Yan Po was no ordinary criminal and was immediately taken away by the police with the highest level of security.
Since Yan Po was arrested during school hours, few people witnessed it. Following the police’s request, the school stated that a fraudster skilled in disguises had been apprehended.
Lin Zhiyu promptly took the “wine candy” from Wu Tiantian and handed her a fresh durian instead.
The Institute of Biochemistry issued a top-level notice to everyone, strictly instructing all teachers, students, and staff not to leak any information. As a result, no one spoke too much about the matter. The research work at the Academy of Science was so demanding that, even in casual conversations with friends, no real secrets were ever discussed.
However, just to be safe, Xie Youzhou monitored the internet for a while.
As for the two individuals who came to China with Yan Po, their whereabouts had been tracked long before Yan Po’s arrest. However, the police did not arrest them immediately but kept them under surveillance, waiting to see if anyone else would join them.
Yan Po’s communication devices were also confiscated, and her passwords and ciphered contacts were quickly decrypted.
A larger operation was unfolding—
The Chinese police did not treat this as a simple poisoning case but as a very serious transnational drug smuggling operation. As the investigation deepened, more police resources were involved.
Xie Youzhou was extremely busy with both building his company and assisting with the investigation. He barely had time to sleep, and the dark circles under his eyes worsened.
Seeing this, Lin Zhiyu felt concerned.
On the weekend, instead of eating in the cafeteria, Lin Zhiyu went to a nearby supermarket to buy some fresh fruit, a large piece of pork tenderloin, a mandarin fish, and three kilograms of live shrimp.
He also added a package of bulk wolfberries and ginseng slices.
When Xie Youzhou saw Lin Zhiyu at the door, he was so surprised that he stuttered, grabbing his headphones.
“Ge… Gege, why are you here?!”
Wasn’t this supposed to be the time for his Gege to eat and then get back to his experiment?
“During our video call yesterday, I noticed you weren’t looking well. You’ve lost weight, and your dark circles are so pronounced. No matter how busy you are, you still need to eat and sleep properly, right?”
Lin Zhiyu smiled as he entered the house with his groceries.
I’ll show off my cooking skills. I’m going to make you a good meal. No matter how young you are, you won’t be able to keep up.”
“So, Brother… you bought all this just for me? What are you going to cook?”
Xie Youzhou felt a wave of emotion. Every part of him tingled with excitement, and his heart swelled with joy. It felt almost too good to be true.
He stared at Lin Zhiyu as he walked into the kitchen, following him like a puppet, a silly grin plastered on his face. He looked like a carefree teenage boy, without any pretense or disguise.
Lin Zhiyu took out a basin and poured the shrimp in. When he turned around and saw Xie Youzhou smiling foolishly, he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Why are you smiling like that? You’re wasting your handsome face.”
“Brother, do you think I’m handsome?” Why did he feel so silly in front of his brother?
“Of course, you’re very handsome,” Lin Zhiyu laughed, tapping Xie Youzhou’s forehead. He found the boyish awkwardness of Xie Youzhou to be endearing.
“Okay, go ahead and continue your work. I need to focus on cooking.”
“I want to help you in the kitchen!” Xie Youzhou eagerly rolled up his sleeves, ready to cook alongside his brother. His heart raced with excitement and shyness at the thought of them working together like a couple.
“No, you’re already too busy,” Lin Zhiyu said.
“I’m not that busy anymore. I’ve been recruiting for the company, and I’ll be interviewing some helpers in a couple of days. There have been a lot of resumes coming in recently,” Xie Youzhou said as he took out the tenderloin and began slicing it.
Lin Zhiyu smiled gently, his eyes crinkling. “Alright, let’s work together and finish faster.”
Suddenly, Xie Youzhou’s expression shifted as he received a call.
“Did you get a call?” Lin Zhiyu asked while slicing a cucumber.
“Just a spam call, Brother. I’m heading to the restroom,” Xie Youzhou said, quickly slipping out of the kitchen, running to the bathroom, and flushing the toilet. He then hurriedly called back the number he had just hung up on.
On the other end, a voice answered, “Hello, sir, the order you placed…”
“No, keep it, enjoy it. I’ll give you a good review,” Xie Youzhou replied quickly, his tone low and smooth, before hanging up.
Returning to the kitchen, he washed his hands, still grinning like a happy pup.
In reality, Lin Zhiyu wasn’t particularly good at cooking. He tossed in a lot of wolfberries and ginseng slices into the stew. Xie Youzhou noticed the floating red berries and hesitated for a moment.
Nevertheless, he ladled a bowl for himself, despite not liking wolfberries much. He drank it with enthusiasm, swallowing the berries with effort. “Brother, it’s delicious!”
Lin Zhiyu smiled, “If you like it, have more. But don’t drink too much; we still have more to eat.”
“No, I’ll be fine,” Xie Youzhou replied, a little embarrassed but eager.
The two of them spent an hour preparing five dishes and a soup. The portions were large, but they were completely devoured—mostly by Xie Youzhou.
Afterward, Xie Youzhou felt deeply satisfied, as though he were radiating happiness. However, by three in the morning…
At the height of his youthful energy, Xie Youzhou found himself overwhelmed with heat, his body burning like wildfire. He pulled out a photo of Lin Zhiyu.
“Gege… Gege…” His eyes were dark, with hints of red. After three rounds of releasing his tension, he finally caught his breath.
Looking at the stained photo, he quickly cleaned it with a wet wipe, kissed it lovingly, and lay down again, just as the first light of dawn appeared outside.
—
Although the “jt” website had only been running for a little over two months, its reputation was already impressive. Less than a week after Xie Youzhou posted the recruitment notice, nearly a thousand resumes had been submitted—despite the high threshold he had set for applicants.
Xie Youzhou spent one day narrowing down fifty-six resumes and two more days conducting interviews.
In the end, only sixteen people were hired.
The sixteen were divided into different groups based on their skills, and they were informed that they would start work in three days. Xie Youzhou had already rented a floor in an office building and arranged for it to be cleaned up over the next few days.
Lin Zhiyu visited Xie Youzhou’s office and was quite impressed.
“This place is nice.”
“Gege, I feel relieved hearing you say that.” Xie Youzhou, dressed in a suit with a charming smile and captivating eyes, caught the attention of the passing girls, who couldn’t help but blush and whisper.
In a suit, he was even more striking and impressive compared to his usual appearance.
For some reason, Lin Zhiyu felt a bit strange, like a faint mist covering an odd mixture of sweet and sour emotions. He couldn’t quite understand it. Before he could think further, Xie Youzhou’s serious voice pulled him back.
“Gege, I promise to buy this entire building as our office space within two years. Do you believe me?”
“Yes.” Lin Zhiyu responded with equal seriousness, a soft and trusting light in his eyes that even he didn’t notice.
His gaze was so gentle, full of affection and confidence.
“Hey, this place is great!” A voice suddenly sounded from outside.
It was Jiang Weihua, who had come after hearing from Lin Zhiyu.
Seeing Jiang Weihua appear, Lin Zhiyu felt a subtle pang of regret. He coughed lightly, brushing away the inappropriate thought.
“You’re free? I thought you wouldn’t make it.”
For a moment, Xie Youzhou’s face darkened—this unwanted “third wheel.” But he still extended his hospitality. “How about we have dinner together tonight?”
“Alright, I won’t say no to that.” Jiang Weihua smiled. Lately, he had been in a better mood and his health had improved, making him look less frail.
“Oh, by the way, Xiao Xie, guess who I ran into on the way here.” Jiang Weihua said mysteriously.
“Who?” Xie Youzhou wasn’t particularly curious.
“Hua Yutang. Isn’t he an old friend of yours? You two used to hang out a lot as kids, right?”
“Hua Yutang?” Xie Youzhou frowned slightly. If Jiang Weihua hadn’t mentioned him, Xie might have forgotten about seeing him again after his rebirth. Hua Yutang had been a big part of his childhood, but since the Hua family moved to Country M years ago, they had hardly seen each other. Their meeting at a banquet held by the Ruan family had been a rare reunion.
They hadn’t stayed in touch much in his previous life.
“Why did he come back to China?”
“I don’t know. He also asked if I’d seen you,” Jiang Weihua said casually. “I told him I had, and he asked for your contact info. I didn’t give it to him, but he gave me his.”
Xie Youzhou frowned again. “If he needs to talk to me, just give it to him. That way, he won’t keep bothering you.”
“Got it, I’ll handle it.” Jiang Weihua said as his stomach suddenly growled.
Lin Zhiyu chuckled, “How about we eat first?”
“Yes, I’m starving,” Jiang Weihua agreed.
Xie Youzhou drove his gege and Jiang Weihua to a nearby restaurant that had recently gained popularity. As soon as they walked in, they bumped into someone.
That someone was Hua Yutang, the very person they’d just discussed.
Jiang Weihua’s eyes widened slightly, and Hua Yutang stood frozen for a second before rushing over with enthusiasm.
“Oh wow, what a coincidence, Xie Youzhou! How long has it been since we last saw each other?”
“We met just over two months ago,” Xie Youzhou replied in a calm tone.
“That’s right. But why did you leave so suddenly that day? We hardly ever get to see each other, and you just took off.” Hua Yutang pulled out his phone. “Let’s add each other. How come your old number is out of service?”
Xie Youzhou quickly pulled up one of his backup numbers and added him.
“My previous number was deactivated.”
“Oh, so are you here for a meal? Let’s join up. I didn’t eat much.”
“You just left?” Jiang Weihua asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I was eating alone, and it felt awkward in such a busy place. But now that you’re here, I won’t feel embarrassed.”
Xie Youzhou was about to refuse, but Lin Zhiyu, suddenly thinking of something, said, “Sure, let’s eat together.”
“You’re Lin Zhiyu, right?” Hua Yutang asked, sounding impressed. “You’re famous now. A lot of people in Country M know you.”
“Your name’s Hua Yutang?”
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
A strange feeling crossed Lin Zhiyu’s heart, and he smiled slowly. “Do you have a crush on Ruan Jiaojiao?”
Hua Yutang froze, his eyes wide in surprise. Why would Lin Zhiyu ask something like that so suddenly? His mouth opened, but no words came out.
“I… I… why would you ask that?”
