Du Lai’s expression shifted.

He was still young at this point — around twenty — sharp-minded, but without much depth or experience in reading people. Fu Miaoxue’s words hit him immediately, and he asked: “What do you mean? You know who hired them?”

“Of course~” Fu Miaoxue smiled at him. “Didn’t I just say — your men already told us everything.

They’re a professional crew of thieves who specialize in art galleries and estates. A major client noticed their expertise and paid a high price to have them steal something from my grandfather. The plan was that if this job succeeded, all of them would have enough to walk away clean and never worry about money again.

The problem was, their locksmith ran into trouble and ended up in prison. The client was pressing them for results, and they couldn’t wait for the locksmith to be released. So they had to find someone else — and then they spotted you on a cruise ship and decided you had real talent, so they brought you in.”

Du Lai’s expression grew darker and darker.

Fu Miaoxue continued: “You didn’t want to take the risk. But there was someone on the crew — a friend from when you were young. You grew up together in an orphanage. He was something like an older brother to you? Oh right — the man who got shot in the head last night.”

“You—!” Du Lai lunged at the cage bars, eyes burning red.

The spoon in Fu Miaoxue’s hand was knocked away, and oat porridge splattered across the expensive carpet. She didn’t seem to care in the slightest. She smiled, set the food down, rose, walked to the table, and pressed the call button.

“Is there any need to be so upset? I was helping you. From what I’ve heard, your ‘older brother’ — to get you to commit — bribed someone on the ship to frame you for theft. You were arrested, and he paid to get you out. Out of gratitude, and with nowhere else to turn, you were willing to join him. And so…”

Du Lai went still, unable to believe it.

It was true that shortly after being reunited with his childhood friend, he had ended up behind bars. His friend had paid to secure his release. The bail had cost him his job on the cruise ship, and with nowhere to go, that same friend had taken him in. And then…

And then… his childhood friend had proposed this job.

And yet Fu Miaoxue was telling him it had all been a setup?

“Hehe…” Fu Miaoxue watched him with a smile. “Didn’t see that coming, did you? The person you thought saved you from disaster was actually the one who pushed you into it. Without me, you’d already be dead~”

Du Lai sat in silence for a long moment. Then he smiled at himself, a grim and hollow sound. “Am I supposed to thank you?”

“No.” Fu Miaoxue smiled. “You’re supposed to obey me.”

Du Lai glanced at her once, then lowered his eyes and said nothing more.

The servants came in from outside, rolled up the stained carpet, and took it away.

Fu Miaoxue continued feeding Du Lai the rest of his breakfast. When she was done, she went off to Qiao Na’s room for lessons.

At eleven, the morning session ended, and she returned to her room, full of energy, and threw the gold cage open. “Come on, I’m taking you out to walk in the garden~”

Du Lai had only just had a bullet taken out of him. What he really needed was to rest. But he had no way to refuse anything Fu Miaoxue decided.

Under heavy bodyguard escort, Fu Miaoxue led her new pet into the garden. A long, slender metal chain connected Du Lai’s collar to Fu Miaoxue’s hand. Two or three meters apart, the two of them moved through the garden one behind the other — an extraordinary sight.

After walking for a while, Fu Miaoxue stopped and tugged on the chain. “Come on, do a trick for me~”

Du Lai turned around. He stood before a cluster of roses and looked at her. “I’m sorry, Miss. I can’t.”

“Why?” Fu Miaoxue asked, genuinely confused. “Like yesterday — you can’t do something like that?”

“I can’t.” Du Lai said evenly. “Magic is all misdirection. Without enough props prepared in advance, I can’t conjure anything from nothing. Those flowers yesterday, for instance — I prepared them beforehand. They were hidden under the bench. You were completely focused on the cap, so you never noticed.”