Chapter 96: Replication Experiment 20
An hour later, the delinquent friend arrived with his own mother in tow. Auntie’s name was Liu Yihua. Although there had been some minor friction and disagreement between her and Yi Ke’s mother, Ms. Deng Zongyun, she still doted on Yi Ke very much, having practically watched him grow up. While slicing fruit in the kitchen, Zhuang Ningyu asked over the phone, “Where did the disagreement stem from?”
Having just picked up U-Shield from the research team, Yi Ke answered amidst a cacophony of werwer sounds: “She said my mom’s name sounds like Sun Wukong’s Somersault Cloud.”
Zhuang Ningyu paused slightly. Yi Ke immediately added with great understanding, “It’s okay, you can laugh. I laughed for a long time back then too.”
Auntie Liu liked Zhuang Ningyu very much. Every time she scrolled past the blurry New Year’s greeting videos from the Order Maintenance Department, she would like and comment. Seeing him in person this time, she liked him even more. Thinking about him being with Yi Ke gave her a satisfying feeling that “fertile water shouldn’t flow into outsider fields.” She held his hand and said affectionately, “Auntie came in a hurry this time and didn’t prepare any decent gift. It just so happens your uncle knows an arms dealer in South America. When there’s a chance, I’ll have him get you a monster exterminator that’s popular over there. I think it’s called something like the ‘Abyss Terminator.’ It looks really cool; you should be able to use it in your daily work.”
This conversation sounded deja vu. Zhuang Ningyu remembered the “Dark Arbiter” that could cut off 99.9% of an opponent’s survival paths. From Europe to South America, these aunties each possessed a magical network of arms smuggling relationships. The government’s legal education work truly had a long way to go. He said politely, “Thank you, but we will be issued unified weapons, so there’s no need to trouble yourself. Please, take a seat.”
U-Shield was gleefully running all over the living room. Its seniority in this household was unstable, oscillating between “Raising you is worse than raising a dog” and “Baby, bring Grandma’s darling grandson over” depending on the delinquent friend’s daily performance. The neighbors downstairs had recently moved abroad with their whole family, so temporarily, it could run and jump freely without scruples. The crystal chandelier in the lofted ceiling clanged loudly from the impact. Seeing that the dog was about to reenact the “demolishing the chandelier” incident, and not wanting to pay huge repair fees, the delinquent friend quickly said, “Mom, Mom, let’s go out and walk your son!”
“You go first,” Auntie Liu said. “Mom still has things to discuss with Xiao Zhuang.”
What serious business could you possibly have? The delinquent friend looked confused and wanted to sit down and listen in, but was chased out by his own mother along with the dog. As the elevator slowly descended with a werwer sound, the room returned to silence. Liu Yihua looked at Zhuang Ningyu and didn’t beat around the bush, saying directly, “You guys might need to pay more attention to Wei Liying recently.”
Yi Ke, who was tidying up the cushions, turned his head upon hearing this. Zhuang Ningyu was also a bit surprised. “Her?”
After that failed mission to break the Rules Zone, both the Order Maintenance Department and Zhuang Ningyu had become accustomed to Wei Liying’s erratic emotional outbursts. Not much time had passed since she last threw celery mixed with beef at the supermarket. Zhuang Ningyu asked in confusion, “How do you know Wei Liying?”
“I don’t know her, but she works in one of my factories.” This position was charitable in nature, a favor to the sub-district office, purely to give her something to do and a stable income. Liu Yihua normally wouldn’t manage such minute details, but she had accidentally scrolled past a post about Zhuang Ningyu a while ago that mentioned Wei Liying, realizing only then that she was working in her factory, so she had asked people to keep an eye on her.
Yi Ke asked, “What’s wrong with Wei Liying?”
Liu Yihua answered, “It seems there’s a charitable organization secretly giving her money.”
Yi Ke frowned slightly. Although Wei Liying’s mental state was unstable, she had an income, social security, and could take care of herself; she didn’t fall within the public perception of “those needing rescue.” Liu Yihua thought so too. So when she heard this news, her first reaction was that this might not be aid, but rather an approach, a gesture of goodwill, or bribery. And Wei Liying’s most glaring “value” was undoubtedly the story between her and Zhuang Ningyu.
“We will keep an eye on it,” Yi Ke said. “Thank you, Auntie.”
Liu Yihua nodded and then urged Zhuang Ningyu, “Keep an eye on it, but don’t take it too much to heart. What happened back then was purely an accident. Even if she needs to be appeased, the organization should step forward. You have no personal obligation.”
Zhuang Ningyu smiled. “Okay.”
Yi Ke reported this matter to his unit. By the time he came out of the study, Auntie Liu had already gone to find her big boy to walk her big boy. Zhuang Ningyu asked, “Any thoughts?”
Yi Ke brewed him a cup of hot tea, sat back on the sofa, and reached out to hug him. “I will help you resolve the whole thing.”
Zhuang Ningyu found a comfortable position in his arms. If this matter were true, he didn’t think the other party’s target was himself—perhaps they wanted to use him to attack the Order Maintenance Department behind him? At this critical juncture when the world was about to reach strategic alignment… He felt this idea was a bit far-fetched, so he looked up at Yi Ke and asked modestly, “Is my influence really that big?”
“Yes, Wife, you have it. No one has more influence than you,” Yi Ke said. “You are the emperor.”
Zhuang Ningyu raised his hand and gave him a slap, not willing to use force, nor did he continue the discussion. It was a rare leisurely weekend, and he didn’t want to waste time on messy affairs. Yi Ke didn’t bring it up again either. While thoughtfully massaging his waist, he scrolled through short videos on his phone. The volume was low, but Zhuang Ningyu still heard every word clearly—
“First spot, the chin. There are scent glands here. Leave your scent on your hand to make your kitten love you more.”
Yi Ke reached out to scratch his chin.
“Second spot, the base of the ears. There are thirty-two muscles here. Massaging it will make the kitten feel comfortable and addicted.”
Yi Ke reached out to pinch his ears.
“Third spot, the back of the neck…”
“Fourth spot, the cheeks…”
“Fifth spot, the base of the tail. Pat it gently, and the kitten will actively stick its butt up.”
Zhuang Ningyu: “?”
Zhuang Ningyu: “Get lost.”
Yi Ke: “Just try it, try it.”
Zhuang Ningyu turned around, kicked him in the chest, scrambled up, and ran. What kind of unscrupulous video is this?
Yi Ke chased him into the bedroom.
Try it!
Thanks to the efforts of the investigation team and the police, the timeline of Zhang Yunxia’s mother’s disappearance had been confirmed. As soon as Zhuang Ningyu arrived at the office on Monday, he received the new investigation report. She hadn’t actively “run away” back then; she had been tricked into a human trafficking organization. The so-called “Jincheng contractor” had been arrested. According to his confession, he had tricked Miao Feng into the car under the guise of recruitment and sold her to the experimental institution not long after. As for those text messages severing ties with her family, he had forced her to send them.
An experimental subject that had survived for over twenty years—it was hard for everyone to imagine the various hardships she had endured during this period. Even more tragic and inhuman was that Miao Feng hadn’t had her human emotions erased; her mind had remained clear throughout. Otherwise, when being sent into the incinerator, she wouldn’t have used all her strength to leave her daughter’s name on the metal wall. Her daughter had grown up and changed her name, yet she still recognized her at a glance.
The twisted personality caused by the lack of paternal and maternal love was ultimately ended by maternal love. In this Rules Zone, the dazed Zhang Yunxia, after being brought to the incineration room by Yi Ke, ultimately didn’t have the courage to uncover the white cloth covering her mother’s body. She only hugged that thin, small body, screaming and crying in despair. Then, at the moment the Rules Zone was about to disappear, she resolutely pulled down the switch controlling the conveyor belt. The motor turned, flames shot to the sky, and the massive white incinerator emitted a terrifying hum that chilled everyone to the bone. Zhong Mu, who was closest, instinctively wanted to turn off the switch, but sunlight from the outside world had already pierced through the white fog.
Zhang Yunxia ultimately held her mother and was swallowed by the roaring flames together.
Her wish wasn’t to take her mother away. She knew she was too late and powerless to take her mother away. So she just wanted to end her mother’s suffering and her own sin in this way.
A part of the dark secret was exposed to the light of day. Using this as a breach, after continuous and lengthy investigations by multiple parties, several human trafficking chains buried deep underground were finally dug out, and multiple biological companies implicated with them slowly surfaced. But that is a story for later. For the present, the focus of public attention was still on the brief notification newly released by the police regarding the progress of the Xinyin Biology case.
For a time, Shi Cheng practically became a rat crossing the street that everyone wanted to beat. Zhuang Ningyu asked, “How is he? Any signs of survival?”
“No,” He Mo said. “And there won’t be any in the future. Just got the news.”
Shi Cheng ultimately didn’t survive the side effects of the illegal drugs and died in the ICU ten minutes ago. However, before he completely breathed his last, he had briefly woken up for a moment and struggled to utter a tone similar to “Fu.”
He Mo asked, “Do you want to see the surveillance footage?”
Zhuang Ningyu took the tablet from him. The video showed Shi Cheng’s face completely swollen, even more grotesque than his previous experimenter form. His mouth was stiff, and his nerves twitched and spasmed uncontrollably. Yet he still used all his strength to mobilize his facial muscles, staring straight at the camera with both eyes, and spoke that last word—it wasn’t an unconscious gasp; he was indeed conveying a message to the outside world.
“Fu Dong, or Fu Han, or some other Fu?” He Mo propped his head on one hand. “The investigation team leans towards Fu Dong. After all, Shi Cheng was working for the Invisible Giant, and Fu Dong is also a member of that organization. But I know, you probably lean towards Fu Han. Do you think he has the ability to create a Rules Zone with logic chains as concise and rigorous as Xinyin Biology?”
“I don’t know.” Zhuang Ningyu shook his head. “I actually don’t know much about his personal abilities or his social connections. I met Fu Han on a hiking trip. He behaved normally at the time, so we exchanged contact information. We met privately a few times and had two meals.”
Zhuang Ningyu’s understanding of Fu Han was limited to the level of ordinary friends. After Fu Han clearly showed other intentions, the two never went out alone again. Zhuang Ningyu continued, “However, I roughly know his personality. Fu Han has traces of paranoid personality disorder, possibly influenced by his family. He distrusts most people, is emotionally detached, and rarely reveals his inner thoughts. Most of the time, he can appear modest and polite, perfectly hiding his emotions, but occasionally he will have highly sensitive reactions to external stimuli.”
“Like what?” He Mo pressed further. “Any examples of highly sensitive reactions to external stimuli?”
Zhuang Ningyu answered frankly, “He seemed to have planned to kidnap me.”
As soon as Yi Ke pushed open the office door, he heard this sentence.
