Unexpected Second Chance at Love

Chapter 1043: The Betrayal That Cost a Life

For a moment, the living room fell into a deathly silence.

Qin Jun stood motionless, his eyes fixed on Xu Long.

’The face he’s wearing now, it’s his.’

Those words repeated in his mind.

Once.

Twice.

Then something inside him snapped.

Rage surged through his veins, burning away the grief that had consumed him only moments earlier.

His head turned sharply toward Liu Shan.

Before anyone could react, Qin Jun strode across the living room.

He seized Liu Shan by the collar of his coat and violently hauled him to his feet.

"AND YOU DIDN’T THINK WE SHOULD KNOW?!"

His furious roar shattered the silence.

He raised his fist, ready to strike the assistant, but stopped himself at the last moment, his jaw clenched tightly as he struggled to contain his anger.

Liu Shan stumbled forward, his hands instinctively gripping Qin Jun’s wrists.

Qin Jun’s face had turned crimson. His eyes were bloodshot, his jaw trembling from the force of the emotions he was struggling to contain.

"How dare you come here demanding answers when you were keeping something like this from us?!"

He tightened his grip.

"How dare you?!"

"Qin Jun!" Kira called.

But the man didn’t listen.

He was too furious.

Too devastated.

For three years, Qin Jun had hunted the man responsible for Lee Shin’s death.

Three years of sleepless nights.

Three years of chasing shadows.

And now he had discovered that the very man they were searching for had deliberately transformed his face into that of his dead brother.

The thought alone made his blood boil.

It was more than an insult.

It was a desecration of everything Lee Shin had been.

And Liu Shan had known.

He had known and said nothing.

Qin Jun’s fingers tightened around the fabric.

"Do you have any idea what you’ve been hiding from us?!"

Liu Shan stared back at him. He didn’t struggle immediately.

He had known this might happen.

The moment he decided to conceal Choi Li Sun’s altered appearance, he understood he was playing with fire.

Qin Jun’s bond with Lee Shin had never been a secret.

They weren’t brothers by blood, but they had shared a bond deeper than many families ever experienced.

And Liu Shan had deliberately withheld information that struck at the very heart of that bond.

Still, understanding Qin Jun’s anger didn’t mean he would tolerate being manhandled.

His expression darkened.

"Let go."

Qin Jun ignored him.

"Liu Shan—"

"I said, let go."

Liu Shan seized Qin Jun’s wrist.

With a sharp movement, he forced the man’s hand away from his collar.

He straightened his coat and glared at him.

For several seconds, the two men stood face to face.

Neither willing to back down.

Then Liu Shan looked past Qin Jun.

Kira stood beside the couch, his usual playful expression nowhere to be seen.

Song Jing Li’s face was equally dark.

Both men were staring at him with unmistakable fury.

Liu Shan looked between them.

Then he scoffed.

A humorless laugh escaped his lips.

"Right."

He nodded slowly.

"Of course."

Qin Jun’s brows drew together.

"What?"

Liu Shan laughed again.

"Apparently, it’s perfectly fine for the three of you to keep the truth about Shin’s death from everyone else."

His voice grew colder.

"But the moment I keep something from you, suddenly I’m the villain?"

Qin Jun’s expression hardened.

"That’s different."

"Different?"

Liu Shan stared at him in disbelief.

"How?"

Qin Jun took a step forward.

"Because he was our brother!"

His voice cracked with emotion.

"Shin was our brother, Liu Shan!"

He jabbed a finger toward the folder still lying on the coffee table.

"And the bastard who orchestrated his death is now walking around wearing his face!"

The room fell silent.

Qin Jun’s chest rose and fell heavily. His fists clenched at his sides.

"Do you understand what that means?"

Liu Shan didn’t answer.

Qin Jun’s eyes glistened.

"That man took Shin away from us."

His jaw trembled.

"And now he’s stolen the one thing we still remember him by."

His face.

The familiar features they had grown up seeing.

The smile that had once greeted them.

The face that existed now only in photographs and memories.

Someone had deliberately recreated it.

Someone who had no right to wear it.

Song Jing Li abruptly stood. His chair scraped harshly against the floor.

"He’s right."

He glared murderously at Liu Shan.

"You knew what Shin meant to us."

His voice was dangerously low.

"We’re here in Imperial because we’ve been searching for his killer."

He stepped closer.

"And you didn’t think we had the right to know?"

Liu Shan stared at him.

Then laughed in disbelief.

"You’re right?"

He shook his head.

"You’re standing here talking to me about your right to know?"

Song Jing Li’s jaw tightened.

"What are you trying to say?"

Liu Shan’s expression changed. The anger in his eyes deepened.

"I’m saying that you’re all hypocrites."

Kira’s gaze sharpened.

"Liu Shan."

"No."

Liu Shan raised a hand.

"Don’t."

He looked at the three men.

"You want to talk about rights? Fine."

His voice grew louder.

"Then tell me something."

He pointed toward the folder.

"Then what about her?"

Silence.

The mere mention of ’her’ silenced all three men. Guilt pierced their chests, leaving them unable to utter a word as Liu Shan continued speaking.

"Shouldn’t she at least deserve the truth?"

Qin Jun froze.

Liu Shan stared directly into his eyes.

"Didn’t she deserve to know that the man she loved didn’t die because of some tragic accident?"

His voice trembled.

"That someone deliberately took him away from her?"

Qin Jun’s lips parted.

But no words came.

Liu Shan continued.

"She loved him for ten years."

His eyes burned.

"Ten years, Qin Jun!"

The assistant’s hands curled into fists.

"She gave him ten years of her life. She was going to marry him!"

He looked at Kira then Song Jing Li.

"She mourned him. She blamed fate. She tried to convince herself that there was nothing anyone could have done."

His throat tightened.

"And all this time, you three knew there was someone responsible."

Kira lowered his gaze.

Song Jing Li’s expression faltered.

Liu Shan turned back toward Qin Jun.

"If anyone deserved to know the truth..."

He paused.

His voice dropped.

"It was her."

The words struck harder than any physical blow.

Qin Jun took an involuntary step back. His anger hadn’t disappeared.

But beneath it, guilt began to rise.

A guilt he had carried for three years.

Liu Shan wasn’t wrong.

And that was what made his words so painful.

Qin Jun looked away.

For a moment, he couldn’t bear to meet the assistant’s eyes.

"She had already suffered enough," he said hoarsely.

Liu Shan gave a bitter laugh.

"So you decided to make that choice for her?"

Qin Jun’s jaw tightened.

"We were trying to protect her."

"And I was trying to protect her too!"

Liu Shan’s voice rang through the room. He looked at the three men.

"That’s why I didn’t tell you about Choi Li Sun’s face. Because I knew exactly how you’d react."

He gestured toward Qin Jun.

"And look at you now!"

Qin Jun’s expression darkened again.

Liu Shan continued before he could interrupt.

"You’d go after him without thinking. You’d put yourselves in danger, and if anything happened to any of you, who do you think would be left dealing with it?"

His voice softened.

"Yue Ling."

Silence returned.

Liu Shan lowered his hand.

"Everything always comes back to her."

He shook his head.

"And somehow, we keep deciding what she should and shouldn’t know."

No one had an answer.

Because deep down, they all knew he was right.

Throughout the confrontation, Xu Long had remained seated. He watched the exchange in silence, his mind working rapidly to piece together everything he had just heard.

Lee Shin.

Ten years.

Marriage.

Yue Ling

His eyes slowly widened.

Wait...

He looked at Liu Shan.

"Lee Shin..."

His voice was quiet.

But it was enough to draw the assistant’s attention.

Xu Long lowered the folder in his hands.

"He’s the man Yue Ling was engaged to?"

Liu Shan looked at him.

Xu Long continued.

"The one who died three years ago?"

Liu Shan held his gaze then nodded once.

"Yes."

Xu Long went still. A strange feeling settled heavily in his chest.

He slowly lowered his eyes toward the photograph.

’So this was him.’

The man from Yue Ling’s past.

The man whose death had changed her life.

When Lu Tian first met Yue Ling, Xu Long had been tasked with gathering information about her.

At the time, he had conducted a general background investigation.

Her businesses.

Her professional history.

Her connections.

Her known relationships.

He hadn’t dug too deeply into her private past.

There had been no reason to.

The information he gathered mentioned that Yue Ling had once been engaged to a man who died three years earlier.

But there were few details.

No clear photograph.

No extensive personal records.

Although she was a renowned model, she had always kept her private life carefully guarded from the public eye.

Not a single article had ever mentioned her being married, much less romantically involved with anyone.

Rumors had circulated over the years, but none had ever been confirmed.

And because Lu Tian hadn’t requested further investigation, Xu Long had left it at that.

Now he realized how much he had overlooked.

His gaze returned to Lee Shin’s photograph.

’So this is the man she was going to marry.’

The man Choi Li Sun had changed his face to look like.

Now it made sense why he couldn’t find anything on Lee Shin.

Everything about him had been removed by Qin Jun and them.

Then he thought of Lu Tian.

His boss.

The man who rarely showed emotion to anyone, yet became an entirely different person whenever Yue Ling was near.

The man who would do anything to protect his wife.

Xu Long felt his stomach sink.

’Boss needs to know.’

There was no question about it.

This wasn’t simply a matter involving Yue Ling’s past anymore.

Choi Li Sun was the case his boss was also working on behind the scenes.

And that man was in Imperial wearing the face of Lee Shin.

Xu Long tightened his grip on the folder.

He needed to tell Lu Tian.

But before he could reach for his phone, another thought entered his mind.

Something didn’t make sense.

Why?

Why would Choi Li Sun go through such extreme lengths to resemble Lee Shin?

What connection did the two men share?

Xu Long slowly raised his head. He looked at Qin Jun then Kira and Song Jing Li.

Ignoring the suffocating tension surrounding them, he asked.

"What exactly was the connection between Lee Shin and Choi Li Sun?"

The question made everyone fall silent.

Qin Jun’s murderous gaze remained fixed on Liu Shan.

For a long moment, he didn’t move.

Then he slowly turned toward Xu Long.

His expression was cold.

"Shin was working undercover."

Xu Long frowned. He was aware that Qin Jun and the others worked under the government in City Z.

However, despite the few times they’ve worked together, he had never met Lee Shin with them.

He thought about Qin Jun’s words and his frown deepened.

"Undercover?"

Qin Jun nodded.

"To take down Choi Li Sun."

Xu Long’s eyes narrowed.

Liu Shan slowly turned toward Qin Jun.

Even he hadn’t known that.

Qin Jun continued.

"Shin’s true identity was strictly confidential. He used his position as the leader of the band Faith as a cover, allowing him to operate without raising suspicion."

Memories of the past flashed through his mind, but he quickly forced them aside.

"He had been investigating that bastard for quite some time."

His fists clenched at his sides.

"He got close enough to gather evidence. Close enough to become a threat."

Song Jing Li lowered his gaze.

"He had uncovered evidence powerful enough to bring Choi Li Sun down once and for all."

Kira’s expression darkened.

Qin Jun’s jaw tightened.

"But there was a rat."

Liu Shan frowned.

"A rat?"

"Someone exposed Shin’s identity."

The room grew deathly quiet.

Qin Jun’s voice dropped.

"Someone told Choi Li Sun who he really was."

Xu Long slowly leaned back.

The pieces were beginning to fit together.

Lee Shin had gone undercover to bring Choi Li Sun down.

Someone had betrayed him.

His identity had been exposed.

And shortly afterward, he died in what everyone believed was a tragic accident.

An accident that had never been an accident at all.

Liu Shan’s face turned pale.

"You mean..."

Qin Jun looked at him.

"Choi Li Sun found out."

His voice was filled with hatred.

"And Shin became a loose end."

No one spoke.

Qin Jun slowly turned toward the window. His reflection stared back at him from the dark glass.

For a brief moment, he could almost remember Lee Shin standing beside him.

Laughing.

Talking.

Alive.

His throat tightened.

Then the memory vanished.

Leaving behind nothing but the cold reflection of a man who had spent three years chasing someone he couldn’t find.

Qin Jun closed his eyes.

"When Shin died, Choi Li Sun disappeared."

His hands tightened.

"He destroyed all evidence pointing at him, erased his tracks, and vanished before we could reach him."

Kira looked down.

"We’ve been hunting him ever since."

Song Jing Li’s voice was bitter.

"And every lead ended in nothing."

Xu Long looked at the photograph again. His mind returned to the surveillance footage.

The blond-haired man.

The scar running across his face.

The deliberate smirk toward the camera.

A chill crept down his spine.

Choi Li Sun hadn’t merely resurfaced. He had returned wearing the face of the very man who had tried to destroy him.

However, no one could find a known location on him.

Even someone as resourceful as Lu Tian had struggled to track down the notorious man.

And somehow, Xu Long doubted it was a coincidence.

He looked toward Liu Shan.

The assistant was staring at the floor, his expression unreadable.

For the first time that evening, neither man had anything to say.

Because the truth had become far more terrifying than either of them had imagined.

Lee Shin hadn’t died because of fate.

He had been betrayed.

He had been murdered.

And now, three years later, the man responsible was somewhere in Imperial wearing his face.

With Han Yue Ling’s wedding only days away.