"Ah."

Shi Jin let out a sigh for the umpteenth time, leaning on the sofa in the living room, feeling very worried.

Xiao Si was a little concerned and asked, "Jin Jin, what's wrong with you?"

"I'm analyzing the pros and cons of office romance," Shi Jin replied, letting out another sigh.

Xiao Si was very confused, "Office romance? Jin Jin, do you want your own office?"

"I, a jobless wanderer, don't need an office," said Shi Jin, flipping over and lying on the back of the sofa, looking out the window at the rain falling steadily. "Lian Jun used to be my boss. I worked for him and he paid me. We both got what we needed and it was comfortable. Now our relationship has changed. He still pays me, but he no longer gives me work. Isn't that like him keeping me for nothing?"

Xiao Si thought he was wrong and retorted, "You do have a job, sweetheart. Didn't you say before that your job is to protect him up close? Now you eat with him every day, give him massages, take care of him and show him concern. You're clearly doing a great job, and you've even gained a little weight, honey."

Shi Jin was taken aback by what he heard. As he followed this train of thought, he realized that Xiao Si's words made some sense. After all, his job was to stick close to Lian Jun. From this perspective, he had been working hard all along.

But he still felt that something was not quite right. He furrowed his brow, flipped over and leaned back on the sofa, pondering for a few seconds. Suddenly, he sat up straight with a look of realization on his face and said, "Wait a minute, I take care of him and care about him because I like him. It's just something I do naturally, not because I have to complete some task. How can taking care of him become a job?"

Xiao Si weakly retorted, "But even before you and baby got together, you were still taking care of him. At that time, it was your job, so what are you struggling with, Jin Jin?"

Shi Jin was at a loss for words and couldn't refute Xiao Si's argument. He sat there in silence for a while, then relaxed and leaned back on the sofa, letting out a long sigh. "I just feel that before we were in a committed relationship, it was fine for me to take care of him like that. But now that we are in this kind of relationship, if I continue to support him like this, what does that make me?...I want to help him with more things, he's too tired and has to worry about everything..."

For example, right now, Lian Jun was worrying about the plan to destroy four small organizations. As soon as the meeting was over, he immediately called Number Nine to organize the information and help Number One with recruiting manpower. He was so busy that he didn't even have time for a proper lunch.

The Numbers were all busy preparing to destroy four different organizations located in completely different directions, with one even crossing the border. They needed to quickly prepare the necessary items, arrive at the location of each organization, familiarize themselves with enemy information, mobilize manpower, and formulate a battle plan.

While everyone was so busy, he couldn't help with anything and was idle, thinking about the frustrating issue of "office romance"...

"I'm really useless," Shi Jin sighed, not realizing he had actually said it out loud.

"It turns out you have some self-awareness," Fei Yujing appeared in the living room at some point, his tone still very punchable. Shi Jin looked up at him and noticed that his suit was still wet from the rain and his hair was half-damp. He guessed that the man had just come back from outside after finishing some work.

Seeing the dark circles under his eyes, Shi Jin didn't hesitate to ask, "Did you have a bad dream last night?"

After witnessing the terrible scene inside the villa, any ordinary person would have a decrease in sleep quality in the short term. With such deep dark circles, it was clear that Fei Yujing hadn't slept well all night.

Fei Yujing was taken aback by the question and sneered, "Do you think I'm like you?"

He then turned around and walked away without looking back, his pace quickening. As Shi Jin silently watched him walk away, he couldn't help but feel a bit speechless about his tough words. He turned his head to look out the window and saw the people brought by Number Three downstairs, braving the rain to organize the convoy. Remembering the tragic scene he witnessed in the villa yesterday, he couldn't relax his mood.

Although the counterattack was exhilarating, it was inevitable that there would be casualties during the process...

After preliminary preparations, Number One and the others left one after another, heading towards their respective mission destinations.

Lian Jun and Shi Jin saw them off together, watching as each vehicle disappeared at the end of the road, until they could no longer see any trace before retracting their gaze.

"Shi Jin, I haven't forgotten that you are not only my lover, but also my subordinate. You are very talented, and I have never thought of wasting your abilities by keeping you by my side all the time and not letting you grow."

Suddenly, Lian Jun spoke up, lifting his hand from the armrest of his wheelchair and holding Shi Jin's hand that was hanging by his side. He looked down the road and whispered, "I just haven't prepared myself to watch you leave my side and send you to the dangerous front lines. You lack experience and are not ready to handle bigger conflicts and battles, and my mental state is not strong enough to let you go deep into danger. We are both not ready... Shi Jin, can you give me some time?"

Shi Jin was taken aback, and he lowered his head to look at Lian Jun. Instinctively, he held his hand back and called out to him, "Lian Jun..."

"I like it when you call me that," Lian Jun looked up at him and kissed the back of his hand. "Relationships require compromise and understanding. I'm often busy and may overlook things, so please remind me if I do. I don't want you to be unhappy."

Shi Jin's heart immediately softened at his words. How could someone be so gentle and considerate? He had only asked a simple question, and although he felt a bit down afterwards, he tried to hide it. But Lian Jun still noticed and took the time to explain after finishing his work.

Shi Jin couldn't help but bend down and hug Lian Jun, saying, "I am a little unhappy, but it's not because of you. It's because I feel like I haven't been able to help you at all... I'm sorry for causing you trouble when you're so busy."

"It's my right to worry about you," Lian Jun stroked his hair and comforted him, "Your company is the greatest help to me."

He really knows how to talk.

The low mood that had been hanging over Shi Jin's eyebrows dissipated a bit. He felt like laughing, but also a bit helpless - although he knew that Lian Jun was just saying nice things to comfort him, he was still easily fooled by these sweet words.

They say that people in love become foolish, and he was no exception.

Sometimes it's not that people really become foolish, but because they don't want to burden the person they like, they're willing to be a good fool.

......

After dinner, the four of them set off, and Number Two was the first to send a message - he had already arrived near the headquarters of Gunfire's subordinate organisation and was organizing personnel and arranging firepower.

After another two hours, news started coming in from Number Three and Five. After inquiring about their personnel arrangements and confirming that everything was in order, Lian Jun stopped asking questions and let them focus on making their battle plans.

Around midnight, the furthest group, Group One, finally sent word that they had reached their destination and were adjusting their personnel and preparing their action plan with the local branch of the enemy forces.

With everyone now on track, they exchanged information and agreed on a plan of attack - to strike the enemy when they least expected it.

Lian Jun didn't interfere with their tactical arrangements and simply waited for their good results.

This was going to be a sleepless night. After midnight, the first battle cry sounded from Number Two. There was no doubt about the strength of Annihilation, who maintained communication with Number Two throughout the operation.

Based on his timely reports, Annihilation almost completely crushed the small subordinate organization of Gunfire, capturing their leader and discovering a safe containing important documents and account books. It was a major success.

Shortly after this, Number Three and Number Five also took action, similarly crushing and sweeping through their targets. However, Number Three was unable to capture their leader, who chose to commit suicide when the situation turned against them.

On the other side, Number One was in charge of the final operation. His small organization was highly valued for its firepower, and both its defensive measures and base layout were difficult to breach. Number One was a cautious person and chose to first find a secure breakthrough point before launching a full-scale attack.

Despite some delays on Number One's side, by daybreak, the final organization was successfully taken down, and Number One even managed to prevent the leader from committing suicide and captured him alive.

With this, all the tasks assigned by Lian Jun were completed in less than a day, an astonishingly efficient feat. Shi Jin watched the entire process in awe. In addition to being amazed, he also deeply understood why Lian Jun didn't assign him this task. With his current strength and experience, he really couldn't handle the work that the Numbers were doing now.

The difference in strength and experience between a small police officer in peacetime and a skilled gangster who grew up in the war is simply like night and day. It's not something that can be caught up with just a few small tasks.

"Retreat immediately, don't let Gunfire cut off our back-up plan. I will send people to cover you, be careful." Lian Jun gave his final instructions, then leaned back in his chair and rubbed his forehead.

Shi Jin snapped out of his thoughts and hurried over to ask, "Do you need to rest? You've been busy all night."

Lian Jun put down his hand and looked at him. Some of the fatigue in his eyebrows and eyes dissipated. He touched his face and said, "You stayed up with me all night. Go rest. I'll have Number Nine take over for you."

"What do you mean by 'staying up with me'? It's my job to accompany you. I'm just doing my own job." Shi Jin corrected him seriously, then grabbed his hand and kissed it, saying with a smile, "Looks like we have to stay up a little longer. Wait here, I'll go get you something to drink to refresh your mind."

Lian Jun couldn't help but smile at his words. He held his hand and nodded in agreement, not saying anything about letting him rest first.

......

As the sky was just beginning to lighten, everyone else in the house was still asleep. Shi Jin moved quietly and quickly to the kitchen, heated up a pot of milk, grabbed some food, and then carried the tray outside.

When he reached the living room, Shi Jin noticed a figure sitting on the single sofa by the window. He was a bit puzzled, but as he approached, he realized that it was Fei Yujing, still dressed in his pajamas.

Fei Yujing looked terrible, with his eyes closed and his brow furrowed, and the dark circles under his eyes were even more pronounced. He looked like he was struggling to digest something.

Shi Jin immediately understood and asked, "Did you have another nightmare?"

Fei Yujing was startled by his sudden voice and quickly opened his eyes. He tried to play it off, saying, "No, I just woke up early and came out for some fresh air."

"But the windows are closed, how can you get any fresh air?" Shi Jin didn't expose him. He put down the tray and took out a disposable cup from the cabinet on the coffee table.

He poured a glass of milk for him, gave him a stack of snacks, and then said, "It's no use staying up like this. Milk can help you sleep. If you can't sleep at night, try drinking a glass of milk before bed. Exercise and proper leisure activities can also help relax your mind. And don't do high-intensity work before bed. If you have nothing to do, you can chat with friends. Anyway, anything is better than staying up alone. If you keep holding it in like this, be careful of psychological problems."

"Are you cursing me?" Fei Yujing frowned and asked back.

Shi Jin couldn't help but admire how unique Fei Yujing's mind was. He looked at him as if he were a fool, then picked up the tray and said, "Yes, I'm cursing you."

With that, he turned and left, not intending to waste any more time on him.

Fei Yujing was left feeling suffocated by Shi Jin's final glance.

He stared at his back, then glanced at the steaming milk and sweet pastries on the coffee table. Frustrated, he furrowed his brow and closed his eyes, leaning back on the sofa.

......

By 10 o'clock in the morning, all of the members of Number One's team had finally retreated to a safe location.

Lian Jun breathed a sigh of relief and called Number Nine to continue monitoring the situation. He then took Shi Jin back to their room.

Shi Jin watched as Lian Jun finished his preparations for bed and settled in. He was about to leave when Lian Jun grabbed his hand and asked, "Aren't you going to rest?"

"I am. I just need to take a shower first," Shi Jin replied.

Lian Jun shifted to the side and said, "I don't mind, come up here."

Shi Jin hesitated. He wanted to say that he wanted to go back to his room to take a shower and rest, but when he caught Lian Jun's concerned gaze, he swallowed his words and followed Lian Jun's lead, lying down on the bed. He helped pull up the covers and said, "Go to sleep."

But Lian Jun leaned over and pressed his lips against Shi Jin's.

Shi Jin was stunned, but when he saw how seriously Lian Jun was kissing him with his eyes closed, he closed his own eyes and wrapped his arms around him.

......

The two of them slept until just before dinner. When they woke up, Number Two and the others had already returned and were still sleeping. Lian Jun called Number Nine and asked about everyone's injuries. When he heard that no one was hurt, he felt relieved and went back to work.

Around ten o'clock that night, Number Two and the others woke up one by one and reported to Lian Jun about the situation. The three captured leaders and their important subordinates have all been dispersed and detained in various branches of Annihilation. The more important information has been brought back and Number Nine was currently summarizing and organizing it.

Lian Jun confirmed some details and then pointed out a few organization's names, assigning tasks to Number One and the others.

Shi Jin was surprised to see this unexpected second wave of cleaning against Gunfire's subordinate organizations. However, Number One and the others seemed to have been mentally prepared and each took their tasks before leaving in unison.

This time, Shi Jin didn't foolishly ask for a task again. After watching them leave, he asked, "Are we going to continue fighting?"

"We'll keep fighting until Gunfire takes the initiative to negotiate with us," Lian Jun replied. Upon hearing this, Shi Jin remembered how Zhuo Yang had tried to lure Lian Jun with Long Shi as bait, but ended up being forced to jump first by Lian Jun. He suddenly felt that the current situation was somewhat similar to that time.

He felt that he had understood a bit of Lian Jun's principle of dealing with things - having chips as an enemy is nothing, as long as you find a way to regain the initiative, then you have won half the battle.

For the next week, Number Two and the others repeated the cycle of going out, cleaning up small organizations, retreating, receiving tasks, and going out again. With L Country as the center, they steadily swept through the important sub-organizations in Gunfire's business network.

In the following days, as the battle with Gunfire intensified and the resistance grew stronger, Number Two and his team decided to skip the retreat and move on to the next mission after clearing out a small organization. They were determined to keep up with the faster pace of attacks and immediately set off for their next target.

As the pace quickened, Lian Jun found himself staying up late more often, causing him to lose weight and look pale.

Seeing this, Shi Jin felt sorry for him and stayed up with him, making sure he ate and rested whenever possible to ease his exhaustion. During this period, due to staying up late, Shi Jin frequently saw Fei Yujing troubled by nightmares at various magical times in the living room. He saw that Fei Yujing's complexion was getting worse day by day and was afraid that he would collapse at any time, delaying everyone's work.

So every time he met him, he kindly handed him a glass of milk and poured some "how to quickly adjust your state" chicken soup.

Fei Yujing was annoyed by him and his attitude changed from sarcastic to irritable. Once, he was so annoyed by Shi Jin that he went straight back to his room.

Shi Jin watched him go back to his room, smacking his lips in satisfaction and asked Xiao Si, "I just made him angry, didn't I?"

Xiao Si felt a little sorry for Fei Yujing and replied, "He's almost driven crazy by you, Jin Jin. Why do you keep bullying him?"

Yes, it was bullying. Although others couldn't see it, Xiao Si knew it well. Those intentional nagging from Shi Jin were really a form of bullying.

In the face of others, Shi Jin had never been so annoying and tactless before.

"What do you mean by bullying or not? I'm just showing concern, okay? Look at how he always gives me the cold shoulder, but I still treat him with kindness. Am I not a good person?" Shi Jin asked with a righteous face.

Xiao Si was speechless and kept its conscience intact through silence.

Time flew by quickly in countless sleepless nights. Both official and underground resources were mobilized, and the economic suppression by the Old Ghost against the Nine Eagles became increasingly severe.

The situation in the southeast region gradually became turbulent, and numerous local organizations sensed that something was amiss. They all turned their attention to the gunfight that had been targeted all along, and were itching to take action.

After another round of sweeping, on a rare sunny day in L country, Number Two and his team returned and stopped their crackdown on Gunfire.

Shi Jin was puzzled and asked, "Did Gunfire come to negotiate with us?"

"No, it was Zhuo Yang who approached the Old Ghost," Number Two replied, scratching his small beard and yawning. "I can't take it anymore, it's been too exciting lately. I need to take a break. I'm going to sleep, do you want to join me, Jin Jin?"

As Shi Jin took a step back to clear his name, he silently gestured towards someone behind him.

Number Two froze, realizing something was amiss. He turned around and saw Lian Jun standing behind him, staring at him with deep intensity. A chill ran down his spine and he quickly tried to cover up his mistake with a forced laugh. "Just kidding, I was just kidding," he said before slipping away.

Number Nine was typing away on his computer, not even bothering to look up as he grumbled, "He never learns. Every time he comes back from a long mission, he ends up getting punished for running his mouth. He deserves it."

Shi Jin couldn't help but chuckle at his friend's predicament.

But Lian Jun remained expressionless as he approached Shi Jin, pulling him down and covering his mouth to prevent any further laughter.

......

Of course, that night, Lian Jun once again discreetly kept Shi Jin in his own room to rest. Shi Jin thought about his own room that he had never slept in and pretended not to notice Lian Jun's little scheme. At Lian Jun's invitation, he climbed onto the bed.

In fact, Shi Jin had already realized that once you climb onto certain beds, it's hard to get off.

The days of staying up late had gone on for too long. Shi Jin woke up in the early hours of the morning and couldn't sleep. Afraid of waking up Lian Jun, he got up and habitually walked towards the living room.

Fei Yujing was once again leaning on the single sofa by the window in the living room, his face hidden in the shadows, his expression unclear.

"You stay up like this every day, you're not going to die suddenly, are you?" Shi Jin stopped in front of him, frowning.

It had been over a week now, and if Fei Yujing continued like this, he really wouldn't be able to hold on. Fei Yujing remained motionless, looking as if he had already died suddenly.

Shi Jin stared at him for a few seconds before turning and leaving.

Fei Yujing's fingers twitched upon hearing the sound of footsteps, but he still didn't open his eyes.

Ten minutes later, Shi Jin returned with hot milk and snacks. He first turned on the living room light, then placed the tray on the coffee table and dragged a table over to Fei Yujing's side. He then pulled a chair over and finally brought the tray over to the small table before sitting down across from Fei Yujing.

Fei Yujing opened his eyes and looked at him, asking, "Shi Jin, what do you want to do?" His tone was surprisingly calm, a rare occurrence in recent times.

Shi Jin glanced at him and took out his tablet, saying, "I'm not doing anything. I've been feeling disoriented lately and can't sleep at night, so I came out to sit for a while."

"Then go sit somewhere else," Fei Yujing shooed him away.

Shi Jin was tapping away on his tablet and said firmly, "This is the best spot for the view. I'm sitting here, and if you want to change, you can do it yourself." He then clicked on a movie.

"Ah!" A piercing scream came from the tablet's speaker, amplified infinitely by the darkness of the night. Fei Yujing was startled, his face turning black as he gritted his teeth and asked, "What are you doing, Shi Jin?"

"I'm watching a movie," Shi Jin replied with a mysterious look on his face. "You know, when I first joined the organization, I was scared of everything and even the sound of gunfire would keep me up for a week. But then an old doctor in the organization told me a trick, and I could sleep again and wasn't afraid of gunfire anymore."

Fei Yujing really wanted to ignore him, or even curse him and drive him away. But after nearly ten days of insomnia and nightmares, he was almost driven crazy. Thinking about the work that still needed to be done, he struggled in his heart for a while.

In the end, he swallowed his pride and responded stiffly, "What's your trick?"

"Fight poison with poison." Shi Jin dragged his chair closer and enlarged the terrifying and bloody movie on his tablet. He said, "Everything becomes numb after seeing too much of it. Today is a rare night with a dark moon and strong wind. Don't you think it's perfect to watch something exciting?"

Fei Yujing looked at the enlarged bloody ghost face on the tablet and forcefully closed his eyes. For the first time, he reached for the milk that Shi Jin had brought and drank it all in one gulp.