Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Zheng Jian hurried over, arriving just in time to witness the scene and overhear the conversation, causing him to slow his pace.

Boss Qin was known for her playful nature, so her rules were no secret in Jincheng. After all, countless individuals yearned to share her bed, and there had been others who dared to snatch someone from her grasp. Her terms were always crystal clear: once the conditions were met, she would release the person without hesitation or delay.

Shen Jin had willingly accepted the terms at the bar, left with her, and even resided in her villa. This meant the agreement was binding; he couldn't simply walk away whenever he pleased.

Speaking of Boss Qin, a woman who had carved out such an empire for herself in Jincheng was no ordinary person. To this day, no one had ever managed to defy her rules.

Challenging her directly would invite endless trouble.

Honestly, isn't Blue Elf just a magnet for trouble?

Qin first turned to Shen Jin, offering him a gentle smile. "Were you uncomfortable staying with me? If you wish to remain and continue with me, I guarantee Captain Jiang won't be able to interfere."

"However, if Captain Jiang intends to take you from me, the price he'll pay will be substantial. Would you like to reconsider?"

Shen Jin leaned back, tapping his finger lightly on his forehead, his gaze flitting between Qin and Jiang Linchuan.

Rules? A price?

This human woman dared to discuss rules with him? Where did she find such audacity?

But…

"What price would he have to pay? Chopping off a hand? Cutting off a leg? Or leaping from a cliff?" Shen Jin blinked, his eyes gleaming with an unusual light as he looked at Qin. He had witnessed such scenarios in films.

"Tell me your rules. Let's see if there's a better alternative."

Zheng Jian's eyes widened in disbelief. "???"

What? Did he mishear? Was that even human speech?

Not only Zheng Jian, but even Qin was momentarily speechless. After a long pause, she chuckled and turned to Jiang Linchuan.

"Since Shen Jin has already proposed the methods, Captain Jiang, choose your poison," Qin said, shrugging playfully at Jiang Linchuan. "Your boy is even more of a player than I am."

Jiang Linchuan was at a loss for words. He extended his bandaged, blood-stained hand toward Shen Jin and said, annoyed, "Go on, chop off your dad's hand."

Shen Jin glanced down. The hand was severely mangled and bleeding, injured while saving that "food." It truly wasn't worth keeping.

Shen Jin averted his gaze in disgust, then looked coldly at Qin. "Chop off both his hands. Once it's done, I'll go home with him." The other hand had desperately clung to that "food," refusing to let go. Since it was already soiled, it might as well be chopped off too.

The air fell silent for a moment. The bodyguard nearby looked utterly bewildered. What was this? Reverse psychology?

Trying that with Boss Qin was far too naive, young man.

Qin gazed at the young man. His eyes were pitch-black, like an unfathomable abyss.

Having navigated countless challenges and encountered innumerable people over the years, she could discern sincerity from pretense.

The young man wasn't joking. He genuinely intended to sever Jiang Linchuan's hands.

The cold indifference hidden beneath his innocent and simple exterior now poured forth without restraint.

Staring into the young man's eyes for too long sent a chill rising from the depths of her heart. Qin shivered and quickly averted her gaze.

After composing herself, she cast a complex glance at Jiang Linchuan. The latter was also observing the young man, his handsome face furrowed in a frown. If she could discern the truth, Jiang Linchuan naturally could too.

Interesting.

Qin raised an eyebrow at Jiang Linchuan. "So, Captain Jiang, what do you say? My blade is swift and sharp. I guarantee a clean cut, ensuring you suffer less pain."

Jiang Linchuan remained silent, his eyes fixed intently on Shen Jin.

His cheeks still stung from the two slaps he had received earlier.

Shen Jin was angry.

The feeling was familiar.

And the source of his anger was his hands.

Jiang Linchuan pondered. What had these hands done to provoke him?

"Why are you looking at me?" Shen Jin shot him a disdainful look. "Chop them. Once it's done, we go home. Of course, you could also choose to jump off a cliff."

Qin's rules had now become Shen Jin's rules.

Zheng Jian was dumbfounded. No, was he insane?

Just as Zheng Jian was about to step forward and scold Blue Elf, Qin spoke.

"Captain Jiang, Shen Jin's personality… it's truly captivating."

Jiang Linchuan withdrew his gaze from the young man's face and composed himself. "Boss Qin, that kind of personality is more than most people can handle."

"That's certainly true." Qin set down her wine glass and stood up. "Captain Jiang, you saved me once. Consider us even. I no longer owe you any favors."

"No need," Jiang Linchuan also stood. "You don't need to repay any favors. This time, I owe you. If you ever need anything in the future, feel free to come to me."

Qin straightened her clothes and shook hands with Jiang Linchuan. "Then take care of that hand, Captain Jiang. Let's have a meal together sometime—bring your… son along."

Jiang Linchuan let out a helpless laugh.

"I'll take my leave now, Shen Jin." Qin cast one last glance at Shen Jin's face. Though somewhat reluctant, she knew that with a temperament like his, even a seasoned player like her might find him too much to handle.

As Qin turned to leave, Shen Jin, still posing on the sofa, hadn't quite processed what had happened. He narrowed his eyes slightly. "What are you two implying?"

"It means…" Jiang Linchuan leaned down, bracing his hands on the sofa and looking down at him. "She doesn't want to deal with you. Only I'm willing to put up with you. You have no choice but to come home with me and live on sixty dollars."

No hands were chopped off, and no cliff was jumped.

Shen Jin was furious.

This woman was all talk after all. Hmph.

"Stay here. Don't go anywhere." Jiang Linchuan pointed at Shen Jin, warning him, "If you cause trouble again, I'll smack you again."

Threatening him?

Shen Jin reached out and squeezed Jiang Linchuan's bandaged hand hard, blood soaking through the bandage.

Jiang Linchuan hissed in pain and smacked the back of Shen Jin's head with his other hand. You brat.

Jiang Linchuan, still uneasy, turned to Zheng Jian and said, "Keep an eye on him. I'll be right back."

Zheng Jian walked over and greeted him, "Hey, Blue Elf, we meet again."

Shen Jin gave him a disdainful look. He brought his slender fingers to his lips and lightly licked the blood staining them, sucking it clean.

Jiang Linchuan, who was conversing with Boss Qin behind a large potted plant, caught sight of this and felt a sudden jolt in his chest. His left shoulder prickled with a strange, tingling pain as if pierced by needles, followed by a sensation of numbness.

Zheng Jian saw it too and shuddered in disgust.

He bounced in place, shaking off the goosebumps on his arms, then leaned in closer. "Hey, don't get me wrong, but that move of retreating to advance was brilliant. I misunderstood you earlier, thought you were asking for trouble. Now I see you've got some serious wisdom—using a light touch to handle a heavy situation. Well played, truly well played."

"Master, please accept my salute." Zheng Jian stepped forward, one foot in front of the other, and clasped his fists in a comical bow to Shen Jin.

Shen Jin lazily glanced at him. "You're not fit to serve me. Get lost." This guy's got a few screws loose.

Zheng Jian: "..."

...

"They said it only costs three million, no surgery needed, no special methods, and I can have smooth, fair skin all over. Captain Jiang, do you think it's reliable?"

Jiang Linchuan frowned slightly. "Have you tried it?"

"Not really. What do I need beauty for? It's others who use their looks to attract me. Appearance is the least useful thing to me."

Boss Qin took out a cigarette case and offered a cigarette to Jiang Linchuan, who accepted it and held it in his hand. After lighting her own cigarette and taking a puff, Boss Qin said, "I had someone look into it discreetly. A celebrity tried it—got a full-body skin transformation, became radiant…"

She trailed off meaningfully, flicked the ash from her cigarette, and added nonchalantly, "I'm just chatting with Captain Jiang, that's all. Alright, I'm off. See you later."

Watching Boss Qin leave, Jiang Linchuan's expression darkened.

A full-body skin transformation without surgery, and from an organization no less—either it's some powerful entity… or they're using entities on humans…

"What did she say to you?" Shen Jin walked over, his tone gloomy. "Why were you talking for so long?"

Jiang Linchuan snapped out of his thoughts. Instead of answering Shen Jin, he turned to Zheng Jian and asked, "What's the situation below?"

Zheng Jian then remembered why he had come to find Jiang Linchuan. He straightened up and said seriously, "No trace of that seaweed was detected. It must have escaped. The vice-captain has already called for a boat to organize a pursuit at sea."

"Don't chase it at night. The sea is closed off for the next two days. No one is allowed near it."

"Understood." Zheng Jian added, "The vice-captain and I have things under control here, Captain Jiang. You should hurry to the hospital. Blue Elf, the honorable task of taking your dad to the hospital falls to you."

With that, Zheng Jian turned and ran off.

He wasn't going to give Blue Elf another chance to humiliate him.

Jiang Linchuan did need to go to the hospital—he had to check on Wu Yao. Before leaving, he took Shen Jin to the seaside to take a look. More members of the Special Operations Team had arrived, and Geng Yang was leading a search along the shore.

The salty sea breeze brushed against their faces. Shen Jin yawned. "I'm tired. I want to go home and sleep. When are you going to pick up my mattress?"

"Shen Jin."

"What?"

"Do you feel anything standing here?" Jiang Linchuan stopped and turned to face him.

"Feel what?" Shen Jin rubbed his sleepy eyes and glanced around, only then realizing he was standing on the same coastal rock where Jiang Linchuan had fallen earlier.

Jiang Linchuan bent down slightly, meeting his eyes, and whispered, "Do you sense… well… your… mother's presence?"

"What?" Shen Jin's eyes shot up, staring at the man in disbelief. "Mother?"

"It's just a term. Let's temporarily call whoever gave birth to you 'mother,' regardless of gender, whether they're human, entity, or something else. When I fell earlier, did you… sense anything?"

Jiang Linchuan's gaze remained fixed on Shen Jin, his deep pupils filled with inquiry.

Shen Jin's mind had always been sharp. Pondering Jiang Linchuan's words—from "two useless ones" to "foster son" to "mother"…

The tentacles beneath the sea roared wildly, wanting to tear off Jiang Linchuan's head and crush it underfoot.

This human man really dared to imagine.

Dreaming of being his father?

Do you have what it takes?

"I did sense something," Shen Jin said, lips parting, feigning innocence. "A familiar presence. Is it what you called… mother? Is that why you haven't been able to find my family? Because my mother is an entity? Then what am I? Will the Special Operations Brigade come after me?"

Their eyes met. Shen Jin blinked slowly, his gaze shimmering with a hint of eerie allure under the night sky.

Jiang Linchuan stared at the young man before him, his eyes flickering toward the direction of the rooftop where the boy had stood watching him earlier.

Jiang Linchuan remained calm. "Don't worry, you're definitely human. Didn't we already run a blood test? As for your mother… it's still uncertain."

"Then what about my father?" Shen Jin took a step forward, tilting his head to look up at the man who stood a head taller. Blinking, he asked, "Do you know who my father is?"

Jiang Linchuan looked at him.

Here we go again.

This was the same seemingly obedient act Shen Jin had put on when they first met.

When Jiang Linchuan didn't respond, Shen Jin took another step forward, the tip of his shoe stepping onto Jiang Linchuan's combat boot.

Shen Jin rose onto his toes, placed his hands on Jiang Linchuan's shoulders, leaned in, and blew a soft breath into his ear. "Jiang Linchuan," he whispered, "you're not thinking of being my father, are you?"

Jiang Linchuan tilted his head slightly, avoiding the breath.

Right then and there, Jiang Linchuan began to reconsider his earlier assumptions.

He had previously reached a reasonable conclusion based on Chen Lanzhi's blood test, but now, through a series of coincidences, he had arrived at another equally plausible theory.

The earlier conclusion was based on scientific evidence; tonight's was purely based on intuition.

"Well…" Jiang Linchuan lowered his gaze and said softly, "Do you want to be my son?"

Watching the sudden flare of anger in Shen Jin's eyes, Jiang Linchuan recalled their first meeting.

The boy had been curled up naked, panicked, innocent, and naive. Back then, he had seen him only as a child. But looking back now, all the signs were there.

"Shen Jin, I didn't tell you earlier because I thought you couldn't handle losing your memories. But now, I have to be honest with you."

"What?" Jiang Linchuan's sudden seriousness caught Shen Jin off guard.

Jiang Linchuan wrapped an arm around the boy's waist, moving him away, then took a step back. Looking at him earnestly, he said, "I previously took your blood and mine for testing. The results show that you and I share a father-son relationship. In other words, I am indeed your father. You must be the child born to me and an entity."

Shen Jin's eyes narrowed, dark and menacing.

What nonsense was this man spouting?

Jiang Linchuan pretended not to notice his expression. He reached out, pulled Shen Jin into a tight embrace, and patted his back forcefully. "Father and son, finally reunited. I am overjoyed."