Chapter 31

Chapter 31

The laboratory was not large to begin with, and it was crammed full of various experimental instruments. When Fu Han sat down in the middle, everyone else found it inconvenient to move around. After sitting for a while, seeing these people would rather awkwardly take detours than acknowledge him, he found it even more laughable.

Endure, let's see how long you can hold out.

After sitting for a while, Fu Han went to the hot water dispenser on his own to brew a cup of coffee. He took a sip—it was bitter and harsh, nowhere near as good as milk. He set the coffee down on the table, then went to the storage cabinet to find some sugar cubes. Returning, he started watching a movie on the large optical computer used for lab data calculations, turning the volume all the way up.

Wells, who was already frustrated by his inability to produce experimental results, heard the noisy movie sounds. His grip on the test tube tightened, and when he looked up and saw the movie playing on the optical computer screen, veins popped out on his forehead.

He slammed down the reagent in his hand and was about to charge over, but an older researcher beside him grabbed his arm and shot him a look, signaling him not to act rashly. After all, this was Commander Lanxiu's person; ignoring him was fine, but laying a hand on him would bring trouble.

Wells was the youngest experimenter in the entire lab, a recent graduate with insufficient experience, naturally less composed than these old hands. Fu Han's provocation made him lose his cool. Hearing the commotion, Fu Han took a sip of coffee and glanced at Wells, thinking he would start with him.

A while later, when the two senior researchers who could take charge had both left on business, Fu Han began to approach Wells casually, asking him, "What was our research room's monthly performance bonus last month?"

Doing nothing and already thinking about wages—truly a waste from Blue Star. Wells felt even more disdainful. He didn't even look at Fu Han as he heard the latter say lazily from behind, "I heard the Commander say your research room had the highest average monthly performance last year. At the end of the month, you all share dividends based on results. Although I just arrived and my share is small, since the base is big, I'd be happy to take free money without doing anything. Too bad that you all have to work hard to support me."

These words finally infuriated Wells. He grabbed Fu Han by the collar and roared, "You slave from Blue Star, don't get too cocky! You're nothing but a breeder who can bear children—do you really think you're the Commander's mate?"

Fu Han smirked instead of getting angry. "From the way you talk, what, are you jealous?"

When the older researcher returned from his errands and walked in, he was stunned by the scene: the two of them were tangled on the floor, wrestling. Though Wells looked much stronger than Fu Han, he seemed to be losing ground.

He rushed over to pull them apart, but alone, he couldn't manage it. Sweating, he scolded the others in the room who were pretending to be blind. "Can't you all see? Come over and help!"

Everyone finally managed to pull them apart after a long struggle. Fu Han's neck had a bruise from being choked—impossible for Commander Lanxiu not to notice—and Wells wasn't in much better shape. His face was a mess, and the front of his lab coat was ripped open, revealing a crumpled shirt underneath.

The older researcher sighed and had to take them both to the medical room to treat their wounds. He attended to Fu Han first, then turned to Wells.

"Wells, you graduated first in your major from the Capital Military Academy and overcame numerous obstacles to get an internship at the 16th Military Region. Acting so impulsively—do you want to throw it all away?"

He had to admit, this was a veiled criticism. On the surface, he was scolding Wells for being too impulsive, but in reality, it was a dig at Fu Han for relying solely on Commander Lanxiu's connections to enter the research institute, lacking any real skill.

Leaning against the wall, Fu Han sneered imperceptibly at these words.

Wells looked down at his bruised arms and said nothing. Honestly, though he looked big, he had spent all his time from childhood in school studying, never actually fighting. That scrap was pure improvisation, and he hadn't expected the seemingly frail Fu Han to hit so hard. In a few moves, he was dazed and unable to recover, leaving him on the defensive the whole time.

It was truly embarrassing.

Now hearing the older researcher's reprimand, Wells felt even more wronged and blurted out without any guile, "The research room's performance is a result of everyone's hard work. Why should he get paid for doing nothing?"

He was just an intern, after all, and his share was smaller than that of the regular employees. Moreover, according to inside gossip, only one of the two—him and Fu Han—would be kept in the end. Given how Commander Lanxiu treated Fu Han today, it seemed clear that he (Wells) would be the one leaving.

When he first applied to the 16th Military Region, he was full of confidence. If he were dismissed after his internship, he would become the laughingstock of the entire school!

And all because of Fu Han's appearance! If not for Fu Han, his future would have been bright.

The older researcher hadn't expected Wells to tear off all pretense in front of Fu Han. Judging by Wells's attitude, he guessed that Fu Han must have said something to provoke him after he left.

On one hand, there was the student Commander Lanxiu had entrusted to him; on the other, the family member Commander Lanxiu had asked him to look after. Though his personal preference leaned toward Wells, he couldn't lean too far.

He turned to Fu Han. "Little Fu, what happened before was indeed our fault, but with your current abilities, there really isn't any work we can assign to you."

Fu Han smiled nonchalantly. "In that case, I'll go back to watching movies and drinking coffee." He got up to leave.

This time, the older researcher relented. "How about this, Fu Han: I'll have Wells mentor you. Though he's new here, he's a top graduate from the Imperial Academy, and since you two are similar in age, I think communication will be easier."

Hearing this arrangement, Fu Han almost laughed out loud.

Let someone who just fought with him be his mentor? What kind of grudge was this?

But Fu Han immediately nodded. "Sure." Then, looking at the bewildered Wells on the sofa, he tilted his chin. "Looking forward to your guidance, senior."

Wells, bruised all over, watched Fu Han stride away and could only cry without tears, staring at the older researcher with eyes full of "Why?!"

"Don't you get it? You're his teacher now; you have the authority to assign tasks to him."

Wells gave a weak, bitter laugh. "What task can a breeder who didn't even finish high school possibly complete?"

Cleaning equipment? He probably couldn't even tell the difference between biological and physical detergents or how to use them.

Seeing his obtuseness, the older researcher sighed and hinted, "Precisely because he can't do anything, you should assign him the hardest tasks!"

"..." Wells seemed to catch on. Right, if Fu Han couldn't complete it, that would be Fu Han's own problem. When the experiment failed, they could blame Fu Han—after all, Fu Han brought it on himself.

Fu Han had already changed into a lab coat before they returned, but the sizes in the changing room were too big, making him look like a child wearing an adult's clothes. He guessed Baiyaoans were generally more robust; he'd have to ask Lanxiu later if there were smaller sizes.

Adjusting his collar in front of the mirror, he saw the older researcher and Wells walk in. Fu Han obediently went to stand by Wells, ready to learn, but the latter simply grabbed a file from the workbench and tossed it to him.

Fu Han opened it and saw it was about the extraction, fission, and fusion process of a group of chemical elements. The steps looked simple, but when he turned to the flow chart, his hand paused and his brow furrowed. The principle analysis was built on a pile of chemical equations, and almost every other equation had parts he didn't understand.

Seeing Fu Han's movements slow down as he flipped through the file, Wells crossed his arms confidently. "This little task shouldn't be too hard to finish in fifteen days, right?"

The others nearby silently complained to themselves. This experiment had been Wells's project for two months before Fu Han arrived, and he'd made no headway. Now he was dumping it on Fu Han, demanding it in fifteen days.

Clearly, it was a setup to make Fu Han fail.

Though they didn't like people who got in through the back door either, this kid looked so young. Was this going too far?

Just as they hesitated, the passing older researcher coughed. "Focus on your work."

Experimenters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5: "..."

Fu Han stood to the side, reading the experimental plan for a long time. By the time he reached the last page, his legs were sore, and he only had a rough idea. He had underestimated the difficulty of the work here. Even the precision of a basic measurement was alarmingly high, incomparable to the casual experiments he and Qi Xuan had done for fun.

This would be quite a challenge for him.

Wells sat nearby, waiting. When he saw Fu Han close the plan file, he raised an eyebrow. "Finished reading? Get to it, then. I want results at this time in fifteen days. I'll send you a data template; follow the steps exactly, not a single mistake."

Before coming, Lanxiu had prepared a temporary optical computer for Fu Han, which was linked to Lanxiu's as a secondary unit. His contact list only had Lanxiu.

Hearing Wells mention the template, Fu Han opened his optical computer and heard a ding—a 2GB file was transmitted.

2GB!

What kind of data template was that?

Fu Han sighed to himself, masking his shock.

"Fine, fifteen days it is."

Fu Han took the plan file to the storage room to gather the necessary reagents and small instruments, keeping them ready in the lab to avoid having to search the instrument library later. For the large instruments, he'd need to submit an application to the instrument management office, since the research institute wasn't just one lab—they had to book ahead to avoid conflicts with other sections. Certain high-risk drugs also required approval from the pharmaceutical department. In short, the preparation work alone would keep him busy for two or three days.

When Fu Han dragged in a cartload of lab equipment back from the storage room, the lights in the research lab were already off. Fortunately, the door wasn't locked, or he wouldn't have had anywhere to put his stuff.

This afternoon, Lanxiu had originally planned to visit Fu Han, feeling uneasy about leaving him alone there, but the military department needed to prepare a batch of weapons, not for their own use this time, but for sale in the interstellar market.

Doing business with aliens is troublesome; the goods need to be sufficiently hardcore to be competitive and fetch a good price, but also you have to guard against them using these weapons to harm people from their own planet. In short, the trade-offs are quite brain-racking.

So he didn't manage to go see Fu Han that afternoon. By the time he got home, it was almost 11 o'clock. To his surprise, when he went upstairs, the bedroom light was on. He pushed the door open and saw Fu Han huddled at the desk, with piles of paper books stacked higher than his head.

Lanxiu walked over and picked up a random book—all about biochemical principles. Seeing the terrifying quantity, and then looking at Fu Han who was writing furiously, Lanxiu sighed and put it back. "Are those people giving you a hard time?"

Fu Han didn't stop writing with his right hand, but made a quiet gesture with his left, signaling him not to interrupt.

Watching him so focused on one thing, Lanxiu couldn't help but find it novel. He had never seen Fu Han like this before.

It seemed that placing Fu Han in the research institute was the right decision. For someone like him with such outstanding talent in weapon manufacturing, putting him in that environment was like a seed falling into soil; given time, he would quickly take root and grow into a mighty tree.

It looked like it was only a matter of time before he got left in the dust.

But seeing Fu Han working so hard made his heart ached for him. If Fu Han didn't sleep, Lanxiu couldn't sleep either. After showering, he staked out a spot on the sidelines waiting. As soon as it hit 12 o'clock, he immediately walked over and snatched the pen from Fu Han's hand. "No more reading. Go to sleep."

Fu Han was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at him. "Is that an order from the general?"

Seeing the serious look on his face, Lanxiu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He directly lifted Fu Han from the chair. "I'm supervising you as your parent figure! If you stay up past midnight again, I'll spank your butt. I sent you to learn, not to drive yourself into the ground. You don't need to push yourself so hard."

Fu Han fell from his arms onto the bed, his whole body bouncing on the mattress. The various equations in his mind seemed to get all jumbled along with his body.

He had never crammed like this before, not even for school exams, because it had never been necessary.

Lanxiu turned off the light and looked back to see him still sitting motionless on the bed, as if in a daze. He reached out an arm, pulled him flat, and tucked him into his embrace. "Why didn't you have Eliza grab you an e-book? You can find whatever you want. Flipping through all these pages is exhausting."

Fu Han closed his eyes. "I'm not used to e-books. Besides, with paper books, I can bookmark them and lay them all out to read together. I find them more convenient than e-books." Besides, e-books are bad for the eyes if you read them for too long.

Lanxiu felt his thin shoulder blades and felt a pang of concern. "You only ate a couple of bites of broccoli in the morning. You must be starving when you came back tonight, right?"

At this, Fu Han nodded emphatically. He hadn't expected that the research lab's lunch was all the same free meal packs from the cafeteria. When he opened one, besides a glass of concentrated juice, it was full of various composite nutrient formulas. Just the smell made Fu Han want to puke.

If he had known the research lab's lunch was all nutritional supplements, he would have eaten the entire plate of broccoli. No matter how bad vegetables taste, they are still better than nutritional supplements.

Thinking of this, Fu Han glared angrily at Lanxiu. "Why did you order such terrible food? I almost threw up. Afterwards, someone even secretly asked me if I was pregnant and needed to go to the hospital for a check-up."

"Really? Then why didn't you tell them it's been two months? Hahaha."

Fu Han's face turned bright red from his joke. Fortunately, the lights in the room were off, so his embarrassed expression couldn't be seen.

He elbowed Lanxiu. "If I were really pregnant, you'd be wearing the biggest cuckold horns!"

Others might not know, but both of them knew very well that in the three-plus months since Fu Han was assigned here, they had only been sleeping together innocently, nothing beyond that. If he got pregnant, that would be a real fantasy.

Lanxiu had only been joking. No matter what others thought, he had never had any improper thoughts about Fu Han. Perhaps as he got older, his desires in this area had faded. He hadn't had those kinds of feelings for anyone in many years.

But being without desires was fine too. Love is a seasoning of life, not a necessity.

When fate comes, accept it gladly; when fate ends, cut it off cleanly. There's no need to be attached to it, only to add unnecessary worry.

Lanxiu held Fu Han. "If one day you take a liking to someone, whether male or female, no matter which star they are from, I will bless you."

Hearing his words, Fu Han suddenly turned his head. Through the darkness, he caught sight of those luminescent green eyes.

"Are you serious?" Fu Han asked. Lanxiu's tone was half-truth half-joke, impossible to tell if he was kidding or serious.

Lanxiu chuckled. "Why would I lie to you?"

Hearing his laughter, Fu Han felt a mix of emotions for a moment—neither happy nor unhappy. It seemed Lanxiu really saw him as a child to cherish, with not a trace of desire in this affection.

If he took advantage of Lanxiu's doting on him and deliberately made him stay with him, would Lanxiu compromise because he felt sorry for him?

Although this was not an honorable approach, if it meant getting the chance to be with him forever, it might be worth it.

Thinking of this, a hint of slyness flashed in Fu Han's eyes. "What if I fall for a man from Bai Yao Star?"

"Haha, you like... what!"

The unexpected question made Lanxiu's arms tighten around Fu Han, almost flipping the person in his arms over on the bed. The mattress shook with the movement, making the floor creak.

Even through two layers of pajamas, Fu Han could hear the violent heartbeat from the other's chest. Thump, thump, thump, like a drumbeat.

Lanxiu gulped, utterly at a loss for how to respond. Fu Han had fallen for a man from Bai Yao Star. Which one?

His mind quickly ran a series of screenings. First, he eliminated the White Ghosts stationed in Noah City—those people gave Fu Han the creeps just by looking at them, so it was impossible. That left people from Bai Yao Capital. But besides himself and Dr. Gray, Fu Han hadn't been in contact with anyone else.

Could it be someone from the research lab!

Lanxiu went through the entire department's personnel in his mind, as if he had found the answer. "Is it Wells!"

He was the only one younger, about the same age as Fu Han. He was said to have good grades, but Lanxiu hadn't personally assessed his research ability so he wouldn't comment. His looks were just so-so. But his combat level was garbage—heard his military district assessment barely passed. How could such a worthless fighter be worthy of his little treasure!

Lanxiu covered his face and buried it in the pillow, feeling like his precious cabbage had been snatched by a pig before it even formed a head. A feeling of utter devastation lingered in his heart. He probably wouldn't be able to sleep from sadness tonight.

Actually, it wasn't just him; Fu Han was also extremely shocked. Why did Lanxiu think it was Wells?

"Him?" Fu Han chuckled.

Hearing the scoff, Lanxiu turned over. "Who else besides him? Don't tell me it's Gray. He just looks young; he's thirty-three this year."

Fu Han rolled his eyes several times in the dark. He kept shoving him around, and yet he never thought of himself? Fuming, he ground his teeth and deliberately misled him. "What's wrong with older age? I think mature and caring people are nice."

"Ha! You really have your eye on him?" Lanxiu climbed up, straddled him, and pressed down on Fu Han's shoulders. From the side, the pose looked quite ambiguous. Fu Han looked up at the man who was looking down at him, but unfortunately, Lanxiu had no impure thoughts about him.

"I don't agree! I don't agree with you liking Gray!"

Lanxiu's lungs were about to burst with rage. The thought that Fu Han actually had that kind of idea about Gray was hard to stomach. He had just promised so generously that no matter what kind of person Fu Han chose, he would happily bless him, but in the blink of an eye, he went back on his word.

And it was a complete one-eighty. Wasn't that the textbook definition of going back on your word?

But blessing them with all his heart? No way!

Just a moment ago, he felt that Fu Han liking Wells was hard to stomach. Now he realized that it seemed he couldn't accept Fu Han liking anyone. Strange, how could this be? He had never discovered before that he was so closed-minded as a guardian.

Fu Han's head spun from being shaken by the shoulders, but seeing Lanxiu's fierce opposition, he was secretly happy. Could he secretly hope that Lanxiu also had any romantic feelings at all about him?

"Why not? Isn't Dr. Gray your good friend? You also praised him for his good character and sense of responsibility."

Lanxiu was rattled and didn't want to get into it. "Good character and sense of responsibility are one thing, but liking him is another. If meeting these two points were enough, then I could qualify too. So do you think you could marry me?"

"Sure, why not?"

"..."

"Maybe this is a trap..."

At that moment, both of them held their breath as if by unspoken agreement. The temperature where their bodies touched began to rise rapidly, so hot it felt scalding. Lanxiu didn't understand how it had suddenly become like this. The burning desire was almost consuming all reason.

Fu Han suddenly pushed him away, burrowed under the covers, and shouted, "Just kidding. I don't like Dr. Gray. I'm dead tired, let's sleep."

Lanxiu stood there frozen for a moment, then awkwardly crawled back under the covers. He didn't dare to snuggle up to Fu Han for the rest of the night.

Author's note: Lanxiu, I think the kid’s all grown up. We need to keep some distance.

Fu Han: How dare you?

Lanxiu: ...