Doctor Lu Always Wants To Steal My Baby! Chapter 78
byChapter 78 The Little Wolf Finally Understands What Happened
He Chen’s face was flushed. He touched his collar, then lowered his hand. Before he could voice the guess in his heart, Lu Changqing suddenly changed the subject:
“The Qian family has developed a new type of weapon. The He Family Army will likely be equipped with it soon. I’ve sent you the data. If you have professional personnel on your side, study how to counter it together.”
When He Chen heard it was serious business, his attention was captured. He opened his terminal to check the data while asking, “How did you get your hands on this?”
“You reminded me,” Lu Changqing said.
“Me? When?”
“After you mentioned the research cycle issue of the Cold Condensation Gun, I started focusing on that area,” Lu Changqing explained.
Oh, so half the credit belonged to him, He Chen thought smugly.
“They call this weapon ‘Hive.’ It’s both offensive and defensive. When attacking, it can transform into a swarm of metallic ‘bees.’ When under attack, it can form a layer of dynamic reactive armor on the surface of the battlesuit.”
“Isn’t that perfect?” He Chen looked at the data, becoming serious.
“Far from perfect,” Lu Changqing said. “The high-intensity neural connection and excessive energy radiation will cause irreversible damage to the user’s nervous system.”
He Chen frowned. “That’s going too far.”
“So, use Zero when you need to. Don’t hold back,” Lu Changqing said in a low voice.
He Chen nodded, then looked back at Lu Changqing. “Are you really okay?”
Lu Changqing was puzzled. “What do you mean?”
“Him, Lu Jingshan, controlling you with drugs—are there really no lingering effects?” He Chen asked.
“Once Zero is pushed into the open, Lu Jingshan’s ambition will be known to all. He will definitely try to manipulate you to do other things, and he will quickly discover that you are out of his control. He—”
“There is nothing he can use to control me anymore.” Lu Changqing understood He Chen’s meaning and cut him off.
“So, the reason you refused to use Zero today was for me—” Lu Changqing paused. “Was there a reason related to considering me?”
Lu Changqing looked deeply into He Chen’s eyes.
“It was using a sledgehammer to crack a nut,” He Chen said with a hint of arrogance, avoiding his gaze.
Lu Changqing’s heart fluttered. He almost wanted to pull He Chen into his arms. But noticing someone entering the room out of the corner of his eye, Lu Changqing clenched his fingers, restraining himself. He only leaned close to He Chen’s cheek and whispered, “Thank you, Xiao Chen.”
“Cough!” What did he call him…
He Chen was about to speak when he also saw the subordinate walking in.
“Commander—”
He Chen collected his thoughts and listened to his subordinate’s report. After hearing it, he glanced at Lu Changqing, exchanged a look with him, and went out to handle military affairs.
When he finished his work and returned, Lu Changqing was no longer in the command room.
He Chen paused for a moment, then walked toward Xiang Zhe, who was fiddling with a light-brain. “How is it going?”
“We can get in within five minutes at most,” Xiang Zhe replied.
“Thank you, Xiao Zhe,” He Chen said, looking at him with concern. “We’re going to war. Are you scared?”
Xiang Zhe bit his lip. “No.”
“I promised my brother that I would follow you and protect you—”
“Protect me?” He Chen raised an eyebrow, as if asking: Are you serious?
“Protect you.” Xiang Zhe gripped the light-brain with both hands, glanced at He Chen, and quickly looked away uncomfortably.
He Chen understood what he meant: he was saying that he also had the ability to protect him.
And he certainly did.
On the day of the handover ceremony on Shangyun Star, it was Xiang Zhe who, in coordination with Brother Xiang, defused the bomb threat He Hongsheng had planted in his hotel.
“Thank you.” He Chen looked at Xiang Zhe’s face, which bore a five-tenths resemblance to Xiang Heng’s. After a moment of silence, he suddenly reached out and ruffled his hair.
Xiang Zhe’s eyes remained fixed on the screen, but after a while, noticing He Chen looking around, he spoke up. “Big Brother Lu had something to do, so he left first.”
“I wasn’t looking for him,” He Chen instinctively mumbled, then looked at Xiang Zhe. “You call him ‘Brother’?”
This was surprising. Xiang Zhe hadn’t even called He Chen “Brother” after all this time.
“Do you feel close to him?” He Chen asked curiously.
“Big Brother Lu saved my brother,” Xiang Zhe said casually while operating the light-brain.
Hmm? He Chen frowned. “When?”
“In Star Capital, when my brother went to—to kill Xia Jingpeng, he helped my brother escape.”
…He Chen was silent for a moment. So, his Senior Brother really didn’t tell him things, even when he did good deeds anonymously.
While He Chen was thinking, a message popped up on his terminal from Lu Changqing: “I’m heading back to Hanxiao Star first. Come back once you’re done here. See Leyan, and get another treatment while you’re at it.”
He Chen opened the input box, lightly tapping the screen to type a line of text. But after thinking about it, he deleted everything and just replied with one word: “Okay.”
*
The next day, He Chen indeed returned to Hanxiao Star.
The first thing he did upon returning was contact Deng Tie and quietly appear before Leyan, giving the boy a huge surprise.
Leyan was in the ward, learning how to care for the wounded soldiers from the nurse sister. One second he was acting like a little adult, taking notes and drawing in a small notebook, and the next second, upon seeing He Chen, he burst into tears with a “Waaah,” nearly causing the nurse to miss with her needle.
“What’s wrong?” He Chen was flustered. He looked up at Deng Tie: Was there something wrong with him that scared the cub?
Deng Tie understood his look and couldn’t help but smile wryly: Did he think this was still the time right after they reunited?
“Leyan was worried about you,” Deng Tie whispered.
Only then did He Chen understand. He quickly squatted down and picked up Leyan. “Good boy, Daddy is fine.”
Leyan clung tightly to his neck, his tear-streaked face pressed into He Chen’s collarbone.
He Chen’s heart softened. He carried the cub to a chair in the hallway, asked Deng Tie for tissues, and wiped the boy’s face clean, even helping him blow his nose.
“I’m sorry, Leyan. Daddy made you worry again.”
He Leyan had calmed down by now. He wriggled free from He Chen and checked him up and down. “Did Daddy get hurt?”
“No, Daddy has steel bones and iron muscles. How could I get hurt?” He Chen immediately replied.
Steel bones and iron muscles? He Leyan seriously pondered the phrase, examining his father. He Chen quickly changed the subject. “What are you drawing here?”
He Leyan carried a small satchel everywhere. Inside was a sketchbook filled with “notes” that looked like scribbles.
“This is the procedure for changing the dressing on the uncles’ wounds,” He Leyan explained seriously.
“The first step is to tear off the old dressing. You have to tear along the direction of the hair so it doesn’t hurt.” He Chen finally understood that the thick lines drawn in the notebook were “hair”…
“The second step is to observe the wound. If there’s pus or a strange smell, it means there’s an infection, and you have to call the nurse sister to treat it.”
“The third step is washing the wound. You have to rinse from the center outward…”
He pointed to his half-drawn, half-pinyin notes, introducing them meticulously to He Chen.
After the introduction, his sharp eyes spotted a small “scrape” on He Chen’s neck. He climbed onto He Chen’s lap, wanting to examine it.
“No need!” He Chen clutched his collar, glancing at Deng Tie and his accompanying adjutant, his face burning red.
Deng Tie and the adjutant hadn’t seen anything or thought much of it initially, but now they… silently ate their popcorn, trying their best to pretend they didn’t understand, so as to protect the Commander’s precarious dignity.
He Chen looked at the cub and seriously changed the subject. “Leyan, you’re still small. You don’t need to strain yourself learning these things. The doctors and nurses will take good care of the uncles.”
As he spoke, he looked at the heavy bag on Leyan’s shoulder.
He could see now that the bag contained dressings, cotton swabs, disinfectant… no wonder it was so heavy it was leaving a red mark on the cub’s neck.
He Chen couldn’t help but reach out to take the bag, but Leyan grabbed the strap. “But Leyan likes it.”
He Leyan opened his large, grape-like eyes and looked at He Chen. “Leyan likes taking care of the uncles, and the uncles really like Leyan taking care of them!”
He Leyan looked at Deng Tie, as if seeking support.
“That’s right, that’s right,” Deng Tie immediately chimed in. “Everyone loves it when Leyan changes their dressing. Leyan’s dressing changes don’t hurt at all!”
Especially since they also came with a “blow-on-the-boo-boo” service!
To be honest, sometimes Deng Tie even wished he could get a small injury.
“You like treating everyone?” He Chen slowly released the bag, asking uncertainly.
He Leyan nodded without hesitation. “I like it. Daddy and the uncles protect Leyan, and Leyan protects Daddy and the uncles too!”
“In the future, Leyan is going to be the most amazing healer! So that all daddies and uncles won’t be afraid of the riots!”
…He Chen was very touched, but: “’All’ uncles is fine, but ‘all’ daddies is not. You only have one daddy.”
He was very concerned about his unique title.
He Leyan nodded innocently.
He Chen smiled and rubbed his head, adjusting his small satchel. “Go be busy, little doctor. We’ll eat dinner together tonight.”
He Leyan nodded again, looked at him reluctantly, but then turned to attend to his “work.”
He Chen watched his small figure disappear into the ward, then turned to his adjutant, his expression solemn. “Have the number of casualties been tallied?”
“Yes, Commander.” The adjutant quietly reported a number.
He Chen was silent for a moment. “Where are the critically wounded? Take me to see them.”
“Yes.” The adjutant followed his instructions, taking him upstairs without alarming anyone, to the quieter critical care rooms.
“Commander.” The medical staff quickly saluted when they saw him. He Chen didn’t interrupt their work. He simply grabbed a doctor and walked through the rooms one by one, asking for explanations of the patients’ conditions.
“Large-area burns. Vitals are stabilizing. We are proceeding with the first stage of surgery immediately. Prognosis… is still uncertain.”
“Left lower limb amputation. Vitals stable. Prognosis is optimistic.”
“Skull fracture followed by intracranial hematoma. Decompressive craniectomy has been performed…”
Most patients required infection control, so He Chen did not enter the rooms, but he stood at each doorway for a moment.
No one following him dared to speak.
When Ning Tian and a few officers rushed over upon hearing He Chen had returned, he was standing at the doorway of the last room, about to turn around.
His eyes were heavy, but the moment he saw them, his posture straightened. “Everyone has worked hard. Let’s talk in the conference room.”
His demeanor was resolute and decisive. He led the way.
A group of people clustered around him as they descended the stairs. Halfway down, they heard Chu Yunqi’s voice: “Warriors, you have worked hard! I see all your sacrifices. I know you fought to protect me. Rest assured, your blood will not be spilled in vain—”
He was speaking passionately when he saw He Chen’s group appear in the corridor. He paused, then looked back at the ward. “It certainly won’t be spilled in vain!”
“I will definitely inform the Imperial Father and grant you, grant you promotions and titles, and reward your merits!”
He Chen glanced at his excited expression, then lowered his head to instruct his adjutant, “Take him upstairs for a walk.”
“Yes.” The adjutant nodded in agreement.
Chu Yunqi excitedly walked toward He Chen. “Cousin, we won! You’re the best!”
He gave a thumbs-up.
“Your Highness, it’s too early to declare victory,” He Chen said calmly.
It was early, yes. Chu Yunlan hadn’t arrived yet, and there would definitely be more battles to fight. But they had won for now, hadn’t they? Once the Imperial Father’s reinforcements arrived, what was there to fear!
Chu Yunqi thought, feeling both nervous and excited. When he looked up, He Chen and his group had already brushed past him.
Only one officer remained. “Your Highness, there are still patients upstairs awaiting your condolences.”
Chu Yunqi didn’t think much of it and followed him up for a tour.
After only half a tour, he wasn’t feeling well. He went into the restroom and threw up the lunch he had eaten.
His previously proud eyes became downcast and gray…
*
“You deliberately made me look.”
After concluding a fast-paced review and analysis meeting, He Chen was cornered by Chu Yunqi at the conference room door.
Chu Yunqi looked at him, his expression listless. “I know Hanhe made a great contribution this time for me. You don’t need to emphasize it. Just tell me what you need me to do. Money or equipment? I’ll ask the Imperial Father for it.”
He Chen narrowed his eyes. A list was already forming in his mind. Just as he was about to make an outrageous demand, Ning Tian suddenly looked at Chu Yunqi and spoke:
“We didn’t fight this war for you.”
Huh? Chu Yunqi looked at Ning Tian. He Chen also looked at Ning Tian.
Ning Tian’s face was stern. “It’s because the Second Prince betrayed the nation and the people, colluding with the He family. He pretends to love the people like his own children and speaks for the common folk, but inwardly he flatters his superiors and bullies his subordinates, treating commoners as cannon fodder, exploiting and oppressing them to the extreme.”
“We fought for ourselves!”
Chu Yunqi was stunned.
He Chen was also stunned.
Fought for… themselves?
“You, you watched my video channel?”
While He Chen was still processing, Chu Yunqi suddenly looked at Ning Tian, his eyes lighting up.
“Who watches your video channel?” Ning Tian said coldly.
“How can you say you didn’t watch it? What you just recited were all the titles I came up with, I personally came up with them!”
“You don’t usually come up with them personally?” Ning Tian looked at him.
“I—don’t you understand what teamwork is?”
“I understand. It means the team does the work, and you take the credit,” Ning Tian threw out, striding away.
“Stop right there!” Chu Yunqi quickly followed him. “What do you mean the team does the work and I take the credit? Do you think I do nothing? Do you think Chu Yunlan’s dirt just fell from the sky? Thanks to me, you were able to see his true face!”
“Thanks to me… the investigators I sent out risked their lives, and only then did you know that he instructed the Qian family to sell weapons to space pirates for profit, know how the Qian family enterprises privately treat people like dirt, and know how Chu Yunlan privately treats you cannon—you kind and lovely citizens of the Empire!”
He Chen’s mouth twitched. He left them behind, walking in the opposite direction.
Along the way, he encountered several groups of soldiers who saluted him with reverence. He returned the salute, watching the young, serious, and energetic faces pass by. He suddenly grabbed one and asked, “Are you scared now that you’ve seen real combat?”
“Reporting!” The young soldier snapped a salute and replied loudly, “We’re not scared when we follow the Commander!”
“A hundred points for flattery.” He Chen smiled and patted the young soldier’s head, watching him return to his unit and leave, satisfied.
Then, he walked alone into a building in the sanatorium, took the elevator, crossed the corridor, and arrived at Xu Lin’s ward.
Neither the impending storm of preparation for war nor the temporary post-war noise had affected Xu Lin in the slightest.
It was still quiet here.
He Chen greeted him, sat in the chair beside his bed, and his heart slowly settled down.
He settled down so much that he almost fell asleep, until Lu Changqing knocked and walked in.
“I was looking for you, and someone happened to see you coming here.” Lu Changqing explained his presence before He Chen could ask.
“What did Senior Brother need me for?” He Chen stood up, asking instinctively.
“Can’t I look for you if there’s nothing wrong?” Lu Changqing countered, his tone helpless, but his eyes were gentle. “Did you go see the critically wounded?”
“Yes.” He Chen nodded. He leaned against Xu Lin’s bedside, giving the chair to Lu Changqing.
Lu Changqing didn’t sit. He looked for a moment at He Chen’s half-lowered eyelids and clenched fingers. His voice became deeper and mellower. “The best surgical team from the Medical Academy is here. You don’t need to worry about the treatment.”
“Thank you, Senior Brother,” He Chen replied, looking at Lu Changqing. “Senior Brother, I have something I want to ask you.”
“Go ahead,” Lu Changqing said calmly. Although, in truth, the moment he heard He Chen’s serious tone, he felt uncharacteristically nervous.
“In Star Capital, did you save Brother Xiang?” He Chen asked.
Lu Changqing paused. “Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
…Lu Changqing was silent for a moment. “Because I was tracking your whereabouts like a pervert. It wasn’t easy to explain.”
He Chen’s expression was complicated. “You’re quite straightforward now.”
He had to be straightforward to convince the straightforward.
“What made you think to ask about this?” Lu Changqing asked.
“Xiang Zhe mentioned it, and I only just found out.” He Chen’s expression grew more serious. “Thank you, Senior Brother.”
“Don’t mention it,” Lu Changqing said. “I should apologize to you. I understood Xiang Heng’s choice back then, but I didn’t remind you when you were distressed and conflicted.”
“Why?” He Chen frowned slightly.
“Because Xiang Heng has his own path,” Lu Changqing looked at He Chen. “His destiny rests on his own shoulders, and what he desires most is to control his own fate.”
“I know you feel guilty and self-reproachful about what happened to them, but,” Lu Changqing slowed his speech, “you have taken on too many responsibilities that don’t belong to you.”
Responsibilities that didn’t belong to him? He Chen rubbed his fingers, falling silent.
“Did you come here to Xu Lin’s room because you have something on your mind?” Lu Changqing changed the subject.
He Chen nodded, looking at Xu Lin’s peaceful face. “I was thinking, if he were awake, what would he choose? To fight or not to fight?”
“Do you have an answer?”
“Yes.” He Chen twitched his lips. “A fool could guess his thoughts. He has always been an aggressive type, acting more than thinking.”
“But—” He Chen paused. “Three years ago, after that incident, I swore to myself that I would never again let the soldiers under my command die easily.”
Lu Changqing was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his hand and touched He Chen’s furrowed brow. “What happened three years ago wasn’t your fault.”
“But I understand. Whatever decision you make about participating in the next events, I understand and I support it.”
He Chen squeezed his fingers, looking up at him. “I haven’t finished yet. I did make that vow, but sitting here just now, I think I figured something out.”
“It wasn’t just sitting here that made me realize it. It was something Ning Tian said… That kid has a strange ability to poke at me unintentionally.”
“What did he say?” Lu Changqing asked.
“He said he was fighting for himself.”
“And what Senior Brother just said, that Brother Xiang has his own path. Brother Xiang himself emphasized that everything was his own choice…”
He Chen paused here, then continued, “I realized that I seem to have been wrong about one thing all along. I mistakenly thought of myself as the center of the world.”
“I always thought I was the one who decided the future of Ning Tian and the others. I took it upon myself to protect them, to be their savior.”
“But in reality, I’m not that important at all. Whether it’s Ning Tian, Xu Lin, or the other soldiers and officers, everyone, just like me, has vibrant desires, their own goals, and is their own savior.”
“Even Leyan has his own preferences and things he wants to do.”
“And my decisions have been mixed with too much of my own personal baggage and shadows.”
He Chen looked at Lu Changqing. “I remember a case study from a tactics class. An old general, during a rebellion, chose the narrow, dangerous, but fast water route over the flat, safe, but slow land route, and his entire army was annihilated.”
“In class, the teacher focused on the marching route, but now I’m thinking, why did that old general choose that way?”
“Because he was already old but didn’t want to die of old age or sickness. He desperately wanted to achieve merit on the battlefield,” Lu Changqing said softly.
“Senior Brother knows him?” He Chen looked up in surprise.
“I know him. I did attend the same military academy as you, after all,” Lu Changqing replied.
But you weren’t studying this… He Chen glanced at this “pervert” and continued:
“I realized that his recklessness and my avoidance of conflict are essentially the same thing.”
“Mixing too much ‘selfishness’ into the decision-making process.”
As He Chen spoke, his slightly heavy posture straightened. His handsome face, as if shedding an invisible shackles, became sharper, more resolute, revealing a compelling edge.
“I’ve figured it out. I should strip away the ‘me’ and look at the big picture, look at the overall situation, and analyze decisions from an objective perspective!”
He finished, looking at Lu Changqing. Seeing Lu Changqing’s gaze fixed on his face, he cleared his throat uncomfortably. “What? Did I say something wrong?”
“No,” Lu Changqing said.
He hadn’t actually heard clearly what He Chen had said.
That was good. Lu Changqing’s approval was still very important to He Chen.
He Chen cleared his throat again. “Senior Brother, I have one more question for you.”
“Go on.”
Lu Changqing’s nerves tightened again.
“So, how exactly did my fever break?” He Chen asked haltingly.
Lu Changqing sighed in relief—or rather, half a sigh. The other half was still suspended. “Didn’t you already figure it out?”
He looked at He Chen’s collar.
Was it really… what he thought? He Chen’s face and neck slowly flushed like a fiery cloud. “Senior Brother, was it—was it to help me detoxify, so, so—”
“Yes. You didn’t refuse at the time,” Lu Changqing said.
He Chen searched his blank memory: He certainly didn’t remember refusing. Because he didn’t remember anything at all.
“If the fever had continued, your organs would have failed,” Lu Changqing explained further.
“Um, thank you.” He Chen clenched his fingers, momentarily unable to think of anything else to say besides those two words.
“You don’t seem to remember much of what happened?” Lu Changqing asked.
“Cough, I remember…” He Chen glanced at Lu Changqing’s lips, tapped his fingers, and shifted his gaze. “I think I fell into the mental domain again, similar to last time?”
“Yes,” Lu Changqing confirmed. “Your body was too weak then, and your mental power was starting to fail.”
“Um, so—” So the kissing in the mental domain was real…
And—He Chen mumbled, the remaining half of his question unable to be voiced:
Did that thing, could it be done without his cooperation?