Chapter 20: Lin Junqiang

"Kyoto Miyunjian?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene fell into an instant silence.

A flicker of terror flashed through Chen Shuting’s eyes. She knew Kyoto Miyunjian all too well; it was arguably one of the most powerful organizations in all of China, far beyond anything her Chen family could afford to provoke. Whatever happened, this jade pendant must not be handed over to Lin Zhenjie!

Ye Fan was also stunned. Just how deep did the waters of this world run? As a common man, he felt completely out of his depth!

The problem was that this jade pendant belonged to Li Yaoyao. It wasn't even the same one they were talking about. Even if they looked identical, they were items from two different worlds—the one he had was a fake! He had tried telling Chen Shuting earlier, but she hadn't believed him. Would Lin Zhenjie believe him now?

However, with things having progressed to this point, Ye Fan felt it was better to speak up. What if, just maybe, Lin Zhenjie believed him?

"Lin Zhenjie!" Ye Fan suddenly called out to him. "If I tell you now that the jade pendant I have is just a replica—an exact lookalike of the one you're talking about, but actually a fake—would you believe me?"

"Believe you? I’ll give you a hammer to the head!" Lin Zhenjie looked at him as if he were an idiot. "You dare to fake something from Miyunjian? Do you have a death wish?"

He was amused by Ye Fan, but as he laughed, his expression twisted into one of cruelty. "Today, one way or another, you are going to tell me the whereabouts of that pendant! Otherwise..."

"Nonsense!"

A ragged, angry roar echoed from outside the room.

Everyone was startled and hurriedly looked toward the door, only to see an elderly man with a crooked mouth and twisted eyes being pushed in on a wheelchair!

"Dad?"
"Patriarch?"
"Uncle!"

The newcomer was none other than the head of the Lin family, Lin Junqiang!

"Dad! Why are you here?" Lin Zhenjie’s expression did a complete one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn, transforming from a ferocious demon into a timid lamb in an instant.

"If I didn't come, this family would be finished!" Lin Junqiang struggled to sit up, his face full of grief and indignation. "A younger brother imprisoning his own sister-in-law? Do you want me to lose all my dignity?"

"That’s not it, Dad!" A flash of panic crossed Lin Zhenjie’s eyes, but he suddenly caught sight of the person behind Lin Junqiang and immediately regained his composure.

Behind Lin Junqiang was another old man pushing the wheelchair, bearing a striking seven-or-eight-part resemblance to him.

"Second Uncle!" Lin Zhenjie hurriedly lowered his head and bowed. The man was Lin Jiaxing, Lin Junqiang’s younger brother.

Lin Jiaxing had worked alongside Lin Junqiang since they were young and had always been the number two figure in the Lin family. But ever since Lin Junqiang suffered a cerebral thrombosis, Jiaxing had gradually faded into the background, seemingly content to give up the position of patriarch to focus on grooming the younger generation.

Just like now, he pushed the wheelchair silently, like a quiet butler. Had Lin Zhenjie not acknowledged him, no one would have even noticed he was there.

Lin Jiaxing gave a light cough and looked at Lin Junqiang, saying, "Big Brother, I think there might be a misunderstanding here. I’ve watched Xiao Jie grow up since he was a boy; I know his character. He wouldn't do something like imprisoning his sister-in-law!"

Lin Zhenjie, standing to the side, immediately put on a look of deep grievance. "Sister-in-law has been unfaithful, going to a hotel with this kid named Ye Fan. Your health is already fragile, and I was afraid this would upset you, so I took it upon myself to handle it!"

"Huh?" Ye Fan looked at Chen Shuting with a face full of confusion. Weren't they supposed to be fighting over a jade pendant? Where did this rumor about him and Chen Shuting having an affair come from? Ye Fan felt his brain couldn't keep up.

Chen Shuting’s face was so dark it looked like it could drip water. In truth, the only reason Lin Junqiang had come was because of a contingency plan she had set up. Before coming to rescue Ye Fan, she had anticipated that she might be outnumbered and unable to cope with Lin Zhenjie, so she had instructed Old Luan to draft a text message to be sent to Lin Junqiang in an emergency, asking him to come and uphold justice.

But she never imagined that Lin Jiaxing would be with Lin Junqiang—and that he was firmly on Lin Zhenjie’s side!

"Don't listen to their lies!" Chen Shuting said to Lin Junqiang, her voice trembling with emotion. "Lin Zhenjie grabbed us entirely because of the jade pendant! Uncle, we’ve found a lead on it!" Chen Shuting had always called Lin Junqiang "Uncle," despite being his legitimate daughter-in-law.

"The jade pendant?" Hearing this, Lin Junqiang, sitting in his wheelchair, gasped, sucking back the drool at the corner of his mouth.

He was, of course, aware of the gravity of the situation regarding the jade pendant and the disappearance of the eldest Lin son. But the forces behind it were so deep that he hadn't known where to start. He hadn't expected his eldest daughter-in-law to be so persistent that she actually found a lead.

"I explained everything in the text message I sent you! That pendant is in the hands of Ye Fan’s friend, and I am in the middle of investigating my husband’s disappearance through it!" Chen Shuting glared hatefully at Lin Jiaxing. "Didn't Second Uncle tell you?"

Lin Junqiang felt that something was wrong. He turned his head with great difficulty to look at his brother. "Jiaxing, is this true?"

Hearing Chen Shuting’s words, Lin Jiaxing chuckled. "Chen Shuting, I think you’ve lost your mind!" He held his phone up to Lin Junqiang’s eyes. "Look, Big Brother. The text message Chen Shuting sent clearly only says that Xiao Jie detained her; there is absolutely no mention of any jade pendant!"

"How is that possible!" A look of disbelief appeared in Chen Shuting’s eyes. She whipped her head around to look at Old Luan. "I told you to draft the message..."

Old Luan was equally shocked. He looked at Chen Shuting and shook his head frantically. "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I sent exactly what you wanted me to!" He then looked at Lin Zhenjie. "Give me back my phone!"

Their phones had been confiscated when they were first tied up. Lin Zhenjie shrugged, showing no signs of panic, and even ordered his men to untie the three of them. "Give them back."

The bodyguards stepped forward and produced the phones. Old Luan snatched his phone, tapped it, and felt the world spin! To his horror, the text message was exactly as Lin Jiaxing had shown—there was not a shred of information about the jade pendant!

He looked at Chen Shuting, then at Lin Zhenjie and his men, his eyes filled with despair. "Good! What kind of tricks did you use to frame me!" He lunged forward, ready to fight for his life!

"Old Luan, stop acting..." Chen Shuting’s voice cut through the air. "So, you really did betray me!" Her eyes lost their luster, her tone thick with crushing disappointment. Old Luan collapsed to the ground, utterly dejected.

Nearby, Lin Jiaxing let out a cold laugh. "Chen Shuting, I think you should stop acting, too! You were just afraid that your affair with this toy boy would be exposed, so you used the jade pendant to distract us, didn't you?"

"Enough of this!" Lin Junqiang suddenly spoke up. Although he was physically impaired by the stroke, he wasn't senile. He knew the pendant was of vital importance, so he questioned them carefully. "This is Ye Fan, correct?"

"Yes, tell me," Ye Fan replied, cooperating, as he didn't want to be framed.

"The pendant is in your friend’s hands? Where is he from? What is his name?"

Hearing the question, Ye Fan gave a bitter laugh. He only knew about Li Yaoyao’s pendant; he didn't know the first thing about the true nature of the one they were looking for. "My friend is mysterious. He only said he was selling the pendant; I don't even know his true identity!" That was all he could say.

"Heh, it seems you don't have the pendant at all!" A flicker of malice crossed Lin Junqiang’s twisted face. He had been inquiring about the pendant for a long time, but the party involved was too powerful for him to move against. In his mind, how could some random brat suddenly pop up claiming to have the pendant? And trying to sell it?

He sneered. That pendant was far too important. Who would sell it? Who would dare to sell it?

"Men, seize this pair of adulterers! Throw them into the Lin family dungeon!"

Lin Junqiang gave the order, and several bodyguards immediately rushed toward Ye Fan and Chen Shuting!

"Wait!" Ye Fan roared, pushing back the bodyguards. "Patriarch Lin! Whether I have the pendant or not, you’ll know as soon as you see it! Give me some time, and I will go back and bring it to you!"