Crazy.

Shi Jin was unable to continue watching Zhuo Yang's despicable way of provoking people. Unable to hold back, he asked, "Are you jealous of me?"

His words were spoken with clarity and confidence, immediately drawing the attention of everyone around them. Those who had already noticed the commotion turned their gaze towards them, curious to see what was happening.

Zhuo Yang's face froze into a wicked smile as he glared at Shi Jin and asked, "What did you say?" 

Shi Jin deliberately put on a face that seemed to say 'I already see through everything' and loudly said, "I know you're jealous of me. Jealous of my youth, jealous that I can stay by Young Master Jun's side. Do you have a crush on Young Master Jun? If not, then why do you act like a spoiled princess trying to attract the attention of a younger boy, saying all sorts of ambiguous things in front of Young Master Jun? 

"One moment you say Young Master Jun is handsome, the next you're jealous that someone liked him before. And now you even find fault with me. Do you have a problem? You even had to park your boat next to ours and get so close. Do you dare say you don't have any ulterior motives? You say it's scary how love can breed hate in young people, but I think it's disgusting how you, an old cucumber, can hate out of love. In the future, stay away from Young Master Jun, you're just a nuisance." 

Everyone who heard these words was stunned by the nonsensical but irrefutable logic. Even Number One and the others all turned their heads to look at Shi Jin with expressions as if they were seeing an alien.

Lian Jun silently withdrew his hand that was about to pull Shi Jin behind him. Seeing that Shi Jin had not suffered any losses, he even cooperated by saying to Zhuo Yang, "Sorry, I didn't know you had such thoughts. If I had known, I would have aimed the gun a little better yesterday."

Number One and the others: "..." 

Young Master Jun, you've changed. You weren't like this before. 

"Ha!" Lu Shan, who had been standing in the corner watching the commotion, suddenly burst out laughing and even clapped her hands. "What a great show! So Nine Eagles has been working so hard to develop, all for the sake of helping their boss pursue the most difficult-to-obtain prize on our path, this cold flower. Zhuo Yang, as your senior, let me give you a piece of advice. For the sake of the two ounces of flesh under your crotch, it's best to avoid unrealistic dreams. It's not trendy anymore to play the role of a Emperor in the underworld." 

As soon as these words were spoken, the other leaders of the organizations, who had been quietly watching the commotion, all had strange expressions on their faces. 

At yesterday's meeting, Zhuo Yang had been officially reprimanded for trying to be the "Emperor of the Underworld," and had been put in his place. Today, Lu Shan was saying that Zhuo Yang was playing the role of the Emperor of the Underworld, implying that Lian Jun was the true Emperor of the Underworld, and that Zhuo Yang wasn't even worthy of dreaming of it. As the leader of an old organization, his ability to mock was truly excellent.

When Lu Shan made that statement, it made everyone feel a bit uncomfortable. After all, no one likes to see more "emperors" popping up in the underworld, especially when the "emperor" in question is referring to Lian Jun. But after the news about Heavenly Horse broke out, everyone was more willing to see Zhuo Yang suffer a loss than feel uncomfortable.

So, although no one else spoke on the deck, there was a clear sense of joy in the air.

Zhuo Yang's face had turned completely black by the time Shi Jin finished his long speech. Later, Lian Jun and Lu Shan continued to bombard him, making it seem like he had been targeting Lian Jun all along because he liked him. He was so angry that he almost couldn't resist taking his gun and shooting everyone on the deck. 

But in the end, he held back. This was the officials' ship, and he couldn't afford to cause trouble. As he suppressed his anger, he suddenly felt an unusual calmness. He looked around at the people, focusing on Shi Jin with a cold sneer. From his pocket, he took out a small white object and threw it towards Lian Jun's direction. 

He spoke coldly, "You can talk all you want, but take a good look at this. Don't come begging me too soon." With a wave of his hand, he left with his subordinates, still looking arrogant.

The object that Zhuo Yang threw was small, white, and glinted in the sunlight. Shi Jin stood in front of Lian Jun, and with a raised hand, he took the small rectangular paper box that was about the size of a finger. He flipped it over and checked that his progress bar had not moved, indicating that the contents were safe. He then handed it over to Lian Jun.

Lian Jun took it and didn't open it in front of everyone. "Let's go back to the room," he said.

So Shi Jin quickly pushed his wheelchair, and under the curious gaze of everyone on the deck, they headed towards the cabin.

After there were not many people around, Number Two couldn't help but tease Shi Jin, "Your mouth is a lethal weapon. I thought we were going to fight with the Nine Eagles' people. How did you come up with saying that? You're amazing. Zhuo Yang has never been so embarrassed before." 

Shi Jin flattered subtly, "No, no, it's because Young Master Jun has trained me well."

Suddenly, Lian Jun let out a low hum.

Shi Jin's heart skipped a beat at the hum and quickly changed the subject, saying, "Actually, I wasn't planning on saying that. Zhuo Yang isn't worthy of liking Young Master Jun. I just wanted to provoke him and see if he would move his ship. I have a feeling that he's plotting something by parking his ship next to ours.'

This wasn't an unfounded accusation. Earlier that morning, while Lian Jun was in a meeting, Shi Jin had taken the opportunity to study the internal layout of the Nine Eagles ship that Xiao Si had scanned. To his surprise, he discovered that the Nine Eagles ship was not a civilian vessel, but a disguised military ship. Its exterior was designed to look like a civilian ship, but its interior was that of a warship.

With there being something wrong with the ship, just now when Zhuo Yang was being so annoying, he remembered this point and couldn't help but blurt out his words.

Number Two was surprised to hear this explanation and couldn't resist poking Shi Jin's forehead, muttering, "How come you suddenly don't look stupid anymore? You seem pretty smart."

Shi Jin irritably swatted his hand away and rolled his eyes at him.

"Don't stare at me like that, focus on the road," Number Two quickly surrendered with a smile. Seeing that Lian Jun and Number One didn't object to him and Shi Jin discussing this topic, he continued, "Don't worry too much about Nine Eagles parking their boat next to ours. Number Five is keeping an eye on them, and our ship is pretty good. Even if Nine Eagles is scheming something, they might not be able to take advantage of us." 

Shi Jin immediately understood the meaning behind Number Two's words and asked in surprise, "Our ship has been modified?" He had lived inside for a few days but hadn't noticed anything different.

Number Two smiled and didn't say anything, the answer was self-evident.

...

After returning to the room, Lian Jun placed the small cardboard box that Zhuo Yang had thrown over on the table.

Number One reached out and twisted open the box, carefully examining its contents. He frowned and took out a clean plastic container from the cabinet, pouring everything out inside.

Clatter, clatter, ten blood-stained fingernail clippings fell into the container, a disgusting sight that made one's scalp tingle.

Shi Jin had never seen anything like this before, his facial features immediately scrunching up together. He averted his gaze for a moment before looking back and asking, "Are these... Long Shi's fingernails?" 

"Most likely," said Lian Jun as he lifted the lid of the large plastic container and turned to Number Two. "Take the things back to the ship and have Uncle...have Number Five check to see if they belong to Long Shi."

Number Two nodded and asked, "Should we keep this from Uncle Long?"

Lian Jun thought for a moment and shook his head. "No, Uncle Long has the right to know about Long Shi's situation and whereabouts."

Number Two nodded and picked up the large plastic container.

Shi Jin quickly grabbed the small white cardboard box that had been emptied of its contents and said, "I'll go burn this, it's too disgusting."

The cardboard box was of no use anymore, and no one objected. Lian Jun even kindly said, "If you don't like it, you can let Number One handle it." 

"It's okay, I'll do it." Shi Jin shook his head, stood up, and squatted directly in front of the trash can. He asked Number Two for a lighter and lit it in front of everyone.

Everyone thought he was disgusted by the fingernail and wanted to quickly dispose of it. They saw him gradually retract his gaze. Shi Jin took advantage of the opportunity to pretend that his hand slipped and dropped the small cardboard box into the trash can. Then he reached into the trash can, extinguished the small flame on the box, and opened it. 

He endured the slight residue of blood on his fingers and asked Xiao Si in his heart, "Can this be used as a positioning medium?"

"Yes, let me try." Xiao Si replied. After that, Shi Jin only felt a numbness in his fingers, and the blood on his skin disappeared.

Shi Jin shuddered with horror, feeling as if Long Shi's blood had entered his body. He ended up burning the small box completely. After he finished burning it, he threw the lighter away and quickly rushed into the bathroom to wash his hands several times. He didn't come out until he felt a little better.

After he sat down, Lian Jun touched his red hands and frowned, saying, "Just don't touch it if you don't like it. I'm not afraid of that thing. You don't have to go out of your way to dispose of it."

"I'm worried that it might fall into the wrong hands," Shi Jin replied nervously, changing the subject. "What should we do next? This time, Zhuo Yang produced evidence that Long Shi is indeed in his hands. How should we react?"

Lian Jun replied, "Just continue to ignore it. If we don't make any moves this time, Zhuo Yang will not be able to resist bringing Long Shi to me next time. That will be the best opportunity to snatch him away." Shi Jin nodded, feeling a bit more confident. 

During the afternoon meeting, Zhuo Yang kept giving Lian Jun a look that seemed to say, "Come beg me, why haven't you come beg me yet?" The other leaders in the conference room couldn't help but twitch their mouths and even began to suspect that Zhuo Yang really had some feelings for Lian Jun. 

Lian Jun completely ignored Zhuo Yang's eye signals and focused on the meeting. In just a few sentences, he pulled out several 'henchmen' organizations secretly cultivated by the Nine Eagles gang from a long list of illegal criminal organisations and put them on the official list for next year's key crackdown, using various reasons. 

Zhuo Yang's attention was gradually drawn back, and his expression became increasingly ugly. Finally, when Lian Jun pointed out the sixth chess piece, Zhuo Yang couldn't take it anymore and muttered a curse under his breath. He picked up the meeting materials that had been lying on the side and began to figure out how to protect the remaining chess pieces. 

This afternoon, Nine Eagles suffered heavy losses. The leaders of other organizations could sense something from the expressions exchanged between Lian Jun and Zhuo Yang. 

They paid close attention to the criminal organisations mentioned by Lian Jun and discovered that they were all street scum. Zhuo Yang's eyes became increasingly unfriendly.

Everyone could see that most of the organizations mentioned by Lian Jun this afternoon were probably related to Zhuo Yang! 

Zhuo Yang indeed had a dream of becoming the emperor of the underworld, with ambitions as big as the sky!

After the afternoon meeting ended, Zhuo Yang looked at Lian Jun ominously for a long time before leaving the officials' ship. Lian Jun, of course, continued to ignore him, not even giving him a glance out of the corner of his eye. 

The other leaders of the organization were both pleased and amused when they heard the news. They were pleased because Zhuo Yang had suffered a loss, and amused because, in a way, Zhuo Yang seem to like Lian Jun, he loved him but could not have him, and thus harbored resentment...

After dinner, the location of Long Shi was finally determined. He was indeed on the Nine Eagles' ship, in a very peculiar location - he was actually locked in Zhuo Yang's room.

Shi Jin compared the internal scan of the Nine Eagles' ship with Long Shi's location, his brow furrowed as he asked, "Are you sure that's Zhuo Yang's room?"

"With the level of specifications and security protection, there is only one room like that on the Nine Eagles' ship, and it must be Zhuo Yang's room," Xiao Si confidently replied, still very confident in the results of his scan. 

Feeling defeated, Shi Jin slumped onto the bed. "It's over. There's no way we can sneak in and rescue the person now. Even with your buff, it's impossible. Zhuo Yang's room is too deep inside, and I can't do it alone."

Xiao Si took the opportunity to speak up. "I don't recommend you sneak in and rescue the person. It's too dangerous, and my baby wouldn't agree."

"I know it's dangerous, but I just can't help but want to..." Shi Jin stared at the ceiling, lost in thought. After a while, he let out a sigh and pressed his forehead with his hand. "No, I'm getting too worked up. Let's just wait and see what Zhuo Yang does next. Lian Jun said that Zhuo Yang will eventually bring Long Shi out into the open. We just have to be patient."

Xiao Si quickly agreed, expressing his full support for Shi Jin's decision to abandon the risky plan. Before bed, Lian Jun suddenly knocked on the door and came in.

Shi Jin had just finished showering and was puzzled when he saw Lian Jun approaching. "Is there something you need, Young Master Jun?"

Lian Jun glanced at Shi Jin's still-dripping hair and motioned for him to come inside. "I came to ask you about the bet. Tomorrow is the last day of the meeting, and I wanted to see if you had guessed the answer yet."

Shi Jin was stunned. "Is the bet still valid? Old Ghost came to us himself and revealed his intentions. I thought the bet had already become invalid."

"Of course it's still valid." Lian Jun closed the door, grabbed a hair dryer from the bathroom, and plugged it in at the bedside. He looked at Shi Jin, who was standing dumbfounded, and motioned for him to sit down. "After showering, you need to dry your hair quickly to avoid catching a cold." 

"Isn't this what I told you before," Shi Jin couldn't help but smile as he sat down obediently and reached out towards Lian Jun. "I'll do it myself, so you don't have to get your hands wet."

Lian Jun glanced at him but remained silent. He rolled his wheelchair closer and placed a hand on Shi Jin's shoulder, pulling him towards him. With his other hand, he turned on the hair dryer, indicating his refusal through action.

Shi Jin was forced to move closer and felt the hand on his shoulder move to the top of his head, gently pushing it down. Knowing he couldn't win against Lian Jun, he compromised, "Alright, I helped you blow dry your hair last time, and you can help me this time. We'll be even." He lowered his head to make it easier for Lian Jun to work.

"It's not even," Lian Jun grabbed his hair and rubbed his scalp with his fingertips while moving the hair dryer. He asked, "So what's your guess?" 

"This is simply a freebie question," thought Shi Jin to himself.

He propped his hand on his knee and, because he was looking down, his line of sight could only see Lian Jun's chin and neck line. His gaze unconsciously stuck to it as he replied, "My guess is that Phantom came early to the meeting place this time to observe us and find an opportunity to talk to us, to seek our help."

Lian Jun's fingertips brushed against his ear as he replied, "You only got half of it right."

"Hmm? Half?" Shi Jin couldn't help but look up.

Lian Jun was unprepared and his hand, which was placed beside Shi Jin's head, slipped and landed on his face. His other hand quickly pulled the hair dryer away to avoid hitting him.

The two of them locked eyes, and Lian Jun's warm gaze had yet to dissipate when Shi Jin froze again. 

"Stay still," said Lian Jun as he pinched Shi Jin's face and pushed his head down. "The Phantom came early, not just to observe us, but also to observe the authorities. Old Ghost's goal is not just to seek our help, but also to establish a connection with the authorities through us. To be precise, seeking help is only secondary. What Old Ghost really wants is to show his loyalty to the authorities through us and gain their support. However, he is destined to fail because the authorities do not need a second 'Annihilation' as it is difficult to control." 

As he was pressed down a little harder this time, Shi Jin's head almost hit Lian Jun's chest. His gaze naturally fell on Lian Jun's legs, and he couldn't help but remember the feeling of kneading them during the massage. He reached out and gently rubbed them, saying, "That's only half of the answer. My response wasn't comprehensive enough. So, how should we settle the bet?"

Lian Jun paused his movement of the hair dryer for a moment, then quickly resumed it. He didn't pay attention to Shi Jin's fidgeting hand, and instead looked at the ear that was peeking out from Shi Jin's hair. He couldn't help but move closer and suggest, "Let's call it a draw and change the bet. You can make one request of me, and I can make one request of you. What do you think?"

A warm breath brushed past Shi Jin's ear, completely different from the hot air released by the hair dryer. It carried a hint of intimacy. As soon as Shi Jin heard the bet, his body instinctively shuddered and he got goosebumps all over. His head also turned to the side as he replied, "Sure, so the bet is on?"

At that moment, Lian Jun turned to the side and Shi Jin's head directly bumped into his embrace, his cheek pressed against his chest.

It was a distance close enough to hear each other's heartbeat, and Shi Jin was a little dazed.

Lian Jun casually put away the hair dryer and reached out to touch Shi Jin's already dry short hair, saying, "It's on, okay, your hair is done." 

After speaking, he pushed away Shi Jin's hand and stepped back.

Shi Jin maintained his crooked posture and looked up at Lian Jun.

"Go to bed early," Lian Jun didn't stay long, he put down the hair dryer and left, as if he had only come to talk about the bet. 

Shi Jin stared at him in a daze as he left, only coming back to his senses when he heard the sound of the door closing. He rubbed his ears and the spot on his face where he had bumped into Lian Jun's chest, then glanced at the hair dryer, confused. "Why do I feel like Lian Jun was acting a bit strange just now..." 

Xiao Si's heart leapt with joy and it quickly asked, "What was strange about him?" 

"I don't know...it's just a feeling," Shi Jin unconsciously moved the hand that had just touched Lian Jun's legs and shook his head. "It's hard to explain...never mind, let's go to sleep. It's getting late." With that, he lay down on the bed and closed his eyes, looking peaceful. 

Xiao Si was so frustrated it felt like dying. It wanted to drag him out of bed and force him to keep thinking. 

......

The next morning during breakfast, the results of the nail analysis came in - they were indeed Long Shi's nails. Along with the results came Uncle Long, who had dark circles under his eyes.

Lian Jun furrowed his brows slightly and said, "Uncle Long, you don't actually have to deal with this. I understand."

Uncle Long's face showed exhaustion, but his attitude was resolute. He said, "This person was taught by me, and I am also guilty. Lian Jun, you are merciful for not holding me responsible, but that doesn't mean I can keep avoiding this. After being father and son for over twenty years, I want to settle things with him."

At this point, Lian Jun couldn't persuade him any further and silently agreed to let him stay. The meeting started on time. Instead of taking Number One's advice to rest in the cabin, Uncle Long stood with Shi Jin in the corner of the deck, his gaze fixed on Zhuo Yang opposite him. His expression was complex, and it was unclear what he was thinking.

Shi Jin wanted to comfort him, but didn't know what to say. His expression showed his inner turmoil.

Perhaps sensing his hesitation, Uncle Long suddenly spoke up: "Long Shi was someone I rescued out of kindness. His parents were a drug dealer and an alcoholic, both of whom had terrible character and died early. I was afraid that Long Shi would follow in their footsteps, so I've always been strict with him."

Shi Jin turned his head to look at him, quietly listening. 

"He was always a solitary child. The previous leader once advised me to send him to the corresponding welfare home in the organization, so that he could grow up with other children. But I was afraid he would be bullied, so I refused. Now, looking back, the previous leader's suggestion was right. Growing up without peers is really detrimental to a child's mental health," sighed Uncle Long, as he raised his hand to pinch his forehead. 

"Perhaps I was too strict with him, which led him to have inappropriate feelings towards Young Master Jun when he first met him... Shi Jin, I'm sorry."

Shi Jin was puzzled, "Uncle Long, why are you apologizing to me?" 

Uncle Long put down his hand and looked at Lian Jun, who was coldly watching the other leaders argue in the conference room. His voice lowered, "Because if I hadn't given Long Shi the opportunity to get close to Young Master Jun, Young Master Jun would not be the way he is now. The previous Young Master Jun was gentle and often smiled. If you had met the Young Master Jun from back then, you would have..." 

Lian Jun, gentle and smiling? Suddenly, an image of Lian Jun blowing his hair from last night flashed through Shi Jin's mind, and the buzzing sound of the hair dryer echoed in his ears. He couldn't help but rub his ears and ask, "What should I have done?" 

Uncle Long glanced at him sideways, wanting to say something but holding back. He replied, "You would have become smarter earlier," instead of being so foolish that you haven't realized your feelings for Young Master Jun until now.