Vicious Cannon Fodder? No, He’s a Darling Wife! - Chapter 4

Wasn’t Qin Zhao supposed to be dead?!

….

Yuan Su’s heart skipped a beat, and a silent scream erupted in his mind.

There is absolutely nothing pleasant about the sensation of a cold, snake-like object sliding against your skin while you’re in the middle of deep sleep. The slick, chilly coil around his waist grew tighter and tighter, multiplying until the relentless pressure made it difficult for him to draw breath.

“You’re breathing so hard. Was I too forceful?”

A low, husky chuckle vibrated right against his cheek—muffled, deep, and sounding exactly like a cold-blooded predator flicking its forked tongue.

—You’re doing this on purpose!

Yuan Su was fuming, but he didn’t dare speak. In his state of extreme terror, he adopted the mindset of an ostrich; he squeezed his eyes shut and instinctively curled his body into a ball. He clung to the naive, ridiculous notion that as long as he couldn’t see the “ghost,” it couldn’t hurt him.

“Don’t give me the silent treatment, okay?” The monster didn’t seem discouraged. Its tone was tender, almost as if it were trying to act cute.

Yuan Su felt a wave of nausea. He could barely hold back the scream clawing at his throat. As his Adam’s apple bobbed in a nervous swallow, a cool wisp of a tentacle brushed over the delicate cartilage, savoring the way it trembled.

“Like a piece of hard candy.”

“He” offered the assessment as if praising a delicious meal, a comment that could almost be mistaken for affection if it weren’t so terrifying. A shudder-inducing, suggestive atmosphere filled the collapsing space of the bed, becoming thick and viscous.

Yuan Su felt as though he’d fallen into a pit of ice. No one would feel flattered by the eerie flirtations of a monster.

“Don’t ignore me,” the eldritch thing murmured. Its tone was as lazy and doting as a beast hovering over a prey’s throat. “Wifey.”

Yuan Su practically launched himself off the bed, but his burst of adrenaline didn’t save him. Pitch-black tentacles erupted like shadow-vines, snaring the slender youth and slamming him back down into the mattress.

Or rather, into the bed.

The soft mattress seemed to transform into the monster’s swamp. His body sank deeper and deeper; Yuan Su felt as though he were experiencing sleep paralysis, unable to move a muscle as he slowly descended.

“You’re not being a good boy at all.”

In his wide, amber eyes, the black mist billowed like a tidal wave. It rose high and crashed down—the sensation of falling into a void seized his entire body as the mist-tentacles bound him, shrouded him, and dragged him down…

Down into a nameless abyss.

…..

“Ah!”

Yuan Su jolted awake. He sat up as if he’d been electrocuted, his fingers frantically clutching the soft bedding until the tactile sensation grounded him.

It was… just a nightmare.

The youth gasped for air, his elegant shoulder blades heaving with every ragged breath. He was drenched in a cold sweat. Yuan Su looked around at the unfamiliar yet familiar room with lingering fear. His racing heart gradually slowed, and the color slowly returned to his pale face.

“I just dreamed of Qin Zhao…” Yuan Su climbed out of bed, his legs feeling weak and shaky.

【You look a bit… unsteady on your feet,】 the System noted, its tone sounding odd.

“Qin Zhao came for my soul last night,” Yuan Su grumbled, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with a huff.

The lingering sensation of that slick, cool touch didn’t seem to have fully dissipated. He felt uncomfortable all over, and the bite marks on his lips were a vivid, swollen red. The feeling of being constricted by a python still haunted him.

341’s tone shifted slightly. 【What did he do to you?】

Yuan Su gave a brief summary, naturally omitting the part where he was too scared to even open his eyes.

“And he kept saying all these sweet, sappy things. Weren’t our feelings for each other supposed to be cold?” Yuan Su was genuinely puzzled.

He was sensitive to emotions. Although the “affection” shown by the monster in the dream had a teasing, predatory edge, it was true that Qin Zhao didn’t seem to feel a bone-deep hatred for him.

By all rights, shouldn’t he want to tear me into a thousand pieces?

Yuan Su gargled his mouthwash and spat it out. As he bent over, the blue mineral necklace slipped out of his collar. He stared at it for a few seconds before tucking it back in.

When his gaze returned to the mirror, he missed the sudden, brief pulse of light from the pendant.

…..

Once he finished washing up, Yuan Su prepared to head out and find Qu Zhilan. But as he reached for his clothes, he froze.

【Qu Zhilan is at the guild right now. You need to seize the time to interact with him before he leaves the base again to scavenge for supplies and survivors…】

341 rattled on, only to realize the youth was standing perfectly still. His pale cheeks were flushed a soft red, and his expression was profoundly unnatural.

Even though there was no one else in the room, Yuan Su couldn’t help but lower his voice to a whisper: “I… I don’t have any pants.”

His underwear had vanished last night. It was incredibly sinister.

Since his trousers were right there on the bed, it took 341 a moment to realize what he meant. The System went quiet.

After a long pause, the System offered some “comfort”: 【Actually, even if you go out like this, no one will know.】

The youth’s face burned even hotter. He didn’t agree. “It doesn’t feel secure.”

It was fine to go “commando” at home, but doing so while heading out… that was a bit much. Yuan Su hesitated, but he wasn’t about to let a ten-million-dollar salary slip through his fingers. He quickly devised a solution.

….

At the Hunter’s Guild, several members had gotten into a heated argument during the morning task distribution. Eventually, despite attempts to intervene, they had devolved into a full-blown brawl.

Qu Zhilan received the news while he was in the middle of a meeting with the military regarding a search-and-rescue operation.

With the guild’s backbone gone, there were always opportunistic troublemakers looking to dismantle the organization from within. Ambitious men were eager to carve out a profit or seize the guild’s leadership for themselves. The Hunter’s Guild had become a pack of beasts without a leader, barely maintaining a superficial peace.

A fight had just broken out in the main hall. The bystanders had split into two factions, all of them now clustered together.

“The Guild Leader died out there under suspicious circumstances. Does Qu Zhilan think he calls the shots now?”

A man with a scar on his temple brushed off those trying to hold him back. He wiped a smear of blood from his lip and sneered. “Who’s to say he isn’t the one who pulled the strings in the shadows!”

Across from him, a tall man with a bruised face was purple with rage. He yelled back, “You filthy-mouthed dog! Brother Qu is loyal and righteous! He’d never do such a thing! Stop using the Leader’s name to incite the crowd. Do you think we’re blind? We can see you’re just trying to smear his name!”

The scarred man ignored him and continued his mockery. “Qu Zhilan is the second-in-command. With President Qin dead, the power naturally falls into his lap.”

“Qin Zhao died in the wilderness. Dead men tell no tales. What a perfect scheme!” He spat on the ground. “And you lot are being played like fools!”

A cold voice suddenly cut through the air: “I don’t believe shouting is permitted in the main hall.”

The tone wasn’t loud, but its frigid quality was enough to make everyone present shudder. Every eye turned toward the entrance.

A man casually tossed his jacket to an aide. His expression was indifferent, but his dark, upturned eyes were like sharp blades. His gaze settled calmly and heavily on the scarred man.

“It sounds like you have something you’d like to say to me.”

Qu Zhilan’s voice was steady as he strode forward. The scarred man stiffened in shock for a split second, but he quickly recovered his composure.

He pulled his lips back into a grin, preparing to speak, but the beautiful, icy man before him moved with lightning speed. Qu Zhilan grabbed a nearby telescopic baton and shoved it directly into the man’s mouth!

The scarred man lost his balance and fell backward, his mouth instantly filling with blood as the baton crushed his lips.

“But I don’t care to hear it.”

Qu Zhilan dropped into a crouch, his knee pinning the man’s ribs with crushing force. His large hand methodically shoved the baton deeper into the man’s mouth while his other hand held a dagger, the gleaming blade pressed against the man’s struggling wrist.

The scarred man’s eyes bulged in terror. Drenched in a cold sweat, he was too terrified to move a muscle. Meeting Qu Zhilan’s void-like gaze, he instinctively tried to beg for mercy, but he had lost all ability to speak.

Qu Zhilan’s lips curled into a predatory smirk. “Life in the wasteland is hard enough as it is. Taking your hand would be taking your livelihood, and I’m not that heartless.”

The scarred man didn’t even have time to feel relief before his blood turned to ice at Qu Zhilan’s next words.

“Just leave your tongue behind.”

As he spoke, Qu Zhilan’s gloved fingers clamped onto the muscle, and his dagger swept through the air with surgical precision.

Qu Zhilan frowned. “The guild has a policy against spitting on the floor.”

Following the wet, sickening sound of a blade slicing through flesh, a scream like a slaughtered pig tore through the entire hall.

The crowd fell into a deathly silence. The mocking onlookers instantly replaced their amusement with sheer terror.

Qu Zhilan stood up and tossed the severed scrap of meat into a nearby trash can with pinpoint accuracy. “Anyone caught inciting a fight is to be thrown out to feed the mutants.”

He knit his brows in disgust at the saliva and blood coating his glove. Without looking back, he headed upstairs. “Get back to work.”

Snapping out of their trance, the crowd scattered while security dragged away the half-conscious, mangled man. This display of “killing the chicken to warn the monkeys” had served its purpose; no one would dare cause trouble in the guild for a long while.

In his office, Qu Zhilan coldly barked out orders regarding the rescue mission three days away before stripping off his gloves and throwing them away.

At that moment, his communicator buzzed with an unknown number.

His private frequency was rarely shared. Without hesitation, he picked up. “Speak. Who is this?”

A second later, a pleasant voice drifted into his ear like a soft feather.

“Hello… Qu Zhilan, it’s me.”

The voice was slow and cautious, laced with an obvious nervousness. The slight static of his breathing over the line sent a faint, tingling spark through Qu Zhilan.

For a heartbeat, the man wanted to hurl the communicator away, yet his fingers only gripped the device tighter.

Qu Zhilan: “What do you want?”

He told himself he was resistant to this contact. After all, the moment he recognized Yuan Su’s voice, a flicker of regret for answering had crossed his mind.

Since his tone still carried the remnants of his earlier rage, the person on the other end fell silent for a long time.

Once Qu Zhilan realized he was actually feeling guilty about his harshness, he bit the tip of his tongue in irritation.

He asked, “How did you get my number?”

The System gave it to me.

Yuan Su didn’t answer that. Instead, he made his request. “I’ve run into a bit of trouble… can you help me?”

“Speak.”

“I… I don’t have…”

Yuan Su bit his lip. Even though he knew his current goal was to seduce Qu Zhilan, asking a man in a world where same-sex marriage was the norm to “buy him a box of underwear” was still profoundly embarrassing.

He searched for the right phrasing. “I’m at Qin Zhao’s house, and I don’t have any… intimate garments.”

341 let out a cold snort. 【Where did this “prim and proper” scholar come from?】

Yuan Su ignored the system’s sass and continued: “Could you help me buy a pack?”

The youth seemed oblivious to how naturally he acted spoiled. Because he felt guilty about being a nuisance, his voice was low and soft, like a puff of suggestive air exhaled right against the ear—enough to melt a man’s resolve.

Seeing that the other side remained silent, Yuan Su sounded a bit dejected and awkward. “I’m only really familiar with you. I was too embarrassed to ask anyone else.”

The sound was muffled and soft, as if he had his head buried in a pillow, radiating a natural sense of obedience.

Only familiar with me…

Too embarrassed to bother others, so you bother me…

And you’re asking for underwear.

Impulsive, stimulating thoughts crashed through Qu Zhilan’s mind. A hidden spark of excitement was struck by those ambiguously phrased words.

The man sat back on his office sofa, looking like a black panther momentarily lowering its guard. His lowered lashes hid the fleeting darkness in his eyes.

His long fingers brushed against his jawline as his Adam’s apple bobbed.

Qu Zhilan’s sharp eyes lifted, their color deep and murky. He looked out the window toward a certain direction, forcefully suppressing the restlessness in his chest.

What was this situation?

Was Yuan Su currently waiting for him at Qin Zhao’s house… with a bare bottom?

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