Meeting

"What's wrong?" On the spaceship, Bo Lang noticed that Chi Li seemed a little off and walked over to ask, "Something on your mind? You haven't really been yourself today."

Bo Lang was already in his fifties. With a thick beard, naturally wavy brown hair, and a tall, sturdy build, he was the chief commander of the mercenary corps. He had also led the corps step by step to its current position.

Chi Li came back to himself and smiled. "I was thinking about something else, but it won't affect today's mission."

Bo Lang did not press further. "Good. This mission came up rather suddenly. It hasn't disrupted any of your other plans, has it?"

Chi Li shook his head.

"Good. Once this mission is over, get some proper rest." Bo Lang did not leave, instead adding, "Oh, right. A few days ago, I found some things in the junk box in my room. Sheng Rui must have stuffed them there before. They're encrypted files, too. I really don't know how he could be so careless..."

Sheng Rui was Chi Li's late uncle. He had died during a mission. The mission had been successfully completed, but Sheng Rui had been killed by enemy fire while protecting Chi Li.

Sheng Rui had no other children. Chi Li had been responsible for sorting through his belongings and arranging his funeral with the mercenary corps.

Chi Li's expression shifted slightly as he looked at Bo Lang.

Many years had passed since Sheng Rui's death. Yet whenever Bo Lang saw Chi Li's face, he still seemed, in Bo Lang's memory, like a child who only came up to his waist.

Bo Lang could not help reaching out to rub Chi Li's shoulder. "I shouldn't have brought it up."

A relieved smile appeared on Chi Li's face. "I'm not sad. It's been a long time. It's just that few people mention Uncle anymore."

Bo Lang said, "We all remember him. We just rarely talk about him. You know how it is here—death is far too common. It could happen the very next second. He had long expected it, and you were his greatest pride. No matter what, he would have made that choice. We all would have made the same choice."

Chi Li fell silent.

Bo Lang continued, "When we get back, I'll give those things to you. He always used to misplace things..."

Bo Lang squeezed Chi Li's shoulder. "Keep it up. The reward for this mission is huge."

Bo Lang scratched his head and headed out as he spoke.

After talking with Bo Lang for a while, Chi Li's restless emotions did indeed settle considerably.

He had been thinking about that test report just now.

The dream he had repeatedly been having some time ago seemed to have suddenly become reality, leaving Chi Li unable to suppress a chill.

How was that possible?

He was an alpha.

Maybe it was a misdiagnosis. Si Jinyan's identity was unusual to begin with; perhaps coming into contact with him too frequently had disrupted certain values in Chi Li's body.

There was no time to go to the hospital now. He would get tested again after this mission was complete.

When the banquet began, the first-floor hall was bustling with activity. A massive light screen was playing footage of the guest of honor.

Looking from the first floor toward the partially concealed lounge on the second floor, one could only see vague silhouettes. Chi Li and the mercenary corps members disguised as bodyguards were there.

The employer, Shi Jiahua, was one of the biggest names behind the largest jewelry brands in the interstellar world. Rumor had it that his most favored youngest son was frail and sickly, and had once been in a car accident. Thus, when the youngest son appeared only briefly at the banquet on the grounds of poor health, no one found it inappropriate.

Most of the guests valued the resources they could access through this occasion more.

By then, the banquet had reached its most lively stage.

From the bright hall below, it was impossible to see much of the semi-secluded private rooms on the second floor. But seated upstairs with an excellent view, Chi Li could easily take in more than half the hall.

Chi Li's gaze swept across the hall when his peripheral vision suddenly caught a familiar figure. However, by the time he looked again, the person had already turned around. It was an unfamiliar face Chi Li did not recognize.

Chi Li frowned.

Qi Yan had repeatedly warned Chi Li not to leave Luolan again and not to take on any more missions. Chi Li felt that Qi Yan was being overly cautious about this matter.

This mission was in a country neighboring Luolan, not far away. Chi Li knew his limits.

Yet at that moment, merely because of a back view, his heart suddenly began to race.

Chi Li clenched the hand resting on his knee.

Even now, he still did not understand why Si Jinyan had done those things—repeatedly tormenting him, then ultimately letting him go. Faced with the absolute power Si Jinyan possessed, anyone would feel fear.

Chi Li knew full well that such fear would first disrupt his resolve and dampen his side's morale.

Du Wei, who was playing the role of a bodyguard beside him, placed a hand on the back of Chi Li's wheelchair and said softly, "Young master, it's time to go back and rest."

Chi Li came back to himself and answered, "All right."

The "youngest son" with poor health, played by Chi Li, was leaving the banquet and returning to his lounge.

The corridor was dim. Chi Li and the two bodyguards around him remained alert to their surroundings the entire time.

As Du Wei pushed Chi Li's wheelchair toward the lounge, he said in a low voice, "They may be lying in wait in the lounge. Don't let your guard down."

The youngest son had nearly been kidnapped before, and the employer had emphasized this point several times. Although there had only been one threatening letter so far, they could not lower their guard until they confirmed it was merely a prank or caught the perpetrator.

Chi Li nodded. A gun was tucked inside his white suit jacket. If he remained cautious, he had more than enough time to escape danger.

The master bedroom on the second floor, meant for rest, had originally been prepared for the adult "youngest son," the guest of honor. Chi Li would stay there tonight and wait for a possible attack.

A voice came through the miniature communication earpiece in Chi Li's ear. "Master bedroom is secure. No suspicious individuals have entered."

Chi Li's expression remained unchanged.

He did not turn on the main lights bright enough to illuminate the bedroom. He left only a small lamp near the bed on, and after lying down, he waited until the bodyguards had left before switching it off.

The miniature cameras installed in the room were monitoring its movements at all times. At the first sign of danger, his teammates outside would burst through the door.

Chi Li deliberately slowed his breathing, creating the illusion that he had fallen asleep.

Then he heard a faint sound from the balcony, yet no warning came through his miniature earpiece.

Chi Li's brows drew together slightly. He did not open his eyes at once, but his uneasy intuition grew increasingly intense.

Once he confirmed that someone had indeed approached, Chi Li abruptly opened his eyes. At the same time, the person in the darkness seized him first.

Chi Li was about to restrain the other person when the familiar pheromones washing over him made him freeze.

By the time Chi Li came back to himself, Si Jinyan had already seized him.

Chi Li's breathing caught.

The skin beside his ear was brushed by something hard. His heart pounded wildly as Chi Li realized it was the scales that only grew along Si Jinyan's neck when he lost control.