Chapter 12: The Deception

"Help?" Hua Susu shook her head upon hearing this. "I don't need you to do anything; this is something I am giving to you."

"In the past, I was blind and failed to recognize your talent, letting your potential go to waste. Take this key; use it to access the laboratory whenever you wish."

The original owner of this body was truly a fool. She ignored someone so talented right in front of her, only to fixate on that freeloading man. Someone this brilliant, if nurtured carefully, would surely bring her surprises one day. It was just like in her past life in the modern era, where she had kept a super-talented engineer well-provided for despite him producing nothing for a long time. Then, one day, he solved a massive bug for her, which catapulted her into becoming a titan in that industry. Such small investments leading to huge returns—the original owner was too stupid to see the value in it. What a pig.

"I don't have to do anything, and you're just giving it to me?" Su Yu looked at the golden chip in front of him, struggling to believe that all of this was unconditional.

Seeing him still stunned, Hua Susu pushed it directly into his hand. "Don't worry, I really won't make you do anything else."

She glanced at the room full of bottles and jars and shook her head; she was a terrible student and couldn't understand any of it anyway. With that, she left. A poor student had the self-awareness not to disturb the studies of an academic genius.

Su Yu was taken aback when he saw that Hua Susu really had left without saying another word after handing him the entry chip. She had actually given him the laboratory key without demanding anything in return. His research materials had reached a critical stage, and his own laboratory no longer met the requirements for his experiments. With this chip, he could finally conduct high-level research. For a moment, he felt as though Hua Susu had truly changed. Clutching the golden chip in his palm, ripples stirred within his heart.

"Ding! Yan Luo's favorability +5. Current favorability: -69!"

Hua Susu had just left Su Yu's room when she heard the system's punctual announcement. She looked satisfied. See, her principle of conduct had never steered her wrong. As long as she gave enough, she didn't have to worry about others not becoming devoted to her. With academic assessments coming up in a few days, several of her beast-husbands had poor grades, and her own were even more disastrous. If she wanted to win their favor, her grades had to be decent. Otherwise, dragging them down would only lower their opinion of her. Thinking of this, Hua Susu returned to her room, opened her optical computer, and began to study in earnest.

...

After obtaining the laboratory chip, Su Yu changed his clothes and headed to the laboratory with his research materials. He parked his hovercar, and just as he stepped out, he heard two people talking.

"Senior Fan, I have an urgent experiment to conduct today. Could you let me into the lab?"

"Yes, I have some excellent cooling drinks here for you."

"Move along, move along. Not today. Senior Ruan will be using the lab today, so you lot just stand aside!"

Senior Ruan? Ruan Nan? He hadn't expected that such a sophisticated laboratory had been turned into a business by his lackey, Fan Tong. Su Yu frowned. He hoped the equipment inside hadn't been affected by all this clutter, or his experiments would be inaccurate.

Su Yu shook his head, stepped down from the hovercar, and walked toward the laboratory entrance, the chip in hand.

Fan Tong stood outside, feeling a surge of satisfaction as a group of people with backgrounds more prominent than his own stood waiting and flattering him. So what if they were wealthy and powerful? Didn't they still have to listen to him? If they wanted to run an experiment, they had to beg him for it. He glanced at the time on his optical computer and frowned. What time was it? Why hadn't Senior Ruan arrived yet? If he wasn't coming, he should have said so earlier! It had cost him a potential payday.

The chip Hua Susu gave Ruan Nan was the highest level, allowing free access to the school's most advanced laboratory. After learning this, he had borrowed Ruan Nan's chip a few times, and later, when people asked him if he could lend it out, this business was born. In this school, there were many beastmen from powerful backgrounds, and some were willing to pay thousands of star coins without a second thought. He had made a small fortune relying on this.

Just as he was looking around, preparing to send a message to ask Ruan Nan if he was still coming, a white figure suddenly approached. Thinking it was another person looking to borrow a card, he waved a hand impatiently. "Didn't I tell you? You can't enter the lab today."

The person ignored him entirely and continued walking straight ahead. Seeing this insolent fellow, Fan Tong frowned and shouted, "What is wrong with you? Didn't I say you can't go in?"

As he finished speaking, a "beep" sounded, and the door opened before his eyes. Fan Tong looked over and realized the person who had entered was Su Yu, one of Hua Susu's beast-husbands. He immediately crossed his arms and said, "Who told you to come in? Did the Princess say you could come here?"

It was well-known in the school that Hua Susu disliked her beast-husbands and was intent on pursuing Ruan Nan. Consequently, everyone assumed Su Yu held no status in her eyes. Seeing him approach, he issued a blunt "eviction order." This place was a privilege Hua Susu had specifically granted to Ruan Nan, allowing him to enjoy all kinds of resources within the school. He had heard that Su Yu had previously asked Hua Susu for a chip to enter the lab, but she hadn't even deigned to respond.

Su Yu felt a pang of heartache upon hearing this. He was her legitimate beast-husband, yet he couldn't take a single step into the laboratory. However, she had given him a chip today; surely that meant something had changed? He didn't look at Fan Tong and turned to walk inside.

Fan Tong was shocked to see the chip in Su Yu's hand. No way—Hua Susu had actually given Su Yu an access card? If he started coming in to do experiments regularly, what would happen to his business? He immediately swiped his own card to follow him in, looking at Su Yu nervously.

After swiping his card, Su Yu scanned the laboratory. Seeing that the workspace was tidy, he breathed a sigh of relief. He headed straight for the high-security instruments. Since the instruments were highly restricted, there was an inner barrier. Su Yu swiped his card, but the door didn't budge. Thinking he had used the wrong technique, he swiped again. The second time, the door still didn't open. His expression grew tense, and he swiped a third time. The transparent glass door remained completely still.

Fan Tong, following behind, saw Su Yu fail to enter after three attempts and curled his lip in mockery. "I thought as much. Why would the Princess give you the laboratory key?"

"The key in your hand is the lowest level; it's only good for washing laboratory equipment. If you think you can touch the real gear, you're nowhere near qualified."

"Hahaha, this is hilarious! You actually thought you had the lab key, but you can't do anything at all!"

"Tell me, Su Yu, did the Princess specifically tell you to come here just to wash Ruan Nan's equipment?"

Su Yu's veins bulged as he gripped the golden chip, his golden eyes filled with smoldering rage. No wonder she had been so kind today, giving him the laboratory key without demanding anything. It was all a setup. Was she humiliating him? Deliberately bringing him to the lab to act as Ruan Nan's servant?

Su Yu suddenly felt ridiculous. He had thought Hua Susu had really changed, but she was still the same person. All of this was just to humiliate him.