LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 20: Chapter 20: Safety First
When Lu Yuan mentioned a hotel car, Chen Guo envisioned a generic sedan—not the liquid-metal beast now purring before them. The Rolls-Royce Phantom's coach doors exhaled a scent of saddle leather and repressed capitalism.
Chen Guo sat frozen in the backseat, hands clawing her jeans like a cornered kitten. Even Su Li's usual bravado crumbled under the weight of burl wood trim and starlight headliner.
"Six figures a night?" Chen Guo's voice cracked. "That's...four years of tuition evaporating before midnight!"
"Different economies." Lu Yuan's smile held lunar gravity. "Your first leading role could earn that per scene."
"Let's not manifest tax audits," she hissed, crossing herself.
As the Phantom devoured Beijing's neon arteries, Su Li leaned forward. "This grand tour of yours—board meetings or pleasure?"
"Full-spectrum hedonism." His reflection rippled across bulletproof glass. "Hutongs at dawn, forbidden city rooftops..." A beat. "...and a midnight seminar at Workers' Stadium."
Twin glares sharpened.
"Clubbing?" Su Li's smirk turned lethal. "Planning to drown in silicone?"
"Academic curiosity." He tapped an imaginary lectern. "MIT studies prove 83% of taboo cravings go unfulfilled—I'm subsidizing humanity's repressed id."
The chauffeur's shoulders trembled with professional composure. This kid could sell condos in hell.
At Beijing Film Academy's gates, Chen Guo's escape attempt faltered. "Wait!" She spun, nuclear fusion occurring beneath her porcelain skin. "If you insist on..." The whisper could've powered a small reactor: "...sheathe your blade before storming the castle!"
Su Li's wail shook nearby sparrows from trees. "Guo'er! You don't get to drop that truth bomb and—come back! This Prada mausoleum needs two pallbearers!"