EIP 46

As soon as Yong Jin’s words fell, the man’s gaze shifted to Zhou Jun’s face. His eyes were sharp, almost peeling Zhou Jun’s skin away to see what lay beneath. The look was one of disdain, tinged with a sense of scrutinizing dissatisfaction. Clearly displeased with Yong Jin’s answer, the man’s wrinkles deepened further.

Zhou Jun quickly pieced together who the man was. The only person with the authority and stature to make Yong Jin kneel like this, with such a commanding presence, could only be Governor Yong. There was no one else. Zhou Jun immediately regretted not leaving yesterday, and even more so, his lack of awareness.

In the next moment, Governor Yong suddenly acted. He raised the cane high, preparing to strike Yong Jin.

Yong Jin had a gunshot wound. Zhou Jun’s breath caught in his throat, his pupils contracting. Reacting on instinct, he broke free from the grip of the two soldiers and threw himself in front of Yong Jin, taking the blow full force. The strike was incredibly hard, and as it landed on his back, his muscles went numb, followed by a sharp, searing pain that seemed to pierce his very heart.

It seemed that Governor Yong hadn’t anticipated a reckless interruption, but his strike remained unrelenting. It was his usually calm son who now appeared flustered, even shouting, “Father.” Yet Governor Yong did not pause. He delivered another blow.

Yong Jin tried to push Zhou Jun away, but his body was still injured, and in his panic, he couldn’t move him in time. In the blink of an eye, a couple more blows landed, causing Zhou Jun to tremble from the pain.

Zhou Jun was in agony. The old man’s strikes were vicious, each one landing where it had before. The pain was unbearable, and tears streamed down his face. His grip on Yong Jin loosened, and as soon as it did, Yong Jin pushed him away.

Yong Jin knelt straight, his face pale with fury as he shouted, “Deputy Chen.” Deputy Chen immediately appeared in the hall. Without even sparing a glance at Zhou Jun, who had collapsed on the ground, Yong Jin ordered, “Drag him out. I don’t want to see him again.”

Zhou Jun was in so much pain that he felt dizzy. When he heard Yong Jin’s words, his mind cleared up a little. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, enduring the pain, and his face showed a hint of flattery.

“Major General, the promise you made to me earlier, does it still count?”

Yong Jin clenched his teeth but didn’t glance at him.

Zhou Jun continued to force a smile despite the pain. “As for that position, I’ll leave it to you.”

As he was roughly dragged away by Officer Chen, Zhou Jun avoided Governor Yong’s sharp gaze. He was trying to shield Yong Jin. If Yong Jin wanted him to be an insignificant person, then he would play the part. He understood clearly that if Governor Yong grew angry, the Zhou family would be crushed like ants. Everything he said was meant to draw a line between them, to make it seem like their relationship had always been a matter of exchange. He could only hope that doing so would spare Yong Jin from bearing the full weight of his father’s fury.

But he was still worried. With how harsh Governor Yong was, would Yong Jin be able to withstand it? Yong Jin was also from the Yong family. Was it really necessary for his father to hit him so fiercely?

After Deputy Chen dragged Zhou Jun out of the Yong residence, he quietly apologized to him. He called for a carriage and had Zhou Jun sent back to the Zhou family home. Zhou Jun climbed into the carriage and, still holding onto the window, wanted to say something but hesitated.

Deputy Chen lowered his head. Zhou Jun took off his watch and stuffed it into Deputy Chen’s hand.

“I’m really sorry for the trouble. There’s nothing much today, but please accept this as a token. It’s nothing special, I just want you to pass on a message for me. I’m waiting for his call.”

Inside the Yong residence, the storm had not yet passed. Governor Yong looked at his son.

“Do you even know what you’re doing?”

Yong Jin lowered his gaze and remained silent.

Governor Yong spoke again.

“Does yesterday’s incident have anything to do with that kid?”

Yong Jin clenched his fists.

“You should trust your son. I wouldn’t do something so absurd. He’s nothing, and I’ve never given him such an opportunity.”

Governor Yong sneered.

“Your wings are getting stiff, huh? Fine. I’ll give you a chance to prove yourself. The youngest daughter of Lin’s family is quite good.”

Yong Jin’s expression remained unchanged.

“I have no intention of that for now.”

Governor Yong’s voice turned cold.
“I’m not negotiating with you.”

---

Zhou Jun got out of the car and walked into the Zhou family house. The clear, bright sky was above. To his surprise, his older brother was still at home, having breakfast. Fried dough sticks, soy milk, and wonton noodle soup were laid out. Feeling very hungry, Zhou Jun sat down and ordered a bowl of noodles. His back ached, but he had to endure. He figured his older brother was probably waiting to lecture him, so he needed to eat first to gather some strength.

Zhou Yan leisurely folded the newspaper and wiped his mouth with a handkerchief.

“No more of this next time.”

Zhou Jun chewed the wontons in his mouth. The shrimp was crisp, and the soup was rich. Under the subtle pressure of Zhou Yan’s ambiguous words, even the most delicious food became difficult to swallow. He swallowed with a gulp and asked,

“What?”

Zhou Yan snorted softly.

“Miss Yang is different from the women you’ve been with before. Don’t be too frivolous with her.”

Zhou Jun let out an “Ah,” finally realizing that his older brother assumed he had spent the night with Miss Yang. It seemed Miss Yang hadn’t betrayed him but had instead silently endured the discomfort, which saved him a lot of trouble.

He didn’t want to deny it, as denying it would surely provoke his older brother into a fit, much like how Governor Yong would beat him. Even though he had regained some strength from spending time with his sister-in-law, he wouldn’t be able to withstand it. Zhou Jun took his medicine and sneaked back to his room. He undressed and stood in front of the mirror, inspecting the medicine on his body. A long, dark bruise ran across his back, looking quite horrifying.

Zhou Jun’s body was already prone to exaggerated reactions from even the slightest bumps, let alone being harshly struck multiple times. But as he looked at the bruises, what he felt wasn’t self-pity, but relief. Thankfully, the cane had landed on him. Then, he couldn’t help but feel that Governor Yong was too cruel. Was it really necessary to be so harsh with his own son? He rubbed the medicinal oil in his hands until it warmed up, then applied it to his body.

Each application made him shudder, and eventually, he grew frustrated. He stopped, carelessly placing the oil aside, and went downstairs. He wanted to meet Miss Yang, not for anything else, but to personally apologize and explain things clearly. He owed her a favor, and if she ever needed anything from him in the future, he would do his best. This was also the first time Zhou Jun chose to avoid ambiguity and clarify his relationship with someone, only because Yong Jin would be upset, and if Yong Jin was unhappy, he would be the one to suffer. In reality, even Zhou Jun himself wasn’t sure what exactly his relationship with Yong Jin was.

They hadn’t defined anything, nor made any promises. What existed was only the vague ambiguity and those few encounters of physical entanglement. This time, separating from Yong Jin, Zhou Jun didn’t even know when they would meet again. Governor Yong was so firm in his stance that Yong Jin could only show complete indifference toward Zhou Jun when in front of him.

Zhou Jun wasn’t without feelings, but he couldn’t afford to be overly sentimental at such a moment. Besides emotions, there was also rationality. Would Yong Jin call him? Would Deputy Chen speak to Yong Jin? Would the call he was waiting for ever come? Everything was uncertain. Zhou Jun sighed and pushed open the door to the flower shop. He held a bouquet of yellow roses as he walked down the street to the place where he would meet Miss Yang.

Miss Yang wore a white dress, her hair flowing gently. She didn’t appear as meticulously made up as the day before. Her eyelids were slightly reddened. Women often have an innate intuition. Noticing the roses and the shift in Zhou Jun’s demeanor, she immediately sensed something. She realized the reason he had abandoned her. This man had someone else in his heart, not her.

As Zhou Jun approached, Miss Yang suddenly smiled and stepped back. Her voice was soft as she said, “Zhou, I don’t want to hear what you want to say right now. At least not today. Can you wait before telling me?”

Zhou Jun hesitated, a hint of apology in his expression. Miss Yang took the flowers from his hand, stood on tiptoe, and placed a light kiss near his cheek.

“See you next time, Zhou.”

A little later, Zhou Jun arrived home, quickly took a shower, ate, and then went to bed. The pain on his back kept him tossing and turning, unable to sleep. His mind was in a mess as he lay there, thinking of Yong Jin, Miss Yang, the Zhou family, and Governor Yong. He kept wondering if something big had happened when Yong Jin told him to leave. Why was his elder brother so suddenly trying to pair him with Miss Yang? Was it really just because he was afraid Zhou Jun liked men? And what about the secret in the study?

In the quiet of the night, there was a faint sound in the room. Someone had quietly touched the ground. Zhou Jun suddenly sat up, pulling on his wound. His face tensed as he reached under his pillow for a knife But the person spoke, calling his name, and Zhou Jun immediately relaxed. The knife slipped from his hand, falling to the floor with a dull thud.