Chapter 402: Testing Each Other

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Is seafood not like this?” Ji Chi innocently looked at him. “Brother, where did I make you angry?”

“Didn’t your cooking master tell you that you need to remove the fishy smell when cooking seafood, especially for soups?” Jiang Junlin asked calmly.

“I followed his steps one by one and removed everything you don’t eat. Did I make a mistake in the process?” Ji Chi took a sip of the soup, which had a moderate taste, not too salty or bland, but it did have a hint of fishiness.

“Scallions, ginger, garlic, and spices can enhance the freshness and aroma and remove the fishy smell. You didn’t use any of those. So, you should remove the fishy smell before cooking. Have you ever seen me order this dish when we dined at Xingyang?” Jiang Junlin asked.

Ji Chi didn’t want to argue anymore. “Brother, hasn’t anyone ever told you that you’re really difficult to serve?”

“No!” Jiang Junlin asserted confidently. “Everyone knows I’m not easy to serve; they dare not say it.”

Ji Chi remained silent.

Jiang Junlin hadn’t eaten dinner yet, and Ji Chi’s attitude had irritated him. When he stood up, the chair made a grating sound as it scraped against the floor. Zhang Qiang, standing by the door, observed the whole scene and silently signaled one of the guards to go buy food.

“Impressive, Young Master!” Ji Chi mocked. “We street-raised wild kids don’t have so many rules!”

Jiang Junlin was dumbstruck.

Jiang Junlin pointed to the door. “You can leave!”

In the span of a second, Ji Chi went from being angry to suddenly changing his expression. He smiled, revealing two small dimples. “Brother, I’m sorry. 1 was being childish. You must be starving. Let me order some food for you.”

“No need. Zhang Qiang has already sent someone,” Jiang Junlin replied.

“Zhang Qiang has better judgment than our family’s Nick,” Ji Chi commented.

Zhang Qiang, at the door, didn’t understand why they had suddenly started arguing. They seemed like statues to him, and he struggled to comprehend his masters’ thoughts.

Jiang Junlin took a bottle of soda from the fridge, but Ji Chi swiftly snatched it away. “You haven’t had dinner, and you have a stomach condition. Why are you drinking soda on an empty stomach?”

“Mind your own business!” Jiang Junlin grabbed another bottle from the fridge.

Ji Chi quickly pushed it back and closed the fridge. He apologized with a knowing smile. “Brother, don’t be angry. I was wrong.”

He didn’t know what he did wrong, but apologizing first was always a safe bet.

Ji Chi had a natural talent for acting cute in front of Jiang Junlin.

Jiang Junlin’s inexplicable anger seemed to dissipate by half. “Move aside!”

“Don’t!” Ji Chi understood in his heart. Most likely, as soon as he mentioned the Ministry of State Security, his brother knew what he had come for. Ji Chi clicked his tongue in his mind, his brother was really clever. He wasn’t budging no matter what approach he used, truly difficult to deal with!

“I got scolded by Third Master and came to seek comfort from you,” Ji Chi began, “If you don’t like this dish, you don’t have to eat it. I’ll work harder next time to perfect this dish and make it to your liking.”

He had humbled himself this much; his brother wouldn’t still be angry, right? “Why did you get scolded?” Jiang Junlin picked up the topic, as Ji Chi had hoped. Ji Chi hesitated for a moment, and Jiang Junlin calmly said, “If you don’t want to say, then don’t.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to say,” Ji Chi lowered his gaze, putting on a look of grievance, “A batch of cultural relics transported by Black Hawk to the port was stolen under my responsibility. The blame is on me. We haven’t found any clues yet, and the stolen artifacts were returned. Third Master said I was too focused on you and not paying enough attention to official business. This incident caused a stir, and I can’t be blamed for not investigating as quickly as others, right?”

Jiang Junlin pondered silently. Wasn’t this batch of cultural relics under Rong Li’s responsibility?

But then he thought again. Lu Zhiyuan was recuperating, and both Rong Li and Ji Chi were sharing all the official duties. Ji Chi was the heir, so it made sense to entrust him with such an important matter.

“Since the items haven’t been lost, there’s nothing to be scolded for,” Jiang Junlin said.

“Third Master thinks something is fishy about this. The stolen items were returned intact, isn’t this playing games with us? We had already informed Chen Liangyou on the day the items were stolen. There was a bit of unpleasantness recently, and Third Master was pushed off a cliff by Chen Liangyou. With the loss of these artifacts, Chen Liangyou, who had been inclined to reconcile with us, became estranged again. He felt we were deliberately plotting against him due to this incident, severing our ties completely. It’s quite a malicious scheme.”

Jiang Junlin pondered in silence. He had never thought of any malicious schemes.

“With Black Hawk’s extensive network, losing the Chen family won’t affect us much. Many others are willing to cooperate with you,” Ji Chi didn’t say anything particularly valuable, and Jiang Junlin already knew it, “You’re not avoiding anything, just saying everything.”

“What’s there to avoid? Third Master and Gu Ci fell off a cliff together, almost losing their lives. You’d definitely investigate,” Ji Chi lightly chuckled, “There’s nothing to hide.”

With Gu Ci involved in such a major incident, how could Jiang Junlin not know?

Jiang Junlin changed the topic and asked Ji Chi, “Lu Zhiyuan is a year younger than you. Why did they groom you as the heir? When he took over Black Hawk back then, he was also very young. Did he foresee his early death? Otherwise, why would he choose someone of the same age as the heir?”

Ji Chi propped his chin, smiling ambiguously, “Third Master probably wanted to retire early and enjoy a life of leisure, wandering without a care?”

Jiang Junlin chuckled. “A person who took over Black Hawk when he was underage, with no interest in power, wanting a carefree life in seclusion. Do you believe that?”

Ji Chi chuckled lightly. “Third Master really does.”

“When do you plan to take over?” Jiang Junlin asked.

“Maybe in another ten years!” Ji Chi wasn’t entirely sure. It could be five years, or it could be ten. Five to ten years would give him enough time to establish himself in Black Hawk and maintain control over several major families.

That timeframe was similar to what Jiang Junlin had estimated.

“Why did he take over Black Hawk back then?”

“The previous master died suddenly, and he was thrust into the role in a crisis,” Ji Chi said with a sly smile. “Brother, you seem quite curious about Third Master today.”

“I’m curious because there are many mysteries surrounding him. Just surviving that fall alone has me puzzled,” Jiang Junlin asked, “The car crashed in the South Mountains, so why did they end up in the North Mountains? Did they fly there?”

The South and North Mountains were not connected, with no roads between them. Jiang Junlin couldn’t figure out how Gu Ci, half-dead, managed to cross the rugged terrain carrying Lu Zhiyuan. It had always been a question on his mind.

He had even seen videos taken by passersby of the accident. With such a severe crash, even gods would have perished. He had prepared for the worst.

He had almost believed that fate couldn’t be changed, and Lu Zhiyuan and Gu Ci were destined to die.

Ji Chi was taken aback by this question. He hadn’t considered it before. Since Third Master was fine, both he and Rong Li were just grateful. They didn’t pay much attention to how he had survived. Jiang Junlin’s mention of it felt strange, and Ji Chi couldn’t help but find it peculiar. When the car went off the cliff, they were all inside it. What was even more bizarre was that Gu Ci only had superficial injuries. Despite a large search party looking for them at the foot of the cliff, they couldn’t locate them.

“Maybe there’s some hidden path in the mountains that we don’t know about?” Ji Chi made a reasonable assumption.

Jiang Junlin let out a derisive snort. He leaned back against the couch, revealing his long neck, prominent Adam’s apple, and a side profile that exuded both sharpness and gentleness. He was undoubtedly a side-profile heartthrob.

Ji Chi’s mouth went dry, and Jiang Junlin satisfied every aspect of his aesthetic preferences, whether in terms of personality, temperament, looks, or physique.

Ji Chi was not one to stay passive, and Jiang Junlin could sense him inching closer. Ji Chi had countless desires.

He wanted to wake up every morning and see Jiang Junlin as the first thing.

He wanted to receive a hug from Jiang Junlin every evening when he returned home.

He wanted to have dinner with Jiang Junlin every day and chat about daily life..