Chapter 109 – The Chosen Tool

Two figures stood before him, completely shrouded in cloaks with hoods pulled low, making it impossible to discern their appearances.

Su Ming glanced briefly and roughly distinguished from their cloaked silhouettes that they were likely a man and a woman.

The man had a build similar to Lei Hao’s—tall and robust—exuding an imposing aura.

The woman was slender and delicate, yet her curves were distinct. Though not on Yun Langyue’s level, one could still tell she possessed a tall and striking figure beneath the cloak.

Su Ming studied the two for a moment before speaking.

“Are you the ones sent by Senior Xu?”

Just moments ago, Xu Qianqian had sent him a message.

She hadn’t contacted him directly but informed him via text that the people she had promised to send for his protection had arrived.

These two seemed to be the private soldiers trained by the Xu Family exclusively for their Young Miss, dispatched by Xu Qianqian.

Judging by their presence, their strength appeared to be anything but ordinary.

The man spoke first.

“My name is Lie.”

His voice was utterly devoid of emotion as he responded to Su Ming’s query.

“My name is Yin.”

The woman’s voice, surprisingly gentle and kind, carried few words.

“Lie and Yin… is it?”

Su Ming gave them a deep, scrutinizing look.

These were clearly codenames, not their real names.

However, as privately trained soldiers of the Xu Family, it made sense for them to have only codenames and no real names.

At the very least, their identities and true names couldn’t be exposed.

Under such circumstances, it was also natural for them to speak sparingly to avoid revealing any clues.

But Su Ming still had questions for them.

“How is your Young Miss doing?” Su Ming asked directly. “Did she give you any instructions?”

The man who called himself “Lie” didn’t answer. Only the woman who called herself “Yin” spoke after a moment of silence.

“The Young Miss didn’t give us any special instructions,” Yin replied calmly. “She only told us to protect your safety at all costs and prevent the Xu Family from acting against you.”

Her voice, though gentle, didn’t come across as unpleasant.

In contrast, Lie added at that moment.

“You’d better not wander around recklessly or interact with others casually. Staying obediently in your room is the safest option.”

Lie’s tone was somewhat sharp, causing Su Ming to raise an eyebrow slightly.

“Oh?” Su Ming looked at Lie with a faint, mocking smile. “Are you trying to restrict my freedom?”

Hearing this, Lie seemed about to respond but was interrupted by Yin beside him.

“That’s not what we meant,” Yin deliberately cut off Lie. “We’re only thinking of your safety and hope you can avoid unnecessary risks as much as possible.”

“I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed then,” Su Ming said indifferently. “I’m a stationed personnel on this frontline. Sooner or later, I’ll have to return to the frontlines to fight. Risks are unavoidable. Even if my strength is lacking, I can’t just stay obediently in the rear, let alone confined to a room.”

Su Ming’s words were met with Yin’s earnest agreement.

“We understand. Within our capabilities, we will protect you.”Yin made such a promise.

Only Lie muttered under his hood.

“Since you know your strength is lacking, why even go to the frontline? Wouldn’t it be better to just stay in the rear?”

The dismissive remark made Su Ming turn his gaze toward Lie, fixing his eyes on him.

“Lie!”

Yin called out sharply.

Lie fell silent.

Su Ming, however, had a rough idea of what was going on. He curled his lips and smiled.

“It seems you hold quite a grudge against me.”

This was already obvious.

“No…”

Yin wanted to explain, but Su Ming didn’t give her the chance.

“Let me guess why you’d show such hostility toward someone you’ve just met.”

Su Ming looked at Lie, speaking slowly as he smiled.

“Is it because you’re dissatisfied with Xu Qianqian sending people to protect me at such a critical moment?”

As soon as he said this, not only Lie but even Yin fell silent.

It wasn’t particularly difficult to guess.

At present, Xu Qianqian had already stepped into the trap Xu Yanyan had laid for her and could face Xu Yanyan’s accusations at any moment.

Although, due to the ongoing battle, Xu Yanyan hadn’t yet made a move against Xu Qianqian, the fact that Xu Qianqian couldn’t contact her family indicated that the situation was quite unfavorable for her.

Especially since Xu Yanyan had Gao Xu on her side—a renowned and formidable figure even among Four-Star Hunters. With such a powerful opponent, Xu Qianqian’s position was extremely precarious.

To counter Xu Yanyan’s schemes and the threat posed by Gao Xu, the only force Xu Qianqian could rely on was a private army assigned to her by the Xu Family.

This was her sole support at the moment.

The stronger this private army was, the more confident Xu Qianqian would be in handling the current crisis.

Conversely, if the combat power of this private army weakened, Xu Qianqian could face a life-or-death situation at any time.

In such a critical situation, instead of consolidating her forces, Xu Qianqian had actually dispersed them, sending her life-saving subordinates to protect Su Ming—an unrelated outsider?

For the private soldiers who had been specially trained since childhood to protect Xu Qianqian, this was absolutely not a welcome decision.

Of course, Su Ming didn’t know that their resentment toward him wasn’t solely due to their dissatisfaction with the decision to protect him; they had already held some grievances against him.

After all, Su Ming had publicly berated Xu Qianqian on the train, an incident that had caused quite a stir among her subordinates, leaving many with a negative opinion of him.

If Xu Qianqian hadn’t taken it lightly and suppressed their discontent, they might have already come looking for trouble with Su Ming.

Regardless of Yin’s stance, Lie was one of those who had held a grudge against Su Ming from the start.

Given this, Xu Qianqian had still disregarded her own safety and sent him to protect Su Ming. It was easy to imagine how unbalanced Lie felt about the situation.

That was why Lie had been so confrontational with Su Ming from the start.

Su Ming was unaware of this past incident, but he understood clearly that these Xu Family private soldiers were unwilling to abandon Xu Qianqian’s safety to protect someone they considered “irrelevant” like him.Even Yin fell silent after Su Ming pointed this out, indicating that she too preferred to protect Xu Qianqian rather than staying here to guard Su Ming.

Once he understood this, Su Ming immediately spoke up.

“You should go back.”

Su Ming’s straightforward dismissal left both Yin and Lie stunned.

“Are you sure?”

After recovering, Lie was the first to speak, as if he couldn’t wait.

Clearly, Su Ming’s request aligned perfectly with his own wishes.

“Lie!” Yin first scolded her companion with a frown before turning to Su Ming. “We were ordered by the Young Miss to protect you. We won’t casually defy her command.”

“It’s fine. Just go back and tell her directly,” Su Ming said. “Tell your Young Miss that Xu Yanyan wouldn’t dare act recklessly against me. She shouldn’t waste her forces by keeping them around me.”

Su Ming assumed Xu Qianqian didn’t know that Xu Yanyan had already been restrained by Yun Langyue.

With Yun Langyue’s prior warning, as long as Xu Yanyan didn’t want to offend Yun Langyue or push her to the opposite side, she would never dare to move against Su Ming casually.

Moreover, with Su Ming’s current strength, he was confident even facing Gao Xu directly.

Thus, Xu Qianqian sending people to protect him was nothing but a futile effort.

Unexpectedly, Yin responded like this.

“The Young Miss has already received news from the enemy.”

Yin informed Su Ming of this matter.

“Then why did she still send people to protect me?” Su Ming was taken aback for a moment before understanding. “She doesn’t believe the enemy’s words?”

“Correct.” Yin nodded. “Unlike Young Miss Qianqian, Young Miss Yanyan isn’t the type to stick strictly to her word. If it serves her purpose, she wouldn’t hesitate to spread lies. Additionally, we can’t rule out the possibility that Young Miss Yanyan is deliberately creating confusion. To be safe, the Young Miss still sent us here.”

“Alright.” Su Ming first nodded, then shook his head. “But I truly don’t need protection anymore. Just go back and tell your Young Miss that I have my own ways to protect myself. She doesn’t need to worry.”

“This…” Yin hesitated.

At that moment, Lie couldn’t hold back any longer.

“Since he’s said so, why hesitate?” Lie urged anxiously. “He doesn’t need us, but the Young Miss does. What’s there to hesitate about?”

Yin fell silent once more.

“Go back.” Su Ming spoke leisurely. “Staying here with me is truly a waste of time. I really don’t need your protection.”

With things put so bluntly, even if Yin insisted further, it would be meaningless.

She naturally leaned more toward returning to protect Xu Qianqian. The only reason she insisted on guarding Su Ming was to avoid disobeying Xu Qianqian’s orders.

If asked whose life she valued more, it was undoubtedly Xu Qianqian without question.

As for Su Ming…

Yin glanced at Su Ming, her gaze serious, as if trying to see through him.

Unfortunately, with her insight, she couldn’t discern anything.

In that case…

“Let’s go.”

Yin finally spoke to Lie.

“Good!”

Only then did Lie brighten up.

Without further hesitation, the two turned and left under Su Ming’s watchful eyes, disappearing into the shadows.

Su Ming’s eyes flickered slightly, a faint smile appearing within them.”Let me use you as my tools for once.”

As he said this, Su Ming quietly put away a device-like object.

Yin and Lie, who were leaving the area, remained completely unaware that two small spiders had somehow attached themselves to their bodies.

Carrying these two small spiders with them, the pair returned to Xu Qianqian’s side.

(End of Chapter)