Chen Shuo had never been so serious before, with a determined look in his eyes.
If it were any other time, Su Xiyan, who had an aura of queenliness, would never have given Chen Shuo a chance to negotiate terms.
But now, she was actually willing to hear what Chen Shuo had to say.
Leaning against the sofa pillows, Su Xiyan raised her eyebrows slightly: "Speak."
"I never negotiate partnerships with anyone, so you'd better treasure this precious opportunity and not say anything to anger me," Chen Shuo stared straight at Su Xiyan and asked, "Do you want to become a Legendary Demon Hunter?"
Su Xiyan: "Don't ask stupid questions."
Chen Shuo: "There is a great opportunity in front of you now. Do you want to cherish it?"
Su Xiyan was clearly running out of patience: "Get to the point."
Chen Shuo knew what consequences would follow if he angered Su Xiyan, so he hurried to organize his next words, trying to express them as concisely as possible.
"I can help attract Vampires and lure them close to you so you can hunt them. That way, you’ll be able to hunt Vampires in the shortest time, gain points, and get promoted to become a Legendary Demon Hunter."
Chen Shuo’s suggestion was basically consistent with what Su Xiyan and her best friend Cheng Xinran had said.
Perhaps this is what you call having chemistry?
Or having a telepathic connection?
This attracted Su Xiyan’s interest and she signaled for Chen Shuo to continue.
Chen Shuo knew he had succeeded halfway. He decided to seize the opportunity and went on.
"I'm a Vampire. I know what places Vampires like to go. I can also try to contact other Vampires in Su City and then lure them out for you to hunt."
"I know you Demon Hunters have your own monitoring system, but as a Vampire, I can turn from passive to active. Wouldn't that make things twice as effective for you?"
A flash of doubt appeared in Su Xiyan’s eyes.
"Why would you want to do this? Vampires and Demon Hunters are mortal enemies. Why would you give your enemy ideas and allow them to hunt your own kind?"
After all that talking, Chen Shuo’s mouth felt dry. He didn’t expect Su Xiyan to still get hung up on this issue. Chen Shuo had no choice but to patiently answer.
"Didn't I already tell you? I wasn't born a Vampire. I was bitten and then forced to become one."
"Do you understand what I mean by ‘forced’?"
Su Xiyan pondered briefly and nodded: "Since you want to negotiate cooperation with me, tell me your demands."
This time, what Chen Shuo said was true: "My demand is simple. When you become a Legendary Demon Hunter, help me reverse my bloodline."
"I don't want to be a Vampire anymore. I want to become a normal human again. I want to regain my humanity."
When Chen Shuo said this, his eyes were full of longing.
This kind of look simply cannot be faked. Because this was Chen Shuo’s truest inner thoughts.
An extremely intelligent woman like Su Xiyan should have her objectives laid out openly.
Chen Shuo even felt he should have said it earlier instead of letting Su Xiyan develop doubts and test him before revealing it.
He didn’t know if Su Xiyan would agree either. With Su Xiyan’s capabilities, she could hunt Vampires all by herself without this extra baggage.
Unexpectedly, after just three seconds of contemplation, Su Xiyan nodded in agreement.
"Fine, it’s a deal."
"Even without your help, I can still become a Legendary Demon Hunter on my own. So on the day I do become one, I want you to remember that it was achieved through my own efforts."
Chen Shuo: "......"
Alright alright, you’re the boss. You’re always right.
As long as he could reverse his Vampiric bloodline and become human again, Chen Shuo didn’t mind these petty details.
He stood up, reached out his hand towards Su Xiyan and said, "From this moment on, we are partners."
"Miss Su, pleased to be working with you!"
So formal??
Looking at Chen Shuo’s broad palm, Su Xiyan was oddly reminded of that time in the alley behind the street food stalls. At the critical moment, it was Chen Shuo’s hand that pulled her into the school grounds, saving her from having her identity exposed.
After some hesitation, Su Xiyan also extended her slender jade-like hand and shook Chen Shuo’s hand lightly.
"Pleased to be working with you."
His palm still had that reassuring warmth.
After reaching an agreement, Su Xiyan ordered Chen Shuo, "Alright, now that everything is settled, you can go cook."
Glancing at the clock on the wall, it was already past two in the afternoon.
What an ordeal that was.
They had even forgotten to make lunch.
Chen Shuo boldly made a demand: "Since we’re partners now, you can’t treat me as a nanny, maid, or assistant anymore."
"I can still be your driver though. Your driving skills are pretty awesome."
Su Xiyan’s willowy eyebrows furrowed and she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Don’t forget your own worth here Chen Shuo. Just attracting Vampires for me to hunt isn’t enough to reflect your value to me."
Chen Shuo was indignant: "What a fickle woman! You were just talking about pleased cooperation a moment ago!"
Su Xiyan gave Chen Shuo a threatening “just you try” look. Then she slowly walked into her bedroom. Right before closing the door, she left Chen Shuo with:
"I expect food ready in half an hour."
Chen Shuo’s formerly smug face instantly took on a pained expression.
He had cleared up Su Xiyan’s doubts and reached a major cooperative agreement with her.
But it turns out he still couldn’t escape his fate of having to cook and prepare meals.
Helpless, Chen Shuo had no choice but to head to the kitchen, pick up a spatula, and take on the role of household chef.
Lying in her soft and comfortable bed after returning to the master bedroom, Su Xiyan felt she might have talked a bit too much today?
In the past, she would never have wasted so many words on a weakling!
However, Chen Shuo’s suggestions were pretty good. Su Xiyan was eager to become a Legendary Demon Hunter!
After laying bare their identities and goals, Chen Shuo felt much more relaxed physically.
Regarding the matter of "a Vampire who doesn't drink blood yet doesn't starve to death", Chen Shuo’s previous explanation was reasonable enough.
The interactions between Chen Shuo and Su Xiyan were no longer so confrontational.
Now that they had a common goal, everything was no longer so entangled.
Every morning, Chen Shuo would get up early to make breakfast for Su Xiyan.
Su Xiyan’s appetite grew pickier by the day, so Chen Shuo had to rack his brains thinking of ways to satisfy his financier.
"Where's the fresh milk?" Sitting at the dining table, Su Xiyan looked at the bacon sandwich and sunny-side egg in her bowl but found her milk cup empty. She lightly tapped her crystal clear nails on the glass producing crisp sounds.
Only then did Chen Shuo remember he had forgotten to pour the milk.
"It's in the fridge. Go get it yourself! I still have to toss the noodles!" Chen Shuo said, holding chopsticks in his hand while pouring scallion oil into the steaming hot noodles.
He couldn't get used to things like sandwiches.
The elaborate ingredients and the baking aroma of sandwiches still couldn’t compare to a steaming bowl of scallion oil noodles!
Seeing that Chen Shuo really couldn’t get away, Su Xiyan got up to fetch milk from the fridge herself.
The fridge was truly massive. After Chen Shuo moved in, the refrigerator was also filled with all kinds of ingredients.
Su Xiyan's bright eyes scanned the fridge but couldn't find any milk. She turned her head and called out to Chen Shuo, "Come help me find it."
Chen Shuo put down his scallion oil noodles and started towards the fridge, muttering: "Can't even find some milk. This household wouldn't function without me!"