This omega with a teardrop mole looked him up and down. His dark, gloomy gaze made Shen Yue feel very dazzling, harsh and uncomfortable.
He lowered his head. In front of so many people, Shen Yue felt his face burning. At this moment, he felt like a dark rat living in a sewer. He shouldn’t be here.
Ren Junzhu hung up the phone. Ignoring the excitedly hopping little brat, his gaze fell on Shen Yue’s dazed face. He spoke: “You didn’t tell him?”
Lin You said: “We were in a hurry to bring him over, haven’t had time to tell him yet. Lend me a room.”
Ren Junzhu raised his chin. Lin You pulled Shen Yue: “What are you standing there for? Move.” Shen Yue, in a daze, was pulled and then reacted, following Lin You into the guest room.
Ren Junzhu took out his phone to send a message. Feeling his pants being tugged, he looked down. The little brat grabbed his pant leg, wrinkling his face, and said: “Smelly old man, Shen Yue is coming to our home, why didn’t you tell me?”
“Why should I tell you?” Ren Junzhu raised an eyebrow, looking down at this little thing who hadn’t even reached his knee yet.
“I… I didn’t mean it last time. If you had told me earlier, I could have prepared a gift.”
Ren Suixing had always been bothered by the incident where he caused Shen Yue to spit blood. Although his older brothers and sisters all told him it wasn’t his fault, he still wanted to see Shen Yue again.
He heard that Shen Yue had been sent to Bailu Prison by the old man. He had even been discussing with Yan Xuan and Zuo Ye how to sneak in. Then the G7 highway incident caused such a big commotion. During those days, Ren Junzhu didn’t come home at all. He ran to the office to ask. Ren Junzhu kept his mouth shut, but Ren Suixing still smelled the scent on him. Even though he had already taken a shower, that smell, carved into Ren Suixing’s soul and present in his memory since birth, still touched his olfactory nerves.
This blood was Shen Yue’s. He was in trouble. Ren Suixing was very anxious, grabbing people and constantly asking. But the people at the base, under the smelly old man’s orders, only looked at him apologetically and said nothing. He was almost worried to death.
He had been scratching his head and pacing for several days. He never expected that when he came downstairs to drink a glass of water today, he would see people from the prison deliver Shen Yue here.
“Why is Shen Yue coming to our home?”
“Is he injured? Is he healed? Will he stay? How long will he stay?”
“Can he stay in my room? My bed is very big.”
He grabbed Ren Junzhu’s pants, jumping and bouncing. Ren Junzhu was so annoyed by him that he resorted to the standard parental tactic of brushing him off: “What’s with your hundred thousand whys? Get upstairs and do your homework.”
Ren Suixing protested discontentedly: “It’s Saturday. Only an idiot would do homework. Don’t change the subject, answer me quickly!”
Ren Junzhu didn’t answer. He directly grabbed the back of his neck and, as if throwing a ball, tossed the little brat upstairs.
“You violent maniac, smelly old man!”
Outside, the “intimate” interaction between father and son was something Shen Yue couldn’t see. He was still submerged in an inescapable emotional state. Lin You removed his muzzle gag and said to him: “Sit down.”
Shen Yue, in a daze, sat down across from him.
“We already know each other, so I won’t say any pleasantries. Shen Yue, I have heard about your past from the chief of staff. I sympathize with your experiences, but the things you did still cannot be forgiven. After your adoptive father’s organization is wiped out, you will stand before a military court and accept judgment.”
Shen Yue nodded. He had long anticipated this outcome. He felt no fear.
“You must be very curious why I brought you here, right?” Lin You said to him with a smile.
Shen Yue lifted his gaze to look at him. His beautiful, black pupils stared without blinking.
“I’ll be direct, Shen Yue. Your body is special, with extremely high research value. The medical center and headquarters have communicated many times. If the secrets of your body could be unlocked, it would greatly benefit the country’s biomedical research, and could even take a landmark step forward in the field of awakened individuals. After careful consideration, headquarters has decided to give you an opportunity.”
Lin You pulled out two thick stacks of paper: “The top one is the Voluntary Service Agreement. If you sign it, we will conduct research on your body. But you don’t need to worry. We will not harm your body. On the contrary, we will protect it to the greatest extent. That is also the reason for the second agreement.”
“This one is the Guardianship Agreement. You served as the head of the interrogation department, so you know what a guardianship agreement is, right. After multiple examinations, the center believes that your health indicators are too poor, especially the excessive depletion of your gland. The most preliminary tests cannot even be conducted right now. So, they plan to have Colonel Ren Junzhu act as your guardian to assist in repairing your body.”
Shen Yue was stunned. The way he opened his eyes and tilted his head was exactly like a dazed fox in the jungle.
The “Awakened Guardianship Agreement” is actually a management system established by headquarters for awakened individuals with higher danger levels.
The guardianship agreement is divided into two types. The first is the Matching Agreement. Both parties in the match have the same rights and obligations. They mutually guard and are mutually responsible for each other. This type of agreement mostly applies to AOs, with very few ABs also participating in this type.
The other type is the Dominance Agreement. This agreement is specifically aimed at awakened individuals who have been behaviorally determined to be difficult to control. The recipient is designated as a person with limited capacity for conduct. The dominator has guardianship responsibility toward the recipient. The recipient’s property, travel, and other civil activities are all under the control of the dominator. If the recipient becomes uncontrollable, the dominator has the right to manage the recipient.
The Matching Agreement actually constructs the military marriage relationship within the awakened system, where both parties are relatively free. The Dominance Agreement constructs a special guardianship relationship. All actions of the supervised recipient are the responsibility of the dominator. That is: the recipient’s clothing, food, housing, transportation are provided by the dominator; if the recipient owes money, the dominator pays it back; if the recipient commits a crime, the dominator goes to jail and accepts accountability.
Using a more accessible relationship to describe the dominance relationship: the recipient is like a severe mental patient, and the dominator is their guardian, except that in this relationship, the dominator has greater and more forceful powers than an ordinary guardian.
Lin You stared at Shen Yue’s glass-like pupils: “Although I don’t know why you are both alphas, and your attributes are mutually counteracting, the Colonel can produce a calming effect on you. But since he can alleviate your pain, that is a good thing for you. However, you are a suspect. While conducting research on you, to prevent you from doing things you shouldn’t do, headquarters needs to take certain compulsory measures against you.”
“After discussions among the high-rank leadership, it was determined that arranging for the Colonel to act as your dominator for safety and protection is the most reasonable and effective method at present. The Colonel has also agreed.”
Ren Junzhu actually agreed. Shen Yue was somewhat surprised. This meant that for everything Shen Yue did afterward, Ren Junzhu would have to bear responsibility. But according to his personality, perhaps he agreed in order to take revenge on him more effectively.
Shen Yue found it amusing. Seven years ago, he and Ren Junzhu had signed a matching agreement; the two had an equal relationship. Unexpectedly, when they met again seven years later, they would become unequal parties.
“Since this matter concerns your entire life and property for you, consider it carefully. If in the end you do not agree, we will understand. I will send you back to Bailu Prison.”
Shen Yue did not speak. He directly picked up a pen and signed both contracts. Lin You was startled and reached out to stop him: “You won’t think it over a bit more? Consider clearly. By signing this, you will essentially be giving up everything about yourself.”
Shen Yue pushed aside his hand and put down the pen: “No need to consider. I have already thought it through clearly.”
He had long had nothing left. So what was there to talk about ‘giving up everything’? He had originally thought he might stay in prison until execution. Unexpectedly, before dying, heaven took pity on him. He could actually return here again.
Becoming Ren Junzhu’s subordinate recipient might mean suffering his torment, but being able to stay here and see him and that child was something Shen Yue had never dared to imagine. He had even一 spend thought he was dreaming.
It’s just a little bullying. It’s not like he hasn’t been bullied before. As for the experimental research, he had already undergone seven years of experiments. He was long used to it. This broken body of his being able to make some contribution to headquarters was perhaps the only atonement he could offer.
Seeing him put down the pen, Lin You let out a breath. He might have understood Shen Yue’s thoughts, but precisely because he understood, he felt it was a pity.
But since Shen Yue had signed, he didn’t say anything more. He carefully put away the contracts: “Regardless, thank you for your contribution. Are there any other questions you want to ask?”
Shen Yue pressed his lips together, seeming somewhat embarrassed. He opened his mouth but didn’t know how to begin. His whole person appeared ill at ease.
“You want to ask me who that omega is, right?” Lin You said with an ambiguous smile.
Shen Yue’s face reddened. He nervously tucked his long hair behind his ear and still nodded.
“He is not from here. His identity is classified, so I cannot tell you. But he and Colonel Ren share a protector-protected relationship. He will live at the Colonel’s home for quite a long time. As the Colonel’s recipient, you will also live with him.”
A protector-protected relationship. Hearing this, Shen Yue didn’t know whether he should be happy. But if someone lives in the home, all kinds of situations could happen. It would also be very simple for that to change.
Shen Yue knew that regardless of the relationship, he no longer had any standing to question or judge. But every time he thought about the possibility of Ren Junzhu finding a stepmother for the child, his heart still ached with a searing pain.
Lin You led him out. As they were about to leave the door, he said meaningfully: “At this point, between you and Colonel Ren, there is no other possibility. All you can think about now is to work hard to show yourself well, strive for lenient treatment, so that you have a chance to survive. As for other matters, don’t dwell on them anymore.”
“This is the best choice for you, for Colonel Ren, and for Xiao Xing.”
Shen Yue stood behind him, his face so pale it was almost transparent. He understood Lin You’s meaning… And precisely because he understood, the pain was like an invisible, deep-seated bitterness penetrating to the bone marrow.
“I know.”
He would control himself, not to yearn for things he could no longer possess.
Lin You nodded. His admonition to Shen Yue was also for Shen Yue’s own good. In the current situation, the more Shen Yue thought about things, the more he would suffer. He needed to recognize his own identity in order to live a better life.
“He signed.” Lin You handed the agreement to Ren Junzhu. When he came out, he saw Ren Suixing jumping down the stairs, only to be caught by Ren Junzhu and thrown back like a ball.
Only when he saw Lin You come out did Ren Junzhu stop paying attention to the little brat. He took the agreement and flipped through it roughly. His eyes passed over the two characters “Shen Yue.” The writing, like the person himself, was exceptionally neat and elegant. He took a pen and signed his own name in a flamboyant, dragon-and-phoenix style above “Shen Yue.”
Closing the agreement, Ren Junzhu finally let his gaze fall on Shen Yue. Shen Yue kept his head lowered, his eyes half-closed. He looked dazed. But his white eyelashes seemed moist, like dew about to fall or not yet fallen from snow-white flowers.
Ren Junzhu’s brow furrowed.
Shen Yue was somewhat sad. He was holding back his emotions. So when the prison guard took out the key and unlocked his handcuffs and leg shackles, he still hadn’t snapped out of it.
Lin You patted his shoulder: “After this, Colonel Ren will assign you some work. Just like prison labor, you have to cooperate.”
Shen Yue nodded slightly. He looked at his own wrists. They had directly unlocked his handcuffs? Just by signing the Dominance Agreement, headquarters was this confident? Or had they determined that he couldn’t stir up any trouble in Ren Junzhu’s hands?
Ren Junzhu stood there, sizing him up for a moment, then said indifferently:
“Come here.”
Shen Yue was stunned for a moment, not sure if he was being called.
Lin You pushed him a little in that direction: “Go on over.”
Shen Yue was very nervous. Although Ren Junzhu wasn’t showing anything at the moment, the violence during those days in the interrogation room had still left Shen Yue with considerable trauma. Even so, he was willing to endure Ren Junzhu’s anger. Behind closed doors, however, Ren Junzhu wanted to treat him well. But Xiao Xing was right there. He didn’t want the child to see him completely stripped of dignity.
Shen Yue hesitated until Ren Junzhu’s expression grew increasingly impatient. Only then did he muster up the courage and slowly walk over, limping. He cautiously stood in front of Ren Junzhu, not even daring to lift his head, his slender white fingers gripping the hem of his own clothes tightly.