EIP 60

Deputy Chen waited for the young major general to finish his work and handed him a few telegrams. After taking care of the piled-up tasks, the evening had already fallen. Deputy Chen glanced at the time and quietly asked whether the general needed a car to head home. The office lights cast shadows on Yong Jin’s brows, the hollow under his eyes faintly visible, not just due to the lighting, but also because he hadn’t been sleeping well for some time.

Yong Jin looked exhausted. He rubbed his nose and pulled a pair of gloves out of the drawer. The gloves had been altered. Originally pink, they were now dyed black, and the delicate frills had been removed. Despite the changes, they still seemed a bit small for his long fingers since they had originally been made for women. It was a gift from someone, probably not expecting him to actually wear them.

Yong Jin fiddled with the gloves, his voice hoarse as he asked, “How is he?” Deputy Chen hadn’t quite understood at first. It had been a while since Yong Jin had inquired about Mr. Zhou. As his departure for the front lines loomed closer and his schedule became packed, Deputy Chen assumed the general had already dealt with those matters and chosen to forget them.

Moreover, the last time the young general inquired, he had learned that the Zhou family intended to arrange a marriage alliance with the Yang family. The person they had placed by Mr. Zhou reported that Miss Yang had been visiting his apartment, and Mr. Zhou had even gone on several dates with her. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, and he appeared to be in good spirits. Upon hearing this, the young general’s expression had darkened, and he had instructed that no further information about Mr. Zhou be sought for the time being. He simply ordered that Mr. Zhou be properly protected.

Now, suddenly asking again, Deputy Chen wasn’t sure who Yong Jin was referring to. He cautiously asked, “Are you asking about Mr. Zhou? He…” Yong Jin rubbed his forehead, raising his eyes to look at Deputy Chen. Despite his exhaustion, his gaze remained sharp. Under that piercing stare, Deputy Chen instinctively straightened up and hurried to relay everything: how Zhou Jun had narrowly avoided an accident on the street and later visited the Yong residence.

Yong Jin sat quietly in the chair, staring at his deputy. The atmosphere in the room grew tense, and Deputy Chen could feel the weight of the silence. Yong Jin slipped the gloves onto his hands and stood up, putting on his coat. His voice, calm and measured, cut through the stillness, carrying an icy edge that made the deputy break into a cold sweat.

“Why is it only now you’re telling me about this?”

Deputy Chen quickly lowered his head, nervously responding, “I thought, sir, you no longer wished to hear about Mr. Zhou.”

Yong Jin walked away from the desk, and when Deputy Chen tried to follow, Yong Jin raised a hand, gently patting his shoulder. The deputy froze, not daring to move, as Yong Jin leaned closer to his ear and said with chilling calm, “Now I begin to doubt whether you’re truly with me or working for my father.”

Deputy Chen’s eyes shot up in shock, his mind racing to defend himself, but the cold intensity in Yong Jin’s gaze silenced him. He never imagined that this matter would be so significant. Moreover, Yong Jin had been in the middle of an important meeting at the time. Even if he had relayed the information sooner, the general couldn’t have left immediately, and Deputy Chen didn’t believe he had made an error.

Seeing the frustration in his deputy’s eyes, Yong Jin shook his head. “You don’t need to follow me. You can leave for today.” He quickly walked out of the office.

Once Yong Jin got into the car, he instructed his driver to bring one of the people keeping watch over Zhou Jun to the residence. When they arrived, the housekeeper came out and informed Yong Jin that Mu Liqing had been waiting for him inside for quite some time. The meal had already been prepared, and the housekeeper asked if the general would like to eat first.

Yong Jin took off his coat and handed it to the housekeeper, unbuttoning his shirt collar, and shook his head. “No need. I have something to take care of now. Make sure to attend to Mr. Mu’s meal properly.”

Yong Jin entered the study, where one of the people tasked with watching over Zhou Jun had been waiting for him. The man promptly reported everything that had happened with Zhou Jun today. His account largely matched the one given by Deputy Chen. However, as Yong Jin leaned back in his chair, his gaze fell on the box the man had brought with him. “What is this?” he asked, his voice calm.

The man spoke softly, “This was thrown away on the road by Mr. Zhou. I took the liberty of picking it up.” Yong Jin raised his hand and opened the box. Though he had been expecting it, when he saw the ring inside, he closed his eyes, remaining still for a long while.

After a long silence, Yong Jin finally waved for the man to leave. He took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto his own ring finger. The design of the ring allowed for it to be adjusted in size, and when he had taken it off to place it on Zhou Jun’s finger, it had fit perfectly. He vividly remembered Zhou Jun’s surprised expression and the slight excitement in his face. He recalled the subtle gesture, how Zhou Jun instinctively licked his lips, caught between worrying about the ring’s meaning and feeling an unexpected sense of joy.

Yong Jin stared at the ring on his finger, his thoughts drifting to the past. A fleeting smile almost formed but quickly vanished, leaving no trace behind. In the end, the ring had returned to his hand, completing a full circle, back where it started. He carefully folded the gloves and placed them neatly back in the right-hand drawer of his desk, locking it securely.

Yong Jin sat silently in his chair, and after a moment, he unfolded a piece of paper, took his fountain pen, and paused, the nib lingering on the paper for a long while before he finally made the first stroke.

Meanwhile, at the Zhou household, Zhou Jun had been sitting by the railing for a long time when his sister-in-law finally appeared, her eyes red from crying. She shot him a cold glance and walked past him without saying a word. Zhou Jun, feeling awkward, didn’t dare approach or greet her, yet he couldn’t bring himself to apologize either. The people she used to associate with had always been full of fiery passion, constantly talking about revolution, about overthrowing this and that. They had once been a group of idealistic students with no action to back up their words. Now, he couldn’t even begin to imagine what they had become.

Who knows what consequences it would bring if his sister-in-law reconnected with that group of people. From a certain perspective, wasn’t that a form of betrayal? Just like him, when his older brother clearly stated that Yong Jin and the Zhou family were on opposite sides, yet he still became entangled with that person. He even made his brother angry enough to fall ill. He, of all people, had the least right to criticize anyone.

After lingering outside for a long while, Zhou Jun heard a couple of coughs from inside. He paused, and after a moment, he finally pushed the door open and entered. The room felt stuffy, and the fire in the stove was burning brightly. He opened the window to let in some air before moving to his brother’s bedside, unsure of what to do. He couldn’t stand, couldn’t sit, so in the end, he picked up the fruit bowl from the table and brought it to his brother, peeling an orange for him to eat.

Zhou Yan turned his cold gaze toward his younger brother, still upset and not responding to him, flipping over to lie with his back facing him. The constant sound of peeling oranges filled the room, and eventually, Zhou Jun even began cracking walnuts, the sharp crunch echoing in the quiet room. Unable to bear it any longer, Zhou Yan snapped, “Do you even know that I need to rest and can’t be exposed to the wind?”

The movements behind him paused. After a while, Zhou Jun reached out to adjust the blanket for his older brother. Zhou Yan felt a lump in his throat, caught in a moment of frustration. He couldn’t express it, couldn’t release it. He turned over, almost knocking the orange off the edge of the bed. Zhou Jun carefully peeled the orange into petal-like shapes, arranging the juicy segments tightly together, then placed them at the side of the bed.

Perhaps he hadn’t expected Zhou Yan to suddenly turn away. Zhou Jun anxiously lowered his gaze, then stole a quick glance at him. It had always been this way. He both feared and enjoyed causing trouble for his brother. Zhou Yan sat up, hugging the blanket, staring at the neatly peeled oranges, which looked as though they were prepared to please a girl. “I don’t want them. Take them away,” he said.

Zhou Jun quietly took the oranges back.

Zhou Yan continued, “I don’t want to deal with you anymore. Do whatever you want. Go back to your apartment, and don’t come here to upset me again.”

Zhou Jun slumped, hugging the fruit bowl with a dejected expression.

If it were before, Zhou Yan might have let it slide, but this time, this brat had involved his wife as well. How could he just let it go so easily? So he stayed firm, fully prepared to send this troublesome younger brother of his away for good. Yet, unexpectedly, Zhou Jun offered a startling proposal. “Elder brother, what do you think if I help you?”

Zhou Yan’s eyes opened slightly in surprise, casting a skeptical glance at Zhou Jun. “What did you say?”

Zhou Jun lifted his head. “I said I’ll help you. Those shady businesses, you can let me handle them.”

But Zhou Yan’s immediate reaction was to shake his head. “What kind of joke is this? Just forget about it.”

Zhou Jun replied earnestly. “Elder brother, I think I can actually help you.”