Chapter 126: Jane: Chuck and I, Well, Why Wouldn't We Count?
"He torments me every day and treats me so badly, and you still say he's my destined best friend? Is there such a thing?"
Young Sheldon looked at his twin sister, Missy, with deep grievance. "And you still want me to treasure him? Is there such an illogical and bizarre thing in this world?"
He didn't believe such a fool existed!
If there was, please give him three!
Yeah.
A normal person would say a dozen, but for him, one or two wouldn't be enough, and a dozen would be too many. His ideal circle of friends would be four total. Whether it was space and time utilization or teaming up for activities, it was the perfect number.
Back at the university, he'd told his frightened cousin: he was the brains, Chuck was the muscle, and little Leonard was the comic relief. They were still missing someone international who was trying to fit in. That was his vision.
The only problem was that neither Chuck nor little Leonard was his ideal choice.
He'd said that because he'd sensed hostility from the older students, and subconsciously, he'd relied on Chuck's intimidating presence to prevent the group from picking on him.
Little Leonard was still just a middle schooler, too naive.
Chuck was too harsh.
His ideal three best friends would all be able to accommodate him unconditionally.
He'd thought about this more than once, and after much consideration, he decided that the international friend who tried hard to fit in would be his best friend.
Because the reality was, it was difficult to find a friend who could completely satisfy him, and few people could fully accommodate him. The foreigner who had low self-esteem but tried very hard to fit in was the most likely candidate.
Of course, he wouldn't accept just any foreigner; they had to be intelligent enough to understand his scientific humor, understand technology, and ideally, have wealthy parents to provide him with plenty of gaming equipment.
He thought the Black Panther from Marvel Comics was pretty good—a foreigner eager to assimilate into America, a PhD in physics from Oxford, a family with mining wealth, the King of Wakanda, incredibly wealthy, and tech-savvy...
"No?"
Missy, unaware that Sheldon's imagination had wandered to the Black Panther, feigned surprise. "I thought you were a robot. Don't you always love those sci-fi stories? All about artificial intelligence, the weakness of flesh and blood, technological ascension, and Asimov's Laws of Robotics? If you were an emotionless robot, I think Chuck's bullying would be negligible. The most important thing is that he can actually communicate with you at your level."
"I'm not a robot!"
Sheldon said angrily.
"Are you sure?"
Missy, imitating Chuck's manner, asked Chuck's favorite question.
"Mom!"
Sheldon felt that Missy's move was even more painful than a physical blow, and he called out to his last bastion of support.
"Missy, don't tease your brother."
Young Sheldon's mother, as always, protected this special son.
"OK."
Missy shrugged.
In the past, she would be very dissatisfied with this kind of differential treatment, but now with Chuck who often makes her arrogant brother cry, she suddenly felt it was okay to ease up.
Chuck had already caused psychological trauma in her brother. If she didn't know when to back off, she was afraid her brother would really have a breakdown.
Well.
It would be boring to ruin it all at once. Only by maintaining a balance could this kind of entertainment last.
"Mom! Missy is looking at me with that expression again!"
Young Sheldon was very sensitive to this kind of malice, and immediately started complaining loudly again.
Young Sheldon's mother held her forehead with a headache.
Over there.
Chuck and Susan got into the stretched Lincoln limousine, and the car drove smoothly out of the airport.
"Where are we going?"
Although Susan was an elite agent in the IRS's Criminal Investigation Division, frequently interacting with wealthy individuals, she rarely enjoyed this kind of privilege. After a moment's observation of the vibrant nightlife, she glanced sideways at Chuck, who remained calm and composed.
"Caesars Palace,"
Chuck said succinctly.
Susan glanced at the now-raised privacy partition, her lips twitching. She wasn't ready to discuss business in the car.
Caesars Palace.
The car stopped, and the driver got out to open the door for Chuck and Susan, offering to carry Chuck's suitcase. Chuck politely declined.
Susan was used to this by now.
Playing it safe, she carried her own suitcase.
As they walked side by side, a beautiful woman in an elegant gown approached to greet them. Her bow conveyed respect: "Dr. Wolfe, welcome to Caesars Palace. The presidential suite is ready. Would you like to check in?"
"Yes,"
Chuck nodded.
The female concierge smiled as she led the way.
"They really provide full service,"
Susan observed, noting the graceful figure ahead.
"I told you,"
Chuck glanced at her.
The two followed the concierge inside, and upon entering, they saw the bustling casino floor.
The hotels and casinos in Las Vegas are specially designed, requiring you to pass through the gaming area to enter and exit, making it hard not to want to try a few games.
A group of young people walked ahead. One, who looked like he was visiting for the first time, was carrying a suitcase and looking around with wonder. Then he turned and saw Chuck and his companions. His eyes swept over the concierge, and he felt his mouth go dry, but his gaze finally settled on Susan.
The concierge was attractive, but only in the conventional sense. But Susan's presence completely captivated him.
Then, as he turned his head while walking, he didn't notice the small step ahead. He missed his footing and fell flat on his face.
"Nice move, Campbell!"
his companions ahead immediately jeered. Then, the two men and two women noticed Chuck, exchanged glances, and continued on.
The young man named Campbell awkwardly stood up, grabbed his suitcase and hurried after them. As he turned the corner, he couldn't help but glance back at Susan.
Susan glanced at Chuck with amusement.
This was exactly how she expected a normal young man to look at her, not the way Chuck's constant analytical stare made her feel scrutinized.
Chuck glanced at the five young people without comment.
Entering the presidential suite, the concierge stood there and said with a smile, "Dr. Wolfe, I'm available downstairs. Anything you need, anything at all!"
With that, she closed the door and left.
"This truly is the ultimate VIP experience,"
Susan couldn't help but observe.
"You take the guest room, get settled, and we'll meet the target immediately. Otherwise, if word spreads, he might disappear."
Chuck pointed to the guest room.
"Right!"
Susan's expression became serious when discussing business.
Outside Caesars Palace.
"Boss."
Jane got out of the standard black SUV and said to her supervisor, "Have you ever worked with the IRS on a case before?"
They received a notice to cooperate with an IRS Criminal Investigator on the case, which was very novel to Jane, a relative newcomer to the FBI.
The IRS, such a formidable organization, had always been just an urban legend to her.
Jane's supervisor also got out and shook his head: "No, who would volunteer to work with the IRS on a case?"
"Then who has jurisdiction on this case?"
Jane asked the key question.
"Of course it's the Criminal Investigator from the IRS."
Jane's supervisor explained, "Does anyone dare to compete with them for control? Taxes and death are the only two certainties in life, and the FBI has nothing to do with the latter. Even if the IRS's priority isn't the highest on paper, in practice, it definitely is. The Criminal Investigator gives orders, and all of us are responsible for cooperating and assisting. This case probably involves interstate federal crimes, so we're here. Otherwise, the Las Vegas police would be handling the cooperation."
"They're that powerful?"
Jane was surprised.
"What do you think?"
Jane's supervisor warned, "Watch more and talk less. We're only here to assist this time. It's best not to overthink things. Otherwise, if there's a conflict with the Criminal Investigator, you don't want to be audited every year for the rest of your career, do you?"
"I'm not worried."
Jane, who had always paid her taxes properly, felt she had nothing to fear.
"Ha."
Jane's supervisor glanced at her. "You're not worried? So you could handle someone going through your purchase history in front of you and asking you to justify the necessity of every single item?"
"..."
Jane froze for a moment, then, as if realizing something, a flicker of embarrassment crossed her eyes.
"Looks like you understand now,"
Jane's supervisor chuckled. "It's just like how crime victims rarely want to testify in court. In court, defense lawyers will exploit their legal privileges, dwelling on details you don't want to discuss in front of everyone, legally humiliating you repeatedly! No one can handle that! Even lawyers can be so ruthless, but the IRS has independent enforcement and administrative systems. If they were really targeting you, you certainly couldn't handle it."
"Not everyone would buckle under that,"
Jane suddenly thought of Chuck.
With Chuck's impassive demeanor and unwavering principles, if he wasn't embarrassed, someone else would be.
"Are you thinking about Dr. Wolfe?"
Jane's supervisor immediately thought of Chuck and asked curiously, "How are things going between you two? Any progress?"
"Pretty well,"
Jane said with a concealed smile.
Ever since the last case, her supervisor knew that she and Chuck had been introduced by mutual acquaintances, and he treated her much better.
Although she had no intention of deliberately leveraging Chuck's reputation, why would she refuse if it could make her work life easier?
She couldn't just say that romantic connections were irrelevant.
Besides, she really did like Chuck, and Chuck had invited her to observe an experiment, so this could reasonably be considered a 'relationship'.
Well... why wouldn't it count?
"That's great."
Jane's supervisor smiled, "Let's go upstairs."
The two of them showed their credentials and arrived at the presidential suite. They knocked on the door. When Jane opened it, she was surprised to see Chuck: "Chuck!"
Then she looked inside and saw an attractive woman walking out of the bedroom. Instinctively, she raised her voice: "Who is she?!"
(End of Chapter)
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