Chapter 4: Friends

Lin Jindu was dressed in a crimson robe, sitting with a dignified posture. Even the open collar had a subtle hint of impropriety.

In Yu Yizhi’s eyes, it could be summarized as a “ghostly interview.”

He continued with a string of nonsense, “I failed the first round some time ago, so I’m here for the second round today.”

Yu Yizhi: “?”

What first round, second round? He hadn’t even passed the first round. Where did the second round come from?

“Let me introduce myself. My name is Lin Jindu, male, 180 cm tall, 22 years old, and my phone number is 13XXXXXXXX…”

“Stop.” Yu Yizhi warned in a low voice.

But Lin Jindu not only didn’t stop, he continued to spill everything. With a monthly salary of twenty thousand for this undercover job, what else did you want from him?

What could you possibly do?

Ding, ding.

[Video connection interrupted]

Lin Jindu: “…”

System: [You might as well perform some oral skills.]

Yu Yizhi on the other side ended the video call abruptly.

The air hung heavy with silence, his throat parched as he managed to utter the word “brother.”

“Several media outlets called today to verify,” Yu Hui continued, shifting the conversation to business. “You’re too impatient, resorting to tactics that skirt the boundaries, and now they want to sue you for a hostile takeover.”

Yu Yizhi subconsciously explained, “Even if there is a lawsuit, the winning cards are in our hands.”

Yu Hui glanced at him, his expression cold. “Dealing with intentional troublemakers in a foreign country can also be quite troublesome.”

Yu Yizhi’s complexion shifted slightly.

Once you utter such words, it suggests that trouble might have already arrived unbeknownst to you.

“I’ve already handled it, so it won’t happen again.” The door remained open, and the corridor air felt chilly. Yu Hui coughed a couple of times.

Yu Yizhi poured a cup of hot tea and offered it, the warmth dissipating on his furrowed brow. Given that the inquiries were related to the acquisition, his prior panic wouldn’t make sense.

“That’s right,” Yu Hui didn’t accept the tea that Yu Yizhi handed him. “About that person just now…”

Yu Yizhi had a lump in his throat.

“If someone is young and morally corrupt, it doesn’t matter how skilled they are, don’t recruit them.”

After saying this, Yu Hui left.

Yu Yizhi remained in place with a puzzled expression.

Don’t hire them. At first glance, it seemed like an admission of the interview. But their skills… he swallowed, and the metaphor seemed to imply insider knowledge.

However, he had never been intimate with a stand-in. How did his brother know whether the other person’s skills were good or not?

This night was destined to be sleepless.

Lin Jindu, whose video call had been forcefully terminated, continued to browse the internet for information.

He stared at the Yu family’s introduction on the web and read slowly, “Yu Hui.”

So that was the name of the male protagonist’s brother.

[Rest, it’s impossible to complete this task today.]

“I’m waiting for a call.”

The audience for that comical self-introduction wasn’t Yu Yizhi but Yu Hui.

If nothing was done, there would certainly be a series of problems in the aftermath. When the system had hacked the wrong person, a few pictures of him had been taken.

Instead of that, it was better to take the initiative and leave a string of numbers. If the other party truly intended to investigate, there was a high probability they would make direct contact.

Lin Jindu said, “I want to take the initiative.”

[Flirt?] the system inquired.

Lin Jindu clenched his teeth. “I mean, take the initiative and show up, there might still be a chance to explain.”

[Foundation?]

“You Uncle”

His phone suddenly vibrated in his hand, and Lin Jindu subconsciously answered it, responding with “you uncle.”

“…”

The person on the other end probably didn’t expect him to answer the call so quickly and ignored the strange greeting. Without any transition, they asked, “What is your purpose?”

Lin Jindu responded with a puzzled “uh-huh.”

Hearing Yu Han’s tone, it was as light as a feather. However, there was a hook at the end, waiting to dissect the prey at any moment.

His answer remained consistent: “I’m here for an interview.”

A cold chuckle came from the other end.

“So, you hacked into my computer and then had a video call with my younger brother as part of your interview?”

Lin Jindu explained, “It’s a three-part interview. I’ve only had two rounds so far.”

He didn’t expect to reveal this much information from the “blind box.”

“…”

“Big brother, give me a chance.”

Lin Jindu didn’t want to argue with Yu Han. Yu Han’s abilities were strong, but his physical condition seemed mediocre. With an unrelatable, healthy younger brother on the household registration, such a setting easily led to distorted personalities.

If the other party thought that he would be detrimental to the Yu family and made him disappear without anyone knowing, that would be too unfair.

Seeing that Yu Hui didn’t respond, Lin Jindu continued, “You may not believe me, but you should believe Mr. Yu Yizhi’s words.”

“Selling skills?” Yu Hui finally spoke.

Even that ridiculous term didn’t make him laugh. He asked, “With your skill set, what position are you trying to compete for?”

Lin Jindu pursed his dry lips.

From a business perspective, it was as if he had to demonstrate his technical skills first, then compete for the position of a cybersecurity consultant, and finally infiltrate the company.

Realizing that arguing was useless, he no longer concealed his relationship with Yu Yizhi.

“You’ve misunderstood. In fact, I didn’t come for any position in your company.”

Lin Jindu licked his dry lips again and provided strong evidence. “If you don’t believe me, try to remember the clothes I wore during the two interviews.”

Yu Hui remembered the scarlet silk robe.

“The term ‘selling skills’ is not appropriate,” Lin Jindu seized the opportunity. “You should remove the word ‘skill’ from it.”

I’m here to sell myself.

Yu Hui had only picked up the teacup a while ago, and he choked when he heard Lin Jindu’s words.

There were many vulgar words in the world, but no one had spoken so brazenly in front of him before.

“In fact, I’ve had contact with your younger brother for a while. I thought since you are brothers, you might have similar interests, so I dreamed of expanding my business.”

After speaking, Lin Jindu proactively hung up the phone.

System 40: 【Creating the image of an impulsive and greedy character intentionally to lower the other party’s vigilance?】

Lin Jindu: “It’s for character profiling.”

When you suspect someone, no matter what you do, it’s easy to be overanalyzed. He needed to narrow down the other person’s divergent thinking a bit.

After some serious consideration, the system said, [Indeed, it’s been profiled accurately.]

Saying ‘I’m here to sell’ is more precise.

“…”

Lin Jindu didn’t hold any healthy fantasies about the system from the ancient novels. Anyway, his goal had been achieved. Being “out for sale” sounded much better than the initial impression of being a Yu family spy.

After a few minutes, Lin Jindu called back, ready to solidify his character and demonstrate his ability to seduce anyone he met.

[You’ll probably be rejected.]

Judging by their energy, it was clear that Yu Hui, the male lead’s brother, was much more dangerous and ruthless.

“I won’t be.”

At this moment, Yu Hui was probably reviewing his words, searching for loopholes. In this process, interview attire was an unskippable factor.

Lin Jindu had always believed that humans had a natural appreciation for beauty, regardless of gender.

This silk robe was truly provocative, to the extent that it could double as battle armor.

He walked in front of the mirror, the eerie crimson complementing his skin, making it look even more delicate, as if it had a faint fluorescent glow.

“That man has a good memory. He could remember my phone number after I mentioned it once. During the review process, my appearance and body will gradually become clearer in his memory. From the style of the robe, the patterns, to the skin, and even the birthmark on my skin…” Lin Jindu smiled, “Perhaps at some moment, he will furrow his brow, feeling a dry mouth and a parched throat…”

The system couldn’t handle his vivid description.

[Be more civilized.]

“At this moment, if you call back, a normal person might hang up due to guilt. However, he seems quite proud, so rejecting the call directly would be a sign of guilt. That’s why he’ll answer.”

Lin Jindu’s prediction was correct.

The call was answered.

Lin Jindu explained the previous hang-up, “I accidentally pressed the wrong button.”

“…Mr. Yu, there are many paths to success. I…”

Yu Hui interrupted him, “You’re not the type my brother likes. If it’s a romantic relationship, he’ll get tired of you in no time.”

Clearly, he still didn’t trust that story.

His analysis was spot on.

Lin Jindu grinned, the original male lead had flown away after less than a day of seeing him, not even two days.

He searched for the phone number and sent a friend request, with a verification message attached: [Add me, I’ll provide you with evidence. MMS costs money.]

After about half a minute, the friend request was accepted.

Seeing the shiny text, Lin Jindu sent a location sharing message and added two more photos of Yu Hui’s villa interior, along with a message:

[If you need more evidence, there are more Smiss Marseille photos~ (Private.jpg) (Mosaic.jpg)]

No hacker, no matter how skilled, could edit photos this quickly. Yu Hui fell silent for a moment, then said, “…It was I who misunderstood you.”

Lin Jindu was understanding, “It’s okay.”

“…”

Lin Jindu never let the conversation go cold and continued to solidify his character.

“Little brother has a severe sleep disorder, and I happen to be good at putting people to sleep. That’s why he contacted me. If you don’t believe it, you can experience it.”

The system was somewhat impressed by his smooth talk.

Smart people tend to be suspicious and won’t miss any opportunity for verification. After experiencing it once, Lin Jindu would have some control over the situation.

Yu Hui and Yu Hui were both silent when they heard this, showing their similarities as brothers.

Lin Jindu skillfully continued with the story, “Once upon a time, there was a mountain, and in that mountain, there was a temple…”

Yu Hui: “…”

System: 【…】

Wait, aren’t you going to change the story at least?

He persisted for a few minutes, and his voice became softer. He struggled to keep his eyes open. “I don’t know why, but I’m feeling a bit sleepy.”

[I told you this tone has a hypnotic effect.]

The audio was a bit distorted when it passed through electronic devices, but when it reached his ears through the air, the effect was quite impressive.

“You…” You’re kidding.

There was no way this could hypnotize Yu Hui. He didn’t hang up because he wanted to verify Lin Jindu’s nonsense, and more so because the voice on the other end was genuinely soothing.

After a whole day of consuming meal replacements, Lin Jindu’s voice gradually became softer… until there was a “thud,” and he fell over.

Yu Hui heard it too.

The sound was not crisp, more like the sound of someone falling onto a soft cushion or bed.

Bad sleeping posture, heavy breathing, and even a small snore from Lin Jindu. The sound was like that of a hungry stray cat by the roadside.

It was real sleep, and this kind of sound couldn’t be faked.

Yu Hui shook his head and was about to hang up the call when he heard mumbling from the other end…

“Food… I want food…”

For the first time in his voice, Yu Hui could hear a desperate and aggressive tone, as if Lin Jindu was about to pounce and devour him any moment.

“Seafood soup, I want to eat crayfish, I want stir-fried rice cakes…”

In his dream, Lin Jindu was making muffled sounds while eating.

“…”

€€

The room was quiet, and the sky outside was dimly lit. When Lin Jindu woke up again, he checked his phone, and it was now evening.

“It’s evening!” He jolted up, realizing that he had been asleep for several hours.

System 40: [Congratulations, Host, you successfully put yourself to sleep.]

“…What’s there to be happy about?”

【He’s happy because in your dreams, you kept crying for food, making you look like an idiot.】

Lin Jindu believed that Yu Hui would no longer take an interest in someone who appeared so foolish.

Lin Jindu rubbed his growling stomach and said, “Well, I successfully diverted the attention of the dangerous individual. Perfect move.”

In H Country.

Yu Hui had only slept for a few hours. When he woke up the next day and went to the hotel lobby for breakfast, he suddenly remembered the wailing from last night.

Why was he so hungry while staying at Yuzhi’s villa?

He was about to make a phone call to investigate when he noticed an additional contact in his phonebook, which left him slightly puzzled. It suddenly dawned on him that he had added Lin Jindu to his contacts last night.

A waiter approached with breakfast.

Crispy bacon, fresh fruits, and invigorating coffee were served.

But that wasn’t all. Shortly afterward, another waiter came with additional dishes, including crab pancakes, sausages, eggs, and grilled vegetables.

“Sir, would you like a salad as well?”

Yu Hui absentmindedly shook his head, and as his finger inadvertently touched the screen, he opened Lin Jindu’s moments.

Lin Jindu’s nickname was “Er Mu” , and his two latest posts were as follows:

【Er Mu】: “Rich people live in luxury, while the poor freeze to death on the streets!!!!!!!”

【Er Mu】: “I pledge to eat a vegetarian diet for a week, please take away the gluttonous rich who waste food!”

“…”

Yu Hui looked at the lavish breakfast spread before him, which was far more than he could eat, and his brow twitched slightly.

Author’s Note:

Irresponsible Mini-Drama:

Lin Jindu: Hello, I’m Tom Su, the one with a golden finger. I urgently need a meal. Those who sponsor me will receive generous rewards in the future. My account number is my phone number. After you send it, I will take you to soar to new heights with my system and conquer the world.

Lite Version: I, the transcender with a golden finger, request a meal.

Yu Hui:…