Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 298

“What’s with that expression?” the visitor who just arrived asked coldly.

Lin Chen, holding his phone, said to Xing Conglian, “You… are… great…”

“Disappointed, aren’t you? Thought it was Xing Conglian who came?” Huang Ze looked down at him from a higher position.

Lin Chen dusted himself off and stood up, sincerely answering, “Yes, I did.”

“…”

“So, I should apologize for disappointing you, shouldn’t I?” Huang Ze responded sarcastically.

“I accept your apology,” Lin Chen replied.

“…”

Huang Ze seemed to be silent for a while, probably out of annoyance.

Lin Chen looked at him for a moment, noticing that he was also on a call and hadn’t hung up yet.

The person on the other end of the phone loudly said “hello” a few times.

“What can I do for you, Inspector Huang?”

Lin Chen gave Huang Ze a way out.

Only then did Huang Ze’s expression lighten up a bit. “Someone is being a drama queen and insisted on speaking with you.”

Lin Chen took the phone handed over by Huang Ze, confused, “Hello, this is Lin Chen,” he said.

“Consultant Lin, is that you?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I… I’m Guiqiu… You know, Yan Guiqiu,” the person on the other end of the call said very familiarly.

Lin Chen glanced at Huang Ze, who seemed pleased with himself, while holding the phone as if it were a hot potato. Huang Ze mouthed what appeared to be: ‘serves you right’.

“Mr. Yan…”

“Just call me Guiqiu.”

“Guiqiu.” Lin Chen found he had no experience dealing with someone like Yan Guiqiu and his tone became noticeably cautious.

“Consultant Lin, you are too polite. You apologized to me, making me feel embarrassed.”

“I didn’t mean that.”

“Yes, you did.”

“Okay, I did…”

“You did what?”

“…”

Yan Guiqiu’s voice was so loud, and the rooftop was too quiet. Huang Ze kept a straight face, but it seemed like he was having a hard time not laughing.

“Guiqiu, what’s the reason for your call today?” Lin Chen asked in a coaxing manner.

“Ah, Consultant Lin! Right! I just wanted to tell you that there are so many good people in the world, and I’ve decided to become one!”

Yan Guiqiu spoke with a radiant spirit, which seemed effortless. But after thinking about it, Lin Chen realized that becoming a good person was indeed just a matter of mindset.

“Congratulations,” he said.

“Thank you!” Yan Guiqiu responded and hung up the call.

The call ended with a beep.

The purpose of Yan Guiqiu’s call was genuine, pure, and simple. Simply incredible.

Lin Chen slowly put down the phone, as if he were infected by this simplistic worldview.

He also glanced at Huang Ze and handed the phone back.

“What?” Huang Ze raised his eyebrows.

“Why are you here?” Lin Chen asked.

“That’s none of your business.”

“Is that so?”

Lin Chen looked at this person who was once considered a friend, then viewed as a mortal enemy, and now, they had a complicated relationship. He understood the intention behind Xing Conglian sending Huang Ze.

“There’s something I need to tell you about Huang Weiwei,’ he said.

The statement was brief.

After all, he had been contemplating the wording and how to present the truth to Huang Ze for years.

But he had never thought that he would reveal it at this point in such a simple and calm manner.

From start to finish, Huang Ze didn’t interrupt him; he only listened with his head down.

However, it seemed as if he was too stunned by the truth and had locked himself in another space, where one strong knock could shatter him into dust.

Lin Chen put his hands in his pockets and finally said, “This is the whole story. You have the right to know.”

After a while, Huang Ze slowly lifted his head.

Lin Chen had never seen such a complex look in his eyes—a mix of pain, shock, despair, guilt, pity, relief, and many other emotions—all converging into one of the most difficult moments in life.

Sorry, and, too late.

Under the blue sky and white clouds, Huang Ze looked like smoke that could be blown away by the wind, as if his soul had been torn apart.

Lin Chen didn’t look at Huang Ze again. Any words would seem barren. He walked past Huang Ze, wanting to leave and give Huang Ze some time alone, just as he often did before.

But as he put his hand on the iron gate, he suddenly turned back and spoke to him.

“Actually, I don’t understand.”

Huang Ze was motionless, as if he was a dead man who couldn’t hear his words.

So Lin Chen kept talking. This was probably the most Lin Chen had ever talked to Huang Ze in his life. But here on the rooftop, in this moment of complete honesty, he no longer treated Huang Ze as someone he needed to keep secrets from. They both needed to hear each other out.

“I understand why Weiwei did what she did, or at least, I thought I did. But in the past year, as I met so many people, I realized she was just the beginning. Whether it’s Fang Aizi or Xu Ran, or Song Shengsheng and Duan Wanshan, even the recent big vote. So many big and small people and events made me question at the end why people would sacrifice themselves for others?”

Huang Ze, of course, didn’t answer. Lin Chen continued to talk to the wind.

“One could argue this sacrifice is the function of high morals or a relentless struggle against evil, perhaps out of love or hate, or even supposedly, altruists are descendants of genes that humans have selected over time for the sake of the species. But now, I suddenly realize, none of this explains the most basic question: Why would they want to do this?”

Lin Chen was leaning on the door, with his back to Huang Ze, waiting for an answer.

“Lin Chen, you’re still fond of splitting hairs.”

Huang Ze finally recovers from his stupor; the wind carried his typical indifferent voice.

This was Huang Ze’s way of speaking, and Lin Chen knew it well. Huang Ze was telling him in his own twisted way: I’m fine. They, as they are, must also have strong resilience.

“Indeed.” Lin Chen conceded. “Then tell me, why did Weiwei choose to jump?”

“Because she wanted to save more people and didn’t want to see you troubled,” Huang Ze replied calmly yet painfully.

“Why would she want to save more people?” Lin Chen asks again.

“Because, she’s a good girl in our family.”

Lin Chen nodded, then shook his head. Huang Ze’s answer only covered a part of it.

He pulled open the iron gate and took a step out.

“Thank you.”

He faintly hears Huang Ze say this.

He waved his hand and finally didn’t look back.

……

The iron door on the rooftop slammed shut.

Lin Chen walked down the stairs, and the fluorescent lights emitted a cool glow.

With each step he descended, he felt a bit lighter. The long-term burden had suddenly been lifted, and it came so unexpectedly.

Perhaps everyone needed such a moment to muster up courage.

As Lin Chen walked around the corner to the next set of stairs, he saw quite a few people gathered.

There were the people from the previous guardhouse, unfamiliar police officers, and doctors probably ready to rush to the rooftop to rescue him.

Everyone was looking at their phones. The sound of WeChat group chats and Weibo refreshing filled the air.

“What’s going on?” Lin Chen snapped back to reality and asked.

After that, his phone rang on cue. The call was from Xing Conglian.

Lin Chen signaled everyone to go back to their own business. He moved to a quiet window and asked Xing Conglian, “Go ahead.”

“Are you alright?” Xing Conglian cut in.

“Not too good, but I can rally for a while.”

“Alright, then, I’ll keep it brief.”

Xing Conglian succinctly explained everything, while Lin Chen listened silently, no longer thinking about Huang Ze and all the people from his past.

Xing Conglian described the findings from the Mailin server, the response from the virologist, and their analysis, and when he heard about the innocent four white-collar workers who were killed in the noodle shop explosion, Lin Chen’s expression turned cold.

But whether it was the Dana Rainforest and Doctors Without Borders or the insurance company and Zhourui Pharmaceutical, when all the details came together, Lin Chen’s first reaction wasn’t fear.

He probably understood Huang Ze’s feelings on the rooftop now—a deep sense of shock.

Today, like every other day, was a very ordinary day.

Unlike his position on the rooftop, he was now facing the main entrance of the hospital.

Ambulances were flashing red lights, coming in and out. The white-clad medical staff were busier due to the sudden virus news, but everything was within control and not chaotic.

All departments had prepared in advance to handle mass panic. Major internet platforms and television stations were providing information about the Borna virus in various forms.

In the contingency plan that Su Fengzi wrote for Xing Conglian, a symptom of the virus that didn’t actually exist was included to distinguish between real patients and mass hysteria patients who believed they had been infected with the virus.

Of course, in such a context, there were rumors, distrust, and people fearing a possible large-scale poisoning or virus spread.

The situation seemed to return to the state before the big vote started, a delicate balance before the storm.

But Lin Chen knew it was almost over. Everything was almost over.

“Lin Chen.”

Xing Conglian called his name twice on the phone. Lin Chen turned his gaze away from the hospital entrance.

“What are you thinking about?” Xing Conglian asked.

Lin Chen was considering how to express his true feelings.

After Xing Conglian finished explaining the grand plan that had been disrupted, Lin Chen suddenly realized that it was actually the victims, whether it was Fang Zhiming or Fang Aizi, or Xu Ran, Song Shengsheng, Duan Wanshan, and Duan Yang…

Their silent resistance, like trickles merging into a sea, had torn an enemy far stronger than themselves to the state of madness.

That person would never expect that all the ordinary people he saw as ants and pawns, including those who have died, would eventually put the noose around his neck.

“I have a strange premonition now,” said Lin Chen.

“What kind of premonition?” Xing Conglian asked.

Lin Chen felt as if he had slept on the rooftop and had gone from an atheist to a complete believer.

“Although I don’t know why, no matter what happens, we will win,” he replied.

After saying that, Lin Chen hung up the call with Xing Conglian.

Someone was coming from the end of the corridor. It was a doctor.

Lin Chen held his phone and turned his head. The doctor took off his mask, looking tired but determined, and said, “The police captain asked me to come up and inform you that Shen Lian has been resuscitated, but she is still in critical condition, in the intensive care unit. Also, the neurology ward downstairs is having a conference call with Dana; you can go there.”

The smell of disinfectant hit him, and the sunlight streamed in from the window, making the doctor’s face bright and clean.

Lin Chen nodded, bowed in respect, and said, “Thank you.”

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Kinky Thoughts:

Author really pulled a fast one there. I feel sorry for Huang Ze. The author really did him dirty. He was literally set up as the cannon fodder to be the catalyst to set up Lin Chen and Xing Conglian.

I was quite annoyed by his inexplicable actions, which could have easily been explained away if she just made him Lin Chen’s ex. Like it actually would make the story deeper—the death of Huang Weiwei caused the rift in their relationship, which led to the breakup.

I mean, reading the previous chapters, Huang Ze obviously harbored feelings for Lin Chen that teetered on hate because of what happened to his sister. When Lin Chen faked his death in the first arc, Huang Ze was incredibly relieved and happy to find out Lin Chen was still alive.

And to give an easy out, she made Huang Ze act irrationally by trying to kiss Lin Chen (out of nowhere, because WTF, that was never even developed) just to move the plot point of making Xing Conglian jealous and Lin Chen having the excuse to treat him like trash.

But my dude, Lin Chen, you literally withheld crucial information about HIS SISTER’S DEATH. Like how can you blame him for hating you and treating you awfully when you literally could have told him the truth about his sister, especially when you were directly involved in it (not by choice), irregardless of whether or not he would actually believe it. If you had told him before and he treated you badly, then things would be understandable. Yet you had held him in regard as a “friend” before and not told him—that’s just fucked up. That’s nice and all when you put “protecting her dignity and reputation”, but you know, the dead don’t care about that shit while the living suffer so that’s only self-serving.

Anyway, I had to get that out of my system. I hate it when danmei pulls this kind of trope.

Justice for Huang Ze! Fuck if you don’t want him, I’ll take him. Dude was brave enough to disarm a bomb, knowing it could blow him up. I can certainly blow…

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