Chapter 221: Don't Try to Be Strong

The wedding date was drawing closer and closer; Ling Wu had handled all matters, but only the ticking time bomb that was He Chen hanging over his head could not be defused in time. During the New Year, he had given Davis a half-month paid vacation.

In the middle of the night, Ling Wu drew up a share transfer agreement and called Davis over.

"Young Master."

Davis's emerald eyes were like beautiful gems in the night; he stood beside the sandalwood table, staring at Ling Wu, who was smoking by the floor-to-ceiling window.

Ling Wu turned his head: "You're here."

"Sit."

Davis had not seen Ling Wu for half a month. This Eldest Young Master's face was still as cold and distant as ever, yet with the wedding date approaching, a sense of profound exhaustion was vaguely revealed between his brows and eyes.

Did he not want this arranged marriage?

Davis's suit was buttoned meticulously, his chest muscles stretching the fabric taut. He spoke first: "Young Master, you called me over—is there something you need?"

Ling Wu flicked the cigarette butt into the ashtray. He did not rush to answer the question, but instead asked: "Davis, you have followed the Jin Family since you were small, with no father or mother, is that right?"

"That is correct." Davis nodded.

"From the time I could remember, I was receiving training in the Jin Family's Reserve Force. Later, it was the Family Head who appreciated me, and only then did I enter the old mansion."

Ling Wu drew out the end of his sentence and gave a soft "Oh."

He rested his elbows on the clean tabletop, lowered his long, slender eyelashes, and rubbed the pads of his thumb and index finger together, looking as though one could not tell what he was thinking.

Ling Wu said: "Then even if you haven't achieved great merit, you have certainly put in the hard labor."

"?"

Davis suddenly raised his head. He did not understand the intention behind Ling Wu summoning him in the middle of the night just to say this. He was not a person who beat around the bush, and thinking that the suspicious Ling Wu had misunderstood him, he explained in a panic: "Young Master, I follow you, and I have no other identity now."

"I am only your person."

Ling Wu was amused by his suddenly serious and earnest appearance; tears of laughter were almost at the corners of his eyes: "That is not what I meant."

"What are you thinking about?"

Ling Wu's eyes were covered with physiological tears, those eyes wet and glistening. He leaned back slightly while laughing, and Davis felt as if his gaze had been scalded, quickly moving away from that fair skin.

"You—Young Master... please do not make fun of me."

"Alright, I won't tease you anymore." Ling Wu returned to seriousness in a second. He pushed the share transfer agreement toward Davis: "Do one thing for me, and I will leave this in your safekeeping for now. On the 16th... in the afternoon, you will hand this to Shao Yu and have him sign it. I believe he will understand."

He pondered for a long while before stating the time point of the afternoon of the 16th.

Davis was even more confused; he had always been unable to read Ling Wu's mind: "But why don't you hand it to the Second Young Master yourself?"

"Wouldn't that be more convenient?"

"Davis, have I been too good to you lately?" Ling Wu's aura shifted with ease, like a temperamental superior: "That you can question my decisions as you please."

Davis realized his mistake: "Apologies, I will do as you wish."

"Very good." Ling Wu tapped his fingertips on the table.

He was as clear-cut with rewards and punishments as a wise ruler, tossing a card onto the table: "Davis, you have followed me for so long, yet I don't think I have ever given you anything. I am a worldly person; if a matter can be solved with money, that is for the best."

"Take it."

Having learned his lesson, Davis dared not refuse at all. He put the card into his jacket pocket and bowed solemnly in thanks: "Thank you, Young Master."

"Don't say thanks." Ling Wu let him sit down before saying: "If you carry out the task I entrusted to you without a single error, that will be the greatest thanks to me."

"Do you understand?"

Davis: "Yes."

He felt that Ling Wu was acting strangely in every way tonight.

And that share transfer agreement—why was it? Could it be that because of the marriage, he had to transfer all his legal shares in the Jin Family to Jin Shaoyu?

Davis felt that this did not make sense.

Xi Huaizhi rested his arms behind his head and placed his long legs comfortably on the coffee table: "A-Wu, on the day of your wedding, how should Shi Yu and I act?"

Ling Wu glanced at him: "Move your legs off the coffee table; don't develop bad habits."

"Oh, right!"

Xi Huaizhi was so startled by that deep gaze that he immediately put his legs down.

Shi Yu peeled an orange and put it in her mouth, slowly adding a cutting remark: "Oh my, you really let me witness what human double standards are. Usually, when I tell you not to put your legs on the coffee table, you never listen."

She shared half the orange with Ling Wu: "It seems the Boss's words are still the ones that carry weight."

Xi Huaizhi had already been scolded for being reported, and now that he didn't even have his own share of the orange, he instantly bristled: "Shi Yu, how old are you, and you're still into snitching?"

"A-Wu, don't listen to her nonsense."

Xi Huaizhi exposed her: "She was dumped by some girl, and she's holding a grudge in her heart, taking it out on me."

Shi Yu: "..."

She grabbed the orange peel on the table and threw it at Xi Huaizhi.

Ling Wu dodged to the side: "You two have known each other for so many years, why can't you learn to get along peacefully?"

Xi Huaizhi knew the reason and rubbed his nose: "..."

Shi Yu: "Back to the topic, Boss, how do you need us to coordinate on the day of the wedding?"

"Just stay put and wait. If the situation looks bad, retreat as soon as possible. I can ensure my own safety; you don't need to worry." Ling Wu put the orange in his mouth and then said: "Do not act on your own initiative."

This last sentence of his was clearly directed at Xi Huaizhi.

Xi Huaizhi raised his hands in surrender: "I'll be obedient."

"A-Wu, do you really not need me to go on the ship with you?"

Ling Wu teased: "What would you go with me for? To be the best man?"

"..." Xi Huaizhi thought about that scene and felt goosebumps all over; it was unbearable. He shook his head hurriedly: "I'm not being your best man; that would be so boring."

"Shi Yu and I will just meet you in Beidu City."

Ling Wu said: "That works."

Xi Huaizhi nodded: "I've bought all the boat tickets. Even if Beidu City falls into chaos, that boat has ways to get out. When the time comes, we'll head back to the Federation for the New Year. Although Beidu City is prosperous, it always feels cold and desolate."

"Perhaps that's just the feeling that the moon is rounder in one's hometown."

Ling Wu's expression was stern: "The matters of Beidu City cannot be resolved in a single day. After Chu Yi and the others make their move, you can provide them with convenient assistance, but do not think about a quick victory. The changing of a regime has always required a huge price and blood since ancient times."

"This is the address of the Federal Intelligence Bureau. If you have any needs, you can go find them at any time."

Facing the suspicious gazes of both Shi Yu and Xi Huaizhi, he said quite naturally: "At that time, I was at sea, together with the heirs and heads of the major noble families, so there is no need to worry about these things for now."

"I will design a way to trap the cruise ship at sea for a period of time, but it certainly won't be for too long."

Shi Yu: "Mm."

"We will act according to the situation when the time comes."

Although Xi Huaizhi heard that he had arranged everything properly and meticulously, he still felt a bit uneasy in his heart.

"No, A-Wu, I'm worried about you."

Xi Huaizhi: "I'm going on the boat with you."

"I have brought an inside man onto the boat; you are responsible for providing support from the outside." Ling Wu's gaze was icy, with an unprecedented severity: "This is not the time for you to be messing around."

"Do you understand?"

Xi Huaizhi could not win against him at all, always being the one to concede first: "Fine... I understand."

"Mm." Ling Wu seemed to feel that Shi Yu was the more worry-free and reliable person, so he deliberately looked at her and said: "If Chu Yi and the others take the initiative to contact you, cooperate if you can, provided that your own safety is guaranteed."

"I don't want to see anyone break their promise when I return to the Federation."

Of course, this person did not include him.

"Recently, the highly anticipated marriage between the Jin and Yu clans will be at..."

The old radio was playing a news report from within Beidu City.

The paint-peeling table huddled helplessly in the corner, a musty smell mixed with a stale atmosphere rushing toward one in this rented room. The mottled wall plaster fell off one after another, like dry fish scales, and the lightbulb emitting a dim glow was also teetering...

He Chen, with a plaster cast on his leg, lay on the only dilapidated wooden bed in the room. Hearing the news report full of beauty, his fist smashed fiercely into the wall, shaking off bits of wall plaster. His entire face appeared even more ferocious under the harsh creaking of the bed frame.

Damn it!

Killed Fang Kai, and broke one of his legs.

And they still dare to have a safe and sound marriage?

He Chen, with a gloomy face, propped himself up with crutches to get off the bed, then sat on the floor. The drawer was difficult to pull, and he had to tug it hard a few times before it opened. Pushing aside the scattered sundries placed on top, he found a USB drive.

Fang Kai had given this USB drive to him many years ago.

He had originally thought it would never be of any use, but now the opportunity had been handed to him just like that. He was going to expose the ugly faces of that group of high-society scum for all to see!

He Chen himself was a fugitive being hunted by the police. After being saved by Fang Kai, he had settled down in the Lower City District under the other's relief, and they had lived in peace like this for almost ten years.

Who wouldn't call that "the darkest place is under the lamp"?

But now that Fang Kai was dead, he was still clinging to that massive secret, living a life of ignominy.

He Chen knew the principle that an arm cannot twist a thigh. If they could reach into a place as chaotic as Qian Town to catch him, even if he could run like a rat or a loach, there would always be a day he would be caught.

You can hide from the first day of the lunar month, but you can't hide from the fifteenth.

Since that was the case, then let's go down together.

"Fang Kai, oh Fang Kai... you son of a bitch really gave me a hot potato... but you're dead anyway."

He seemed to resign himself to fate: "So I don't blame you."

He Chen's rough hand gripped the USB drive tightly, and a plan filled with malice swirled in his mind.

The window glass had been ravaged by the storm, leaving cracks everywhere. It had been sealed with transparent tape over and over again, and the plastic blocking the wind vent had also been torn open at one corner, being blown to make a "rustling" sound.

He Chen curled up on the bed, clutching a stiff cotton quilt.

He squeezed his eyes shut, his hatred monstrous.

He had had enough of these days of hiding and dodging...

Undercurrents were surging in Beidu City.

On the 14th, Ling Wu went to the amusement park with Jin Shaoyu, a place the two of them had wanted to visit together when they were children, only finally realizing it after they were adults.

After getting off the roller coaster, Jin Shaoyu finally couldn't take it anymore and vomited next to a trash can, his entire face deathly pale.

Ling Wu patted Jin Shaoyu's back: "I told you not to push yourself."

He laughed heartily.

Ling Wu was wearing a dark gray long wool coat, the tailored cut outlining his tall figure. Inside was a white turtleneck sweater, with a unique silver necklace draped casually at the collar, exquisite and fashionable. On his bony wrist, he wore a watch with a metallic luster.

This was clearly a style matched for him by Jin Shaoyu.

As for Jin Shaoyu, he was dressed in a youthful and vibrant casual street style.

He wore a black handmade knit cap, a loose navy blue coat as an outer layer, a hoodie underneath, and his pant cuffs were slightly rolled up, adding a sense of casualness. Paired with that cold and arrogant face, he was incredibly trendy.

Ling Wu unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and handed it to him: "Drink some water."

"Who, who is pushing themselves..." Jin Shaoyu took the water and drank it looking up: "This is different from the one we rode when we were kids!"

Ling Wu suddenly realized: "Oh, then I understand."

"Shao Yu, the children's version of the roller coaster we rode when we were kids, and this one now... is the promax version?"

Children's version?

Promax version?

Jin Shaoyu's soul received a ten-thousand-ton blow. Seeing Ling Wu's inability to hold back his laughter, he became even more furious: "Brother! You dare to mock me!"

"You're done for!"

Passersby cast their gazes toward them.

Seeing Jin Shaoyu pounce over like he did when he was a child, Ling Wu sidestepped to avoid him, then took off running, his coat hem lifted high by the wind.

"Shao Yu, stop chasing, I surrender!"

Jin Shaoyu was tall with long legs; he caught up to Ling Wu in just a few steps, grabbed him by the back of his collar, and said unyieldingly, "Admitting defeat now is already too late."

Ling Wu waved his hands, catching his breath: "Not late, not late."

The sight of him being carried like a little chick naturally fell into the eyes of passersby; Ling Wu felt a bit embarrassed and muttered in a low voice: "Let me go first, we are both adults."

"Alright." Jin Shaoyu let him go, clutched his chest, and feigned sadness: "It wasn't easy to come to the amusement park with you, yet you still lecture me; Brother, shouldn't you feel guilty?"

"Guilty?" Ling Wu humored him: "I am very guilty."

Jin Shaoyu: "........."

I believe your nonsense.

Ling Wu knew he was angry, so he tugged on Jin Shaoyu's sleeve, pointed to a balloon-popping game over there, and said: "Shao Yu, I really didn't mean to make fun of you; didn't you love playing that when you were little? You couldn't even walk past it whenever we passed by."

"Brother will win you a first-place prize as an apology, how about that?"

"Oh, so you still remember." Jin Shaoyu seemed satisfied, but felt he shouldn't be coaxed so cheaply; he turned his head away and said with particular haughtiness: "Fine... then I'll reluctantly agree."