FT DR Chapter 60: The Regret Caused by Serious Childhood Illness

Chapter 60: The Regret Caused by Serious Childhood Illness

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

“Your Excellency.”

The chief of staff’s voice startled Jin Zhe, who was immersed in memories. He raised his eyelids. “Hmm?”

“The Secret Service has contacted the Saint Martin Research Center. They said there has been a virus leak, and they have implemented a quarantine zone. We have to wait forty-eight hours for the virus to degrade before we can go in,” the chief of staff said. “Should we still proceed?”

A virus leak? It’s probably not just a virus leak… Jin Zhe squinted, “Stop the car.”

“Huh?” The chief of staff was taken aback, immediately ordering the Secret Service to land and establish a protection zone on the side. With a turn of his head, he was almost startled to see Jin Zhe’s expression. “M-Mr. President, what are you…”

In the back cabin, Jin Zhe had already taken off his tailored suit and shirt, revealing his muscular upper body. Due to years of warfare, he was extremely robust, with broad bones and bulging muscles. His tanned skin was covered with scars of all sizes, mixed with his original thorn and rose tattoo, exuding a rugged male charm. As he unbuckled his belt, he said, “Everyone stay put. I’ll be leaving for a while.”

“Mr. President, this violates security regulations!” the chief of staff exclaimed. “According to the regulations, there should be no fewer than six Secret Service agents around you in public places…”

“Shut up!” Jin Zhe put on a vest and sport pants, custom-made climbing shoes, and fastened a small waist pack around his waist. “Every ten minutes, I will send you a signal. If it exceeds ten minutes, immediately lock down Saint Martin Hospital and send people to raid the top-level research center.”

“But the virus…”

“This is the President’s highest order. Everyone must obey!” Jin Zhe’s stern expression was quite intimidating. Even the timid would feel intimidated. 

The chief of staff hesitated to advise further, swallowing back his words, and belched, “Uh, understood!”

Jin Zhe pulled up the zipper of his hoodie, opened the car door and jumped out, quickly disappearing into the shadows of the building. The chief of staff watched his agile figure, still worried. “The Secret Service team must send someone to follow the president; this is too dangerous.”

“Chief of Staff,” the driving Secret Service agent stopped him. “According to the current security level regulations, the Secret Service team still follows the president’s orders. You don’t have the authority to order anyone to track the president.”

The chief of staff hesitated for a moment, then reluctantly closed the communication channel. “Fine, everyone wait for the president’s instructions.”

Jin Zhe put the hood of his hoodie over his head and walked into the waiting hall of Saint Martin Hospital, where the elevator indicated that the upper levels were not in use, indicating that the research center above was indeed closed off. He followed a group of patients up to the unsealed highest floor, took advantage of the moment when nobody was paying attention, and climbed over the railing of the outdoor terrace, stepping on the narrow steps to the floor directly below Wu Chenghe’s ward.

This was the 469th floor, nearly two kilometers above the ground. The wind at this height, even a gentle breeze from the first and second floors, increased in intensity by five or six times, almost blowing people away. Jin Zhe, wearing magnetic climbing gloves and aided by climbing shoes, climbed the smooth exterior of the building like a gecko, unconcerned about the wind. Despite his age and less agile limbs due to long service in the federal military, he found such tasks trivial.

Soon, he was clinging to the outside of the room where Wu Chenghe was located. The outer wall material was translucent, preventing him from seeing inside. He estimated for a moment, then used his thermal melting equipment to attach it to the adjacent window.

“Buzz…” After a soft sound, a faint red light flashed along the edge of the entire window. Jin Zhe grabbed it with his magnetic gloves and pulled it down, swinging from the window frame with one arm, and smoothly jumped into the ward.

A strong wind rushed in through the open window, and Wu Chenghe’s bed was right by the window. Due to his light weight, he was blown over and rolled twice, “Thud,” falling to the ground.

Jin Zhe was startled, immediately reaching back to reseal the window at the crack. Carefully approaching Wu Chenghe, he found the little guy sleeping soundly, drooling. Wrapped in a blanket and on a soft surface, he didn’t wake up despite the fall.

“Youth is truly blissful, sleeping like a log…” Jin Zhe envied, thinking of his own age when, due to years of injections, his brain had become weak, often unable to sleep for days. Even when he did sleep, he would wake at the slightest sound, far from being able to sleep so deeply even after falling to the ground.

Jin Zhe gently lifted Wu Chenghe back onto the bed, tidied his messy hair, and murmured softly, “Be good, don’t wake up, lest you see some inappropriate scenes later…”

Wu Chenghe, “ZZZ…”

After settling his brother in law, Jin Zhe opened the ward door, cautiously looked around, and slipped out.

The corridor was quiet, with no voices, only a faint smell of vinegar in the air. Jin Zhe took a deep breath and immediately smelled the pheromones mixed in, too sweet, the scent of his guide, one hundred percent compatible with him. It was strong and heavy, just like the scent he had smelled in a chaotic moment thirty-two years ago.

“I finally caught you…” Jin Zhe stood in the corridor, taking a deep breath. The mania that had just subsided was triggered again, a faint red mist floated in his eyes, his Barbary lion paced anxiously at his feet, emitting an impatient growl, urging him to bond immediately. 

“Don’t rush, I’ve waited thirty-two years, it won’t be at this moment.” Jin Zhe took out a balancer and took a double dose, suppressing the surging emotions in his heart, and moved forward.

Passing by an open office door, Jin Zhe paused for a moment at the door. The scent of pheromones in the room was strong, but there was no sound of breathing. The guide should have been here but had already left. Jin Zhe saw two almost dried-up water stains on the floor, the footprints of an adult man, narrow and slender, extending to the wall in the distance.

“There should be a hidden door here.” Jin Zhe felt along the wall where the footprints disappeared, his fingers felt a nearly negligible gap, and he took out a long, thin tool from his waist pack and inserted it into the crack.

“Whoosh…” With a soft sound, the metal wall cracked open, revealing a narrow door inside, only allowing one person to pass through, with an iris scanning device on the door.

“He’s in there.” Jin Zhe muttered to himself, opened his personal terminal to crack the access control, an old Jin family secret technique, unparalleled in lock picking. Though he hadn’t used it much in recent years and wasn’t as agile as Jin Xuan, he didn’t disgrace his ancestors. Several minutes later, he successfully opened the narrow door.

A cold air mixed with ice chips spewed out. It seemed to be a cold storage room. Jin Zhe saw the footprints that disappeared outside the wall continuing inside, winding towards a row of racks behind which were rows of reagents.

The secret buried for thirty-two years was about to be revealed. Jin Zhe felt his heartbeat accelerate, blood rushing. Even though he was in his fifties, his chest surged with excitement like a young man. His lion was also unusually excited, pacing around him, nudging his legs with its head, urging him to bond immediately, to avoid another foolish act that would last for thirty years.

“Don’t be so impatient, you old rascal.” Jin Zhe scolded his old companion through telepathic communication, finally stepping forward towards the corner where the pheromones were the strongest.

A slender, weak man knelt in front of the medicine cabinet in the corner, leaning his head against the cabinet door, motionless. His hair was damp, covering half of his face, revealing a narrow and straight nose, distinct jawline, and a graceful curve of his neck due to the tilting action. His thin Adam’s apple protruded slightly, leaving a faint shadow on his fair, slightly pinkish skin, exuding a beautiful porcelain-like gloss under the soft light.

He was wrapped in a loose white coat, slightly open at the chest, revealing a large area of pink chest. Due to excessive thinness, he had almost no muscles, appearing as fragile and weak as a teenager. He seemed to be wearing nothing under the coat, his slender and long legs completely exposed to the cold air, gleaming with a beautiful porcelain-like luster under the soft light.

Jin Zhe almost immediately wanted to go over and bite his Adam’s apple, infuse his saliva into his skin, mark him, make him submit, and then make him moan beneath him.

But he resisted. As a man who had been celibate for decades, he had rich experience in this regard.

Jin Zhe silently approached the medicine cabinet, reached out his right hand, and gently pushed aside the guide’s bangs. Yes, it was him, Mu, the Dean of Aston Medical College, Wu Chenghe’s teacher, the Federal First Surgeon.

He had probably injected some drug and fallen into a brief unconscious state. Jin Zhe greedily examined his clear face, then closed his eyes slowly, stroking his face through the thin layer of air, from forehead to nose, then to jaw…

It was this face. Thirty-two years later, whenever he recalled those heartbreaking five days and nights, this familiar yet unfamiliar face would appear in his mind, incredibly illusory yet vivid.

Jin Zhe smelled the sweet scent on him and felt like he was back in the moment of life and death thirty-two years ago.

He had detonated a light grenade, ready to be blown to pieces along with the scorpions outside the cave. Unexpectedly, just before the explosion, the rocks behind him suddenly cracked open with a “boom,” and a pair of thin arms grabbed his neck from behind, dragging him into the crevice.

The violent shockwave blasted him and the people behind him more than ten meters away, crashing into the hard rock wall together. Jin Zhe felt dizzy and his chest was nearly seared by the energy wave, but he wasn’t hurt badly because someone was cushioning his fall.

The Voyager Army equipped high-energy light grenades, which had tremendous power when detonated, especially in this enclosed cave where the effect was even more devastating. They both fell to the ground, unable to get up before the shockwaves triggered a tremor in the mountains. Deep within the peaks, there came a muffled roar, and massive rocks collapsed all around, filling the air with the smell of gunpowder-laden dust.

“Get down!” Jin Zhe shouted hoarsely, groping to shield the person who saved him from the falling rocks with his body. Amidst the chaos, he was surprised to find out that the person saving him was not his comrade, but a very thin and small child, probably not even up to his shoulder in height and terribly thin.

The earthquake lasted for more than ten minutes before gradually subsiding. The exit was blocked, and they were completely buried in the mountains. Fortunately, no large rocks fell on Jin Zhe, and he only suffered minor injuries.

“Cough, cough!” The child in his arms coughed, and Jin Zhe, enduring the intense pain all over his body, crawled up and touched the boy’s head, realizing that he was a young boy with short hair, a small face, a pointed chin, and no beard yet, probably only fifteen or sixteen years old.

“Are you okay?” Jin Xuan’s consciousness was clouded by the shockwave from the light grenade explosion, unable to see clearly in the darkness. He lifted the boy onto his lap and felt around to check for injuries. 

The boy silently pushed him away, crawled to the side, and pulled out a medical kit from the rubble, saying, “Lie down, you’ve got a broken bone.”

His voice was very hoarse, not the hoarseness of sickness or injury, but the characteristic huskiness of a teenage boy going through puberty. It was unpleasant to hear, but his tone was very steady, devoid of any childishness.

Jin Zhe was somewhat stunned. He touched his ribs, which were in intense pain, and found that they were indeed probably broken. He took a deep breath and asked him, “Who are you? What are you doing here?”

The boy remained cold and silent, his thin arms supporting his neck as he lay down. He injected painkillers, set the bones, and treated the burns on Jin Zhe’s chest and thigh. Although his technique was somewhat awkward, it was still smooth, indicating that he had some training.

“You…” Jin Zhe was very curious about his identity. This place was not within the Federation’s territory, and theoretically, they were the first group of humans to land here. Why would there be another group of people, especially such a young child?

“Don’t talk!” The boy sternly interrupted him, saying, “You need to rest. We don’t have water, don’t waste your energy.” 

Jin Zhe felt that the boy was quite mysterious, but for some reason, he was willing to listen to him and didn’t ask any more questions, just lying quietly. The temperature in the mountains was very low, and after a while, the boy sneezed. After a few struggles, he awkwardly lay down next to Jin Zhe, gently holding Jin Zhe’s uninjured arm around his waist and coughed lightly, saying seriously, “I’m cold, can I borrow your hand to warm up for a while?”

He tried to sound indifferent, but Jin Zhe could hear a hint of shyness in his tone. Unable to help but smile, Jin Zhe’s heart was filled with a soft emotion. He said, “I’m cold too, can you hold me a bit more?”

The boy hesitated for a moment, seemingly believing his words. He leaned closer, his whole body pressed against Jin Zhe’s, and asked, “Is this better?” 

The boy’s body was thin and soft, and his chest was against Jin Zhe’s arm, warm and comforting. Jin Zhe resisted the urge to laugh and said, “Much better.” After a pause, he asked, “How about you?”

The boy didn’t answer, but his breathing became erratic, obviously even more embarrassed.

Neither of them was talkative. Since the boy didn’t want to reveal his identity, Jin Zhe didn’t pursue it. They just cuddled up and fell asleep.

After sleeping for an unknown period, Jin Zhe’s consciousness was suddenly disturbed. He woke up abruptly and found that his lion was restless, pacing around anxiously and emitting low roars, as if searching for something.

The anesthesia in Jin Zhe’s chest hadn’t completely worn off, and most of his body was still numb, making it impossible to move. He moved his arm and found that the boy was still nestled under his arm, breathing unsteadily but his whole body warm.

This warmth wasn’t right! Jin Zhe’s heart sank, and he touched the boy’s hand, feeling it burning hot. He said, “Hey?”

The boy’s hand was narrow and delicate, with unusually long fingers and a soft palm. He hummed drowsily, not waking up but instead snuggling closer to Jin Zhe.

“Wake up.” Jin Zhe tapped his face, but the boy still didn’t move, seeming to be unconscious. Jin Zhe felt his face was very hot, and he reached into his collar, finding that his body was also burning hot.

In this place at this time, a fever could be fatal! Jin Zhe was extremely worried, but unable to move, he struggled to sit up, holding the boy in his lap and gently shaking him, “Hey, wake up, kid.”

The boy’s body was soft, and when shaken, he seemed to wake up briefly, murmuring, “So… hot, teacher… I want to be an adult… I’m so hot.”

Teacher? Was he a student somewhere? Jin Zhe was puzzled, calling out to him again, but he couldn’t wake him up anymore.

There were many medicines in the medical kit, but without light or fire, Jin Zhe’s consciousness was injured, unable to determine which one was the antipyretic. He could only give the boy the last bit of water from his combat suit, holding him against the rock wall, hoping he would recover on his own.

Several hours later, the boy woke up, and the first thing he did was push Jin Zhe away and scramble to a corner away from him. Jin Zhe was puzzled and asked him, “You have a fever, you’ve been unconscious for hours. Do you have any usable medication in your kit?”

The boy remained silent, huddled in the corner, not speaking. Jin Zhe felt a bit anxious and wanted to climb over to him, but he heard a faint sob, the boy was actually crying, choking, “Don’t come near… me.”

Jin Zhe was increasingly puzzled, wondering if he was scared or had some kind of claustrophobia. He spoke gently, “Don’t be afraid, someone will come to rescue us. You have a fever, we need to bring it down first.”

The boy stayed in the corner, covering his mouth silently choking, his suppressed breathing could be heard in the darkness. After a long time, he said in a low voice, “It’s useless.”

Jin Zhe was heartbroken by his hoarse and sorrowful voice. He took out the last small piece of energy bar from his pocket and threw it to him, saying, “Eat this, stop crying. We will be rescued, trust me.”

The boy picked up the energy bar but didn’t eat it. After a long time, Jin Zhe heard his trembling voice saying, “Don’t… don’t touch me.”

Jin Zhe chuckled, slowly stating that he didn’t have feelings for boys, and even if he did, in a place like this, with him being injured like this, how could he possibly have such feelings? “I won’t touch you, just stop crying.”

The boy’s voice continued to tremble, as if he was extremely afraid of him, insisting stubbornly, “Swear it.”

“…Fine, I swear.” Jin Zhe was completely dumbfounded. Was this kid summoned by a scorpion to be so ridiculous?

“Remember what you said.” The boy didn’t seem to think he was being ridiculous at all, gradually regaining his composure, his voice returning to its previous indifferent tone. “Otherwise, I’ll kill you.”

Jin Zhe was speechless. He had never seen such a miraculous and self-important boy before. My god! Did he think he was a celestial being or something?

Childish!

“I’ll remember.” Jin Zhe said indifferently, completely unaware of what true childishness was at that moment!

 

 

 

 

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