Tao Fengche had been unusually distracted since getting into the car, even forgetting to raise the partition between the back seat and the driver’s seat. During a red light, the driver sneaked a glance at the back seat through the rearview mirror, and his heart immediately sank.

…What’s going on with the young master today? Frowning one moment, lost in thought the next, then suddenly smiling—acting out an entire drama by himself. Did he take the wrong medicine, or has he been possessed?

From that moment on, the driver couldn’t help but glance back at Tao Fengche from time to time through the rearview mirror, each change in Tao Fengche’s expression making his heart race. Coupled with the complex road conditions, by the time the trip was over, the driver was physically and mentally exhausted.

Finally arriving at their destination, the driver let out a long breath and cautiously glanced back. Tao Fengche was still lost in his own world.

Time ticked by, and the 6.5-meter-long Maybach arrogantly blocked the entrance to the research institute. Although the security guards recognized the license plate and didn’t approach to drive them away, the driver still felt uneasy as he glanced at the car’s display screen.

Summoning his courage, the driver spoke up, “Young Master, we’ve arrived.”

If you don’t get out soon, you’ll be late!

“Hm?” Tao Fengche, who had been lost in thought, finally snapped back to reality. He cleared his throat awkwardly and then tried to appear composed as he nodded, “Oh.”

He put back on his usual calm facade, grabbed his backpack from the side, and got out of the car.

The research institute had strict controls; everyone had to go through security checks when entering and exiting. However, Tao Fengche’s status was special—being the heir of the Tao family, as soon as the security guard approached, Tao Fengche spoke up, “I’m almost late.”

Tao Fengche didn’t refuse the check, only frowned slightly and said this calmly. Yet, the security guard suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Even though Tao Fengche was entering the institute under the guise of “learning,” with an ID card that read “Intern Researcher,” the security guard didn’t dare to treat this young master like anyone else.

After hesitating for a moment, the security guard only went through the motions, hurriedly scanning Tao Fengche with a detector before letting him in, without noticing the temperature-controlled box in his backpack.

Though he passed the check, there was no joy on Tao Fengche’s face. His expression remained unchanged, and he walked straight to Jing Ning’s office, rhythmically knocking three times. After receiving a response, he pushed the door open and said, “Director Jing, I’m back.”

“Hmm.” Jing Ning didn’t even look up, his gaze still fixed on the experiment report in his hands. “Are you about to start school?”

“Yes,” Tao Fengche nodded, “I’ll be applying for schools next semester. I wanted to spend some time in the lab today to find an area of interest.”

In other words, he didn’t want to join the group today.

“Alright.” Jing Ning glanced at him and agreed.

Although Tao Fengche was there to learn, Jing Ning didn’t intend to treat him like an ordinary intern and exhaust him. “You’re familiar with the institute, so I won’t assign anyone to guide you. Take a look around on your own and let me know once you’ve made a decision.”

Jing Ning trusted Tao Fengche completely. After finishing his words, he waved his hand, dismissing Tao Fengche, and went back to his report.

Tao Fengche quietly stepped out and closed the door.

—He indeed needed to choose a direction for his future studies, but that wasn’t the main reason for today’s visit.

His eyes darkened as he thought about the temperature-controlled box in his backpack and the vial of medicine inside.

But events were about to take an unexpected turn.

The night before last, after the bodyguard infiltrated the “Traditional Chinese Medicine Factory,” he brought back a vial of medicine that Tao Fengche had never seen before. He originally thought he would find answers at the institute, but after spending an entire day searching, even visiting the museum dedicated to storing samples, he couldn’t find a preparation of the same color.

Based on his impression of that production base, it didn’t seem capable of developing such an advanced drug, certainly not one that could surpass the institute, which had an annual research budget in the billions.

Unfortunately, the bodyguard, in order to avoid alerting anyone, didn’t thoroughly investigate the factory and only knocked out a staff member to steal that vial of medicine. So, there was still a chance that the medicine was developed there…

Tao Fengche walked out of the last laboratory on his list, waved goodbye to the person in charge, then removed his sterile gown and stood in the corridor, frowning in thought for a long while before finally deciding to stick to his original plan and speak to Jing Ning.

Even though Director Jing had openly supported Sui Yuesheng at the funeral, seemingly disregarding Tao Zhixing’s kindness, Tao Fengche understood the reason after his long conversation with Xu Song last night—it had all been pre-arranged by Tao Zhixing.

Before that conversation, Tao Fengche had never doubted Jing Ning’s loyalty. If you asked him who in the Tao family was least likely to betray them, aside from Xu Song, Jing Ning would undoubtedly be the top candidate.

Tao Fengche had thought this through and concluded that Jing Ning might be even more determined than him not to let the Tao family collapse. After all, outside of this place, no one would trust a beta with such high confidence and unconditionally support his various wild ideas.

As long as Jing Ning claimed it was related to scientific research, the Tao family’s finances would allocate funds directly to him; if it involved sensitive areas, the funds would come from the Tao family’s secret accounts. For more specialized projects, the research budget even came from Tao Zhixing’s personal account.

Although Sui Yuesheng had taken control of the Tao family and thoroughly investigated everything, Jing Ning hadn’t been implicated at all. That’s why Tao Fengche trusted him completely and had high expectations—Jing Ning had seen and experienced a lot; he would surely recognize this substance. If by chance even he didn’t, then it would be the perfect opportunity to borrow an instrument from his private lab to analyze its components.

But when Tao Fengche knocked on Jing Ning’s office door, took out the item from the temperature-controlled box, and placed it in front of him, Jing Ning’s face suddenly changed.

Jing Ning had always been a man who remained calm even in the face of a collapsing mountain. Even at Tao Zhixing’s funeral, surrounded by those ruthless old figures, he had skillfully navigated the situation. But now, he suddenly stood up, moving so abruptly that he knocked over his chair.

There was a loud crash behind him, but he didn’t care. He snatched the vial from Tao Fengche’s hand, his voice trembling slightly, “Where did you get this?”

Tao Fengche swore he saw a flicker of panic in Jing Ning’s eyes.

But what could this be to scare even Jing Ning? Surely, it wasn’t some kind of bioweapon…

He couldn’t figure it out, but he still answered honestly, “From an abandoned production line. The address is…”

He hadn’t even finished speaking when Jing Ning abruptly interrupted him, “You haven’t shown this thing to anyone else besides me, right?”

“At the time, the family bodyguard snuck in to get it for me. Aside from him, no one else has seen it. The bodyguard was selected by Uncle Xu, and he’s very tight-lipped.”

“That’s good.” Jing Ning nodded solemnly, took two steps forward to lock the office door, tightly gripping the vial in his right hand. Without looking back, he headed straight for the private lab inside, saying, “Follow me.”

… Could it really be a bioweapon? Something like a genetically targeted weapon, extremely lethal, capable of wiping out an entire race?

Tao Fengche began to realize something was off, especially when he followed Jing Ning into the lab and watched as the latter activated the signal jammer and then placed the vial in a hidden compartment.

“What exactly is this stuff?” Tao Fengche’s throat felt dry as he subconsciously swallowed.

“It’s a kind of… medication that should have long ceased to exist in this world.” Jing Ning looked at the hidden compartment with a complicated expression, filled with emotions that Tao Fengche couldn’t comprehend.

“What is it used for?” Tao Fengche pressed on, “Is it a drug sold only on the black market, or one that was destroyed before it ever saw the light of day?”

Jing Ning remained silent for a long time, as if he were trying to find the right words. Tao Fengche, too, was patient, waiting for his response.

Five minutes later, Jing Ning suddenly spoke, but his question was completely unrelated, “How much do you know about Chu Yin?”

“Are you talking about… uncle Zhao Jiayang’s omega?” At first, Tao Fengche thought Jing Ning was referring to someone else with the same name. But when he saw Jing Ning nod, he was surprised to realize that the person in question was indeed the one in his mind.

Chu Yin had passed away more than two years ago. To avoid bringing up Zhao Jiayang’s sorrow, everyone tacitly avoided mentioning him in their daily lives. The few photos they had were also put away, as if he had never existed in this world.

But hearing Jing Ning mention his name out of the blue today, Tao Fengche suddenly realized that he had never truly forgotten him.

In an instant, his mind painted a clear picture of the person.

Chu Yin was from Kyushu, with a pair of round almond eyes. His hair, which barely reached his neck, had a slight brown tinge due to malnutrition, and his face was pale from long-standing health issues.

He loved spicy food, especially hot pot, but the doctor had instructed him to eat blandly, so Zhao Jiayang always kept a close watch, forbidding him from eating this or that. He only got to indulge during festivals, but after just a bite or two, Zhao Jiayang would put a stop to it, no matter how much Chu Yin pouted or acted soft.

Tao Fengche vividly remembered a scene: he was still in elementary school, and Chu Yin, just over thirty at the time, took advantage of Zhao Jiayang being distracted to sneak a piece of duck intestine from the spicy side of the hot pot. He winked at Tao Fengche, signaling him to keep quiet, and then quickly popped it into his mouth, squinting his eyes in bliss.

Chu Yin had a cool demeanor and rarely smiled, but he treated Tao Fengche like his own child. Whenever he saw Tao Fengche, he would smile warmly. After he turned forty, faint smile lines appeared at the corners of his eyes, but other than that, his face remained free of wrinkles.

For a long time, Chu Yin fulfilled all of Tao Fengche’s fantasies about what a “mother” should be.

Even in such a tense moment, as Tao Fengche recalled Chu Yin, he felt himself softening. A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he spoke with fondness, “Aunt…”

“He was in poor health and rarely went out. Many people secretly said he was aloof and arrogant, but in reality, he was a very gentle and kind omega, with a particularly beautiful smile.” Tao Fengche spoke slowly, “He didn’t have any children, but he was always involved in charity work without caring about fame. Most of the orphanages and welfare institutions sponsored by the Tao family during those years were his ideas, and it was his money, but they were all under the Tao family’s name…”

Jing Ning listened quietly, without interrupting, but his expression grew increasingly serious.

Tao Fengche felt a sudden unease and cautiously stopped talking, asking nervously, “Did I say something wrong?”

Even he didn’t realize how low his voice had become. Jing Ning almost hesitated to speak.

But after closing his eyes for a moment, Jing Ning finally told the truth, “You got one thing wrong.”

“What?” Tao Fengche asked instinctively.

“Chu Yin was a beta.”