Jiang Jing’s vague sense of unease came true just a few days later.
It happened right before he was to accompany his boss to a meeting with the Federation Security Bureau to discuss a collaboration plan against the mutant species.
At the beginning of November, District One experienced its first snowfall. Thick white snow covered the mountaintops, weighing down the green pine branches.
Even though the snowflakes were drifting down outside, the smart home system inside the mountainside villa kept the temperature warm like it was spring.
A layer of white mist had formed on the floor to ceiling glass windows.
It wasn’t the weekend, and Nancheng No. 1 High School was holding classes as usual, so the villa was unusually quiet.
Pei Guangji had been traveling between the core zone and the villa for the past two days. This time, he had originally planned to speak with Xin Hexue before leaving for his business trip.
“Check the location.” With snow falling so heavily outside, Pei Guangji’s expression darkened. “See where he went?”
Since arriving here, all of Xin Hexue’s living necessities had been provided by him, including upgrading the outdated communicator to the latest model with a new system.
Pei Guangji had also had a location chip installed in the communicator.
Jiang Jing: “That’s strange… it shows Mr. Xin is right near the villa…”
How could he be gone?
Pei Guangji: “Check the villa’s entry and exit records.”
Jiang Jing turned his head sharply, his voice rising in surprise, “Mr. Xin?! What happened to you?!”
The young man stood quietly at the doorway.
It seemed he had just returned from a long trip. The white down coat on him didn’t appear bulky, but snowflakes clung to the coat, scarf, his hair, and even his eyelashes.
Xin Hexue’s body temperature was already low, and the freshly fallen snow hadn’t melted during the walk back.
His skin was pale as frost, but his cheeks and the corners of his eyes were flushed red from the cold.
Pei Guangji took off his coat and draped it over his shoulders. “Come in quickly. It’s too cold outside.”
Xin Hexue silently entered the room, and the melting snowflakes on his eyelashes turned into droplets.
Pei Guangji noticed the redness on his face and wanted to speak more gently, but when the words came out, they were still unintentionally cold. “It’s snowing! Why did you go out?”
Xin Hexue’s silence made him panic for a moment.
The young man’s voice was soft. “Pei Guangji, let’s terminate our contract.”
Pei Guangji felt like his heart was being tightly squeezed, and his breath faltered. “According to the contract, there are still seven months left. If you breach it…”
As he spoke, another voice seemed to echo in his mind, stopping him.
This wasn’t right, it wasn’t supposed to be like this! This wasn’t the time to talk about breach of contract and compensation. What he really wanted to ask was: Why did Xin Hexue go out? What had he encountered? Had he gotten cold? Was his throat sore or uncomfortable? Did the indoor temperature need to be raised?
Pei Guangji opened his mouth. His voice was dry, and what he wanted to say was stuck in his throat.
He could only watch as Xin Hexue took out two bundles of documents wrapped in yellow paper.
One was a judgment letter. The other was a death notice for family members.
Both had been intercepted and never successfully delivered.
Pei Guangji stood frozen.
Xin Hexue coughed lightly, steadied himself, and then said, “I picked these up at the post office.”
His eyes were red as he faced Pei Guangji. “Don’t you have anything you want to explain to me?”
Pei Guangji’s throat was dry and hoarse. “I found the evidence in your old apartment, I can explain it to you slowly…”
Only then did Jiang Jing realize that his premonition had come true. He reacted in shock, ready to smooth things over.
But Xin Hexue said, “Forget it, you don’t need to explain.”
Under the falling light, the young man looked isolated and alone. “What should someone from the upper class of the core zone need to explain to me?”
There was a faint weariness on his face, and his eyes revealed disappointment toward the Alpha in front of him. “That one million star coins, I’ll find a way to repay you. So, let’s terminate our contract.”
Xin Hexue coughed again. He was too tired to keep bargaining with Pei Guangji and went upstairs to his room. As he climbed the stairs, Pei Guangji followed closely, trying to explain, “I only reported Xin Bao to the public security system. With the evidence against him, a twenty-year sentence was well-deserved. But the outcome of his death… I really didn’t expect it, and it wasn’t something I deliberately planned…”
Pei Guangji defended himself, even though he knew in his heart that Jiang Jing had reported the situation from the prison guards to him, and had asked whether he wanted to have Xin Bao transferred to a different cell.
Although it wasn’t something he had deliberately arranged, it had happened with his tacit approval.
The young man’s figure looked thin from behind. As he opened the bedroom door, he turned and said, “Xin Bao deserved it.”
“Then what about you? From beginning to end, have you ever explained even the slightest bit to me?” Xin Hexue looked at him in disappointment. “What are you trying to do? Cut off my relationship with my father on my behalf, erase all ties with my past, install a tracker in my communicator…”
Pei Guangji’s expression tensed, and he subconsciously refuted, “That wasn’t my intention.”
Xin Hexue’s eyes no longer held warmth, and his tone was lightly mocking. “Young Master, I’m not your accessory.”
[Pei Guangji Heartbreak Value +5]
Xin Bao had done those things, including the childhood trauma he caused to Xin Hexue…his death was not even worth mourning a hundred times over. But Pei Guangji didn’t understand why the death of that scumbag would cause a rift between him and Xin Hexue.
He had stood at the top of the pyramid for too long, and had long been accustomed to doing things his own way without anyone opposing him. So in everything he did, he never learned to explain or consult with Xin Hexue.
He thought he possessed the young man, even believed Xin Hexue loved him. So he thought these decisions should be understood.
But from the beginning, this condescending mentality was wrong.
The young man could sensitively detect the disrespect from the Alpha.
The door slammed shut in front of him, and Pei Guangji heard a sound from inside; it seemed Xin Hexue had collapsed and sat down against the door.
Pei Guangji knocked on the door anxiously. “The floor is cold, don’t sit on the floor.”
For the first time, he used a pleading tone with someone. “Let’s talk about the contract again when I get back, okay? The weather is bad these days. Stay in the villa. Someone will deliver food every day. If you need anything, just tell them.”
“Or tell me, and I’ll have them bring it.”
There was no response from inside.
[Pei Guangji Heartbreak Value +3]
Pei Guangji went downstairs restlessly. Jiang Jing parked the aircraft at the entrance and asked worriedly, “Young Master, how is Mr. Xin?”
In front of his subordinate, the Alpha had already returned to his calm and commanding demeanor.
“Lock the villa’s permissions. Don’t let him go out for now,” Pei Guangji said with a solemn expression. “Can the three-day business trip be compressed into a day and a half?”
Jiang Jing: “It’s possible, but the break time in between…”
Pei Guangji: “Go fast and return fast. Don’t consider anything else.”
………
Inside the bedroom, the young man sitting with his back against the door touched the fluff of the carpet. The mechanical cat came closer and nudged his hand.
Xin Hexue’s shoulders moved slightly. From K’s angle, it looked like he was crying.
Xin Hexue laughed in a muffled voice, his face full of joy. “That scumbag really died right on time.”
Fortunately, he had K constantly monitor Xin Bao’s survival status in prison.
He had really given Pei Guangji too much face, making that guy completely fall into the illusion of love.
But it was still worth it.
All of this was to initially push forward Xin Hexue’s plan.
Pei Guangji, a Dragon at the top of the Federation’s twisted pyramid system, simply wasn’t capable of loving anyone. He was arrogant, conceited, and domineering, paired with someone like “Xin Hexue”, who was emotionally hypersensitive due to childhood trauma and physical defects, it was completely one of those scum-slave templates the Big World loved to see.
Xin Hexue wouldn’t let the original ending happen.
Since the audience of the Big World loved dog-blood drama, a crematorium scene was part of the show too, right?
Xin Hexue asked K about Pei Guangji’s love value.
K: [90.]
Xin Hexue: “Not bad.”
With a full progress bar value of one hundred, that already counted as deep love. However, without anyone to push it, this favored son of the heavens would forever be in a state of loving without realizing it.
Xin Hexue was waiting for when Pei Guangji returned from treatment. What kind of reaction would he have when he discovered the outrageous actions of his childhood friends?
“Little Dog,” Xin Hexue said to the mechanical cat, “come here.”
The mechanical cat happily squeezed closer, nudging his hand.
The next target to farm love and heartbreak value was Xi Zhengqing.
None of them would get away.
Xin Hexue curved his eyes slightly and patted the mechanical cat named “Little Dog” on the head.
………
After hesitating again and again, Jiang Jing still asked, “Young Master, did you have a fight with Mr. Xin?”
There was a long silence in the back seat.
Pei Guangji: “Yeah.”
Jiang Jing: “Young Master, you know I’m already married. If you don’t mind, maybe I can give you some advice on making up. Of course, it’s just some humble opinions of mine.”
Pei Guangji was silent for a moment. Thinking of Xin Hexue, he said, “Go ahead.”
Jiang Jing: “Do you love Mr. Xin?”
Pei Guangji was slightly stunned. His voice turned hoarse. “I…”
He was deeply shaken just by the word “love”.
The bystander sees clearly. Jiang Jing continued, “If you love him, I think the root of this argument is that you haven’t shown your love in daily life. Mr. Xin is a rather sensitive person. He might think that you don’t respect him enough. And of course, that you don’t love him enough either. If you’re planning to marry Mr. Xin in the future, it’s best to have a deep talk with him after you go back, to understand Mr. Xin’s thoughts…”
Jiang Jing was still passing on the secrets of married life; more communication, more understanding.
Pei Guangji felt as if he had been struck on the head.
‘Marriage…’
‘Right, they could get married.’
The cold blood in his body started to boil and flow again. Pei Guangji felt as if the fog before his eyes had been swept away, and his chest opened up as he breathed.
He felt a bit excited as he thought of how he would prove to Xin Hexue that he truly loved him.
If Xin Hexue didn’t believe it, they could get engaged next week, even though it was a bit rushed.
No, he could start planning the wedding right away. He would fulfill his duty as a husband, always be willing to love him, comfort him, respect him, and protect him. They would build a perfect, real family.
Thinking of this, Pei Guangji dialed his life assistant’s number. He was a bit flustered. Three days from now would be Xin Hexue’s birthday. He realized it was a perfect opportunity to propose. At the very least, he should prepare an engagement ring now…
Although rushed, and the ring’s style might not suit the young man’s taste, they could later have a jewelry designer come over and design it according to the young man’s wishes.
Pei Guangji felt an unprecedented excitement and nervousness.
But then Jiang Jing suddenly shouted, “Young Master! The rear of the aircraft is on fire! Did the brake system fail?!”
‘Someone has tampered with the aircraft.’
That was Pei Guangji’s first thought.
In the snowy night, dazzling and scorching lights beamed over the aerial track…
A cargo craft loaded with construction materials crashed violently into the aircraft!
The sound was deafening. The world spun. Flames from the explosion roared, and the firelight melted the wind and snow.
Amid the wreckage and ruins, Pei Guangji’s self-healing speed couldn’t keep up with his blood loss. His mind grew hazy from excessive bleeding, and a part of the destroyed aircraft fell from above and pressed on his back, pinning him to the ground
He wiped the blood flowing from his forehead into his eyes.
His hand groped for the communicator and forced his eyelids open.
In Xin Hexue’s chat box, the last message was from yesterday evening. He had shared a photo of a squirrel storing a large amount of food on a pine tree in the garden backyard.
He even sent a picture and the location.
Perhaps unfamiliar with the software, Xin Hexue had found with regret that the location feature couldn’t pinpoint to within the garden, let alone under a specific tree.
Pei Guangji long-pressed the location. Blood dripped steadily onto the screen.
Pungent black smoke filled his throat, allowing him to make only hoarse gasps.
In the forward message box, he struggled to input a text message.
But when choosing the forwarding recipient, his mind grew drowsy, and the communicator slipped helplessly from his hand with a soft “plop”.
………
The message did not get forwarded to the life assistant as he had intended.
Instead, it appeared in a group chat that had been pulled up.
[Qiu Yuan 1: [Forwarded official account promo article link]]
[Qiu Yuan 2: This is a movie I just directed. Please support it.]
[Xi Zhengqing: smile.emoji]
[Zuo Yongyan: @Qiu Yuan 1 Qiu-ge, can you kick your other eight small accounts out of the group?]
[Qiu Yuan 3: Mind your own business.]
[Pei Guangji: [Location info – District One, Nancheng, Guangyang District, Yuanbei Road, Mountainside Villa No.13]]
[Pei Guangji: Take care of him for me $%*#^*&]
[Qiu Yuan 4: Who?]
[Qiu Yuan 6: @Pei Guangji say something]
[Qiu Yuan 5: Are you dead?]
[Xi Zhengqing: @Pei Guangji Next time you have this kind of message, it would be better to tell me in a private message. [smile]]
