CHAPTER 254: 8.41

#Fu’s corporate empire has officially been acquired by Jinsheng!

#Fu Xiaoyuan’s ex-fiancé, Jiang Jiamian, is now engaged to Fu Yanchen?!

#Medical miracle or power of love? Fu Yanchen’s recovery shocks the world.

#Breaking: The mastermind behind Jinsheng is none other than Fu Yanchen, once thought to be a cripple cast out by his family!

Jiang Jiamian scrolled through the headlines with the dead-eyed look of someone who’d seen too much and cared too little. It seemed like the media didn’t know which bombshell to run with first. Any one of them could shake the world.

He reached out lazily and tugged on Fu Yanchen’s face. "Well done. You’re totally famous now."

Fu Yanchen caught his wrist, laughing softly, "Scared? I was just about to drop another bomb."

Jiang Jiamian raised a brow, "What bomb?"

Fu Yanchen’s gaze darkened meaningfully, "For instance... what if all of Jinsheng suddenly transferred from Fu Yanchen to Jiang Jiamian? What if President Fu handed over his entire fortune just to make someone smile?"

Jiang Jiamian’s eyes lit up. He lunged into his arms. "Are you serious? Don’t play with me!"

Fu Yanchen hugged him back tightly, feeling the warmth of the entire world in that one embrace. "Of course I’m serious. The transfer contract is already printed. I’m just waiting for you to sign it."

But that moment of softness didn’t last.

As soon as the excitement passed, Jiang Jiamian smirked wickedly. He released him slightly, raised a hand, and lightly patted his cheek. "You’re such a good man! Since you’re so good, Jinsheng can be under my name, but real power stays with you! Aren’t you surprised, touched, amazed?"

Fu Yanchen: "..."

He sighed. "You little heartless fox. You’re full of schemes."

Just in name? Still his power?

Let’s be real, he’d be the one working like a mule while Jiang Jiamian gets all the credit. Classic hands-off boss.

Jiang Jiamian grinned. "Tsk, tsk. You don’t look moved at all. You must think I’m not giving enough. Fine, how about I also give you 800 dollars pocket money each month?"

Fu Yanchen: "..."

So moved.

My beloved actually remembered to give me a couple of hundred bucks in allowance.

The system gasped, "Host, you’re so generous!"

Jiang Jiamian spread his hands. "800 is plenty. You have free food, top-tier living, and nowhere to spend money anyway!"

"Cough!"

Fu Yanchen nearly choked on air. Then he laughed, "You’re absolutely right. 800 is plenty."

System: "..."

Alright, go on. Just keep showing off.

The system just wanted to be a quiet puppy in the background.

Meanwhile, in a shabby rental room across town, Tang Tang sat in silence, watching headline after headline appear on his phone.

After a long, heavy pause, he suddenly burst out laughing, wild, bitter laughter filled with sorrow and disbelief. It echoed in the narrow room until he laughed himself to tears.

Under the dim desk lamp, his disheveled hair and hollowed cheeks gave him a wasted, ragged look. Even with decent features, he looked utterly worn down.

Nothing like the charming, gentle protagonist of the original plot.

Why?

Why did he only get one rebirth, thinking it was a gift from the heavens... only to end up worse than before?

Fu Xiaoyuan didn’t love him anymore. He’d been jailed. And Fu Yanchen, who was supposed to be a broken, crippled mess, was now the powerful, admired head of Jinsheng?

And Jiang Jiamian... Jiang freaking Jiamian, who had tormented him in the previous life, was now basking in fortune and love.

In his past life, he’d only lost out because of family background.

This time, he thought Jiang Jiamian had backed off because he feared falling again... only to watch him turn around and fall into Fu Yanchen’s arms.

He thought that was a joke. A misstep.

But now?

Fu Yanchen could walk. He was rich. Powerful. Devoted.

He handed Jiang Jiamian the entire Jinsheng without hesitation, just to make him smile.

But in the past life, Fu Yanchen had been a tyrant. A madman. A cripple!

So why... why did he become a perfect, gentle, loyal man only for Jiang Jiamian?

Jiang Jiamian had no idea how hard Tang Tang was struggling. How much pain he felt. How much he doubted life, even God.

But if he thought about it, he could guess.

Maybe Tang Tang was wondering, did God give him a second chance to fix his past mistakes? Or did he think the first life wasn’t miserable enough... and wanted him to suffer even more?

But just because he could imagine it didn’t mean he’d sympathize.

He had warned Tang Tang before, reached out, even. But Tang Tang had insisted on seeing him as an enemy.

And even after the engagement was broken off, he had a chance to let go. To move forward. But instead, he stayed trapped in his own fantasy, still competing with him.

Truth is, in his past life, yes, he’d been framed.

But in this one, he built the prison himself.

And no one could save him except himself.

Years passed.

Now, in their twilight years, Fu Yanchen still clung to Jiang Jiamian like they’d just fallen in love. Jinsheng had long become a world-class conglomerate.

They could have upgraded to a fancier place, but neither of them wanted the cold emptiness of a luxury mansion. They still lived in their old villa.

"What are you thinking about?" Fu Yanchen asked.

Jiang Jiamian turned, smiling gently, "Someone unimportant."

He didn’t want to think about Tang Tang anymore. After all, decades had passed, he’d nearly forgotten the guy existed.

If the system hadn’t suddenly mentioned that the protagonist had died... he wouldn’t have remembered at all.

Fu Yanchen wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "Then don’t think about him."

"Okay." Jiang Jiamian replied softly.

Thanks to Jiang Jiamian’s soul space, they both lived long, well past 120.

But he knew not to overuse it. If the effect became too obvious, the world’s laws and the quick transmigration organization wouldn’t let it slide.

Even when he healed Fu Yanchen’s legs, it had caused enough of a stir.

Luckily, he managed to time it right, faking a natural two-to-three-month recovery. If he hadn’t planned ahead, it might’ve become a real problem.

"Host, we’ve completed several worlds in a row. Want to rest before moving to the next one?"

Jiang Jiamian narrowed his eyes. "Wait."

As he replied, his consciousness shifted into the communication group.

He scanned the member avatars quietly.

Suddenly, the group leader’s avatar flickered.

It lit up for just a moment, like a stream of light had poured into it. But... it was still using the default template. No real image. Just like the other two users in the group.

Jiang Jiamian’s lips curled slightly.

Was it just his imagination?

Ever since that illusion in the cultivation world... ever since he heard that strange voice and Sword Master mentioned the group leader’s avatar lit up, he couldn’t shake the feeling.

This group leader was connected to his missions.

Maybe even to the true identity of those powerful and miserable bigshots he kept encountering.

The more he thought about it, the more certain he felt. But also more confused.

Why?

What was this person planning?

Was it a scheme? A trap? Or something else?

If the group leader was the main soul, or deeply connected to them, why would they willingly become these tragic characters in so many worlds?

Characters who didn’t even remember who they were?

You couldn’t just create a cross-world group on a whim.

Only god-level figures could manage something like that, something sanctioned by the main world’s laws.

So why was such a person... toying around like this?

"Host, are you okay?"

The system watched as Jiang Jiamian left the group, suspicion and aggression etched across his face. He even raised a hand to tug at his own hair.

But a second later, Jiang Jiamian smoothed it back down and smiled coolly. "I’m fine. If there’s a problem, it’s not with me. It’s with him."

"Him?" The system blinked. "Who’s he?"

"Don’t ask dumb questions, kid."

With a snap of his fingers, Jiang Jiamian’s grin returned. "Let’s head to the next world!"

He’d realized something.

Thinking alone wouldn’t get him answers.

If he wanted the truth, he’d have to keep moving. Keep peeling away the layers. Sooner or later...

He’d dig out that scheming bastard.