Don't You like Little Dogs? Now that I'm Taking Liberties, You're Suddenly Reluctant? - Chapter 35

The rhythmic ticking of the monitor was the only measurement of time.

Pei Ye drifted between intense physical pain and a heavy grogginess. Every moment of clarity was accompanied by an extreme panic regarding the word “love” that had escaped his lips before he lost consciousness. He tried to piece together his Master’s reaction from fragments of memory, but he could only capture a long silence and the sight of his Master’s departing back.

Fear gnawed at his insides. Jiang Si’s silence was more suffocating than the gunshot wound in his back. He had overstepped. He had laid that filthy, forbidden delusion out plainly before his Master. Punishment might have been a luxury; what he truly feared was his Master’s complete abandonment.

He told himself that he should not have said it. What would Master think? Would he think he was insane? Would he be disgusted that a pet had the audacity to say such things to his owner? He feared Master would loathe him because of this and never come to see him again. He could not imagine a life without his Master. A puppy cannot leave its owner.

Jiang Si reappeared in the hospital room two days later, in the evening. He wore a sharply tailored black suit, looking as though he had just returned from an important occasion. He carried the slight chill of the outdoors and a very faint scent of tobacco.

“Everyone, leave,” he ordered, waving away the subordinates guarding the door.

Pei Ye was awake, staring blankly at the grayish white sky outside the window. Hearing the door and the footsteps, he snapped back to reality. When he saw it was Jiang Si, his pupils contracted. “Master.”

He instinctively struggled to sit up, but was immediately pinned back to the bed by a flare of agony. His face turned deathly pale. “Master.”

“Do not move.”

Jiang Si’s voice betrayed no emotion. He sat in a single armchair a few paces from the bed and crossed his legs. He glanced at Pei Ye briefly before averting his gaze. His eyes seemingly rested on a void as if he were merely inspecting a damaged asset.

“Master,” Pei Ye’s voice was as dry as sandpaper, carrying an uncontrollable tremor. “I deserve to die for my crimes.”

Jiang Si finally turned his gaze toward him. Those bottomless eyes showed no ripples. There was neither anger nor anything else.

“The doctor says your recovery is proceeding smoothly.” He deliberately avoided the topic, his tone strictly business. “The First Division has handled the aftermath at the pier. Some clues point to several hidden accounts belonging to Obsidian. They have already been frozen.”

Pei Ye was stunned. Master seemed completely indifferent to his crazed words from that day. Or perhaps, to Master, those words were not even worth mentioning, let alone pursuing. The possibility sent a dull ache through his heart, sharper than his physical wound. He lowered his eyes, not daring to look at Jiang Si, and whispered, “Yes. I will recover as quickly as possible so that I can continue to serve you.”

“Mm,” Jiang Si gave a faint acknowledgment.

The room fell into a suffocating silence once more, broken only by Pei Ye’s suppressed, rapid breathing caused by the pain. After a long while, Jiang Si spoke suddenly, the topic shifting abruptly. “The adjutant found a name. The funds Obsidian has been using for their recent frequent activities passed through several intermediary accounts. They eventually lead to Xinghuan Biotechnology.”

Pei Ye jerked his head up, alertness flashing in his eyes. Xinghuan Biotechnology was a top-tier biopharmaceutical giant in the New City and a vital link in the Jiang family’s vast commercial empire. It was managed by Jiang Si’s eldest brother, Jiang Yi. He immediately understood the profound implication of Master mentioning this.

Jiang Si watched his suddenly tensed expression. The corner of his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly, appearing like a smirk or perhaps something else. “What do you think?” He used his customary way of throwing the question back.

Pei Ye’s heart sank. If the shadows of the Jiang family were behind Obsidian’s frantic retaliation, even if it were only the personal doing of the eldest brother, Jiang Yi, things would become extremely complex and dangerous. This was no longer a simple conflict between organizations.

“No matter who the opponent is,” Pei Ye’s voice was low due to weakness yet exceptionally firm, “I will only ever follow your orders.”

Jiang Si did not speak. He only watched him. That gaze was scrutinizing, as if trying to find a single trace of hesitation or fear in his eyes. Regrettably, he only saw a nearly blind determination and that scorching quagmire he chose to ignore for now.

“Very well.” After a moment, Jiang Si finally stood up and spoke slowly. “Your current mission is to stay alive. Do not think about anything else for the time being.”

He walked to the door. As his hand gripped the handle, he paused. He did not turn back, leaving only a sentence he had said countless times before. “Remember what I told you. Your life belongs to me. There will not be a next time.”

The door closed softly. Pei Ye slumped onto the hospital bed. The wound on his back throbbed from the recent tension, yet his heart felt strangely settled. Master had not abandoned him. He had even assigned a mission to stay alive. As for that love, it seemed Master had truly categorized it as the kind of nonsense not worth paying attention to.

This made him feel relieved, yet a wave of indescribable loss and bitterness surged within him. He loved Master. From a very long time ago, from the moment he was picked up, he had worshipped that man as his deity. Everything he had belonged to his Master. His life, his body, his loyalty, and even his emotions. Every part of him belonged, in its entirety, to Jiang Si.

In the organization’s top-floor office, Jiang Si stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, overlooking the cold, glittering city below. The cigarette between his fingers burned slowly. Not even the cold fragrance of cedar could dispel the faint trace of irritation between his brows.

“Xinghuan Biotechnology,” he repeated the name in a low, icy voice.

The adjutant stood behind him with his hands lowered, reporting more detailed information. “The flow of funds is very hidden. After multiple layers of nesting, it eventually points to a subsidiary of Xinghuan responsible for cutting-edge neuro-drug research. On the surface, there are no business dealings with Obsidian. There is currently no direct evidence suggesting that Mr. Jiang Yi was aware or gave the order.”

“He does not need to give a direct order,” Jiang Si scoffed and flicked the ash. “He only needs to acquiesce to the unknown use of funds in certain projects or turn a blind eye to certain partners. My eldest brother is best at standing in a clean glass house, watching others get covered in mud for him.”

The adjutant remained silent. He was one of the very few who knew of Jiang Si’s past and had a general understanding of the cold, twisted family dynamics behind his leader. Before officially becoming the adjutant, he had a distinct name: Ji Churen. For years, he had drifted through the gray zones, earning bounties by acting as an executioner for criminals.

When the adjutant was seventeen, he met the fifteen-year-old Jiang Si, who had just left the Jiang family. At that time, the ruthlessness and isolation in the boy had already taken shape, like an unsheathed, bloodstained blade. Ji Churen had been pushed to a dead end by a massive gambling debt. It was Jiang Si who used money to buy his worthless life, giving him the identity of Adjutant and a direction to live.

“Call me Fourth Brother, and I will guarantee you a life of comfort.” Despite being a child two years younger than himself, the heat and innocence appropriate for that age had long vanished from the boy’s brow. Only a craving for power and a frantic pursuit of it remained.

Driven by curiosity and the temptation of a large sum of money, Ji Churen accepted Jiang Si as his leader. “Do not call me Big Brother.”

“What?”

“It sounds terrible.” He was small in stature, but his temper was not.

“Then what should I call you? Boss? Leader? Chief?”

“Ha. I finally know why your parents gave you that name. Ji Churen. The Executioner. Call me Fourth Brother.”

Ji Churen had witnessed how Jiang Si spent three years building Skeleton into an entity that struck fear into people’s hearts, forcing the Jiang family to stop ignoring this rebellious son while remaining secretive about him. Jiang Si was no longer that boy who had turned his back on his family and acted alone.

“Fourth Brother, if it really is the Jiang family’s side,” the adjutant weighed his words, “we need to adjust our strategy. A frontal conflict is too costly.”

“Conflict?” Jiang Si turned around, his eyes cold. “They are not qualified to make me waste energy on a conflict. Find out which person with a death wish dared to use the Jiang family’s name to target me.”

“Yes.” The adjutant took the order, paused, and then added, “Additional personnel have been stationed at the hospital. Pei Ye’s condition has stabilized.”

Jiang Si gave a brief acknowledgment and looked out the window again, speaking no more. The adjutant withdrew silently. Fourth Brother had changed. The moment he mentioned the name Pei Ye, based on his years of experience, the adjutant could keenly sense that Jiang Si’s emotions had fluctuated subtly for that single instant. Even if it was only a tiny, fleeting moment, it was enough to show that the Fourth Brother he knew was already undergoing a change.