Chapter 44: Blind Confidence Will Ruin You, But Some People Just Don’t Get It
“Even easier than I imagined.”
At the hospital.
Zhang Chen watched a few young nurses serving tea and water,
and couldn’t help but sigh—Director Qiao really knows how to enjoy life.
As for other interests? None at all.
After all, compared to Xing Lingyun, no matter how pretty the nurses were, they just paled in comparison.
“Now, it’s time to start wrapping things up.”
Zhang Chen had made all these arrangements
with one clear goal in mind—
his ultimate purpose was to destroy Ye Fan.
Of course, just in case,
he would ensure Ye Fan walked step by step into a dead end on his own.
And in the process, chip away at his fate.*
Strive to eliminate all accidents in the cradle.
“The things were placed over there nice and naturally. When the time comes, just steer the Demon Slayer Division to investigate that area.”
Zhang Chen was running through his sequence of plans in his head.
For instance, this time he had used a paper doll puppet.
The effect was quite good.
Ye Fan followed his intended path, dancing to his tune.
“Speaking of which, Lin Hongyang really is one unlucky bastard.”
Even Zhang Chen couldn’t help but feel a little sorry.
Whose appearance had his puppet taken on today?
It was none other than Lin Hongyang!
And that company—it was one of Lin Hongyang’s assets here in Jiangdong City.
So who exactly was Lin Hongyang?
Why did Zhang Chen choose to take on his appearance, and lead Ye Fan to his company?
Very simple.
Lin Hongyang was the eldest son of the second generation of the Lin family,
who had “died in an accident” ten years ago!
That is, the eldest son of Old Master Lin, and Lin Xi’s father!
Oh right.
Her father in name only.
Because in truth—
Lin Xi wasn’t Lin Hongyang’s daughter at all!
And that “accident” ten years ago? It wasn’t an accident at all!
It was a meticulously staged murder,
meant to kill Lin Hongyang and eliminate any future threat.
And the one pulling the strings behind the scenes?
Old Master Lin himself.
Surprised?
Who wouldn’t be?
Of course, this whole plotline was Zhang Chen’s design, so the melodramatic drama?
Well.
He admitted it—this father-son tragedy in the Lin family had just a touch of his twisted humor.
“With the temperament of a Son of Destiny, that kid Ye Fan most likely won’t actually kill Lin Xi.”
Zhang Chen could guess exactly how Ye Fan would think.
To save his own sister, he’d definitely look for a way to poison Lin Xi,
then force the Lin family to hand over the antidote.
But he’d definitely demand a double dose—
one for Lin Xi, and one for his sister, Ye Yiyi.
No need to guess. It was obvious that’s what he’d do.
“Too bad… man plans, Heaven laughs. There is no antidote. The Lin family’s research isn’t even complete.”
Zhang Chen was already looking forward to it.
Once Ye Fan poisoned Lin Xi and tried to demand the cure,
only to be told the Lin family never had an antidote to begin with—
The research was still unfinished.
His actions wouldn’t just fail to save his sister Ye Yiyi—
they might even end up killing the goddess he’s always been so obsessed with.
“At that moment, Ye Fan… what kind of expression will you wear?”
Zhang Chen was beginning to think he just wasn’t a good person.
Otherwise, how could he come up with such despicable, shameless schemes?
A sin, a sin indeed!
“Even someone blessed by fate would lose it in a moment like that, wouldn’t they?”
“I’m not afraid of you going mad—what I fear is you staying too calm.”
“The show’s about to begin.”
“You said Ye Fan went where?”
Jiangdong City.
Demon Slayer Division, Branch Headquarters.
Chief Wei furrowed his brows as he listened to his subordinate’s report.
“A small trading company. Not very large in scale, but…”
“But what?”
“We looked into it further, and there seems to be something fishy about that company!”
“Hmm?”
Chief Wei frowned.
The subordinate hesitated for a moment, then explained:
“We did some digging into the person Ye Fan met with privately.”
“His identity is fake! And there are multiple red flags behind the company.
The man Ye Fan met today—the real person behind that company—is Lin Hongyang.”
Chief Wei thought he must have misheard.
He looked up in surprise. “Who did you just say?”
“Lin Hongyang.”
“From ten years ago?”
“Yes. The very same—supposedly died in an accident ten years ago.
The eldest son of the Lin family’s second generation. Lin Hongyang.”
Hearing this,
Chief Wei’s expression turned rather… colorful.
Some secrets may be secrets to others,
but to the intelligence division of the Demon Slayer Bureau,
they were hardly secrets at all.
“He didn’t die?”
“If our intel is accurate, Lin Hongyang is very much alive.
And for the past ten years, he’s been hiding his identity, staying in the shadows.”
The subordinate looked visibly moved as he continued,
“What’s more, we found signs that the recent issues at the Lin family’s research base—
were likely orchestrated by Lin Hongyang himself!”
If word of this got out,
it would absolutely cause a massive uproar.
The eldest son of the Lin family’s second generation—thought to be dead—was alive,
and secretly working against his own family?
Chief Wei frowned.
He knew some of the secrets from ten years ago.
For instance—
that “accident” had been no accident at all. Someone had clearly planned it.
But no one cared about the truth.
After all, the man was already dead.
And now someone was telling him Lin Hongyang had survived?
“Ye Fan, Lin Hongyang… what are they trying to do?”
Chief Wei rubbed his temples.
He had no interest in the messy drama of rich families like the Lins.
And he certainly didn’t want to get involved.
But now it looked like the Lin family’s personal affairs
had interfered with the Demon Slayer Division’s new medicine research.
He couldn’t ignore it anymore.
“Keep a very close watch on Ye Fan’s every move!
Also, dig deeper!
I don’t care whether that man is really Lin Hongyang or not—
find out exactly what they’re trying to do!”
In his office,
Lin Hongyang frowned as he stared at the briefcase.
His identity was a secret.
Publicly, he was listed as the real shareholder behind several companies.
This company was just one of them.
But today, he’d come to handle some business…
only to find a strange briefcase had appeared in his office.
After a long pause,
he finally opened it.
A man who had already “died” once—Lin Hongyang had nothing left to fear.
And then he saw what was inside.
Immediately, his face lit up with shock and joy.
“You old bastard!
I’m going to make you regret everything you ever did!
I’m taking the whole Lin family down with you!”
Lin Hongyang could no longer remember how he’d endured these ten years.
Day and night, consumed by hatred and resentment.
Ten years ago!
That chapter of his life—he’d never forget.
The father he once respected and idolized
turned out to be worse than an animal.
When Lin Hongyang accidentally discovered the truth
and went to confront him,
he got into a huge fight—
and what awaited him afterward was an assassination.
Just then,
his phone buzzed with a text.
Almost no one knew this number.
And the sender? An unfamiliar number.
“I’ll help you kill Lin Xi. But the method—I choose.”
Seeing the message on his phone,
Lin Hongyang frowned. Something didn’t feel right.
But when he looked at the briefcase in front of him,
and the content of the text…
Hatred ultimately won out.
“Fine. I’ll be watching.”
Lin Hongyang sent a reply and set his phone down.
Ten years!
He’d lived like neither man nor ghost for ten whole years.
All for one thing—revenge!
As for who was helping him?
He didn’t care.
Nor was he worried.
If someone wanted to harm him,
they didn’t need to be this roundabout—
just revealing his identity to the Lin family would be enough.
Ye Fan stuffed his phone into his pocket.
He had, indeed, been persuaded.
But he had his own plan.
That text he sent just now—
was to prevent the middle-aged man from getting impatient and killing Lin Xi outright.
“Idiot. You really think I’ll just obediently follow orders?
If the Lin family really has the antidote,
why would I only ask for one dose?”
Ye Fan’s smile was brimming with confidence.
Blind confidence.
Footnotes:
蜜汁自信 (mì zhī zì xìn) – Literally “honey-flavored confidence.” A slang phrase used sarcastically to describe someone who is unjustifiably self-confident, often to a ridiculous degree. The phrase is widely used online in a mocking tone to poke fun at someone who’s deluded about their abilities or situation.