Chapter 66: Lu Ze

“What are you doing here?”
A man’s voice suddenly came from behind her.

Before Lin Yu could even react, a firm hand clamped down on her shoulder.

Discovered?!

Her entire body stiffened. Slowly, she turned around.

Standing behind her was a young man — tall, clean-cut, wearing rimless glasses and a white lab coat identical to her sister Lin Xue’s.

At first glance, he looked refined — almost handsome — but the gaze behind those lenses was sharp and cold, brimming with judgment and superiority.

Another researcher? Ugh… why does this guy give off such an unpleasant vibe?

“I’m talking to you.”
Seeing that Lin Yu hadn’t answered, his brows furrowed. His tone carried a trace of irritation.

“Which department are you from? I’ve never seen you before. F-Building is restricted to the School of Life Sciences and Engineering. Outsiders are not allowed in — that’s common sense, isn’t it?”

“Uh— Senior, wait a moment…”

Lin Yu let out a nervous laugh, then lowered her voice and whispered to her earpiece,
“Senior! Some annoying guy just showed up out of nowhere — what do I do? Should I just tell him I’m from Dawn Corporation?”

She waited expectantly for Su Xiaoli’s usual lazy but razor-sharp reply.

But… silence.

Her heart skipped. She glanced at the holographic interface of her wristband from the corner of her eye.

Below the cute nine-tailed fox icon representing Su Xiaoli was a single line of text:

“Mentor’s support time is over, Gray Crystal-chan~ Good luck with your mission! (ゝ▽・)”

Then the fox icon dimmed to gray.

She’s gone…?

Lin Yu wiped her nonexistent sweat.

Seriously? At this time?

Meanwhile, the man — who clearly wasn’t known for his patience — raised his phone, apparently to call security.

Lin Yu didn’t have time to think of a perfect excuse. Acting purely on instinct, she lunged forward.

“W–Wait, senior! Please!”

Her voice trembled with genuine anxiety.

“I—I’m not some random intruder! I’m here to do equipment maintenance! Look, this is my work permit!”

She quickly tapped her wristband, projecting an official-looking electronic ID:

Dawn Labor Services (Xinhai) Co. – Contract Technician – Gray Crystal

It even included her transformed face — wide-eyed, harmless, and adorable.

The man paused. He leaned closer, scanning the ID. His frown eased a little… but only a little.

“Dawn Corporation…” he repeated, tone dripping with disdain.
“Oh right, that’s the labor company partnered with SkyDome Group, isn’t it?”

His gaze grew faintly amused as it lingered on her face.
“The ID looks fine, but… you seem suspicious.”

He shrugged.
“I’ve been watching you for at least five minutes. You’ve been pacing back and forth, looking around like a thief. Then you whip out this badge out of nowhere— how do I know it’s not fake? This building’s partnered with ReCon — we store classified data here. What if you’re an infiltrator from a rival firm? You know how brutal corporate competition gets these days.”

He adjusted his glasses, his voice smugly serious.
“To be safe, I’ll just call Dr. Reed to confirm. F-Building’s security isn’t something to take lightly.”

Dr. Reed?!
That’s Lin Xue’s supervisor!

Lin Yu’s brain exploded.
If he calls her, my genius little sister will come running here too!

No way! Not now! I’m in the middle of my probation evaluation!

She made her decision in an instant — she couldn’t let that call happen.
So just as his finger hovered above the “call” button, she grabbed his wrist.

Her small hand barely wrapped around it, but the sudden move froze him mid-motion.

“W–wait… please…”

Lin Yu bit her lip. Then, with an inward scream, she made the most humiliating decision of her life.

No choice… gotta do this.

She clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and summoned every ounce of tragic memory she could think of.

When she looked up, her emerald-green eyes shimmered with tears — pure, trembling, and heartbreakingly fragile.

Her delicate features took on a pitiful glow.

“Please… don’t call them…”

Her voice cracked — soft, pleading, full of helplessness.

“I’m not… suspicious. I was just… nervous…”

As she spoke, she subtly pinched her waist hard under her oversized hoodie.

(Ow—!)

The sharp sting drew real tears to her eyes, trembling on her lashes.

Perfect. Emotion: on point.

“Our company… they’re really strict with new employees’ professionalism…” she whispered brokenly.

“If my boss finds out that I messed up my first field assignment, acting all awkward in front of someone as professional as you— he’ll deduct my whole month’s pay…”

“I worked so hard to get this job… please, kind sir, can’t you give me another chance?”

Her voice quivered, her lip trembled. She looked like she’d burst into tears any second.

The “helpless young girl” act, powered by her magical form, had a devastating effect.

Her watery eyes, her trembling shoulders, her fragile expression — it was the perfect storm.

Even the researcher, who hadn’t shown much interest before, suddenly seemed… different.

“…Nervous?” he repeated, his tone softening despite himself.
“What’s there to be nervous about? I come here every day, and even I don’t look that suspicious…”

“Because…”

Lin Yu lowered her head, twisting her hoodie hem between her fingers, voice barely above a whisper.

“Because I’ve never been somewhere this… amazing before…”

She looked up again, her green eyes now full of genuine awe and insecurity.

“I—I’m just a regular girl from Hive District. I graduated from some no-name third-rate university. But here… this is Xinhai University — the gathering place of the world’s brightest geniuses…”

She lightly placed a hand on his chest, leaning closer, her collar slipping just enough to reveal her slender collarbone.

“When I saw someone as brilliant as you walk out of this building, I just… froze. I didn’t know what to do.”

“My mom always told me to study hard… but after meeting people here, I finally understood — the gap between geniuses and ordinary people isn’t something effort can bridge. You’re on a level I could never reach. Just standing in front of you… makes me nervous enough to forget how to breathe.”

She deliberately held her breath until her face turned red — completing the look of a flustered, shy girl.

God, this feels so cheap…

But for her probation test, her 40,000-yuan salary, and her dream of a comfortable future — what was pride compared to that?

If a little acting gets the job done, then so be it.

The man stared at her, dazed.

Those green eyes, that soft trembling voice — they filled him with a strange thrill.

Dawn Corporation really sends girls like this? he thought, a dark gleam flashing in his eyes.
Naïve, gentle, easy to handle… wouldn’t take much to reel her in.

His frosty “elite” expression began to melt into something more predatory.

“I see,” he said finally, tucking away his phone.
“No need to be so nervous. We’re all nice people here.”

He smiled — that smooth, cultivated kind of smile that reeked of self-importance.

“My name’s Lu Ze — P3-level core researcher of ReGen Biotech’s Prometheus Project, and Dr. Evelyn Reed’s direct student.”

“Since you were honest, I’ll make an exception. I’ll personally show you around the building.”

His lips curled into what he clearly thought was a charming grin.

“Wouldn’t want such a cute little girl to lose her bonus just for getting lost on her first day.”

Little girl?

Lin Yu’s eyelid twitched.

She wanted to snap back, Buddy, my soul’s older than yours, but she swallowed the words — along with her pride.

Putting on her best “grateful newbie” act, she chirped,
“T-Thank you so much, Brother Lu Ze~!”

“Brother?” He chuckled, pleased.
“No need to be so polite. Just call me Lu Ze.”

As he walked ahead, his hand casually slid onto her back — firm, guiding, and intrusive.

“Come on, don’t just stand there.”

Lin Yu’s shoulders tensed at the unwanted touch.

(Yup… knew this would happen.)

She forced herself to walk, ignoring the crawling discomfort on her skin.

They entered the gleaming building — a grand fusion of classical elegance and futuristic design.

The marble floors shone like mirrors; the chandelier above was a glowing DNA helix, casting holy white light.

On both sides of the corridor, glass-walled labs revealed scientists in sterile suits, working on machines that looked straight out of sci-fi movies.

“See those?” Lu Ze pointed out, proud.

His hand slid lower, resting on her slim waist.

(Keep calm… just a bit longer…)

“That’s our High-Activity Protein Cultivation Room,” he said. “Those floating jellyfish-like organisms are our newest creation — code-named Alpha. In theory, with the right nutrients and stimuli, they can transform into any biological tissue we want.”

He pointed again, to a lab filled with glowing blue tanks.
“And that’s the Gene Sequencing and Recombinant Center — where we literally create life. Just last week, we reconstituted a proto-bird species from dinosaur DNA.”

(What the hell — a proto-bird that lays eggs? Are you guys building Jurassic Park or something?)

On the outside, Lin Yu maintained her wide-eyed awe.
“So… it’s like Prometheus himself, creating life?”

He grinned. “You could say that.”

He even gave her waist a light squeeze.

(I swear, once this mission’s done, I’ll tell you I’m actually a guy — and we’ll see if you can still eat dinner afterward.)

“We’re the pride of Xinhai University,” Lu Ze continued proudly.
“Only the best experts or top one-percent talents like me get to work here.”

They walked deeper until a massive alloy door loomed ahead, engraved with elegant text:

[Prometheus Project Core Lab – Dr. Evelyn Reed’s Private Sector]

“This is the heart of F-Building,” Lu Ze said, his voice swelling with pride. “Only about ten people have access here.”

“Dr. Evelyn Reed…” Lin Yu murmured. So that’s my sister’s mentor, huh?

Trying to sound curious, she said,
“My senior mentioned Dr. Reed before! Said she’s a true genius in genetic engineering — someone who could change the world!”

Lu Ze smiled stiffly. “Well… yes. She’s brilliant.”

Lin Yu caught that tiny shift in tone — and went for it.

“My senior also said the doctor has a really talented student! I think her name was… Lin Xue?”

The moment her sister’s name left her lips, Lu Ze’s smile froze.

“…Lin Xue? Ah, her.”

His grin stiffened, his tone dripping with forced civility.
“She’s… decent. Solid theoretical base. Occasionally has good ideas. For a small-town test-taker who made it to Xinhai, that’s already impressive.”

(You jerk! My sister’s amazing!)

Lin Yu clenched her fists, forcing herself to keep smiling sweetly.
“So, Brother Lu Ze, you must be even more incredible than Senior Lin Xue?”

“Of course.” He said it instantly.
“Theory’s easy — true research takes talent. She’s still struggling with Alpha’s reverse transcription, while I’ve already completed the directed psionic infection model for gene chains. My paper’s getting published next month in BioSyn Review— not that you’d know it.”

He went on, voice rising with pride and resentment.
“Dr. Reed values her because she’s obedient. But me—”

He adjusted his glasses; his eyes gleamed with ambition.
“I’m the one who can truly change this project!”

“R-right… amazing…” Lin Yu replied weakly.

He coughed, smoothing his tone. “Anyway, you wouldn’t understand our internal matters.”

“Now, what exactly are you here to fix? Don’t tell me Dawn Corporation’s got clearance for the core lab.”

“Ah, no, no! Nothing like that!” Lin Yu waved her hands frantically.
“It’s just… some humidity and air quality sensors in the fourth-floor washroom…”

She even brought up her fake work order to show him.

“Fourth floor… washroom?” he repeated, brows furrowing again — clearly unimpressed.

(He’s buying it… thank god.)

“That’s fine then, Brother Lu Ze. I’ll go by myself, I don’t want to waste your time—”

“I’ll take you,” he interrupted smoothly.

He turned toward the elevator. “Let’s go.”

Lin Yu sighed inwardly and followed, shoulders tight, muttering silently to herself:

Great. Persistent and sleazy. Just my luck…