Antique Shop Zero: Disfigured School Beauty Becomes a Succubus to Pay Off Debts

Currently reading: Chapter 239 Cao Ye's Mistress, latest chapters available here.

Early morning, Anomaly Management Bureau, Director's office.

The smoke was so thick it resembled an impenetrable fog, piling up layer upon layer under the ceiling and lingering for a long time.

Cao Ye leaned back in his chair and smoked one cigarette after another.

The battle from tonight was playing on a loop on the big screen.

Ghost soldiers, blood-dripping guillotines, Prince Heng's head suspended in mid-air, and the black figure sitting on the throne in the dark clouds.

The images kept switching back and forth, each frame like a needle pricking his eyes.

He picked up the remote and pressed the pause button.

The screen freezes on the moment when the twilight raises the flintlock pistol.

That hand held the gun steadily, the muzzle flashing a crimson red like blood.

Cao Ye exhaled a deep puff of smoke and rubbed his temples.

The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were particularly clear under the light, like dried-up riverbeds.

"The Imperial Preceptor...the son-in-law of the Eastern Heavenly Emperor."

Dusk...The Human Emperor...

What can I, a mere mortal, possibly use to fight them?

"boom--"

The door was kicked open roughly, the lock flew off, hit the wall twice, and made a piercing metallic clang.

Cao Ye didn't even raise his head.

There's only one person in the entire bureau who would do something so reckless.

Li Mingyue.

He looked up, but paused for a moment.

Besides Li Mingyue, there is also Bai Lu.

Bai Lu stood half a step behind Li Mingyue, her expression a complex mess, a mixture of doubt, anger, and barely concealed disappointment.

Li Mingyue walked to the desk in a few steps, placed her hands on the table, leaned forward, and stared coldly at Cao Ye.

Those eyes were like two knives, piercing straight at you.

"Chief, could you please clear up my confusion?"

Cao Ye glanced at Bai Lu behind Li Mingyue: "Close the door."

Bai Lu's suspicion and hostility deflated like a punctured balloon when she saw Cao Ye's tired face.

She lowered her head and walked to the door.

With a "click," the latch returned to its original position.

Li Mingyue pulled out a chair and sat down. Crossing your legs, arms crossed over your chest:

"Tell me, how did Prince Heng know Zhang Lina's location?"

Cao Ye lit a cigarette, took a drag, and slowly exhaled the smoke from his nostrils.

"I told Prince Heng."

His tone was so calm, as if he were talking about something completely ordinary.

Bai Lu suddenly raised her head, her pupils contracted sharply, and the color drained from her face in an instant:

"So, you really are a spy for the Taiping Dao? How could you!"

Her voice was trembling.

It wasn't fear, it was anger, the chill that seeped into your bones after being betrayed.

She had worked with Cao Ye for so many years, regarding the Bureau of Abnormal Affairs as a faith, and Cao Ye as the embodiment of that faith.

A hint of panic flashed in Li Mingyue's eyes, but she quickly suppressed it.

If the Bureau of Abnormal Affairs is a giant, then Cao Ye is the backbone of that giant.

Now, that spine is broken.

This is a devastating blow to the Bureau of Abnormal Affairs.

She tried to remain calm, but her voice was still a little tighter than usual:

"So, you ultimately killed Prince Heng because you were afraid he would expose you?"

Cao Ye flicked his cigarette ash, and the grayish-white ash fell into the ashtray, crumbling into powder.

"Yes." He paused. "After all, this has a significant impact on my career."

Li Mingyue's eyes widened, and it took her a long time to squeeze out a sentence:

"You still have the nerve to think about your career in government?"

This is the first time I've ever seen someone as shameless as you!

No wonder you always target dusk, it turns out you're a henchman of the Taiping Dao!

You keep telling me all those grand principles, but it's all for your own benefit!

What benefits did the Taiping Dao actually give you?!

Bai Lu reached out and tugged at Li Mingyue's sleeve:

"Mingyue, don't get agitated, let him explain."

She looked at Cao Ye, her eyes filled with a last glimmer of hope:

"He confessed to his crimes so easily... perhaps he had some hidden reasons."

Li Mingyue took a deep breath, crossed her arms, and leaned back.

"Okay. I'll hear what you have to say."

Cao Ye rubbed his temples, stood up, and picked up his coat draped over the back of the chair.

"I haven't come up with a reason yet." He draped his coat over his arm. "I'll tell you when I've thought of one tomorrow."

Li Mingyue stared at him in astonishment.

Wait...wait until you've come up with a reason?

Her original plan was that if Cao Ye didn't give her a satisfactory answer tonight, she would just take him down.

But to her utter surprise, Cao Ye didn't bother to appease her at all—treating her completely like a child.

She watched Cao Ye walk towards the door, and said sternly:

"Stop right there! Did I say you could leave?"

Cao Ye did not turn around.

Li Mingyue's left eye glowed, and she flashed to the doorway, blocking Cao Ye's path.

She spread her arms wide, like a mother hen protecting her chicks, staring intently at him.

"Do you think you can get out of there?"

Cao Ye stopped in his tracks.

He slowly raised his head and gazed at Li Mingyue.

Under the light, those eyes gradually changed.

The pupils elongated, then contracted, transforming into a pair of golden vertical pupils.

An overwhelming pressure descended instantly, like an invisible mountain pressing down from above.

Li Mingyue trembled all over.

An indescribable chill rose from the soles of her feet, shooting all the way to her head, as if someone had driven an ice pick into her spine.

Her left eye... suddenly stopped working.

Everything was blurry; it was as if something had covered that eye, and I couldn't see anything.

Cao Ye... is he also an extraordinary person?

And it's very strong.

When?

Hidden...so well?

Cao Ye's voice was very soft:

"Get out of the way."

I'm very tired today.

He reached out and gently pushed Li Mingyue, who was standing there stunned, as if he were pushing open a half-closed door.

Li Mingyue staggered two steps to the side after being pushed by him, but she did not have any intention of resisting.

Cao Ye opened the door, stood at the doorway for a moment, and did not turn around.

"I hope you will keep our conversation tonight confidential."

His voice drifted in from the doorway, low and weary:

"Otherwise, the Bureau of Anomalies will be in big trouble."

The door closed.

Bai Lu spoke then, her voice slightly hoarse:

"Bright Moon... one more night won't make a difference, okay?"

Li Mingyue lowered her head:

"Just one night."

.....

A high-end residential community in Beijing.

The room was filled with sounds that made people blush, which continued intermittently for a long time before finally falling silent.

"Click".

The sound of a lighter rang out, and the flame flickered in the darkness, illuminating half of a tired face.

Cao Ye leaned against the headboard and glanced at the unconscious man beside him. He exhaled a breath of stale air.

The smoke swirled in the darkness, like a knot of unresolved worries.

Whenever he felt stressed, he would come to his mistress's place to "relax."

It's nothing shameful. He's single, she's widowed, and they each get what they need.

But tonight, even this most primal form of release couldn't calm him down.

He looked up at the ceiling and murmured two words, his voice so soft it was almost a soliloquy:

"Imperial Preceptor...Emperor..."

Today's events have already spread throughout the bureau.

To dismiss the Imperial Advisor and intercept Prince Heng—that was truly domineering and awe-inspiring.

Their calls for dusk grew louder and louder, like a storm brewing.

Cao Ye dared not tell the people in the bureau the true identity of the Cowherd—the son-in-law of the Eastern Heavenly Emperor.

If he says it, the bureau will become completely superstitious about dusk.

After all... that's a god.

In fact, he believed that the twilight was the Human Emperor.

I've always believed that.

Lucifer, Black God—these names themselves are the most powerful evidence.

The person next to me woke up.

She rolled over, placed one hand on his chest, and spoke in a languid, nasal voice:

"Ono, are you in a bad mood today?"

He stared at the ceiling, his voice low, as if asking that... It's as if I'm asking myself:

"Teacher... tell me, was I wrong?"

He clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white.

"Is this the beginning of an era that belongs to the Human Emperor?"

His voice trembled slightly in the darkness, like a spring that had been compressed for too long:

"Heh, Imperial Advisor?"

They were all frightened away by Huang Hun's shout, and even Prince Heng couldn't be saved.

That throne on the clouds makes me shudder!

She sat up, climbed her arms up his body, and hugged him from behind.

Her chin rested on his shoulder, her voice as gentle as the March breeze:

"I don't understand why you want to cooperate with Taiping Dao either."

But your teacher believes in all your decisions.

Because, since becoming a follower of the Taiping Dao, you not only know the enemy's location, but you also killed Prince Heng.

Furthermore, I have gained a better understanding of the Grand Preceptor of the Way of Peace.

She paused, then drew a circle on his chest with her finger.

"I bet you've got something else tonight."

Cao Ye nodded:

"Yes. I have ascertained the strength of the Witch's Guild and tracked their movements."

Her voice remained soft, but carried a hint of inquiry:

"So, whose side are you on?"

Or rather, are you targeting Twilight... or Taiping Dao?

Cao Ye gazed wistfully out the window.

The capital city is ablaze with lights, the myriad lights of homes creating a sea of ​​stars, quiet and beautiful.

"I'm not targeting anyone in particular," he said softly. "I'm targeting the entire Xia Kingdom for what's going on."

He turned around and looked at that .

The light danced in his eyes like two dim flames.

"Don't you want the world to be a little more normal?"

Neither twilight nor the Cowherd, neither forbidden objects nor extraordinary humans, should live in this world.

His voice suddenly became a little hoarse:

"I don't want to make a mess of this country."

I don't want anything to disrupt the normal social order.

Ordinary people... are too humble... they really have no dignity.

In the past, imperial power oppressed ordinary people; I do not wish for a day when ordinary people are oppressed by force.

His eyes dimmed.

Her husband died in an unusual incident.

road:

"Actually, dusk has never harmed ordinary people, has it?"

Cao Ye suddenly widened his eyes, like a raging wild beast:

"Not now, but what about later?"

Nobody can control him, so how can we guarantee he'll behave himself in the future?

cooperate?

It would be better if we cooperated like we did with Mingdeng.

I have ways to control him so that I don't fall behind.

What about dusk?

To be honest, I'm not qualified to cooperate with him; I'll always be at the bottom of the negotiating table!

Over the past two years, Huang Hun has always managed to turn the tide, and as the director of the Anomaly Management Bureau, I should express my gratitude to him!

Yes, we should thank you, we must thank you!

Or perhaps the Xia Kingdom should award him a medal, or at least give him some money as a token of appreciation?

However, if I were at the end of the negotiating table, this would be considered sycophancy!

He clutched his hair, his eyes bloodshot.

"It seems that no matter how hard I try, I can't stand on the same level as him, represent the Bureau of Abnormal Affairs, and negotiate with him fairly!"

Unless, I have the means to control him!

Just like how I control that cat!

But how could the emperor, a man of such stature, possibly control him?

I'm fucking terrified that Hurricane will go crazy every day, and then nobody the fuck can control him!

Normally calm and collected, he was like a child in front of this person.

Cao Ye slumped dejectedly against the headboard:

"I am truly... the most pathetic bureau chief in history."

Silence fell again, her eyes filled with heartache:

"But you've given up way too much."

You hated abnormalities so much, but in the end you became the abnormal one.

I've been very worried about you.