With just one command, the company executives would naturally send whatever item he wanted from the auction straight to the Luofu.
If spending money could avert disaster, that wouldn't be a loss at all, it'd be a total win. Practically profiting from survival, right?
The bearded man was planning to toss this ticking time bomb away, no, to be precise, the person in front of him was far more dangerous than a bomb.
This was basically the Xianzhou Alliance's world-destroying Heavenburning Divine Weapon.
No matter what, he had to throw this Divine Weapon's business over to the colleague in charge of the auction.
The executive pulled out his communicator, brought up his colleague's contact info, and eagerly handed it over.
Zero ignored him, thanked Jingliu for serving him food, and urged the executive, "Let's eat first."
The executive sat like he was on a bed of nails, gave a dry laugh, picked up his chopsticks, and forced himself to eat some rice, too scared to even reach for the dishes.
Seriously, who could eat in front of a living Demon King?
This was obviously a death row meal.
He couldn't shake the feeling that once he finished eating, there wouldn't be another meal after this one.
Especially since this Demon King would occasionally speak in a relaxed, casual tone to the other two at the table, and sometimes even ask him questions.
The bearded man, "..."
Who could understand this? Watching a living Demon King smile pleasantly while talking to you…
He was miserable the entire meal.
Partway through, Zero suddenly thought of Aha.
He didn't believe in the Aeon of Elation, so he checked Baiheng's panel and saw that Aha hadn't done anything extra, just turned her into a Messenger.
Feeling relieved, Zero asked the executive, "Does Baiheng get a commission when she brings you clients?"
Baiheng had a mountain of debt, and the two of them were kind of friends, it was only right to help her out if he could.
The bearded man instantly felt half his soul leave his body.
It looked like there was no way to pass this Heavenburning Divine Weapon off to someone else. He'd have to grit his teeth and entertain, no, serve, this man himself.
The executive forced a laugh. "Commission? Of course she gets commission! She and all of us are on very good terms, how could we treat her unfairly?"
Zero nodded.
Baiheng perked up, happily joining in to flatter the executive back for a while before diving back into her food.
The executive couldn't taste a thing. His expression kept shifting as his thoughts spun off into who-knows-where.
Zero didn't bother paying attention to him, he just focused on eating the meat and vegetables Jingliu had picked out for him.
Then the waiter brought out the final course, a sweet soup.
The bearded man's eyes lit up instantly.
'Finally, finally, it was almost over!'
But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, he saw Zero calmly set down his chopsticks and, as naturally as could be, take Jingliu's untouched bowl to serve her a portion of the soup himself.
Across the table, Baiheng's ears twitched. She looked left at Jingliu's red-tipped ears, then right at Zero's composed face, and silently laughed.
The fox woman was genuinely happy for Jingliu, completely ignoring the executive sitting beside them, whose eyeballs looked ready to pop out of his head.
The bearded man, "..."
He felt like he'd forgotten how to breathe.
'The Demon King is terrifying!'
'No wonder, no wonder the company's female shareholders kept throwing themselves at him like moths to a flame!'
'He was the most powerful man in the entire universe, yet here he was… willingly doing something for someone else! Personally serving a bowl of soup!'
'Who wouldn't fall for that? Even a man would be charmed!'
He sighed inwardly, no wonder his subordinates were all lunatics.
The executive waited and waited until everyone else had finally finished eating.
Zero, noticing Jingliu had put down her chopsticks, recalled her usual appetite and guessed she might still be a little hungry.
This time, though, he learned from past mistakes, he didn't ask her directly. Instead, he casually said, "Let's buy some snacks."
He handed Jingliu a napkin, paused, then added, "Buy more. Jing Yuan will probably like them."
Jingliu wiped her lips and said softly, "Alright. Let's get plenty to take back."
Baiheng's ears twitched again. She felt confused for a moment.
Was it just her imagination, or did Zero's words sound… weird?
Like he was talking about Jing Yuan as if he were their adopted son.
Uh, thinking about it… if the two of them really did end up together, wouldn't Jing Yuan basically be their big kid?
Baiheng was lost in random thoughts, completely ignoring her friend beside her, the poor executive whose expression was teetering on the edge of collapse.
When the waiter returned with beautifully packaged desserts, the bearded man was already hanging by a thread.
Zero stood up, handed the snacks to Jingliu, and smiled. "You two go ahead. I still have something to discuss with this executive."
The bearded man, "..."
He watched helplessly as Baiheng grabbed Jingliu's arm, smiled brightly, and waved goodbye, then left without a backward glance.
Leaving him alone to face this cruel reality.
Zero poured himself a cup of hot tea. He thought about doing something to help the executive relax, like pouring him a drink, but then remembered Tengxiao, and decided against it.
He simply asked, straight to the point, "If I buy more things, that means you and Baiheng both get more commission, right?"
The bearded man wiped the sweat from his forehead, completely lost. "Huh?"
"I don't really understand your company's internal system," Zero said calmly. "All those performance reviews and rules… they just waste talented people's time."
He paused, then added, "Instead of holding so many meetings and team-building sessions, wouldn't it be better to give them time off, or bonuses?"
As a senior executive, the man knew all the corporate rules by heart. And though he silently agreed with every word the former Marshal said, he didn't dare voice it, just gave a few awkward laughs.
Zero repeated his earlier question, asking what he could do to increase both Baiheng's and the executive's commissions.
Now that the topic was tied to his own credit and profit, the bearded man suddenly perked up. His fear faded a little as he began talking enthusiastically.
He explained which kinds of jewelry brought higher commissions, which starship projects had better profit margins…
But as he talked, his gaze met those eyes he'd been avoiding all evening.
He remembered how company leadership had drilled it into everyone's heads that the former Marshal was practically a demon in human form, an apocalypse-bringing villain leading the cosmos to ruin.
Yet now, seeing the man listening to him attentively, thoughtfully considering every word… he didn't seem like the monster they'd described at all.
As an executive, he knew all the rules of workplace etiquette, like maintaining eye contact during conversation, but not for too long.
But then it hit him, the one following those polite social conventions was the former Marshal himself.
The thought felt almost surreal.
He stopped talking, and some of his fear toward Zero quietly faded. He straightened his posture and said respectfully, "If there's anything you want, sir, the company will make sure to deliver it to you."
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