Doctor Lu Always Wants To Steal My Baby! Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Little Monster (1)

The cub wasn’t asleep? Seeing the light still on when he reached the dorm door, He Chen paused, then softened his movements before pushing the door open.

“Commander.” Hearing the door open, Deng Tie stood up. He Leyan, sitting by the coffee table, also raised his head, his large, watery eyes fixed on He Chen.

“Why aren’t you asleep yet?” He Chen asked softly, facing the cub.

It was already eleven o’clock at night, according to Blue Star time.

“Leyan said he slept too much on the spaceship and isn’t tired yet. I think his rhythm might be a bit out of sync,” Deng Tie explained.

He Chen nodded. “You go rest.”

“Yes, sir.” Deng Tie walked out, and as he passed He Chen, he winked and whispered, “He was waiting for you.”

Waiting for him? He Chen glanced at He Leyan, not daring to believe it easily.

However, after this patrol, the cub had indeed grown a little closer to him. They even slept in the same bed on the spaceship!

He Chen’s heavy heart brightened slightly, though he didn’t dare to let it brighten too much. He walked over to He Leyan, sat down by the coffee table, and asked in a low voice, “Are you drawing?”

“What are you drawing?” He Chen pulled the top sheet of paper closer, a smile unconsciously curving his lips. “Is this you?”

The drawing showed a child, but the face was furry, with two smudged, triangular wolf ears on the head, and a messy gray wolf tail behind.

“It’s not me!” He Leyan snatched the paper back. This, this was just a draft, he hadn’t finished drawing it!

And it wasn’t him; it was just, just the person he had dreamed about.

After seeing the Mysterians, he had a dream about a strange place where people spoke gibberish. Strangely, he could understand some simple phrases.

In the dream, he was still being held by “that person,” but this time was different. This time, he didn’t just dream of being carried and running, running constantly; he dreamed they stopped.

They stopped in a place full of tall trees where the light was barely visible. Then, “he” took him out of his arms and lifted him high: “Good boy, look, the lake!”

He looked down and saw a large, green “mirror.” It was there that he first clearly saw “himself”:

A little monster with fur on his face, wolf ears on his head, and a wolf tail behind him!

“Are you tired?” He Chen reached out and waved his hand in front of He Leyan, calling the cub back to reality.

“Go to sleep. Staying up late will stop you from growing tall, and you’ll stay this short forever. Look at me, I grew tall because I slept a lot.”

Liar.

He Leyan didn’t believe him, but after glancing at his height, he eventually stood up.

He Chen chuckled inwardly and quickly went ahead to make his bed.

“I can do it myself,” He Leyan said.

“I know. You’re the most amazing kid in the world; you can do everything,” He Chen replied.

Why would he say that? He Leyan’s small face turned shyly red.

He hesitated for a moment, looking at He Chen’s back, and finally asked, “Did you get checked?”

“I did.” He Chen paused his movements and looked at the little person. Meeting those concerned big eyes, his lonely heart suddenly felt as if it had been salvaged from the darkness.

“The doctor said Dad is fine, just a mental energy shock. All I need is more rest. You don’t need to worry,” He Chen explained seriously.

He Leyan nodded steadily. “Then you should go rest quickly.”

“Yes, sir!” He Chen gave a casual salute. “I’ll sleep after you do.”

He Leyan had no choice but to set an example and climb into bed first.

Once in bed, he watched He Chen tidy up the drawings on the coffee table, placing the stack of papers on his bedside table. He couldn’t help but ask again, “Why do you think… that was me?”

He looked at the little wolf cub on the drawing paper.

“So cute, of course it’s you,” He Chen answered without thinking.

“It’s not cute, it’s a little monster,” He Leyan whispered.

“Hmm, the son of the ‘Big Monster,’ the little monster,” He Chen said, daring to ruffle He Leyan’s head. He quickly turned off the light, his cheerful voice hidden in the darkness. “Good night, little monster.”

He knows? He called him the “Big Monster”…

He Leyan gripped the corner of the blanket, his small body stiff. Only after the Big Monster’s footsteps faded did he slowly relax.

Lying relaxed on the soft bed, he thought, as usual, of his Dads far away across the stars, reciting their names and their faces. This way, he could feel that they were still by his side.

But this night, he accidentally got distracted thinking about the Big Monster for a while, and then accidentally got distracted thinking about the majestic Big Wolf for a moment. Unconsciously, he closed his eyes…

Soon, he drifted back into his dream.

This time, it was still in the woods, but it was morning.

He was lying in a cave—he vaguely felt it was a cave. “That person” was leaning over him, applying something sticky to his body, muttering as he did so: “With this, they won’t be able to spot us again…”

He Leyan felt a strong itch on his face and neck. He fussed and resisted, instinctively trying to scratch, but his small hands were held down. “Be good, just bear with it. Look, we look the same, grandpa and grandson.”

He Leyan subconsciously looked over, and the dream ended.

But a pair of deep, clear eyes were deeply imprinted on his heart.

*

When He Chen opened his eyes in the morning, he was startled to see the little person standing by his bed. “You’re awake?”

He Leyan nodded and took a step back.

He was startled too. Just as he got close, the Big Monster suddenly opened his eyes. They were cold and icy, unlike how the Big Monster usually looked at him.

But now they were the same again. And the same as in the dream.

He Leyan looked at He Chen’s eyes several times until He Chen rolled over and sat up. “Why so early? Did you have a nightmare?”

He Leyan shook his head: He had a dream, but not a nightmare.

He Chen felt relieved.

He had asked the cub’s “Dad,” who said that to tell if Leyan was frightened, he should watch out for nightmares. He had guarded He Leyan’s bedside for half the night and only went back to his own bed when he saw the cub sleeping soundly.

“Then are you awake because you’re hungry?” He Chen asked while getting out of bed and standing up. He Leyan’s gaze followed He Chen’s movements and paused when he saw He Chen’s arm.

The Big Monster was always neatly dressed and wore gloves in front of him. This was the first time He Leyan had seen him in a T-shirt, and the first time he had seen his half-metal arm.

So it wasn’t just his hand like that? He Leyan bit his lip.

Noticing the cub’s gaze, He Chen reacted quickly, immediately pulling on a shirt to hide his arm, and then reaching for the gloves on the bedside table.

“Don’t wear that!” He Leyan suddenly said.

He Chen paused and looked back at him.

“I, I’m not scared at all!” He Leyan glanced at He Chen’s hand, biting his lip. “You, you’re clumsy when you wear that.”

“I think so too!” He Chen paused for a moment, then said very sincerely and loudly.

“Now I’m much more flexible! Come on, I’ll make you some milk!” He turned around excitedly.

But He Leyan shook his head steadily. “I already drank it.”

“You drank it? Who made it for you?” He Chen stopped moving.

“Myself,” He Leyan said calmly.

“You did it yourself? You’re so amazing.” He Chen subconsciously started the flattery mode, but then he stopped, remembering that making milk required careful water temperature control, or it would affect the efficacy. “Next time, Dad will make it for you.”

“No need,” He Leyan said with a hint of disdain. “Yours is too sweet.”

“Too sweet? I made it according to the ratio,” He Chen blinked innocently.

He really did follow the ratio; he just added a tiny bit more on the tip of the spoon each time, worried the cub wouldn’t be full.

He could taste that little bit extra on the spoon tip?

He Leyan could indeed taste it. “Anyway, the one you make is different from the one Dad makes.”

…Your Dad’s farts probably smell like roses. He Chen thought sourly.

“I’ll make it myself from now on. Dad already taught me how!” He Leyan formally announced.

Then, he put on a serious little face and said sternly, “Dad said that mental energy shock must be taken seriously. You need regular rest, early to bed and early to rise, a light diet, and appropriate exercise. You shouldn’t get anxious or angry.”

I’m pretty angry right now…

“Don’t tell your Dad everything. Dad knows how to take care of himself; your Dad doesn’t need to worry.”

“Dad is very professional,” He Leyan frowned slightly.

“Yes, professional. When we return to Star Capital, I’ll ask him for a diagnosis and see what kind of diagnosis he can come up with.”

His words sounded strange, but He Leyan didn’t know exactly why, so he just tilted his head. “Then you need to book an appointment in advance.”

…He Chen stared at the cub worriedly: Good boy, you’ve been thoroughly misled.

He Leyan didn’t understand his look. Feeling a vibration on his wrist, he raised his terminal. “Dad wants to talk to you.”

Mm. He Chen cleared his throat and answered the call calmly and composedly. “Hello, Doctor Lu.”

“Commander He.” A voice came from the other end of the line, sounding even more composed and calm than his own. “I’m calling to inform you that Leyan needs to redo one of his physical examinations as soon as possible.”

“Physical examination?” He Chen’s expression turned serious. “What’s wrong? Is there a problem?”

“No problem, don’t worry. The sampling machine malfunctioned, and the last check was invalid. It needs to be redone.”

“Oh.” He Chen relaxed slightly. “When should it be done?”

“The sooner the better. This test targets a virus that only spreads among young children. It has a long incubation period and is very dangerous. If not detected promptly, the consequences could be severe.”

Hearing this, He Chen tensed up again. “Then your suggestion is—”

“My suggestions are: one, you bring Leyan back to Star Capital to redo the check as soon as possible; two, the Medical Academy sends someone to the Hanhe Base for sampling.”

As the “Doctor Lu” on the other end spoke, his fingertip rested on a medical report, but it wasn’t a check for a childhood virus. It was a mental energy examination report, signed by Shao Ying at Hanhe Base, patient: He Chen.

He Chen was initially more inclined toward the second option suggested by “Doctor Lu.” However, just before speaking, he looked at He Leyan, remembering how the cub constantly mentioned “Dad” and “Wen Dad,” and changed his mind:

“I’ll take Leyan back. I was planning to take leave soon anyway; I’ll just move the time up.”

“Alright, I’ll see you in Star Capital then.”

“Doctor Lu” spoke very decisively, never dragging things out.

He Chen appreciated this quality and nodded cooperatively. “Goodbye.”

“Wait!” Seeing them about to hang up after just a few words, He Leyan urgently spoke up. “Dad, Papa needs you to check him too!”

“Oh?” On the other end, Lu Changqing paused. “Alright.”

Alright, what alright? He actually had the nerve to agree.

“Doctor Lu, the child doesn’t know what he’s saying; he’s just playing.”

“I’m not playing!” He Leyan shouted, but He Chen had already hung up the phone.

He Leyan was furious, his small chest heaving. Dad’s appointments are hard to get!

He Chen, however, was oblivious and amused. “Leyan, what did you just call me?”

What? When did he call him anything? He Leyan was stunned.

“Who did you say needed your Dad to check him just now?” He Chen reminded him with a smile.

He Leyan’s face flushed. “I didn’t say anything!”

He Chen laughed even more heartily, the shadows in his eyes washing away.

He Leyan almost wanted to run away, but after taking two steps with his short legs, he turned back—he almost forgot the most important thing:

“Did I see you when I was little?”