Chapter 59: Lin Clan Grandfather (Request Monthly Votes, Follow, Collect)

“Damn it, they’re all lined up in suits and ties!”

“I thought something had happened!”

The little fox grumbled as she flipped down from the wall, skirted around the crowd at the front of the villa, and slipped quietly through the kitchen entrance at the back.

Lin Ying sat in front of the TV in the sunroom on the second floor. An Sheng spat toward the door, then padded upstairs with his fluffy tail swaying, ready to greet Lin Ying.

But.

As soon as An Sheng drew near—even though the sunroom had triple-glazed glass doors for soundproofing—he heard Lin Ying’s furious shout from inside:

“Grandfather! Do you think I’m insane too?”

An Sheng froze, then silently slithered his body to the front of the sunroom, ears perked up.

He hadn’t heard the earlier conversation, only Lin Ying’s shout—easy enough to guess she hadn’t been watching TV, but on a phone call.

A video call.

“What do you mean?”

The man on the other end of the video was a sturdy old man with silver hair. He looked surprised at Lin Ying’s anger, speaking calmly:

“Calm down. I’m in America right now—no matter how angry you are, your fists won’t smash my face the next second.”

“I’ve made it perfectly clear—I’ve seen strange creatures. They’re not fake, and they’re certainly not my hallucination!” Lin Ying took a deep breath to steady herself, then spoke in a low tone.

After speaking with An Sheng and laying out the questions she’d pondered while lying in bed.

Lin Ying had begun organizing. She oversaw Lin Corporation’s labor-intensive industries in China, managing fifteen thousand employees—fifteen thousand lives directly tied to countless households.

Herself. The fox. The world.

Neither she nor the fox was insane—so why had a creature like the little fox come into existence?

It had no human form, yet every behavior matched a human’s perfectly—even haggling online and turning away when she changed clothes!

Lin Ying believed something was wrong with the world she lived in, or such a supernatural being couldn’t exist.

Using her authority, she formed a new department within the corporation to investigate these phenomena.

But the moment she set it up, the shadowy boss of Lin Corporation called her for a video call.

“I know you’re not insane. I’ve never thought you were.” The Lin Grandfather spoke slowly:

“I only said I don’t approve of you forming some investigation unit.”

Lin Ying’s face darkened, but she said nothing—only listened quietly to the Lin Grandfather’s words.

“Lin Grandfather” wasn’t a generational title—it was an honorific for the head of Lin Corporation.

The old man on the video was of extremely high rank; according to the family genealogy, Lin Ying should address him as her great-uncle.

“Hahaha.”

The Lin Grandfather chuckled, continuing: “I’m stopping you from investigating supernatural creatures not because I think you’re insane—I know everything about your actions.”

“But I won’t let you investigate because I believe you and the Xia Guo Lin clan will be plunged into danger—and you’ll send the wrong signal to those above.”

“Some things… we shouldn’t touch.”

Lin Ying frowned, sensing the hidden meaning behind his words: “Grandfather, you—”

“Do you know what an ice age is?”

The Lin Grandfather didn’t answer her. Instead, he posed a new question—and without waiting for her reply, continued:

“An ice age occurs when Blue Planet’s rotation drifts off its orbit, reducing sunlight. It’s a cyclical period of extreme cold, during which the planet’s surface is covered in thick ice.”

The Lin Grandfather tapped his fingers on the solid wood coffee table:

“The era we’re in now? In plain terms, it’s another kind of ice age.”

“If you want a vivid analogy, imagine Blue Planet as a living being that breathes—but one inhale and exhale is an unimaginably long cycle to humans.”

“When Blue Planet inhales, it draws in things we haven’t yet understood. When it exhales, it spits those same inexplicable things onto the surface.”

The Lin Grandfather looked at Lin Ying, speaking calmly:

“Even I, your grandfather, know these things. Do you think the people at the very top of Blue Planet’s power don’t know? They knew long before us—and have been quietly studying the cycle all along.”

“This is a massive pit, niece. You must understand one thing.”

“Why do our five Lin branches pour massive investments and money into China every year?”

“Though your branch, the Xia Guo Lin clan, is the weakest of our five, the other four overseas branches can die—but yours absolutely cannot fail!”

“You are our escape route!”

“You bear the burden of preserving our bloodline, and your position is already precarious enough. You must not send any wrong signals—or our entire Lin clan will have no place left to stand!”

The Lin Grandfather’s words were heavy, revealing secrets unknown to most—and clarifying the very purpose of the Xia Guo Lin clan.

Though the overseas Lin branches thrived, forming cliques and profiting through connections was standard practice.

No matter how powerful the overseas Lin branches became, they couldn’t withstand the downward pressure of massive lobbying groups changing policies overnight.

Lin Ying’s branch was the escape route—and also their ancestral homeland.

Lin Ying’s branch needed to achieve nothing, do nothing—only quietly do good deeds, quietly make contributions.

No matter how much money they spent, the overseas Lin branches would cover their losses.

Lin Ying’s pursuit of “spirit beasts”? In truth, it was nothing at all.

But the Lin clan’s position was painfully awkward.

They operated overseas while maintaining ties to China. Even if those above knew their intentions and trusted they wouldn’t overstep, they still had to avoid suspicion.

“.”

Lin Ying fell silent for a long time, exhaling a long, weary breath as she slumped onto the sofa:

“I didn’t mean to overstep. I just thought… in this new world, maybe I could find something new. Maybe even my parents could come back.”

“Grandfather… I’m so tired. After my parents died, the burden fell entirely on me. My daughter left me too. I know the responsibility of the Xia Guo Lin clan—I’ve never dared to hand my work over to a professional manager.”

With tears in her eyes, Lin Ying voiced her inner grief.

She couldn’t trust any incompetent manager with her work. The only duty of the Xia Guo Lin clan was to do good, build goodwill, provide backing, and solve problems others couldn’t—like employment for the disabled.

But even obedient professional managers would instinctively think in terms of profit. The Lin clan didn’t need that. Just breaking even was a victory.

Otherwise, if Lin Corporation truly wanted profit, why not simply move its overseas pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, and shipping businesses to China? They’d make far more money.

But those businesses were stained with irredeemable darkness and blood.

The Lin branch Lin Ying belonged to could never touch them. Even inquiring about them was strictly forbidden for all but the head of the Xia Guo Lin clan.

The Lin family Lin Ying belongs to cannot be touched at all; aside from the head of the Lin family of Xia Country, any other clan member even inquiring about them is strictly forbidden.

The Lin Grandfather sighed. He’d investigated her losses countless times, desperately hoping the car crash had been sabotage by a rival clan—but it had truly been just an accident.

They had no one to blame, no one to strike back at—just empty air and a sword drawn in vain.

They wanted to find someone to retaliate against, but couldn’t find anyone—purely like drawing a sword and gazing around, heart lost in emptiness.

“You must understand—your grandfather only wants to protect both our safety. Those things… they’re not for businessmen like us to touch.”

“That stuff is strategic. Some who can study it already are. Those who can’t are secretly pouring money into it, hoping for results.”

“That thing is a strategic resource; some with the capability are already researching it, and those without capability are secretly pouring money into it hoping to gain results.”

“If you truly want to get involved, you must wait for the right moment. They’re not short on funds—they’re desperate for the creatures codenamed ‘spirit beasts.’”

The Lin Grandfather clearly had some understanding of these matters—even naming the domestic research institutions’ codename for the supernatural beings.

Lin’s great-grandfather clearly had some understanding of those matters, even naming outright the codenames domestic research institutions used for those extraordinary creatures.

Lin Ying suddenly froze, turning to look at the Lin Grandfather—then instinctively glanced toward the master bedroom door.

In that instant, she saw two white, fluffy little ears standing up just outside the door.

But in the instant she glanced aside, Lin Ying saw the white, fluffy little ears standing up above the door.

I came… at a bad time, didn’t I? An Sheng met Lin Ying’s gaze. They stared at each other.

Please, a few more monthly votes.

This chapter was long, and I’m late on update.

I almost hit three thousand words.

Also, yesterday’s smart correction system? Total AI uprising.

Was that word even something a level-1 writer should write?

Even my level-4 author account wouldn’t dare write it! Bastard!

Who the hell is writing these words?

AI’s ruined everything.



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(End of chapter)

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