**Chapter 3: The Best Gift a Villain Could Ask For**
The morning sun of New Year's Day filtered through the floor-to-ceiling bulletproof windows of the Royal Suite, but it brought no warmth to Lin Feng's soul. He sat propped up against a mountain of silk pillows, staring at a bowl of organic abalone congee that supposedly cost more than a mid-sized sedan. The steam rising from the bowl smelled of salt and luxury, but to Lin Feng, it smelled like another failed mission.
[**SYSTEM NOTIFICATION: CURRENT REPUTATION — UNBELIEVABLY HOLY.**]
[**WORLD PROGRESS: THE HEROINE HAS BEGUN SEARCHING FOR ENGAGEMENT RINGS.**]
Lin Feng choked on a spoonful of congee, the expensive broth burning his throat. *Engagement rings? We haven't even had a first date! I kidnapped her! I tied her to a chair! Is the standard for marriage in this world really just 'not letting her get shot by a sniper'?*
He needed to fix this. If he couldn't be a villain to the Heroine or the Protagonist, he would be a villain to his own flesh and blood. In the original plot of *The Soldier King's Return*, Lin Feng had a Second Uncle named Lin Jian. Lin Jian was a truly vile man—greedy, cowardly, and currently plotting to steal the Lin family inheritance while Lin Feng was "recovering."
*Perfect,* Lin Feng thought, a wicked glint returning to his eyes. *I'll contact Uncle Jian. I'll tell him I'm weak, that the Starfall Group is ripe for the taking, and I'll help him liquidate my own father's assets. Surely, being a traitor to my own family will make the world hate me.*
Just as he reached for his encrypted phone, the heavy double doors of the suite were thrown open with a bang that made the crystal chandelier rattle. It wasn't a nurse. It wasn't the CEO. It was a man in an impeccably tailored grey suit, sporting a thin, predatory mustache. Behind him stood four burly bodyguards in black suits, their faces like stone.
Lin Jian had arrived.
"My dear nephew!" Lin Jian cried out, his voice dripping with fake concern. He rushed to the bedside, smelling of expensive cigars and betrayal. "I heard about the... incident. A hero! My own nephew, a hero of the city! The board of directors is talking about nothing else. They want to throw you a parade!"
Lin Feng suppressed a smile. *Here we go. Time to be a scum.*
"Cut the act, Uncle," Lin Feng snapped, leaning back and trying to look as arrogant and punchable as possible. "You didn't come here to check on my health. You came here because you think I'm a cripple now. You want the keys to the Lin Group's offshore accounts, don't you?"
Lin Jian froze, his fake smile faltering for a microsecond. "Now, now, Feng'er... we're family. But, since you mentioned it, the family's stock is fluctuating wildly because of your... theatrical display on the roof. Perhaps it's best if I take over the day-to-day operations while you... rest. Permanently."
"I'll do you one better," Lin Feng whispered, leaning in close, his eyes narrowed. "I'll give you the codes to the main server tonight. But on one condition: you have to make sure Su Qingxue loses everything. I want her Starfall Group bankrupt by Monday. I want her begging in the streets, wondering why the man who 'saved' her turned into her worst nightmare."
Internal Lin Feng: *Please, Uncle! Take the bait! Ruin her so she hates me and the plot gets back on track!*
Lin Jian's eyes widened with pure, unadulterated greed. "You... you really are a wolf in sheep's clothing! I thought you'd gone soft for that woman. Very well. Give me the codes, and I'll make sure the name Su Qingxue is erased from the business world."
Lin Feng felt a surge of triumph. Finally! A real villainous plot! He began to recite a string of numbers—fake codes he had generated using the System that would actually lock the Uncle's own accounts if used—but to the Uncle, they looked like the keys to the kingdom. But then, the temperature in the room plummeted. The air felt heavy, like the atmosphere before a massive lightning strike.
*Thud. Thud. Thud.*
Heavy combat boots echoed in the hallway. The door didn't just open; it was gently pushed aside by a hand that could crush granite. Ye Chen, the "God of War," stepped in. He wasn't alone. Behind him, two soldiers in full tactical gear were dragging a massive, heavy metal chest that scraped against the marble floor.
"Brother Lin," Ye Chen said, his voice cold and sharp. He didn't even look at Lin Jian, treating the billionaire uncle like a piece of unwanted furniture. "I told you I would bring you a gift. I spent the night clearing out the 'trash' that was lurking in the shadows of your family."
Lin Feng's heart sank. *The gift. Oh no.*
Ye Chen kicked the metal chest open. It wasn't filled with gold or jewels. It was filled with documents, hard drives, and several dozen burner phones.
"What is this?" Lin Jian stammered, his face turning the color of spoiled milk.
"These," Ye Chen said, picking up a folder and tossing it onto Lin Feng's lap, "are the records of your uncle's secret dealings with the Shadow Web. He wasn't just trying to steal your company, Lin Feng. He was the one who provided the blueprints of the Starfall Skyscraper to the snipers. He tried to kill you both."
Lin Feng stared at the documents. He felt a migraine coming on. *No, no, no! I was supposed to be his partner in crime!*
"I knew you were acting, Brother Lin," Ye Chen said, his eyes filled with a terrifying level of respect. "When you were talking to him just now, I was listening at the door. You were feeding him the 'Tracker Codes,' weren't you? You led him into a trap right in front of me. You wanted him to confess his greed before you handed him over to justice. Your tactical mind... it's even sharper than I imagined. You're a genius of psychological warfare."
"I WASN'T LEADING HIM INTO A TRAP!" Lin Feng yelled, clutching his hair. "I WAS HELPING HIM! I AM EVIL! DON'T YOU GET IT?"
Su Qingxue walked in at that moment, holding a sleek tablet. She looked at the chest of evidence, then at the trembling Lin Jian. Her face was a mask of cold fury.
"Uncle Lin," she said, her voice like a guillotine. "I just used the 'codes' Lin Feng gave you to trace back your last ten years of tax evasion. It seems you've been embezzling from the Lin family charity fund as well. The police are downstairs. Ye Chen's men will escort you out. You'll be lucky if you see the sun again in twenty years."
"Feng'er! You betrayed me!" Lin Jian screamed as the soldiers grabbed him. "You're a devil! A monster!"
Lin Feng reached out a hand, his eyes watery. *Yes! Call me a monster! Thank you, Uncle! Finally, someone understands!*
But Su Qingxue stepped in front of him, blocking his view of the crying man. She looked at Lin Feng, her eyes softening into a gaze so intense it felt like a physical weight. Suddenly, a strange flickering appeared in Lin Feng's vision. A secondary system screen, one he didn't recognize, flashed briefly in red.
[**EXTERNAL SYSTEM DETECTED... SOURCE: HEROINE SU QINGXUE.**]
[**STATUS: ACTIVE.**]
[**MISSION: 'ENSURE THE VILLAIN NEVER ESCAPES'.**]
Lin Feng's blood ran cold. *What?*
Su Qingxue leaned over him, her hair falling around them like a curtain of silk, cutting off the rest of the world. She whispered, her voice a ghost of a whisper that chilled him to the bone.
"You really are a fool, Lin Feng," she whispered, her fingers tracing the scar on his shoulder. "You risked your life to act as a double agent. You let everyone think you were a 'scum' just so you could protect the Lin legacy and my company at the same time. But did you really think..."
She paused, and for a second, her eyes glowed with a faint, unnatural violet light.
"...that I would forget what you did to me in the 442nd world, Lin Feng? Or how you betrayed me in the 712th? You've killed me, used me, and abandoned me in a thousand different lives..."
Lin Feng's breath hitched. His heart stopped. He felt like a mouse that had just realized the cat had been playing with its food for hours.
"How... how do you..." he gasped.
"I have my own 'System' now, Feng'er," she smiled, but it wasn't a smile of love. It was the smile of a winner. "It's called the **'Regret Redemption System.'** And every time you try to act like a villain in this life, my system rewards me with a piece of your soul. I remember every death. Every slap. Every betrayal."
[**DING! HEROINE'S SYSTEM NOTIFICATION (OVERHEARD BY HOST):**]
[**TARGET 'LIN FENG' IS IN A STATE OF EXTREME TERROR. REWARD: PERMANENT BINDING COMPLETED.**]
"In this life," Su Qingxue continued, her voice dropping to a predatory purr, "I'm not the victim. And you aren't the villain who gets to die and reset the world. You're the prize. And I'm never letting you go to the 'Beach' you keep dreaming about."
Lin Feng looked at the door. Ye Chen was standing there, his hand on his sword, looking like a loyal dog waiting for a command from the Queen. He looked at Su Qingxue, who was looking at him with 999 lives' worth of obsession.
"Task failed..." Lin Feng whispered, his eyes wide with horror as the realization set in. He wasn't in a romance novel. He was in a **Survival Horror.** "...completely."