When Shen Jie entered the research institute, the sky had already darkened.
Dean Shi Chen’s office is in District 1 of the research institute.
Seven years ago, when he first came here, he was “forced” to sign an agreement.
The content was related to the “Companion Plan” formulated by the institute for Zong Lin at that time.
Although various terms in the agreement seemed unfair—such as “control emotions, eliminate the possibility of quarrels with partners”, “do everything possible to meet the partner’s demands”, “prioritize soothing and satisfying the other party”, and so on.
But given that the attitude of the dean of the research institute at the time was “no acceptance of the agreement, no way out,” and considering that the monthly mental compensation specified in the agreement was three times his usual salary, with the guarantee that Zong Lin’s future restraint coordinator would prioritize him—under such conditions, Shen Jie still signed his name on the agreement.
In fact, in their seven years as partners, he and Zong Lin had never quarreled.
After all, he himself did not understand the specific factors that trigger emotions such as anger, sadness, or resentment.
And Zong Lin’s emotions were excessively restrained, often going along with him when he was causing trouble, trying out new and fun experiences they hadn’t experienced before. Even if things got out of hand sometimes, he would just reluctantly furrow his brows and stop him by grabbing the back of his neck with his hand.
Thinking about it, Shen Jie was quite curious about what Zong Lin would be like when they argued.
What would he be angry about, after all?
As he thought about it, he stepped onto the transparent floating elevator.
The laboratory in District 1 was responsible for exoskeleton research, and the sounds of mechanical currents and welding were incessant in the corridor.
Unlike the offices separated one by one in the District 7’s Suppressor Development Center, most of the space here was open, with different types of exoskeletons displayed in showcases, and researchers shuttle back and forth among them.
The researchers who could work in the District 1 were at least level A, making Shen Jie’s C-level badge seem out of place, attracting side glances.
“The power is still lacking.”
“Should we try adjusting it like this?”
“The reactive force generated by this design is too strong. Do you want it to be limited to be worn only by ability users? The original purpose of exoskeletons was to allow ordinary people to have the power to combat the aliens!”
“But if we increase the shock absorption, flexibility will be compromised—besides, what’s wrong with it being used by ability users? How many ordinary people end up on the battlefield anyway?”
A group of researchers gathered together arguing and discussing.
In front of them lay a beautiful silver exoskeleton, its sleek lines embodying the beauty of technology.
Shen Jie surveyed the exoskeleton, feeling a sense of familiarity.
Soon, he remembered. This silver exoskeleton bore some resemblance to the initial form of the “Independent Exoskeleton” the system had given him.
It was like… a prototype.
Among the crowd, he spotted Ke Xi Ya. The young man with curly golden hair seemed overly youthful among the group of balding, tired-looking senior researchers, but his aura was just as strong. His expression, however, was nothing like the usual lazy and docile demeanor he exhibited in front of Shen Jie; instead, he held a pen in his hand, spinning it around.
At that moment, Ke Xi Ya also noticed him, and the pen between his fingertips came to a halt.
Ke Xi Ya squeezed out of the crowd and walked up to him, greeting him, “Shen Jie? What brings you here?”
The young man with curly hair smiled with his eyes squinted, his tone gentle, as if the argument they had in the hospital ward hadn’t happened at all.
“The dean asked me to come over,” Shen Jie replied.
Ke Xi Ya blinked, teasingly saying, “Oh, really? I thought you came here just to see me.”
With a lazy stretch of his neck, the gold neck collar suppressor glinted under the light.
“Maybe because my ability growth rate has been a bit rapid lately, I feel like the suppressor isn’t quite in sync,” Ke Xi Ya said casually. “Shen Jie, could you do me a favor and adjust it for me before you leave?”
Shen Jie replied nonchalantly, “I’m in a hurry today, and I’ve been on vacation recently. If you’re in a rush, you can schedule with another coordinator tomorrow.”
Ke Xi Ya sounded a bit aggrieved, “Just a slight adjustment, it shouldn’t take much time, right? I don’t want to schedule with someone else. You know, I’ve been adjusting in your lab for years, and I’m not used to someone else.”
“What are you doing?”
A cold voice suddenly came from nearby.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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The dean’s office was located at the top of the entire research institute.
Perhaps for security reasons, the room was surrounded by metal walls, with no windows. It looked more like a prison than the dean’s office.
Dean Shi Chen’s desk was large, piled with the latest research reports submitted from various areas. Several computer screens were arranged horizontally, almost three meters long, resembling a long ribbonfish.
“Sit,” Shi Chen said.
Shen Jie sat across from him.
“The dean summoning me so late, is there something important?” Shen Jie spoke first. “Couldn’t it be discussed over the phone?”
Shi Chen picked up a stack of documents from the desk and pushed them toward Shen Jie.
“You should know this person.”
Shen Jie glanced at it. It was Lin Ze.
“My therapist,” he said, pausing briefly before adding, “An alien disguised as a human, the host of the mist at the Psychological Treatment Center this time.”
Shi Chen nodded. “According to the observation of the ‘Fate’ ability user, he has leaked your identity to the other aliens. Now, you’re in danger.”
“Danger?” Shen Jie raised an eyebrow.
Shi Chen stared at him. “You are Zong Lin’s partner. I thought you should be self-aware.”
“Do you suspect that I leaked Zong Lin’s partner information to Lin Ze?” Shen Jie said lightly. “Dean, instead of asking me, you should check if there’s anything inappropriate sneaking into the city.”
Shi Chen fell silent for a moment before saying, “The city is already investigating this matter. But now, it’s happened. You should understand, your life now concerns your partner. He cares about you deeply.”
For Shen Jie, Zong Lin had directly defied the institute’s orders multiple times. Whether it was refusing the injection of SCB-03 or refusing to resolve Lin Ze in the most efficient way. The guardian was no longer just obedient; he now had someone to hold onto.
Shi Chen once refused everything uncontrollable, trying to keep everything orderly. But Zong Lin was precisely the most unstable factor. Now, the person with the potential to control this instability was right in front of him.
Shen Jie’s lips curled slightly, “I know.”
Shi Chen tapped his knuckles on the desk. After a long silence, he seemed to be pondering and making decisions. After a while, he spoke: “From now on, for your personal safety, the city will implement special protective measures for you. Until the issue of the lurking aliens is resolved, you must reduce contact with anyone who may pose a danger. The work of the Coordinator in District Seven is suspended, and I will temporarily transfer you to District One, but your main task remains coordinating suppressors for Zong Lin.”
“I’ve arranged for you to have a separate lab. As for the dormitory you currently reside in, it will be replaced with a high-level dormitory in a special protection area. Here’s the room card. After you leave, please complete the handover of work and the dormitory as soon as possible.”
“During Zong Lin’s vacation, stay with him as much as possible and try not to leave his sight. In addition, when Zong Lin goes on missions, the institute will assign ability user to protect you.”
With that, Shi Chen took out a small box from the drawer. He opened it and then pushed it towards Shen Jie.
Inside the alloy box was a dark red syringe. The glass of the syringe shimmered with a cold light under the incandescent lamp, with the black letters “SCB-03” engraved on it.
Shi Chen said, “Carry this with you.”
“When Zong Lin completely loses control and you’re unable to calm him down, inject this syringe into his body.”
“The injection has side effects. But he agreed to leave the choice to you.”
Shen Jie stared at the box for a moment before saying, “He’s back?”
Shi Chen nodded and said, “He’s waiting for you in your lab.”
—-
Zong Lin was indeed in the laboratory.
He had just completed the task of retrieving the core, returning from the wilderness. His abilities had not completely subsided yet, and the growing white bones entangled on his arm.
Shen Jie walked into the lab with a tray of suppressors.
This laboratory, allocated to him by Shi Chen, was located on the seventh floor of District One and was one of the few independent labs on this floor.
The equipment inside was very new, and it even came with a set of special alloy surgical knives — weapons capable of cutting through the bone armor of a Rank Two ability user. The material and cost of such weapons were extremely high, with only one in the entire District Seven before.
Although the previous suppressor had been scrapped due to malfunction, the new suppressor had already been made. However, due to Zong Lin’s issue with being “probability locked” by an unknown ability, he had been unable to wear it for a long time.
But now, it seemed that the problem had been solved.
Shen Jie thought of the blood-red ray he encountered before.
Anyone daring to reach into his fate trajectory had to pay a price.
This time, the process of wearing the suppressor was different from last time, as Zong Lin was conscious.
Before Shen Jie came in, for efficiency, Zong Lin had already taken off everything that needed to be removed — including his black pants.
Zong Lin sat on the surgical table, his cold white hair falling. The surgical light illuminated his body, showcasing the perfect contours of his muscles.
Such a body, full of strength and beauty.
“Xiao Jie,” Zong Lin called him.
Earrings. Rings. Armlets. Leg rings. Neck ring.
Shen Jie’s movements were skilled and decisive, and a set of multifunctional surgical knives elevated his skills to a higher level.
As Shen Jie placed the final gunmetal neck ring around the other’s neck, he lowered his head to admire for a moment, then couldn’t help but lean over and bite the other’s throat gently, saying,
“Indeed, this color suits you well.”
The magnetic field generated by the suppressor and the source of the energy infection canceled each other out, and the muscles that had been forcibly controlled relaxed somewhat. Zong Lin raised his hand to embrace Shen Jie’s waist, his soft white hair lightly brushing against his neck as he whispered hoarsely,
“Shall we… go home now?”
Shen Jie replied, “We still have to handle some things first.”
He didn’t have many personal belongings in his office in District Seven, so he only took some books he hadn’t finished reading back with him and made a copy of the data on ability individuals that he hadn’t finished processing on his computer to give to Professor Xu.
Professor Xu felt very reluctant to see him go, after all, he was the coordinator with the highest patient satisfaction under his command. Unfortunately, this was the arrangement issued by the highest level of the institute, with no room for negotiation, so he could only bid farewell with a heavy heart.
The books were heavy, and Zong Lin helped carry them as they went back to Shen Jie’s original dormitory.
The dormitory in the C-level research institute wasn’t large, but it had everything one needed, and the environment was decent.
However… even though it was the place where Shen Jie had lived for seven years, there was no sense of anyone living there.
The bed was neatly made, the small kitchen showed no signs of being used, and the fridge was empty. Besides a cup on the table, it was all empty.
So packing up was exceptionally quick, and in less than ten minutes, Shen Jie picked up a box and nodded to Zong Lin.
Zong Lin asked, “Is this all?”
“That’s all,” Shen Jie replied.
Zong Lin pursed his lips.
Three hundred and sixty-five days a year, he spent three hundred days on missions in the wilderness.
Although Shen Jie never said much about it, he couldn’t help but feel indebted.
Seeing Shen Jie’s dormitory now made things even more complicated and difficult to articulate.
How lonely must Shen Jie feel living here alone most of the time?
As they came out, Shen Jie unexpectedly ran into Steven.
“You…” Steven’s eyes widened as he glanced at Shen Jie holding the box, then at Zong Lin holding the books. “What’s this?”
Of course, he recognized Zong Lin, the great hero of the city famous on television, the figure he had spent his whole life admiring and wanting to become.
“He’s helping me,” Shen Jie said, without much explanation. “Did you just come back from dinner?”
“Yeah. The stir-fried pork in the cafeteria today was really fresh,” Steven smacked his lips. “What are you guys moving these things for?”
“Moving dorms,” Shen Jie said.
Steven looked puzzled. “Why would you want to move dorms when you’re on vacation?”
“I’ve been transferred to District One,” Shen Jie said calmly.
Steven froze. His expression became somewhat complicated.
“Is that so…” He seemed to be trying hard to force a congratulatory smile, but it didn’t quite succeed. Eventually, he stiffly said, “Well, congratulations, bro! Don’t forget about me now that you’re moving up in the world!”
Shen Jie gave him a strange look. “I have a good memory. I don’t forget people easily.”
Steven choked a bit, chuckled awkwardly, and said, “Alright, alright. It’s getting late. I won’t bother you anymore. Carry on, carry on, and hurry with the move.”
With that, he hurried back to his room, not even noticing Zong Lin standing right beside them.
“Is he the friend you mentioned you had dinner with before?” Zong Lin asked.
Shen Jie nodded. “His name is Steven.”
The two headed to the deluxe dormitories in the special area.
The deluxe dormitories were more than ten times larger than the original ones, fully equipped with facilities, resembling nothing short of a luxurious presidential suite in a hotel.
“Quite spacious,” Shen Jie remarked.
Zong Lin glanced down at him.
Shen Jie’s expression remained unchanged, showing neither joy nor dissatisfaction. It seemed that whether it was a small dormitory or a large one, there was no difference to him.
After putting away their things, the two headed home.
Before going home, Shen Jie held Zong Lin’s hand and went to the supermarket to buy the groceries they hadn’t had time to buy.
Yesterday, they had just eaten lamb, so this time, at Shen Jie’s suggestion, they bought deer meat.
The texture of the deer meat was beautiful. After marinating and grilling on the iron plate, it was placed on the plate with asparagus, presenting a wonderful color and aroma.
They also stewed creamy mushroom soup, with the thick white soup emitting an enticing sweetness.
Zong Lin watched Shen Jie busily working in the kitchen and felt that there was no place more nostalgic than here.
On the dining table was a vase of flowers, which Shen Jie casually placed after buying them at the supermarket.
There were two aprons in the kitchen, one tied around Shen Jie’s waist and the other on his body.
The cups in the cupboard were a couple’s set. Everywhere one looked, there were traces of Shen Jie’s arrangement.
Compared to the dormitory Shen Jie had lived in for seven years, which remained empty, although Zong Lin had spent less time here, it seemed to be filled with the scent of “home” everywhere.
“You rarely come home, you should eat more to nourish your body”. Shen Jie said earnestly when it was time for dinner.
Zong Lin felt he was right and quietly ate two large pieces of deer meat and drank a bowl of soup.
The deer meat worked even faster than lamb.
While washing dishes, Zong Lin felt a fire burning inside him.
He quickly finished washing the dishes, took a shower, and when he came out, Shen Jie was already in bed.
The room was dimly lit, and Shen Jie lay on the bed playing with his phone, the blanket only half covering him, his black hair cascading over his bare, fair back. The marks from yesterday had not faded, scattered like plum blossoms in the snow.
“Come here,” Shen Jie said to him.
Translator: cut down the mood, here is a cute picture from Copilot LOL
I’m just gonna keep saying it. I love their love. I love them.
I feel like Ke Xi Ya is another alien spy. Isn’t he the only one that has ever rejected one of Shen Jie’s personally designed suppressors? Even though Shen Jie should know his tastes well because they knew each other in uni? Almost like his tastes suddenly changed for some reason. And now he’s trying to get Shen Jie alone with him right after the aliens have decided they need to kidnap Shen Jie.
Good point. He’s also conveniently positioned with access to a lot of confidential information.
I hope this doesn’t spoil too much… but really Ke Xi Ya is just a chill sheep dude that likes Xiao Shen… nothing to do with aliens and isn’t mentioned too much beside prob like 6 times throughout the novel hiss you’re better off paying attention to someone else like Steven, or Chi Xu, or Yan Fengqing, or Qi Xiuyun, or Qi Chu… (jk some of these characters aren’t alien💀)
The more I see of Shi Chen, the less I like him and I did’t have a good impression of him to begin with. Also I feel like with his inferiority complex Steven is slowly checking of all the boxes as a new host.
Oh mah gawd, the Copilot pictures are so cute ahhh Little Shen Jie is on his bed scrolling on his phone waiting for hubby to come out and snuggle with him my heart is melting <333 Also where do you get these Copilot pictures from? 🤔
Thank you for the chapter ❤
From here https://copilot.microsoft.com/
lol, I didn’t think it was an app I thought it was something related to airplanes or a Chinese fanart website or sum 😂😂❤
I really love this novel and Palace Survival Chronicles, personally, I haven’t started Everyone Loves Mr.Rong yet cuz I’m just trying to catch up with other novels but I don’t doubt your taste in novels so when I find time for some sweet calm fluff I’ll definitely check it out, thank you so much for showing me The Passerby, He Turned Out To Be The World Ending Boss <3 I haven’t cried like that for a novel for so long ❤❤❤
ELMR is more like a slice-of-life novel. My taste is in OP shou/smart shou/genius shou/high-ranking novels.
afojfhwjdfoj I’m definitely giving all of your translations a read then, not only do you have good taste, you also have high translation efficiency, your translation is easy to read and you also reply to questions!!! I’ll be excited for your next project <3
Let’s burn some heat ~
I hope Steven doesn’t become an alien. Shen jie’s transfer and the buildup of his insecurities might really just be the trigger💔