickly replied, "The original owner had no friends."
That was good. He wasn't good at handling such relationships either.
Wen Bai couldn't understand what the man wanted. He nimbly pulled away from the man's grasp. "Since there's nothing else, I'll be going now."
Ji Tianzong watched the person who was so intent on leaving. His mood, which had been good after his satisfaction, plummeted.
Without a second thought, he reached out and grabbed Wen Bai, who was about to leave. "Why are you thinking of quitting? Don't you need money?"
Wen Bai was somewhat annoyed. Why was this man being so persistent? "I don't like this kind of environment. It's too noisy."
Besides, he always encountered strange people who made him angry.
Most importantly, he had a mission. He didn't like being in such a passive situation.
Ji Tianzong smiled. "That's easy. You don't have to be a host. You can work inside. It's quiet here, and your salary will be double."