Chapter 36: Chapter 33 Angels and Demons
Zhou Wang followed Jiang Mo all the way, passing through many places.
Along the way, she bought a 1.5-yuan bottle of Nongfu Spring water and a bag of French small bread, then pulled out an Evian glass bottle from her pocket and poured the mineral water into it.
Although Jiang Mo’s expression was indifferent as she did this, Zhou Wang could see from her unfocused eyes that she was doing it unconsciously.
That could only mean she did this frequently.
Jiang Mo then took a bus to the Provincial Library, but she just wandered around by the roadside for a while and ultimately did not enter the “Book Aroma Station” that still had its lights on.
Jiang Mo finally stopped in an alley in the city center, staring blankly at the bright lights and endless traffic.
Zhou Wang glanced at the time, it was already past nine o’clock.
The system interface still showed “Round in progress,” and even though so much time had passed, there was no new prompt. Just when Zhou Wang was wondering whether he needed to take some initiative to trigger the next step, Jiang Mo suddenly walked toward an old building next to them.
Zhou Wang entered the building and rode the elevator to the top floor with Jiang Mo, then watched as she continued up the stairs.
“Beyond here is the rooftop, she…”
Zhou Wang was taken aback and hurriedly followed her up.
The rooftop door was unlocked, and once pushed open, it revealed square stone slabs covered in moss and weeds. Many sheets hung on clotheslines flapped in the night breeze, creating a scene that resembled a maze at first glance.
Jiang Mo dragged her suitcase through these obstacles and reached a flowerbed in the corner.
Seeing that she only sat down without any suicidal actions, Zhou Wang breathed a sigh of relief.
A phone rang, and Zhou Wang glanced at Jiang Mo’s phone screen. The caller was “Han Yanqian,” which made him frown.
Jiang Mo remained unresponsive until the third call, when she finally pressed the answer button.
“Hello, Momo, I heard from Brother Liu that you got kicked out by his wife?”
In the quiet night, Han Yanqian’s voice was particularly piercing, “What’s this about, really? He practically watched you grow up, and I even tried to talk them into it that day…”
“What do you want to say?”
Jiang Mo interrupted him, her face expressionless.
“Ahem, well, Momo, you know I’ve always been alone. This three-bedroom apartment I have is too big for me, why don’t you just move here, focus on your graduate studies, don’t worry, I can still support you…”
Han Yanqian’s voice abruptly halted, as Jiang Mo hung up and simultaneously blocked him.
WeChat alert chimed, and when she saw it was a voice message from Ding Yi, Jiang Mo’s furrowed brow relaxed.
“Jiang Yang Sister, isn’t it Professor Wang’s birthday next week? What would be a good gift, Sister, what are you going to give? Could you tell me for reference?”
Jiang Mo clenched her phone so tightly that her knuckles turned white. After a while, she opened the voice message frame to reply.
“Hmm… tea leaves, she likes tea quite a lot, I’m getting the same.”
Jiang Mo’s voice sounded no different than usual, though her expression remained unpredictable.
After replying to Ding Yi, Jiang Mo sat quietly for a while longer, until Zhou Wang suddenly sensed an enormous shift in her emotions—her trembling fingers served as the best evidence.
Then Zhou Wang watched Jiang Mo unlock her phone again, searching for a particular contact.
“A Hongxing Consignment, Luxury Recycle, Credit Card Repayments”
Zhou Wang’s gaze intensified; was this the owner of the shop she’d visited? What did Jiang Mo intend to do?
“What’s the way you mentioned?”
Zhou Wang watched as Jiang Mo typed and sent the message.
The response was swift, coming back as a long voice message.
“It’s very straightforward, you just need to regularly take some borderline selfies or short videos, you don’t necessarily have to show your face, maybe wear a mask, and give them to me. I have friends who specialize in operating social platforms, and there is a substantial demand for these photos and videos. Photos are a hundred each, videos vary from a few hundred to a few thousand depending on quality.”
“Don’t worry, Miss Jiang, they upload on foreign accounts, places like ins, OF, or that certain bird app, so you won’t have to worry about being recognized.”
“You could take them yourself, or I can arrange for someone to guide you…”
The consignment shop owner rattled on extensively.
Zhou Wang listened in wide-eyed wonder: this kind of business existed too?
“What kind of photos?”
Jiang Mo asked after listening.
Several photos were quickly sent over, and Zhou Wang curiously leaned in to look as well.
At first glance, the photos seemed quite normal, no more than slightly provocative portraits, but upon closer inspection, they exuded significant allure, with the girls dressed in various costumes like black silk, stepmother skirts, Spiderman, and so on.
It’s fair to say that except for the most essential parts, everything that could be shown was on display.
Jiang Mo parted her red lips slightly, seemingly under great mental shock.
After a pause, as Jiang Mo still hadn’t replied, further voice messages came in succession.
“Miss Jiang, if you check those social platforms, you’ll see that this exposure really isn’t a big deal. I sincerely want to help you; these photos are the simplest templates. Why don’t you try it first, it’s not as hard as it seems, I assure you it’s all cash on delivery…”
Jiang Mo maintained her pose of holding the phone, unmoving for a long time.
Yet her long eyelashes kept trembling… she was struggling.
Zhou Wang watched quietly, wanting to see what choice she would make.
Jiang Mo finally moved, keeping her phone screen lit up on one of the photos, then set the phone aside and opened her suitcase.
Zhou Wang watched as she retrieved a pair of black thigh-high stockings from the bottom.
She undid the buttons on her jeans; here, on this cold, whistling rooftop, she trembled as she peeled off the tight jeans, her glistening thighs looking dazzlingly white in the night.
At this moment, Zhou Wang found himself holding his breath, unsure of his own feelings, as he watched Jiang Mo slowly slip the stockings over her perfectly proportioned legs.
She activated the camera on her phone, but her fingers trembled too violently to capture the first photo.
She finally pressed the shutter, but Jiang Mo also broke down at that moment.
She collapsed to the ground, letting the sharp stones dig into her skin. Covering her face, she cried more and more fiercely, no longer silent, but instead with hints of hysteria.
At this very moment, standing there dumbfounded, Zhou Wang heard the system prompt.
[The Angel says, this is a redemption for humanity, you will reach out to her drowning in an abyss, and you will receive sincerity and love.]
[The Demon says, you will drag her into a broken chasm and possess her entirely, obtaining a perfect lover and the fulfillment of desire.]
[The dragon-slaying youth, have you glimpsed the truth?]
[Please make your choice, the end of the round is for you to decide.]