A small folding table was set up by the entrance.
Su Jin sat to the side, waiting. He tilted his head, watching Fu Qingdai bustle around inside as she distributed the rations.
A few moments later, Cheng Du carried over three steaming bowls of noodles and slammed them down onto the table.
He shot a look of pure disgust at the two "sisters" still huddled by the door.
Arranging the bowls, Cheng Du’s attitude instantly shifted to eager sycophancy. "Director, I cooked these myself. Threw in some canned beef. Tell me what you think."
Su Jin gave a curt nod, picked up his chopsticks, and began shoveling the noodles into his mouth.
Looking immensely pleased with himself, Cheng Du sat opposite him and dug in.
Between bites, Su Jin threw occasional, calculated glances at the two women.
The pair stared at him with feral, desperate eyes, their throats bobbing continuously.
But it wasn't just severe malnutrition; they clearly hadn't had much water either.
Their lips were cracked and parched, likely incapable of producing much saliva anymore.
After aggressively slurping down two massive bowls of noodles, Su Jin let out a long, satisfied exhale.
That hit the spot!
In this apocalyptic hellscape, just having a hot meal with actual meat in it felt like sheer luxury, even if the taste was decidedly mediocre.
Besides, his metabolism had skyrocketed recently; two bowls only filled his stomach halfway.
The Talent Residential Community's stockpile of food and water was running dangerously low, but it would hold out for another couple of days.
They wouldn't be staying much longer anyway. Once the final preparations were complete, the convoy would roll out.
Glancing sideways at the starving, head-bowed duo, Cheng Du loudly kissed ass. "Director, you eat so fast! That's why you're the boss!"
Su Jin scoffed, reaching his chopsticks into Cheng Du's bowl to pinch a thick wad of noodles.
Splat. With a flick of his wrist, he tossed it onto the dirty concrete right in front of the sisters, like feeding stray dogs.
Manna from heaven!
Jiang Yu scrambled onto all fours, snatching up the greasy noodles with her bare hands and tremblingly feeding them to Ding Ling.
"What touching sisterly devotion," Su Jin drawled, raising an eyebrow.
"It's all an act! I'm telling you, Director, these actresses are fake as hell!" Cheng Du spat.
"I never realized just how ruthless you actually are, Cheng Du," Su Jin muttered, pushing his chair back and walking over to the pair.
"I'm not ruthless, Director, I'm just protecting the big picture!" Cheng Du scrambled after him.
Standing side-by-side, they loomed over Jiang Yu. Su Jin pointed a finger at an ornamental tree a few yards away. "Cheng Du, drag the brat over to those trees. Tie her up tight and watch her like a hawk! Don't look away for a single second. I'm going to personally interrogate the older one."
"Huh?!" Cheng Du's eyes ping-ponged frantically between Su Jin and the buxom pop star.
"Director! Is that really necessary? Let me interrogate her! I swear, I have a special touch when it comes to breaking women! I, Cheng Du, won't hold back!"
"Shut it! You wouldn't know the first thing about extracting information. Just follow your damn orders!" Su Jin glared at him, then curled a finger at Jiang Yu. "Get up. You're coming with me."
With that, he turned on his heel and led Jiang Yu toward one of the abandoned residential towers.
Staring at Su Jin's retreating back, Cheng Du stomped his foot in absolute frustration.
Dammit! Did the Director really fall for her act?
She's famous, and her body is ridiculous... it makes sense that he'd want to get a piece of that.
No, no, no, that's impossible. The boss isn't that kind of guy. He's a professional.
But if it really is 'that' kind of interrogation, she's going to wrap him completely around her finger!
"Big brother..." As Cheng Du waged a vicious internal debate, Ding Ling looked up at him, her voice pathetic and trembling.
Her huge, tear-filled eyes practically sparked with forced innocence.
Cheng Du looked down at her. The muscle in his jaw twitched violently.
SLAP!
His hand lashed out like a whip, brutally backhanding the little girl across the face before immediately grabbing her by the pigtail.
"Big brother my ass! You're all a giant pain in my balls! Move it!"
What the fuck?!
Ding Ling clutched her rapidly swelling cheek, grinding her teeth in silent fury as Cheng Du dragged her away like a sack of potatoes.
Dammit, this isn't how things were supposed to play out! Why are these humans so unhinged?
I'll tolerate this for now... But the second I infiltrate the camp, I'm peeling this bastard's skin off!
Inside the hollowed-out apartment building, Jiang Yu walked ahead, Su Jin stalking closely behind her.
After doing a quick sweep of the living room, Su Jin steered the woman into the master bedroom and kicked the door shut.
Jiang Yu sat rigidly on the edge of the mattress, trembling like a leaf, one hand protectively clutching her collar.
Su Jin leaned against the closed door, a dark, predatory smirk playing on his lips as his eyes raked over her.
"Sir..." Jiang Yu whimpered, her voice thick with tears. "What exactly do you want to do?"
Su Jin chuckled darkly. He pushed off the door and slowly paced over to the bed, burying one large hand deep into her luxurious hair. He let out a heavy sigh.
"The world's gone to hell. How are two delicate, fragile flowers like you supposed to survive out there?"
Her slender body shuddered violently under his touch.
Su Jin's calloused fingers slid down from her scalp, tracing the soft curve of her cheek, lingering on her jawline... before trailing lower, down the column of her neck.
"A woman... always needs a strong man to rely on, regardless of the era. Wouldn't you agree?"
As he whispered the words, his hand drifted to the top button of her ruined blouse.
Jiang Yu violently flinched backward, wrapping her arms tightly around her chest in abject terror. "Please, sir, don't do this..."
Su Jin pulled his hand back, fixing her with a cold, mocking stare. "You survived the entertainment industry. Don't play dumb with me. You know exactly how the game works."
"You need to understand my position. I'm feeding an army out there. Our supplies are strictly budgeted. Even taking on two more mouths... is a massive liability."
"We are a unified organization. Every new addition affects the collective. If you want protection, you have to pay the toll."
Su Jin paused, letting out a cruel scoff. "Besides, you're dragging around useless deadweight. That jacks up your entry fee."
"I'm trying to help you here. But you need to demonstrate your sincerity. After all... you wouldn't want to see your little sister starve to death in the gutter, would you?"
All hope drained from Jiang Yu's face. She slowly squeezed her eyes shut. "Could you... let me wash up first?"
"I'm not wasting precious water on you, and I don't have the patience to wait. Strip."
Su Jin crossed his arms over his chest, a flicker of intense, manic excitement dancing in his eyes.
After a tortuous silence, Jiang Yu bit her lip so hard it almost bled, and slowly began unbuttoning her shirt.
As the filthy fabric pooled around her hips, Su Jin's breath hitched, his pupils dilating to pinpricks.
Perfect... absolutely flawless!
These weren't just standard curves; this was an absolute masterpiece of flesh.
In my past life, I never even got close to a celebrity. Now I'm about to tear into an A-lister!
While Jiang Yu sat there, shivering blindly with her eyes squeezed shut, Su Jin unclipped the tactical briefcase from his chest and set it quietly on the floor.
He quickly rummaged through his gear, his fingers closing around a tightly wrapped, heavy-duty plastic package slick with industrial oil.
By the ornamental trees, Cheng Du squatted on his heels, his eyes glued to the dark entrance of the apartment building where Su Jin had vanished.
Behind him, Ding Ling was lashed to a thick trunk with heavy rope, trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey.
Under the blistering sun, Cheng Du frantically fanned himself, beads of nervous sweat rolling down his forehead.
He licked his chapped lips, a cocktail of anxiety and impatience clawing at his chest.
It's been so long... why isn't he out yet? What kind of interrogation takes this much damn time?
Are they really doing... that?
Jiang Yu is a professional seductress. She's going to suck the Director's soul right out of his body!
Unable to take the suspense any longer, Cheng Du slapped his knees and shot to his feet.
He scanned the perimeter, spotting a five-man patrol unit jogging past. He aggressively waved them over.
"You lot! Keep a lethal watch on this little girl! She's highly dangerous and suspicious as hell! If any of you move so much as an inch, you're banished!"
"Sir, yes sir!" The five guards snapped a unified salute, forming a tight, heavily armed ring around Ding Ling.
Satisfied, Cheng Du nodded and began marching purposefully toward the apartment building.
No way! I have to see this for myself!
For the sake of the big picture, I absolutely cannot let the Director fall into a honey trap!