DipNovel Chapter 138 Mistletoe
Chapter 138 Mistletoe
Chapter 138 Mistletoe (Third update, 9 words updated)
Mingpo stared at Gao Song and uttered her guess, word by word.
Gao Fan felt a chill run down his spine.
His uncle was indeed incredibly powerful.
As venomous as a snake, as adept at manipulating people's hearts as a fox.
He derives strength and pleasure from these conspiracies that cause others pain, infighting, and constant internal strife.
When Gao Fan was a child, he heard his grandfather say that among his grandfather's three children, his eldest uncle was the one who most resembled his grandfather when he was young.
Although Gao Fan remembers his grandfather as kind and optimistic, always with a cheerful smile and happy to help others, he also cherishes Gao Fan greatly—from a very young age, he has repeatedly mentioned in family meetings that he would designate Gao Fan as the future successor of the company.
At that time, even Gao Fan's father, Gao Feng, had not yet inherited the family business.
But Grandpa himself said that he wasn't a good person back then.
He has torn countless families apart and killed many people. He enjoys stirring up conflict, and even—much of his company's overseas profits are part of "war profits."
He has also admitted that his current kindness is nothing more than a hypocritical confession and atonement.
At the time, Gao Fan didn't understand what this sentence meant, but after he became a liar and realized that his parents were also liars, he gradually guessed the truth behind the sentence.
His grandfather was most likely a charlatan as well. And he must have altered much of history, changing the fates of countless people—
This eldest uncle, whom his grandfather personally acknowledged but who had always refused to be outside the family's power circle, was undoubtedly the most dangerous person in the family.
This is also why Gao Fan has kept his distance from his uncle ever since he became a charlatan.
At that time, he was still unsure whether Gao Song was the murderer who killed his parents. Yet he never tried to find Gao Song or seek his help—because even before that, Gao Fan had been filled with fear of his uncle.
"What's wrong? Are you scared?"
Gao Song smiled calmly: "Would you like me to give you a little more time?"
He seemed quite generous.
It's still Gao Song's turn now. No matter what Ming Po and the others do, it's all taking up Gao Song's time.
But Gao Song didn't care about this.
Because this is also part of the "hunting".
The prey has already been bled; at this point, you only need to follow at a distance. Pressing too hard might provoke the prey into a desperate act.
"I must say—you guessed quite correctly."
Gao Song looked at Ming Po, becoming unusually serious: "It's not just about being good with words—among all the guests I've served, there have been those who saw through my traps."
"But they only realized it after they had fallen into the trap. You are the first person to be able to keenly perceive the trap hidden in the rules before stepping into it."
"You're perhaps better suited to the realm of wisdom than the realm of slaughter. If this life-or-death game hadn't already begun, I would really like to keep you in my company."
Upon hearing this, Mingpo's heart stirred slightly.
He seemed to have vaguely sensed something again.
"However, since the plan has already been exposed, I might as well just say it directly."
Gao Song remained calm and composed, with an upright posture.
He looked at Gao Fan, his malice undisguised: "My answer is you, Xiao Fan."
"You're my toy, aren't you?"
After saying this, without waiting for Mingpo and Gao Fan to exchange any words, he directly raised his next question:
'
Is it currently in this space?
Of the three cards, only Gao Song's card lit up.
This means that Gao Song's answer was "yes".
"Look."
Gao Song shrugged: "I was right, wasn't I?"
"—No, you're lying."
Gao Fan said with utmost seriousness, word by word: "You just said that I am the child of paradox—that my existence is built upon the game of deception. If that's the case, then how could I possibly be unrelated to the game of deception?"
"Moreover, my will is free. I have never been 'possessed' by you."
"Oh? Did I say that?"
Gao Song feigned surprise and put his hand in front of his ear: "Really?"
"Hmph—you trust me that much, Xiao Fan? Maybe I'm just lying to you?"
"Or perhaps, this statement is actually a lie. How about you take a guess?"
As he spoke, he gazed into Mingpo's eyes: "As for you, sir—I think I've already guessed."
"You must be that lucky one"—the one who got the "shrine to Dionysus". The timing makes sense, which explains why when I last heard about you, you were still Frankenstein, and now you've become a madman.
"A madman—hmph. Of course I've heard of it. This title is a rare one that only those who overturn a deceptive game can obtain. But did you know? This title is addictive."
"As the saying goes, a madman doesn't know he's mad, and a mentally ill person thinks he's mentally sound—once you start using the title 'madman,' you'll feel good and refuse to accept other titles. That's the price and mental pollution of this title."
"While all titles share this tendency, the mental pollution of the 'madman' is the highest level below the Gold of Ages. Even if you possess the legendary Dionysus Shrine, it's meaningless."
"You just asked the host if he knew your answer to the riddle" because you were worried that even if you won the game, your secret would be revealed.
"Hmph—but now you don't need to worry anymore. Because before that, you'll die."
"Oh?"
Mingpo did not deny this.
He simply countered with, "So you're admitting that the answer you just told Gao Fan was wrong?"
"After all, the situation is different now than before—I have the right to answer questions safely."
"Oh? Is it really safe?"
Gao Song laughed heartily: "Don't forget, after you it's my turn!"
"If you answer wrong, I'll answer right! What difference does it make to you or to me? It's the same: answer wrong and die!"
"How about it? Want to see if I'm telling the truth?"
"So compassionate, Uncle Gao?"
Mingpo smiled, showing no sign of nervousness: "You've already guessed my answer, yet you chose to continue pressuring Xiaofan with questions? Don't you want to guess for yourself? Maybe you'll be right!"
"Or is it that even you yourself think it's impossible?"
Seeing that Mingpo was not afraid at all, Gao Song's smile faded slightly.
He glanced at Gao Fan and said, "Then I'll provide some evidence—"
"Xiao Fan, you can just ask the question directly—am I its father?"
He looked at Gao Fan, whose eyes had suddenly widened, and Gao Song's expression became serious: "The reason why you have nothing to do with the Deceitful Game is very simple—although your parents did spend a full ten Moon Silvers for your birth."
"But I also said—your parents spent ten months preparing for your birth." But don't forget, under what circumstances would your expenses be "ten months' worth of silver" instead of "twenty months' worth of silver"?
"Once the deceiver ceases to manifest, all traces of his existence in reality will vanish. This includes hair, bloodstains, temperature, fingerprints—even a fertilized embryo. Although it is your mother who is carrying the child, if your father ceases to manifest, you will die immediately as well."
"No one has done the experiment—the cost would be too high. So we don't know exactly when the father should stop manifesting to avoid affecting the child's subsequent development. Or rather, nobody knows when a pureblood deceiver will be recognized by the world and become an independent individual."
"Think about it carefully, Xiao Fan. It's a very simple math problem—if you were born to your parents, you would need at least twenty chips. A full twenty months—that's an enormous expense on par with gold."
As Gao Song finished speaking, his expression turned cold—even somewhat indifferent.
"—Your father is me, not Gao Feng."
"Of course, you are not the product of my affair with your mother. You are not a paradoxical child born from a deceptive game, but a test-tube baby masquerading as the real paradoxical child." These ten Moon Silvers were actually a complete waste—or rather, they were merely used for performance.
"Because you may not survive to grow up, you may not become a good enough person — and you may not be able to successfully become a charlatan and pass the preliminary rounds."
"The ultimate goal of the plan is for you to inherit the family business, thereby leading the entire Gao Corporation into the Society of Noble Blood as a pure-blooded deceiver."
Unlike the nouveau riche "Divine Comedy"—which is currently the best-cooperating deceitful organization with official connections in China, it has been less than twenty years since its inception. It is neither the most influential nor the earliest established.
"The Chinese Chamber of Commerce alone surpasses the Divine Comedy. It was established during the Republic of China era, and its predecessor can be traced back to the Hundred Days' Reform."
The influence of "Noble Blood" far surpasses that of the Divine Comedy; it wields absolute power in multiple countries. Almost every African warlord who attempted to resist colonization died due to various plausible coincidences. Even the American Revolutionary War was directly related to it.
"To this day, the Society of Noble Blood has been behind many of America's deceitful organizations. They have controlled more than one country. This is because their leader is a demigod who has passed the final challenge."
"If one can enter the realm of noble blood," it means that in the coming era, one has boarded a Noah's Ark that will never sink.
"That's why your name is Gao Fan."
This was Gao Fan's grandfather's cold-blooded plan.
Mingpo's earlier assessment was correct; Gao Song was indeed "reluctant" to kill Gao Fan, but the details were slightly different.
She spent ten whole months of her life—making herself as vulnerable as an ordinary person—just to give birth to a child who was nothing special.
For this reason, he even took advantage of his own son and daughter-in-law.
The reason Gao Feng and his wife didn't actually have Gao Fan was simply to save on resources.
Because the duration of a pregnancy is unknown, and the process cannot be completed in between, assuming conception occurs successfully in two months, both partners must each pay a price of twelve months, totaling two years. Furthermore, if conception is not achieved by the third month, all two years of effort are wasted.
For the sake of efficiency and cost-saving, he chose to have Gao Fan's mother pretend to have given birth to a pure-blooded deceiver.
This saves at least half the time.
After that, even Gao Song himself became a deceiver—probably to avoid some kind of verification of his noble blood.
Now, Gao Fan's parents are indeed "deceitful people".
He was indeed born at great cost.
"—Although I've heard it before, capital is ruthless."
Mingpo scoffed, "But isn't that just too heartless?"
But what truly weighed on his heart was—
From this perspective, Gao Fan's existence is indeed unrelated to the game of deception.
Could Gao Song's answer really be Gao Fan?
Would he just say it like that?
He even deliberately exposed this history in order to prove that his answer might be correct?
If he doesn't tell them, they have almost no chance of guessing the answer!
Was Gao Song just bored and looking for death?
—This looks like a trap no matter how you look at it.
Mingpo felt like she had overlooked some detail.
Because of the missing crucial detail, he felt that something was not quite right.
"—Is this... mistletoe?"
He only heard Gao Fan murmur softly, "Your title—is that what it means?"
Gao Song simply smiled and didn't say anything.
But sometimes, saying nothing is also a form of communication.
Because in that very instant.
Mingpo's mind suddenly became clear—
Since the "Gao family" is a business family that is very inclined towards Europe —
What if we understand parasitism according to European culture?
"Gao Fan————"
Mingpo asked slowly, "If we follow European culture, mythology, and legends—"
What comes to mind when you think of mistletoe?