Chapter 28 Part 5

Zhong Nian felt no temptation at all—only growing doubt.

Had Sheng Chu not given these to the kidnappers because they wouldn’t help anyway?

Recalling how Zhan Lu had dodged his question earlier, Zhong Nian grew even more curious.

Since Zhan Lu wouldn’t say, he’d ask someone else.

—

At the end of the sixth-floor elevator corridor.

The mixed-race man leaned against the window, arms crossed, tilting his head slightly as he watched the youth who had sought him out.

“If I tell you, what’s in it for me?” His lips curved slightly in a half-smile.

Zhong Nian thought for a moment. “I’ll give you Zhan Lu’s doughnuts to eat.”

Charles’s mouth twitched twice, his cool facade crumbling instantly. “Who wants his stuff?”

Zhong Nian held back a laugh. “I think they’re pretty tasty.”

Charles sighed dejectedly. “No thanks.”

He straightened and approached Zhong Nian, hooking a strand of hair by the youth’s face and twirling the misty blue ends. “Something else.”

Zhong Nian’s eyes were clear. “Like what?”

Charles stated bluntly, “A kiss from you.”

“…” Zhong Nian met his gaze for a moment before slapping the hand away with a smack. “Forget it, I’ll go ask Zhan Lu. He’s nicer and would definitely be happy to tell me.”

He made to leave without taking a step before the man behind him panicked and grabbed him hurriedly.

“I was just kidding.” Charles’s smile was a bit forced. “Don’t go to him.”

“Mm.” Zhong Nian smiled. “You’re nicer than him.”

—Easier to fool than him.

【Baby’s got real skills haha, handling them with ease.】

【When these two dogs fight, the winner is always our trainer Baby.】

【If I were Dog Second Brother, I’d be totally dazed by Wife’s coaxing too.】

【Don’t hold back, Charles. I know one ‘nice’ from him has you grinning inside.】

【Look at him, he’s already dazed. You could ask for his bank card PIN and he’d spill.】

Things progressed even easier than Zhong Nian had imagined. He’d just prodded a little, and Charles really told him everything.

But the truth exceeded his expectations.

“This cruise ship is now heading to an Abandoned Island two thousand nautical miles away,” Charles said, standing by the window with Zhong Nian, his gaze sweeping over the deep blue sea outside, as if looking even farther.

“We all came from there.”

…

Fifty years ago, a tycoon bought the small island and partnered with well-connected elites in their circle to develop it into a massive “new homeland.”

They funded nursing homes, orphanages, private hospitals, and a church on the island—all nonprofit, self-sustaining, open to the homeless in need, but accepting donations only from wealthy individuals who qualified asset-wise.

The island was named Hope Island.

Soon, its good reputation spread, and many desperate people discovered it, filling out forms to apply for aid slots.

They thought they’d found “hope,” but the island was actually a living hell.

Beneath the glamorous, noble facade lay the rotten, filthy desires of the elite.

All those taken in became their “resources,” exploited in every way—experimented on, turned into medical assets, or mere toys for the powerful’s amusement.

“Some of us were adopted as orphans, others born on the island. We’re among the rare few who survived past fifteen,” Charles said with a sardonic laugh.

“There are only two ways to survive: one is exceptional talent in brains and brawn, selected for special training. After ‘graduation,’ mental reprogramming turns you into the guests’ most loyal dogs.

“The other is being picked as a future ‘pharmacy’—a source of the best-matched, highest-quality organ replacements for when a guest faces a serious illness.”

The afternoon light refracting off the sea was blindingly bright, slanting across Charles’s profile, shadows sharp.

His tone was flat as he recounted it, like telling a mere story.

Finally, he gave a faint smile. “Little Nian, which one do you think I am?”

Zhong Nian stepped closer, standing with him amid the interplay of light and shadow, and slowly shook his head.

“I’ll show you my secret. Hope you don’t get scared.”

Charles removed the gloves he never took off in front of others, revealing the ugliness beneath.

A pair of hands utterly at odds with his handsome face, covered in scars. His left palm bore a ragged circular wound, like a bullet hole, while his right was even more shocking—the pinky missing half, deformed and crooked.

“Once, I was the hardest prey to catch in Hope Island’s monthly hunts.”

Under Zhong Nian’s shocked gaze, Charles prodded the gunshot wound on his left palm. “Surviving prey get a reward—a weapon for the next hunt. I’m best with knives; each time, I used it to turn death into life.

“Once, after stabbing a guest, they flew into a rage, shot through my hand, and sliced off half my other pinky.”

Charles wiggled his deformed pinky stiffly. “Pretty ugly, right?”

Zhong Nian stared silently at the indescribable hands before him, his emotions churning for a long while.

Standing in the sunlight, yet feeling chilled to the bone.

An indescribable emotion flooded him like seawater. Zhong Nian breathed slowly, exhaling the stuffiness in his chest.

He reached out and gently grasped Charles’s hands, tracing the scars with his soft, delicate fingertips, feeling their texture like an artist’s brush.

His touch was so light it tickled; Charles’s hands trembled faintly beyond his control.

Then, Zhong Nian enveloped them with his own.

Though his hands weren’t as large as Charles’s and couldn’t fully cover them, the warm softness was like a pool of water.

Zhong Nian’s eyes curved slightly, sparkling with light as he looked at Charles. “Not ugly at all. Your hands are amazing—and pretty warm.”