Chapter 55: Inexplicable Jealousy (2)
"Miss Yun Sheng!"
Unable to restrain himself, Mr. Chen spoke in a grave voice, his sharp gaze locked on Yun Sheng.
"My son, Chen Hao, didn’t come home all night, and we haven’t heard from him at all! The last time he was seen was at a party with friends at Xinglan Garden. Before he left, he said himself that he was going to the community gate to wait for you! Did you, or did you not, see him at the gate last night?"
His questioning was laced with suppressed anxiety, and the air in the living room instantly grew tense.
Yun Sheng met his gaze, which felt sharp enough to pierce through her. There was no trace of panic on her face; instead, she frowned slightly, her tone laced with a hint of impatience and confusion.
"Mr. Chen, regarding this matter, I already explained everything in detail to Major General Zhou this morning at the Tower entrance. Did... Major General Zhou not relay this to you?"
Mr. Chen’s expression darkened, and he subconsciously glanced at Zhou Lin, who was standing beside him.
Zhou Lin immediately explained, "I have already relayed the specifics to Uncle Chen. But he is frantic with worry for his beloved son. With no news of Chen Hao, he’s so anxious that he wanted to confirm the details with you in person, Miss Yun Sheng. Miss Yun Sheng, Uncle Chen didn’t mean to offend you. Please try to understand."
After speaking, he turned his gaze to Mr. Chen and gave him a subtle look.
Receiving Zhou Lin’s look, Mr. Chen forced down the churning anxiety and anger in his chest. Following the cue, he spoke to Yun Sheng, his voice hoarse, "Yes, Miss Yun Sheng, Major General Zhou is right. I... I’m just too worried. There’s been no word from my son, and I... I’m at my wit’s end. My tone was a bit harsh just now. I didn’t mean to offend you."
Although he apologized, his eyes remained fixed on Yun Sheng’s face.
He clearly didn’t fully believe or accept her words; he just wanted to temporarily de-escalate the situation to pry more information out of her.
Yun Sheng sneered inwardly, but her expression softened. She let out a soft sigh, and her tone became gentler.
"Mr. Chen, I understand how you feel. If a member of my family were missing, I’d be frantic with worry too. But everything I can say, I already told Major General Zhou this morning.
"It was very dark last night, and the figure was drunk. I really couldn’t see clearly, and I certainly didn’t dare get any closer. After that, I went straight home and didn’t go out again."
Mr. Chen’s brows furrowed tightly, clearly very dissatisfied with this answer.
’How could his son, a strong and healthy Sentinel, just disappear into thin air?’
And while Yun Sheng’s answer seemed fine, his intuition told him something was still off.
He was about to press for more details—like what specific time she came back last night, which path she took, whether anyone else saw her, and so on—trying to find a hole in her story.
Bai Ye, who had been standing silently not far behind and to the side of Yun Sheng, suddenly spoke.
"Mr. Chen."
His voice wasn’t loud, yet it carried a natural authority that instantly silenced the living room.
Mr. Chen clearly hadn’t expected Bai Ye to be here, and a flash of astonishment crossed his face.
It was followed by a deeper apprehension and a forcefully suppressed anxiety. His lips moved, but in the end, he didn’t dare interrupt Bai Ye as he spoke.
Beside them, Zhou Lin also turned his head slightly to look at Bai Ye.
His face was expressionless, but a flicker of understanding and deeper calculation flashed through his narrow eyes.
"The Tower has officially opened an investigation into Chen Hao’s disappearance. All related leads, including personnel testimony, surveillance data, and eyewitness accounts, will be verified by the Tower.
"Before the investigation concludes, any repeated questioning or pressure based on personal speculation could interfere with the investigation or even violate regulations. Please have faith in the Tower’s capabilities."
Bai Ye’s gaze shifted to Yun Sheng, his tone still just as professional and detached.
"As for further questioning, the Tower will assign someone to conduct it according to procedure. Yun Sheng, make sure you remain reachable."
"Okay," Yun Sheng replied with a slight nod.
’If Bai Ye was willing to get her out of this jam, that was for the best.’
’He was the Star Alliance War God, after all. Now that he had spoken, she believed Mr. Chen wouldn’t dare say anything more.’
Mr. Chen’s face was a mixture of pale and ashen, his chest heaving violently.
In front of Bai Ye, all his anxiety, anger, and helplessness as a father were forcefully suppressed.
He knew that pressing the issue further would be useless and might genuinely anger this powerful Star Alliance War God.
He took several heavy, ragged breaths, as if using all his strength just to quell his roiling emotions. Finally, he could only force out a few hoarse words from between his teeth.
"...Fine. I’ll wait for news from the Tower! I hope... you find my son soon!"
At that moment, the gentle and pleasant smile on the face of Lin Yueyao, who was sitting opposite them, completely froze the instant Bai Ye spoke.
Her eyelids were lowered, her long lashes concealing the turbulent emotions in her eyes, as well as a sharp, almost irrepressible sting of pain.
’It was happening again!’
’Every single time Yun Sheng was in trouble, Bai Ye would show up, feigning impartiality while clearly taking her side!’
’When had he ever shown such concern or protectiveness for anyone else?’
Her nails dug deep into her palms, sending sharp waves of pain that nearly broke the skin and drew blood.
But Lin Yueyao was oblivious to the pain, aware only of the suffocating mix of ice and fire—of jealousy and resentment—in her heart that threatened to shatter the elegant facade she had carefully maintained for years.
’By what right?’
’A piece of trash from a garbage planet, a defective reject without even a spiritual body—how could she possibly earn Bai Ye’s... special consideration?’
’Even if it was just for the investigation, this special treatment made her feel an unprecedented sense of crisis and humiliation.’
’She had to do something.’
’She absolutely could not let Yun Sheng continue like this, using all sorts of excuses to slowly chip away at what should have been hers!’
Filled with unwillingness and helplessness, Mr. Chen hastily took his leave. The sound of his heavy footsteps soon faded away outside the door.
However, Zhou Lin did not leave with Mr. Chen.
He stood up with a casual air, straightened his cuffs, and then strode directly in front of Yun Sheng, who was still standing in the same spot.
"Miss Yun Sheng, I hope what happened just now didn’t cause you too much trouble."
Zhou Lin gave a slight bow, his tone gentle and polite.
Yun Sheng looked up at him.
Zhou Lin’s eyes were very bright, holding an insightful glimmer that could read people’s hearts without feeling offensive.
"Thank you for helping to mediate just now, Major General Zhou," she said, her tone polite but distant.
"It was nothing," Zhou Lin said with a smile. His gaze lingered on her face for a moment before he suddenly said, "I was wondering if you have a moment, Miss Yun Sheng. There’s something I’d like to discuss with you privately."
The moment he said the words "discuss with you privately," Bai Ye’s gaze shot over Yun Sheng’s shoulder and locked onto Zhou Lin.
"Zhou Lin, the Tower will handle Chen Hao’s case according to procedure. You’d best not get too deeply involved privately."
His words were a reminder to Zhou Lin to mind the rules, as well as a veiled rejection of his recent proposal.
Zhou Lin met Bai Ye’s gaze, his smile unwavering. If anything, he seemed even more composed.
"A good reminder, General. However, I wanted to talk to Miss Yun Sheng about something else, unrelated to Chen Hao. That... should be fine, right?"
He paused, his gaze sweeping over Lin Yueyao, who was standing not far away, as if by accident. Then, his eyes returned to Bai Ye, his tone now laced with an intriguing, deeper meaning.
"Speaking of which, General... you seem particularly concerned with Miss Yun Sheng’s affairs. Your status is, after all, a special one. You are Miss Yue Yao’s fiancé, and Miss Yun Sheng’s nominal ’brother-in-law’.
"For certain interactions and inquiries, perhaps... it would be more appropriate to maintain a proper distance? Just to avoid... any unnecessary misunderstandings. Wouldn’t you agree, General?"