Doctor Lu Always Wants To Steal My Baby! Chapter 56
byChapter 56 Backing
“Le Yan gave it to you?” Lu Changqing asked as he boarded the shuttle, glancing at He Chen, who was holding a cartoon-packaged jelly strip and rolling it around in his hands.
“Mhm,” He Chen replied, tucking the jelly strip into his pocket.
“Did you talk to Le Yan?”
“Yes, I told him I was going back to the base for a couple of days to handle some things.”
“Two days?”
“If things go smoothly, two days should be enough,” He Chen said. “First, take over Shangyun Star, then use the excuse of avoiding instability and ensuring a swift handover to pressure He Hongsheng through the military, making him complete the transfer within a time limit.”
“I’ve already pulled some strings with the military. I have to thank Shixiong for pointing me in the right direction.”
“It’s nothing. But haven’t you considered that He Hongsheng might try the same trick on Xiayun Star?”
“If he does, so be it. I don’t mind quelling another riot.” He Chen’s tone was calm, but his eyes held a sharp edge, like a sword waiting to be drawn.
“How many people did you bring? That is still his home base, after all,” Lu Changqing asked.
“I have it covered,” He Chen replied. “If he wants to fake a riot, he can’t leave any evidence. If he stops even pretending, I’m prepared for that too.”
He Chen didn’t elaborate on his preparations. Lu Changqing sensed he was holding back but didn’t press him.
He Chen then signaled for a subordinate to approach: “This is Qi Bo. During our time on Shangyun Star, he will lead the team responsible for Shixiong’s safety.”
“Captain Qi.” Lu Changqing politely returned the salute before looking at He Chen. “You don’t need to worry about me.”
He Chen motioned for Qi Bo to leave before answering Lu Changqing: “I know Shixiong can protect himself, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Since they were heading into a confrontation, anything could happen if the situation became chaotic. Lu Changqing was taking this trip to help him, so He Chen was determined to ensure his safety.
“Then thank you, General He,” Lu Changqing said softly, fixing his gaze on him.
He Chen, who had been serious and formal, felt his face inexplicably warm up: “I’m talking to you about serious business.”
Lu Changqing seemed surprised: “I didn’t think you were talking about anything else.”
…Forget it, he couldn’t win this argument. He Chen saw the person being led down the corridor and immediately changed the subject: “President Fan, please sit here.”
“General He, Dean Lu,” Fan Maode greeted them hurriedly.
“I apologize for making you travel through the night, President Fan,” Lu Changqing said.
To conceal their movements and catch the Pingshan Base off guard, He Chen scheduled the trip for the night the groundbreaking ceremony ended, mixing the shuttles with the departing guests’ fleet.
“Not at all. It is I who inconvenienced Dean Lu,” Fan Maode said tactfully.
He knew this group might have another agenda, but officially, Lu Changqing was traveling to treat his family member.
The treatment was genuine; the patient was Fan Maode’s younger brother, who had severe mental strength issues that no one else could resolve. Fan Maode had only this one close relative left. Being able to secure Lu Changqing’s treatment made him immensely grateful, and he was willing to cooperate with anything.
“And thank you, General He, for personally escorting us.” After thanking Lu Changqing, Fan Maode thanked He Chen, covering all bases and leaving no one out.
“You’re welcome, President Fan,” He Chen said. “I actually have something I’d like to ask you about. I heard some rumors at the banquet regarding the base split on Shangyun Star. Since you are from Shangyun Star, could you tell me what you know in detail?”
Rumors? Lu Changqing glanced at He Chen. He had just heard some related news himself and hadn’t had time to discuss it with He Chen.
“General He has heard about it too. I was just about to report the situation to you,” Fan Maode said cautiously and respectfully.
Although Shangyun Star was an administrative planet with its own administrative body, the base that controlled military power always held authority no less than that body. Fan Maode would be living under He Chen’s jurisdiction in the future, so he was exceptionally respectful.
During their brief contact at the banquet, this young Major General appeared steady, cold, and inscrutable. Fan Maode hadn’t managed to gauge him, so he was extra careful.
“Actually, it’s not just Shangyun Star. A rumor is circulating on both Shangyun and Xiayun Stars, saying that—” The rumor wasn’t good, and Fan Maode hesitated slightly.
“Please speak freely, President Fan,” He Chen said calmly.
“Yes. The rumor says that after the Pingshan Base splits, the existing corporate cooperation and commodity circulation between these administrative planets within the base will be interrupted, and tax policies will also be adjusted. For example, Shangyun Star previously only needed to cover one-sixth to one-fifth of the Pingshan Base’s operating funds. After merging into Hanhe, because Hanhe’s original two planets have smaller economies, Shangyun would need to cover nearly half of the Hanhe Base’s operating funds.”
“It’s just speculation by some idle people,” Fan Maode said, glancing at He Chen. Seeing that his expression remained calm, he continued, “But because of this, there is unrest on Shangyun Star, and some discordant voices are not optimistic about the Hanhe Base moving into the planet.”
“Thank you for being straightforward, President Fan.” After listening, He Chen looked at Fan Maode, his tone of gratitude genuine, which relieved Fan Maode.
It seemed telling the truth was the right choice.
Successful businessmen are often good at reading people. While he hadn’t discerned much at the banquet, Fan Maode noticed something on the shuttle: He Chen was not two-faced or narrow-minded. Otherwise, his subordinates would not exchange glances with him so openly, their respect far outweighing their fear.
“Rumors stop with the wise. However, to ensure a smooth transition after the handover, these issues are unavoidable. You must have a plan, right?” Lu Changqing asked He Chen, seemingly interested, after hearing Fan Maode’s words.
“Ah, if the two of you need to discuss official business, should I excuse myself?” Fan Maode stood up. Although he was curious, he knew some things he wasn’t qualified to hear.
“No need. I have some ideas and would like to consult with you, President Fan.” He Chen motioned for him to sit down, looking at him and speaking unhurriedly. “One thing you, President Fan, or rather, most people on Shangyun Star, might not have considered is that the Hanhe Base doesn’t have so many wealthy idlers to support, so the operating funds are far lower than you imagine.”
“Ah, yes,” Fan Maode said, feigning enlightenment.
But he was muttering internally: Is he saying this because he genuinely intends for Shangyun Star to bear half the burden?
“However, others might not believe me if I just explain it this way,” He Chen continued, observing Fan Maode’s reaction. “So, the most sincere, simple, and stable solution is for me to promise to maintain your current tax rate throughout my tenure. What do you think, President Fan?”
“Oh?” Fan Maode’s spirits lifted. “That would certainly be stable. The General’s foresight is profound. With this assurance, we can all rest easy.”
“As for inter-stellar corporate cooperation and commodity circulation,” He Chen continued slowly, “I heard that the Pingshan Base used to charge you an additional navigation tax to ensure smooth routes and guarantee the safety of your goods?”
“That is correct,” Fan Maode replied.
Goods circulating between stars are subject to customs duties. This navigation tax was essentially a special fee paid to the base. The tax rate varied by route, and it increased whenever space pirates caused trouble.
“I plan to abolish this tax,” He Chen said.
“Abolish it?” Fan Maode was stunned.
The navigation tax was second only to the operating funds as a significant tax paid to the military bases. Would anyone really give up this piece of fat?
“President Fan, are you unwilling?” He Chen asked.
“No! Of course, I am willing,” Fan Maode quickly replied. “It’s just that—it’s just that I was momentarily stuck in old ways and didn’t think of it.”
In truth, when enterprises pay operating funds to their affiliated base, the base is inherently obligated to provide protection. “Operating funds” are a collective tax. However, for a long time, the major military bases have been using various pretexts to levy additional taxes, which has become common practice.
Fan Maode was so accustomed to being exploited that he hadn’t considered that a tax could be abolished.
“If the General truly exempts the navigation tax, we will have a significant cost advantage. Goods from Shangyun and Xiayun Stars can greatly expand their circulation range, no longer confined to the original Pingshan internal market!”
Fan Maode stood up and bowed to He Chen: “The General is benevolent and cares for the people like his own children.”
Regardless of whether He Chen genuinely cared for the people, this high praise had to be offered first.
Also, if the navigation tax was truly abolished, their business strategies would need adjustment. Thinking of this, Fan Maode was eager to return quickly and hold a small-scale shareholder meeting. He also needed to gather close friends to discuss how to jointly expand outward.
“Do you think it’s feasible, President Fan?”
“Feasible, absolutely feasible! The General’s arrival is a blessing for Shangyun,” Fan Maode praised—with much more sincerity now.
“Then I ask President Fan to help clarify the General’s position whenever you encounter rumors. General He needs your support to establish a firm foundation on Shangyun Star,” Lu Changqing said.
“Yes. That is a must. I will definitely go back and thoroughly explain the General’s plan to my friends in the industry to reassure them.”
“Furthermore, General He doesn’t need to worry too much about the rumors. Actually, the General is very popular among us on Shangyun Star. The image of the General personally entering the Hanxiao Star disaster zone to rescue people is still trending on our hot search list.”
Fan Maode said, smiling, half-flattering and half-serious.
Hot search? He Chen’s eyebrow twitched. What hot search was he on?
“President Fan, please rest. Once we arrive, we will first check on your brother’s condition,” Lu Changqing said at this point.
Fan Maode understood this was a dismissal: “Very well. Thank you, Dean Lu, General He. I have arranged the reception on Shangyun Star. As Dean Lu requested, I will keep it as low-key as possible. Please rest assured.”
After giving his instructions, he tactfully left.
“When did you plan all this, so thoroughly?” Lu Changqing asked He Chen after Fan Maode left.
“Just in the past few days. I haven’t been idle while you were busy,” He Chen replied. “Shixiong, what do you think of my ideas?”
“Very good. Truly the smartest warrior.”
…Could he please forget about that? He Chen’s face felt warm, but Lu Changqing brought up the serious matter: “The rumors were probably deliberately spread by He Hongsheng.”
“Mhm.” These rumors would make the people of Shangyun Star resist Hanhe’s arrival, which would both create trouble for He Chen and give He Hongsheng more time and opportunity to transfer assets.
The rumors spread quickly and widely. If He Hongsheng didn’t do it, who else could it be?
“They can use public opinion, but you don’t necessarily have to,” Lu Changqing added.
“Shixiong means?”
“He can speak ill of you on the two Shangyun Stars, and you can naturally promote your policies on the four Pinglin Stars.”
The four Pinglin Stars referred to the parts of the Pingshan Base that were not ceded.
“Use their methods against them. He wants to incite businesses on Shangyun and Xiayun to relocate with him. You might be able to do the opposite and mobilize businesses from the Pinglin Stars to move here.”
Lu Changqing said.
What he said made sense. He Chen listened and pondered, his expression focused, but a hint of fatigue showed.
Lu Changqing reached out, pulled out a nutrient solution packet, opened the cap, and handed it to him.
“Take a break. You didn’t eat much at the banquet.”
“I’m not hungry, and besides, I have this.” He Chen pulled out the jelly strip He Leyan had given him.
“Are you willing to eat it?”
“No, I’m not.” He Chen still accepted the nutrient solution.
While eating, he kneaded the jelly strip: “I wonder if Le Yan covered himself properly.”
“He rarely moves around in his sleep,” Lu Changqing said.
“Mhm.” He Chen agreed, but still felt a pang of guilt. He was too busy and spent too little time with Le Yan.
“Shixiong mentioned last time that Le Yan needs to interact with peers. Is it better to send him to kindergarten now? If he doesn’t have playmates, will he get lonely and develop issues?”
“Don’t be anxious. Le Yan has a calm temperament. Playing alone doesn’t necessarily mean he’s lonely; it might mean he’s focused.”
“But interacting with playmates is necessary. The books say that’s how he gets socialized,” He Chen said.
“There are few children in Hanxiao City, only one mixed school. I want to try sending Le Yan there. I asked, and there are children close to his age inside.”
“You can try that,” Lu Changqing affirmed.
But He Chen was still anxious: “Will the other kids bully him because he’s new?”
“No,” Lu Changqing replied.
“Why?”
“Because he has a powerful father like you backing him up.”
Ah? Did that mean— “Can I go to kindergarten with Le Yan?”
He Chen’s eyes lit up.
“…You cannot.”
Lu Changqing paused for a moment before saying, “The ‘backing’ I mentioned is spiritual.”
“…You should have said so earlier,” He Chen muttered softly. “I never went to kindergarten, so I thought parents could actually accompany their children.”
While he was still regretting not being able to accompany him, Lu Changqing’s attention shifted elsewhere: “Did you attend primary school?”
He Chen paused: “Yes. I went for a year after returning to Star Capital, then moved up to middle school.”
“You didn’t enjoy it?” Lu Changqing asked, observing his expression.
“I don’t remember much,” He Chen said vaguely. “I didn’t understand anything. Suddenly going to school was definitely tough.”
Lu Changqing couldn’t help but imagine him on his first day of school, carrying his backpack, looking lost.
Lu Changqing’s expression softened, but then, looking at He Chen, he calmed down: “Did someone bully you?”
“No, I was very capable,” He Chen replied.
Having grown up safely while wandering, He Chen wasn’t a pushover and wasn’t easily bullied, except that—
“I was a bit isolated at first.”
“The noble children thought I wasn’t noble, and the commoner children thought I wasn’t a commoner.”
“I felt I was neither. I was just a vagrant from a poor planet.”
“But I still tried to fit in. Kids want acceptance, after all. Unfortunately, I couldn’t blend in.”
“Things only got better later when I went to university and met my roommates—Han Jin, Xiang Heng, and Xu Lin.”
He Chen smiled as he spoke of this.
Lu Changqing remained quiet, looking ready to listen, so He Chen continued talking without realizing it:
“It wasn’t harmonious at first either, but our combat and command departments formed battle teams based on dormitories, and we had big chaotic battles every weekend. Over several semesters, trust and tacit understanding were built up through those battles.”
“Every day was fulfilling and exhilarating back then. Slowly, I stopped thinking so much. Brother Xiang even enlightened me, saying I didn’t need to worry about which side I belonged to; I was just myself.”
He Chen paused here.
Thinking back seriously, those seemed to be the happiest years of He Chen’s life. And they were years he could never return to.
He Chen tightened his grip on the jelly strip and suddenly said, “Use their methods against them. He Hongsheng can create a ‘riot,’ so can I create a ‘riot’?”
“What are you planning to do?” The topic shifted abruptly, but Lu Changqing still followed his line of thought.
He Chen fell silent.
He wanted to deal with He Hongsheng quickly. He also wanted to bring Xiang Heng back.
But it wasn’t that simple. He Hongsheng was heavily guarded. He needed to plan carefully to achieve his goal without sacrificing lives…
“Focus on the big picture. Don’t be rash, and don’t put yourself in danger,” Lu Changqing seemed to guess some of He Chen’s intentions.
“I know,” He Chen said. If something happened to He Hongsheng, whether the He family would retaliate or the military would investigate were all things he had to consider.
He opened his terminal again; there was still some data he hadn’t thoroughly studied.
But Lu Changqing suddenly spoke, interrupting him: “Come with me for a moment.”
“Where to?”
“My cabin.”
“Ah?” He Chen scratched his fingers.
“To give you a treatment session,” Lu Changqing said. “We’ve entered the deep treatment cycle. You need a session at least every three days, or all previous efforts will be wasted.”
“Oh.” He Chen, whose thoughts had strayed, blushed and obediently got up to follow Lu Changqing.
On the way, he unconsciously focused his attention on Lu Changqing.
“What about Shixiong?” he suddenly asked as the cabin door closed. “What did you experience when you were in school? Were you a genius from start to finish?”
“Mhm, smooth sailing, nothing remarkable.”
“The only thing worth mentioning is that I was tutoring a junior, but he—”
“Ahem, I was wrong, Shixiong.”
The He Chen whom Fan Maode considered “steady and cold” was now blushing and apologizing honestly.
“Just kidding,” Lu Changqing said while washing his hands. “But it’s true that it was unremarkable. You might not believe it, but when I was studying, I only knew how to study; I didn’t know how to make friends.”
“That might be because your mind was too far ahead of everyone else.”
“Thank you for the comfort.” Lu Changqing chuckled. “It’s because, like you, I felt I didn’t belong to any side.”
The difference was that He Chen could still struggle with where he belonged, but Lu Changqing was absolutely certain that he was different from everyone else.
He never had a sense of belonging; no one was his kind. Except… He Chen.
During the “tutoring” sessions, Lu Changqing had entered He Chen’s mental domain repeatedly. A person’s appearance might be deceptive, but their mental domain rarely was.
At that time, He Chen’s mental domain was not as it is today. There was no vast snowy plain, only a muddy snowfield, with a small, frozen lake in the middle.
Breaking the ice and diving to the bottom of the lake, it illogically turned into solid ground. On that ground was a small wooden hut, and inside the hut was a boy about ten years old, his hands and face chapped from the cold.
The boy was always alone—hunting alone, chopping wood alone, doing handicrafts alone, sleeping and eating alone.
That was the deepest part of He Chen’s consciousness, which he couldn’t even see himself.
Lu Changqing always remembered the moment he reached out his hand, and the boy grasped it back, the instant connection of their souls.
“We don’t need to belong to any side,” He Chen said maturely, rationally, and seriously at this moment.
“You are right.” Lu Changqing dried his hands, turned around, and motioned for He Chen to sit on the sofa. “Let’s begin.”
“Let’s agree first, I won’t sleep.” The moment Lu Changqing grasped his wrist, He Chen spoke with utmost seriousness. “We’ll arrive at Shangyun in an hour, and I have important business. I truly cannot sleep.”
“Understood.” Lu Changqing sat beside him, holding his wrist steadily.
Before landing on that unknown planet and facing unknown dangers, he would calm his mind, stabilize his spirit, and build an iron wall around him.