Chapter 32

Chapter 32

The events of that night were still somewhat awkward. Even someone as oblivious as Lanxiu could sense something was off, let alone Fu Han, who was so sensitive. They saw each other every day at home, and if things dragged on like this, they might start drifting apart.

But before Lanxiu could figure out how to explain, he realized he had been worrying unnecessarily.

Because Fu Han simply didn’t have time to pay him any attention.

Previously, when Lanxiu came home, the house would be pitch black, even Eliza would have entered hibernation mode and was lying on the sofa. Lanxiu had to tiptoe to change clothes and shower, afraid of waking Fu Han. Now, when he came home, from the living room to the bedroom, the lights were all on. Fu Han was staying up two hours later than him.

At first, it was around midnight, and after seven days, it stretched to 2 a.m.

Lanxiu lay in bed, glanced at the time on his optical brain, threw off the covers, and got up. Fu Han, who was organizing data, heard the sound and turned around to look at him. "The light keeping you up? I’ll go downstairs."

"No, no."

Lanxiu pulled up a chair and sat beside him, rubbing his temples. "It’s not about the light. When the war started and artillery fire filled the sky, I could sleep through it without moving. This little bit of light is nothing. Since I can’t sleep anyway, I’ll sit with you for a bit."

Normally, Fu Han would have teased him about this, but now he really didn’t have the time.

His eyes fixed on the data in the left column of his optical brain, his hands flew over the light screen, typing rapidly. The right side quickly calculated lines of results through the formulas he had just entered, aligning with the corresponding data.

During the day, they had conducted 17 sets of experiments, each with about 3,000 initial data points. Fu Han had to calculate these results first, then analyze and remove unreasonable or erroneous parts, average the remaining data, and finally integrate and chart them against previous results.

In short, it was very complicated.

And he was still only at the data calculation stage.

Seeing him busy like an octopus, with the left column still full of uncalculated data, Lanxiu took out his own optical brain. "Send me half of it. We’ll calculate together, and it’ll go faster."

Fu Han hummed in agreement, not bothering to be polite. Otherwise, he really wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.

After transferring the data, Fu Han cleared a spot beside him. Now they were two busy bees in the quiet room, with only the sound of typing echoing.

After inputting about a quarter, Lanxiu noticed something was wrong. He stopped and stared at the calculation results on the right for a long time, then nudged Fu Han with his elbow. "This is off. You’re overcomplicating this part."

He took the notebook and pen from Fu Han’s desk and sketched out the gradual process of fission and fusion for elements of the same group. It was clear and logical at a glance. With a small change from step three, they could directly jump to phase six in Fu Han’s plan, skipping a ton of useless steps.

After seeing this, Fu Han realized how much useless work he had done these past days.

Due to time constraints, he had borrowed experimental data from Wells, whose early steps were divided into these seven stages. Fu Han thought that since Wells was a graduate of the Imperial Academy, his skills should be decent. But compared to Lanxiu’s method, it was complete garbage.

Seeing this, Fu Han felt a deep sense of helplessness. It wasn’t just regret over his wasted efforts, but also a sharp reminder of how far apart they were.

He deleted all the data he had painstakingly prepared. Watching the dense numbers turn into a blank screen, he felt completely defeated for the first time.

"Sleep." He turned off his optical brain, slipped off his slippers, and burrowed into the blanket. The spot where Lanxiu had been lying was still warm, and stretching out felt especially comfortable.

Seeing his sullen expression, Lanxiu knew what he was thinking. He turned off the light, got under the covers, and messed up Fu Han’s hair. "You’re still young. I’m way older. Don’t compare yourself to me. Out of everyone I’ve met, you’re the most talented."

This wasn’t empty flattery from Lanxiu. From their first meeting, he had felt that this kid was an extraordinary genius in weapons manufacturing; it was only a matter of time before he stood out. But Fu Han didn’t think so. He figured Lanxiu was just bragging like a proud dad—every parent thinks their kid is the best.

Fu Han asked, "Did you like weapons manufacturing when you were little?"

"Weapons manufacturing?" Lanxiu laughed. "You’re overthinking it. I hadn’t even been to school at your age. I couldn’t even do basic arithmetic, let alone weapons manufacturing."

Hearing this, Fu Han lifted his head from the pillow. "You never went to school! Then how’d you get so good later?"

That didn’t make sense. Even if Qi Xuan had always praised his comprehension, Fu Han could tell that getting started in weapons manufacturing was very difficult—it was the first major hurdle for anyone starting out.

How’d someone who never went to school even get into this?

Lanxiu thought for a moment. "With a great teacher, it’s like standing on a giant’s shoulders—makes picking apples way easier."

This explanation was getting stranger. The shoulders of a giant?

Connecting it to Lanxiu’s background, Fu Han immediately came to a conclusion. His tone turned sour. "He really is your savior. He raised you and was your life mentor. No wonder you like him so much. If I had someone like that by my side, I would too."

That comment was dripping with jealousy.

After speaking, Fu Han turned over, giving Lanxiu his back.

Lanxiu found it strange. Why’s this little punk always coming after that guy? They were over a hundred years apart and had never even met.

"Why are you jealous again?" The more Lanxiu thought about it, the more amusing Fu Han’s reaction seemed. He pulled him over by the shoulder, leaning against his pillow edge. "They say a daughter is her father’s little sweetheart from a past life. You’re acting just like that. Why are you always jealous?"

Seeing Fu Han pretending to sleep with his eyes closed, Lanxiu blew on the crown of his head. "Still pretending to sleep, little sweetheart?"

Annoyed by the harassment, Fu Han pushed Lanxiu away and took his pillow. "I’m your damn uncle! Shut it and go to sleep!"

The next day at the lab, Fu Han directly used the method Lanxiu had shown him the night before to reorganize the experiment plan. Wells, passing by and seeing him scribbling and sketching on paper, snorted contemptuously. "Could it be that Noah City is this backward? Don’t they know how to use electronic devices?"

Handwriting on paper? That’ll take forever.

Although Wells was prepared to shift the blame to Fu Han if they couldn’t get results by the end of the month, seeing his slacking off still pissed him off enough to nitpick.

Fu Han ignored him entirely.

Despite spending days in the lab, Fu Han’s relationships with the other staff hadn’t progressed. It wasn’t that he was being rude, but he was simply too busy. Even meals were rushed—he’d take a bite while staring at the running instruments, shoveling food in without tasting it.

So when others spoke to him, he never said more than three words back. Usually, it was just "Mm," "Okay," or "Talk later." Then the other person would wait until after work without ever getting a chance to say anything.

The person he communicated with most was Wells, but Fu Han ignored him. That didn’t stop Wells from constantly picking on him, though. His daily task was to watch Fu Han do experiments and criticize whatever he did wrong. As for his own work? He had completely handed it over to Fu Han.

Bullying? No way. Back when he was in school following a mentor, wasn’t it the same? He did the teacher’s work and his own too. Now it was just a role reversal. So Wells had zero guilt about it.

With only three days left until the results were due, he couldn’t wait to see what Fu Han would say.

As Fu Han integrated the final data and watched the graphs take shape on the calculator step by step, he felt the same thrill as seeing his own kid come into the world. Everything matched the predictions perfectly, even better than he’d hoped.

The senior researcher who saw the report couldn’t help but feel embarrassed. A research report of this level was good enough for interstellar-level competitions. Wells spent two months getting nowhere on the experiment, but Fu Han completed it in just fifteen days, and then some extra.

Now even he had to admit that Commander Lanxiu giving Fu Han the last spot in the lab was totally the right call.

That afternoon, Lanxiu also watched the final graphs Fu Han had created on his optical brain. From data analysis to structural models, everything was impeccable. Even the color distribution and transitions in the graphs were perfectly done. Lanxiu was planning to offer some pointers the night before, but now he realized he’d been worrying for nothing.

Standing behind and listening, Wells’s face went from smug to pale. How could this be? An experiment he couldn’t complete in two months was finished in just fifteen days by a Bluestar kid who hadn’t even finished high school? And it was flawless.

Yes, he had been scrutinizing every detail of Fu Han’s report, hoping to find even one error or deviation. But there was nothing. The entire report was error-free.

He, the top graduate of the Imperial Academy, had lost to a high school kid from Bluestar—and he’d lost by a mile.

After Fu Han finished explaining the entire experiment, he suddenly turned his gaze to Wells, making Wells feel a sting of guilt. But with so many people watching, he couldn’t look too uncomfortable, so he forced a smile to blend in with the mood.

Then Fu Han said, "I want to thank Senior Wells for the successful completion of this experiment. Thanks to his eager supervision, I was able to finish it within fifteen days."

With that, he walked from the podium to Wells, looked him in the eye, and smiled. "So, I’m very grateful to you, Senior Wells."

Wells was so embarrassed he wanted to sink into the floor. Everyone in the lab knew that Fu Han had done all the work on this experiment. Wells had contributed nothing but snide remarks. Now he was being thanked in front of Commander Lanxiu?

Watching the cunning gleam in Fu Han's eyes, Wells had no idea what this Bluestar was thinking anymore.

Was he using the opportunity to mock him, or was he trying to show goodwill?

Confused, Wells could only force a dry smile and extend his hand, but before his fingertips could even touch Fu Han, another hand gripped his hand. His fingers hurt, and looking up to see Lanxiu's stern face, Wells's legs started trembling.

Lanxiu smiled faintly and said, "Should I praise the fact that the student surpasses the teacher? It's good for the younger generation to work hard, but the older generation can't be washed up on the beach too soon. Society is advancing rapidly now, and competition is fierce in every field; if you don't move forward, you fall behind. It's fine if young folks like you push us old-timers out, but it's not a good sign if you get eliminated before you've even properly started."

With that, Lanxiu slowly released his grip on Wells's hand, giving Wells a look that said "figure it out yourself."

That evening after work, the research team suggested going out for a group dinner. Fu Han hadn't been formally welcomed to the lab yet, so this was a good opportunity to bond over a meal and also apologize to Fu Han for the earlier incident.

Fu Han initially wanted to decline, but seeing everyone's sincere attitude—even Wells, awkwardly pushed forward by the senior researcher, came to invite him—Fu Han felt it would be rude to refuse their goodwill. In the end, he agreed.

Before eating, he sent Lanxiu a message via lightbrain, saying he'd be home late. He expected a reminder not to stay out too late, along with a lot of useless nagging. Instead, after a long pause, the lightbrain replied with six words: "Don't come back too early."

Fu Han was puzzled?

Although it seemed meant to encourage him to have fun, why did Fu Han feel so annoyed? "Don't come back too early"—did that mean he could stay out all night?

Fu Han snorted, put his lightbrain away, and started eating. The lab members tried to get him to have a drink, but Fu Han said he was a minor. He didn't mind, but Commander Lanxiu wouldn't let him.

At those words, the glasses were quickly withdrawn. No matter the situation, mentioning Lanxiu always worked best.

Since the guest of honor wasn't drinking, the others lost interest too, so they just picked up their chopsticks and dug into the food. They had expected the party to go on until midnight, but by 8 p.m., everyone was full, lounging on the sofas with full bellies, lazily scrolling through their lightbrains.

Fu Han started to feel restless. "Since everyone's done eating, let's call it a night. I'll pay the bill."

Several colleagues nearby immediately objected, "No way, Little Fu! This meal is for you—how can we let you pay?"

Besides, letting the commander’s family member treat them to dinner? Were they crazy?

Several people rushed to pay, crowding around Fu Han and trapping him, making him break out in a sweat.

Even if he wasn't paying, couldn't they at least let him get out? Paying a bill was turning into a brawl—was that really necessary?

Fu Han was eager to get home early, so he extended his arms and pushed them all aside. "Let me handle it this time. We can take turns at future gatherings."

Seeing him already at the front desk with his lightbrain, the others had no choice but to agree.

Leaving the restaurant and boarding the hovercar home, Fu Han felt his clothes smelled strongly of smoke, which he found unpleasant. That was another reason he had wanted to leave early. Once home, he planned to shower and change.

But when he got home, he sensed something was wrong. He rang the doorbell three times before Eliza answered, and she looked surprised to see him.

"You... you're back from the dinner? Already done so early?"

Fu Han hummed in acknowledgment and tried to enter, but Eliza's body was blocking the doorway, deliberately blocking his view. Fu Han immediately sensed something suspicious.

Standing on tiptoes to look past Eliza, he saw the living room brightly lit, with three or four special agents in black uniforms seated inside, along with a Bluestar woman in a purple dress. No, not a woman—the leg bones visible beneath the skirt were too long, and the shoulders were broad; it was likely a man with a small frame.

Crossdressing? A transvestite?

After a brief moment of confusion, Fu Han quickly realized: the only way a Bluestar could appear in White Brilliance City was if they were, like him, a breeder.

Why had these people brought another breeder to Lanxiu's home? Was one not enough, so they sent another? That seemed impossible. After the incident with Teacher Qi, the police had stated that no one could have two breeders simultaneously.

Eliza, pushed aside by Fu Han, didn't react in time. She stumbled up from the floor, but couldn't catch up. "Lord Lanxiu asked you to go upstairs first! Don't—don't!"

Seeing Fu Han walk past the sofa and stand directly in front of that breeder, Eliza was on the verge of tears, certain that Lord Lanxiu would peel off her synthetic skin later.

Fu Han looked at the breeder on the sofa—just as he'd thought, a male.

His features were feminine, his skin well-maintained, and even the Adam's apple on his neck was hidden by a two-finger-wide choker. He wore light makeup, and aside from the details that were hard to disguise, he looked just like a Bluestar female.

He appeared timid as he faced Fu Han, quickly lowering his head. The fingers resting on his skirt tightened instantly.

Bruises were clearly visible on his wrists.

Lanxiu hadn't expected Fu Han home at this hour. He glanced at Eliza, who was clutching her face and shaking her head frantically, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He wondered why he'd ever brought that idiot robot home.

Lanxiu said, "Fu Han, go upstairs first."

Fu Han shifted his gaze from the breeder's face to Lanxiu, then plopped down on the other side of Lanxiu. "What can't be said in front of me? I don't have any say anyway, so just treat me like decoration."

The black-clad agents around them, upon seeing Fu Han appear, all showed greedy looks. The legendary breeder with a breeding coefficient of 9999—truly extraordinary.

Based on past experience, the higher the breeding coefficient, the greater the probability of embryo implantation, and the offspring's indicators would be excellent—a genius among geniuses.

But such a rare breeder had been assigned to Lanxiu by the Federation; by the time they learned of it, it was already too late.

Lecherous looks swept over Fu Han. Lanxiu's fingers tapping on his leg grew faster and faster. If Gray had been there, he would have recognized this as a prelude to an outburst.

"Who sent you to talk about this?" Lanxiu didn't believe these lackeys would dare cause trouble in his home without backing.

The lead black-clad agent, upon hearing Lanxiu's question, reluctantly tore his gaze away from Fu Han. "Of course, it's by His Highness the Grand Prince's will. As a token of sincerity, he specially had us bring his breeder to exchange with you. After all, eating the same thing every day gets tiresome after a while."

He wore a smug, self-satisfied smile, a very lecherous one.

If the Grand Prince hadn't already had a breeder, Fu Han would have been assigned to him first. But Lanxiu had snatched the opportunity, gaining such a huge advantage.

Yesterday, they had schemed with the Grand Prince to use his breeder for a temporary swap—though when "temporary" would end was anyone's call. They didn't believe Lanxiu would go so far as to sever ties over a breeder.

Just as they were secretly gloating, the sofa beneath them suddenly split in half without warning. Everyone fell backward onto the broken upholstery. No one saw what had happened; by the time they recovered, a sharp pain shot through their backs, as if hit by a heavy blunt object.

Lanxiu folded his hands and looked at the crawling men, his expression intimidating. "Exchange? What do you take them for—objects? Livestock? The Grand Prince doesn't treat people like people because he himself isn't human. But I am. If I hear those words again, it won't just be the sofa that shatters."

The black-clad agents scrambled to help each other up. The leader pointed at Lanxiu in disbelief. "You dare insult even the Grand Prince!"

Lanxiu was amused by his shocked expression. "The royal family has been a puppet of the Federation for decades. Don't think that a royal title makes you untouchable. Go back and tell Osha: if he wants to exchange Lanxiu's breeder, he can bring me his head."

"You!"

Seeing Lanxiu's arrogant demeanor, they were at a loss for words. They had thought invoking the Grand Prince would intimidate him, but Lanxiu was so audacious as to insult the royal family.

Though it was true the royal family's power was hollow, no one dared to say it openly. Usually, the royal family could get whatever they wanted by showing a little respect.

Lanxiu was the first to slap them directly in the face.

Their scheme had failed. The leader waved for the breeder on the sofa to come over. "Let's go! Or are you really planning to stay here?"

The breeder in the purple dress stole a glance at Lanxiu, but Lanxiu didn't look at him—Fu Han did. Their eyes met, both filled with complex emotions.

Fu Han saw the bruises on the other's body and knew the Grand Prince must be a bad person. But in this situation, Lanxiu could barely protect him; besides, the breeder originally belonged to the Grand Prince, and Lanxiu had no reason to keep him.

He knew that to save him, he would have to offer himself in exchange. Fu Han wasn't that selfless or noble.

Watching the breeder, stumbling in ill-fitting high heels, being dragged away by the men, Fu Han lowered his gaze. He dared not watch as a fellow Starlander was treated like livestock while he remained indifferent.