Genius Club

Bang!

Zhou Duan Yun stormed out of the house, slamming the sliding door so hard it bounced back open. His footsteps echoed as he walked away, his presence quickly fading into the distance.

The chilly evening breeze of Siguo Island seeped in, making Ji Lin shiver slightly in his thin clothes. He got up, walked over, and gently slid the door closed, shutting out the noisy wind. The room fell quiet. Leaning against the wooden wall, Ji Lin closed his eyes and sank into deep thought.

He was almost certain that Lin Xian was the one tampering with history, despite lacking direct evidence. There were just too many suspicious things about Lin Xian; if it wasn’t him, nothing else made sense. But Ji Lin held onto a tiny hope—it was only a 99% certainty, after all.

He hoped he was wrong.

He hoped the truth was in that remaining 1%.

But deep down, he knew such miracles were rare.

Ever since he was a kid, Ji Lin had never gotten a math problem wrong. When he learned his parents were mathematicians, he dove into math, solving problem after problem. Sudoku was his favorite. Surrounded by numbers, he felt close to the parents he couldn’t remember. He believed he had a natural gift for numbers, proven time and again by his flawless Sudoku solutions—except for that one in the November 2022 Math Monthly, which had a printing error.

But with Lin Xian, there was no error. Lin Xian being at the crime scene tonight in his Ferrari was enough proof that he had anticipated Leon’s death.

Earlier tonight, Ji Lin had made calls to the Xu Yun task force, inquiring about their assignments and Lin Xian’s whereabouts. Lin Xian had been in the office until nearly midnight.

For a moment, Ji Lin thought he might have made a mistake, that perhaps he had misjudged Lin Xian.

But it turned out his initial suspicion was correct, just like every math problem he had ever solved.

It was unexciting. Too easy.

He picked up his phone and opened an online shopping app. His cart was filled with birthday decorations, toys, and games. He had never organized a birthday party before and was trying to replicate the setup from Chu An Qing’s party he’d attended.

He could have hired professionals, but Ji Lin wanted to do it himself. This was his first birthday party, after all, even if he was already 22.

“…” Ji Lin sighed softly.

Then his phone rang. The caller ID read “Pride.”

He answered, and Pride’s slightly hoarse voice came through.

“Envy just called. He’s confirmed that Lin Xian is definitely meddling with history,” Pride said.

“He always has news fast.” Ji Lin chuckled, “He can’t wait for Lin Xian to meet his end tomorrow. He’s been holding a grudge since high school over something minor. I’ve always told you, I don’t like Envy. He’s too extreme, hardly human.”

“You two aren’t much better,” Pride replied, sounding tired. He had grown weary of playing peacemaker between Ji Lin and Zhou Duan Yun.

“Not everyone can be friends. I suggested you try with Envy only for work reasons. Now that the job’s done, it doesn’t matter anymore.”

“So, when are you planning to deal with Lin Xian?” Pride asked.

Ji Lin paused, hesitating.

“You don’t have a plan yet? That’s not like you. By now, you usually have everything mapped out. Don’t tell me you haven’t even picked a time.”

“May 3rd night,” Ji Lin finally said, “Or early morning of May 4th, at 00:42.”

Pride paused.

“More than 20 days from now… that’s fine. Lin Xian requires careful planning. Send me the location later. I want to see it happen.”

“You’ve never had such a dark interest before.”

“Lin Xian is different,” Pride chuckled. “I found him myself… it’s significant.”

As Pride was about to hang up, Ji Lin called out.

“Pride.”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t you think May 3rd is a special day?”

Pride hesitated.

“I don’t remember it being a holiday or anything. But maybe… in the future, it will be a day we’ll never forget.”

“You’re right,” Ji Lin chuckled, lowering his head. “You’re absolutely right.”

…

Whoosh! Whoosh!

A taxi and a Ferrari sped away from the city, entering the national highway lined with massive trucks. Unlike the empty city roads, the highway was bustling with these behemoths, each one barreling down like a king of the road. With speeding, overloaded trucks, and obscured license plates, the highway was a law unto itself.

Even a Ferrari couldn’t outpace these giants. Lin Xian, behind the wheel, had to ease off the accelerator and cautiously maneuver around them.

It seemed Lin Xian’s earlier hunch was right. Those vehicles that vanished earlier might have used these trucks for their “disappearing act.”

The taxi darted between the trucks, searching for something. Lin Xian wasn’t in a hurry to follow. He pulled out his phone, about to call Chu Shan He—

Boom!!

Ahead, flames shot into the air as a semi-truck was blasted sideways by a violent explosion, tossing the taxi into the air. It crashed into the irrigation ditch beside the road, engulfed in flames.

Lin Xian executed a swift drifting stop, bringing the Ferrari to a safe halt. After checking for traffic, he parked on the side, turned on the hazard lights, and got out.

A bomb?

The scent of gunpowder hung heavy in the air—a familiar smell from Big Cat Face’s C4 explosives used in the first dream bank heist.

Why did the taxi explode all of a sudden?

Was this planned by Ji Lin from the start?

Was it a setup to eliminate the taxi driver and destroy the evidence?

Lin Xian decided to delay his call to Chu Shan He. It wasn’t important now. This was just the beginning of his plan. He still needed Chu Shan He for the next part.

For now, keeping their secret plan hidden was advantageous. It gave Lin Xian an extra edge against Ji Lin later on.

He hurried down to the ditch. The taxi was torn in two. The back half burned in the ditch while the front half lay a few meters away in a field, smoldering.

The windshield was shattered, and the taxi’s body was charred. The driver, still wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask, lay half-out the window, lifeless on the ground.

Lin Xian approached cautiously, not from fear of the dead coming to life—after such a blast, finding any body was a rarity, not something out of a Hollywood movie.

His breath quickened, the smell of burning gasoline and gunpowder thick in his nostrils, reminding him of the stench of mud after a rain.

As he neared the driver’s body, the odor of burnt flesh sent a primal warning through his brain.

The driver’s sunglasses were crooked, but his mask and hat still shrouded his face.

His broad shoulders reminded Lin Xian of Zheng Cheng He, whom he had seen earlier that day.

Memories of Zheng Xiang Yue’s words echoed in Lin Xian’s mind:

“My brother isn’t irresponsible; he’s protecting me! He’s a hero!”

“I want my brother to bury me on the moon when I die because he said our parents are there… I really want to meet them.”

“My brother always says good is rewarded, and evil is punished. This world is just like that!”

“I hope my brother can get a ticket to the moon.”

Zheng Cheng He.

Was this his way of punishing evil?

Lin Xian stopped and bent down. With a swift tug, he pulled off the driver’s mask.

The driver’s face, dark and bloodstained under the moonlight, was unlike any local. His thick lips, large nose, and smooth skin revealed a stranger—certainly not Zheng Cheng He, the scar-faced, humble man he had met.

Lin Xian whirled around as a crowd began to gather on the highway.

Something was terribly wrong.

If Yellow Finch had led him here and it wasn’t to expose Zheng Cheng He, then what was she really trying to tell him?

…

“Thank you for riding with us. Please take your receipt.”

At the lively bar street, Zheng Cheng He handed a receipt to a passenger who, chuckling, tossed a red bill on the seat and disappeared into the neon night with two women.

“Driver! Over here!”

A group of tipsy young women hailed Zheng Cheng He. He drove up, started the meter, and asked, “Where to?”

“Uncle, take us to Julu Road!” A girl in the passenger seat giggled, looking at him. “Uncle, why the sunglasses at night? Can you even see?”

Zheng Cheng He nodded with a smile. “It helps against the high beams. Makes it safer.”

“Wow, uncle! You’re pretty buff!” remarked the girls, noticing his muscular build for the first time. “Did you work out a lot?”

“I used to be bullied. Working out was to protect my sister,” Zheng Cheng He shared softly.

“To protect your sister? That’s sweet. You must really spoil her,” the girl complimented, giving him a thumbs up.

“Absolutely,” Zheng Cheng He responded, his smile warm. “She’s my everything.”