CH 24.3

Bai Jing thought for a moment before pulling out his light brain and messaging Gu Yuanzhao.

[Young Master Gu, I have something to discuss with you. I wonder if you are available tomorrow?]

Almost immediately, he received a reply from Gu Yuanzhao: [Okay, anytime.]

Anytime? Bai Jing froze for a moment. Young Master Gu… should be very busy, right?

Then it would be better to go over a little earlier.

So the next day before dawn, Bai Jing arrived on the first floor of the Gu Conglomerate’s Gambling House and was led into a private room by Qiao An.

Gu Yuanzhao must have just finished training, because there were still crystal beads of sweat in his hair as he exited the training room, his close-fitting uniform wrapped around his tall and perfect body, concealing the smooth contours of his muscles, his entire being exuding strong hormones that were impossible to ignore.

Bai Jing looked enviously at his 3S-level body, his sense perception ability automatically analyzing his physical data while admiring it in his mind, making him simply unable to look away.

Gu Yuanzhao’s body stiffened with a start when he met Bai Jing’s blunt gaze, then while walking towards the bathroom, he said, “Um…. I didn’t expect you to come so early. I’m going to take a shower first, it won’t take long.”

In the bathroom, the black military belt was unbuckled and tossed aside, large bony hands undoing the buttons one by one, revealing Gu Yuanzhao’s torso that was without an ounce of fat, broad shoulders and narrow waist, every inch of which was close to perfection, with the ultimate sense of power.

Cold water spurted out of the shower overhead, making a splashing sound as it fell.

“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting.”

Half an hour later, Gu Yuanzhao emerged from the bathroom, changed. He was still handsome and tall without his military uniform, just a little more casual and languid.

“It’s okay.” Bai Jing looked over at him, “Can I join the betting battle tomorrow?”

Gu Yuanzhao’s eyes widened a little with surprise, “You want to participate now?”

Usually participation in gambling battles started when one was a Level 2 Stone Gambler, as many Level 1 Stone Gamblers wouldn’t take the initiative to participate in a gambling battle when they weren’t experienced enough.

Gambling on rough stones in front of thousands of people, if one lost, left a psychological shadow. Moreover it wasn’t good for one’s reputation and the fan base they would build afterwards.

If Bai Jing were to take part in a match, there was a high probability that he would be matched with a Level 2 Stone Gambler, which would cause a lot of psychological stress if he met such a strong opponent on his debut.

As much as he wanted to get Bai Jing up to speed, it wasn’t in that way.

Bai Jing’s voice was very firm, “That’s right. It’s just that–“

His long, slender eyelashes behind his glasses flickered like a small fan as he hesitated a little in a rare moment, “Can I, hide my identity?”

“Yes.”

Gu Yuanzhao’s deep eyes looked at Bai Jing, “However, many Stone Gamblers participate in the betting battles just to raise their profile and to enjoy the feeling of being in the limelight. Don’t you want that?”

Bai Jing lowered his eyes, “I can take it, it’s just that I’m more afraid of trouble.”

Gu Yuanzhao: “Alright, I’ll create a new identity for you. What kind of identity would you like?”

Bai Jing: “Any one is fine with me.”

Gu Yuanzhao mused, “Just to be on the safe side, we’ll just give you an identity as a junior of the Gu Conglomerate’s family branch from another planet so that it makes sense for you to participate in a gambling battle for the Gu Conglomerate. How about the name ‘Gu Yun’?”

Bai Jing: “Thank you, it sounds good.”

Gu Yuanzhao: “Then you can move in this afternoon.”

Bai Jing looked at him in confusion: ?

Gu Yuanzhao explained, “Since you’re from a branch of the Gu family, it’s only natural that you should live in a property owned by the Gu Conglomerate.

Don’t worry, I don’t usually go back. You’ll be the only one in the whole suite and you won’t be disturbed in any way.”

Seeing Bai Jing’s hesitation, he added: “It’s also for your safety. Stay here, I won’t let anyone find out your real identity.”

Bai Jing thought about it then finally agreed: “Then thank you for the arrangement.”

Gu Yuanzhao’s dark eyes were tinged with a smile and there was a rare trace of pleasure in his voice, “You’re welcome.”

Bai Jing’s packing up was simple, as his belongings were minimal. They were basically a few sets of clothes and notebooks to record class content, all of which fit into one suitcase.

He had originally been planning to take a hover car to his new address, but Gu Yuanzhao asked for his address on the grounds that his place needed to be reviewed, saying that he would send someone to pick him up.

Bai Jing walked out of the room with his suitcase in his arms, only to see an extraordinarily cool hover car parked thirty centimeters above the ground.

The extremely smooth black streamlined body, with the ‘S’ class logo on the wings, was a top of the range limited edition. There weren’t many of them in the whole empire.

The windows opened and Gu Yuanzhao’s handsome features appeared in front of him.

Fortunately, Bai Jing lived in a very remote area, otherwise it would have certainly caused a sensation.

Bai Jing was surprised, “Young Master Gu, how come you’re here in person?” Didn’t he say he would send someone to pick him up?

Gu Yuanzhao didn’t respond. The automatic car door rose upwards like the wings of a flying eagle, and two impossibly long legs stepped out of the car and walked up to Bai Jing, taking the suitcase from him without a word.

Bai Jing looked at his empty hands. He had always been on his own and this was the first time he felt the feeling of being taken care of, and that person was the Young Master Gu who was a Major General of the Empire with an exalted status.

Gu Yuanzhao looked over at him with a smile, “Come, get in.”

“En.” Bai Jing moved with a deft flick and took the passenger seat.

As the superb hover car sped off, Gu Yuanzhao saw Bai Jing’s hands gripping the seat and so slowed down considerately, arriving in the busiest part of the main city after ten minutes.

The residence Gu Yuanzhao had spoken of looked like a white eggshell-like enclosed high-rise, and after iris recognition and body scanning, the white heavy-duty hatch opened slowly, and the black hover car drove in and then quickly closed again.

This was an independent space and very high up. The hover car swooped down then stopped in the hover room on the eighth floor in the middle.

Getting out of the hover car and walking into the room on the eighth floor, Bai Jing breathed a soft sigh of relief. Fortunately it wasn’t one of those aristocratic manors or oversized villas but an ordinary four-bedroom, two-bathroom house about three hundred square feet or so.

The room was unusually well furnished, but there were no signs of use at all, so it seemed that no one really lived here permanently.

Gu Yuanzhao entered his information and then left, leaving him with plenty of privacy.

Seeing the other man leave, the favorable impression Bai Jing had of him in his heart rose a little.

After a few encounters, he had discovered that this man wasn’t as unsympathetic as the people from aristocratic families were. Rather, he treated people with a sense of propriety and consideration that they lacked, not having any of that aristocratic airs about him.

Perhaps the two of them could be friends beyond their partnership.

Bai Jing put his suitcase in the master bedroom with the intention of putting the clothes in it away.

Only to pull open the wardrobe and find it full of brand new clothes, and in sizes that were clearly not Gu Yuanzhao’s.

He froze for a moment, and then realized that they seemed to be for him.

The style and color of these clothes weren’t ostentatious, but rather an everyday style with a soft, skin-friendly texture, similar to the feel of the white jumper from before.

And, Bai Jing took one set and compared it to his body. How should he put it? It was as if he had taken a ruler and measured it out inch by inch on his body.

Putting the clothes back into the suitcase, Bai Jing went to the storage room, intending to buy some more natural ingredients to put in there, as was his habit.

As a result, when he pulled open the door of the pantry, he was met with piles of natural food neatly arranged in different categories, all of which were of the freshest and highest quality.

A warm current flowed through Bai Jing’s heart and the corners of his lips rose involuntarily.

Although he didn’t like to owe people favors, he wasn’t insensitive either. He could sense that Young Master Gu thought highly of him, and that a lot of thought had definitely gone into preparing all these.

Bai Jing: [Young Master Gu, thank you for what you have prepared for me. I like them a lot.]

When Gu Yuanzhao received the message from Bai Jing, the apprehension in his heart finally disappeared.

The reason he had left so quickly was because he had been worried that with him around, the teenager would feel that his pride had been bruised, and that he would feel that he was bestowing favors.

But now it seemed that Bai Jing didn’t have an inferiority complex because of his origins and could understand his good intentions.

Entering another room about the same size as the main bedroom, Bai Jing found a full set of stone cutting equipment. Stepping forward to take a closer look, he found that it was of the highest grade of accuracy, so that even a novice Stone Solver wouldn’t cause damage to the jadeite.

In addition to this, the room contained a matching sound mask and a five-meter-long stone table for rough stones, with a white space button on the table.

Bai Jing didn’t know what to feel in his heart. Gu Yuanzhao had thought of everything so well that he didn’t even know how to repay him.

The only thing he could do, was to try to become a Senior Stone Gambler and hopefully help the Gu Conglomerate go further.

Previously Bai Jing had wondered why Gu Yuanzhao had asked him to be the Gu Conglomerate’s exclusive Stone Gambler. The Gu Conglomerate was so rich and powerful that there should be no shortage of Stone Gamblers….

And even if the reason was because of his luck, it seemed a bit forced.

But then Bai Jing found the answer when he searched for news on Starnet. It turned out that Master Gu Liu Bai had been lying in the medical bay for treatment ever since he was attacked by a strange animal with mental power two years ago and hadn’t shown any signs of waking up yet.

Master Gu Liu Bai was the only Level 8 Stone Gambler in the Empire, and a pillar of the Gu Conglomerate in the gambling world, hence his unconsciousness was a huge blow to the Gu Conglomerate.

Although it wouldn’t shake the very foundation of the Gu Conglomerate as a behemoth for a while, it was clear to Bai Jing that other families wouldn’t let go of such a good opportunity easily.

Bai Jing didn’t dare to say that he could reach the ability and status of Master Gu Liu Bai, however he would do his very best to help the Gu Conglomerate and Gu Yuanzhao.

In tomorrow’s betting battle, he would definitely not lose!