Chapter 2356: S-Rank Guide's Forced Love 41

You Zan's breath hitched, watching Jin Chen's long fingers slowly and deliberately pull the belt out from his waist.

When the belt was fully drawn out, it made a slight whistling sound in the air.

Jin Chen lowered his eyelids, his distinct-knuckled fingers rising, deftly wrapping the belt of appropriate length twice around his palm, the excess tail naturally hanging down.

The icy black leather and the whiteness of his fingers, the blue veins on the back of his hand, formed a stark contrast.

You Zan's eyes seemed nailed to that hand.

His Adam's apple rolled uncontrollably up and down, an inexplicable, scorching restlessness surged, instantly burning through his whole body.

I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, Jin Chen is damn sexy right now, You Zan still had the presence of mind to think.

"Going on a mission," Jin Chen lifted his eyes, locking firmly onto You Zan's slightly unfocused gaze, "Why didn't you tell me?"

You Zan's gaze still clung to Jin Chen's belt-wrapped fingers, his head feeling as if stuffed with boiling paste, making thought difficult.

He unconsciously licked his somewhat dry lips, his voice a bit fluttering, "I'm… afraid… afraid you won't agree… I'm hurt…"

Jin Chen seemed to laugh in anger, "Ha, you also know your injury isn't healed yet."

He watched You Zan, whose desire and guilt had left him dazed, a helpless amusement flickering deep in his eyes.

"What are you looking at? Am I rewarding you?"

You Zan immediately lifted his head, glaring, "What the hell! I… I'm just looking at you, aren't I."

Jin Chen walked a few steps to the wide leather sofa in the living room, sat down, legs crossed, his overcoat's hem spreading to reveal a sharp crease in his trousers.

He patted the empty spot beside him on the sofa.

You Zan, as if pulled by an invisible thread, walked over and sat down at once.

Just as he sat down, Jin Chen's right hand, still wrapped in the belt, reached out, gathered You Zan's two hands together, then deftly wound the flexible belt around and bound his wrists.

You Zan's breathing went completely haywire.

With his hands bound and raised above his head, the belt's tight tension transmitted to his wrist bones; the pose was full of submission and control, yet it made the restless fire inside him blaze even hotter.

Jin Chen leaned in slightly, his breath brushing over You Zan's scorching ear, his low voice like a chant, clearly drilling into his chaotic mind.

"Open your mouth."

You Zan looked displeased but was actually anticipating; he closed his eyes, opened his mouth, and stuck out his tongue in one smooth motion.

But his tongue hung in the air for a while, dried up, and he got nothing in return.

You Zan sucked his tongue back, opened his eyes in confusion, and saw Jin Chen's half-smiling gaze looking down at him, "What… you weren't…"

You weren't going to kiss me, so why make me open my mouth!

Before he could finish speaking, Jin Chen stuffed a gauze pad back into his mouth.

You Zan: "Mmph?!"

His cheeks bulged from the gauze, nearly making him roll his eyes, then Jin Chen's palm covered his face, sweeping the stray hairs back to his forehead.

You Zan instinctively rubbed against Jin Chen's palm, but was instead held in place by the neck.

The next instant, Jin Chen tore open the blood-soaked fixer on You Zan's shoulder.

You Zan's head went white from pain as he lunged into Jin Chen's arm crook; at last he came down from the lust-fueled haze, realizing how much it hurt when the wound split open.

Jin Chen frowned, but fortunately You Zan's hands and head were immobilized, unable to move, so treating the wound caused no trouble.

Yet the injury he had meticulously nursed for half a month was still ruined by You Zan, sending him back to square one overnight.

Jin Chen pinched his face in anger, "What's worth risking your life for on the battlefield? Don't you want this hand anymore?"

You Zan mumbled complaints about the pain, trying to dodge the topic, but there was no hiding it from Jin Chen.

Carefully avoiding the injured arm, Jin Chen pinched You Zan's chin and kissed him for a while, then rubbed his ears; in just a few sentences, You Zan's head felt foggy, all of it drawn out by Jin Chen.

When he came to, You Zan's tense body went limp with a flash of white light, collapsing onto the sofa like a soggy fish pulled from water, utterly weak and unable to muster strength.

"Now then." He heard Jin Chen ask.

"... What?" You Zan's dazed brain didn't react.

Jin Chen pinched the back of his neck to rouse him, waiting until he was less dazed before continuing: "Now then, has the blocked mental force broken through the critical point?"

You Zan closed his eyes to feel it for a moment, shook his head, and was just annoyed.

"Then why didn't you wait for me to come back and ask me?" Jin Chen added, still not releasing the bound hands, but affectionately rubbed the face of You Zan as he leaned into his embrace.

You Zan frowned, "The mental force breakthrough of sentinels and guides is different."

Jin Chen chuckled, didn't respond, and lifted You Zan while he remained obediently bound.

Over the next half day, You Zan finally understood what it meant… to have to ask Jin Chen.

It turned out the blocked critical point required a deep union with the marking to break through, and on this point guides and sentinels actually agreed!

Damn. If I'd known this, I wouldn't have bothered going to all that trouble on the battlefield.

You Zan finally regretted it, but the punishment wasn't over; in the end, the belt snapped three times.

The next day he went to find Bai Ye, who had been tattling, and fought him.

——

"Tsk, here we go again."

By the training field, Dick jabbed Ma Wen with his elbow, jerking his chin to indicate the direction of the distant communications room.

Inside the transparent glass wall, You Zan frowned as he spoke to the light screen, his expression habitually impatient, yet his body leaned slightly forward, bringing him close to the screen like he was whining.

Soon after, his furrowed brows relaxed, even the corners of his mouth twitching upward.

Amos gulped an energy drink, shook his head ruefully, "Who would've thought? You Zan… oh no, boss, now that it's been over three days since Senator Jin Chen left, the low pressure is so intense nobody dares come within ten meters."

"Last time Senator Jin Chen went to the branch tower for a meeting, the boss took on an S+ mission, which was absolutely brutal, basically treating the wreckage as a venting ground. The mission finished half a day early, the aircraft zoomed straight to the Alliance Headquarters to pick him up, and even the mission report was written en route."

"No kidding!" another teammate leaned in, lowering his voice with a mischievous grin, "Last time during the purge in B7 Sector, the boss got a slash on his back, not deep."

"Guess what? Senator Jin Chen directly summoned a dedicated floating medical pod from the top-level medical center, personally overseeing the suturing. The boss's expression—tsk, wanting to flare up but daring not to, he held it in till his ears turned red, and was finally pressed into the medical pod for a forced 24‑hour rest… we guys outside were about to laugh ourselves sick."

Everyone recalled You Zan's ferocious yet timid look back then, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"What are you laughing at?"

Yoo Zan had somehow appeared behind them, eyebrows raised, "The training is too easy, isn't it?"

"Report, no!" the bold team member shouted, "Captain, we don't mind extra training, but we can't disturb your off‑work!"

"Exactly, Councilor Jin Chen will come to fetch you again later!"

Yoo Zan: "……"

He gritted his teeth, "Half an hour extra training!"

——

Outside the floor-to-ceiling window of the top-floor apartment lay an eternally unchanging gray sky.

Indoors, however, it was warm like spring, filled with a faint agarwood fragrance.

Yoo Zan sank into the overly soft sofa, wearing Jin Chen's oversized sweater, barefoot, ungraciously nibbling at the sickly sweet cream cake.

The black jungle cat curled up on the back of the white wolf beside his leg, dozing, its tail tip occasionally brushing his ankle.

Jin Chen finished processing the last encrypted document and closed the light screen.

He walked to the sofa's edge, snatched the cream‑stained fork from Yoo Zan's hand, and brushed the crumbs from the corner of his mouth with his fingertips.

Yoo Zan grumbled discontentedly, but offered no resistance, instead leaning his head against Jin Chen's waist and abdomen like a cat that found a heat source.

"Tomorrow's mission briefing..." Jin Chen began.

"Got it," Yoo Zan interrupted him, his voice muffled with post‑meal languor, "I'll be on time, I'll be careful, I'll put up the shield, I'll..."

He counted off the usual precautions on Jin Chen's fingers.

Jin Chen chuckled low, his fingers sinking into his soft short hair, gently kneading the back of his neck.

Outside the window, the cold wind continued to howl, kicking up dust and past gloom.

But in this small space, the cold and ferocity had quietly settled, turning into the warmth in each other's palms and the silent flow of an eternal bond.

Amid the ruins, beneath the lighthouse, they found their own path home.

……

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