I’m No Longer Human After Being Blacklisted – CH96

Chapter 96 – Settlement and Tasks

After settling the giant anglerfish, Vera was finally able to return to City A with Lin Jiu.

After 20 years, stepping foot on this land again filled Vera with deep emotion.

Lin Jiu had thought that his two-bedroom apartment would be enough, but now with a boyfriend and his mother both living with him, things were starting to feel a bit cramped.

More importantly, two grown men living together made Vera feel uncomfortable.

Si Xu said, “Let your mom stay at your place, and you can stay with me.”

Lin Jiu: “…”

The way you’re calling her “mom” so easily!

Lin Jiu hadn’t even adjusted to the change, but Si Xu had already adapted smoothly.

Lin Jiu didn’t want to face the prospect of getting stuck in traffic, waiting at red lights, and running late to work every day—it was too much to handle.

Lin Jiu said, “Your place is too far. Maybe I should buy a new apartment in the old neighborhood. I’ll live there.”

Si Xu replied, “No need to buy anything; I’ve already bought the entire old neighborhood.”

Lin Jiu: “!!!”

Lin Jiu’s eyes widened, “Why did you buy that area?”

Si Xu smiled, “I thought you might need it. A small one- or two-bedroom apartment doesn’t really capture the essence of the MoYu Restaurant.”

Lin Jiu: “…”

Si Xu continued, “Ever since I first stepped into MoYu and entered that private room, I’ve had this idea: to create a peaceful retreat in the bustling city, a place away from the noise where people can slow down, enjoy good food, read a book, and relax.”

Si Xu said, “I want you to live a life where you can listen to the wind and watch the rain, carefree and at peace.”

Lin Jiu smiled because that was indeed the kind of life he most longed for.

Si Xu had been preparing this for a long time, just waiting for the right moment to tell Lin Jiu, and now was the perfect time.

The actual development site wasn’t directly in the old neighborhood but to the west of it, just outside. That area was already prepared, and now it was just a matter of deciding how to build it.

Si Xu wanted to consult with Lin Jiu on what style to build it in, and if Lin Jiu could provide blueprints, that would be even better.

Since Si Xu had been planning this in secret for so long, Lin Jiu didn’t want to dampen his enthusiasm. He was also looking forward to having such a serene place in City A.

So, the two of them immediately began selecting blueprints. Lin Jiu had enough magic points now, so he didn’t need to rely on luck to draw random designs. He could simply buy the blueprints he wanted.

The plan was to develop the area in two phases. The first phase would be the area west of the old neighborhood. Once that was completed, the MoYu Shop would move there, and then they could rebuild the old neighborhood.

This was a plan Si Xu had long had in mind.

If Lin Jiu wanted to live in the old neighborhood, he could just pick out a house and renovate it. There was no need to buy anything—it was all their property anyway!

Lin Jiu had made excellent plans, but Vera didn’t need them.

Vera: “No need, I already have a house in City A.”

Lin Jiu: “???”

It seemed that Si Xu understood something.

Vera smiled and said, “How could your mother, once the queen of song, ever be short on money?”

Lin Jiu: “…”

Lin Jiu: “Wait… after all this time… you ‘still’ have money?”

Vera’s smile turned slightly bitter. “Back then, I knew my time was limited, so I transferred all my assets to a trust fund, with the plan for you to inherit them when you came of age. Each year, I arranged for enough money to cover your living and education expenses, so even if the Liao family treated you poorly, you’d never be short on money. But it turns out, all of my arrangements were never used.”

Lin Jiu and Si Xu both fell silent.

At the time, Vera had no shortage of money, but she had no one she could trust. If she’d had even one trustworthy person, she wouldn’t have sent Lin Jiu back to the Liao family.

Vera continued: “I anticipated various outcomes and had prepared for the Liao family. If anything happened to you, after thirty years, all my assets would be donated to society. The Liao family wouldn’t have gotten a single cent.”

Lin Jiu had been missing for 20 years. Though his body had never been found, everyone knew that a few-month-old baby thrown into a river had virtually no chance of surviving. Even if the trust fund had assumed Lin Jiu was deceased, there were still ten years left before the assets would be donated. So, Vera’s assets remained in the trust.

After Vera returned, Si Xu helped her update all her identification documents, and she went to handle the asset transfer with her ID.

* * *

Lin Jiu still had one thing left to do—he needed to donate energy-rich food to the Coast Guard of City H.

While Si Xu was still at work, Lin Jiu went to the Demon Sea dimension. Using his sound-based talent, he lured out several non-star Sea Demons, then brought them back, freezing and packing them up to be delivered to the City H Coast Guard.

It took three large trucks several hours to transport everything.

Everyone who saw the true form of the sea demons had to sign a confidentiality agreement. They understood the severity of the situation—Country H was still searching for the “mermaid” responsible for the tsunami, and none of them wanted to be a liability.

The police officers who had chased the suspect at sea had spent a long time out there, exposed to the heavily radiated seawater. Their radiation levels had skyrocketed, and in just a few days, some of them were already showing signs of illness. Their families were desperate, pleading for help to save their lives.

City H, being coastal, had access to plenty of mutated seafood, which could provide some resistance to radiation. However, the effects were limited, and the police had been exposed to radiation for too long, so the energy from the seafood wasn’t enough.

City H reported the situation to higher authorities, and the solution they received was a financial allocation. With the funds, they could buy silver carp from Lin Jiu’s MoYu restaurant.

But before they even had a chance to negotiate a deal with Lin Jiu, three refrigerated trucks showed up at the coast guard’s door.

When they heard that the owner of MoYu restaurant, Boss Lin, had donated three truckloads of energy-rich seafood, everyone was stunned.

Though many had never tasted it, they knew the energy-rich seafood from the MoYu restaurant was exorbitantly expensive. To receive three full truckloads—how much could that be worth?

The head officer, who had rushed over, looked at the trucks filled with seafood, then at the funding they’d just received…

He didn’t want to think about it. The funding, though seemingly substantial, wasn’t enough to buy this much energy-rich seafood.

The head officer made a decisive call—distribute the fish!

Every employee working at sea got a share, with those who needed to go out to sea receiving the largest portions. People went home with enough to feed their whole families, and everyone was in high spirits.

The maritime department of City H publicly thanked Lin Jiu for his donation of energy-rich seafood, which had saved many lives.

Online, people were almost numb to it by now—wherever there was a disaster, Boss Lin was there.

Netizen 1: “Is Boss Lin donating all of his energy-rich seafood? The shop barely stays open, always closing for breaks. It’s a bit frustrating.”

Netizen 2: “I think Boss Lin needs a few apprentices. Every time he has something to deal with, the MoYu restaurant closes. Such a shame.”

Netizen 3: “I’m from the South Sea region. I want to ask when Boss Lin will donate some energy-rich seafood to us? We’re surrounded by the sea, but no one dares go out. We’re living in constant fear of extreme radiation.”

Netizen 4: “Feeling for the people in the South Sea. You have a large population, and Boss Lin can’t save all of you. You’ll have to save yourselves.”

Netizen 5: “The South Sea situation is dire. I hope you can hold on. If things get too bad, you should ask for help from the ‘Special Security Department.’ Boss Lin can’t save everyone on his own, but stay strong.”

Lin Jiu didn’t see these comments. He was busy preparing dinner in the shop.

Vera, having finished dealing with her assets, came to visit Lin Jiu’s shop.

It was her first time visiting her son’s store, and from a distance, she could see the long line stretching down the street.

Vera, wearing a mask, with her long hair casually tied up and a light-colored coat with high heels, looked like a young woman. Her overall spirit was vibrant.

She stood beside the queue for a while, overhearing people gossiping about a fool who had been tricked.

“Boss Lin repeatedly warned everyone to keep their caviar safe and not show it off. Yet, someone bought five boxes and happily gifted them to his father-in-law, only to get home and realize they’d been swapped for real sturgeon caviar. Fifty grand, gone in the time it took to get home. He immediately called the police.”

Someone asked curiously, “Did they figure out how it got switched?”

“Who knows? I only heard that there was a car accident on the way back, which caused a long delay. By the time they got home, it had already been swapped.”

“Good thing Boss Lin is careful and makes everyone inspect their purchase on the spot. Otherwise, if there was a mix-up, people might accuse the MoYu restaurant of scamming them. That could cause a big mess, and knowing Boss Lin’s temper, he might just stop selling altogether.”

“I heard this isn’t the first time someone’s caviar has been stolen or swapped. Boss Lin is really giving the police extra work!”

“Hey, that’s not fair! It’s the thieves who are to blame, not Boss Lin. If he stops selling the caviar, then nobody will get to enjoy it.”

All the customers in line felt relieved, worried that if Boss Lin decided not to sell, he really wouldn’t sell anymore.

Vera raised her eyebrows, surprised to learn that her son had such a strong personality.

She walked in wearing high heels, and Jiang Xiwen greeted her. “Excuse me, who are you looking for?”

Vera’s eyes curved, almost like a smile. She didn’t speak, just pointed toward Lin Jiu in the kitchen and headed that way.

Jiang Xiwen, still unsure, followed her.

Lin Jiu looked up and saw Vera had returned. “Are you done with everything?”

Vera nodded. “Do you need any help?”

Lin Jiu looked at her with suspicion. “I think I can handle it just fine on my own.”

Vera rolled up her sleeves, revealing a hideous scar before pausing and then calmly lowering her sleeve again. 

“I learned to cook when I was younger, and I’m quite good at it.”

Lin Jiu lowered his eyes, hiding his emotions. He had seen the scar.

In the beginning, Vera’s body had been covered with dense scales, making her wounds invisible. After she had fully transformed into a siren, she had dressed in Lin Jiu’s clothes, covering herself tightly. Vera intentionally kept Lin Jiu from noticing her scars, not wanting to upset him.

All the scars on her body were from her time at the research institute.

Lin Jiu tightened his grip on the knife but kept his voice steady. “Then could you help me peel the shrimp?”

Vera replied, “I’m quite good at that.”

Jiang Xiwen was stunned. 

Wait… Mom? 

Hold on… Lin Jiu’s mom is…?

Jiang Xiwen’s eyes widened, more shocked than if she’d seen a ghost.

Lin Jiu called Jiang Xiwen over to introduce them.

“Xiwen, this is my mom. Mom, this is Jiang Xiwen, my front-of-house manager.”

Vera removed her mask and extended her hand.

Jiang Xiwen looked at her face and was completely overwhelmed.

The Diva… The Diva is alive!

Jiang Xiwen, who used to be a talent agent, excitedly grabbed Vera’s hand. “You’re alive! That’s wonderful!”

Vera smiled. “Thank you for taking care of Xiao Jiu.”

Jiang Xiwen hurriedly replied, “No, no, it’s been him taking care of me. If it weren’t for Lin Jiu, I’d probably still be stuck in the hospital.”

After some polite exchanges, Vera put her mask back on.

Her appearance hadn’t changed much from twenty years ago, and she couldn’t let news of her return spread, as the Cecil family would surely come looking for her.

Lin Jiu trusted Jiang Xiwen but still reminded her that Vera’s return must not be leaked.

Jiang Xiwen nodded solemnly. Following Lin Jiu, she knew well what should and shouldn’t be said.

Vera put on another one of Lin Jiu’s chef uniforms and started helping out. Her shrimp-peeling skills were indeed impressive—fast and neat. Lin Jiu couldn’t help but wonder if she had practiced this while eating shrimp at the bottom of the sea.

Although Vera had returned, she didn’t know the exact location of the research institute. She had been taken there unconscious and hadn’t left until now. Every day had passed in a haze, and despite her repeated attempts, she had never managed to escape.

Even when she was sent out on this mission, it was done while she was unconscious, and before entering the sea, she was injected with drugs.

The Cecil family was extremely cautious. Even if someone managed to escape, they wouldn’t know the institute’s exact location.

Lin Jiu had hoped that once he knew the exact location, the Elton family could take secret action to rescue the remaining sea siren descendants. But it seemed that was not going to happen.

These days, Si Xu had been very busy, returning home late every night.

Lin Jiu wasn’t sure if he was genuinely busy or giving him space to spend time with Vera.

At the end of the day, Lin Jiu wanted to go home with Vera.

But Vera waved him off. “I don’t want to intrude on you two. I have a place to stay.”

Lin Jiu knew she had bought a house in City A twenty years ago, but the old building had since been redeveloped. He wasn’t sure of its current state.

Vera said, “The relocation compensation is still in the trust fund. Not a penny was lost. I even bought a new house this afternoon.”

Lin Jiu: “…”

Lin Jiu: “Just like that? So quickly?”

Vera laughed. “The layout, decor, and location were all good, so I bought it.”

The house she purchased was a small villa in the neighborhood next to Lin Jiu’s, close to both him and his shop.

The previous owners had recently renovated it but had to sell because they were moving abroad for work. Vera bought it immediately.

It was still early, so Lin Jiu followed Vera to check out her new place.

It was a three-story villa with a private yard, decorated in a warm and homely style.

Vera said, “This will be our home from now on.”

Lin Jiu nodded, feeling warm and content.

The house didn’t really matter—home is where his mom was.

There was something Lin Jiu had kept to himself. After Liao Tingwang handled the funeral for the old master of the Liao family, he left City A without returning.

He had left a message for Lin Jiu, saying he wanted to finally live his life for himself.

Lin Jiu didn’t bring this up with Vera, not wanting to upset her.

Perhaps it was better if they never met again in this life.

*

When Grandpa Lin was alive, Lin Jiu always spent the Lunar New Year with him. Now that his grandpa was gone, Lin Jiu spent New Year’s alone.

As the holiday approached, Lin Jiu had originally agreed to spend it with Song Mozhi at the Si family home. Now that his mother was back, he wanted to be with her. Si Xu had already informed his family that the two families would celebrate the New Year together.

Everything seemed well-planned, but reality didn’t always go as expected.

Si Xu received an urgent mission, requiring him to take a team abroad. Although Lin Jiu was officially a deputy consultant for the Special Security Department, the truth was there wasn’t such a position. Lin Jiu wasn’t obligated to go. But since Si Xu had to take on the mission, Lin Jiu couldn’t just let him go alone.

This mission was particularly challenging, and by the time they returned, the New Year would likely be over.

In a small town in F Country, something strange had happened. Overnight, all the townspeople fell into a deep sleep and couldn’t be awakened. Those who entered to investigate also fell asleep.

They suspected there was some kind of invisible odor or toxin spreading in the air. So when they entered the town again, they were fully armed and wore gas masks. As expected, they weren’t affected this time, but they still couldn’t find the cause.

Having no other options, Country F had to seek help from other nations, hoping to find a solution.

Now, any small incident made all the countries nervous. Such a major event naturally prompted each country to send representatives. If it really was some unknown toxin that could take down a small town in Country F, it could just as easily affect towns in other countries. They couldn’t afford to ignore the situation.