Boom!
The massive explosion shook the bustling seaside city awake. Everyone instinctively looked toward the source of the sound, immediately followed by the wailing sirens of fire trucks rushing toward Qinghai Hospital in the city center.
Half an hour later, all social media apps hit the top trends.
“Major medical accident at Qinghai Hospital, top floor on fire, personnel evacuation,” and similar headlines quickly surged to the trending searches. The video at the top was a full-view recording captured by a passerby: beneath the dark night sky, raging flames burned inside the top-floor windows, billowing black smoke blanketed most of the sky, and firefighters and medical personnel rushed back and forth on the ground below.
Temporary Intensive Care Unit
Yan Jiu’s personal assistant, Tang Fan, handed the video to Yan Jiu. “I just asked the doctor. All the rescued patients have been settled here, and Steward Shen is not among them.”
Yan Jiu took the phone, glanced through it hastily, and stared fixedly at the person on the hospital bed. “Where is he?”
Chen Shenzhi still bore the residue of the explosion. His head was wrapped in bandages, and his left arm was in a cast, yet he showed not a shred of distress. Leaning back against the hospital bed, he let out a sarcastic laugh upon hearing the question.
“The entire building has already been searched and rescued. If he is not here, he must be in the morgue. I am truly sorry for making Young Master Yan return empty-handed.”
His response was Yan Jiu’s furious fist. Chen Shenzhi’s face was knocked to the side, but he still maintained a mocking smile as Tang Fan grabbed Yan Jiu to hold him back.
“Boss, calm down! Hitting someone in a hospital means you are going to jail!”
Appreciating Yan Jiu’s enraged state, Chen Shenzhi’s smile grew even more delighted and mocking. “If you knock me out, you will never know what happened before the explosion.”
Yan Jiu’s struggling motion paused, and both men stared at Chen Shenzhi.
Chen Shenzhi remained completely composed. “Isn’t this what you wanted to know? Naturally, I do not mind telling you.”
“When Ah Hui was sent to the operating room, his glands were already completely rotting and had to be surgically removed.” A subtle gleam flashed beneath Chen Shenzhi’s smiling eyes. “With current medical technology, someone who has had their glands removed can live for at most three years.”
Thinking of Shen Hui’s fragile state, Yan Jiu felt as though his heart were bleeding.
Chen Shenzhi squinted to appreciate Yan Jiu’s remorseful expression before slowly continuing, “Ah Hui is a very important person to me, so naturally I had to save him with everything I had. And there was only one way: a gland replacement, the one you know about.”
Everyone froze for a split second.
Even Tang Fan found it unbelievable. “You gave him an experimental product!”
Chen Shenzhi nodded with satisfaction. “Correct.”
In an instant, the pheromones of raging fire flooded the entire room, making Tang Fan’s legs weaken from the pressure. Yet Chen Shenzhi on the hospital bed maintained his false smile as the aura of a glacier silently spread outward from around him, enveloping and clashing against the fire.
Yan Jiu and his team had investigated that experimental gland. They had received very little information, knowing only that it came from a young man who had died young, and its match rate with Chen Shenzhi reached ninety-nine percent, far exceeding the usual seventy percent match rate.
Appreciating the shifting, unpredictable expressions on both of their faces, Chen Shenzhi continued, “Ah Hui accepted it voluntarily. The explosion occurred right after the gland transplantation ended. He pushed me out, but failed to make it out himself.”
He enunciated every single word. “Shen Hui, he, died for me.”
Yan Jiu instinctively retorted, “Impossible!”
Two top-tier alpha pheromones clashed head-on, a battle of ice and fire.
Even a beta present was forced to their knees by the pressure. Dragging the doctor along, Tang Fan bolted out like lightning and slammed the door shut with a loud bang.
Thank goodness for the hospital’s pheromone-isolated doors.
Chen Shenzhi stared directly into Yan Jiu’s angry, youthful eyes, his expression viciously pleased. “He came to me when he was six years old, and he promised with his own lips: born for me, die for me. You were merely someone he happened to choose to become a tool to deal with me.”
Yan Jiu’s jawline tightened, unable to utter a single word.
Chen Shenzhi leaned close to his ear and whispered softly, “Back then, he was unwilling to foster you. I merely mentioned that I wanted the Yan family’s gland modification plan, and the next day he agreed to his father’s request to teach you. You do not seriously believe you conquered him yourself, do you?”
Those words were spoken out of spite. After Shen Hui agreed to mentor Yan Jiu years ago, Chen Shenzhi had been consumed by an unknown fury that burned away his rationality. Usually calm and cultured, he had smashed his entire office to pieces.
And that was only the beginning. Wielding a sharp blade from the shadows, Shen Hui closed in step by step, dealing him a fatal blow on the very day he was set to become the head of the Chen family.
Fortunately, he had prepared in advance and still retained the core gland. He had not expected Shen Hui to calculate even that, choosing to perish together with the gland right before his eyes.
In terms of the outcome, both of them had lost completely.
“I do not believe it.” Yan Jiu looked down at Chen Shenzhi with a towering gaze. “I do not believe a single word you say, and I do not believe he is dead.”
Chen Shenzhi narrowed his eyes dangerously.
“Even if he turns to ash, I will find him.”
Risking his life, Tang Fan pressed his ear against the door crack to listen to the movement inside, terrified that his boss would instantly explode, beat the man up, and end up inside a cell. However, he failed to guard against the door suddenly opening from the inside, sending him pitching straight into the big boss’s arms.
Yan Jiu reached out to grab the back of his head, as if he might snap his neck at any second. Sidewise, he cast a cold, haughty glare down at Chen Shenzhi, his words filled with biting killing intent. “Whatever the Chen family owes me, I will make you pay it back piece by piece.”
With that, he shoved Tang Fan aside, burning with murderous intent as he strode toward the exit.
Tang Fan jogged all the way to catch up with the erupting volcano that was Yan Jiu at the hospital entrance. Bearing the pressure of a human-sized roasted turkey, he cautiously tested the waters with a chirp.
“Shall I drive you back to the villa?”
Yan Jiu did not answer. He merely stared at the heavy rain under the night sky, where large swaths of neon lights in the distance flickered a few times before extinguishing into darkness.
It was already the dead of night, and the entire city of Qinghai had gradually grown cold, save for the pheromones still burning on Yan Jiu.
Suddenly, a commotion at the entrance drew their attention. Frowning, Yan Jiu looked over to see a few doctors supporting a middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man was dressed poorly, his jacket cuffs stained with grease. With an apologetic and timid expression, he waved his hands at the approaching nurses. “It is nothing, really. The ground was just too slick, I took a tumble.”
Smiling honestly and plainly, he was guided by the nurse to the rest area, repeatedly expressing his gratitude. Once he was seated somewhat steadily, he tentatively asked the nurse who had supported him, “Can the emergency room prescribe fever medication?”
Hearing this, the nurse frowned and asked, “Are you running a fever? Let me grab a thermometer for you to check first.”
The middle-aged man waved his hands repeatedly. “Not me. It is, my son. He has a high fever, but he cannot come to the hospital.”
Expressionless, Yan Jiu withdrew his gaze and climbed straight into the car waiting before him, saying in a deep voice, “To the Chen family.”
Three years later.
As Qinghai’s largest urban village, Zhongshi Village began seeing its various working stiffs emerge from damp, murky corners starting at seven in the morning. Pulling along their straying souls, they flooded into the subway station like zombies before queuing up in an orderly, creeping line. By the time the subway delivered these zombies to their workstations, the grandpas and grandmas were leisurely strolling toward the entrance pushing their grandsons and granddaughters.
Only then did the layered, overlapping urban village welcome the damp, glaring sunlight, and the old storefronts along the main street gradually rolled up their metal shutters.
After seeing off her son and daughter-in-law, Aunt Sun pushed her plump grandson along while carrying a broken electric kettle toward the repair shop downstairs. That shop had been open in Zhongshi Village for over ten years. Not only was Boss Yang skilled and affordable, but he was also amiable.
Carrying the kettle, Aunt Sun walked straight through the door and straight to the point. “Old Yang, take a look at this kettle. Why is it not heating up anymore?”
Only after speaking did she notice that the black leather throne usually occupied by Boss Yang was empty. Suspiciously, she turned her head to look at the open doorway.
“He opened for business, so why is there no one here?”
Just as she was about to step outside to ask, she saw a very pleasing young man coming down from the second-floor living quarters. Their eyes met, and both of them wore identical looks of utter bewilderment.
The handsome man’s legs were so long they made the staircase look cramped. He wore a clean white cotton T-shirt and trousers, his dark eyebrows and wispy hair setting off a pale, somewhat sickly complexion. His quiet and composed temperament stood in stark contrast to the cluttered, antiquated repair shop.
The next second, a spine-chilling gleam of realization erupted in Aunt Sun’s eyes.
The 180-centimeter handsome young man was practically forced back onto the steps by her hungry fox-like gaze as he politely and distantly asked, “Are you here to have something repaired?”
Even his voice sounded nice!
He looked a bit like a little Omega, but with a face like that, even if he were a Beta, he would definitely be wildly popular.
In an instant, Aunt Sun mentally ran through every single unmarried ABO she knew, smiling like the Big Bad Wolf.
“It is nothing, I just came to fix a kettle!” Aunt Sun planted herself unceremoniously on a plastic stool, asking with warm concern, “Are you Old Yang’s relative? How come I have never seen you before?”
The handsome man nodded. “Mm. Uncle Yang went to pick up Xiao Bai. He probably will not be back until the afternoon. Would you mind coming back later?”
He had good manners, too.
“No trouble at all! I will wait.” Aunt Sun unceremoniously settled back onto her stool. “What is your name? How old are you? Do you have a partner?”
Not knowing how to chase her away directly, nor how to pretend he hadn’t heard, the handsome man could only pretend to organize some tools and selectively answer, “My name is Shen Hui, and I am thirty-one this year.”
Aunt Sun felt this person was pulling her leg. No matter how she looked at him, he seemed to be in his early twenties, twenty-five at the very most.
Long accustomed to such doubtful looks, Shen Hui directly changed the subject. “Are you not here to fix the kettle? Otherwise, let me take a look at it for you.”
Half-doubting, the aunt handed over the kettle. “You understand this stuff too?”
Taking the kettle, Shen Hui skillfully disassembled the base and tested it. “I used to watch Uncle Yang fix them. The coupler is broken. Let me replace it for you.”
“Alright.” Half-skeptical, Aunt Sun watched as Shen Hui fished out a coupler from a chaotic pile of spare parts boxes. The tiny black component looked exceptionally pleasing to the eye in his hands.
Only now did Aunt Sun register a bizarre sense of incongruity. A man like this should appear in those melodramatic wealthy family soap operas on television, not in this damp, dim urban village.
Could the Old Yang family have some big boss relative?
Before Aunt Sun could puzzle it out, Shen Hui had already reassembled the kettle and plugged it in.
The indicator light clicked on. Tying up the power cord and tucking it neatly into the base, Shen Hui handed it back to Aunt Sun. “All set.”
“Ah? Oh! Thank you, young man! How much do I owe?” Aunt Sun looked over the kettle; even the cord-wrapping technique was extremely neat, with the plug tucked carefully inside. He was a thorough and meticulous person.
This time it was Shen Hui’s turn to be stunned. He genuinely had no idea how to price it, and in the end, he could only let Aunt Sun pay according to the previous standard rates.
Yet, after taking the kettle, Aunt Sun did not leave immediately. She hesitatingly brought up a new topic. “Um, Xiao Shen, are you a Beta or an Omega? Are you married? If not, would Aunt Sun introduce someone to you?”
Never in his life had anyone asked him such a direct question right to his face. Back then, everyone regarded him as Chen Shenzhi’s possession, unfit to be the young master’s wife, yet forbidden from being coveted by anyone else.
“I.” Before Shen Hui could finish, the sound of brakes squealed at the doorway like a welcome salvation. Immediately after, Yang Bai poked his head inside, spotted Shen Hui, and flashed a brilliant smile as he rushed forward like a golden retriever wagging its tail.
“Brother! I missed you to death!” Clinging to Shen Hui like a koala and refusing to let go, Yang Bai whined, “You did not even come to pick me up!”
Staggering slightly from the impact, Shen Hui’s eyes curved into a gentle arc as he ruffled the big golden retriever’s hair. “You grew taller again.”
“Of course.” Standing up straight with his chest puffed out for Shen Hui to see, Yang Bai declared, “I am three centimeters taller than you now!”
“Stop bothering your brother.” Boss Yang shouted from outside the door, “Hurry up and bring your stuff down! I still have to go make a delivery later!”
“Coming!” Wagging his tail, Yang Bai busily scrambled to haul down his school bedding, computer, figurines, and miscellaneous daily supplies from upstairs.
As Boss Yang stepped inside to rescue Shen Hui and send Aunt Sun off, Shen Hui went upstairs to help Yang Bai move his belongings into the upstairs bedroom.
“Brother, my graduation ceremony is tomorrow. You and Dad should both come.” Tugging on Shen Hui’s hand, Yang Bai started acting spoiled. “You haven’t been to my school to see me once in three years. Let me tell you, our school is super pretty! The cafeteria has these little wontons you will definitely love, and most importantly.”
Yang Bai spun around three times in front of Shen Hui like a magical girl transforming, radiating Ultraman-level brilliance as he raised an eyebrow with absolute confidence. “This year, I am going up on stage to speak as the outstanding graduate representative!”
Shen Hui coldly refused. “No, it is inconvenient for me to go out.”
Over the past three years, Shen Hui had basically remained unseen. After all, nominally speaking, he was already a dead man.
“Brother!” The magical-girl Ultraman instantly transformed into a wronged puppy, throwing himself over to hug Shen Hui’s leg with eyes full of accusation. “Do you not love me anymore?”
“Just go for once.” Boss Yang came back inside to grab his truck keys, instantly spotting the hint of longing underlying Shen Hui’s expression. “It has been three years already. Besides, Qinghai is so big, you are not bound to run into unpleasant people.”
Confronted by the matching, expectant gazes of father and son, Shen Hui suffered a complete and defenseless defeat. “Fine.”