Chapter 53: Dreamscape

Xia Mi’s throat was parched, but she didn’t drink. There was Zhuo in this bar, and she wasn’t about to consume any of the establishment’s beverages.

Seeing Xia Mi’s nosebleed, the male model quickly grabbed a pack of tissues and handed them to her. He even took her hand and said, “Let me take you to the restroom to clean up.”

He deliberately lowered his voice, making it sound seductive. As soon as Xia Mi heard it, her nosebleed became even more intense.

Qiu Hailan stepped between the two of them, pulling Xia Mi behind her. “It’s not convenient for you to enter the women’s restroom,” she said. “I’ll go with her.”

“The two of you…” The male model’s gaze shifted back and forth between Xia Mi and Qiu Hailan, asking with a hint of confusion, “Why did you come here?”

He had clearly misunderstood the nature of their relationship.

“We came to broaden our horizons. Is it any of your business?” Qiu Hailan snapped back, quickly pulling Xia Mi toward the restroom.

Group Leader Mi, meanwhile, told the male model to stay and keep her company. The model mentioned that booking him required ordering two thousand yuan worth of alcohol. Mi Xiangyan rolled her eyes and told him to bring several bottles over. The model sat down, looking delighted.

On the other side, Qiu Hailan helped Xia Mi into the restroom and helped her plug her nose. “You didn’t overextend your abilities,” she said, puzzled. “Why are you bleeding?”

Xia Mi waved her hand dismissively. “It’s not the ability. It’s just… a heat flush.”

Qiu Hailan leaned back in a tactical retreat, baffled. “That male model just now? Is he your type?”

“I don’t know,” Xia Mi admitted. “I used to like guys over 185 centimeters with long legs. Ideally with a square jaw, slightly tanned, rougher skin, and a rugged look.”

“Your aesthetic is a bit…” Qiu Hailan started.

Xia Mi pinched her nose. “Yeah, my taste is pretty much the same as my mother’s generation. You know Zhu Shimao¹ from ‘The Herdsman²‘? I like that kind of handsome guy. Solid and upright.”

“The trend now is ‘youthful vibes’ and ‘sexual tension,'” Qiu Hailan remarked. “Your taste doesn’t align with the mainstream.”

The nosebleed had slowed down. Xia Mi stuffed a tissue into her nostril and spoke with a nasal whine. “Who says it’s not mainstream? Didn’t the preferences of seventeen and eighteen-year-old girls forty years ago count as mainstream back then?”

Qiu Hailan thought about Liao Tianhua’s appearance. While there was a bit of a gap between Liao Tianhua and Xia Mi’s preferences, he wasn’t the typical “pretty boy” look popular today either. He was more rugged, so there was still hope. He was certainly better than that male model.

“Then why did you get a heat flush from that model?” she asked. “He’s pale and thin. His arms aren’t even as thick as mine. He’s just a pretty face, not your type at all.”

“Anyone with arms thicker than yours is probably an Olympic weightlifting champion,” Xia Mi countered. “Even Xiao Liao’s arms aren’t as thick as yours. I don’t know why, but my heart started racing the moment I saw that model. Do you think he’s wearing some kind of aphrodisiac cologne?”

“There’s no such thing. That model is a bit suspicious. He might be a host for Zhuo. Maybe you’re just craving the Zhuo Energy inside him?” Qiu Hailan guessed.

Xia Mi thought about it and found it plausible. “That’s actually possible. But I didn’t feel this way toward the True Self Mirror, and that thing had five hundred Zhuo Coins! Surely the Zhuo inside him can’t exceed the True Self Mirror?”

“Let’s head back and see,” Qiu Hailan said.

Xia Mi’s nose had stopped bleeding. The two washed their hands and returned to the bar, finding Mi Xiangyan at a table covered in bottles.

Xia Mi was speechless.

Seeing all that alcohol, Xia Mi instantly forgot about the male model. she leaned in next to Mi Xiangyan, bumping aside the fawning model with her hip, and whispered, “Sister, my dear lady, how much did this cost! Can we even get this reimbursed? Even if we can, you could have just ordered the minimum. Why did you order so much!”

Mi Xiangyan patted Xia Mi’s head and said with a smile, “We can only reimburse up to five hundred per person. But don’t worry, I’ll cover the excess. I have money.”

“Is your salary… that high?” Xia Mi whispered.

Mi Xiangyan leaned in. “My family is from Guangzhou. I have two apartment buildings under my name for rental income.”

Xia Mi fell silent.

Suddenly, she didn’t want to work hard anymore. Being kept by Group Leader Mi didn’t sound so bad.

Mi Xiangyan laughed. “I’ve never been to a place like this either. It’s worth ordering a bit more just for the experience.”

Qiu Hailan pushed away a male model who was trying to lean into Mi Xiangyan, looking displeased. “The makeup is too thick. I don’t like any of them. I like the scholarly type. Ideally wearing glasses, the kind of guy who looks like he gets top grades.”

The model beside her said, “Sister, whatever type you like, we have them.”

“I don’t like the ones who fake it. Do you know what the Mean Value Theorem is?” Qiu Hailan asked.

“N-no…” The model’s face turned pale at the question.

Qiu Hailan continued, “Then find me someone who can talk to me about the Gulf War.”

“Sister, your standards are too high,” the model said with a forced smile. “How about I just drink with you instead?”

On the other side, Xia Mi heard the familiar theorem. Reaching across Mi Xiangyan, she said to Qiu Hailan, “Xiao Qiu, you actually know the Mean Value Theorem?”

That was material from Advanced Mathematics. Qiu Hailan hadn’t attended a regular university, and their school’s curriculum didn’t include such subjects.

“I got a 147 on my college entrance math exam³,” Qiu Hailan explained. “I previewed some Advanced Math content after the exams. It’s a pity my sports performance was too good in high school. Both the provincial sports team and our school came to recruit me, so I didn’t go to a normal university.”

Since there were many people around, Qiu Hailan didn’t mention the police academy and kept her explanation vague.

“147?!” Xia Mi looked at Qiu Hailan as if she were a deity. In her heart, Qiu Hailan was no longer just “Xiao Qiu,” but “Scholar Qiu”!

Seeing Xia Mi getting sidetracked, Mi Xiangyan quickly tapped her to remind her they had business to attend to.

Xia Mi had no choice but to tuck away her admiration for Qiu Hailan. She scanned the bar, observing the crowd and searching for any trace of Zhuo.

Just then, the first male model placed a cocktail in her hand and said submissively, “Sister, have a drink.”

“Can’t afford it,” Xia Mi said bluntly. “Drinking this would make my heart ache and my wallet hurt. Even if Sister Mi is treating, I wouldn’t dare. You drink it.”

The male model took the glass and smiled. “You’re so honest, Sister. People usually come here pretending to be rich or experienced, but you’re the first one I’ve met who’s so straightforward. You’re very special.”

He kept calling her “Sister,” which made Xia Mi feel a bit uncomfortable.

Back when she liked her team members calling her “Sister Xia,” it wasn’t because she actually wanted to be an older sister figure. It was because she didn’t have an official title at the time. In reality, she would much rather hear people call her Captain Xia, Director Xia, or Commissioner Xia.

In the real world, Xia Mi was still just a recent graduate. Her mindset hadn’t shifted yet, so hearing someone call her “Sister” immediately triggered the doubt: Do I look that old?

She looked at the model and asked, “How old are you to be calling me ‘Sister’?”

“I’m eighteen,” the model replied. “Can’t I call you that?”

“Eighteen… Well, that is younger than me, but you…” Xia Mi looked him up and down. “Are you really eighteen?”

The bar lights were too dim and the model’s makeup was too thick for Xia Mi to judge his age at a glance. Now that he was close, she noticed his proportions were incredibly slender, like a young boy. Judging by his build alone, she would have believed he was sixteen.

The model laughed. “I’m eighteen, an adult. You can call me Xiao Feng, Sister.”

“I see it. It’s on your name tag.” Xia Mi pointed to the tag pinned to Xiao Feng’s shirt, which had “XiaoFeng” written in Pinyin.

“You’re so cool, Sister.” Xiao Feng leaned in closer to Xia Mi, his slender waist brushing against her.

Xia Mi felt like her nose was about to bleed again. She quickly stood up and pulled Xiao Feng over to Mi Xiangyan’s side. “She’s the one who ordered the drinks and she’s the one paying. Talk to her.”

She was about to become a permanent employee; she didn’t need to be subjected to this kind of temptation.

Xia Mi circled the table and sat down next to Qiu Hailan. Leaning against Qiu Hailan’s tall, sturdy frame made her feel much more at ease.

Qiu Hailan whispered, “Feel anything?”

Xia Mi shook her head. “I didn’t sense any Zhuo Coins, but I did notice that kid’s waist is really thin… No, I mean, this bar might be employing minors. We should check Xiao Feng’s age.”

“A kid?” Qiu Hailan glanced at Xiao Feng and said to Xia Mi, “His vibe is actually quite mature.”

“Probably from spending too much time in the nightlife scene,” Xia Mi said. “I didn’t find any signs of ‘Zhuo’. Is it really here?”

“Group Leader Mi has the detector,” Qiu Hailan replied.

The two of them looked toward Group Leader Mi, who was surrounded by a group of male models.

Mi Xiangyan glanced at the stage in the center of the bar and said to Xia Mi, “That’s the center of desire. Go check it out.”

Lights flashed over the stage as a crowd of men and women danced in the center, releasing the stress of their day.

Xia Mi stood up and walked toward the stage. Xiao Feng immediately followed her. “Sister, let me dance with you.”

“I can dance by myself,” Xia Mi said, taking a step back.

Xiao Feng grabbed her hand and pressed his body close to hers. “It’s the rule of the stage. You have to have a partner.”

Xia Mi looked around and saw that every lady indeed had a male model accompanying her. If a customer didn’t know how to dance, they just had to sway a bit, and the models would revolve around them.

Without giving her a chance to argue, Xiao Feng pulled Xia Mi onto the stage.

The moment she stepped onto the floor, Xia Mi felt the energy.

The eyes of almost everyone in the bar were fixed on the central stage. In the middle of the platform, a vortex of desire, invisible to the naked eye, was slowly forming.

Xia Mi realized that the “Zhuo” here wasn’t parasitic on any specific person. It was formless and traceless, wandering through the bar and absorbing emotional energy with the stage as its focal point. Once enough energy accumulated, the “Zhuo” would open its nest and envelop the entire bar.

She couldn’t see the vortex, but she could feel its existence through the shifts in energy.

As long as she absorbed the energy of this vortex, the “Zhuo” would vanish, and the people in the bar would be safe.

Xia Mi stood still in the center of the stage. The lighting was dim, so it was unlikely anyone would see the “Silkworms” she was about to release.

She adjusted the silk threads to be extremely fine and as transparent as possible. At this point, even a high-definition camera would struggle to capture these nearly invisible strands.

Countless silk threads surged from Xia Mi’s hands, snaring the invisible vortex.

This was a “Zhuo” large enough to consume the entire bar. Stimulated by alcohol, the desire levels of the people here were far higher than those in Building 6. The energy contained within this vortex was actually greater than what she had found there.

If this nest were allowed to fully form, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Xia Mi focused on devouring the vortex, while Xiao Feng circled her, intimately pressing his chest against her back. “It’s okay if you don’t know how to dance, Sister. Just move with me.”

Xia Mi didn’t have time for him. She waved her hands aimlessly a couple of times, her mind entirely focused on her work.

Mi Xiangyan and Qiu Hailan noticed Xia Mi’s serious expression. To protect her and draw away attention, they both stepped onto the stage with their own models. Qiu Hailan’s tall stature immediately drew most of the eyes in the room.

Xia Mi took the opportunity to put all her strength into absorbing the vortex.

A force within the vortex tugged back, attempting to swallow the power within her body.

However, the “Zhuo” inside the vortex was no match for Xia Mi. Not only was it unable to consume her power, but the energy it had painstakingly gathered was being steadily devoured by her instead.

Meanwhile, Xiao Feng wrapped his arms around Xia Mi’s waist, dancing intimately with her.

He whispered in her ear, “Sister, I felt a special connection the moment I saw you. Is this love at first sight?”

Xia Mi ignored him.

Xiao Feng continued, “Sister, you feel it too, don’t you?”

At his words, something inside Xia Mi’s body seemed to leap with joy. This joy transmitted to her heart, and her power suddenly surged.

The “Silkworm” acted like a black hole, rapidly draining the vortex’s energy. Xia Mi did a quick estimate; it was roughly 700 Zhuo Coins’ worth of energy.

Having completed the task with ease, Xia Mi’s gaze fell upon Xiao Feng.

Xiao Feng’s watery eyes were gazing intently at her. As their eyes met, Xia Mi’s heart skipped a beat. She felt those eyes were somehow familiar.

It was as if she had seen them before in a dream.

At that moment, Mi Xiangyan leaned in and asked, “Still dancing?”

Xia Mi snapped back to reality and gave Mi Xiangyan a subtle nod, signaling that the issue had been resolved. She then said, “It’s boring. I don’t like it here. Let’s go.”

The three of them stepped off the stage. Mi Xiangyan went to settle the bill while Qiu Hailan and Xia Mi waited for her nearby.

Xiao Feng pestered them again. He asked, “Sister, do you really think it’s not interesting at all here? Am I not good enough either?”

Qiu Hailan replied, “You’re not her type.”

Xiao Feng ignored Qiu Hailan and continued to gaze intently at Xia Mi.

Xia Mi rejected him ruthlessly. “I have no money and can’t afford to keep you. Even if I did have money, I wouldn’t be willing to spend it on you. You can move on to the next person.”

Xiao Feng smiled slightly. “Sister, I don’t care about money. I only care about the vibe. You’re nothing like the people I’ve met before. Do you really feel nothing for me?”

Strictly speaking, Xia Mi did feel a little something, but that spark couldn’t compare to her work, her position, her discipline, or her future.

So, Xia Mi said with extreme coldness, “Nothing.”

Just then, Mi Xiangyan finished paying, and the three of them walked out without a backward glance.

Liao Tianhua was pacing anxiously outside with his team. Seeing the three of them emerge, he hurried over, angling his face to show his best profile to Xia Mi. “How did it go?” he asked.

“Resolved,” Mi Xiangyan said. “We’ll have a debriefing meeting tomorrow. It’s late now; everyone should go back and get some rest.”

As the group was about to leave, Xiao Feng ran out of the bar with his phone in hand, catching up to Xia Mi. “Sister, can we add each other on WeChat just to chat?”

It was already the end of December, and the outdoor temperature at night dropped as low as zero degrees Celsius. Xiao Feng was wearing only a thin white shirt, looking pitiful in the biting winter wind, the tip of his nose frozen red.

He looked up at Xia Mi, his eyes full of expectation.

In a momentary lapse of judgment, Xia Mi thought there was no harm in adding him just to chat. Under Liao Tianhua’s fuming gaze, she took out her phone and scanned Xiao Feng’s QR code.

Back in the car, Liao Tianhua glared at Xia Mi. “Xiao Xia, what are you doing?”

Xia Mi gave a sheepish laugh. “Captain Liao, we shouldn’t practice professional discrimination. Making a friend doesn’t violate any principles, right?”

Liao Tianhua’s heart ached. He clutched his chest for a moment, and after some self-healing, he reminded her, “It’s not professional discrimination. It’s just that the atmosphere in their industry isn’t good. I’m afraid you’ll get addicted and it’ll affect your career path.”

“Absolutely not!” Xia Mi promised. “I just saw how young he is and planned to persuade him to turn back from his wrong path. He said he’s only eighteen. It’s so pitiful to be in this line of work at such an age. If I can convince him to walk the right path, it counts as a good deed, doesn’t it?”

Liao Tianhua’s chest felt tight; he didn’t want to speak.

It was Qiu Hailan who comforted him. “You don’t need to worry about Xia Mi. She doesn’t like anyone under 185 centimeters. That male model just now was only 179 at most, definitely not 1.8 meters. He’s not her type.”

Captain Liao, who was only 182cm tall, felt even more dejected.

Due to Captain Liao’s silence, the group returned to their quarters without another word.

Xia Mi was on duty today. She lay on the bed in the standby room, a sweet fragrance lingering at the tip of her nose, likely the scent of perfume from the bar.

Accompanied by this sweet scent, she slept until the middle of the night, when she suddenly jolted awake, drenched in sweat.

What… what kind of dream was that!

She was too embarrassed to even say it out loud!

In her dream, she and Xiao Feng, whom she had just met, had done this and that. The level of explicitness was appalling!

Xia Mi shook her head, trying hard to flush the dream from her mind.

Just then, her phone lit up.

It was a message from Xiao Feng.

XiaoFeng: [Sister, I just dreamed about you.]

Xia Mi stared at the message for a while, then deleted it, tossed her phone aside, and ran to the shower to take a cold bath.

After the cold shower, she felt refreshed, and the dream from earlier was washed away by the icy water.

Xia Mi sent a message to Liao Tianhua: [Captain Liao, I want to see your current pay stub as a reference to see how much I’ll be making in the future.]

It was past three in the morning, but Liao Tianhua replied almost instantly, quickly sending over an image.

Liao Tianhua: [Salaries are confidential and can’t be disclosed externally. Also, we’ve added a special duty allowance – the superpower subsidy – so the pay is much higher now.]

Xia Mi counted the five digits of Liao Tianhua’s salary, then looked at the amount of the new special duty allowance. Her heart gradually settled.

She replied: [Captain Liao, you’re the best! I absolutely love your salary figures!]

After replying, Xia Mi opened a video of a leadership speech, placed her phone by her pillow, and fell asleep listening to the leader’s words.

This time, there was no erotic pink in her dreams, only the red of justice, the red of the national flag, the red of China!

Translator’s Notes