Chapter 257: The Plot’s Development Seems a Bit Beyond Her Imagination
Chapter 257: Chapter 257: The Plot’s Development Seems a Bit Beyond Her Imagination
Inside the reception room, Fu Cheng and Xue Can sat on opposite sides. They both treated each other like thin air. The stiff, cold atmosphere was only broken when Shen Lu appeared.
"How did it go?" Fu Cheng asked.
Xue Can shot Fu Cheng a look, feeling vaguely excluded.
Fu Cheng knew what Shen Lu was here to do, but all he knew was that she was coming here.
The difference in their closeness was instantly clear, and it stung.
"I don’t know," Shen Lu shrugged. "I’m waiting for someone."
Not wanting to be left out, Xue Can interjected, "Who are you waiting for?"
Shen Lu said, "Researcher Li’s mentor."
Fu Cheng maneuvered his wheelchair closer to Shen Lu, holding a cup of hot tea. "Take a break."
"Okay."
Shen Lu took the cup, had a sip, and asked out of curiosity.
"Did you know Researcher Li before?"
Fu Cheng didn’t deny it. "Yes, she’s Li Zenan’s younger sister."
"Huh?" Shen Lu raised an eyebrow. "I thought Li Zenan only had one cousin, Li Zexing."
Li Zenan, Li Zexing... their names made them sound like brothers.
"No, Li Qin and Li Zenan are full-blooded siblings. It’s just that Li Qin is very low-key, so not many people know they’re brother and sister."
Li Qin was a bit fed up with her own brother.
Li Zenan was too wild. When he was a teenager, he was always doing outrageous and absurd things. Li Qin felt that having a brother like him was embarrassing, so she rarely brought up their relationship to outsiders.
Later, when Li Qin joined the research institute and became practically cut off from the world, even fewer people knew they were siblings.
"So, you’re old acquaintances?" Shen Lu asked.
"Yes. Li Zenan dotes on his sister."
"Don’t tell me she’s an old flame?" Xue Can muttered slyly.
Fu Cheng shot Xue Can a frosty glare and ignored him.
Shen Lu just said, "Oh," and didn’t think much of it.
She had asked Fu Cheng before if he’d ever had a girlfriend, and he had said no. She believed him.
Just then, it sounded like a lot of people were coming in outside, and it grew noisy.
His attempt to stir up trouble having failed, Xue Can got up to take a look. "They’re here to deliver a mutant beast."
He even recognized the people who had arrived—they were from the Qiankun Mercenary Corps.
But he didn’t go out to greet them. After a look, he shut the door.
The wall of the reception room facing the hallway was made of translucent glass, through which the silhouettes of people coming and going could be seen.
Suddenly, Fu Cheng went to the door and pulled it open.
"Uncle, long time no see."
The middle-aged man who had been about to walk past stopped in his tracks, his gaze falling on Fu Cheng.
"Cheng?"
"It’s me."
The middle-aged man raised his eyebrows slightly, making no effort to hide the astonishment on his face.
"Director Gong," the person standing beside the middle-aged man urged in a low voice, "the sedative needs to be injected in five minutes. We have to hurry."
Gong Tianhua raised a hand. "Little Qi, I’m leaving the data collection to you. Don’t disappoint me."
Qi Zhixian pushed up his glasses. "I won’t let you down, Professor."
The person who had urged them on shot Qi Zhixian a dark look. ’This kid is really lucky; he just stumbled into a great opportunity.’
Gong Tianhua and his personal assistant stayed behind while the others continued on.
After closing the reception room door, Gong Tianhua sized Fu Cheng up and down without hiding it.
"I thought you were dead."
Fu Cheng gave a faint smile. "I thought I was going to die, too."
"I saw your medical records back then. There was no way to heal your Spiritual Sea. The fangs of the mutant beast that bit you carried an extremely potent toxin. It didn’t just corrode your body; it also contaminated your Spiritual Sea. Our research institute still hasn’t developed a drug that can treat that."
Gong Tianhua was genuinely curious. "How on earth did you survive?"
The question made Shen Lu break out in a cold sweat.
’How did Fu Cheng survive? In the original plot, I have no idea. But now? It’s probably because I’ve been nursing him back to health bit by bit every day, right?’
’If Fu Cheng actually answers like that, this man he calls ’Uncle’ will surely turn his sights on me.’
Fu Cheng looked at Gong Tianhua, his lips curling into a faint, mocking smile. "It’s getting late. I should be heading back."
’He actually refused to answer his question?!’
Gong Tianhua’s brow furrowed for a moment before relaxing.
"Liao Guang, have someone arrange a car to take them back."
The assistant, who had been acting like part of the scenery, nodded at his words. "Yes, Director Gong. I’ll arrange it right away."
Shen Lu was still a bit dazed, even as she was being escorted to the car.
’The plot seems to be developing in a way that’s beyond my expectations.’
Since Xue Can had come on his motorcycle, he had to ride it back. That left only Shen Lu and Fu Cheng in the back of the car.
"No, wait." Shen Lu suddenly remembered something. "I can’t leave! I still haven’t met Researcher Li’s mentor!"
"You can come back tomorrow," Fu Cheng said, looking at the darkening sky outside. "The wind will pick up at night."
Shen Lu pouted but had no choice but to send Li Qin a message to apologize.
Li Qin: It’s okay. My mentor was busy today and didn’t have any free time. I’ll let you know when he’s available to see you.
Li Qin: Oh, right, you forgot your green onions. I’ll keep them here for now and take good care of them. You can pick them up next time you come over.
Feeling a little melancholic, Shen Lu turned off her Light Brain and leaned back in her seat, staring into space.
’The progress on my hidden quest hasn’t increased. I don’t know if it’s because I didn’t dig up any useful information or if I’m just going in the wrong direction.’
Shen Lu picked at her fingers.
’If I have to choose a reason, I’d rather it be that I didn’t find any useful information. Please don’t let it be because I’m on the wrong track.’
’I’ve been dragging my feet on this quest for over a month now. It’s not that it’s super difficult, but it’s not easy either. The main problem is that the information is just hard to come by.’
’After all, it’s not like a game with one quest prompt after another. You have to fumble around on your own and judge whether you’re on the right path by watching the quest progress bar.’
Now that it was the sandstorm season, the weather was terrible and not suitable for travel. This raised the investigation’s difficulty by another level. Shen Lu was desperate to uncover the truth about the expired nutrient liquid.
She had a faint premonition that if she didn’t complete it this month, she might never be able to complete it at all.
The young woman sighed softly. Fu Cheng glanced at her from the side but didn’t ask what was wrong.
’Sometimes, giving someone space and silence is its own form of comfort.’
The young woman’s face was half-hidden in the twilight, her brow furrowed unconsciously. ’She must be dealing with something tricky.’
’A pity she won’t tell me about it.’
The two of them were still in a state where Shen Lu was unilaterally giving him the cold shoulder, much to Fu Cheng’s exasperation.
The car made its way to the Lower City District without any trouble, stopping in front of Little Deer Cuisine.
After thanking Liao Guang, the man offered her a business card with both hands.
Business cards were rare in the Imperial City, especially paper ones like this, which were quite expensive and precious.
Shen Lu didn’t take it right away. She turned to look at Fu Cheng, and only after he gave a slight nod did she accept it.
Xue Can’s motorcycle was even faster than the car, so he was already waiting inside the shop.
Shen Lu walked over, and just as she was about to speak to Xue Can, something slammed hard against the shop door, making a loud CLANG.
Shen Lu turned around. A strange man in a sand-proof helmet was standing a few steps away from the door. He played a video for Shen Lu, one that was visible to everyone.