Release from prison

She walked over to the car trunk, which popped open automatically to reveal a variety of imported snacks, all in the flavors she loved.

There was also an orange gift box tied with an exquisite ribbon.

The logo on top was extremely familiar.

She stood still, staring blankly for a moment at the little horse on the logo.

Huh?

Was this bought for her too?

Jiang Chen’s side of the car door was already open. He tilted his head to look at the young woman, his gaze growing increasingly tender in the dappled, hazy light.

"Open it and see."

Ye Mian reached out and untied the ribbon. Inside, as expected, lay a luxury brand handbag. It was not one of the brand's classic styles, but rather a very understated design in a subtle color.

However, Ye Mian had seen this bag before.

A famous celebrity on the domestic entertainment scene adored this bag. During a reality show filmed at home, this very bag was placed right at the top of her closet, and the camera had given it a close-up lasting three or four seconds.

It wasn't the most expensive luxury bag, but it was truly enduringly attractive.

Ye Mian burst into a sudden smile.

The guilt and depression caused by Fu Zihong's harassment were swept away in an instant, replaced by the warm feeling of being kept in someone's thoughts.

Jiang Chen’s habit was remarkably like her father’s.

Whenever he went on a long trip, he would always bring back some little trinkets for her.

Could this really just be a bag?

This was proof that Jiang Chen had her on his mind!

Jiang Chen leaned casually against the side of the car, pulled a cigarette out of his cigarette case, and asked gently, "Do you like it?"

She placed the bag back into the box, her eyes curving into crescents as she smiled, "Mm-hmm, I like it."

Even without the bag, she would have loved the snacks alone.

Under the cover of night, Ye Mian placed the box in the back seat, planning to retrieve it when she left.

She didn't refuse or reject it simply because of the bag's price.

It wasn't because Jiang Chen was wealthy now.

It was because doing so would completely kill the mood.

He had already bought it.

Besides, she would buy nice things for Jiang Chen too!

---

Entering the villa, Jiang Chen bent down, opened the shoe cabinet, pulled out with one hand a pair of slippers bought specifically for Ye Mian, and placed them at her feet.

Ye Mian slipped her feet into the slippers and raised her gaze. The familiar layout of the living room remained unchanged.

Yet, what came into view was a sofa in a completely different color scheme—an especially cozy creamy white.

The style here used to be gloomy, possessing plenty of high-end aesthetic appeal but lacking any sense of home.

Yet, after not visiting for a few months, the place had undergone a complete transformation.

The throw pillows had all been changed from stiff leather to soft, skin-friendly materials. Beside the wine cabinet, several potted plants had been placed, and the gray carpet on the floor, just like the sofa, had been replaced with an impractical creamy white that showed dirt easily.

Ye Mian felt a bit dazed. While this style was undeniably cozy, it just...

It just didn't really feel like Jiang Chen.

Ye Mian stood to the side, watching the man take off his overcoat, and asked, "Why has all the furniture changed? It wasn't like this the last time I came."

Even though the house felt a bit like a model apartment, Ye Mian felt that Jiang Chen clearly didn't care about such things.

Jiang Chen changed into his slippers, draped his overcoat over his elbow, and walked in step by step, saying softly and unhurriedly:

"Last time, someone fell asleep on the sofa, and while sleeping, she complained non-stop, saying the sofa in this model home was really uncomfortable, cold, and gave her no sense of security, and that she wanted to go home to sleep."

He raised his eyes, looking pointedly at Ye Mian with the softest smile lingering in his gaze.

"I offered to send her home, but she wasn't willing. So, to make sure she sleeps more soundly next time, I had someone change the furniture."

"I talk in my sleep??"

Ye Mian was completely dumbfounded.

From the very first sentence the man uttered, she was certain that the person Jiang Chen was talking about was herself.

Yet Ye Mian always seemed to focus on the most peculiar details.

Take right now, for instance.

She was utterly shocked.

She had never known she had a habit of talking in her sleep.

This was bad!

Most of the dreams she had contained unspoken secrets.

Did this mean... she might accidentally spill her secrets without even realizing it?

At this thought, Ye Mian suddenly lifted her head.

"Then... back when you were staying at my place, I didn't talk in my sleep, did I?"

Because her expression was so absurdly shocked, Jiang Chen naturally noticed it.

Seeing this, Jiang Chen simply bent down, turning his face slightly to meet her gaze. "Hmm? Why are you all flustered? Did you commit a crime in your dream? Or were you cursing me out?"

His gentle brows and eyes were infinitely captivating.

His gaze was filled with subtle, probing curiosity.

Ye Mian drew a sharp intake of breath. In front of this shrewd man, she always felt that lying was a very difficult task.

She choked back her words for half a day before squeezing out, "No."

Jiang Chen quietly watched her for two full seconds before actually bursting into laughter. He straightened up, walked over to the refrigerator, and retrieved a can of juice for her.

His low voice carried a hint of a chuckle.

"Alright, let's assume you didn't."

Ye Mian: "……?"

What does "let's assume" mean?

If she weren't feeling guilty.

She would have loved to quibble with Jiang Chen over what that assumption implied.

However, she certainly didn't want Jiang Chen to keep asking questions at the moment, so she made up an excuse about going upstairs to get her lipstick and slipped away in a hurry.

Jiang Chen let out a low chuckle.

---

Late into the night, even the wind stopped blowing across Half-Mountain Island, rendering the night eerily silent.

Jiang Chen sat in a single-seater sofa, removed his glasses, and massaged the bridge of his nose.

His phone, resting on the table, broke the silence.

A subtle notification sound chimed softly.

On the lock screen, messages from Tong Guan popped up one after another.

The man casually picked up his phone, glanced down, and opened the text message interface.

[Tong Guan: Boss, that scum is no longer in Jiangcheng.]

[Tong Guan: Ever since the day he was released, I've had the brothers keep an eye on him. He loitered around the old town area of Jiangcheng for two days and then went back to the countryside.]

[Tong Guan: His old man used the demolition compensation to build a small two-story building in their rural hometown and spends every day farming. I see him eating and sleeping every day—damn it, he's living like nothing ever happened. Aside from looking a bit listless, there's nothing particularly unusual about him, and he hasn't made any strange moves.]

[Tong Guan: So, do we still need to keep following him?]

Holding the phone, Jiang Chen lowered his gaze and stared at the screen for a long while, a trace of ferocity lurking in his deep eyes.

The cigarette ash burned down in his hand as his finger tapped on the screen.

He typed out two lines of text.

[Keep a tight watch on him.]

[If he dares to approach Wencheng, find a way to break his legs.]

Tong Guan's reply came swiftly.

[Tong Guan: Understood.]

Jiang Chen closed his eyes, furrowing his brow as a wave of exhaustion washed over him.

Memories of past events flashed through his mind, and his heart refused to settle.

He was, truth be told, consumed by lingering terror.

If he hadn't received the young woman's call back then, if he had arrived even a little later...

Then...

He would have personally sent Zhong Qian straight to hell the very day he was released from prison.

The ruthless thought made him involuntarily knead his prayer beads, pale blue veins bulging across his cold, white knuckles.

The light fell across his brows and eyes, stripping away his usual gentleness and replacing it with a gloomy, oppressive darkness, making him look like an evil ghost crawling out of hell.

"Bang—"

The sound of shattering porcelain exploded into the night, accompanied by the muffled sound of scattered rolling objects echoing from the second-floor staircase, startlingly sharp.

In a single instant.

Jiang Chen snapped open his reddened eyes. Without even stopping to think, his body bounded forward with long strides toward the stairs.

(End of this chapter)