Chapter 34: Losing his mind
While Li Jun and his family were plotting his escape route, Yu Wen was sitting across from an exhausted-looking, beautiful woman with curly hair. She had panda eyes and looked fed up, like she didn’t want to be here.
A soft ding chimed and Yu Wen said, "That’s for your time."
The woman named Juno looked at her phone and there was a notification that she had received fifty thousand StarCoins, which was twice as much as she made in a year. She arched her brow and said, "Rumour has it that you are infamous for being a peerless immortal with no sexual desires."
She pushed her hair back and asked, "Are you trying to date me? Because this is not enough."
Yu Wen’s expression didn’t change as he said, "No, I want to know about Li Jun." This she didn’t expect. She had heard of Li Jun’s conflict with the general, thus she didn’t think he would be the reason he had paid her this much. She wasn’t delusional enough to think that Yu Wen was here because he found her attractive. She just didn’t think he would come here to get information about Li Jun.
With a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes, she asked. "What do you want to know about him?"
He didn’t mince words, asking directly, "I heard you tried to seduce him and he kicked you out." She rubbed her arm while lowering her head. He had touched her sore spot without even considering her feelings. She took out a cigarette and bit it. Just when she was about to light it, Yu Wen said, "Not in front of me."
Juno sighed as she took it out of her mouth. She was exhausted and didn’t want to be here anymore, so she said, "Yeah, he did. I thought I could be his forever girlfriend, you know? I got greedy."
"So, he doesn’t sleep with any of the girls?" he asked and Juno, thinking this couldn’t possibly harm Li Jun, pulled up a private group chat titled Jun Jun’s harem. Yu Wen’s brows arched.
She explained, "The rules are simple. You can have a couple of drinks with him. Don’t initiate anything unless he permits it. Take a picture or video and post it. After that, you get to achieve your dreams," as he looked through the messages.
They were all about how handsome Li Jun was and some were calling him "husband". There were even shirtless pictures taken from distant angles, like they were peeping on him. Yu Wen’s jaw tightened.
"The only consistent woman in his life is Yan Jia and that woman is more like his mother than anything else. She will go to war for him... I think he is trying to sell this bad-boy, useless prince image. He wants to be painted as a lazy wastrel who only loves two things, women and alcohol."
"But I always wondered who he is doing this for," she continued, her smile growing bigger just thinking about him. She genuinely liked him a lot, which was why she risked breaking the rules.
Yu Wen was also lost in thought. He had noticed the same thing about him. Unlike her, he now knew who he was selling this image to. He was trying to show them that he wasn’t a threat and they could have that position if they wanted it. But what was the endgame? To play this role until when?
"Do you regret it?... You could have had what the other women have. Fame, money and endless brand deals," he asked, curious to know why she wouldn’t just follow the rules.
Juno smiled slightly and asked, "Have you ever been in love?" His silence was an answer, so she continued saying, "I have liked him for such a long time, so how could I not take advantage of the opportunity. I took my shot and it... just didn’t work out."
He had come here to confirm everything that the thief had said, not to add salt to her wounds. Now that he had found what he wanted, he got up. "Thanks for your time," he said, straightening his coat.
Juno looked at his retreating back and said, "He is really a good person. This world doesn’t deserve him."
His steps paused for a second and he finally said, "I know," before walking out. Juno bit her lip, thinking about the time she first met him. Li Jun didn’t even remember that he once saved her from a client harassing her at a private bar.
At the time, he told her to find another job because this place was dirty. He had asked her what her dream was and when she said owning her own hair salon, he had Yan Jia set her up in a cosmetology school. To Li Jun, she was just one of the many people he had helped but to Juno, he was the first person who was nice to her.
She started following all his pages and watched all the news about him. She defended him whenever people attacked him. She was so active in the fan groups that one day the group admin asked her if she would like to come to Club Nova for ladies’ night. She agreed with no hesitation. She became friends with her and they would go there often.
So, when this opportunity was presented to her, she was more than happy to accept it but she got greedy. She didn’t hold it against him. Still to this day, she defends him. She could only watch him from afar and cherish the time she spent with him, regardless of how little it was.
***
After finding out everything he could about Li Jun, Yu Wen thought he could finally let it go. His curiosity satisfied, he could finally move on with his life and act as if nothing had happened. But who was he kidding?
Even when he was drowned in work and busy with his regular routine, he would still think about him. Even when he was trying to sleep, his mind would go to that night. Yu Wen felt like he was losing his mind.
