Why had he waited until now to act? Of course—while infiltrating Xing Jifu’s inner circle all these years, he must have had numerous chances to assassinate him. But he had been patient. He wanted more than Xing Jifu’s death; he wanted his complete ruination, his family destroyed, to see him become like a stray dog. Or perhaps, like how the Punisher Organization had previously handled Chen Zhaoci and Xiang Rong, Yin Chen wanted to let Xing Jifu’s evil “grow” before personally cutting it down. This was the twisted logic of “punishing evil” that only a psychopath could devise.

So he had waited until today, seizing the opportunity to use the police to deliver a crushing blow to Xing Jifu, driving him to desperation before reaping the benefits. Otherwise, even the Punisher Organization, with its dozens of top criminals, probably couldn’t have confronted Xing Jifu’s vast criminal empire.

And then there was… the hatred of a stolen wife.

He spoke of stealing his wife.

You Mingxu contained her anger, instinctively thinking this must be Yin Chen’s delusion, mere nonsense! How could her mother have had anything to do with someone like him?

But…

Yin Chen hated Xing Jifu, and Xing Jifu had recognized him. They had an old grudge.

Yet…

At this moment, Xing Jifu showed a contemptuous expression, saying, “Steal my wife? You?” Even though he was in their custody, Xing Jifu refused to bow his head.

Yin Chen seemed to recall the past, his gaze deep, saying flatly: “Before she died, she loved me. She had forgotten you. Xing Jifu, that woman you’ve remembered all your life… heh… in the end, she loved me. In her heart, you were nothing but trash.”

You Mingxu: “Shut up!”

But Xing Jifu just smiled slightly, closed his eyes, leaned against the van wall, and said, “Impossible. She could never have loved you.” This fifty-something-year-old godfather, known for his deep schemes, spoke of his past love with unexpected gentleness and calm.

You Mingxu suddenly felt a tightness in her chest.

This scene before her was something she never could have imagined. These two men—one a gang godfather, the other a psychopathic killer godfather. Who could have guessed that when they confronted each other, they would discuss the same woman from many years ago?

Some long-held beliefs in You Mingxu’s heart nearly crumbled. But as soon as she felt that wavering, she forced herself to calm down.

Impossible, she thought. She believed in her mother—it was impossible.

If her mother had known these two men were criminals, she would never have gotten involved with either of them.

Her mother had been devoted to duty, the best of police officers. She had lived for the public good and died in the line of duty, and everyone who had worked with her spoke only with admiration and regret. She could never have knowingly broken the law or tolerated crime.

Her existence… might have been her mother’s only stain. You Mingxu closed her eyes and then opened them again. Even if she was Xing Jifu’s daughter, her mother must have been deceived or forced back then. Her mother, who had been so upright, so gentle, so committed to her beliefs.

She probably just couldn’t bear to end an innocent life.

You Mingxu’s heart alternated between hot and cold, her eyes stinging, but her resolve gradually strengthened.

Regardless of what feelings these two social outcasts had harbored for her mother, regardless of who they were to her—her mother was gone, but she remained.

For a police officer, the answer was clear and singular—

Her duty was to arrest them.

With her resolve firmed, You Mingxu’s emotions quickly settled. She had no interest in hearing more about their romantic entanglements. Looking at Yin Chen, her mind racing, she asked, “Yin Feng is your brother, why do you oppose him?”

Xing Jifu hadn’t known about the relationship between Yin Feng and Yin Chen, so he listened intently.

Yin Chen smiled and said, “As you said, he’s my brother—how could I oppose him? On the contrary, I’ve always been proud of this brother. All these years, I’ve… quietly looked after him. If anyone dared harm him, I would immediately take their life. However, Yin Feng is a stubborn person. He makes life hard for himself, don’t you know? I feel for him and want to liberate him. He received too much formal, rigid education since childhood, boxing himself in. I just want him to know that his big brother is right, that he’s the misguided one. Understand?”

You Mingxu thought to herself, it was exactly as expected. Yin Feng had predicted it all. But she didn’t argue, avoiding provoking this obsessive man. She asked another question: “Did you create the Punisher Organization?”

Yin Chen gazed at her deeply, saying, “Mingxu, first, you should call me ‘Big Brother.'”

You Mingxu remained silent.

Yin Chen smiled again, saying, “If you won’t call me Big Brother, that’s fine too. If your mother hadn’t died, I would have been your stepfather. I prefer that relationship. Yes, I created the Punisher Organization.”

Hearing his arrogant words, You Mingxu felt only disgust and anger. Stepfather? If she weren’t at their mercy right now, she would have cursed: Step on your head!

Even if her mother had once been deceived by someone like Xing Jifu with his scholarly appearance, she could never have fallen for this psychopath, this ultimate criminal.

For a moment, You Mingxu found even Xing Jifu slightly more tolerable than before.

Just as You Mingxu was about to continue probing, Yin Chen said, “Enough catching up. You’re trying to get information from me—we can take it slow. We’ll have plenty of time together hiding in these mountains.”

You Mingxu’s heart sank, but she still tried, half-truthfully: “Since you call me sister-in-law, why not release me?”

Yin Chen said, “Yin Feng has never truly loved any woman, except for you—he loves you to distraction. Just like back then, when I fell in love with your mother, there was a time I would have died for her. Isn’t that interesting? He and I share the same blood, and the same likes and dislikes. We fall in love with similar people, and they happen to be mother and daughter. So you see, in life, the path each person’s fate will take is predetermined.”

You Mingxu couldn’t explain why, but she felt shaken and vaguely frightened. She wasn’t sure if it was something in Yin Chen’s words that scared her, or the implications he left unsaid.

She suddenly thought of Yin Feng again, the former You Yingjun, looking at her with tears, saying, I love you, I would die for you.

Were all the Yin family members so… crazy?

No, a voice in her heart said, Yin Feng was different from this criminal before her.

She remembered Yin Feng telling her calmly: Perhaps what I hope to believe in for life is to avoid all evil and pursue all good.

If Yin Chen’s words had chilled her, Yin Feng’s existence brought warmth and strength to her heart.

“You’re different,” You Mingxu said. “He and you, born similar, chose different paths. He and you were never the same.”

Yin Chen understood her meaning. His eyes clouded with emotion as he gazed at her silently with that inscrutable look. You Mingxu knew she might have angered him, perhaps even touched a nerve. She suddenly felt a flash of satisfaction and slowly smiled.