Chapter 70: Superstar

In the afternoon, it wasn’t quite evening yet, but the sky had already grown cooler and a bit gloomy.

Inside the Bai Family Courtyard, Zhang Butler and Li Butler were setting up summer decorations. Each led a group of people, facing off in the garden.

“Second Young Miss prefers tranquility and advocates for simplicity and elegance. The design should be refined and carefully trimmed. Not only does this make the garden cooler and more ventilated, but it also reduces the noise of bothersome cicadas and birds.”

Li Butler struck first, stating his point.

Zhang Butler chuckled and refused to back down:

“Eldest Miss is in her youthful prime, and besides, midsummer is the season when all things grow. The garden should be a riot of blooming flowers.”

“As for your talk of coolness and ventilation, that’s the job of the house structure, air conditioners, and air circulators. The garden should look beautiful. Cicada and bird calls can’t even be heard inside the house.”

Do you even understand the gold standard of soundproofing personally verified by Second Young Miss?

Three girls walked up from a small path nearby. Both sides were too focused to notice.

“What are they doing?”

Su Qingyu asked, a bit curious.

“Ignore them,”

Bai Xiaoya whispered.

“Let them argue as long as they want.”

That’s how housekeepers were.

The Eldest Miss and Second Young Miss only needed to pretend to be at odds on the surface while secretly rolling around in bed together, but the housekeepers had much more to worry about.

In the living room, only Mr. Bai sat watching TV.

When he noticed his daughter and her best friend returning, he looked puzzled.

“Weren’t you going to the water park?”

“We bought swimsuits first,”

Bai Xiaoya lifted her shopping bag.

“Just came back for a bit.”

“Oh, then you’re heading to your room, right.”

Mr. Bai smiled.

“Keep your voices down when you go upstairs. Don’t let your mom find out. I’ll cover for you.”

“…Okay.”

Wait, why did they need to hide it from Madam Bai?

Never mind, it wasn’t important. Get back to the room to discuss business.

Still Bai Xiaoya’s room—a spacious girl’s boudoir perfect for everything, including secret meetings.

Bai Xia entered last, locking the door with a magician’s flick, adding a little something extra to make sure it couldn’t be opened from the outside even with a key.

The other two girls arranged the small sofa, unfolded a table, and sat together around it.

“Was it those people from before?”

Bai Xiaoya asked as soon as she sat down.

Su Qingyu and Bai Xia both nodded.

“…Seriously.”

Xiao Ya felt drunk. She could tell the other side’s real target wasn’t her.

When she was caught last time, she’d eavesdropped at the door and heard someone say they’d caught the wrong person.

But now it was her again.

“Could they have made another mistake?”

Bai Xiaoya half-joked.

“After all, they’ve done it before.”

But Bai Xia shook her head seriously.

“No, this time there was no mistake.”

Su Qingyu spoke in a heavy tone.

“This was a warning, and also meant to restrain us.”

Compared to the two of them, who possessed Mysterious Items and considerable fighting power, the big-breasted, weak, pitiful, and helpless girl looked far easier to target.

Although the Sen Kui Squad’s operation failed, their detailed plan had been recorded before the mission even started.

Everyone knew that the Magic Flute, Su Qingyu, had a beautiful, big-chested girlfriend—soft and easy to bully—who could be tricked away with just a little effort.

And Su Qingyu cherished her, willing to risk everything to save her.

So…

“This is a threat to keep us from acting freely and to distract us.”

Su Qingyu saw through the Association’s ploy immediately.

It was an obvious scheme, but very effective.

Bai Xiaoya timidly raised her hand.

“What exactly did they do to me?”

Bai Xia shook her head and looked at Su Qingyu, meaning—you’ve had professional training, you should understand, right?

Su Qingyu pulled out her phone, just like last time.

“I’ll make a call.”

She sought help again from the Archives Department.

***

Inside the Juzi, the man who’d caused chaos in the mall was being interrogated.

“Name.”

“Zhang… Zhang Dongliang.”

“Age.”

“35.”

“Gender.”

“Male.”

“Motive.”

At this question, the man hesitated.

He’d only regained consciousness a short while ago.

His mind remembered what he’d done, but at the time, it felt like he was dreaming—hazy, muddled, just following along with the dream.

Now, fully awake, he could only clutch his head and question himself—why would I dare do something like that!

But it wasn’t himself asking—the interrogator was a police officer.

“Explain. Why did you do it?”

If he had to answer, it was like being in a dream state at the time.

A super cute, big-breasted beauty appeared before his eyes, and nothing else mattered.

Like being bewitched, an old song echoed in his mind—

You are light, you are electricity, you are the only myth.

And then…

“I wasn’t thinking straight. I was too impulsive.”

He said cautiously.

***

Su Qingyu made a rather long phone call.

When she returned, she sat down and took three sips of warm water.

She drank from Bai Xiaoya’s cup.

Bai Xia raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.

Business came first—she’d let it slide for now.

“I checked. There are many Mysterious Items capable of producing such effects.”

Su Qingyu handed the cup back to Bai Xiaoya, flashing a sweet smile.

Drinking your water is sweet.

Bai Xia coughed lightly, signaling her to stay on topic.

“Long story short, if the item was used on that man, there are plenty of possibilities. He looked like a drunken thug, so even the lowest-grade Drunken Madness could fit—it puts people into a drunken state. But if it was aimed at A Ya, there aren’t many options.”

Su Qingyu tapped her phone and placed it on the table for everyone to see.

“I think this is the most likely one.”

Bai Xiaoya leaned in. On the phone’s screen was an object that looked like a camera.

“I think I’ve seen that before.”

“You definitely have,”

Bai Xia said gravely.

“When we left the swimsuit shop, someone upstairs used this to take your photo.”

Su Qingyu had pointed it out at the time, but they hadn’t gotten a good look at the person.

Bai Xiaoya picked up the phone from the table and scrolled down to read the description.

[Heavenly Superstar: A dangerous-level Mysterious Item. Sets the photographed subject as a super-popular idol, with the area of effect radiating from the camera’s maximum shooting distance (537 meters).]

[Effective targets: People within range without a clear purpose—such as those out for a walk, walking a dog, shopping without the intention to buy, wandering aimlessly not knowing what to eat, or killing time watching short videos… etc.]

[Effect: Those affected develop a fanatic obsession with the “super-popular idol” and behave irrationally. Note: Requires a certain activation time, and is influenced by the subject’s willpower and resistance to the mysterious.]

It was obvious that Zhang Dongliang was a person of weak will—he was the first in the entire mall to be affected.

The moment the photo was taken above, he went mad below.

Bai Xiaoya studied it for a long time, then asked an important question.

“How long does it last?”

“About an hour. But as long as you go outside, they can always find a chance to take your picture.”