The next day, Chu Shangluo and Chu Zong followed the address provided by Su Ran and, after several twists and turns, arrived at the Wen family’s pharmaceutical base.

What stood before them was a sanatorium that was no longer in operation. The place was remote and sparsely populated, but the tire tracks in the snow indicated that people often came and went. The building appeared old and weathered, with a rusted gate tightly shut. Inside the small guard booth, two bodyguards dressed in black sat watching. The yard was empty, and beyond that, nothing could be seen.

Chu Shangluo took out his phone and took a picture of the sanatorium’s exterior, then parked the car far from the building.

Chu Zong said, “Cousin, should I go with you? I feel like it’s too dangerous for you to go alone. What if something happens? Or if you’re discovered inside, won’t the Wen family silence you?”

Chu Shangluo was silent, then tapped Chu Zong on the head for overthinking. “Have you been watching too many dramas? What era are we in? Silence someone? Does the Wen family even have the guts to do that? If they had the guts, Wen Yan would have just sent a few people to kill me directly. Why go through all this trouble with drugs, car accidents, and schemes to make me bankrupt?”

Chu Zong wasn’t as relaxed as Chu Shangluo. He still looked worried. “But all these underhanded tricks… the Wen family really has some nerve.”

Chu Shangluo opened the car door and patted Chu Zong on the shoulder. “It’ll be fine. Wait for me here. If I’m not out in two hours, call the police.”

Chu Zong nodded. “Cousin, be careful. If anything happens, call me.”

After Chu Shangluo got out of the car, he circled the sanatorium’s wall and found a blind spot in the surveillance. He stopped at the blind spot, grabbed the top of the wall with both hands, and used the protruding bricks to climb over. He managed to get in while the bodyguards at the gate weren’t paying attention.

Once on the ground, Chu Shangluo was slightly out of breath. It had been a while since he last climbed a wall, and his body wasn’t as agile as before. The sanatorium door was half open, and seeing that no one was around, he immediately entered.

As soon as he stepped inside, the strong smell of medicine hit his nose, making Chu Shangluo frown. The hallway was eerily quiet and empty. His purpose here was simple: to record evidence of Wen family’s illegal drug production and to take some of the drugs with him.

The first and second floors were empty, but when he reached the third floor, the laboratory area, he heard footsteps. He hid around the corner and peeked into the hallway. Two men in white coats came out of the laboratory, chatting as they walked toward another staircase.

Once they were far enough away, Chu Shangluo quietly stepped out and moved toward the laboratory door. However, the door opened again unexpectedly. It all happened so suddenly, and Chu Shangluo had no time to hide. He simply stayed still.

Suddenly, someone covered his mouth, and a strong arm wrapped around his waist, pulling him into a nearby room. He swung his fist back at the person, but his hand was quickly caught and pinned against the wall.

“It’s me.”

A low, deep voice rang in his ear.

Chu Shangluo looked up to see Ren Jiaoming. Ren Jiaoming was wearing a black coat, with snowflakes from outside still stuck to it, clearly visible. He carried the cold air of winter, his eyes calmly watching him.

Chu Shangluo sighed in relief. He removed Ren Jiaoming’s hand from his mouth, frowning. “What are you doing here?”

Ren Jiaoming noticed that the zipper of Chu Shangluo’s coat was undone. He lowered his head and zipped it up for him, fastening the collar, saying, “I came to find something.”

Chu Shangluo was slightly out of breath from the way Ren Jiaoming was tightening the coat around him. He pushed Ren Jiaoming’s hand away, tugged at the collar, and took a deep breath, staring at Ren Jiaoming. He had thought that after what happened the night before, Ren Jiaoming would give up on pursuing him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have disappeared all day yesterday. But judging by Ren Jiaoming’s current behavior, it seemed he had thought wrong.

At that moment, Chu Shangluo was in a cramped storage room. Ren Jiaoming’s body was pressed closely against him. If he just tilted his head, his lips would brush against Ren Jiaoming’s chin. What made him even more uncomfortable was that one of Ren Jiaoming’s legs was pressed against his crotch, making him feel uneasy.

Chu Shangluo pushed Ren Jiaoming hard. “Damn it… take your leg out of there, and can you stop being so close? It’s suffocating.”

Just then, people outside approached and stopped to chat right outside the storage room door. Ren Jiaoming lowered his head and looked at Chu Shangluo’s impatient face, making a silencing gesture.

Chu Shangluo remained silent. The indoor temperature in Beijing during winter was high, and even though Chu Shangluo was wearing a thick coat, he and Ren Jiaoming were pressed so closely together that the heat was overwhelming. Sweat soaked through his back. Chu Shangluo was sweating, his breath hot as he exhaled. Ren Jiaoming, on the other hand, radiated a cold aura, the only source of coolness in the stifling space.

Chu Shangluo wanted to push him away, but his body uncontrollably gravitated toward the cold source. He lowered his head, trying to resist Ren Jiaoming’s presence.

Ren Jiaoming’s gaze fell on Chu Shangluo’s pale, sweaty neck. Sweat had dampened the hair behind his ears, and the ends of his hair clung to his skin. As his breath became uneven, his Adam’s apple moved with a soft roll. When Chu Shangluo’s rounded Adam’s apple moved, Ren Jiaoming unconsciously shifted his own.

His hand, as if bewitched, reached for Chu Shangluo. With a cool touch, his fingers traced the soft, sweaty skin, sliding from the back of his neck down to his Adam’s apple. Ren Jiaoming’s fingertip lightly pressed against it.

This caused Chu Shangluo to shiver, his scalp tingling with the sensation. Enraged, he swatted Ren Jiaoming’s hand away. “What the hell are you doing…”

Chu Shangluo raised his head, and his lips unexpectedly brushed against Ren Jiaoming’s, soft as a feather, sending a tingling sensation between them. For a moment, both of them were stunned.

Chu Shangluo was the first to react, quickly turning his head away. What was going on? He had never been in such a situation before—he had never been so sneaky or cramped into such a small space with anyone. The heated body temperature, the ambiguous atmosphere, and the way Ren Jiaoming was looking at him—all of it made him feel irritated.

Ren Jiaoming explained, “I was wiping your sweat.”

The spot on Chu Shangluo’s neck where Ren Jiaoming had touched still felt numb and tingling. “Do I not have hands? Do I need you to wipe it for me?”

Ren Jiaoming, used to being scolded, didn’t show much emotion. His gaze remained on Chu Shangluo’s face, observing every reaction.

The people outside finally left. Chu Shangluo let out a sigh of relief and pushed Ren Jiaoming away before stepping out the door. He took a deep breath and walked to the laboratory door. Looking through the glass, he saw a large quantity of drugs inside. Just thinking about how the Wen family had sold more illicit drugs than what was in the lab made his back chill. The Wen family really deserved to die!

Chu Shangluo gripped the doorknob, but Ren Jiaoming suddenly pushed him aside.

Chu Shangluo asked, “What are you doing?”

Ren Jiaoming put on a mask. “There are cameras inside. You can’t show your face. I know what you’re looking for, I’ll go.”

After saying that, Ren Jiaoming quickly entered the lab, leaving Chu Shangluo outside.

Chu Shangluo: “…” I don’t need you meddling in my business!!!

Just as Chu Shangluo was about to enter, the door to the room opposite the lab opened. If he went in now, the sound of the door opening and closing would definitely attract attention. In a hurry, he had no choice but to hide back in the storage room.

The man who had come out of the opposite room glanced around the empty hallway and walked into the lab. A few people came up the stairs shortly after and also entered the lab.

Chu Shangluo had no choice but to wait outside. He didn’t know if those people had seen Ren Jiaoming, so all he could do was wait. As time passed, just when he was about to lose patience, his phone received a text message from Ren Jiaoming: “I’m outside the building, come out.”

Chu Shangluo relaxed. He really didn’t like Ren Jiaoming’s habit of acting without asking. There were very few people at the sanatorium, and the way out was clear. As he walked out of the building, he saw Ren Jiaoming waving at him from behind the building.

He walked over with a cold expression. Ren Jiaoming took out the drugs and handed them to him. “Got it.”

When Ren Jiaoming extended his hand, Chu Shangluo noticed a few scrapes on his palm. He was puzzled for a moment but accepted the drugs. “How did you get out?”

Ren Jiaoming replied, “Nothing, let’s go.”

Ren Jiaoming didn’t say more, but Chu Shangluo guessed. The deep impressions of footprints in the snow, the open window on the third floor, and the old, precarious cable outside all confirmed one thing — Ren Jiaoming had jumped down from the third floor.

Chu Shangluo couldn’t help but glance at Ren Jiaoming, whose expression remained calm. He felt flustered. The third floor was at least six or seven meters high, and who knew if the cable was live, but Ren Jiaoming had dared to grab it and jump down. Was he out of his mind? A madman!

The two reached the base of the wall. Ren Jiaoming climbed over first. Chu Shangluo watched Ren Jiaoming’s agile figure and then thought about how, due to his lack of exercise and his aging body, he was nowhere near as nimble as Ren Jiaoming.

When jumping out, Chu Shangluo thought to himself that he would never do something like this again.

Ren Jiaoming steadied Chu Shangluo, who had just jumped down. Chu Shangluo pushed him away and asked, “What did you come here to find? And I don’t believe it was just a coincidence that we ran into each other. You better tell the truth—were you following me?”

“Yeah, it wasn’t a coincidence,” Ren Jiaoming admitted, no longer hiding it. “When I went to find you today, I saw you leave, so I just followed you.”

Chu Shangluo, now numb from Ren Jiaoming’s persistent behavior, turned and started walking back. “So, have you solved your antique problem?”

“Not yet.”

“Then go solve it. Isn’t your antique the most important thing?”

Ren Jiaoming was silent for a moment, then replied, “You’re the most important.”

Chu Shangluo didn’t say anything. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, exhaled a breath of cold air, and squeezed the cigarette box in his palm. For the rest of the way, Chu Shangluo didn’t speak, and Ren Jiaoming silently followed him, watching his indifferent back.

In the car, Chu Zong was anxiously looking at his phone. The two hours were almost up, and Chu Shangluo still hadn’t come out. Had something really happened to him? Should he call the police? Just as his mind was filled with images of Chu Shangluo being caught by the Wen family’s bodyguards, tied to a chair, and beaten or scolded, freezing with fear, he was about to call the police when the car door opened.

Chu Shangluo sat in the passenger seat with an unhappy expression. “Drive.”

“You’re finally back! You scared me to death. Did someone discover you? Are they chasing you?” Chu Zong quickly stepped on the gas pedal and drove out.

Chu Shangluo looked back, only turning his head after confirming that he had distanced himself from Ren Jiaoming. He rubbed his forehead and took out the medicine Ren Jiaoming had given him. If this could prove that his brother’s car accident was caused by this drug, it would bring him one step closer to taking revenge on the Wen family.

A strong desire to seek revenge on the Wen family stirred within Chu Shangluo. He really couldn’t wait any longer.

The two of them drove to a relative of Chu Shangluo, a brilliant pharmacist, and also visited the hospital to see Wang Yuanhao, the one responsible for harming his brother. Wang Yuanhao’s condition had improved significantly recently; he could at least answer some simple questions now. Once Wang Yuanhao fully recovered, he could testify and identify Wen Zhengyang, as well as the Wen family’s illegal drug operation. Chu Shangluo felt that he could really make a move soon. Thinking about how he could soon make both Chen Ran and the Wen family suffer, excitement gleamed in his eyes.