struggle
The message from my senior colleague in economic crime investigation was like a block of dry ice hissing in the sliver of warmth rising in the lab, releasing a chilling cold. Initiating an investigation, restricting exit from the country, destroying documents… every word pointed to a cold, inevitable end. The taste of victory hadn't even been savored before it was already tainted with an overwhelming price.
Shen Zhiyan hung up the phone and stood there, motionless for a long time. The sunlight from the window fell on him, but it couldn't penetrate the sudden silence that enveloped him. He didn't look at anyone; his gaze was fixed on a point in the void, as if silently confronting the collapsing world he knew.
Jiang Mo walked to his side, not speaking rashly, but standing quietly, like a silent island one could rely on. Researcher Zhou and Xiao Chen also composed themselves, looking at him with concern.
In the end, Shen Zhiyan said nothing, but turned around, picked up his things, nodded slightly to everyone, and left the laboratory. His back was still upright, but it exuded an indescribable loneliness.
Over the next few days, the storm gradually subsided in the public eye.
Lu Yan was formally arrested, and the marketing matrix he controlled collapsed. All the false accusations against Jiang Mo vanished with the support of conclusive evidence and official statements. Her public image was not only restored, but she also gained more respect for the resilience and wisdom she showed in the incident. The quality of the collaboration offers Linda received was far greater than before.
The attack on the laboratory was classified as a priority case, and the center's security level was comprehensively upgraded.
However, beneath the seemingly calm surface, undercurrents still surged. Although Shen Huaiming was restricted from leaving the country, his vast business empire and intricate network of relationships made the investigation and evidence gathering extremely difficult. He hired a top-notch legal team, attempting to mount a counterattack through procedural and evidentiary details.
During this period, Shen Zhiyan became unusually silent. He still arrived at the lab on time and handled his work meticulously, but the pure brilliance that occasionally shone when he was immersed in scientific research seemed to have dimmed. His interactions with Jiang Mo were limited to necessary work-related communication, as if an invisible barrier had been erected between them. He needed time to process and face the incredibly tragic outcome that he had personally orchestrated.
Jiang Mo understood his silence and didn't try to force it open. She simply put down a cup of hot tea for him when he stayed up late and had Linda order nutritious meals for him to eat under the guise of "film crew meal allowance" when he forgot to eat. In her own way, she protected that thorny inner place he was traversing alone.
A week later, Shen Zhiyan received a call from her mother, Lin Jing. Lin Jing's voice sounded tired, yet unusually clear and calm:
“Zhiyan, there are some things I should let you know.” She paused, as if she had made up her mind. “I submitted some materials about his past misconduct to the Discipline Inspection Commission, where your father’s organization is affiliated, including some records that he thought I had destroyed. This might… provide some help for the current investigation, shorten the process, and reduce unnecessary resource consumption.”
Shen Zhiyan gripped his phone, his heart clenching as if gripped by an invisible hand. His mother, the woman who had always tried to maintain a balance between father and son, had ultimately chosen to stand on the side of principle and justice, accelerating the trial of the man she had lived with for so many years in her own way. He couldn't imagine the resolve and pain she had endured.
“Mom…” His throat tightened, and he didn’t know what to say for a moment.
“You don’t need to say anything,” Lin Jing interrupted him, her voice carrying a calm that came after everything had settled. “He chose this path himself. I just did what I was supposed to do. You… focus on your research and don’t let it affect you.”
Long after the call ended, Shen Zhiyan remained in the same position. His mother's choice, like the final piece of a puzzle, made him fully understand the inevitability of this path, and strangely lightened the burden on his shoulders—he was not alone.
In the evening, he took the initiative to find Jiang Mo, who was checking her itinerary in the rest area.
"Do you have time?" he asked, his voice a little more relaxed than a few days ago. "I'd like to... talk."
The two walked to the rooftop garden, where the setting sun painted the clouds a warm orange-red.
“My mother,” Shen Zhiyan began, gazing at the setting sun in the distance, “submitted some supplementary materials about my father to the Discipline Inspection Commission.”
Jiang Mo was slightly taken aback, then understood, and felt a sense of respect for the calm and composed woman she had only met once. "She's remarkable."
“Hmm.” Shen Zhiyan responded softly, paused for a moment, and then continued, “During this time, I’ve been calculating… calculating the probabilities of various choices, calculating the possible outcomes of different paths. But only now do I truly understand…” He turned to look at Jiang Mo, the setting sun casting warm shadows in his eyes, “In the complex system of emotions and morality, there is no single optimal solution. We can only choose the answer that allows us to maintain inner peace and have a clear conscience within a finite ‘confidence interval’.”
He took a step forward, closing the distance between them, his gaze honest and profound: "Jiang Mo, within this confidence interval that I have drawn for myself, your existence is the only constant that I am 100% certain of and willing to include in all my future calculation models forever."
This is not a lighthearted love confession; it carries the weight of all the storms, choices, and pain of the past, and also contains the most steadfast affirmation after enduring trials. It belongs to Shen Zhiyan, and only to Shen Zhiyan.
Jiang Mo looked at him, at her own reflection clearly in his eyes, at his resolute determination as he finally emerged from the shadows. She didn't answer immediately, but instead reached out and gently took his hand, just like on that "night of probability." Then, she stood on tiptoe and placed a soft yet solemn kiss on his slightly stunned lips.
Instantly separate.
“Okay.” She looked at his eyes widen instantly and his ears turn red rapidly, smiled, and said clearly, “I’ll take on this constant.”
As night gently descended, the city lights gradually illuminated the sky. They stood side by side on a high point, looking down at the land that had witnessed so many of their struggles, growth, and emotions.
A month later, Shen Huaiming was formally arrested in China. Thanks to the crucial materials provided by Lin Jing and some evidence recovered through international judicial cooperation channels, the trial proceeded much more smoothly than expected.
Later that same day, Jiang Mo and Shen Zhiyan both received formal invitations from the "International Forum on the Future of Science, Technology and Humanities," inviting them to deliver a joint speech as "cross-disciplinary dialoguers between science and art."
Next to the "Lu Gen" plant that still grows on Jiang Mo's apartment balcony, there is a small, empty flowerpot filled with nutrient soil. Shen Zhiyan said that it was the space he reserved for the next "plant" waiting to be defined.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
