Proposal
A plane slowly landed at the airport.
Milo stepped out of the cabin.
The VIP passageway was lined with flowering trees adorned with LED strips, and ground staff in dark blue uniforms bowed to them and guided them to their vehicles.
Seven hours earlier, he had received a call from Miles asking to see him. When he arrived at his destination, he discovered that Miles had actually offered to take him on a trip abroad.
As for the reason, he had absolutely no clue.
In the late September evening, the evening breeze carried the chirping of cicadas along the fields.
Milo followed Miles as they drove along the road lined with men and women dressed in traditional clothing. Milo instantly realized that Miles must have brought him to see the fireworks display.
A light gold carpet was laid under the rattan canopy of the VIP viewing area. Milo looked around and noticed that their viewing area seemed a little different from the surrounding ones, as it appeared to be a bit higher.
Once seated, the cool touch of the Oxford cloth upholstery of the chair spreads from my waist to my shoulders and back.
Fireworks exploded, and a vibrator hidden in the armrest of the seat beeped. Milo glanced at it; it was probably equipped with a foreign language commentary service, but he wasn't wearing headphones.
Milo turned his head to look and saw that Miles wasn't wearing it either.
Waiters carried silver trays through the aisle, while chilled tofu covered with mint leaves and whiskey glasses arrived at the table at the same time.
The crackling of the burning fuse mingled with the commotion of the crowd on the distant shore. Fireworks soared into the sky, and Milo watched as the golden-red orb exploded in the fog, a fine rain of gold foil falling down, dazzlingly beautiful under the lighthouse's illumination.
The giant projection screen embedded in the double-layered observation deck transforms the fireworks trails into dynamic projections, which slowly unfold.
In an instant, they felt as if they were right in the middle of fireworks, an almost dreamlike scene.
Miles suddenly spoke up: "Is it good-looking?"
Milo wasn't lost in admiration. When Miles finally spoke, he immediately replied, "I can explain what happened that day."
He had initially thought that Miles's refusal to mention the broken promise meant he was letting it go, but this unusual behavior made him vaguely sense that things weren't so simple.
When did you think of that?
Milo was slightly taken aback: "What?"
Miles turned his head and looked calmly at Milo: "Theo Green, that's what I should call you, isn't it?"
"Boom—" Another burst of fireworks suddenly appeared.
Milo felt a hollow buzzing sound in his ears, and the fireworks in the sky seemed to lose their color and turn into burning fireballs, which crashed straight down on him.
Milo stared intently at Miles, his pupils trembling, unable to speak.
“But Theo Green is a bad name. So from the moment I saved you, I planned to let you live a simpler life. For the first two years, we got along very well. But those days suddenly stopped when you turned twenty... the day you decided to commit suicide.”
Miles chuckled dryly: "That's the day you remembered everything, right? For the next four years, you just pretended not to remember anything, pretended to use the identity I gave you to infiltrate my side, all to use me, to get closer to Steven step by step, and then kill him?"
Upon hearing the words "kill Steven," Milo's pupils dilated uncontrollably.
“You’re angry, aren’t you? Angry that your friend betrayed you in the end.” As he spoke, Miles held out his palm, which contained a bank card.
The moment Milo saw the bank card, his neck turned bright red, veins bulged, and the heat spread to his face.
“You know in your heart that only he would tell me these things. You know even better that this card, and the bar you secretly opened, were all information he betrayed to me.” Miles placed the card in Milo’s hand, and then grasped his trembling palm, reminding him to look in a certain direction. “Trust, what a fragile word.”
In the sea of people below the viewing platform, Milo suddenly spotted Yuuma, who had been missing for a long time.
Harold pressed down on his shoulder, forcing Yuzhen to sit, his eyes filled with sorrow and pain. When he saw Milo looking over, two lines of tears rolled down his cheeks silently.
Milo felt his heart suddenly sink, as if all the strength had been drained from his body.
He suddenly remembered what Yuma had said to him in the rainforest, words he had almost said but couldn't quite finish: "But actually, I'm a terrible person. Milo, maybe one day you'll regret knowing me."
"Yuuma... is he also your informant?" Milo barely managed to ask the complete question.
Miles looked at the dazzling fireworks in the sky and said calmly, "For the six months after your suicide attempt, you refused to speak to anyone. I couldn't bear to see you sink into despair forever. I heard that people with depression often keep a comfort dog for companionship, but you hate animals. So, I had no choice but to pick out a socially responsible comfort dog for you."
Milo felt a chill run down his spine. Miles's words were casual and matter-of-fact; he didn't consider some people as human beings. Milo suddenly remembered that when he had joked that Yuzhen's slightly curly, dark brown hair looked like a big golden retriever, Yuzhen's face would always show a moment of embarrassment.
More details flooded into Milo's mind at that moment.
Yuzhen mentioned that his younger brother has a heart condition and needs a matching organ, which he has been waiting for a very long time. Given Miles's status and abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for him to find a suitable organ from Steven for the transaction.
The Bethlehem, adrift at sea, served as a mobile operating room for the upper class, but perhaps Yuuma's younger brother had also lain there. To repay the debts incurred from the surgery, Yuuma opened the doors to a variety show.
Time and time again.
"Among the group, he was the most proactive. You know what? He confidently declared that he could definitely gain your trust. And he did. His strategy of feigning weakness to gain strength was so clever, wasn't it? He made you think he was a pitiful person stuck in a quagmire, using your compassion to exchange it for money. Exchanging sincerity for money was indeed a worthwhile and fair deal for him."
Milo said in a trembling voice, "Stop talking!"
Fair trade?
Those in power can easily press down on the Five Finger Mountain, while those in lower positions have no choice but to bear the burden with their own flesh and blood. If they can't bear it, they will be scorned as greedy and worthless.
Who told you to be greedy? Who told you to refuse to accept your poor and miserable fate?
All the misfortunes in this world are nothing more than the loss of power.
What's the difference between Yuuma and him?
Miles glanced at Milo, who rarely lost his composure, and said softly, "Can't accept this betrayal? Then you should understand how I feel right now."
"You think I betrayed you?" Milo suddenly laughed, his eyes reddening. "Uncle Dale, don't forget, you're eleven years older than me. When you supposedly 'raised' me, I had just come of age. You wove a net for me to jump into. Besides, do you think I believe you 'raised' me without expecting anything in return?"
“You hate Blaise, and maybe you're even jealous of him, so you're afraid he'll take what's yours, but you didn't realize he doesn't care about Wudong Port's businesses at all. Yet you're still afraid, and that fear makes you realize you can use me to blackmail him.”
"You must be very pleased to see Blaise constantly losing his composure and making mistakes because of me, isn't that what you wanted? But why are you so conflicted? Since you pushed me to him and sold me to Sigon, why are you unhappy about my close contact with him? All your physical reactions and rational thoughts prove that you don't love me. Of course, someone high above can't love an ignorant piece of trash, a tool destined to be used for exchange."
"Betrayal is predicated on a relationship of interdependence. Are you saying you're actually dependent on me?"
The last sentence was almost entirely filled with disdain and sarcasm.
These words bombarded Miles, whose eyes flashed. He reached out and put his arm around Milo's shoulder, forcefully closing the distance between them despite Milo's resistance.
"Milo, I don't like the way you are."
Milo tried to break free, his eyes bloodshot with hostility: "I am not Milo!"
“But you can never be Theo Green again,” Miles whispered gently in his ear. “From now on, you can only be Milo.”
Fireworks soared into the sky, splitting the heavens into varying shades of blue and purple.
Miles took out a velvet box, and when he opened it, Milo's face instantly lost all color, and even the strength to struggle vanished.
Inside the box lay a soft, fresh human tongue, already cleaned and pressed firmly into the velvet box with small nails to prevent it from shifting.
An old ring, of a very ordinary design, rested on the tongue.
A cold sweat instantly broke out on Milo's back. He looked silently into the distance and finally realized why Yuzhen's tears were drying on her face.
It turned out to be the pain of having my tongue pulled out.
Miles lifted Milo's right hand, satisfied with his lack of struggle, and slowly put a ring on the ring finger of his left hand.
It fits perfectly and is the right size.
“Indeed, the changes suit you very well.” As he spoke, Miles gently kissed Milo’s forehead. “As long as you behave, he will be fine. After this contract is completed, I will announce our engagement. Then, we will go to the notary office to register our marriage.”
Miles' gaze fell on Milo's lowered eyelashes, and he said softly, "Love is an illusory thing, ever-changing, and I've never believed in it. But what you just said has made me certain that I want you to be a part of my life from now on. I won't sign a prenuptial agreement. You will be one of the controlling shareholders of the Dale Group, and that bar will still be yours. This is the most concrete promise I can give you. As for the past grievances, let's just put them behind us. I don't care what you had with him."
As the fireworks faded and the noise of the crowd subsided, Milo could only hear the same phrase that kept echoing in his ears.
"Milo, I told you, I want you to stay with me forever."
*
Blaze pushed open the door, and a pungent smell of smoke hit him. He couldn't help but frown, and then he saw a mountain of cardboard boxes, electronic screens, and documents piled up on the floor. He kicked a path through the debris and finally saw Milo sitting on the floor surrounded by documents.
The computer screen flickered with light, next to a dried-up coffee cup. Milo held a cigarette between his fingers, his eyes wandering as he stared at the wall.
Blaze walked over cautiously, and Milo seemed to suddenly come to his senses, stubbing out his cigarette: "You've come."
Blaise stepped forward, kneeling and squeezing into the cramped space. After a moment's hesitation, he gestured: "How long has it been since you slept?"
Milo's haggard appearance was so obvious that it could not be ignored.
"I'm fine." Milo rubbed his fingertips together, wanting to reach for the cigarette, but quickly withdrew them, only licking his dry lips.
Blaise pointed to his chest with one index finger, then drew arcs in front of his face with the other hand while shaking his head, finally pointing his index finger to the sky.
Milo crossed his legs, rested his face on his knees, and said listlessly, "Are you saying you can't find Yuzuru?"
Blaze lowered his eyes, but soon his gaze fell on the ring on Milo's ring finger. He paused for a second, then stiffly looked up at Milo.
“This?” Milo held out his left hand with a sarcastic smile. “Miles gave it to me. He said he wanted to marry me.”
Blaise's pupils contracted, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he almost immediately stood up, but Milo grabbed his trouser leg, looked up at him, and said, "What are you going to do, kill him?"
Blaise's lips were pursed.
Milo applied force, pulling Blaze back down reluctantly, though he still looked extremely awkward.
Milo knelt on the ground, at a height that allowed him to barely look Blaze, who was sitting, in the eye: "But this is one thing you can't take from me."
“Yuzhen saw us burying the body. Now Yuzhen is in his hands, and he even pulled out Yuzhen’s tongue,” Milo said calmly. “He also discovered the Church of St. Bar. He must think now that I’m completely trapped in his grasp.”
Blaise lowered his eyes.
In his mind, the best course of action would be to slit Miles's throat in the dead of night. If Milo wanted to reclaim the Green family's original assets, he would use his current identity to take as much money as he could.
Once you step into Tengbang and enter Gan Valley, even the Lanman police can't reach that far. But... Milo won't approve of his methods, and more importantly, Milo won't want to become a wanted criminal with him.
“I can’t resist him until Green Contract Corporation comes to sign the contract. So, you have to try to learn to be patient too. But Yuzhen can’t fall into his hands; she’s a ticking time bomb.” Milo stroked Blaise’s cheek with his fingertips. “Can you help me?”
Blaze reached out and touched Milo's hand; the uncomfortable ring made him extremely irritated. He squeezed Milo's fingers, gesturing for him to look at him.
Milo wearily looked up and saw Blaise gesturing: What do you want me to do?
“Miles will definitely be wary of us, so even you will have a hard time finding Yuzuru quickly under his deliberate precautions.” Milo pulled out a stack of old newspapers from the ground and pointed to the circled area at the top. “However, we can make use of other people’s strength appropriately.”
Looking at the pictures in the newspaper, Blaise frowned slightly, seemingly hesitant.
“I know that the Skynet Operations Bureau is a very troublesome entity; I’ve even been followed by them before. I thought about it for a long time and realized that their investigation of me, and the investigation of you last time, was actually just to track down this long-standing cold case. Steven’s black market organ case and your smuggling were just coincidentally related to this case. If I’m not mistaken, what they really want to investigate is ships; they are very interested in all kinds of ship-related cases. Now that the organ case has been solved, they have no leads, and we can create a breakthrough for them.”
Blaise understood, but he also remembered that before coming to Wudong Port, there were two people whom Xigong advised him not to get involved with unless absolutely necessary, because getting rid of them would be quite troublesome.
One is Elion, a branch of the Thornton family, who holds up half the sky in the north. The other is Ji Xuan, the current head of the Skynet Operations Bureau and a very young investigator.
The former is crazy yet highly intelligent, while the latter is ruthless and heartless.
Blaze was reluctant to let Milo get involved with a character that even Sigon found troublesome.
“As far as I know, this Investigator Ji has never failed in tracking down suspects, and he doesn’t care about anyone’s feelings. Once we release a half-truth, half-false information, he will definitely sniff out the bait. With him, we won’t have to worry about not finding him.” Milo held Blaze’s hand. “Youzhen will definitely have people guarding her. At that time, I will find a way to stall Ji Xuan. The most important thing is that you need to bring him out.”
Upon hearing this, Blaze realized that Milo had already come up with a plan, so he didn't try to dissuade him any further.
Even if it's troublesome, it's just troublesome, it just takes a little more effort, he has nothing to fear.
Blaise nodded.
Milo slightly raised his lips, a very tired smile appearing on his haggard face: "Thank you."
Seeing this, Blaise gestured: I will do all of that, you should get some sleep now.
Milo complied with Blaise's wishes, slowly sliding down to rest his head on Blaise's lap, his cheek against the back of Blaise's leg, and gently closing his eyes.
Blaze was somewhat surprised. He had intended for Milo to leave this doghouse-like place and find a comfortable spot to get a good night's sleep. But seeing Milo close his eyes, he couldn't bring himself to persuade him any further.
The fan creaked and whirred, and Blaze turned it around to face Milo. He then picked up a folder from the floor and slowly fanned Milo.
The world seemed to suddenly quiet down. Blaze stared silently at Milo's closed eyes and noticed that he was still frowning.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that the ashtray was full of cigarette butts.
What more can I do for you?
What else can I do to give you a moment of relaxation?
Sweat quickly soaked his back, but Blaze was oblivious. He gently stroked Milo's fingers; the ring was still glaring, but he tried to ignore it, simply placing Milo's hand gently aside.
The fan swirls up piles of documents and papers, which float into the air and then slowly fall back down.
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