In silence, Jiang Chen walked to stand in front of a bright red national flag. The nation’s top experts in various fields sat below, all looking up at him.

As the speaker of this seminar, he was calm and composed. After a simple introduction, he got straight to the point: “The main content of this meeting is…”

At the same time, He Qianjian, who was also in District 10 and located at the headquarters hospital two kilometers away, woke up.

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His consciousness was still a little fuzzy, and all he could see was the ceiling and unnamed instruments on both sides of the room, letting him know that he was in a hospital. When he came back to his senses a little, the pain in his body made him inhale sharply, his chest making a sound like broken bellows. The pain made him gasp, and he suddenly found it difficult to breathe.

“I……”

He opened his mouth to speak, but only hoarse syllables came out. No one was alerted. Only the voice that had been accompanying him since his death and rebirth in his mind discovered his awakening.

[You’re awake.]

This electronic sounding voice seemed to be no different from before, but it also seemed a little weird. However, the pain in his body and the unknown situation left He Qianjian with no extra energy to think about anything else. He immediately asked: [Am I out? Where am I?]

System: [You are not in the prison now…]

He Qianjian was relieved. But before he could feel happy, he heard the System say coldly: “You are in a more dangerous place than prison.]

 [What do you mean?]

[You will find out soon.]

As soon as the System finished speaking, medical staff pushed the door open and came in.

He Qianjian turned his head with difficulty and saw several people in blue scrubs and white masks walking up to him. Some were holding clipboards and some were debugging instruments. They were talking in low voices, seeming to be checking his body stats.

He opened his eyes hard, and a gasping sound came out of his throat. It was half blocked by the oxygen mask, but it was clearly heard in the quiet and orderly ward.

Someone glanced at He Qianjian, and then withdrew his gaze. They were all wearing masks, but they didn’t even seem to need to communicate with words. They just simply exchanged a look, and left in silence. No one spoke a word to him.

Such solemnity and order, in a ward composed of cold instruments and white walls, made He Qianjian suddenly panicked, fear welling up in his heart, and an inexplicable feeling of uneasiness filled him.

He was sure that he was in the hospital outside the prison now. He should have been happy, but the strange situation made his joy disappear. The System’s previous “You will know soon” lingered in his mind, but thinking of what happened before in the prison, it was difficult for He Qianjian to decide whether it was safer to stay in prison or to stay in this unknown ward.

No, He Qianjian had the answer instantly——any place was better than cell 15 that had the lights on but was so dark that it was suffocating and so depressing that it could drive all living beings crazy.

When he recalled everything that happened after he changed cells, goosebumps would appear on his back, cold sweat would run down his neck, and his scalp would gradually become numb.

After discovering that something was wrong in that cell, even though he didn’t know the reason, he wisely and quietly chose to imitate the other people in the cell. Like furniture that would not make any noise. He was always trembling with fear, even sleeping. He didn’t dare to make a sound, and the continuous insomnia set his nerves on edge, but at least he was fine.

At that time, He Qianjian thought that after enduring this period of time, everything would be better when he escaped from prison.

However, during breaktime, he overheard the conversation of several prisoners. Each of them were fierce characters when placed on the street, and ordinary people would not dare to provoke them. But at that time, they all secretly hid in a corner and voiced a bet in a malicious and expectant tone:

“Ten cigarettes, I bet that kid can live for at most five days.”

“I’ll bet one pack for three days.”

“Disabled or dead?”

“What’s the f**king difference between?”

“There was one A who went crazy among those before. Isn’t he alive?”

“…”

He Qianjian was confused at first when he heard what they were saying. He didn’t understand what they were talking about and felt that he couldn’t afford to offend them so he was about to leave when he heard the man say:

“He can only live for two more days at most.”

Several people asked excitedly, as if the person speaking knew some inside scoop, and their lowered voices just now became louder.

Then He Qianjian heard the man say: “You only know that No. 15 came in for killing people, but you don’t know why he killed people. It seems that No. 15’s parents died when he was ten years old, leaving only him and his younger brother. He dropped out of school to support his younger brother until he was in college, but who knew that his younger brother would die just after freshman year…”

The man’s voice suddenly lowered, and the other people’s heads moved closer. He Qianjian couldn’t hear him anymore, but he had to know the secret of the man in the same cell with him.

In the past few days, even though he had done nothing, that man seemed to be targeting him for some reason. A thin layer of cold sweat appeared on He Qianjian’s forehead. His intuition told him that the bet they just made was related to him.

He squatted in a hidden corner and said to the System: [Help me listen to what they are saying.]

The System had rarely spoken since it returned to He Qianjian, but don’t know if it was for future cooperation’s sake, it would basically help if the request was not excessive. This time was no exception. Soon He Qianjian’s head responded with the System’s emotionless and cold narration: “…He was gangraped to death by others. They were his younger brother’s school mates. One of them has a younger sister who was the girlfriend of a rich young master. I heard that the young master was still in junior high school or high school at that time. Don’t know how that young master did it but he destroyed all the evidence found by No. 15. So those people were acquitted at that time. No. 15 laid low for a year before killing two of them…”

He Qianjian froze, and suddenly thought of something, his face went numb instantly. He wanted to stand up, but he heard the sound of his teeth chattering, and then every inch of his body went numb and cold, and he couldn’t move an inch at all.

The voice relayed by the System was still sounding in his head: [When he was about to kill the third person, he was arrested. Don’t know why he wasn’t sentenced to death but was just detained here, also… I heard that the guy he blinded and the guy he drove crazy before were the other two people he wanted to kill.]

There was a faint sound of low breathing coming from far away. He Qianjian’s pale face turned blue, and the two dark circles under his eyes became more obvious. The System continued relaying the conversation: [Why were those two locked up with him?]

[No one knows, but I heard that the only one still outside who didn’t come in also died in a car accident the year before last.]

[What a damn bizarre thing, I’ve got goosebumps now.]

[But from what you said, No. 15 did not touch anyone else. All the cases were him seeking revenge. The new one might not suffer.]

[Hehehehe…] The System imitated the man’s laughter coldly: [Do you know the name of the young master who helped those rapists wipe the evidence at that time…]

He Qianjian startled badly, unable to listen anymore. He staggered away, dragging his numb legs.

——He asked the System to erase the evidence for him.

That girl was the most beautiful girl in their school. She seduced countless boys with her mature looks that were different from the I’m mature and childish looks of the rest of the junior high school students. She was the kind of goddess who would not even give him a look when he passed by her in his previous life, but now cried and begged him to help her brother.

He agreed without much thought at all. It was a piece of cake for him. As for what her brother did, he didn’t care about it. This result would not have happened if that boy had not seduced those men. Otherwise, who would give up women, and risk raping a man instead, so it was really his own fault.

As for the boy’s brother, he was poor and had no background, so he was not worthy of his attention at all. As long as the System cleaned all the traces, the He family would not know, and he would have one more girlfriend, so why not?

At that time, He Qianjian soon became bored with dating that girl and dumped her after three months. He didn’t care about the girl, let alone what happened to her brother, so naturally he didn’t know what happened afterwards.

But now… He Qianjian felt like a bucket of ice was overturned on his head.

However, break time had ended, even if he did not dare to go back to the cell he had no choice. His already tense nerves were about to snap at any time. Until the night before the reading club event, He Qianjian finally couldn’t help but close his eyes for a while. After waking up, it was to the man standing by his bed.

Gloomy, ghostly, with deep-seated hatred and malice, as if it would swallow him up at any time.

He Qianjian rolled out of bed and woke up all the inmates in the cell. He threw himself at the iron door and screamed for help and was finally taken out by the prison guards.

However, no matter what excuses he made, he could not avoid the task that had been assigned to him for the reading club event. He had to go set up the front stage. Fortunately, he had already discussed it with the System. He only had to wait for the System to hack the prison’s monitoring system and wait until all the power was turned off. Once all the equipment malfunctioned, he would find an opportunity to escape.

But he didn’t expect that the man actually exchanged tasks with someone else and came over. He Qianjian’s scalp went numb when he saw him. From his gloomy eyes to his gaunt cheeks, everything was terrifying. Before he could come over, he was so frightened that he fell off the steel frame.

When he woke up again, he was here.

He Qianjian’s recollection only happened within a few dozen seconds. When he finished recollecting, the door of the ward was pushed open again. Those people were wearing the same anti-bacterial scrubs as those who had just entered along with white masks, but for some reason, his heartbeat suddenly picked up, as if it was warning him of something.

Just when he was panicking, the person in the lead stepped aside, and the person behind pushed an instrument inside. Then someone pushed the instrument closer, someone took out several syringes with cold reagents inside, and another stood next to the instrument, placing the suction cup-like things attached to the instrument on his head one by one. The person holding the reagent raised his hand and seemed to be about to inject it into his head.

He Qianjian was shocked and wanted to struggle immediately. However, when he moved, he realized that his limbs were tied with restraints and he could not move at all. He could only rack his brains to find clues in the panic and confusion.

What were these people going to do?

Were they trying to inject something into his head?

Jiang Chen knew that he had the System, and maybe he also knew that the System was in his head. If he told the government about this, then this ward, these silent doctors, these strange instruments and needles in front of him all made sense…

They want to experiment on him!

It was great luck to have obtained the System. He Qianjian had always been proud of himself, but occasionally when he had nightmares, there would be scenes of being captured and tortured for experiments after someone knew the existence of the System. However, those dreams gradually faded as he grew up and used the System to trick and play with everyone in the palm of his hand.

Until he learned that Jiang Chen knew about the existence of the System and might have the ability to destroy the System, only then did this nightmare begin to haunt him once again, making him unable to sleep peacefully again. Every time he woke up, he was covered in cold sweat.

The scene in front of him was so similar to the scenes in his dreams, it was like a nightmare come true!

Seeing the needle getting closer and closer to him, He Qianjian became more and more desperate. There were constant muffled shouts coming from his throat, and his eyes were so wide that they almost popped out of their sockets.

The person holding the syringe frowned and asked the person next to him in confusion: “What’s wrong with him?”

The voice of the person next to him was very low: “Scared?”

“What’s so scary?” The person who spoke had half of his face covered by a mask, but his tone sounded calm and uncaring.

Hearing their conversation, He Qianjian’s eyes nearly exploded. It wasn’t their heads being pierced with needles. They were not the ones being used as test subjects. Of course they could say that!

“It’s just fixing the instrument in place. He wouldn’t happen to think the needle is going to be used to stick into his head?”

“Maybe, he might have thought we are using him for human experiments.”

“No way…”

The low conversation between the two was muffled by the mask, and was a bit unclear, but it made He Qianjian suddenly come back to his senses.

They weren’t using him for human experiments?

He Qianjian’s sudden silence and stiff movements clearly told these researchers that he really thought so.

One of them paused and was speechless for a moment, then turned around and said, “Didn’t the information say that he went to college? Doesn’t he know that informed consent is required for human experiments? As if we could still cut him into slices?”

The man holding something like a hood frowned: “Stop talking nonsense, put it on him first.”

He Qianjian knew that these people would not harm him. Although he was still afraid, he relaxed a little and called the System to discuss countermeasures: [Where am I now? Who are these people? Can we escape?]

The System made no sound, but a man wearing a mask who had already installed all the equipment looked at the computer screen with a strange expression. Others also looked at the display screen with their backs to He Qianjian, and their expressions also changed slightly.

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These people wore masks and did not speak. From He Qianjian’s perspective he was unable to notice their abnormalities. When he could not get an answer, he could only call the System over and over again. After waking up, his emotions had fluctuated greatly, and now that he could not contact the System, he became more and more panicked. The voice calling the System in his consciousness changed from calling to screaming, and his chest rose and fell more violently.

The several people who had just come in exchanged glances and spoke a few words in low voices, leaving only one person sitting next to the instrument to observe the situation and record data.

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The secretary didn’t understand either and could only turn on the speakerphone.

The person on the other line knew that this was a call from the director of the Scientific Research Bureau, and his tone was very respectful. The nervousness could be heard in the occasional pause, but fortunately, he quickly gathered himself and explained the cause and effect of the matter clearly.

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After hearing what he said, everyone in the laboratory was quiet for a moment. The head of the Special Department had a strange expression: “You mean, He Qianjian scared himself into a fall that sent him into the ICU?”

It was no wonder that Director Ren of the Special Department found it strange. Even Jiang Chen, who knew some of the prison conditions, could not imagine how terrifying the prisoner in He Qianjian’s cell was to make He Qianjian forget that he was still standing on the frame that was used to build the stage at just a stretch of the other’s hand in his direction, such that he would frantically step back, lose his balance and fall onto the steel bars that had not been arranged yet, resulting in a punctured lung.

If it hadn’t been for the fact that He Qianjian’s condition was not serious, Jiang Chen would have suspected that he did this deliberately to get medical parole.

No one answered the words of the head of the Special Department, but silence was the best answer.

Director Wang looked at the gentle and silent old gentleman standing in the middle, wanting to ask for his opinion.

But the old gentleman just waved his hand and expressed his attitude that he did not intend to interfere in this matter.

Director Wang and the head of the Special Department walked aside. They discussed in a low voice and quickly gave instructions to their subordinates. When they came back, within five minutes, everything had been arranged.

“Xiao Jiang, after He Qianjian’s condition stabilizes, we will send someone to send him to a special hospital for management, and we will contact you then.”

Jiang Chen thought he would have to wait at least two or three days, but he didn’t expect to receive a call from the Secretary-General of the Scientific Research Bureau early the next morning, and the car escorting him was already waiting downstairs.

“Mr. Jiang, please have a seat.”

The person driving the car was still Qian Yi, but the other bodyguard was replaced by two unfamiliar faces whom he had never met before. The person speaking was one of them. He was sitting in the back seat with Jiang Chen. He had an ordinary appearance and maintained a smile at all times.

The two briefly introduced themselves, and then quickly introduced their destination and the people they were about to meet.

“The meeting location this time is at the headquarters of the Scientific Research Department in District 10… That’s basically the situation. Apart from that, if you have any other questions, you can ask me.”

Jiang Chen looked calm. Even after getting in the car and realizing that the purpose and destination this time were different from what he expected. When he saw two unfamiliar faces he had never seen before, he did not even show the slightest surprise on his face. He just said lightly: “I see.”

The man who spoke didn’t say anymore, but couldn’t help but use his peripheral vision to vaguely examine the young man beside him.

He was only in his early twenties, and after knowing that he was about to meet the most powerful leaders in the country, he could be so calm. Was he pretending to be calm, or was he really so calm and steady?

The man couldn’t tell whether it was the former or the latter. He had been working in the scientific research team of the Special Department for more than ten years. During this period, he had protected many people who had sealed files and had extremely high confidentiality levels. After so many years of experience, he deeply understood the truth that those extraordinary geniuses must not be speculated by ordinary logic.

When an ordinary twenty-year-old boy learned that he was about to meet those people, most of them would be excited, if not restless, at least. No matter how well they disguised themselves, there would inevitably be a hint of nervousness in their eyes.

But the young man in front of him was not an ordinary twenty-year-old boy. The man had indeed seen a few people with top-secret files, but there was only one who was as young as the young man in front of him. For this reason alone, no matter how calm the other behaved, it was actually not that surprising.

Jiang Chen didn’t know what the man beside him was thinking. At this moment, his head was spinning rapidly, analyzing and calculating the current situation and what might happen soon.

When he received a call from the Secretary-General before, he just thought it was related to He Qianjian who was transferred to another hospital, so he went out without thinking much until he saw these two unfamiliar bodyguards in the car and heard what they said. Only then did he realize that this trip was not as simple as he thought.

However, after the car started to move, he found that the nearby cars that seemed to have just coincidentally started at the same time or happened to pass by at this time all met up with the car he was in smoothly after a few blocks. There were even other cars appearing on the road halfway that gradually formed a protective shield around the car he was riding in. Jiang Chen immediately knew that today’s meeting might be more serious and urgent than what the bodyguard had revealed and what he had imagined.

For a long time in his previous life, Jiang Chen had lived under such a high level of protection, in fact it was even worse, so he very keenly concluded that the people sitting in these seemingly coincidental vehicles were actually all plainclothes who were sent here to protect him.

Before, he thought that after the report was handed in, it would take some time for the leaders to respond. Just now, he also thought that the meeting he expected would take at least three days to be held. However, he did not expect to have underestimated the country’s speed of execution.

The car passed a special checkpoint and drove for more than ten minutes before finally stopping in front of the Scientific Research Bureau building.

Jiang Chen walked quickly and finally stopped in front of the door of the highest conference room. The soldiers at the door saluted him and opened the door of the conference room.

This conference room was large and could accommodate at least a thousand people. However, there were less than a hundred people sitting in it at this time, so it looked a bit empty.

When Jiang Chen entered, some people looked up at him. Most of them didn’t recognize him, but they were surprised by his youth and couldn’t help but look at him a few more times.

Several people sitting in the center of the audience seats also looked over. When the expressionless old gentleman saw Jiang Chen, a smile appeared on his face and he waved him over.

Jiang Chen walked quickly, and under the even more surprised eyes of everyone, arrived at the old gentleman’s side, and calmly greeted these leaders who usually only appeared in the news.

The old gentleman called Jiang Chen over in order to reveal the real content of today’s meeting, as well as out of worry that he would be nervous. Now that he saw his calm demeanor, he felt relieved and the smile on his face deepend.

The two chatted in a low voice, attracting a lot of attention. The people sitting in the back rows all looked forward. The old gentleman appeared amiable and the young man was also smiling. In the background was the huge national flag on the stage a few meters away and the national emblem above the beam. For some reason, seeing this scene, the eyes of some moistened.

It didn’t take long for Jiang Chen to get the specific content of the meeting from the old gentleman. It was almost the same as he predicted, but what he didn’t expect was that the old gentleman actually asked him to be the keynote speaker of this meeting.

Without any preparation, without any warning in advance, it was the first time for a young man in his early twenties to step into the top circle in the country in all senses and industries, and participate in a meeting that 99.99% of the country’s people didn’t even have the right to know, and even be appointed to be the keynote speaker of the entire meeting.

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Could he do it?

The old gentleman’s eyes were gentle, but they were also as clear and sharp as an eagle.

Jiang Chen: “I can.”

After the words fell, someone informed the old gentleman in a low voice: “Everyone is here.”

The old gentleman suppressed his smile, looked at Jiang Chen, and patted his shoulder gently: “Now is your time.”

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Yanghui Technology, which had been targeting them, disappeared overnight without any follow-up actions. This surprised Shen Xu for a while, thinking that this was the calm before the storm. It was not until Changjiang went public as scheduled did he finally feel relieved.

Jiang Chen stayed in the company for a day, overseeing the data of the Changjiang Home Version, making sure there were no problems. Before leaving the company he also agreed on celebrating the successful listing of Changjiang this Saturday with the whole company.

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Since realizing that the purpose of He Qianjian’s DTW System arriving on earth might not be as simple as imagined, the Changjiang project team began to devote most of its manpower to research and analyze the various information and data left by the DTW System. Recently it had finally come to an end and the systematic analysis report would be out soon. The researchers in the laboratory were so busy they would have wished for nothing more than to split into two, and Jiang Chen was the same.

As soon as he walked to the door of the company, he received a call from Yang Yun. Jiang Ran’s babbling sounded over the phone. Yang Yun soft voice held a smile: “Ran Ran is holding on to your photo and won’t let go. Her drool is even dripping onto it. I’m afraid she won’t let go until you come back and she sees you in person.”

“Chen Chen, I heard that you went to the company. We are all at home. Are you coming back for dinner today?”

Yang Si also spoke up next to her, and the sounds of the two fathers talking could be heard intermittently in the background. From time to time, hearty laughter could be heard, and the sounds of He Qianmin and He Qianyu quarreling were also mixed in.

The liveliness on the other end made Jiang Chen, who was standing on the street, soften his eyes.

“I just came out of the company, I should be there in half an hour…”

But halfway through speaking, the somewhat noisy call was cut for a moment, and Changjiang’s voice came in:

“Dylan, Shi Fengyue’s call is coming in.”

Jiang Chen paused. His mobile phone had always been connected to Changjiang’s system. However, since Changjiang was currently a confidential project, he almost never used Changjiang’s functions in front of others. Most of the time, his mobile phone was no different from ordinary mobile phones. However, for the sake of special circumstances, he still set some small settings.

For example, even if there was no power or if other emergencies occurred, it could use the backup power supply and special firewall to cut incoming calls at will. Among the special contacts set here, Shi Fengyue was one of them. This type of call could only be done with special means.

This could also be regarded as an alarm or reminder. If such a call came in, Jiang Chen would immediately realize that the situation was urgent.

Since installing this program, Jiang Chen had never received a call through this emergency program. Today was the first time.

Shi Fengyue would not call like this for no reason. There must be an emergency.

Jiang Chen didn’t hesitate and answered the phone immediately.

Almost as soon as Changjiang finished speaking, Shi Fengyue’s voice rang out, concisely saying: “Personnel from the Scientific Research Bureau and the Special Department are here, as well as the old gentleman.”

Jiang Chen reacted instantly. Today was not only the day when Changjiang went public, it was also the time when the analysis report was submitted. However, he had thought that after the analysis report was submitted, it would be reviewed at all levels before being handed over to the top few people for judgment.

Unexpectedly, in just a few hours, that person would be alarmed.

He made his decision in an instant: “I’ll be right back.”

After hanging up over there, Jiang Chen said to Yang Yun, who was still waiting: “Mom, I can’t go back today. Something important came up in the laboratory, so don’t wait for me.”

Yang Yun had been waiting since the line was switched. She didn’t think much, she just thought it was an ordinary call coming in at the same time. Now when Jiang Chen said this, she knew it should be a call from the laboratory. Although she was a little disappointed, she also knew that Jiang Chen’s current project was very important and could not be delayed just because of a meal.

“Go ahead, pay attention to safety, don’t stay up late working, and remember to eat.”

Jiang Chen agreed to all patiently. Before hanging up the phone, he vaguely heard He Qianmin’s inquiry and Yang Yun’s gentle answer.

The two retired soldiers who had been following Jiang Chen before were still following him now. They were the ones who sent him to the company today and didn’t know the situation in the laboratory. When Jiang Chen got in the car, one smiled and asked, “Do you want to go back to the He’s directly?”

Jiang Chen shook his head: “Go back to the Military Research Institute.”

Neither of them asked any questions, and smoothly drove Jiang Chen to the entrance of the Military Research Institute at the maximum speed allowed.

The Military Research Institute was very large, and the laboratories were located in different places. However, for the convenience of management, they could only enter through one gate, and except for a few leaders, no outside vehicles were allowed to enter.

Qian Yi was about to stop at the gate as usual, when he saw the soldiers on guard immediately open the gate, saluted and let them in.

“What’s going on?” Qian Yi was still a little confused.

Jiang Chen didn’t have time to explain, “It’s a case of emergency, drive directly to the entrance of the laboratory.”

Qian Yi drove in without asking any more questions. He was even more surprised when he found that there were people clearing the way at every intersection, but he didn’t ask any more questions and just speeded up.

In less than five minutes, the car stopped at the entrance of the laboratory.

As soon as Qian Yi parked the car, he saw two soldiers guarding the door of the laboratory that he had seen from a distance before. One of them opened the door and saluted Jiang Chen who got out of the car: “Mr. Jiang!”

Jiang Chen nodded hurriedly and walked inside quickly.

A soldier led him, and the other directed Qian Yi to park the car in another direction. When he reversed the car into the garage, he saw clearly the appearance of several cars parked next to him. When he got out of the car, his feet paused, and his usually steady expression suddenly changed. He couldn’t help but turn around and take a few more glances before he dared to believe that he was not mistaken.

The comrade who got out of the car on the other side was also in disbelief: “Old Qian, that, that’s not…?”

Qian Yi nodded, remembering the appearance of the soldier who opened Jiang Chen’s car door before. Something flashed through his mind. He suddenly remembered why the other looked so familiar just now. Wasn’t he the one who had appeared next to that person during the military parade?

“Holy mother…”

Qian Yi also took a deep breath to suppress his racing heart, and managed to maintain a calm expression: “When we were ordered to protect Mr. Jiang before, we already knew that his identity was extraordinary.”

“That’s not simply extraordinary… We have taken on this kind of mission not once or twice, but this is the first time I have seen such a battle. In our squadron, even the captain has never seen such a scene.”

As this person said this, he couldn’t help but laugh.

Qian Yi knew his teammate’s character, so he rolled his eyes at him and strode towards the laboratory.

“Damn it, wait for me!”

While the two were waiting at the entrance of the laboratory, Jiang Chen was talking to someone from the Scientific Research Bureau.

“Are you sure this system is in another person’s body?”

The director-general of the Scientific Research Bureau came in person. He was a middle-aged man with a stern face. When he spoke, his voice was the same as his expression, sounding very serious and dignified.

“Very sure.” Jiang Chen showed the other the data and models he had compiled during many previous encounters with the System. The old gentleman was also very curious and stood on the side to observe.

After looking at it, Wang Hui, director of the Scientific Research Bureau, frowned.

Although not many people know about the Changjiang Project, he was one of them. Although he had not met Jiang Chen face to face before, he had heard a lot about him from different friends and colleagues. Towards this young genius, he had a certain understanding of his character and ability.

And when he saw the report, he also saw the various information and analytical data submitted with the report. The documents inside were very complete and there was no possibility of fraud. Moreover, he also believed that no one would dare to fake a threat towards national security or even global security. 

Therefore, almost as soon as he read the report, he dialed the number of the Supreme Secretariat, and at the same time contacted the Special Department, and rushed over as soon as he received the instructions.

But he didn’t expect that the old gentleman himself, who had just returned from a visit to another country this morning and hadn’t even had time to rest, would come with him.

The authenticity of the report was almost very certain, but he still had to confirm it further.

“Where is that person?”

“Zhangshan Prison.”

Wang Hui glanced back. No need to say anything, his secretary had already picked up the phone and made a call.

In less than two minutes, the secretary’s cell phone rang. After the call was connected, the secretary’s expression changed slightly after hearing something. He said “Wait a moment” to the other end of the line, and walked quickly towards this side.

“Director, He Qianjian is in the hospital now.”

“Hospital?” Wang Hui frowned even more tightly, “Which hospital?”

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If he was in prison, it would be impossible for the secretary to say the word “hospital” directly. He Qianjian was not in prison at this time.

Others present quickly realized what this meant.

Jiang Chen raised his eyebrows in surprise, and the head of the Special Department, who had been silent until now, asked the question that most people here wanted to know: “Isn’t he in prison? Why is he in the hospital?”

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Yang Third frowned at his suddenly raised voice. He turned around and saw the young man standing behind the curtained window with an indifferent expression. The scolding on his lips turned into a neutral tone: “After all, someone who was only recognized back to the He family after becoming an adult, it is natural to have no education at all, nor feel any shame over eavesdropping on people talking.”

Jiang Chen took half a step forward, brushed open the curtains, and faced the two men in the room openly and squarely, saying calmly and honestly: “I should indeed avoid eavesdropping when overhearing elders talking, but some people don’t deserve to be called elders, and I don’t have to be polite.”

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Yang Third’s expression darkened, he took two steps towards the window and said darkly: “Is this the upbringing of your adoptive parents?”

Jiang Chen’s eyes were cold, “Even if it is exchanging insults, the most basic politeness is not to mention the other’s parents. Besides, we are just simply chatting. Uncle Yang, have you been missing ideological and moral lessons since elementary school? Otherwise, how could you not even know basic politeness?”

This was the first time Jiang Chen spoke to an elder like this. He had never done this before, even when facing Yang Tianci.

Sure enough, Yang Third didn’t expect that Jiang Chen would dare to scold him so blatantly. Although he didn’t use a single curse word, it still made him flush in anger.

“I remember that the He family was not included in the invitation letter sent out. How did you get in?” Yang Third stared at him for a few seconds, then sneered and took out his phone and dialed the bodyguard’s number with the shortcut key, “There is someone who snuck in here. Come over immediately and drive him out.”

Jiang Chen didn’t answer, but looked past Yang Third and behind him.

“Who are you planning to kick out?”

An aged and familiar voice sounded from behind. Yang Third’s expression changed slightly and he immediately turned around, “Dad.”

Old Mr. Yang’s eyes shifted from his eldest son who cowered in the corner when he came in, to his youngest son who just spoke arrogantly and full of malice, and his expression very displeased.

Yang Third cursed secretly, but he did not panic. He stepped forward and wanted to take over pushing the wheelchair from the assistant’s hand. He flipped the truth and said: “I saw an unfamiliar face, and he has no invitation letter. I have basically met all the juniors in the circle, but I have no impression of him. I thought he had sneaked in, so I called the bodyguards to drive him away so as not to disturb you later.”

“You don’t know him?” Old Mr. Yang waved away his hand, raised his head and stared sharply into Yang Third’s eyes. Even though compared with his son who was in the prime of life, the old man sitting in the wheelchair was thin and weak. But in contrast, the pressure and majesty he emitted suppressed the other as if he was the weak one.

Yang Third was stared at sharply by his father’s eyes that seemed to be able to see everything. He broke into a cold sweat on his back and felt a little drumming in his heart.

The old man had basically let go of the company’s affairs in the past two years. If the three brothers hadn’t proposed to hold this birthday banquet this time, he would probably still be enjoying retirement out of the country, so he probably didn’t know that his company was targeting Jiang Chen’s company, not to mention that he did things covertly, and should not have revealed any tails.

Thinking of this, Yang Third calmed himself and forced out a smile: “I really don’t know him. None of the children in our family are this age. I have never seen him in the business circle either. How could I know who he is?”

“Don’t know?” Old Mr. Yang slammed the armrest of his wheelchair and said sternly: “If you don’t know then why did you send people to block his company’s product from being put on the market, and if you don’t know then why are you attacking his company!”

Yang Third was stunned and broke into cold sweat.

It wasn’t because old Mr. Yang knew about his underhanded moves against Jiang Chen, but the fact that if his father knew even such a trivial matter, then every decision of his at the company and every move he made had always been under old Mr. Yang’s eye.

Over the years, he thought his father had slowly delegated power, but in fact he had not at all.

The banquet was about to begin, and the appetizers were all already served, but none of the hosts of the banquet showed up. The guests who noticed something strange were attracted by the noise here, and gradually came over.

The people who came to celebrate old Mr. Yang’s 60th birthday today were all close family members or close partners. Yang Third didn’t want to be reprimanded by the old man in front of these people, so he could only paste a smile on his face and try to muddle over the matter. He went to push the wheelchair again: “Dad, what are you talking about? You must have remembered it wrong. I have never dealt with his company before. I don’t know him at all.”

Old Mr. Yang gave him a cold look. Without his permission, the assistant behind him did not dare to hand over the wheelchair to Yang Third.

In front of so many guests, Yang Third looked very unhappy after being rejected by his father, but he knew that he could only endure it now and move past the matter as soon as possible to avoid losing even more face later.

“The banquet is about going to start soon.” Yang Third forced a smile and said: “Since that kid didn’t sneak in, let him eat together. Dad, look, the guests are all here now. We can’t starve the guests.”

Old Mr. Yang didn’t want to expose a family scandal in front of outsiders. He glanced at Yang Eldest and Yang Third coldly, and said to Jiang Chen, who was still standing outside the window: “Xiao Chen, come in quickly and push grandpa over.”

——Just now in the reception room, after learning that old Mr. Miao and Miao Miao came out of the countryside through Jiang Chen, he changed how he called Jiang Chen from “Xiao Jiang” to “Xiao Chen” and did not let Jiang Chen call him Mr. Yang, but very amiably asked him to call him grandpa along with his grandchildren, as if he regarded him as his favorite junior.

Jiang Chen had no reaction to this, but the reactions of others were different. Among them, Yang Third had the ugliest expression.

Old Mr. Yang’s birthday banquet was Chinese style. There were five round tables in the banquet hall. The main table was at the front, and the other four tables were placed on either side. Jiang Chen pushed old Mr. Yang to the main seat and was about to go find Shi Fengyue, but he didn’t expect to be stopped by the other.

“Put a chair next to me.” Old Mr. Yang said with a pleasant expression, “Xiao Chen, please sit next to me.”

The people sitting at the main table were either members of the Yang family or relatives of the Yang family. Jiang Chen, a young man who had never had any contact with the Yang family before, was suddenly invited to sit here. Such a thing was definitely eye-catching and a little embarrassing.

Jiang Chen smiled and declined: “Uncle Shi said he has something to tell me before, and he is waiting for me now.”

What old Mr. Yang wanted was the effect of extending such an invitation. He also knew that Jiang Chen would not and was not suitable to sit down at the main table. He nodded and said kindly: “Then you go over, and tell Grandpa if you need anything. Don’t be restrained and treat this place as your home.”

Jiang Chen smiled, nodded to the rest of the Yang family as a greeting, and then turned and left.

When Shi Fengyue saw him coming, he smiled and said, “Why are you so lovable? It has only been a short while, and now even old Mr. Yang treats you as his own grandson.”

Jiang Chen rolled his eyes at him, glanced over, and was suddenly stunned when he saw the boy on the other side of Shi Fengyue: “You Jiuyu?”

You Jiuyu had been paying attention to Jiang Chen’s movements. When he saw him look over, his eyes lit up and he nodded slightly.

Jiang Chen didn’t expect to meet You Jiuyu, whom he hadn’t seen for a long time. He smiled and said, “Long time no see.”

“It’s been a long time…” You Jiuyu looked at Jiang Chen’s face without blinking, his cheeks were slightly red, and he smiled shyly: “I held a concert in February, and I wanted to invite you, but I heard that you also have to work in the laboratory during the winter vacation. I was worried that it would disturb you, so I didn’t contact you.”

Jiang Chen didn’t expect that the shy young man with stage fright could now hold a concert independently, and he was very happy for him in his heart: “Congratulations.”

“Thank you.” You Jiuyu looked at Jiang Chen and whispered, “My next concert will be in January next year. Can you make time to attend then?”

Jiang Chen thought for a moment. January next year was still half a year away. It shouldn’t be difficult to spare a day to watch a concert. Just as he was about to nod, his hand was pinched hard. He flicked his eyes over and saw the person next to him. The man had a gloomy look on his face.

What’s wrong?

Jiang Chen looked over with questioning eyes. Shi Fengyue’s expression turned darker. He grabbed his hand and said lightly: “I want to eat fish.”

If you want to eat fish, why don’t you serve it yourself?

Jiang Chen had a question mark on his forehead, but his intuition told him that it would be better not to ask and just help serve him the food.

Shi Ao, who was on the other side, saw everything in his eyes. He somewhat felt contempt for his uncle’s pettiness, but still turned the turntable this way with great tact, making it easier for Jiang Chen to serve themselves fish.

The white and tender fish meat was put into his bowl, but Shi Fengyue did not move to eat. He raised his chin slightly, his previous laziness wiped away, and his countenance becoming a bit reserved. He lowered his voice and drawled the words: “There are bones.”

At first glance, it sounded like he was being coquettish.

Jiang Chen’s eyelids jumped and he looked at Shi Fengyue carefully. Seeing that he was still waiting for him to serve him, he suppressed the weirdness in his heart and helped him pick out the fish bones.

After doing so, he looked at him to see if there was anything more he wanted to fuss with him.

Who knew, Shi Fengyue really said: “My hand seemed to have been hurt just now, you…”

Before he could finish his words, he was glared at by Shi Qian. Shi Qian coughed in second hand embarrassment. While coughing, he still glared at him, silently telling him to shut up.

Shi Fengyue curled his lips and could only pick up the food in the bowl and put it into his mouth.

When Jiang Chen saw him eating obediently, he remembered that he hadn’t replied to You Jiuyu just now, so he leaned over slightly to look at him. Just as he was about to speak, his line of sight was blocked by someone.

Shi Fengyue did not turn the turntable, but relied on his long arms to pick up a shrimp from across the table. When Jiang Chen leaned back, he returned to his original sitting position, put the shrimp into Jiang Chen’s bowl, and said elegantly: “The chef in charge of today’s banquet makes great shrimp, try it.”

Being interrupted again, Jiang Chen could only do as suggested. It indeed tasted really good.

“How is it?”

“It’s quite delicious.”

“There is even better.” Shi Fengyue said lightly: “There is a restaurant on the Qingyuan Seaside in country H, which is only open for one month every year. The best fishing season for the Qingyuan shrimp produced there is only in January. Once it’s out of season, it won’t have that ultimate flavor.”

Jiang Chen had a vague impression of this restaurant. It seemed that Shen Xu had mentioned it in his first life.

Hearing this, he became somewhat interested: “We can go over and have a taste sometime.”

Shi Fengyue nodded: “I plan to travel to country H on my birthday next year and try it on the way.”

Jiang Chen thought for a moment and remembered that Shi Fengyue’s birthday was January 1st.

He thought for a while and asked You Jiuyu: “When will your concert be in January next year?”

The blush on You Jiuyu’s face had gradually faded away when he saw some of the interactions between Shi Fengyue and Jiang Chen. Now when he heard Jiang Chen’s question, he was in a daze for a moment before answering: “I’m not sure yet, it should be… From the 1st to the 7th, our orchestra’s New Year’s performance is always in the first week of the new year.”

Shi Fengyue’s birthday was January 1st. If he went on a trip, it would at least take three to five days. He was very likely to miss You Jiuyu’s performance. Although he was sorry, Jiang Chen could only say: “I am not sure if I can make it to your performance next year. If I have time, I will definitely go.”

The light in You Jiuyu’s eyes dimmed. He invited Jiang Chen so far in advance just because he thought that he would have half a year to make arrangements and it would be easy to spare a day. When he was about to answer just now, he very likely was about to say that he would have time, but was interrupted by the person next to him.

Although this kind of thing has a first-come, first-served basis, in terms of intimacy, it was obvious that he was far inferior to the man next to him, so Jiang Chen would not hesitate to prioritize that man’s time before considering him.

“Okay.” You Jiuyu covered up the disappointment in his eyes and said with a smile, “If you have time, please come.”

Jiang Chen agreed with a smile, but due to Shi Fengyue’s intentional or unintentional interference, he did not have any communication with You Jiuyu except at the beginning of the meal.

Old Mr. Yang was not in good health and soon felt tired after eating. After the guests left, he had his assistant push him upstairs.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Yang Third was sitting in the empty banquet hall, thinking about old Mr. Yang’s attitude towards Jiang Chen just now, his eyes became even more gloomy.

Yang Eldest came down from upstairs and saw Yang Third still sitting there lost in thought. He quickly walked over and lowered his voice and said, “Hurry up and tell your men to stop all movements. Jiang Chen must not be touched!”

Yang Third suddenly raised his head, his expression dark and cloudy. He gritted his teeth and said: “As if I still need you to remind me, do you think I don’t know?”

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While Jiang Chen was pondering how to meet with Yang Hui, Shi Fengyue brought him the answer.

“Family banquet?”

Across the phone, Shi Fengyue’s voice held a noticeable trace of reluctance: “My grandfather and brother are blocking the door of my house and I have no other choice.”

“Are you sure Mr. Yang Hui will also go?” Jiang Chen couldn’t help but confirm again.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Shi Fengyue picked up something in his voice and raised his eyebrows: “Are you very interested in him?”

“I promised to help someone, and I need to see him.”

Shi Fengyue’s eyes lit up, “Then you can attend with me tomorrow.”

This was indeed the fastest opportunity to meet Yang Hui, and Jiang Chen agreed without hesitation.

……

This family banquet held by the Yang family was for the 60th birthday of Mr. Yang Hui. It was held at the Yang family estate. Not many people were invited, and most of whom were close partners of the Yang family.

Jiang Chen and Shi Fengyue arrived neither too early nor too late. When they entered, they came across Shi Fengyue’s brother. He was talking to someone with Shi So at his side. When he saw them, he was surprised for a moment, said something to the person next to him, and came over quickly.

“Brother.” Shi Fengyue greeted, and then introduced Jiang Chen: “This is Jiang Chen, I mentioned him to you before.”

Shi Qian’s eyes fell on Jiang Chen, who was standing next to Shi Fengyue. His stern face showed no expression, but his tone was very gentle: “Hello, Xiao Yue has mentioned you to me many times. I’m glad to see you.”

Jiang Chen put on a polite and gentle smile: “Hello, Mr. Shi, I am Jiang Chen.”

Shi Qian nodded, “Just call me Brother like Xiao Yue does.”

Jiang Chen followed readily: “Brother.”

Standing on the side, Shi Ao widened his eyes and opened his mouth to speak, but he didn’t dare to interrupt in front of his stern father. He could only wonder in his head: If He Qianmin’s brother calls my dad brother, then what should I call him? What will He Qianmin call me then?

Not chatting for too long, Shi Qian said, “You guys can come upstairs with me to see old Mr. Yang.”

The group of four walked upstairs. People who were passing by all took a closer look at this new face of the Shi family. Some of them recognized Jiang Chen and wondered in a curious tone: “Isn’t this the eldest young master that the He family found two years ago? Why is he here with the Shi family?”

People who didn’t know Jiang Chen looked back at him curiously. At the He family’s banquet two years ago, some people attended and some didn’t. However, everyone in the entire circle knew that the He family’s child was wrongly switched with another child.

“The He family? I just overheard their greetings, that child seems to have the surname Jiang.”

“Now this you don’t know, let me tell you, that time…”

With this curious new topic, the guests, who were not very enthusiastic at first, gathered together and recounted the He family banquet two years ago from beginning to end, describing it as if it happened yesterday. Gossip was always a good helper to bring close relationships, and soon, these guests began to interact as familiar old buddies.

Jiang Chen, who was already standing in the reception room on the second floor, naturally didn’t know what was happening downstairs. He was looking at a photo frame standing on the table. There were five people in it. The middle-aged man among them was Yang Hui, whom Jiang Chen had seen pictures of online. The other four were younger, three of them were obviously his three children, and the fourth and youngest was a handsome and spirited young man. His features resembled old Mr. Miao, and was presumably Miao Miao’s father who died young.

In this photo, the positioning was very interesting. The three biological sons were standing at the back. Only old Mr. Miao’s son was standing next to Yang Hui who was sitting. Yang Hui and old Mr. Miao were brothers so naturally, there were similarities. At first glance, his presence was quite unobtrusive, as if he was the fourth child in the family and the most favored one.

While Jiang Chen was deep in thought, the assistant pushed old Mr. Yang into the room.

There were already two middle-aged people sitting in the reception room, plus Shi Qian and his companions, there were six people standing or sitting in total. When old Mr. Yang came in, almost all the people standing walked over to greet him.

Old Mr. Yang waved his hand. Those who could come up to this room were all close to him. He had a smile on his face. Although he appeared a little haggard and weak, his eyes were very clear.

After saying a few words, old Mr. Yang looked at the only new face here then his eyes fell on Shi Qian, clearing wanting him to introduce him.

Now facing his elder, Shi Qian’s expression was softer than downstairs: “This is Jiang Chen, He Yanfeng’s eldest son and Xiao Yue’s good friend.”

Don’t know if it was an illusion, but Jiang Chen kept feeling that he paused for a moment when he settled on the word “friend”.

Old Mr. Yang nodded and smiled at Jiang Chen. His eyes followed to the place where he had just been looking. His gaze stayed on the photo for a moment and then moved away: “Xiao Jiang, make sure to have fun here. Don’t be restrained.”

Jiang Chen pursed his lips and smiled, said a few auspicious words to old Mr. Yang according to etiquette, then sat aside and listened quietly to the elders.

Shi Fengyue came over and lowered his voice: “Are you bored, if it’s boring, we’ll go down first.”

Jiang Chen was silent, his mind pondering over old Mr. Miao and old Mr. Yang’s affairs, the company’s affairs, the progress back at the laboratory, and the development progress of Changjiang…

When Shi Fengyue’s voice sounded, it finally disrupted his thoughts for a moment. Jiang Chen shook his head. He really didn’t need to sit here, but he was not interested in drinking and socializing together downstairs either.

“Are you thirsty? Do you want to drink something?” Shi Fengyue moved a little closer to Jiang Chen subtly, shoulders pressing against shoulders, and his legs pressing against his thigh. Only then did the irritability in his heart dissipate some.

For today’s first date, he checked a lot of information and made a lot of strategies. In order to prevent possible accidents, he even made a list of five plans. Each plan was also separated into plan A and plan B. But who would have thought that old Mr. Yang’s birthday banquet would completely cut off the long-awaited date just like that.

If it weren’t for the close friendship between the Yang family and the Shi family, and if his brother and grandfather hadn’t pressured him to come, he would definitely not have attended.

Fortunately, Jiang Chen was at least still sitting next to him. Shi Fengyue lowered his eyes and his gaze fell on Jiang Chen’s hand casually placed on his knee. It was fair and slender with fine bones.

A hint of smile appeared in Shi Fengyue’s eyes, and his fingers quietly slipped into Jiang Chen’s open fingers. Before the other could react, they were interlocked.

Jiang Chen was stunned for a moment. Having been pulled away from his thoughts, he subconsciously glanced at the other people in the room. Seeing that they were absorbed in talking about current affairs, and no one was paying attention to them, he quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Except for a few close friends, no one knew about the fact that he and Shi Fengyue were together. Jiang Chen didn’t plan to hide it for the rest of his life, nor did he plan to date secretly, but his parents still needed to have the news revealed to them slowly. If they learned about his relationship with Shi Fengyue from others with any preparation, it may affect his parents’ impression of Shi Fengyue.

But holding hands quietly like this seemed to also make his heart beat faster.

Jiang Chen couldn’t help but curl up the corners of his lips in a smile. He gently squeezed his hand, and whispered in his ear: “Aren’t you afraid of being seen by your brother?”

Shi Fengyue also smiled, leaned into his ear and said in a lowered voice: “What are you afraid of?”

His low voice penetrated into the ears, and the tangible breath hit the side of his face. There was a smile in his voice, like a playful tease: “When a couple holds hands, must the elders also have to step in to discipline them?”

Jiang Chen was unusually slow to react. After a few seconds, he suddenly widened his eyes and turned to look at Shi Fengyue.

When their eyes met, Shi Fengyue blinked at him. His posture was still lazy, but the smile at the corner of his mouth was clearly pleased by his reaction.

“They know about our relationship?”

“My grandfather also knows.” Shi Fengyue approached him and said in a teasing tone: “Shi Ao didn’t know before, but I think he should know now.”

Jiang Chen’s eyelid jumped, and he quickly caught the eyes of the wide-eyed boy opposite him. He must have been playing a game just now on the PSP in his hand. His mouth was open and his face was blank, as if he was shocked by what he saw.

“…”

Jiang Chen looked away, but he was not angry. Instead, he found the expression on Shi Fengyue’s nephew quite amusing. He wondered if Qian Min’s expression would be as amusing as that of the boy opposite him when he learned about his relationship with Shi Fengyue.

Shi Fengyue raised the hand that was intertwined with Jiang Chen’s, waved it at Shi Ao who was watching them with a dazed expression, and then put it down before the other elders noticed. The corners of his mouth were raised in amusement, obviously he also found it interesting to tease his nephew.

The two of them had exactly the same smile. Before Shi Ao could recover and look away, he was struck with a chill down his back. It was clear that they were the ones who “did something wrong”, but he felt as if he had been caught red handed, startling him so bad he immediately withdrew his gaze.

“Ahem…”

Jiang Chen pursed his lips and laughed under his breath.

Shi Fengyue also had a smile in his eyes.

Shi Ao came to his senses at this moment. He gritted his teeth and glared at the two people opposite. They were holding hands in public. How audacious! How dare they laugh at him together!

He, he must tell He Qianmin!

His brother and his uncle were in cahoots! ! !

Before Shi Ao could figure out when and how to tell He Qianmin, and how to make He Qianmin believe what he said, Shi Qian noticed his son’s strange behavior. He followed Shi Ao’s line of sight, looked over, and instantly glared at Shi Fengyue, silently indicating with his eyes to let go.

Shi Fengyue raised the corners of his lips and smirked. His fingers intertwined with Jiang Chen’s tighter, and his eyes glinted clearly with bad intentions.

Jiang Chen noticed Shi Qian’s gaze and felt guilty for a moment. When facing Shi Ao, he could still tease the other, but he didn’t dare to do this when facing his elders. He silently elbowed Shi Fengyue and signaled for him to let go.

Shi Fengyue didn’t want to let go at first, but he had no choice when he saw Jiang Chen’s narrowed eyes. In the end, he pouted slightly, feeling aggrieved and reluctant.

The other guests didn’t notice the silent exchanges here. There were still many people coming to chat with old Mr. Yang. After the conversation came to an end, they stood up and prepared to leave.

Shi Fengyue and Jiang Chen stood up together. Before they could reach the door, they saw the nurse come in and remind old Mr. Yang not to be tired, and that he must rest after a while. 

Old Mr. Yang agreed readily and said with a smile: “I’ll rest after seeing two more people.”

Jiang Chen paused. The conversation between the two just now clearly indicated that old Mr. Yang might go down and show up later and then disappear. If he didn’t take advantage of this opportunity, it might be difficult to see him alone again.

Although it was not very polite, Jiang Chen turned around and said, “Mr. Yang, could I talk to you alone?”

Old Mr. Yang was stunned and looked at Jiang Chen carefully. He was sure that he had never seen him before today and didn’t know what he would have to say to him. However, for the face of the Shi family, he still agreed.

Shi Fengyue knew Jiang Chen’s purpose, nodded to him, and went out with the others.

Old Mr. Yang was sitting in a wheelchair. Although he was much thinner than old Mr. Miao, his smile was very similar and kind, “What do you want to tell me?”

Jiang Chen chose to go straight to the point: “Mr. Yang, I came here today on behalf of someone.”

“Oh?” Old Mr. Yang thought it was a business matter, and his smile did not change: “Is he someone I know? What’s his name?”

“Miao Yang.”

As soon as the name was uttered, old Mr. Yang’s expression changed slightly. His hands propped on the wheelchair and his appearance looked a little excited. Even his hips and legs were lifted a few centimeters away from the chair. “He…he found you, where is he? What does he want you to tell me?”

Jiang Chen quickly walked a few steps forward, supported the unsteady old Mr. Yang, and waited for him to sit back in the wheelchair again before replying: “Grandpa Miao is in Yan City. This time he asked me to find you because of Miao Miao’s matter.”

Old Mr. Yang was dazed for a few seconds before nodding: “How is his health? Where is Miao Miao? Has she gone to school? I haven’t seen that child for a long time. I still remember the last time I saw her, she still didn’t know how to talk.”

Seeing that old Mr. Yang really cared about old Mr. Miao and Miao Miao, there was a more sincere smile in Jiang Chen’s eyes: “Miao Miao is in the second grade now. She has good grades and is very well-behaved.”

“Good, good…” Old Mr. Yang looked at Jiang Chen, wanting to hear more, but he was also keenly aware of the question that Jiang Chen had just skipped intentionally, and his expression changed: “My brother, how is your Grandpa Miao’s health?”

Jiang Chen paused and told the truth: “Grandpa Miao fell down yesterday and is in the hospital now. The doctor said there is nothing serious, but… he asked me to see you.”

There seemed to be no logical turn at all, but old Mr. Yang understood the underlying meaning. His eyes stung, and he put his hand on the wheelchair and steered the wheelchair out, “Take me to see him.”

Jiang Chen held on to the wheelchair and said gently: “Today is your birthday banquet, now…”

Old Mr. Yang shook his head: “What birthday banquet? Since… I haven’t held a birthday banquet for ten years. The people downstairs know what this birthday banquet is for. It doesn’t matter whether I am here or not.”

Although Jiang Chen came to talk to old Mr. Yang about old Mr. Miao, he never thought that the other would skip out on the birthday banquet before it even officially started. What’s more, if he took old Mr. Yang directly without a heads up to old Mr. Miao in advance, it was not suitable.

“You’re right…” Old Mr. Yang had already recovered from his excitement. After careful consideration, he felt that he shouldn’t rush over like this. He regained his composure and smiled, “Xiao Jiang, can you tell me some more about them?”

Jiang Chen did not refuse. He did not leave the reception room until the banquet officially started.

Old Mr. Yang was pushed back to the room by his assistant, seemingly going to take medicine before going downstairs. Jiang Chen came down first. He didn’t see Shi Fengyue in the banquet hall, so he turned around and went to the garden. He had yet to come across the other but as he was passing by a small sitting room, he heard his name.

Jiang Chen paused, and through the partially pulled curtains, he saw two middle-aged men sitting inside. He recognized them at a glance, Yang Hui’s eldest son and third son.

“…Have you seen that Jiang Chen who came with the Shi family today?” The pot-bellied Yang Eldest held the wine glass and turned to ask his younger brother who was lighting a cigarette.

Yang Third took a puff of cigarette and blew out the smoke: “I didn’t see him.”

“I heard that you took his company’s software that is about to be launched on the market and set up a project team to crack it. How is it doing now?”

“How is what?” Yang Third said casually: “It’s just as usual.”

“It isn’t cracked?” Yang Eldest frowned: “You promised to Dad that you will produce results within five years. Dad won’t be convinced by something you can just research and develop causally. You wouldn’t not know this right? Don’t underestimate Jiang Chen. I heard someone say that he was already working at the Military Research Institute before he even graduated, and the He family is also standing behind him. Him coming here with Shi Qian today may also mean he has a close relationship with the Shi family. If the market is really taken over by him, in the end we will only be left with scraps.”

Yang Third didn’t take it seriously: “That’s only if he can take over it.”

Heating this, Yang Eldest instantly knew he had a trick up his sleeve, and immediately asked: “What do you mean? Do you have a way?”

Yang Third laughed and said, “A young boy with no hair on his lip and his grassroots team competing with me? What a joke.”

“I heard that it will be launched in a few days.” Yang Eldest didn’t know what Yang Third had in mind, but he still warned: “And he is from the He family. Whatever you want to do, do it cleanly. Don’t let someone catch your tail, Dad already has a problem with both of us, so we have to be careful.”

“Whatever.” Yang Third waved his hand and said in a disdainful tone: “I have already arranged everything. Although I have not deciphered all of his software code, I have everything that should be needed. When the time comes for him to be sued for plagiarism, do you think a college student like him who is not even surnamed He can do anything more?”

“Plagiarism?” Yang Eldest thought about it and felt it was a good method, but he still felt that something was not right: “I heard that he has applied for all the patents that should be applied for for his software. If you want to accuse him of plagiarism, there needs to be someone to believe it.”

“It doesn’t matter whether others believe it or not.” Yang Third sneered: “As long as he carries this reputation, his software will not be able to go on the market before the investigation is clear. How long can a small company of just around 20 people last? I checked and found that the registered capital of their company is less than one million yuan. For such a long time, except for the project with Li Nanfeng, there are no other projects at all. By the time the software is launched, the best time has already been delayed. With no funds having been earned it will not be long before they go bankrupt, At that time who cares whether he really plagiarized or not.”

“Then the He family…”

“Tsk.” Yang Third crushed the cigarette in his hand, stood up and said, “I know what you are worried about. Don’t worry, my people are very clean. They are different from those useless people you had wiping your butt for you ten years ago.”

Yang Eldest was insulted by him, but though his eyes were full of anger, he kept his mouth shut and said nothing.

Since the incident ten years ago, his status in this family had become worse than that of an invisible person. Before, he was just kicked out of the company, but now he was not even given dividends. He now actually had to ask his two younger brothers to pay for his household expenses. He was already inferior to them, so how could he dare to talk back?

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Yang Third also knew that Yang Eldest did not dare to talk back to him anymore. He flicked the cigarette ashes on his sleeves and walked out: “We will eat soon. Everyone inside is waiting. Let’s go.”

Before Yang Third could reach the door, Yang Eldest, who was standing up, saw the person standing outside the window. He stopped and looked carefully before raising his voice in surprise: “Jiang Chen!”

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Although he had promised old Mr. Miao, Jiang Chen had some difficulties.

The He family and the Yang family belong to different fields, and there was not much overlap between the two families. He Yanfeng’s Tunan Group had no business dealings with Yanghui International. In addition, although Yang Hui was still the chairman of Yanghui International, he hadn’t been to the company for a long time, and it was not easy to see him.

While Jiang Chen was thinking about how to contact Mr. Yang Hui, He Qianjian was not idle in prison.

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[Are you sure you sent the data from Jiang Chen’s system to the boss of Yanghui Technology?]

Sticking close to the head of the bed, He Qianjian huddled up, avoiding the sight of others and talking to the System in his head.

[Not only that, Yang Hui’s general manager has now formed a project team to crack the program of Changjiang. Although it is impossible for them to crack Changjiang with their ability, it is exactly because of this that they will never allow Changjiang to be successfully listed.]

“Ha.”

He Qianjian couldn’t help but laugh. There was a sudden sound in the cell. He froze when he realized. The others also looked over quietly.

The same numb and haggard faces all looked at the same place. As the one who was focused on, He Qianjian’s back was covered with goosebumps, and cold sweat gradually covered his forehead.

He turned his head back stiffly, as if it could make a clicking sound. In this absolutely silent cell, even the subtle sound of hair and pillow rubbing was extremely loud. When he met the eyes of the man in the bed next to him, He Qianjian’s scalp became even more numb.

The others also saw the man sitting up, and their eyes that were looking this way quickly flitted away, as if they had seen something terrifying, the speed and order of their movements making the situation even more weird.

He Qianjian’s already huddled body tightened even more.

He had always wanted to change his cell before, and he was a little happy after changing it. Who knew that it had barely even been two days of moving here when he realized something was deeply wrong here? However, no matter how much he asked, no one told him about the man at the end of the cell, including fellow inmates in the same cell. Staying in this weird atmosphere, huge uneasiness surrounded him, making him always cautious, imitating what others were doing, and not daring to close his eyes to sleep in the middle of the night. Within a week, he became haggard and weak.

Finally, when he was out for a walk, he met Zhou Yang, who had been transferred to another post, and he got some news from him.

Hearing the information he wanted, He Qianjian not only did not feel relieved, but became even more frightened. There was a madman sleeping in the bed next to him who could break out and attack others at any time. Moreover, it was currently the most dangerous period, and he slept just one meter away from him. How could He Qianjian be able to sleep, how could he live here with peace of mind?

Although he knew that he only had about a week to stay here, just thinking how he was in danger at all times, He Qianjian still begged Zhou Yang to help him move to another cell.

However, it was not easy to change cells. Zhou Yang was just a young prison guard who had just worked for a short time, so there was no way he could help him.

In this way, He Qianjian could only continue to stay here in fear.

Fortunately, although the time was difficult to endure, it passed little by little. In two days, there would be a reading club event, and then he could take advantage of the chaos to escape from prison.

The closer it was to the time when he could be free and get out of the current situation, the more cautious He Qianjian became, fearing that some accident would disrupt his escape plan, so he and the abnormal-looking man in the bed next to him remained at peace. Who would have thought, this complacency caused him to accidentally violate the rules of this cell.

It was eerily quiet in the cell.

As the man in the bed next to him slowly sat up, He Qianjian’s horrified expression could hardly be concealed.

The man was probably in his thirties, as thin as a bag of bones, with sunken eye sockets and sickly pale skin. At this time, he was looking at He Qianjian intently, his eyes falling on his trembling mouth. His voice was hoarse and rough: “What were you laughing at just now?”

He Qianjian’s teeth chattered and he could not control his trembling. Thinking of the news he heard from Zhou Yang, he shrank back.

But he didn’t dare not answer: “Just something funny.”

“What was it?”

Could he say that the person who sent him to prison was going to be unlucky? He Qianjian didn’t dare to say that. He gritted his teeth and showed a trace of sadness on his face, “I couldn’t help but laugh when I thought of the time I spent with my family.”

The man seemed to have heard something funny. His rough voice was rusty when he laughed, but he stopped laughing and stared at him with a pair of deep-set eyes for a few seconds. When he spoke again, his tone was gloomy: “Do you know where the last person who lied to me is now?”

He Qianjian trembled and almost jumped in shock, but he did not dare to move. He could only stare stiffly at the man, using his acting skills to convince the man that he was not lying.

“I, I, I really thought of my family…”

He Qianjian’s teeth chattered. Even when facing the boss of cell 16 who beat him and Brother Hei, who was in the same cell before, he was not so scared. After all, no matter how much normal people go to extremes, he knew the maximum they could do, but if you wanted to guess what a madman would do, you might have to be crazy yourself.

The man asked again: “Which family member?”

“My parents.”

The muscles on the man’s face twitched, and his hand on the quilt moved as if he wanted to do something. He Qianjian said immediately: “My adoptive parents were very good to me before they found their biological son. Today is my adoptive mother’s birthday, I couldn’t help but laugh when I thought about the time I spent my birthday with them before!”

“Adoptive parents?” The man’s sparse eyebrows furrowed, seeming to be interested, “Tell me about it.”

This was the first time He Qianjian had spoken to this man since he arrived in this cell. He had always been good at reading people’s hearts and faces, but today this skill was not very effective. He could only repeat the version of the story that he told to Zhou Yang before with a trembling voice. 

But before he finished speaking, the man suddenly jumped up violently and punched him in the stomach. Before he could even begin retching, he kicked him off the iron frame bed and stepped on his face. Looking at him condescendingly, the hoarse and unpleasant voice seemed to come from hell: “Didn’t I just tell you what happened to the last person who lied to me?”

He Qianjian curled up in a ball. The man stepping on him was as thin as a bag of bones. He looked like a skeleton, but his strength was astonishing. The punch just hit him in the stomach, but it felt like his internal organs were all moved out of place, and the pain was so great that he couldn’t even make a sound other than gasping for air and breaking into a cold sweat.

The people on the other beds seemed to have anticipated the situation before them. Everyone covered their heads with their quilts, as if they didn’t hear any movement at all. They were all extremely quiet.

He Qianjian’s cheek was stepped on so hard that he had to open his mouth to breathe out. His words were slurred, but he didn’t dare to lie to him anymore: “I’m sorry…please, please…”

The man moved his foot, stepped on his chest, squatted down and said, “I want to hear the true story.”

He Qianjian’ legs trembled, not daring to ask the man to move his foot. He recounted what had happened between him and Jiang Chen intermittently. He only dared to omit the System, and did not dare to falsify a word of the rest. 

No one else in the cell was asleep. After listening to what He Qianjian said, they didn’t feel much at all. The people who could be locked up here were not people with normal views. At most, they could only sigh at how unlucky the one named Jiang Chen from the He family, the real eldest young master was.

After hearing what He Qianjian said, it was as if the man had indeed just heard a bedtime story. He let go of him and went back to his iron frame bed to sleep.

He Qianjian lay on the ground and didn’t dare to move. It wasn’t until he heard a slight snoring next to him that he got up on shaking legs, not daring to make a single sound, and slowly returned to his bed.

At noon the next day, in the prison cafeteria.

Under everyone’s gaze, the skinny man walked over and sat down next to He Qianjian.

He Qianjian was holding a bowl of soup cautiously, his hands couldn’t help trembling. He could ignore the eyes from all directions, but the gloomy and terrifying face of the man next to him, and the deeply sunken eyes made his hair stand on end.

Some people were talking in low voices, and some newcomers were confused as to why the cafeteria was suddenly quiet. The prisoners next to them would say a thing or two if they were in the mood. In the midst of the whispers, there was a sudden bang. Those originally quietly looking over noticed the situation there immediately.

They saw that the young man who had just been holding a bowl of soup had fallen to the ground. The sound just now was the sound of him hitting the ground with the bowl and chopsticks. Those who didn’t see it were confused as to why he suddenly fell. Those who saw it leaned over and spoke in low voices:

“Don’t know what they were saying just now, but the lunatic in cell 15 suddenly grabbed chopsticks and stabbed him in the face. That guy was so frightened that he fell to the ground.”

The person who asked the question was a newcomer and asked in confusion: “Didn’t he miss? And you can just dodge to the side. Why lay down on the ground?”

The senior prisoner looked at the newcomer’s ignorant and fearless speech, shook his head, and had no more kindness to explain to him. 

The newcomer wanted to ask again, but suddenly he heard a mocking and gloating voice coming from the side: “What’s that puddle under his pants? Don’t tell me he peed his pants.”

Some people had the courage to crane their necks to take a look, but then looked away in disgust.

“It seems like he really did pee his pants.”

The bowl of soup just poured was farther away, with a piece of dry ground between it and He Qianjian’s pants. If it was really spilled, it shouldn’t be like this.

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He Qianjian didn’t care whether he looked pathetic or not. When the pair of chopsticks were thrust at him, his mind instantly recalled what Zhou Yang told him about the man next to him——that he had poked out the eyes of another prisoner. Almost instantly, he was so frightened that his mind went blank. He was so scared that he wanted to run away, and he didn’t care if he tripped over a stool.

The man who was as thin as a bamboo pole seemed to find his reaction interesting, and even flashed a slightly rusty and twisted smile: “I just want to have a taste of the food in your bowl.”

He Qianjian no longer dared to remain here, and ran away on stumbling and shaking legs.

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