boarding

Miles sat in the corner by the window, quietly watching the rain outside.

The door opened, and Miles looked up to see a man in a white shirt and glasses putting away his umbrella and walking in.

Their eyes met, and the other person quickly walked over.

"Sit down." Miles offered a cup of hot coffee. "You're very punctual."

"Your face?" Ji Xuan frowned slightly as he looked at the scar on Miles' cheekbone. "What a pity."

Miles said calmly, "It's not a pity that we're still alive; we're lucky."

"You seem to have a very open mind." Ji Xuan took off his glasses and wiped the raindrops. "I thought you wouldn't come looking for me again, since you should be avoiding suspicion now."

"There's nothing to hide. He already knows everything he should and shouldn't know."

"Really?" Ji Xuan smiled gently. "You didn't betray me, did you?"

"What would I betray you for? Tell him that you arranged Theo Green's death certificate and Milo's identity? You were just a middleman, the money was exchanged, you had no grudge against him, and even if it was revenge, he wouldn't come after you, he would only hate me more."

Ji Xuan wiped away the raindrops and put his glasses back on: "Actually, I kind of regret taking your order back then. The things you people do are more complicated than I thought. Miles, you didn't tell me the truth back then, so I hope this is our last collaboration."

Miles nodded. "I understand."

Ji Xuan pulled a document out of his bag: "This is a clean identity document and asset list. I personally suggest you head south; the current situation is not suitable for going north. Let me add that, given the current situation, getting rid of everything as soon as possible is the right decision. Times make heroes; it's not that you lack ability, it's just that you bet on the wrong market."

"Thank you." Miles took the document but didn't open it.

“You should know better than me that if you don’t leave today, you’ll never be free again. According to Lanman’s current laws and the evidence they can gather, you’ll most likely survive, but you’ll definitely spend the rest of your life in jail.” As he spoke, Ji Xuan took out another file folder from his bag. “Actually, Milo contacted me and offered me a condition I couldn’t refuse: he wanted me to investigate a woman named Suma Natawa. While investigating this woman, I accidentally discovered a secret.”

Miles glanced at the document without changing his expression: "Is this the cause of her death? If so, I don't need to look at it."

“No, it’s Blaze’s identity.” Ji Xuan pushed the document over. “Blaze is not Taylor Dale’s son. You and Blaze are not related by blood.”

Miles's expression stiffened slightly: "What did you say?"

“Given Suma’s abilities and ambitions, have you never doubted how she could be content to be a mistress? She kept this secret hidden for over twenty years, without a single leak. Unfortunately, she was unlucky enough to run into me in the end.” Ji Xuan calmly pushed the document over. “Whether you want to look at it or not, whether you dare to look at it or not, is entirely up to you.”

Ji Xuan spoke casually, but Miles could sense an indescribable danger. His fingers pressed against the document; reason told him not to open it, but his restless heart was urging him to uncover this so-called secret.

A light rain was falling outside the window. Ji Xuan enjoyed the aroma of coffee and listened to the sound of pages turning. When she turned her head, she saw Miles's pale face, an expression he rarely showed, and even his fingers were trembling as he turned the pages.

Ji Xuan put down his coffee cup: "I told you, this thing is a bomb."

Miles slammed the file shut: "Why are you showing me this?"

"Only by leaving can you avoid posing a threat to me, and of course I want you to go far away. Unfortunately, judging from your expression just now, I guess you're still unwilling to leave like this. In that case, either you clean up this mess, or Milo will take care of you. You don't have any cards left to play against him, so I can only try to give you one."

Miles looked at the person in front of him, his hands unconsciously clenching.

Ji Xuan glanced at his watch: "Let's go. So many eyes are on you. Only I can see you off." Ji Xuan shook the car keys in his hand. "I'll personally take you to the dock."

At Port No. 5, a light rain was falling. A black car was parked at the port, and not far away was the Bethlehem, which had just been renovated.

Ji Xuan stood by the car, holding a black umbrella, and quietly watched Miles standing in the rain, gazing at the sea.

The rain wasn't heavy, but it had already soaked Miles' shoulders. The phone rang, and Miles belatedly answered it.

“Mr. Dale, we can’t get in touch with Pomlason. The agreed-upon confirmation communication time has passed. A lot of government personnel have arrived at the Gangu Wharf; it looks like they’re planning to make arrests. They’ve even deployed a helicopter. When will you—”

"Let's head straight out to sea," Miles interrupted. The arrest of Ponglasong likely meant someone had defected. Whether the ship sailed or the people left was no longer of much consequence. Rather than staying put and providing free credit to the Tengbang government, it was better to sail to Lanman; even if they were arrested there, it would still boost Lanman Customs' revenue.

It seems that, as Ji Xuan said, he made the wrong bet. The current situation is that both the Tengbang government and the Lanman police are targeting him.

A piercing electrical noise instantly drowned out the rest of the conversation. Miles had no desire to listen any longer, and he hung up the phone.

"Could I borrow a light?"

Upon hearing this, Ji Xuan raised an eyebrow, took out a lighter from his pocket, thought for a moment, and then tossed it over.

The phone kept ringing, but Miles didn't want to answer it; he simply threw it into the sea. Looking at the documents in his hand, Miles kept thinking about why Steven hadn't wanted to leave in the first place.

He couldn't understand it then, but now that he's in that situation, he seems to suddenly understand.

I'm not reconciled.

I'm really not willing to accept this.

Just those three words were enough to hold him back and turn him into a fool like Steven.

"Crack—" An orange flame ignited, the tongue of fire greedily swirling around the edge of the document, the ash-black residue from the fire being swept away by the sea breeze and carried into the turbid waves.

“You’ve made up your mind.” Ji Xuan shook his head. “It seems today really is our last time together.” Ji Xuan took a half step back, turned around and looked at the person standing in the rain behind him. “I have something to do, so I’ll leave first. You can have this person.”

Milo's figure was slender and tall, like a bamboo stalk glistening from the rain. A few strands of wet black hair clung to his pale neck, and raindrops rolled silently down his defined jawline. Through the layers of rain, Milo's gaze calmly landed on Miles, without scrutiny, without hostility, without even a ripple of emotion, as still as a deep pool.

The rain pattered softly, and the two were separated by moisture and a long silence.

The first thing Miles noticed was Milo's bandaged arm, which was now slightly reddish from the rain.

"Why aren't you using an umbrella?" Even Miles himself was a little surprised when he said that.

Having come this far, all he could say was this one sentence.

"Let's get on the boat, just the two of us." Milo's voice grew clearer and clearer, brushing past his ear like the cool, refreshing rain. "I've been waiting for this day for a long time."

*

In the dock area, far from the bustling pier, a black sedan is quietly parked in the shadows, its engine still running.

Jesse quickly scanned his surroundings, and after confirming it was safe, he strode toward the black sedan.

The rear window silently rolled down a crack.

“You only have ten minutes,” Ji Xuan said calmly. “You should understand what it means to restore the citizenship of someone who has been dead for more than seven years, especially at this sensitive juncture.”

The sea breeze ruffled the stray hairs on Jesse's forehead. He didn't avoid Ji Xuan's scrutinizing gaze, his voice hoarse but unusually firm: "I know that I will bear all the procedural violations and the possible investigations and accountability that may result."

"You'll take responsibility? What will you use to take responsibility?"

“I’ll take the blame for my career.” Jesse took a step forward, his hands gripping the cold car window frame, his knuckles turning white from the force. “You’re the head of Skynet Operations, you can easily access the internal network. Back then, Milo’s death certificate was so flawless, who else could have done it but you? If you hadn’t been working for Miles, how could Milo have ended up like this!”

"Is that so? Even if he doesn't want to live anymore, it's my fault?" Ji Xuan's voice remained calm. "Can't you see that his mental illness is already very serious? If it weren't for revenge, he would have committed suicide long ago. What makes you think you can persuade him? I don't believe Dad didn't say these things to you?"

“Yes, I know, I know he never wanted to live. Milo hates this world, he hates everyone, including himself. But now the only hope that might give him a chance to turn back is the identity of ‘Theo Green,’ the identity that originally belonged to him.” Jesse’s gaze was fixed on Ji Xuan. “I want to give him a choice, a choice other than self-destruction. I want him to know that he can go back, that Theo Green can still exist in this world!”

As he finished speaking, Jesse's voice trembled slightly: "This is the only way I can think of! I really, really don't want him to die."

The carriage fell into a deathly silence, broken only by the howling of the sea breeze and the faint sound of a ship's horn in the distance.

Ji Xuanshen frowned as he looked at the almost desperate pleading in Jesse's eyes.

“I don’t want to discourage you, but given the current situation, you can’t stop him.” Ji Xuan took out a black USB drive without any markings from his inside pocket and handed it to Jesse. “But I have no right to stop you from trying something you know you can’t do.”

Jesse took the USB drive in a daze.

"This contains the key to initiate the identity recovery process and a path index for evidence. The password to the file is my brother's birthday. After unlocking it, enter my authentication credentials, and it will bypass the regular approval process and forcibly activate Theo Green's identity file. This trace can never be completely erased, and it will definitely be discovered later; it's just a matter of time. As for taking responsibility? With your current position, you are not qualified to take responsibility for my violations."

“You—” Jesse’s voice choked.

Ji Xuan interrupted Jesse indifferently: "It's just being dismissed. Anyway, I've been tired of the Skynet Operations Department for a long time."

After saying that, without waiting for Jesse to respond, the car window rolled up quickly and silently.

The black sedan engine let out a low growl, silently gliding out of the shadows and quickly disappearing into the darkness leading to the main road, leaving only two brief halos of red taillights.

Standing in the cold sea breeze, Jesse felt as if the chill of the car window frame still lingered in his hands. He stared in the direction the car had disappeared, then squeezed his eyes shut, forcefully suppressing his surging emotions. When he opened them again, Jesse didn't hesitate any longer, turning and striding towards the boarding gate.

He texted Milo as he walked.

[wait for me. ]

The light from the screen reflected Jesse's deep gaze.

He can definitely change Milo's mind; he can definitely find a way to make Milo want to live.