After ninety-nine online romances, I finally met my ex in person when school started.

A deep French kiss that is both aggressive and assertive of sovereignty.

Zhu Xun Chuan leaned back on the sofa, his hand supporting Jiang Yao's smooth back, responding to her enthusiasm.

Lin Chuxia stood frozen, holding her water glass. Her cheeks flushed crimson. Watching the two's intimate actions, and seeing the large expanse of white skin exposed by Jiang Yao's vigorous movements, her mind completely went blank.

This was an extremely domineering demonstration.

A full minute passed before Jiang Yao finally released Zhu Xunchuan, panting heavily. Her red lips were luscious and alluring, and a hint of provocation lingered in her eyes as she looked down at Lin Chuxia.

Zhu Xun Chuan licked his lips, a slight smile playing on his lips as he watched the two women subtly vying for power. This effortless, everyday sparring was far more interesting than the cutthroat competition outside.

"I'm a little thirsty, where's some water?" Zhu Xun Chuan asked Lin Chu Xia.

Lin Chuxia walked over, her face flushed, and slammed her water glass down on the marble coffee table. She sat angrily on the single sofa opposite her, her legs together, but her eyes couldn't help but keep glancing at Zhu Xun Chuan's open collar.

Zhu Xun Chuan picked up his water glass, took a sip, and put the glass down.

He reached out and grabbed Lin Chuxia's wrist, pulling the sullen female student to sit down next to him with a little force.

"What did you just call me? A scumbag?" Zhu Xun Chuan turned his head to look at her.

Lin Chuxia was enveloped by his presence and hurriedly lowered her head: "That's how it is..."

Zhu Xun Chuan put his left arm around Jiang Yao and pinched Lin Chu Xia's chin with his right hand, forcing her to raise her head.

"In the middle of the night, instead of going home, you insist on following me. Is this all Miss Lin has to offer?" He said teasingly, his thumb gently caressing Lin Chuxia's full lips.

Lin Chuxia broke down instantly, her eyes welling up with tears.

Jiang Yao poked Zhu Xun Chuan's chest with her finger: "Honey, don't bully her."

The atmosphere inside the suite reached an extreme level of tension and conflict, with the air so sweet it was almost cloying.

Just then, the encrypted private phone line on the bedside table in the master bedroom suddenly rang.

This is a direct connection line left by the Peking Union Medical College Hospital medical team, specially arranged by Meng Wanqing.

Zhu Xun Chuan patted Jiang Yao's waist, signaling her to get up.

He stood up, strode into the master bedroom, and picked up the receiver.

"Mr. Zhu." The voice of the chief surgeon from Peking Union Medical College Hospital on the other end of the phone was filled with barely suppressed excitement, "Mr. Jiang is awake!"

"Let's go." After hanging up the phone, Zhu Xun Chuan took Jiang Yao's hand.

Half an hour later.

The top-floor VIP ward of the First Hospital of Harbin.

Rare winter sunlight streamed through the blinds and fell on the pristine white sheets.

On the hospital bed, Jiang Ting, who had been taken off the ventilator, leaned against the pillow. Although his face was pale, his eyes were sharp and clear.

Two wounded loyalists from the main branch stood beside the sickbed, quietly reporting on the events of the past two days.

When he heard that Jiang Tao's rebellion had been suppressed, Jiang Hai had been shot in the head, Jiang He had his limbs removed, and even the Siberian gray wolves crossing the border had been driven back by Zhu Xun Chuan with an empty M500 revolver, Jiang Ting's usually stern face gradually showed an unusual expression.

The door was pushed open.

Zhu Xun Chuan, wearing a fitted trench coat, walked ahead. Jiang Yao, in a long black dress, followed closely behind.

"Dad." Jiang Yao's eyes reddened when she saw Jiang Ting, who was awake, and she quickly walked to the bedside.

Jiang Ting patted his daughter's hand, but his gaze passed over Jiang Yao and stared straight at Zhu Xun Chuan.

"Mr. Zhu." The two loyal followers immediately bowed their heads, their tone respectful.

"Everyone, get out." Jiang Ting waved his hand.

The ward door closed, leaving only three people.

Jiang Ting sized up the excessively young man before him. Composed and reserved, his eyes held a depth that even the most powerful figures in the Northern Border could not fathom.

"You saved my life, quelled the Jiang family's chaos, and drove away the Russians." Jiang Ting's voice was hoarse but strong. "According to the rules of the martial world, I should kowtow to you."

Zhu Xun Chuan casually pulled up a chair and sat down, crossing his legs in a relaxed posture.

"No need. I am Yao Yao's man, and the Jiang family's affairs are my affairs."

These words are simple, yet they reveal an absolute bias towards those who are not their own.

Jiang Yao felt a lump in her throat as she listened, and turned to look at Zhu Xun Chuan's profile, her eyes filled with tenderness that seemed to melt into water.

Jiang Ting froze for three seconds, then suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter. The laughter aggravated his wounds, causing him to cough repeatedly, but he couldn't suppress the joy on his face.

He struggled to pull open the drawer of the bedside table and took out an old rosewood box.

Upon opening the box, a jade thumb ring, its surface gleaming with a faint glow, lay quietly inside.

A black jade thumb ring symbolizing the pinnacle of the Jiang family's underground power across three provinces and six cities.

Jiang Ting reached out, picked up the ring, and threw it directly at Zhu Xunchuan.

Zhu Xunchuan raised his hand and caught it steadily.

"Good lad, you've got the skills and the guts!" Jiang Ting looked at Zhu Xun Chuan with undisguised satisfaction, like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law—no, like a father-in-law looking at his successor. "My daughter Jiang Ting didn't misjudge you! This Northern Territory is yours from now on."

Zhu Xun Chuan fiddled with the thumb ring in his hand, without refusing.

By accepting the ring, he was essentially taking over Jiang Yao's future security.

"Thank you, Dad..." Jiang Yao was about to whine.

"No need to thank me!" Jiang Ting's tone shifted abruptly, his gruff voice rising eight octaves. "I'm not concerned about the plate anymore. You two get back to Kyoto to take care of things!"

Jiang Yao was taken aback: "What do you need me to do?"

Jiang Ting stared, his tone leaving no room for argument: "You must have a big, healthy boy by the end of the year! I want to hold my grandson!"

Quiet.

A brief silence fell over the ward.

A few seconds later, the yandere big sister from the North, who usually wields a butterfly knife without blinking an eye, visibly blushed.

Jiang Yao quickly lowered her head, twisting the hem of her black dress with both hands, and hid behind Zhu Xun Chuan's chair.

"Dad! What nonsense are you talking about..." Jiang Yao's voice was barely audible.

Zhu Xun Chuan turned his head and looked at the woman hiding behind him, her ears flushed red. Her cold and noble face was now filled with shyness and anticipation. She even secretly raised her eyes, quickly glanced at Zhu Xun Chuan, and then looked away as if she had been electrocuted.

The contrast is extremely strong.

Zhu Xun Chuan's lips curled into a smile. He took Jiang Yao's evasive little hand in his own, interlocked their fingers, and caressed her soft palm.

"Listen to Dad. Let's put returning to Kyoto on the agenda." Zhu Xun Chuan said naturally.

Jiang Yao's hand trembled, and she lowered her head even further, her ears turning so red they looked like they were about to bleed.

Jiang Ting slapped his thigh in satisfaction: "That's right! Have two children, one with the surname Zhu, and the other with the surname Jiang."

After chatting for a while, Jiang Yao went to the nurses' station to ask about the medication.

There were two men left in the ward.

Jiang Ting's smile faded, and his expression turned serious.

"Something's picking up in Kyoto," Jiang Ting said in a low voice. "These past two days, several very secretive forces have been investigating the Jiang family. They've got a very long reach; even I can't figure out where they're coming from."

A cold glint flashed in Zhu Xun Chuan's eyes: "What did you find out?"

"We found out you're in Ice City." Jiang Ting glanced at him. "You've been making too much noise lately. The Zhao family has fallen, the Chen family has been ruined. Some people in the Northern Territory are getting restless."

"Let them investigate." Zhu Xun Chuan stood up. "If they reach out, we'll chop off their hands; if they reach out, we'll behead them."

Jiang Ting looked at the confident man in front of him and said nothing more.

Leave the ward.

At the end of the corridor, in front of a half-open window.

Lin Chuxia was wearing a long, pure white cotton down jacket and a red knitted scarf. The mayor's daughter was as quiet as a girl next door, looking out the window at the snow.

Hearing footsteps, she turned around and pushed up her black-rimmed glasses.

"Are you leaving?" Lin Chuxia looked at Zhu Xunchuan.