The Alien Prince Has Fallen for Me

Chapter 5: The Auction and the Poison Smoke

The women's restroom was saturated with cloying perfume and an icy silence. Yue Yao stood before the sink, staring into the mirror at a face both familiar and foreign—the exquisite features that belonged to 'Mei Guo,' yet framed by her own panicked eyes. The cold water rushing over her wrists could not quell the storm raging inside her. That poisoning… it had been a real death experience. Without Xing Hun's incomprehensible ability… she didn't dare think further.

A new reflection appeared in the mirror. Tang Yu had walked up to the adjacent sink. But instead of turning on the faucet, she fixed Yue Yao with a razor gaze through the glass.

'Mei Guo. Getting used to the new body?' Tang Yu's voice was low but carried a cold, hard edge that echoed in the empty restroom. 'I've given you the fungal biocomputer research. Time for you to hold up your end of the bargain!'

Yue Yao's heart lurched. She turned around, fighting to keep her voice steady. 'What bargain?' She had to be exquisitely careful. A single slip could be fatal.

Tang Yu's expression turned ugly, her eyes flashing with venom. 'Are you trying to welch on our deal?!'

Yue Yao felt the undisguised killing intent radiating from the woman. Cold sweat soaked her back. She waved her hands hastily, her voice quavering almost imperceptibly. 'No, no. I just… momentarily forgot. Give me a hint.' She tried to fish for information.

'My daughter's whereabouts!' Tang Yu practically spat the words through gritted teeth. Her hand slid soundlessly into her small bag. When it emerged, a compact but wickedly sharp scalpel was pressed against Yue Yao's carotid artery. The icy kiss of metal made every hair on Yue Yao's body stand on end.

'Wait, wait! If you kill me, you'll never get any news about your daughter.' Yue Yao forced herself to stay calm, her mind racing. 'Tell me her characteristics. I'll drain every last cent of my fortune to find her for you!'

'Then go to hell!' Tang Yu's wrist tensed. The blade pierced skin with a faint prick of pain.

'Wait, wait, wait! I'm not Mei Guo! Tell me who else knows—I'll help you investigate!' Yue Yao cried out desperately, cold sweat sliding down her temples. She could not die here. Absolutely not!

Tang Yu stared into her eyes—eyes that belonged to a mature scientist, now brimming with paranoia and anguish. She suddenly let out a bitter, chilling laugh. 'Ha ha ha… Mei Guo, so this is how it ends for you!' The laughter cut off abruptly. Her gaze sharpened. 'Wait. Then how did you know the body restart password?'

It was a lethal question. Yue Yao's thoughts spun at lightning speed. She couldn't expose Xing Hun or the secret of time reversal. She had no choice but to gamble. She poured every ounce of effort into looking sincere—even a bit dumb. 'I guessed it. The password is six zeros. Not exactly hard to guess.'

Tang Yu scrutinized her for several seconds, seeming to weigh the truth of those words. Eventually, the killing intent in her eyes receded slightly—but the scalpel didn't stray far. 'Fine. I'll believe you for now. My daughter is twenty-five years old. She's immune to fungal infection.' She withdrew the blade and lowered her voice. 'I want you to get close to Mei Guo's ex-husband, Roger. I don't care what methods you use—you will extract my daughter's whereabouts from him. Or else…' She didn't finish. The threat needed no elaboration.

'Rest assured. I will not fail this mission!' Yue Yao hastily promised, secretly exhaling in relief. The stinging at her neck was a sharp reminder of how close she had come.

'Roger is here tonight. Table two. I've already sent his file to you.' With that, Tang Yu reassumed the demeanor of an elegant scientist, as if the woman holding a scalpel to Yue Yao's throat moments ago had been a hallucination. She turned and walked out of the restroom.

Yue Yao's legs nearly gave out. She clutched the cold sink to stay upright. She pulled out her phone. Sure enough, Tang Yu's data had arrived. Roger's photo showed a surprisingly young face—thirty at most. His title: General Manager and Board Director of Illusion Brain Biotech.

'Roger is that young? Did he undergo consciousness transfer too?' Yue Yao murmured, chilled to the bone by this world's technology—and its darkness.

'Yes. For Illusion Brain Biotech, consciousness transfer is merely an intermediate-level experiment.' Tang Yu's parting words echoed in her ears.

Yue Yao took several deep breaths. She touched up her makeup, concealing the tiny blood spot on her neck and her pallid complexion, then straightened her spine and walked out. She was Mei Guo now. She couldn't afford a single c***k in the mask.

Back in the ballroom, the auction was underway. Spotlights focused on the stage, where the auctioneer was delivering an impassioned introduction: 'The tenth auction item tonight is—two months of personal bodyguard service from martial arts movie star Xing Hun! Starting bid: ten million! All proceeds will go toward critical-care patients!'

Xing Hun stood on stage, the lights sculpting his tall, athletic physique in razor-sharp relief. He wore a faint, captivating smile, seemingly indifferent to the frenzied bidding below. Rich young ladies were swooning as they raised their paddles. The price rocketed to a hundred million in no time.

Yue Yao watched Xing Hun on stage, her mind flashing back to the warehouse embarrassment, the brushes with death. A desperate idea took root and spread like wildfire. Two months of having him as her bodyguard wouldn't just guarantee her safety—she could boss him around and exact revenge for that stolen 'kiss'!

A surge of inexplicable impulse mixed with a deeply rooted need for security. She raised her paddle. Her voice was clear and steady: 'Two hundred million!'

A collective gasp swept the room. Every gaze snapped to her.

A simpering yet fiercely competitive voice immediately followed: 'Three hundred million!' It was Loli—Roger's daughter. She had her sights set on Xing Hun.

Yue Yao was determined to win. Without a flicker of hesitation, she raised her paddle again: 'Four hundred million!'

Beside her, Fu Yuan couldn't keep still. He wrapped his arm around her and whined in a wounded voice: 'Baby, I can protect you. Don't waste money.'

Yue Yao was in no mood to humor him. 'Stay out of it. I'm winning this auction no matter what!'

Fu Yuan's eyes dimmed. His voice grew even more plaintive. 'Baby… don't you love me anymore?'

Yue Yao had no bandwidth for his moods. She kept her eyes locked on Loli's every move.

Loli seemed hell-bent on challenging her to the bitter end. She raised her paddle again: 'Five hundred million!'

Yue Yao smiled faintly—a smile of overwhelming, crushing confidence. She raised her paddle and declared in a voice that rang across the entire hall: 'One billion!'

That number plunged the ballroom into a beat of absolute silence. Loli was about to raise her paddle again when Roger clamped a hand down on her arm.

Loli pouted in protest: 'Dad, I really like Xing Hun! Just let me win him!'

Roger whispered sternly, his eyes shrewd: 'You can't outbid your mother. She has never lost anything she set her sights on.'

Loli puffed her cheeks and shot a venomous glare in Yue Yao's direction. 'She's just a stepmother. An old hag. And she's still competing with me.'

'Maintain some dignity. Don't let people laugh at us,' Roger reminded her. 'And don't forget—you're the second-in-line heir to her estate.'

At those words, Loli's eyes lit up. She swallowed her fury. In a hushed voice, she said: 'Got it. I should be working hard to be filial and devoted—so I can inherit her fortune!'

Roger nodded with satisfaction: 'Now you're learning.'

The auctioneer's gavel came down with a bang. 'One billion—going once! One billion—going twice! SOLD! Congratulations, Mrs. Mei Guo! Please come to the stage to collect your auction item!'

Under the weight of a thousand stares, Yue Yao rose with her head held high and walked gracefully onto the stage. Meeting Xing Hun's meaningful smile, she took his hand as though claiming a trophy of war and led him back down.

The moment they stepped off the stage, Xing Hun leaned in close, his warm breath brushing her ear. In a voice only the two of them could hear, tinged with playful mockery, he murmured: 'Spending a billion on me… are you in love with me?'

Yue Yao's ear burned. But she forced her face into a fierce scowl and hissed back through gritted teeth: 'No! I just really, really want to see you grovel!'

Xing Hun feigned a disappointed sigh, but his eyes sparkled with brilliant light. 'Pity. My services do include… warming the bed, you know.'