"So... what do we do now?" Director Chen asked anxiously.

"Retreat first," Song Ming said.

"Yes!" Director Chen nodded hurriedly.

Then, armed police warriors and riot police started to retreat from the scene. As Song Ming left, he gave Lin Chuan a gloomy look. He hadn't expected the situation to end like this. How could Song Jianguo have known about this? Could it be that Tang Yumeng went to find Song Jianguo? No, that can't be right. If Tang Yumeng had sought out Song Jianguo, why would she send him away from Jiangbei City? Could it be that Lin Chuan has someone powerful backing him?

For a moment, Song Ming couldn't figure it out, his mind was a complete mess. Lin Chuan's gunshot had scared his soul away. Sitting in the car, his head was filled with nightmares, feeling haunted by specters out to claim his life.

Once everyone had withdrawn, the dock immediately returned to its peaceful state.

Struggling to stand, Tang Yumeng quickly rushed into Lin Chuan's arms, choking up: "Lin Chuan, you're finally okay, that's wonderful, so wonderful."

Suddenly, Tang Yumeng burst into tears, unable to speak.

"Sis, thank you," Lin Chuan looked at Tang Yumeng, moved, his heart filled with love, happiness, and warmth. He held Tang Yumeng tightly in his arms.

On the dock, the two embraced tightly. The sun broke through the clouds. The white earth was draped in silver, under the sunlight it seemed all the more dazzling, all the more brilliant. Lin Chuan knew that this incident was mostly the doing of Tang Yumeng.

From this incident, it was clear that Tang Yumeng truly liked him. A woman who would give up her work, her everything, for his sake. What reason did he have not to love her, not to cherish her?

"No, you don't need to thank me." Tang Yumeng shook her head, appearing to have more to say but hesitated, and eventually, she couldn't bring herself to say it.

Tang Yumeng kept sobbing, hugging Lin Chuan as if she was afraid to lose him.

"Sis, you've been through a lot this time," Lin Chuan smiled and said, "Thank you for liking me this much; I will definitely not let you down."

As their gazes met, Tang Yumeng's eyes were filled with shyness. Biting her red lips, she scolded, "Get lost, as if anyone likes you."

"Hehe, who was it that said they liked me before?" Lin Chuan chuckled: "Besides, if you didn't like me, would you have gone to such lengths to help me? I don't buy that for a second."

"Hmph, you're my recruit," a sly sparkle appeared in Tang Yumeng's eyes, "If you cause trouble, I have to take responsibility. If I don't help you, who will? Right? So, don't get the wrong idea."

Facing Tang Yumeng's incessant talk, Lin Chuan couldn't retaliate verbally, so he chose to respond with action.

Lin Chuan wrapped his arms around Tang Yumeng and kissed her without hesitation.

This kiss caught Tang Yumeng off guard. Her eyes wide and stunned, Lin Chuan took advantage of this brief moment to capture her tongue, and Tang Yumeng promptly closed her eyes, having heard that one should close their eyes when kissing, lest love grows wings and flies away.

At the Jiangbei City dock, snowflakes fluttered around. A man and a woman stood in the deserted dock, passionately kissing. When emotions run deep, they become hard to control. This kiss seemed to last an eternity, through ever-changing worlds, until the seas dried up and the stones crumbled...

.........

Lin Chuan drove Tang Yumeng back to her house and then drove back to Changlin Factory.

Zhou Kai and the others were chatting in the factory when they received news from a brother that the city police had deployed a large force to capture Lin Chuan. How could Zhou Kai and his men rest easy? They all stood up angrily, grabbed their weapons, and rushed out.

But before they even left the factory area, Lin Chuan had already returned in his car.

"What are you guys up to?" Lin Chuan got out of the Audi.

"Chuan bro, is that you?" Everyone was astonished. Zhou Kai exclaimed in amazement, "Weren't you arrested by the city police?"

"They think they can catch me?" Lin Chuan said with disdainful laughter.

"Chuan bro, are you hurt?" Lu Dapao asked anxiously.

Lin Chuan's body was stained with quite a bit of blood, but not a drop belonged to him. He looked down, chuckled, and said, "This blood is not mine. Oh yeah, get me some clothes. If my mom and Nuo Xiaoxi see this, I'll probably get an earful again."

"Chuan bro, you're really okay, right?" Zhou Kai asked nervously.

"Of course, I'm okay." Lin Chuan said with a frank smile.

The return of Lin Chuan brought relief to everyone. However, they never did comprehend what had actually transpired; the blood on Lin Chuan implied that something had certainly happened. Yet, Zhou Kai and the others did not dare to pry. As long as Lin Chuan was back, everything was fine.

Zhou Kai smiled and then suggested, "If you're fine then, let's go have skewers at Brother Zhao's place tonight."

"Sure." Everyone nodded in agreement.

......

At Tang Yumeng's home.

"Miss, you're back?" Silver Fox was at home, a remaining informant left behind by Silver Fox Organization, not only tasked with monitoring Tang Yumeng but also keeping an eye on every move within Jiangbei City. On the surface, Jiangbei City was calm, but underneath, there were turbulent undercurrents.

"Yes." Tang Yumeng sounded somewhat exhausted: "Please make a pot of coffee for me."

"Sure." Silver Fox nodded.

Tang Yumeng returned to her room, shedding her restrictive clothing. In the expansive house, it was just her and Silver Fox. Standing naked in her room, facing the mirror, she indulged in self-admiration. In the mirror, her beauty was enchanting, exuding an alluring sexiness. Indeed, she was breathtakingly beautiful, and she had always thought that she would never find a man suitable for her. Unexpectedly, heaven had not disappointed her and had led her to Lin Chuan.

Getting to know Lin Chuan was actually out of gratitude at first. Lin Chuan saved her life, and afterwards, they had a chance encounter at the job market. Out of gratitude, she brought him into the City Committee and made him her personal chauffeur. But later on, Lin Chuan's actions, his bravery, and sense of responsibility deeply touched her. Especially on the way to Wujiang, when Lin Chuan fearlessly shielded her with his body from a bullet. From that moment on, Tang Yumeng uncontrollably fell in love with Lin Chuan—the fearless, responsible, righteous, and gentle man.

Recalling her acquaintanceship with Lin Chuan made Tang Yumeng's cheeks flush. She remembered the romantic scene in the office that day, recalling the ambiguity between her and Lin Chuan that seemed to have crossed the boundaries of friendship.

Tang Yumeng had always been scared to acknowledge her relationship with Lin Chuan because of the great disparity between them. It wasn't that she looked down on Lin Chuan, but rather because the world was such. It's a strange world, a land where relationships reign, a society where rumors are more fearsome than tigers. Hence, Tang Yumeng had to suppress her feelings for Lin Chuan.

In this country, marital matches are expected to conform to social status. If the two were to force a relationship, it might ultimately harm Lin Chuan.

"Sigh..." Tang Yumeng sighed deeply.

The beauty in the mirror would inevitably face the twilight of her days, self-admiring today, but what about tomorrow?

Tang Yumeng was satisfied with her looks and knew how to maintain her beauty, prolonging the 'shelf life' of her appearance. In the mirror, her hair cascaded like a waterfall, her delicate phoebus eyebrows, a pair of charming eyes, an exquisite nose, blushing cheeks, and petite cherry lips, her fair and radiant complexion, soft and snow-like skin, a tall and stunning figure gracefully poised...

"Miss, the coffee is ready," Silver Fox entered.

"Just put it on the table," said Tang Yumeng, nodding slightly as she turned and wrapped herself in a robe.

The coffee was ready, but her desire to drink it had faded.

Alas, such is human contradiction. Once a thought passes, the prior eagerness fades. Tang Yumeng lay on her comfortable circular bed, pulling out her phone. She wanted to call Bai Yifan, but hesitated, worried that he might seize the opportunity to pursue her relentlessly. And what if he insisted on seeing each other? He had mentioned a musical drama on New Year's Eve in the provincial capital—should she refuse it?

After much hesitation, her phone suddenly rang.

It turned out to be a call from Bai Yifan. Tang Yumeng took a deep breath and picked up hurriedly, "Yifan, I really have to thank you this time. Thank you for giving me such a big help."

"What?!" Bai Yifan startled, said in astonishment: "Yu, why the sudden formality?"

"If it weren't for you seeking out Secretary Song from the Provincial Committee, I'm afraid Lin Chuan and I would have been in grave danger," Tang Yumeng said with a soft laugh: "So I really have to thank you. Perhaps I should treat you to a meal sometime? Although I realize that doesn't say much."

"Hahaha..." Bai Yifan laughed to mask his awkwardness. Actually, he had intended to call to apologize since despite mobilizing all his contacts, he was unable to help Tang Yumeng, and he couldn't possibly ask his father to risk his reputation at this late stage. But unexpectedly, he was greeted by Tang Yumeng's voice of gratitude. Being smart as he was, Bai Yifan took advantage of the situation and agreed, saying, "How about this then, if you really want to thank me, accompany me to the musical drama on New Year's Eve, how's that?"

"This..." Tang Yumeng looked somewhat troubled, but in the end, she agreed: "Alright."

"Fantastic," Bai Yifan exclaimed joyfully, "I'll get someone to buy VIP tickets."

After hanging up the phone, Tang Yumeng felt a sense of loss, puzzled over why agreeing to watch a musical drama with Bai Yifan was making her feel so uncomfortable.

......

On the other side, Bai Yifan was somewhat puzzled. He quickly made calls to friends in Jiangbei City to make inquiries. He also sought information in the provincial capital. But in the end, he couldn't figure out the reason behind it all. He found Secretary Song Jianguo's intervention to save someone rather strange, as Song had no personal connection with Lin Chuan. So why did Song Jianguo take action? And to take such a significant risk in doing so was nearly against all prudence.

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