The pretty little follower gets targeted by the crazy guys at the elite academy

Fu Chenzhou slowly turned around and walked to a display case at the very back.

Li Ruo looked up.

Inside was a petite and beautiful young girl.

Wearing a white ballet dress, standing on tiptoe, holding a bunch of dried roses in her hands, she stretched her body, her posture as elegant as a swan.

Her eyes were slightly lowered, and a gentle smile played on her lips.

so gorgeous.

It's extremely strange.

"She was the first piece I ever collected."

Fu Chenzhou's voice became very soft, carrying an emotion that Li Ruo couldn't understand:

"It's also the only one that I've kept myself."

Li Ruo was stunned.

She recalled the comments on the screen:

The first piece he personally collected was the corpse of his first love.

So, this woman is...

"This is not my first love."

Fu Chenzhou's fingers gently traced the glass:

"This is my sister."

"When she was eighteen, she fell in love with someone she shouldn't have, and she chose to elope. That person used her, hurt her, and finally abandoned her."

That was the year she died in front of me.

"The one who killed her was someone else who thought she was beautiful."

"That man kidnapped her and imprisoned her for three months. When I finally found her..."

"I cherish my family, and I did the best I could to restore her beauty."

"And then what happened? Didn't you seek revenge on the person who killed your sister?" Li Ruo asked.

"Later, the man who killed her was willing to atone for his sins."

Fu Chenzhou's voice remained calm throughout.

But Li Ruo could hear the surging darkness below:

"He made me torture him for three months, the way he treated her."

"Then, I built this manor."

He turned his head, his gray eyes looking at Li Ruo:

"From that day on, I understood."

"What you want to cherish should not be tainted by time, by love, or by anything foolish."

"They should be preserved, treasured, and loved forever."

"Because only by keeping them safe will they not disappear."

"It won't be taken away from me, it won't... leave me."

The collection room was extremely quiet.

Only the faint hum of machinery could be heard in the distance.

Li Ruo looked at him.

Looking at this man who is seen as a madman, a pervert, and a demon by everyone.

His grey eyes locked onto Li Ruo as he slowly approached her.

"And you, Li Ruo."

"There's something about you that's a lot like my sister."

"That struggle of trying to remain pure even when you are in darkness."

"That kind of stubbornness that refuses to give up even in despair."

"I want to collect this beauty, and make you my second handmade collectible. Is that alright?"

Li Ruo: "..."

"You don't want to?"

Li Ruo: "..." Only a fool would agree.

"Are you afraid of me because you're not saying anything?"

He walked over step by step, his heavy footsteps treading on the marble floor, filled with curiosity.

Every step carried an invisible sense of pressure.

[Holy crap, he's coming! The executioner's aura is so strong!]

[Li Ruo didn't dodge! She stood still!]

Their eyes met! What were Fu Chenzhou looking at with those grey eyes?!

Fu Chenzhou stopped in front of Li Ruo.

The two were only half a meter apart.

"No. You don't seem... that afraid of me."

He lowered his head slightly, his silver-gray eyes fixed intently on her face, as if admiring a masterpiece.

"Purity level: 97%"

He suddenly spoke, his tone flat:

"Contradiction value: 83%"

"Feeling of brokenness, 76%".

"Survival instinct... 92%"

With each number he announced, Li Ruo's heart sank a little deeper.

What do these numbers mean?

"You are special."

Fu Chenzhou reached out and gently brushed the stray hairs by her ear with his fingertips:

"Most offerings arrive here with no more than 70% purity. Fear taints their beauty."

"But you..."

His fingertips lingered on her cheek, the cool touch making Li Ru tremble slightly.

"You are afraid, yet you are controlling your fear."

"This kind of restraint is the ultimate goal I want to pursue."

[He's assessing Li Ruo's aesthetic value!?!]

[Those numbers are Fu Chenzhou's unique aesthetic scoring system! Purity refers to the cleanliness of the mind, contradiction value refers to the inner conflict, fragility refers to that fragile beauty, survival instinct... are also scoring items?!]

[Li Ruo's score is so high! No wonder Fu Chenzhou is interested!]

[When the female protagonist came here in her previous life, her purity was only 30%, her contradiction level was 15%, her sense of brokenness was 90%, and her will to survive was 100%. Therefore, Fu Chenzhou said she wasn't qualified because she was too afraid of death, and her beauty wasn't pure!]

Seeing the summary in the comments, Li Ruo took another step forward, shortening the distance between them to less than half a meter.

She tilted her head slightly, her clear eyes looking directly into his gray pupils:

"I think Mr. Fu is quite different from what people say about him."

"Oh?"

"Legend has it that Mr. Fu was a cold-blooded and ruthless collector who turned beautiful things into soulless shells."

Li Ruo's voice was soft, yet every word was clear:

"But I think Mr. Fu is just... looking for something."

Fu Chenzhou's pupils contracted slightly.

The air freezes.

"interesting."

"Li Ruo, you are the first person I've ever met who dares to talk to me like that."

He stretched out his hand.

Long, slender fingers with distinct knuckles, like an artist's hand.

His fingertips gently touched Li Ruo's cheek.

It's very cold.

"Do you know?"

He leaned down slightly, his gray eyes fixed on her closely, his voice low, almost a sigh:

"I am indeed looking for something."

"I searched for a very, very long time."

"We found thirty-seven people."

"But they are all not qualified."

His fingertips slid from her cheek to her chin, gently lifting her face:

Do you think you'll be the thirty-eighth?

Li Ruo did not dodge.

She looked into his gray eyes and blinked, feigning composure:

"I...I'm not really willing to think so."

"Although I have had a hard life since I was born, I love my life. After all, I am so good-looking and so outstanding. I want to live many more years with vigor and vitality."

Fu Chenzhou stopped moving and fell into a deathly silence.

After a long silence, he spoke:

"But I need to find someone who is willing to die for me."

He released his grip, took a step back, and his gray eyes returned to their calm, still state.

"Someone who is not afraid of me even after seeing my true face."

"Someone... who wouldn't abandon me and leave me alone like she did."

"You meet all my criteria, so why would you refuse?"

Li Ruo was stunned.

Li Ruo looked at the man in front of her.

This is the king of the gray area, feared throughout the entire capital.

This is the ultimate boss that even six lunatics wouldn't dare to easily provoke.

He stood before her like a statue weathered by time.

lonely.

A profound loneliness.

"Mr. Fu."

Li Ruo suddenly spoke, her voice very soft:

"Have you ever considered... that you're not looking for someone willing to die for you, but someone willing to live with you?"

Fu Chenzhou's body stiffened slightly.

He turned his head, his gray eyes looking at her.

Li Ruo did not avoid his gaze:

"Dying is easy."

"Living is hard."

"Willing to grow old with someone over a long period of time, slowly experiencing all the ugliness and unbearable things, slowly watching each other become unrecognizable, yet still not leaving..."

"Is this true eternity?"

"And..." She didn't care whether he believed her or not; she just went ahead and lied without thinking.

"I had my fortune told by a master, and he said I'll live to be a hundred! My life is the perfect match for your turtle-like fate!"

Fu Chenzhou: "..."

Her analogy sounded... a bit like an insult.

But for some reason, it made him feel somewhat pleased.

The smile on his face made even his gray eyes light up.

"Child."

He said softly, "You really are special. You've made me... talkative."

Li Ruo blinked: "So...can your special love be given to someone special like me?"