Even though he found the big dog a bit too familiar, Tao Xiu still thoughtfully prepared its dinner first. He tore open the new bag of dog food, poured it into yesterday’s plate, then opened the utility room door and placed the dog food deeper into the darkness.

To his surprise, the tablecloth he’d left that morning was still on the small patch of indigo carpet by the door.

However, the note and the apple were gone.

Tao Xiu blinked in astonishment: The room’s owner ate the apple?

In that case, was someone in the room right now?

Tao Xiu tried speaking into the bottomless darkness: “Excuse me, is anyone there?”

“Don’t be afraid; I truly mean no harm. We can sit down and talk properly. You can also contact me anytime using the information on the note.”

The thick darkness seemed to pause for a moment, growing even more profound, but no one emerged.

The silence in the darkness remained eerily absolute, without even the sound of breathing.

Tao Xiu simply assumed no one was in the room.

After bidding the dog goodnight and sending it inside, he closed the door and turned towards the kitchen.

…

Behind the door, three scarlet eyes curiously stared at the pellets in the plate: “Huh, what’s this?”

And why was there still no good food QAQ?

Suddenly, as if sensing something, they all let out an “Awooo!” and scattered, fleeing swiftly.

At some point, a thick, dark blue tentacle had appeared there.

It imperiously wrapped up all the dog food on the plate and roughly devoured it.

Immediately after, it effortlessly coiled around the slowest, clumsiest Samoyed, ruthlessly tossing it in front of the plate.

The Samoyed let out a wronged “Awooo,” and resignedly licked (cleaned) the master’s used plate clean.

…

Outside the door, Tao Xiu was utterly oblivious to everything.

He was eating his dinner, watching his favorite drama, and thinking about making some handmade plant specimens that children would like later.

He sponsored the children from the orphanage, and they had a visit scheduled for tomorrow, and he wanted to give them the best possible tour experience.

Making the specimens that evening went smoothly, and his sleep quality was excellent; he didn’t have any more of those embarrassing erotic dreams.

The next day’s tour reception also went unusually smoothly.

However, the auntie who brought the children always looked worried during their break time.

Tao Xiu asked why, and the auntie quickly smiled and said it was nothing. But Tao Xiu managed to coax it out of one of the children: several new kids had recently arrived at the orphanage, making their already tight budget even tighter, and the aunties had been trying to figure things out for days.

The adorable little girl, who was just at the age of losing her baby teeth, vigorously gestured to Tao Xiu: “Big brother, I love studying! I’ll definitely get into university later! Then I can major in something that turns rocks into gold! And then I’ll give all the gold to my younger siblings and the aunties!”

Tao Xiu paused, then his eyes curved. He didn’t deny her unrealistic idea; he just gently ruffled the little girl’s head, his voice incredibly soft: “That’s a truly wonderful idea. I wish you perseverance and achievement on your chosen path of study. One day, you will obtain true ‘gold.'”

He paused, and instead of comforting the auntie nearby, he looked thoughtfully at the second-floor strawberry picking area, which someone had previously expressed interest in leasing.

He told the little girl, “As for the auntie’s worries, those are problems for adults to solve.”

The little girl didn’t understand what Tao Xiu was saying, but like the other children, she really liked this handsome and gentle big brother.

So she lightly hugged the young man and sweetly said, “Big brother is the bestest~”

In the corner, Player 3 stared blankly at the young man playing and interacting with the children, then gritted his teeth and deleted the footage of the young man he’d recorded on his bracelet today, not sending it to his companions.

…

Tao Xiu had always been highly efficient.

That same day, he contacted the original contractor to meet and discuss the matter.

They quickly set a time and agreed to meet at a coffee shop.

After work, Tao Xiu walked towards the coffee shop with his usual expression, but he received a call from his friend on the way.

His usually jovial friend sounded helpless now. “Isn’t that garden really important to you? What do you mean by leasing out the second floor?”

Tao Xiu looked utterly bewildered: “Because all my previous savings went into buying an apartment, I don’t have enough money, of course.”

His current money was enough to pay his mortgage and support his normal daily life, but he didn’t have extra to solve the orphanage’s problems.

Wasn’t it a perfectly normal rule of human society that if you don’t have enough money, you earn it through legal means?

His friend on the other end: “Why are you helping them if you don’t have enough money?”

Tao Xiu found it even more puzzling: “Because they need help, right?”

Isn’t that how humans are?

Tao Xiu: “Aren’t you a top student? How can you ask such a stupid question?”

His friend was utterly stumped, silent for a long moment. Then he sighed, as if admitting defeat, and said, “Sometimes I think you’re already human, but then sometimes, I still think you’re very much not.”

Tao Xiu twitched his lips: “Speak plain language.”

His friend: “Don’t bother talking to that businessman. In the worst case, I’ll swallow my pride and ask my old man for some money. He needs charity for his image anyway, so one more project won’t hurt.”

A car roared past, completely drowning out the voice on the other end.

The traffic light opposite just turned green.

Tao Xiu didn’t quite hear or have time to ask, so he simply said, “I’m walking, can’t talk right now.”

He hung up and walked towards the coffee shop across the street.

The initial conversation with the contractor went smoothly.

Before they parted ways, the contractor suddenly asked the young man, “Xiao Tao, I remember you live in Golden Legend Community, don’t you?”

Tao Xiu: “Yes.”

He had previous collaborations with this contractor regarding flower fertilizer, often involving exchanging goods and funds, so it wasn’t strange for the other party to know his address.

The middle-aged man said with some hesitation, “I’m just saying this casually, alright? After all, I might be mistaken. Wasn’t your community an unfinished building complex a long time ago? I used to know that developer; he disappeared years ago, and by rights, he shouldn’t dare to return to the country. But I keep feeling like I’ve seen someone who looks like him in A City these past two days…”

If it were truly confirmed, one could actually call the police to get everyone’s money back.

Tao Xiu smiled and said sincerely, “Thank you. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Only then did the contractor bid him farewell and leave.

Tao Xiu had already eaten dinner at the coffee shop, so he took the subway straight home.

As soon as he entered the community, he saw the little golden retriever wagging its tail and happily eating cooked duck blood that the old man was feeding it, looking even happier than when it ate treats.

Tao Xiu thought of a certain overly familiar dog and couldn’t help but smile, then turned towards a nearby fresh food market.

…

Meanwhile, in unit 1201 of Block 6.

The utility room door stood wide open, and behind it was still a tangible, bottomless darkness.

The Samoyed Tao Xiu was thinking of was no longer its usual lively, bouncy self.

Instead, it was plaintively lying by the door, its tail tucked between its legs.

A tall man dressed in a luxurious, classical suit sat on the warm-toned sofa.

His face was handsome, with deep-set features.

One arm rested languidly on the sofa armrest, his hand propping up half of his chiseled face.

His long legs were uncomfortably propped against the coffee table.

At this moment, he looked arrogantly yet slightly confused at something he held in his other hand, his scarlet eyes beautiful and terrifying.

A magnificent cane of indeterminate material was casually placed to the side.

The man’s demeanor was cold and noble, yet the item in his hand was strikingly incongruous and comical—a large bag of dog food.

His voice was cold and inorganic, with a strange sense of distortion: “He temporarily woke me from slumber with such sweet bodily fluids, and then he offered me this stuff as tribute? —By the way, what exactly is this stuff?”

The Samoyed lay on the ground, letting out an even more pitiful “Awooo”—it didn’t know what that was either!

It only hoped its terrifying master would go back to sleep quickly; the master’s level of terror when asleep and awake was completely different!

It would definitely scare that person!

The man ignored his silly dog, casually grabbed a handful of dog food from the bag, tried putting it in his mouth, and chewed elegantly with all his might, but the veins on his forehead still couldn’t help but pop out—it was truly disgusting.

After eating, he fastidiously wiped the crumbs from his hands with a handkerchief, then surveyed his surroundings with even more disdain.

His little servant—the creature attempting to awaken him, who must naturally be his servant—lived in such poor conditions, residing in such a small place and eating such awful things.

Could it be that even this awful food was painstakingly saved just to offer him?

How had he fallen so low?

However, given his servant’s loyalty and devotion, he ought to give him some recompense.

Thinking this carelessly, the man again extended his hand into the dog food bag with a look of disgust.

With a gentle touch, all the brown pellets in the bag instantly transformed into heavy, gleaming gold.

Having done so, he casually tossed the bag aside.

The gold scattered across the sofa with a clatter, but the man paid it no mind.

He simply picked up his cane and stood up.

The Samoyed thought he was finally going back and happily half-sat up.

But the man just gave it a chilling look: “You seem to have gotten quite close to others while I was asleep.”

The dog was so scared its fur nearly bristled all over.

However, the man merely walked past it, heading towards the bedroom, which emanated a scent he was familiar with—his slumber had been suddenly interrupted, and having been forcibly awakened like this, his conscious time was actually very short.

Before returning to sleep, he wanted to inspect the environment of that room.

That should be where his little servant lived; a very sweet fragrance emanated from there.

He just wanted to take a look.

Moreover, if that little fellow knew that the most revered being he wished to awaken had entered his room, he would surely be happier than seeing that bag of gold.

The man proudly glanced at the bedroom door, and it automatically opened.

Just as he was about to step inside, the sound of a key turning in the lock outside suddenly echoed.