65: Three kilometers... that's torture.

...Inside the police station, Director Wang looked at the verdict in his hand and breathed a long sigh of relief.

Zhang Biao was sentenced to fifteen years, and Zhang Yang to ten years. Both problems were resolved.

He hesitated for a long time before gathering the courage to call Lei Jun. His tone was respectful, almost humble: “Miss Lei, I'm reporting to you. The cases of Zhang Biao and Zhang Yang have been decided. Zhang Biao received fifteen years, and Zhang Yang received ten years.”

On the other end of the phone, Lei Jun simply replied with three words: “You worked hard.”

These simple three words instantly energized Director Wang, making his blood rush.

It was worth it!

Everything was worth it!

Earning a compliment for working hard from Miss Lei, who has such immense backing, was more exciting than a promotion or raise!

He quickly expressed his loyalty: “It wasn't hard! Not hard at all!”

“This is what I should be doing!”

“It is my honor to handle matters for you!”

Lei Jun chatted casually with him for a couple more sentences, then hung up.

Listening to the dial tone, Lei Jun felt quite pleased.

Director Wang handled the matter diligently and didn't slack off.

She was very satisfied with the outcome of Zhang Biao and Zhang Yang's cases.

In high spirits, she pulled Lei Ying and Lei Yue to play honor of kings together again.

With Lei Ying acting as the super carry, they naturally achieved another easy winning streak.

Putting down her phone, she happily summoned the system interface.

[Ding!]

[Mission: Personally prepare one dinner meal completed. Mission Reward: 1000 godly tycoon coins.]

Next, she saw the newly refreshed mission:

[godly tycoon mission: Complete a 3-kilometer morning run. Mission Reward: 1000 godly tycoon coins.]

[Note: This is a long-term mission; 1000 godly tycoon coins can be obtained for completing a 3-kilometer morning run every day.]

Three kilometers?

When Lei Jun saw this mission, she almost choked.

She usually found walking tiring.

Now they want her to run?

And three kilometers?

She was extremely resistant.

Damn system!

Are you deliberately messing with me?

But when she saw that her godly tycoon coins balance had reached 9000, just one step away from exchanging for the [youth retention pill], the powerful temptation instantly overcame her laziness.

Fine!

For beautiful looks!

I'll do it!

She made up her mind.

But running alone was too boring; she had to drag Lei Ying and Lei Yue along.

She checked the time; it was already past six in the evening.

It was time to cook.

Lei Jun put on her apron again and walked into the kitchen.

After several days of dedicated study, she made a meal of beef brisket with tomatoes this time.

Looking at the tender beef brisket stewing in the pot, she took a bite and nodded in satisfaction.

After a few days of practice, her cooking was finally edible.

Although the taste wasn't as good as a restaurant's, it was her own cooking, and she ended up stuffing herself, finally curling up on the sofa to watch a show with Lei Ying and Lei Yue.

Leilei curled up on her lap, purring, providing a warmth that made her not want to move.

After watching the show for a while, she washed up and rested early.

She needed to conserve her energy; tomorrow, she had to face the three-kilometer challenge... Early the next morning, just as the sky was faintly lighting up, Lei Jun was woken up by her alarm clock.

She struggled to climb out of bed, changed into sportswear, forcefully dragged Lei Ying and Lei Yue out of their beds, and began her first morning run.

The cool morning breeze swept across her face, carrying a hint of freshness.

Dynamic music, “Lighter,” played in her headphones. For the first hundred meters, she felt relatively relaxed.

It seemed... not so difficult?

By the time she reached five hundred meters, she was already slightly panting.

She was a little tired... By the time she reached one kilometer, she felt parched and her steps became heavy.

Why was it still so far... Holding on until two kilometers, her lungs felt like they were on fire, her legs felt like they were filled with lead, and she almost wanted to give up.

I can't do it... I really can't run anymore... But looking at Lei Ying and Lei Yue beside her—whose faces weren't red, hearts weren't pounding, and breathing was steady—she gritted her teeth. Driven by her intense desire for the [youth retention pill], she dragged her body, which felt alien to her, and finally shuffled through the last kilometer.

When the system notification sounded in her mind, she immediately collapsed onto a roadside bench, panting heavily, feeling like every bone in her body was about to fall apart.

This... this is too awful... Three kilometers... It's pure torture!

She looked with immense envy at Lei Ying and Lei Yue, whose breathing was steady.

Comparing people only drives one crazy... [Ding!]

[Mission: Morning run of three kilometers completed. Mission Reward: 1000 godly tycoon coins.]

Lei Jun looked at the system notification, feeling a surge of accomplishment.

Although she was tired, she did it!

Moreover, she finally collected 10000 godly tycoon coins and could exchange them for the youth retention pill!

Lei Ying and Lei Yue crouched beside her, a hint of worry in their eyes: “Miss, are you alright?”

Although they didn't understand why their usually lazy Miss suddenly started morning runs, they felt relieved seeing her persistence.

Exercise is good for the body, and they hoped Miss could keep it up.

Lei Jun waved her hand, laughing while catching her breath: “I'm fine, just a little tired... We'll continue tomorrow!”

...Dragging her unresponsive body back home, Lei Jun quickly washed off the sticky sweat, feeling exhaustion seep into her bones.

She finally finished the run... Now, all she wanted was to hug soft Leilei and melt into a puddle on the sofa.

She wanted to use Leilei's healing power to soothe her battered body and mind.

“Leilei, little Leilei?”

“Come out quickly, I'm opening a can for you.”

She habitually called out, shaking the cat's favorite treat can in her hand.

Usually, as soon as it heard this sound, that small white figure would immediately rush over from wherever it was hiding and rub its head against her leg.

However, the house was quiet today, with no response.

Huh?

Is it fast asleep?

Lei Jun was puzzled and started checking the places where it usually stayed.

She searched under the sofa, on the windowsill, and in the cat bed, one by one.

It wasn't in any of them.

“Lei Ying, Lei Yue, have you seen Leilei?”

She asked loudly.

The two of them joined the search, checking under the sofa and in the gaps of the wardrobe, but in the large house, there wasn't even a single meow.

Lei Yue frowned and said, “I fed it a can before we left. It was still curled up in its cat bed then.”

Lei Ying said: “It must have slipped out while we were gone.”

Slipped out?

Lei Jun's heart sank instantly.

It's so small... She forced herself to stay calm and decided to leave the door open and wait for a while.

So she played games with Lei Ying and Lei Yue while waiting for Leilei to return.

But the game that usually captivated her now felt dull and tasteless.

She couldn't focus at all. Her eyes kept involuntarily glancing toward the door, and her ears were perked up, trying to catch any faint sound resembling a meow.

Why isn't it back yet... As time passed, Lei Jun's worry intensified.

That little creature had, at some point, taken an important place in her heart.

It would rub its head against her palm, push the cat food it was reluctant to eat toward her, and sleep quietly beside her pillow at night... It was no longer just a regular pet, but her family.

It was so small and so innocent. What if it met a bad person, or got hit by a car... various horrifying thoughts uncontrollably flooded Lei Jun's mind, making her restless.