The capital city was gradually entering early winter. Except for the evergreen trees, all the others were bare and desolate.

A cold wind howled through the city. Chu Shangluo and Chen Tianyun leaned silently by the window, smoking.

After a while, Chu Shangluo spoke, “Are you free later? I’ll take you to meet Chen Qing.”

“Chen Qing?”

As soon as he said this, the young man lying in the hospital bed stirred slightly, his pale hands slipping out from under the blanket.

Seeing this, Chen Tianyun walked back into the room and gently tucked Mu Chen’s hands back under the blanket.

Chu Shangluo crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe, watching Chen Tianyun’s careful movements. He said, “Old Chen has many grandsons, but it doesn’t make sense for the entire Chen family fortune to be taken by Chen Ran. Chen Qing was the old man’s favorite grandson, yet Chen Ran used underhanded tricks to take most of the inheritance. Chen Qing can’t swallow that either.”

Chen Tianyun nodded slightly, sitting by the bedside and looking at the unconscious youth.

Chu Shangluo watched his back and said, “Looks like you’ve really changed, huh?”

Chen Tianyun shook his head and smiled faintly. “Changed or not, it’s just that with him around, I finally feel a sense of belonging. The kind where you come home, and there’s warm food on the table and a cozy bed waiting for you.”

Chu Shangluo understood that feeling. After all, it had been a long time since he had come home to a warm meal or experienced the comfort of a cozy bed. He had longed for those things, but he never got them.

Taking a long drag from his cigarette, Chu Shangluo turned and sat in a chair in the hallway, waiting for Chen Tianyun to finish.

That day, Chu Shangluo spent the entire time with Chen Tianyun and Chen Qing, discussing strategies. By the time he returned home, it was already late.

For once, Ren Jiaoming hadn’t shown up to bother him, which brought some relief.

That night marked the first frost of winter in the capital. The temperature dropped sharply.

Chu Shangluo thought back to the same time last year when he was overwhelmed with work at the company, but now he was unusually idle.

Unable to sleep, he put on a thin cotton jacket and went downstairs, thinking of visiting the fields.

The night was dark, and the air was freezing. His home was far from the fields. Riding his small electric scooter would be both time-consuming and miserable in this cold.

Now that he wasn’t short on money, Lu Wen usually drove him around in his own car. But because Ren Jiaoming had been clinging to him so much lately, Chu Shangluo had completely forgotten to buy a new car himself.

Annoyed, he thought to himself—Ren Jiaoming really was his bad luck charm.

It was late, so he didn’t want to trouble Lu Wen. Instead, he walked to the roadside to hail a taxi.

A private black car pulled up instead. The window rolled down slowly, revealing a familiar face.

Chu Shangluo frowned. Speak of the devil.

“What are you doing here?”

“Just passing by.”

Ren Jiaoming opened the car door, his gaze lingering on Chu Shangluo’s face, which was slightly flushed from the cold wind.

“Where are you going? I’ll drive you.”

“No need. Since you’re just passing by, you should keep going.”

Chu Shangluo flagged down another taxi and got in, glancing back at the black car.

Passing by? My ass.

It was obvious he had been waiting outside his home on purpose.

Still, Chu Shangluo had to admit—he admired his persistence.

On the way to the fields, Ren Jiaoming’s car was still closely following behind. Knowing he couldn’t shake him off, Chu Shangluo simply crossed his arms, choosing to ignore him rather than be annoyed.

As they neared the fields, Chu Shangluo noticed a black van driving in the opposite direction. His gaze lingered on it for a moment. This road rarely had traffic, especially this late at night, which made him wary.

After getting out of the car, Chu Shangluo turned on his flashlight and walked toward the small shed. The cold wind howled, making the plastic sheets of the greenhouse flap loudly. The sound was unusually harsh in the quiet night.

The noise felt off to him. The wind tonight wasn’t strong enough to make such a racket.

Suddenly, his foot stepped on a piece of plastic.

He picked it up—it was the same kind of plastic used for the greenhouse.

His eyelid twitched.

Immediately, he called Chu Zong, who was on night duty, instructing him to turn on all the lights. Meanwhile, he quickened his pace toward the greenhouse.

By the time he reached it, the entire greenhouse was illuminated.

Under the bright lights, the damage was fully revealed—ripped, slashed, and smashed apart. The greenhouse lay in ruins.

Inside, some of the strawberry plants had already started bearing fruit. But with the destroyed cover and the sudden drop in temperature, the plants looked wilted, while others had been trampled and broken beyond repair.

Chu Shangluo’s face turned grim as he stared at the devastation.

When Chu Zong came out to greet him, he saw Chu Shangluo standing motionless, staring at the greenhouse. He jogged over, about to ask why he wasn’t coming inside, but when his eyes landed on the ruined strawberry plants, his expression shifted drastically.

Enraged, he began examining the damaged crops, picking up the ruined plants with heartache. His voice shook with fury.

“Who the hell did this?!”

Chu Shangluo clenched his fists, recalling the black van that had passed by earlier. He punched a nearby tree trunk, swearing under his breath. Damn it!

If he had arrived just half an hour earlier, this wouldn’t have happened.

By now, light snow had begun to fall.

Chu Shangluo lit a cigarette, his gaze fixed on the wrecked greenhouse. He paced through the field, examining the extent of the damage to the crops.

Chu Zong, still trembling with anger, stormed back over.

“Shit! I’m checking the surveillance right now and calling the police! I’ll find out who the bastard is that did this!”

Since their rice seedlings had been sabotaged by Wen Yan’s people last time, Chu Shangluo had installed surveillance cameras around the area to avoid being caught off guard again without evidence.

Suppressing his fury, Chu Shangluo said, “The damage isn’t too severe yet. We caught it early. If we had let this sit overnight, the crops would’ve all frozen to death. Forget the surveillance for now. The priority is fixing the greenhouse immediately. Call every Chu family member still in the city— as many as you can. We need to get this done before the snow gets heavier, or everything will die.”

“Alright, I’ll call them now!”

It was already ten o’clock at night, and light snow was falling steadily. The nearest Chu family members would take at least half an hour to arrive.

Chu Shangluo could wait, but the crops couldn’t.

With a cigarette hanging from his lips, he rolled up his sleeves and got to work, starting with the least damaged greenhouse. He patched up as much as he could, saving whatever was salvageable.

Chu Zong joined him, both racing against time.

When Ren Jiaoming arrived, he saw Chu Shangluo working with his bare hands, pulling plastic sheets over the crops. His face was stern, his movements quick but steady, and his hands were bright red from the freezing cold.

Ren Jiaoming’s gaze darkened as he took in the destroyed greenhouse and the exhausted, overwhelmed figure of Chu Shangluo.

Without saying a word, he pulled out a pair of gloves and held them out.

“Put these on. Your hands will crack if you don’t.”

Chu Shangluo had no time to pay attention to Ren Jiaoming. After finishing covering one greenhouse, he immediately moved on to the next.

The next moment, he received a call.

Chen Ran’s voice came through, full of provocation:

“Busy, Mr. Chu?”

Chu Shangluo’s grip on his phone tightened, nearly crushing it.

His voice turned icy as he replied,

“Chen Ran, I have a big gift for you too. Get ready to receive it.”