G Province is a large city by the sea with a spring-like climate all year round. It is an economically developed and highly livable city.

Neither in this life nor in his past life had Shi Jin ever been to this place. After finishing his argument with Number Two, he saw that Number One looked exhausted. Sensing the mood, Shi Jin tactfully stopped discussing business and flipped through the map of G Province, asking Lian Jun, "There are five or six well-developed districts in G Province. Which one should we live in?"

Lian Jun shook his head and replied, "We won't be living here. We'll be living on an island."

"An island?" Shi Jin was surprised and looked at the treasure island on the map, furrowing his brows. "Do we need to go to the Treasure Island first?"

"No," said Lian Jun, as he reached out and directed Shi Jin's gaze towards a nearby island in a major port in Province G. He lightly tapped it and said, "We'll stay here. This is where the Annihilation faction is located, so it's relatively safe."

Shi Jin followed his gaze and suddenly understood. He was about to put away the map when he thought of something and quickly asked, "Wait, if we stay here, what about the official personnel who are following us? Are they staying here too? Is that a good idea?"

Lian Jun helped him put away the map and replied, "The official personnel won't be staying with us. They'll be staying in the nearest Z City, with Number Three and Five. Only you and I will be staying on the island."

"Only you and I? What about Number One and Number Two?" Shi Jin continued to inquire.

"They still have things to do and won't follow us all the time," explained Lian Jun, squeezing his hand gently and saying, "Don't worry, the island is very safe. After we arrive on the island, I will arrange for Mr. Feng to continue teaching you. I have already compiled a detailed study plan for you with the help of a specialized teacher from the police academy. Follow the plan and don't miss any classes."

Go to school?! He came all the way here and still has to go to school?!

Shi Jin widened his eyes and looked at Lian Jun, about to protest, but was stopped by Lian Jun's words.

"A student's duty is to learn, Shi Jin. I'm waiting for the day when you grow up and protect me."

Xiao Si also chimed in, "Jin Jin, you need to be a man of your word. Your baby trusts you."

The souls of both the underachiever and the lazy person in Shi Jin had just surfaced when they were suppressed by his lover and child(?). He thought about his and Lian Jun's future, about the burden that Lian Jun carried, and silently swallowed the words he wanted to say and the bitterness that arose from having to learn university courses all over again.

He obediently nodded and said, "Okay... I will study hard."

Lian Jun smiled and leaned in to reward him with a kiss.

......

The car sped all the way from the provincial capital of G to Z city, then directly onto a medium-sized ferry docked at the port. With the car and passengers on board, they sailed towards the small island on the opposite shore.

"It's quite convenient," Shi Jin sat in the car, looking at the ferry deck and railing outside the window, as well as the sea beyond the railing, and exclaimed like a country bumpkin.

Number Two leaned back on the front row seat and said, "Originally, we could have taken a helicopter directly to the island, but now that Young Master Jun's visit to G Province is still a secret, we shouldn't let too many people know. So we have to keep a low profile as much as possible."

"Secret?" Shi Jin immediately looked at Lian Jun with curiosity.

Lian Jun noticed his gaze and explained, putting down his tablet, "The government's plan to deal with the Tarantula is not being kept a secret, so some big organizations with connections in the underworld already know about it. But they don't know that the government has invited us to help in secret. So our advantage is that we are in the dark while they are in the light. We need to maintain this advantage until things become clear. It's best to keep my whereabouts confidential."

"Oh, I see," Shi Jin nodded in understanding. Shi Jin nodded in understanding and glanced at Number Two. Suddenly, he leaned in close to Lian Jun's ear and whispered in a low voice, "Can we talk when we get to the island?"

He had so many questions that needed answers, and he didn't want Number Two to be the one explaining them to him.

Lian Jun's breath was tickled by Shi Jin's proximity, and he turned his head to look at his face, which was just inches away. With a flicker in his eyes, he leaned in and kissed his eye, whispering his agreement in a low voice.

Shi Jin's eyes closed involuntarily as he was kissed, and when he opened them again, he instinctively looked at Lian Jun. He caught a glimpse of the desire in his gentle gaze, and his heart skipped a beat.

His breath caught in his throat, and he suddenly retreated, falling back onto the seat and covering his face with the map of G province.

Oh no, did he just say something ambiguous? Will Lian Jun misunderstand and think he's inviting... well, if he wants to invite, then he'll invite! He and Lian Jun are in a romantic relationship, what's wrong with extending an invitation!

Suddenly feeling emboldened, he flipped open the map and glanced at Lian Jun. Seeing him pick up his tablet and start reading documents again, his previously buoyant mood plummeted. He slumped over and lay down, resting his head on Lian Jun's lap. He reached out and covered the tablet screen with his hand, frowning as he asked, "Am I good-looking or are the documents good-looking?"

It was supposed to be a happy reunion, but they had been discussing business since they met. Finally, they finished talking, but Lian Jun was now engrossed in his documents and didn't even bother to talk to him." Shi Jin suddenly felt a bit neglected and held his breath, ready to compete with the documents for attention.

Lian Jun paused with his tablet in hand and looked down at him.

Shi Jin stared back, unsure of what to do if Lian Jun scolded him or ignored him. He had no experience with being unreasonable to attract his lover's attention.

Moreover, what if he went too far and upset Lian Jun? Lian Jun was already under a lot of pressure, and he didn't want to become a burden. A sudden shadow fell over them, and then the scent of Lian Jun approached quickly.

Shi Jin snapped out of his daze and saw Lian Jun's face hovering just a few centimeters above his own, causing him to instinctively swallow his saliva.

"I've been holding back for a long time, but you brought this upon yourself," Lian Jun whispered as he touched Shi Jin's face. He then wrapped his arms around Shi Jin's head and began kissing him on the forehead, then the eyebrows, eyes, and nose.

The light was blocked by Lian Jun's body, and his warm breath intertwined with Shi Jin's. Shi Jin's eyes widened as he watched Lian Jun's serious expression while he kissed him. His heart began to beat faster, and he couldn't help but grab onto Lian Jun's arm and tilt his head up, taking the initiative to deepen the kiss.

Their lips met and after a brief moment of contact, they began to passionately entwine.

Lian Jun was overwhelmed with excitement, and Shi Jin could feel it. It was as if the air was being slowly taken away by the other person, and Lian Jun began to feel dizzy and short of breath.

After a while, Lian Jun finally pulled away. He touched Shi Jin's flushed cheeks and wiped away the wet marks on his lips. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Behave yourself. Number One and Number Two are still with us. We'll wait until we get to the island, okay?"

Suddenly, his chaotic mind, clouded by desire, cleared up.

It was only then that he realized he and Lian Jun were not in a secluded space, but rather in a car with Number One and Number Two. Because the driver today was someone else and the car was relatively large, the seating arrangement was such that the driver sat alone in the driver's seat, the passenger seat was empty, and Number One and Number Two sat in the first row of the back seat while he and Lian Jun sat in the second row.

The partition only existed between the driver's seat and the back row, so even if it was raised, it wouldn't block Number One and Number Two. Oh no, did Number One and Number Two just witness his intimate moment with Lian Jun? He stiffly turned his head to look at the front seats where Number One and Number Two were sitting.

He saw that they were both wearing headphones and were completely engrossed in their tablets, looking like they couldn't hear anything outside.

This is such an obvious attempt to avoid suspicion... Shi Jin looked at Lian Jun in despair.

"Are you still causing trouble?" Lian Jun tugged at his face.

Shi Jin covered his face and rubbed it hard, replying, "No more trouble, never again."

......

The group successfully arrived on the island and checked into a villa on the south side of the island by the sea. To their surprise, Number Six was also here.

"This branch is located near the Tarantula's headquarters, so we can't make it too conspicuous. That's why it's a bit small in scale and has fewer staff. I was worried that Young Master Jun wouldn't be comfortable living here, so I came to set it up first," explained Number Six with a smile as he looked at Shi Jin. "Young Master Shi has become quite strong, it seems like you've been doing well these past six months."

Shi Jin had a good impression of Number Six and was very happy to see him, so he hugged him.

Number Six hugged him back and patted his back, saying with a smile, "At least three blocks around the villa are inhabited by Annihilation's people, so Young Master Shi doesn't have to worry about safety issues. When you have free time, you can go to the island for a walk and relax."

At least three blocks? A small-scale branch with fewer staff? When Shi Jin's face stiffened, he let go of Number Three and turned to look at Lian Jun, who was explaining something to Number One and Number Two. He raised his hand and wiped his face - it had been a year, but his understanding of Annihilation seemed to only scratch the surface.

......

After dropping off Lian Jun at the villa, Number One and Number Two left, saying they had important matters to attend to.

Shi Jin watched them leave, then pushed Lian Jun around the villa.

To take care of Lian Jun's physical condition, Number Six had specially moved their bedrooms to the first floor.

The master bedroom on the first floor was very large, decorated in a warm and comfortable style, with a good view. The wall facing the sea was completely opened up and fitted with floor-to-ceiling windows. Outside the windows was a large wooden balcony that connected to a long bridge. Walking along the bridge, one could directly reach a private beach area.

Money really could buy anything. Standing in front of the French window, Shi Jin admired the beautiful scenery outside with a hint of sigh. Suddenly, a shadow approached and he felt a familiar embrace around his waist.

"What do you want for dinner?" Lian Jun whispered in his ear.

Shi Jin lowered his head and looked at Lian Jun's ambiguous hands caressing his waist. He turned his head and asked, "What's the deal with Snake Fang and Meridian Gate? You haven't explained it to me yet."

Lian Jun paused his action of adjusting Shi Jin's clothes and looked at him with a slightly helpless expression. "Is now the time to talk about that?"

"You promised me that we would chat once we got on the island. You can't go back on your word," Shi Jin said seriously, pretending to be clueless as he held onto the other's hand and turned to glance at the clock hanging in the room. "It's already this late. Let's go eat dinner quickly. You didn't take a nap today, so we must eat on time and try to rest early."

If there was anything that could quickly restore Shi Jin's rationality, it was definitely Lian Jun's health. In the face of Lian Jun's health, everything else had to take a backseat. A short separation was nothing compared to making sure his beloved was well-fed and healthy!

As he was led by him, Lian Jun couldn't help but feel amused and touched by his serious demeanor. He let out a sigh, suppressing the thought of seducing him onto the bed right now, and instead embraced him, lovingly stroking his back.

During the meal, Lian Jun explained in detail to Shi Jin the current situation of the major first-line organizations in the underworld.

After the Nine Eagles and Phantom withdrew from the competition stage, there were still five first-line organizations left in the underworld: Annihilation, Tarantula, Snake Fang, Meridian Gate, and Thousand Leaves. There were also several quasi-first-tier organizations under each of them, but they had all chosen to attach themselves or cooperate with one of the first-line organizations, so there was no need to discuss them separately.

Among these five organizations, Annihilation, Tarantula, and Meridian Gate were all well-established and deeply rooted old organizations, while Thousand Leaves and Snake Fang were developed during the previous wave of first-line organizations' disintegration, with slightly shallower foundations.

During the years when Nine Eagles was crazily expanding, Meridian Gate was in a slump due to leadership changes, Thousand Leaves was undergoing internal reorganization, and Snake Fang was embroiled in upper-level infighting, which prevented them from suppressing Nine Eagles's development. By the time they recovered, Nine Eagles had already surpassed them in strength, almost on par with Annihilation, and could not be easily shaken.

In this situation, the leaders of these three organizations made the same choice - to lie low, watch Nine Eagles and Annihilation fight each other, and hope that they would both be defeated. Fast forward to the present, Nine Eagles provoked Annihilation, and after a fierce battle, both Nine Eagles and Phantom disintegrated, leaving behind a large chunk of benefits. Despite Nine Eagles' attack, Annihilation still sits firmly in first place, with an unbreakable stronghold.

Regardless of Annihilation's reasons for attacking Nine Eagles, and whether or not Phantom helped, there is one clear signal that even the smartest people in the industry can see from this conflict - Annihilation is too strong. Even Nine Eagles, who appeared to be on par with Annihilation in strength, couldn't even scratch a hair on Annihilation's head and ended up disintegrating miserably.

This powerful organization would have been fine if they were solely focused on growing, and everyone could work together towards development. However, this organization has always had an ambiguous attitude, acting superior and cold towards other organizations on the path, while also having connections with the authorities.

They possess the strength of a king, yet refuse to lead the people. Instead, they even help the enemy limit the power of the people. It is the common thought of all leaders of major organizations that they must be eliminated.

The Snake Fang, Meridian Gate, and Thousand Leaves organizations can no longer sit still. They have become active again, actively developing themselves. Among them, Snake Fang's actions are particularly evident. They are desperately seizing the benefits left by Nine Eagles and Phantom, absorbing the various resources left behind, and pulling in other organizations, attempting to gather the power of the underworld around themselves.

"Their alliance is inevitable," said Lian Jun, pausing for a moment. Seeing that Shi Jin was listening attentively and had even forgotten to eat, he gently tapped his forehead to bring him back to reality and gestured towards the food.

After Shi Jin resumed eating, Lian Jun continued, "But how to form the alliance, in what manner to form it, what direction to take after forming it, how to handle the relationship with the authorities after getting rid of Annihilation, whether to confront the authorities directly or continue to mediate with another organization... all these factors will determine whether they can successfully form an alliance and who they will ally with."

Shi Jin finally had a clue and paused his eating. He recalled the conversation between Number Two and Number One in the car and asked, "So you think that, compared to Snake Fang, Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves actually prefer Tarantula and want to form an alliance with them?"

"That's right," nodded Lian Jun. Seeing that his companion's mind was no longer on the food, he remembered the late lunch he had on the plane and guessed that he probably wasn't very hungry at the moment.

So, he didn't force him to eat anymore and instead poured him a glass of water and continued, "Compared to Snake Fang, Tarantula has a longer history and a stronger foundation. Their leader is more stable and reliable, making them the best choice for cooperation. Snake Fang may look impressive now, but their power has expanded too quickly, and their internal stability is definitely questionable. Plus, they just went through a high-level internal struggle, so there are leaks everywhere. Getting involved with them means trouble. The leaders of Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves, Meng Qing and Qi Yun, are both smart people and not easily swayed by Snake Fang's influence."

Shi Jin frowned and said, "But Tarantula is now being watched by the authorities, and their future is uncertain..."

"So that's why I said earlier that Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves came here to make a choice," explained Lian Jun, holding up three fingers. "The fact that the officials has targeted the Tarantula is something that none of us expected. From the perspective of Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves, they have three choices in response to the current situation: first, choose the Snake Fang; second, choose the Tarantula; third, choose no one. And what ultimately determines their choice is the performance and outcome of the Tarantula and Snake Fang in this crisis where the official is targeting the Tarantula.

"If the Tarantula can survive from the officials and the Snake Fang, then who would be willing to miss such a powerful ally who can survive the official's targeting? If the Tarantula is tragically wiped out, and the Snake Fang performs well, demonstrating enough trustworthy attitude and strength, then the Snake Fang can also be appropriately utilized. If both the Tarantula and Snake Fang perform poorly, then in order to avoid getting burned, Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves will definitely choose to retreat quickly and form an alliance on their own. Anyway, no matter how they choose, they won't let themselves suffer losses."

With this explanation, Shi Jin finally understood the complicated relationship between the different factions. He said, "The Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves are really high and mighty, just waiting to see the outcome. All the chaos and busyness will be left to others..."

"It's also a skill to always be able to watch the tigers fight from afar," Lian Jun pointed to the armrest of his wheelchair, bringing the conversation back on track. "What we need to do now is to help the Tarantula avoid this government crackdown as much as possible, without being detected. We need to get the Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves to form an alliance with the Tarantula and deal a heavy blow to the Snake Fang."

"Deal a heavy blow to the Snake Fang?" Shi Jin was a bit worried and asked, "Is that easy to do?"

Lian Jun replied, "It's not too difficult. The key to this situation lies with the authorities and their attitude, which is indirectly influenced by us. So all we need to do is make the authorities realize that they should focus on suppressing Snake Fang instead of Tarantula. Then this predicament can be easily resolved."

Shi Jin seemed to be deep in thought, his expression relaxing as he said, "But what if Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves, after seeing that Tarantula have been targeted by the authorities, become hesitant to ally with them and instead choose to ally with each other? Then Tarantula will still be left alone."

Lian Jun slid his wheelchair over to him, took the chopsticks from his hand, and said, "No, if the Tarantula can be saved, then Meridian Gate and Thousand Leaves will definitely choose to ally with the Tarantula. Don't forget, their opponent is me. Without pulling in a little more strength, they have no chance of winning."

Shi Jin looked at his confident and domineering appearance, feeling a warmth in his heart. He couldn't help but lean over and ask, "Dinner is over, shall we go wash up and rest now?"

Lian Jun looked at him with lowered eyes, suddenly stood up from his wheelchair, and leaned towards him.

......

Thanks to the biological clock developed during military training, Shi Jin, who had clearly stayed up late the night before, actually woke up at six o'clock in the morning on time.

The room was dimly lit, with all the curtains drawn. He stared blankly at the unfamiliar ceiling for a while before coming to his senses and instinctively reaching out to his side, only to find that Lian Jun was not in bed and there was a faint sound of conversation coming from outside the French window.

Was that Lian Jun? Who was he talking to, Number Six?

He rubbed his face to wake himself up, grabbed Lian Jun's robe and put it on, hastily tying the belt to cover the important parts, and got out of bed to walk towards the French window blocked by the curtains.

"Did you come all the way here early in the morning just to scold me?"

"I'm scolding you, what's wrong with that? I even want to hit you. You little brat, you suddenly caused me such a big trouble. Who did I offend?"

"Lower your voice."

"Why are you whispering? Are you hiding a lover from Shi Jin in your golden house? You're already tired of playing with the little kid and throwing him away--"

Crash.

Shi Jin abruptly pulled open the curtains and looked outside at Lian Jun and Lu Shan, who were sitting and standing respectively. He reached out and opened the French windows, walking out with resignation. "Aunt Lu, I'm the one hiding in there. Why did you come over? Have you had breakfast?"

Lu Shan seemed startled by Shi Jin's sudden appearance, staring at him with wide eyes. She scrutinized him up and down several times, her gaze lingering on his skin, which had turned several shades darker, and the loose robe that clearly belonged to Lian Jun. Finally, her eyes settled on the hickey on his collarbone and neck, and she let out a whistle.

"Wow, last night was intense," she teased with a wink, then turned her head to glare at Lian Jun, saying angrily, "No wonder you didn't let me into the room and made me speak softly. You little brat, you've caused me so much trouble while you're having fun. Has your conscience been eaten by dogs?"

Ignoring her, Lian Jun stood up from his wheelchair and walked over to Shi Jin, helping him straighten his robe. He looked at him for a moment and suddenly said, "It looks very good."

Shi Jin was embarrassed by Lu Shan's teasing and was quickly fixing his clothes. He didn't understand what Lian Jun meant and asked, "What looks good?"

"You look really good in this," Lian Jun replied, carefully fastening his belt and taking a moment to admire his appearance. "It's really nice. Next time, I'll have them make a few more clothes like this for you."

The plain and elegant robe, when worn on Shi Jin's relatively sturdy frame and slightly tanned skin, inexplicably became wild and unrestrained.

It was very handsome and also very attractive.

Shi Jin was flattered and tugged at his collar, asking, "Really? I thought I would look out of place in this kind of robe."

"No, it really looks good," Lian Jun praised generously.

"Hey!" Lu Shan couldn't stand it anymore. She slammed the table in anger and shouted, "I'm right here! Can you guys tone it down a bit? My life is on the line and you're still being lovey-dovey. Can't you act like human beings? Are you dogs?"