Chapter 208: Goodbye Dr. Reed

The next two days were, for Lin Yu, nothing short of unbearable.

In this anxious torment, his only diversion was visiting that good brother of his.

It had to be said—idiots really do have idiot luck, and a strong body truly was built to take abuse.

Luo Shaotian recovered astonishingly fast.

Just as Chen Bing had diagnosed, as an ordinary person without spiritual energy circuits, those filth toxins that struck terror into the hearts of magical girls only stirred up trouble in his body for a short while before being completely expelled through metabolism.

By the time Lin Yu carried a fruit basket into the ward for the third time, the guy was already leaning against the headboard, handling work matters on a tablet.

His breathing was steady, his complexion rosy.
There was not the slightest trace of someone who had just brushed past the gates of hell.

“Tch.”

Peeling an apple, Lin Yu looked at that vigorous figure on the hospital bed, and a wave of envy welled up in his heart.

Why?

We clearly drank the same red date water.
You just had diarrhea and were fine, while I—I—ended up carrying some ghostly thing inside me and even facing the risk of unemployment?

“Oh right, Shaotian.”

Lin Yu handed over the apple he had peeled into a pockmarked mess and asked tentatively,
“Now that you’re fine… what are your plans next?
Going back to the police force to resume duty?
Or…”

“Staying with the company.”

Luo Shaotian took the apple, bit into it, and answered crisply.

“Huh?
Staying here?”

Lin Yu was a little surprised.

“For what?
With your assets, you shouldn’t even look twice at this pocket change, right?
And besides… even though this crappy company has good benefits, you’ve seen it these past few days—this place is literally deadly.”

Luo Shaotian’s chewing paused slightly.

He raised his head, his gaze quietly settling on Lin Yu.

“Because I promised.”

He said calmly.

“Since I signed the contract, I should see it through from start to finish.
And besides… I think this place is pretty interesting.”

Interesting my ass…

Lin Yu muttered, avoiding his gaze.

After leaving the ward, Lin Yu leaned against the corridor wall, his mood inexplicably irritable.

See it through from start to finish?

Keep promises?

That kind of high-sounding excuse might fool ghosts, but nothing else.

That guy…

Could it be that he really stayed for the sake of—

Smack!

The moment that thought surfaced, Lin Yu brutally strangled it in its cradle.

Lin Yu, Lin Yu, stop being so damn self-important!

He fiercely despised himself in his heart.

Everyone was already an adult man who had seen everything!

Sure, there had been that… utterly unspeakable misunderstanding before.

But now that it was cleared up, everyone was just pure bros!

Pure brotherhood!

Socialist brotherhood!

That guy wasn’t short on money, nor short on women.

The reason he stayed must be to uphold justice!
To explore the truth of the world!

That’s right!

It had to be that!

“Ring—ring—ring————!!!”

The urgent ringtone of the contract bracelet cut off his chaotic thoughts.

Caller ID: 【Younger Sister】.

Lin Yu’s eyes lit up as he hurriedly answered.

“Hello?
Sis!
How is it?
Is there news?!”

“Bro, your luck is really something.”

On the other end, Lin Xue’s voice sounded a little tired.

“Yesterday I swallowed my pride and begged my senior sister, and only after a lot of effort did I finally get to see my mentor.
At first, her attitude toward me was extremely cold—felt like she was about to kick me out of the lab the next second…”

“But!”

Lin Xue abruptly changed tone.

“When I told her about your situation… her eyes changed instantly!”

“Changed?”

“Yeah, like… the look you’d have when you see some kind of priceless treasure?
Anyway, her attitude did a full one-eighty.
She immediately agreed to meet you and even said she wanted to personally examine you.”

“Holy crap!
Seriously?!”

Lin Yu was so excited he almost jumped off the ground.

“Holy crap!
That’s huge!
That’s huge!
When do I go?
Now?
To her lab?
Or her office at the university?”

“Uh… well, bro, d-don’t get too excited yet.”

Lin Xue’s tone suddenly became a bit strange, hesitating as she spoke.

“The mentor already set the meeting time for… tonight at eight.”

“Oh, oh, evening’s fine!
I’m free!
Where’s the location?”

“The location is… the Warring States Strategy Grand Hotel in District D.
Private room: Emerald Bamboo Pavilion.”

The air went quiet for three seconds.

“…Why does that sound like a place for business dinners?”

“Yeah… it is a business dinner.”

“No—wait, sis!”

Lin Yu was completely baffled.

“What kind of operation is it to meet at a grand hotel?!
The vibe is totally wrong, isn’t it?!”

As he spoke, an image formed in his mind of a white-coated blonde beauty, test tube in her left hand and a bottle of Maotai in her right, shouting “Cheers!” at a group of greasy bosses.

“Isn’t this way too down-to-earth?
Don’t tell me… she’s planning to have me drink a couple rounds of hard liquor with her tonight?
Run a full-on business dinner?”

“I don’t know either…”

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Lin Xue sounded equally helpless.

“Anyway, they’ve given you the opportunity.
Are you coming or not?”

“I’m coming!
Of course I’m coming!
Even if it’s baijiu—or even pesticide—I’ll drink it!”

“Tonight at Emerald Bamboo Pavilion.
Don’t be late!”

For this business dinner that concerned his career—

No, his ability to continue earning a high salary for the rest of his life—

Lin Yu spared no expense.

He fussed in front of the mirror for a long time.

That suit buried at the bottom of his suitcase was pressed until razor-sharp.
The tie was tied a bit crookedly, but it barely passed as the look of a “mature adult.”

“Hoo… looks pretty decent, actually.”

Lin Yu took a deep breath and nervously stepped into the hotel.

This place truly lived up to its reputation.

Though it didn’t have the gaudy, nouveau-riche splendor of Platinum Palace, every detail had clearly been polished to perfection.

Redwood pillars, Su embroidery screens—
even the cheongsams worn by the waitresses were obviously expensive real silk.

Not to mention the four-digit prices on the menu, which made Lin Yu’s heart ache just looking at them.

“Hello, are you Mr. Lin?
Emerald Bamboo Pavilion is on the third floor.
Please follow me.”

Guided by the waitress’s smile, Lin Yu passed through a quiet corridor and stopped before a carved wooden door.

“Emerald Bamboo Pavilion.”

The name sounded quite elegant.

“Knock, knock.”

Steadying himself, he lightly knocked twice, took a deep breath, and pushed the door open.

“Oh—”

The door opened.

The private room was spacious, decorated in a minimalist modern Chinese style.

Beside the large round table stood a long, antique-style tea table, set with exquisite tea ware.

And beside that tea table sat three women.

One of them was Lin Xue.

His usually confident little sister was now as obedient as a newly married bride, kneeling at the end seat, lowering her eyes as she poured tea, hardly daring to breathe.

Next to her sat a young woman with ear-length short hair and delicate features.

She wore a strict dark gray turtleneck sweater with a white coat over it, and silver-rimmed glasses perched on her nose.

She looked intellectual—probably the senior sister Lin Xue had mentioned.

And seated in the place of honor was…

Dr. Evelyn Reed.

Compared to when she was working at the research institute last time, she had clearly made preparations this time as well.

But those preparations weren’t meant to please anyone—
they felt more like a form of rigorous courtesy.

She wore a dark green bespoke silk blouse, paired with black wide-leg trousers with excellent drape.

The silk flowed like water, wrapping her body tightly.

Even the collar buttons were fastened up to the second one, revealing only a slender neckline.

Yet when the fabric subtly rose and fell with her breathing, the full curves faintly outlined beneath it conveyed a higher-class, ascetic sensuality.

She didn’t look like a rigid scientist at all—
more like a queen behind the scenes.

Stared at by three pairs of eyes at once, Lin Yu felt uncomfortable all over.

He bowed slightly, stiff and restrained.

“H-Hello!
I’m Lin Xue’s older brother, Lin Yu!
I’ve long admired your reputation, Doctor.
It’s an honor to be able to—”

“Heh.”

A soft laugh interrupted his pleasantries.

Dr. Reed elegantly swirled the teacup in her hand.

“No need to be so nervous, Mr. Lin.”

Her voice carried a unique magnetism, like the low strings of a cello vibrating.

“We’ve already met, haven’t we?”

“Or rather… I should call you… the adorable magical girl, Miss Lulu?”

!

Lin Yu’s heart clenched violently.

Even though he already knew the other side was aware of the truth, being called out like this still felt like being publicly exposed.

“It seems Dawn Company’s technology truly is astonishing…”

Dr. Reed slowly rose to her feet.

Only then did Lin Yu realize how oppressive this woman’s height was—
at least 175 centimeters.
With high heels, she was practically looking down on him.

She walked around him with elegant, feline steps.

“Not only able to perfectly stitch an ordinary male soul into that petite vessel formed from high-level energy…”

She extended a finger painted with dark purple nail polish, gently lifting Lin Yu’s chin as she leaned in to observe him.

“But even… able to let you maintain the integrity of your self-awareness in such a contradictory state.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…
Truly a perfect… vessel.”

That gaze.

The gaze of someone looking at a freshly dissected lab mouse, filled with greed and fanaticism.

A chill ran down Lin Yu’s spine.

Instinctively, he tried to step back—
only to find his legs heavy as if filled with lead.

“Professor…”

Just as the atmosphere began to congeal, the short-haired woman with glasses, who had been silent all this time, pushed up her frames and spoke.

“Shouldn’t we… start serving the dishes?”

“Oh?”

Dr. Reed withdrew her finger, the fanaticism on her face instantly reined in.

She smiled at Lin Yu, her expression inscrutable.

“Indeed.
We shouldn’t let our guest go hungry.
After all… he’s here to help us with something very important.”