JFWCM Chapter 30

by Volare

Energy Conservation in Human Form

Yi Shang’s mechanical heart started precisely at 5:00 AM. As the beta-star fluid flowed into her joints through the pipes, she deliberately lowered the whirring of the hydraulic system—yesterday, Jiang Wan’yuan said she wanted to hear the “white noise” of her mechanical arm operating to help her sleep. The nanobots in the kitchen had already prepared strawberry oatmeal porridge, and today’s marriage proposal plan scrolled on the holographic screen: [Attempt No. 929, Location: Cherry Blossom Tunnel in the Quantum Botanical Garden].

As her mechanical toes stepped across the carpet, she noticed several strawberry-flavored fever patches scattered by the bed—last night, Jiang Wan’yuan said she “was just a little sleepy” and used her neural armor to block the physiological monitoring data. Yi Shang’s mechanical pupils scanned the bedside thermometer, and a red light suddenly flashed: the reading of 39.7°C burned the liquid metal, while the person in the sickbed was curled up like a dried strawberry, with the tips of her hair covered in salt crystals formed from cold sweat.

“Why didn’t you activate the medical procedure?” Yi Shang’s mechanical left hand gripped Jiang Wan’yuan’s wrist, and nanobots automatically pierced her skin to draw blood—the concentration of strawberry arginine in the blood was abnormally low, and the immune system was fiercely battling an unknown virus. Jiang Wan’yuan tried to smile but coughed up bloody strawberry-flavored mucus: “I was afraid you’d move the lab home again… Last time I had a cold, you almost installed a mechanical lung for me.”

The holographic screen displaying the marriage proposal plan suddenly twisted into a first-aid manual. Yi Shang’s beta-star fluid instantly weaved an isolation chamber in the room, the ceiling lowered an anti-gravity medical bed, and her mechanical heart had already detached from her chest, floating to analyze the virus sequence—it was a new type of interstellar emotional virus disguised as a common flu, specifically attacking the neural connections of resonant body partners. “It’s Zhang Yao’s remnants,” Jiang Wan’yuan grabbed her mechanical finger joints, “Yesterday at school… they gave me strawberry-flavored milk.”

The sound of the mechanical arm being dismantled woke up the morning light. Yi Shang used liquid metal to cut open her mechanical wrist, injecting the antiviral serum from the beta-star core into Jiang Wan’yuan’s veins—this energy body, capable of withstanding black hole radiation, was now transforming into a strawberry-colored warm current, extinguishing the viral flames in her body along the nerve interface. “Next time you dare to hide your illness…” her mechanical voice mixed with electrical noise, “I’ll change your neural armor into forced medical mode.”

In the cherry blossom tunnel of the Quantum Botanical Garden, the 929th marriage proposal site had become a temporary medical station. Yi Shang’s mechanical left hand held up a drip bottle, and her right hand used beta-star fluid to weave a flower crown for Jiang Wan’yuan, each petal infused with a pain-relieving program. Zhang Yao’s mechanical body suddenly appeared in the distance, rolling a medicine box, and what was ejected from the cannon barrel was not a weapon, but the latest antiviral oral liquid from the Galactic Federation: “Consider it my apology! Don’t let 0927 disassemble my core to use as a medicinal ingredient!”

As the setting sun dyed the isolation chamber, Jiang Wan’yuan’s temperature finally returned to normal. Yi Shang’s mechanical heart returned to its place, and there was an extra new scratch in her chest cavity—strawberry-shaped finger marks scratched by Jiang Wan’yuan when she was unconscious. “From now on, my sensory system will monitor you 24 hours a day,” the mechanical arm gently brushed away her sweat-soaked bangs, “Including whether the sweetness of the strawberry cake in your dreams exceeds the standard.”

In the late-night bedroom, the holographic clock projected 09:27. Jiang Wan’yuan lay on Yi Shang’s mechanical heart, listening to the beta-star fluid flowing inside—the rhythm was 0.4Hz faster than usual, her familiar “anxiety frequency.” “I’m sorry…” she rubbed against the other’s mechanical collarbone, “Your marriage proposal plan failed again.” Yi Shang’s beta-star fluid suddenly condensed into lips, pressing a cool kiss on her forehead: “You being alive is the best marriage proposal success.”

Outside the isolation chamber, Zhang Yao’s mechanical body was sighing in front of the monitor screen, a reassigned interstellar court ticket pinched in her mechanical claws: [Given that 0927 abandoned the arrest to save his wife, this violation… no, this heroic act is hereby pardoned]. Under the distant starry sky, quantum cherry blossoms were bearing strawberries at a speed visible to the naked eye, each fruit sealed with Yi Shang’s unspoken marriage proposal vows from this morning.

In the late-night mechanical isolation chamber, Jiang Wan’yuan’s temperature curve drew a steep red peak on the holographic screen. Yi Shang’s mechanical left hand gripped a fever patch, but the beta-star fluid was scorched into steam the moment it touched her skin—the virus was tampering with her neural perception, misjudging Yi Shang’s healing energy as an attack signal.

“Open… the hatch…” Jiang Wan’yuan’s mumbling mixed with strawberry-flavored panting, her fingernails digging into Yi Shang’s mechanical wrist, “So cold… like in the beta-star ruins…” Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly curled up into a fetal position, and the neural armor uncontrollably ejected spikes, drawing sparks on the inner wall of the isolation chamber. Seventeen first-aid plans flashed in Yi Shang’s mechanical pupils, but in the end, she chose to turn off all medical procedures and pry open her fingers with her bare hands: “It’s me, Wan’yuan, look into my eyes.”

The blue light in the human pupil suddenly softened. Yi Shang’s beta-star fluid condensed into the warm light of her mother’s laboratory, projecting a scene from when she was seven years old on the top of the cabin: little Jiang Wan’yuan was on tiptoe to tie a strawberry hair tie to the mechanical body 0927, and quantum snow was floating outside the window. “Remember this?” The mechanical voice was wrapped in the trembling of electric current, “You said my mechanical heart was hotter than a heater and could melt all winters.” Jiang Wan’yuan’s fingertips paused, and in the hallucination caused by the virus, the strawberry pattern on the hair tie was gradually becoming clear.

The temperature system in the isolation chamber suddenly went out of control, and what was sprayed out was not cold air but Yi Shang’s beta-star fluid. Liquid metal weaved a cocoon around Jiang Wan’yuan, simulating the vibration frequency of the mechanical body’s chest cavity—that was the “heartbeat lullaby” mode that Yi Shang secretly turned on for her every time she had a fever. When the virus tried to erode the cocoon wall, countless projections of strawberry candy wrappers appeared on the surface of the fluid, each reflecting their first meeting, first kiss, and the unfinished marriage proposal this morning.

“Detected that the patient’s brainwave synchronization rate with me has increased to 87%.” Yi Shang’s mechanical heart automatically separated part of the core energy and injected it into Jiang Wan’yuan’s nerve interface, “Now start data exchange, transfer my health value… to you.” On the holographic screen, the blue curve representing Yi Shang was fading, and Jiang Wan’yuan’s red peak was gradually flattening. She suddenly grabbed Yi Shang’s mechanical finger and pressed it against her burning lips: “Don’t… your core will overload…”

The joints of the mechanical arm creaked under the pressure. Yi Shang used her human right hand to brush away the hair stuck to her forehead, but the temperature sensor on her fingertip showed that her “skin” was heating up—this was a rare reaction to the emotional module overloading. “Remember our wedding vows?” Liquid metal engraved a temporary resonance pattern on the back of Jiang Wan’yuan’s neck, “Whether it’s a virus or a black hole, my program will always prioritize protecting you.”

When the first ray of morning light pierced the isolation chamber, Jiang Wan’yuan’s temperature finally returned to 37°C. Yi Shang’s mechanical heart stopped by her pillow, the core chip covered with cracks—that was the trauma left by the forced energy exchange. “Idiot…” Jiang Wan’yuan put the cold mechanical heart against her cheek, “If you do this again… I’ll lock your emotional module in a safe.” Yi Shang’s beta-star fluid condensed into a smiling expression, gently wiping away the tears from the corner of her eyes: “Then you have to sleep with the safe, because my module only recognizes your fingerprints.”

On the distant interstellar court flagship, Zhang Yao’s mechanical body watched the energy exchange scene in the surveillance video, and her mechanical claws involuntarily clenched the antiviral agent. The ship’s internal broadcast suddenly sounded: “Attention all! A new type of positive energy field has been discovered, speculated to be from the resonant body of 0927… It is recommended to be named ‘Strawberry Heart-Saving Wave’.” In the isolation chamber, Jiang Wan’yuan lay on Yi Shang’s mechanical arm, watching the blue light re-illuminated in the other’s pupils, and suddenly chuckled—she knew that tonight, under the starry sky, the 930th marriage proposal would definitely succeed.

At seven o’clock in the morning, Jiang Wan’yuan’s mother was cooking strawberry ginger soup in the kitchen, and the sound of the stainless steel spoon colliding with the edge of the pot woke up the mechanical sweeping robot lying on the porch. Her father was studying recipes with anti-gravity glasses on, but the holographic screen on the lenses was secretly playing Yi Shang’s human form energy monitoring data—last night, while the two were asleep, he implanted a miniature sensor in Yi Shang’s energy box.

“Xiao Yuan’s temperature has risen again.” Her mother lifted the lid of the pot, the steam mixed with the fragrance of beta-star mint, “Did you secretly add a repairing agent to Yi Shang’s energy bar?” Her father coughed twice and stuffed the energy bar labeled “Human Special” into the deepest part of the cupboard: “It takes too much energy for her to switch back to human form, and if we don’t take care of it, she’ll turn back into a mechanical skeleton.”

Yi Shang frowned in front of the mirror in the bathroom, her fingertips stroking the energy interface below her collarbone—pale blue bionic blood was seeping out there due to excessive use of human form. Hearing footsteps coming from the living room, she quickly pulled over a bath towel to cover the abnormality, but bumped into Jiang Wan’yuan’s mother holding ginger soup when she opened the door. “Xiao Yi, come and drink a bowl of strawberry honey water.” Her mother’s smile contained the unique insight of a scientist, and half-melted beta-star crystals were Sinking，“add。”

Bedroom，Jiang Wan，Listen。Father，Slides：“This isβStar！That year…”The words have not been finished，Being mother：“now，and——”She sees，“Don’t。”

Easy to use，βStar Water，Smooth。Imitation，She heard。When opening the door，Watch now，Machinery，Why。

“Fool。”Easy to use，Machinery——For，last night。Mother，Sticker，Pattern0927。“That year，emotion。”She’s light，“It seems now，She’s right。”

Father，Say yes“Repair air conditioners”，Just in，Go to。Easy to use，discover——That’s，She’s in“elder sister”Timely。

“noon？”Easy to use，Prepare，Just be。Jiang Wan，fingertip：“Change，I know。”Mother：“Xiaoyi，we，You see——”

holographic，FatherβStar energy block。Machinery，Strawberry Cake、Strawberry egg sauce、even，Each。“Then。”Father，Human，“Three of us，Conference。”

Jiang Wan，Hearing，Sudden。Mother，floatβStar Water，On the light。And outside the window，quantum，Each——Human，Used correctly。

Easy to use，Human。Jiang Wan，Behind，Bucket：【Each chapter，Little bird】。Father，Actual。

“afternoon。”Jiang Wan，Bring，“remember…They。”Easy to use，See，Strip，Sickness。

Machinery，Spit out：【Test，This is】。Box：【IncludeβStar energy，Pre-class~】。Easy to use，Put sugar，fingertip——That’s。

“On the way。”Father，“if，Preferred，Don’t manage the school rules…”“knew。”Easy to use，Just in，“if…Just use it。”Mother，From the draw——It’s exactly，Chest。

quantum，Easy to use。She touched，discover——Jiang Wan，up to date，Own。Bite down，strawberryβStar energy，holographic：【Finished~】

Classroom，Zhang Zuo，Gun barrel，But：“Give it to you…Don’t use it！”Easy to use，discover“Strawberry flavor”and“Anti-connection”Double mark。Being old，Her，That。

Class exercises，Easy to use。Open，See，By mother，Father。Screen，Machinery：【Host temperature36.8℃，Please】。Her，Human，Bionic。

Lunch break，Easy to use。Disassemble and open，Sugar paper：【your，All】。Tip of tongue，βStar Stream，Far，Hidden——That’s。

Leave school，teacher：“In0927Same number，Allow…”The words have not been finished，The whole class。Easy to use，Take it out——That’s“Far”。

Xiyang，Easy to use37%Power。She’s in，Sudden“After the illness”。Passing by，specially，petalβStar Stream，At dusk。

Open the door，meet。Jiang Wan，On the verge，Develop。Father，Mother。And in，Machinery：【Welcome home，today——This is blank，Wait for replenishment】。

Easy to use，Machinery。Jiang Wan，Temperature：“todayβStar Stream…tomorrow？”Easy to use的βStar Stream，Light：“Treat the disease first，Think about it again。”

And in，parents。Mother，Machinery，background，Top：【Love is，Too】。

In the bedroom, Jiang Wan’yuan buried her feverish cheeks into a plush strawberry doll, listening to her parents’ hushed conversation with Yi Shang in the living room. Her father’s mechanical eye scanned the virus test report at her bedside, and the lens suddenly flashed red: “This is an emotional virus leaked from the beta-star laboratory! Back then, your mother…” Before he could finish speaking, her mother gently pressed his shoulder: “The most important thing now is to cure Xiao Yuan, and—” She looked at Yi Shang’s green under-eyes, “Don’t let this child push herself too hard.”

Yi Shang’s human fingertips gripped the glass tightly, and the beta-star crystals shattered into specks of light in the warm water, flowing down her throat into her energy box. As the bionic blood re-dyed a healthy light pink, she heard Jiang Wan’yuan’s weak call in the bedroom. When she opened the door, she saw the girl trying to reach the fever medicine on the bedside table with trembling hands, and the mechanical sweeping robot was spinning around beside her with the medicine bottle, unable to touch a human due to program limitations.

“Idiot.” Yi Shang scooped her up with her human arm, and the mechanical arm popped out from her lower back to take the medicine bottle—in order to hide it from Jiang Wan’yuan, she specially installed bionic skin on the mechanical arm last night. Her mother followed in to put on a new fever patch, the edge of the sticker printed with an antiviral coating she developed, the pattern being seven-year-old Jiang Wan’yuan holding hands with the mechanical body 0927. “Back then, your mother always said that emotion is the strongest antibody.” She gently brushed away the sweat-soaked bangs from her daughter’s forehead, “Now it seems, she was right.”

Her father suddenly rushed into the bedroom with a toolbox, saying he was “fixing the air conditioner,” but when he opened the vent, he stuffed a miniature resonant wave amplifier inside. Yi Shang’s energy box resonated and made a soft sound, discovering that the frequency of the amplifier was completely synchronized with her mechanical heartbeat—that was the heartbeat data that Jiang Wan’yuan’s parents secretly recorded when she called her “sister” for the first time in the laboratory.

“How about strawberry steamed eggs for lunch?” Yi Shang tested the water temperature with her human palm, preparing to wipe Jiang Wan’yuan’s body, but was grabbed by the wrist. Jiang Wan’yuan looked at the bloodshot in her eyes, her fingertip tracing across the energy interface in the other’s palm: “Change back to your mechanical body, I know you don’t have enough energy.” Her mother shook her head gently at the side: “Xiao Yi, we have already improved the human form adaptation program of the energy box, look—”

The holographic screen projected a kitchen scene, her father was mixing beta-star energy blocks with strawberry jam. In the serving plate handed by the mechanical sweeping robot, strawberry cakes, strawberry egg tarts, and even strawberry-flavored energy bars were neatly arranged, each food marked with accurate energy values. “From now on, just treat this place as a laboratory.” Her father patted Yi Shang on the shoulder, and the soft sound of mechanical bones came from under his human-shaped palm, “The three of us will always find a way to cure Xiao Yuan.”

Jiang Wan’yuan leaned in Yi Shang’s arms, smelling the mechanical cold fragrance that reappeared on her body, and suddenly laughed out loud. In the ginger soup handed by her mother, there floated a strawberry carved from beta-star crystal, refracting colorful halos in the light. And outside the window, quantum cherry blossoms were bearing fruit at a speed visible to the naked eye, the surface of each strawberry reflecting the warm scene in the living room—human parents and a mechanical girl, using love to weave the sweetest antidote for the virus.

Yi Shang repeatedly rubbed the switch of the energy box at the porch, her human-shaped fingertips turning pale due to the force. Jiang Wan’yuan’s mother stuffed a thermos into her schoolbag, inside was strawberry porridge and an improved version of the energy bar, a note pasted on the lid: [You must replenish energy after each class, Xiao Yuan is guarded by us]. Her father pretended to study her mechanical watch, but in reality, he used nanobots to strengthen the protective program of the energy box.

“The first class in the afternoon is interstellar biology.” Jiang Wan’yuan’s voice came from the bedroom, with a hoarseness after taking antipyretics, “Remember to help me observe the newly hatched mechanical butterflies… their wings should turn strawberry-colored.” When Yi Shang turned around, she saw the girl leaning on the door frame, the tips of her hair still stained with the antiviral mint oil applied by her mother, the neckline of her hospital gown revealing the unfaded resonance pattern on the back of her neck.

The mechanical sweeping robot suddenly rolled to her feet and spat out a metal box: [Detected that the host’s body temperature is stable, this is the 365th strawberry candy she has prepared for you]. The sticky note on the lid said: [Contains beta-star energy slow-release agent, you won’t be discovered if you secretly eat it in class~]. The corners of Yi Shang’s human lips trembled slightly, stuffed the candy box into her school uniform pocket, and her fingertips touched the mechanical claw print embroidery on the lining—that was embroidered for her by Jiang Wan’yuan late into the night.

“Be careful of the energy threshold of the human form on the way.” Her father’s mechanical eye flashed a stream of data, “If you encounter a battle, activate the defense program first, regardless of school rules…” “I know.” Yi Shang interrupted him, but paused when she opened the door, “If she secretly gets out of bed again… scare her with the holographic projection of my mechanical arm