Chapter 235: She Was Too Careless
Chapter 235: Chapter 235: She Was Too Careless
Shen Lu was very cautious. "Hmm? Are you mistaken about something?"
Although the investigation into the pharmaceutical company explosion had fizzled out due to a lack of useful clues, Shen Lu still didn’t dare to let her guard down.
Better safe than sorry. If she slipped up now, she’d never forgive herself.
Zeng Xiaodao let out a small laugh. "Don’t worry. They can’t trace it to me, and even if they do, you won’t be implicated."
Zeng Xiaodao understood her caution.
Shen Lu pursed her lips. ’She really wanted to ask Zeng Xiaodao what was in the clothes he’d sent someone to retrieve.’
’But if she asked, wouldn’t that be an admission that she was the one who saved him?’
’What a dilemma.’
But Zeng Xiaodao misunderstood her inner conflict, thinking she was just worried. He pulled a thick stack of Star Coins from his pocket.
"This is 50,000 Star Coins. It’s all I could scrape together. Please, take it, Boss Shen."
Shen Lu shot him a speechless glance. ’If I take this, isn’t that a tacit admission?’
’What is this guy thinking?’
"Zeng Xiaodao, you’re putting me in a very difficult position."
"If you’re going to save people without wanting to be recognized, you should probably wear a mask next time, Boss Shen," Zeng Xiaodao said. "I was still somewhat conscious when you rolled me over. I saw your face right before I passed out completely."
Shen Lu was speechless.
’Fine. I guess I was too careless.’
"You were really completely out after that?"
Shen Lu asked, uncertain.
’Then Zeng Xiaodao wouldn’t know about her turning him into a little girl, would he?’
"I was." Zeng Xiaodao nodded. "When I woke up, people told me a man named Ye Fan had brought me in. I did some checking and found out he’s your security guard. I figured you didn’t want your identity revealed, so I haven’t mentioned it to anyone."
Since they were being this open, Shen Lu decided not to hold back.
"So, what exactly did you find at the pharmaceutical company?"
"Boss Shen, it’s better not to be too curious about some things."
"I don’t want the fifty thousand. Come on, just tell me."
Zeng Xiaodao’s eyes shifted. "Then what was Boss Shen doing at the industrial park so late at night?"
"I asked you first." Shen Lu frowned, slightly irritated. "If you don’t want to talk, then don’t. Just take your money and go."
"Alright." Zeng Xiaodao relented. "It wasn’t anything important, really. Just some insignificant experimental data."
’He had gone to such great lengths, risking so much to sneak into the pharmaceutical company. He’d hoped to find some key evidence—or at least a few clues.’
’But unfortunately, he’d come up empty-handed.’
’The files he’d risked his life to retrieve contained nothing but perfectly normal experimental data. There was nothing wrong with the expired nutrient liquid, either. It was as if he had been mistaken about everything.’
Zeng Xiaodao was bewildered.
’He had been so sure his grandmother died from drinking the expired nutrient liquid. But if the pharmaceutical company was clean, had he been suspecting the wrong people all along?’
Shen Lu was surprised too. ’That can’t be right.’
’Expired nutrient liquid isn’t an ordinary product; only pharmaceutical companies have the facilities and qualifications to produce it. If the company isn’t the problem, then what is?’
For a moment, both of them fell silent.
"I’ve taken up enough of your time today." Zeng Xiaodao stood up. "Please, take the money. You’ve helped me more than once, and I’m truly grateful."
Shen Lu rose with him and didn’t refuse this time.
After seeing Zeng Xiaodao off, Shen Lu was in no mood to work. She sat in the chair behind the front desk, carefully mulling over the issue of the expired nutrient liquid.
But the more she thought about it, the more tangled her thoughts became.
The young woman slumped in her seat and covered her face. ’Thinking things through really isn’t my strong suit.’
’It’s better to set aside things I can’t figure out for now.’
She collected materials as usual and then made dinner.
Around this time, Xiao Lang woke up. He was even able to get out of bed with some support. Shen Lu held a small celebration, letting Xiao Lang blow out a candle before they all shared the cake.
Xiao Lang got the biggest slice. The little boy got cream all over his face, grinning from ear to ear.
After the little party, the cleanup was left to Song Zhigao, who had just moved into the dorms that day. Shen Lu went up to the second floor to wash up and get some rest.
When Shen Lu came out of the bathroom, she ran right into Fu Cheng, who was waiting for her in the living room.
"Were you waiting for me?" Shen Lu realized. "Oh, dear. I should have carried you to bed first."
Fu Cheng pursed his lips. "It’s not that. Little Deer, are you dealing with something difficult?"
Fu Cheng had noticed something was on Shen Lu’s mind ever since they got back from the hospital.
During Xiao Lang’s celebration just now, she had occasionally spaced out, clearly thinking about something else.
’Before, his world had been confined to that small bed. But now, as his body gradually recovered, he could go to many places with his wheelchair. That meant there were more ways he could help Shen Lu.’
’He couldn’t wait to become someone she could rely on.’
Shen Lu’s first instinct was to say nothing was wrong, but Fu Cheng’s gaze was so certain that it stopped the lie in her throat.
’After a moment’s thought, asking Fu Cheng seemed like a good idea.’
"There is something that’s been confusing me," Shen Lu said, sitting down on the sofa. "Do you know about the expired nutrient liquid?"
’Fu Cheng had thought Shen Lu was upset about her biological family, but the moment she spoke, she brought up something else entirely.’
"I do. Pharmaceutical companies periodically dump batches of expired nutrient liquid at the junkyards in the Lower City District."
"I suspect there’s a problem with some of the expired nutrient liquid. I’ve done some investigating, but I haven’t found any leads." Shen Lu was being deliberately vague. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Fu Cheng; it was just that for something as serious as her visit to the pharmaceutical company, the fewer people who knew, the safer she would be.
"Can you be more specific about the problem?"
Shen Lu bit her lip and lowered her voice. "A lot of people in the Lower City District have been dying inexplicably lately. Some of them suddenly mutate and attack people, only to die violently moments later. Don’t you think that’s strange?"
Fu Cheng quickly caught on. "You suspect this is all related to the expired nutrient liquid?"
"A friend’s family member died after consuming expired nutrient liquid. And then there’s Fang Ming’s father... I personally saw a mutant beast crawl out of his body." Shen Lu’s gaze darkened. "The one thing they had in common was that they had both consumed expired nutrient liquid shortly before the incidents."
"This is extremely serious." Fu Cheng’s expression turned grim. "I suggest we let the authorities investigate."
Shen Lu froze. She had never expected Fu Cheng to suggest such a thing.
’But on second thought,’ she mused, ’Fu Cheng was not only a former military academy student but also the eldest son of the Fu Family. It’s not surprising he would say that.’
’After all, the government primarily serves the upper-class citizens. As a beneficiary of that system, of course he would trust the authorities.’
"Just pretend I never said anything to you today." Shen Lu suddenly lost all interest in discussing the matter further with him.
Shen Lu wasn’t the original owner of this body; she couldn’t trust the authorities the way Fu Cheng did.
Fu Cheng’s heart sank. ’I seem to have said something she didn’t want to hear.’
’But a problem with the expired nutrient liquid isn’t a trivial matter. If what Shen Lu described is really happening, it won’t just throw the Lower City District into chaos—it could affect the entire planet.’