Genius Chapter 198: Group Project

Chapter 198: Group Project

Translated by Karai of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

 

Su Mo didn’t look closely; he quickly scanned the content. It was a terminal communication email from the official Celestial Horizon team, inviting him to participate in an offline meetup. Aside from some polite remarks, the rest of the email introduced the details of the offline event, stating that if he was interested in attending, he could reply directly to the email without needing to make an online reservation. A dedicated customer service representative would contact him afterward.

In the group chat for the group project, there was also a game announcement, and the exploration group had posted an announcement as well. Since the offline meetup was set to take place on Capital Planet, it felt like it was right in their backyard for players who often played on the Capital Planet branch server, especially given the current transportation situation in the Alliance.

• apple: “What a rarity, they’re actually holding a meetup.”

• ChatMasterWu: “They should have held a meetup long ago; there have been several online ones, but this is the first offline one, right?”

• ScarletFruit: “Wow, isn’t the venue right in my Vicinity? I’m signing up! You all should sign up too; we can meet up and have a meal!”

• ClearWind: “Let’s arrange a meetup; will my big brothers come? @momo @ReturnToSimplicity”

• FireworksAndLanterns: “Ah, I just received the email. I’m on a business trip; when is the meetup?”

• Bitter melon mixed with milk: “It seems like all the leaderboard players received the email. From the event description, it looks like a large meetup.”

• BrokenOracle: “It’s at the end of next month; there’s about a month and a half left. @FireworksAndLanterns”

• FireworksAndLanterns: “There’s still time! Oh great, I’m going to reply to the email.”

Su Mo listened to his classmates’ discussion and noticed that ClearWind and the others were @ mentioning him in the group chat. He thought that since he didn’t have anything else planned for the end of next month, it would be convenient for him to travel from his home in the Vicinity. After considering it, he replied with a couple of sentences, saying he would see how things went, then he sent Yu Zhen a private message to ask if he wanted to go.

Yu Zhen was probably busy, as he didn’t respond to Su Mo’s message.

“Su Mo, why didn’t you reply when I was just talking to you?” Lans asked.

Su Mo came back to reality. “I was just looking at some messages. What’s up?”

Lans said, “We were discussing whether we should go to the meetup together. Did you sign up? It’s on Saturday, so it’ll be close to the school. The class monitor asked if you wanted to join us.”

Su Mo replied, “I’ll see how it goes and ask my friends.”

The class monitor didn’t insist, saying, “That’s fine. If you decide to go with us, just let me know. We’ve all signed up.”

Su Mo thanked them, and just then the professor started the lecture again. He put away his terminal and continued listening to the class. Although he was paying attention, the students next to him had already shifted their focus to the game meetup, quietly discussing it while avoiding the professor’s gaze.

“There seem to be quite a few events!”
“I heard they especially invited the big names from the leaderboard.”
“Does that mean we’ll get to see CloudTraveller?!”
“Will archdemon be there too?! He’s so mysterious; I want to see him!”
…

The morning class ended quickly. After having lunch, Su Mo returned to his dormitory to rest. He didn’t have any experimental classes in the afternoon but had to go to the laboratory.

Not long after he arrived in the dorm, he received a call from Chen Shanxue.

His parents occasionally returned to the school, and when they didn’t come, they would call Su Mo during his free time to check on him. Sometimes it was Chen Shanxue, and sometimes it was Su Zhi Xing. Chen Shanxue asked him what he had for lunch, and Su Mo answered truthfully.

Chen Shanxue said, “You went to bed early last night. Since you had classes to attend in the morning and Yu Zhen was there too, I didn’t mention it.”

Su Mo paused, unsure why Chen Shanxue suddenly brought up this topic. “What’s wrong?”

“You didn’t say anything, but your dad and I still need to tell you,” Chen Shanxue said. She recounted the details of the conversation between Su Zhi Xing and Yu Zhen in the study last night. The content was similar to what Yu Zhen had told him that morning; there was no difficulty, just some inquiries.

After the conversation in the study yesterday, Su Zhi Xing had discussed it with Chen Shanxue for the entire night. She had been watching everything closely. During the New Year, when she asked Su Mo about the situation, he had answered honestly. She had seen that the two kids liked each other. However, the children hadn’t voiced it, and after so many years of interacting with them, even though they knew the kids had grown up and had their own thoughts, they sometimes couldn’t help but worry unnecessarily.

Especially after seeing Yu Zhen being called away by Su Zhi Xing while Su Mo waited on the sofa, Chen Shanxue suddenly felt that there were some things they needed to clarify with their child.

Su Mo asked, “So do you like Zhen Ge?”

“What are you thinking?” Chen Shanxue laughed. “It’s you who is looking for a boyfriend, not your dad. Whether we like him or not is one thing; the key is whether you like him.”

“If you like someone, your dad and I will support you,” Chen Shanxue continued. “Your dad’s actions last night were a bit reckless, but we can’t blame him. After all this time, he finally found out that his son was dating, and since you hadn’t mentioned it to him, he couldn’t help but want to ask for clarification. Your dad and I have been separated from you for too long; we haven’t handled some things well. You can always talk to your mom.”

“Xiao Yu has a successful career and is very outstanding. But people like him tend to consider many things, like how to please us or how to make a good impression. From that perspective, it seems overly cautious, but in reality, everything he does is for your future. He doesn’t want you to be caught in between us and feel awkward.” Chen Shanxue continued, “We see all of this, but you are still our precious son. No matter how good he is, your happiness comes first for your mom.”

Su Mo thought back to this morning. His parents’ attitude was the same as usual; they hadn’t made things difficult for Yu Zhen because of the change in their relationship.

Everything was normal. Aside from what happened in the study, they hadn’t interfered much in his emotional life.

He hadn’t thought much of it before, but in reality, these were all considerations from his parents. “I didn’t tell you in advance.”

“Silly child, you already did,” Chen Shanxue said. “You told your mom that you liked someone, so it was just a matter of time before you told us. Your dad and I were like that when we were young, too. When your grandpa was still around, we cared about our parents’ opinions. Your dad didn’t tell your grandpa back then either, and later when your grandpa found out, he was called into the study and scolded.”

Chen Shanxue said, “Your dad kept me talking all night last night. He heard that you were waiting outside the study and went on and on about it, even getting up to check on you in your room a few times. He asked me if I had talked to you, asked this and that, and even asked if you had said anything usual.”

“He even urged me this morning to call you,” she added with a laugh. “Right now, he’s sitting next to me, eavesdropping on our conversation.”

Sù Zhīxíng, who was sitting next to Chen Shanxue, cleared his throat. “Stop talking nonsense; I wasn’t eavesdropping. I was just being straightforward.”

Chen Shanxue replied, “Yes, you were straightforwardly eavesdropping.”

It seemed that the communication settings had been changed to speaker mode, and Su Mo could hear his parents bickering, as well as his father speaking very close by. Initially, he hadn’t thought much of it, but now, after listening, he felt differently. It was as if a large stone had been lifted off his chest, and he suddenly felt lighter.

After finishing their conversation with their son, Chen Shanxue hung up the phone and gently said, “If you were worried, you shouldn’t have dragged Xiao Yu into this last night, making the child anxious.”

Sù Zhīxíng replied, “Should I have brought Momo into it? Who knew how long ago Yu Zhen had feelings for my son? I had to ask!”

Chen Shanxue countered, “But what if our son has feelings for him?”

Sù Zhīxíng hesitated for a moment. “Then I’d still need to ask. I have to look out for my son. He’s innocent; can’t I worry about him being bullied?”

“You’re getting involved in the affairs of young people; you care so much. After you handle it, you still want me to call our son to feel him out. With such concern, why not just ask him directly?” Chen Shanxue playfully tapped him. “You can see that they like each other; give the kids a little space.”

Sù Zhīxíng said, “They have an age difference; it’s not like they’re just two or three years apart. Yu Zhen is older than our son. Even if their way of thinking is different, is there really a need to hide this from us? I’m just worried that our child is too young and might get hurt.”

“Exactly because Yu Zhen is older than Momo and has his own career, his way of thinking and perspective are different. A person like him is steady and cautious; he has his own considerations. He must have thought about more issues than our son and is trying to figure out what we think. Even if Yu Zhen has been dating Momo for a while, he would still be willing to take his time and let us accept them gradually. He truly likes our son and is willing to go through all this trouble to build a future for their relationship. He’s just overly cautious, but his intentions are good.”

Chen Shanxue replied, “Momo hasn’t thought that much. He wants to tell us, but he also cares about whether we like it or not. Coincidentally, both kids are actually concerned about our opinions. If we had come back earlier and those two told you they were dating, would your impression of Yu Zhen still be the same?”

Sù Zhīxíng responded, “I’m not that unreasonable.”

Chen Shanxue shot back, “Not that unreasonable? Then why ask all those questions?”

Sù Zhīxíng felt a bit wronged by his wife’s words. “You don’t tell me anything, either.”

“Didn’t I give you a heads-up?” she retorted. “But you just went ahead and asked our son for his ID, wanting to know if he had been cheated on. As soon as you found out he was in a relationship, you couldn’t help but want to know more. Your knack for needless worry hasn’t changed over the years.” Chen Shanxue nearly laughed in exasperation. “You only thought to ask our son after you had worried yourself sick. You pretended this morning, and now you’re too scared to make the call yourself, so you want me to do it?”

Sù Zhīxíng fell silent for a moment before asking again, “So what did our son say? Tell me.”

Chen Shanxue replied, “Didn’t you hear me eavesdropping?”

Sù Zhīxíng was left speechless.

***

After Su Mo finished the call with Chen Shanxue, he prepared to take a nap and only then received a message from Yu Zhen. It had been a busy Monday, and Yu Zhen had a work meeting in the morning that just ended. He saw the message about the meet-up next month and mentioned that he would be free then and could go together.

In the afternoon, Su Mo spent a long time in the lab with Brother Zhou, dealing with a lot of tasks. Once they finally wrapped things up, he remembered to reply to Yu Zhen’s message.

“Su Mo, if you’re in a hurry, just put the stuff down. After dinner, I’ll come back to collect it…” Brother Zhou said as he came out of the lab and saw Yu Zhen at the door. “Hello, Mr. Yu.”

Yu Zhen nodded, “Yes. Have you finished?”

Brother Zhou replied, “We just finished. You can wait for a bit; he’s probably still tidying up the materials.”

Yu Zhen said, “No rush, I can wait.”

Not long after, Su Mo came out of the lab, briefed Brother Zhou on a few matters, and then left with Yu Zhen.

“Did you wait long?” Su Mo asked.

Yu Zhen replied, “No, I just arrived a little while ago. I had to step out for something this afternoon.”

Su Mo looked at him in confusion.

“I went home for a bit and talked to my parents about our situation. It took a little longer,” Yu Zhen said, ruffling Su Mo’s hair. “They had been asking when I would bring you home, and I told them it would be in a little while.”

Su Mo paused, “Your parents?”

“Yes,” Yu Zhen replied. “We’ll go when you want to.”

Noticing the fatigue in Yu Zhen’s eyes, Su Mo suddenly remembered that he had been running back and forth all day. He exclaimed, “I’m hungry.”

Yu Zhen looked at him, “Then let’s skip the shopping. I’ll order some ingredients and cook for you when we get back.”

Su Mo replied, “That’ll take too long. Let’s go eat out instead.”

Yu Zhen then suggested, “What does my boyfriend want to eat?”

The two gradually drifted away as they left the lab building.

Brother Zhou ordered takeout and, after seeing the two leave, returned to the lab to continue working on data. Not long after, he received a message from his brother, Zhou Ke.

“What? The end of next month?” Brother Zhou said, “How would I know about things scheduled for the end of next month? There shouldn’t be any issues, right? What’s going on?”

“What? A game meet-up!? Zhou Ke, you’re being ridiculous. Can’t you just close the store to attend the meet-up? Do you know how much my hourly wage is right now? Just let me manage the store.”

Zhou Ke’s annoying voice came through the line, “Ahem, if I close the store for one day, I’ll earn one less cent.”

“I’m just worried you won’t have the time. I even booked the time with you a month in advance… Good brother, help me out. I’ll treat you to dinner later. How about a wage of 1000 star coins a day?”

Brother Zhou was speechless.

“Book your own time!”

This week passed quickly for Su Mo. In the evenings, he occasionally logged into the game to team up with ScarletFruit and the others for dungeons. The game was buzzing with news about the meet-up event. Since this was the first offline meet-up for Celestial Horizon, the promotional efforts were extravagant. When entering the game, a sign-up prompt for the meet-up would pop up, along with various spoilers related to the event.

What Su Mo was most interested in were the spoilers about the main quest system. It was rumored that the event would reveal the direction of quest reforms for the second half of the year, including new levels, new equipment, and new challenges—titles that were enough to pique his interest.

The quest system of Celestial Horizon had become one of its main features. ApexMind, the chief planner of the game, was loathed by players, but despite the animosity, as long as the events were well-executed and the rewards were generous, even if the main planner continued to flaunt his power, their weak “father-son relationship” with the Celestial Horizon official team could be temporarily repaired.

“So, are you guys planning to go?” ScarletFruit asked excitedly. “That’s great! We’ll have an offline meet-up with the five of us!”

ZenSlasher replied, “There’s still quite a distance from my school to that area. I’ll probably stay in Vicinity for a few days. My best friend wants to visit Vicinity too, and I might want to check out Capital University. I’m not sure if they’ll allow students from other schools in.”

“There are indeed a lot of places to visit in the main city! If you need a tour guide, you can count on me!” ScarletFruit offered. “I know Capital University well! Usually, they don’t allow outsiders in, but after registering, you can walk around, although some areas are off-limits.”

ClearWind said, “It seems like the Fruit Guild is also planning an offline meet-up. I heard that Boss Bitter Melon directly booked a hotel.”

“I can’t believe it! Boss Bitter Melon is quite low-key!” ScarletFruit exclaimed. “No wonder he just asked if we had booked a hotel. If we hadn’t, he could help out.”

Yu Zhen asked, “Did you all book a hotel?”

“I’m staying in the Capital University Vicinity, so I don’t need to book one,” ScarletFruit replied. “ClearWind and ZenSlasher should need to, since they are a bit farther away.”

ClearWind responded, “I’m looking for hotels, but the closest one is pretty hard to book. I heard it’s already fully booked.”

ScarletFruit added, “A lot of big guilds are holding offline gatherings, so the hotels in Vicinity are nearly all booked.”

ZenSlasher chimed in, “The one that’s been busy lately? Feiqiong? I just submitted a reservation, but it hasn’t been approved yet.”

“We’re also staying in Vicinity,” Yu Zhen said. “Why don’t you give me the reservation order number?”

ClearWind exclaimed, “Brother Wanderer, you’re familiar with Feiqiong?”

Yu Zhen explained, “Yeah, I can help you pull some strings. They have reserved private rooms, and the security is also high.”

After discussing the hotel situation, ClearWind and ScarletFruit suddenly brought up the meet-up event. “I heard they invited a lot of big names from the rankings. It’s said they might hold an offline entertainment competition, like a 1v1 match. Have you guys heard about this?”

“There is such a thing,” Su Mo replied. After responding to the email that day, the customer service sent over an event schedule, which included a segment for the entertainment competition. The officials considered many details, and they planned to organize 1v1 entertainment matches between ranked players and casual players, but it would be a random draw based on ID at the venue. With so many ranked players, it wasn’t guaranteed that anyone would get drawn.

There was still some time before the meet-up, and the official leaks only revealed a few confirmed events. They hadn’t disclosed many specific details, so the event might still see adjustments. Su Mo continued to log on to play games during his free evenings as usual. Before he knew it, Friday had arrived. He initially planned to head home early in the afternoon, but he received a message from his advisor around noon, asking him to come by the office in the afternoon for a discussion.

When he arrived at the office, he also encountered Director Liu from the Mechanical Forging Department. Su Mo thought he was being called in regarding the theoretical competition but was surprised when his advisor handed him a paper invitation from the First Research Institute of Capital Planet.

“I haven’t graduated yet. Isn’t this an invitation for graduates?” Su Mo hesitated.

“The First Research Institute invited you once before, but you turned it down to give the opportunity to your senior,” Director Liu said with a smile. “Whether for an internship or joining a team, the First Research Institute rarely invites current students. After you declined last year, some engineers from the institute inquired about your situation. Your senior likely recommended you there. Although you haven’t achieved much in practical fields, your theories have been tested and utilized in various ways, and the institute places great importance on your paper.”

Su Mo said, “But that was just a paper…”

His advisor responded, “The project you and Xiao Zhou worked on last year won an award. Many researchers from the First Research Institute were present at that time. You and your senior accomplished many feats during your student years that others couldn’t achieve in several years. The First Research Institute doesn’t want to miss out on talent, so they extended another invitation after considering various factors.”

Previously, Su Mo had chosen to pass up the same opportunity when it was presented to him.

After such a long time, the same invitation once again appeared before Su Mo. He excelled in theory, but theory had its limitations. Many of his theories could not be verified through other means, and because of this, he had abandoned numerous new ideas, especially in light of recent experiments where he felt he had hit a bottleneck. The gap created by his physical limitations was too vast, and the inability to implement practical applications hindered his exploration of various models. He couldn’t establish new frameworks; he could only innovate repeatedly within old frameworks, but old frameworks were ultimately just that—old.

Certain algorithms, no matter how excellent, would still be dragged down by foundational frameworks.

Su Mo realized that the inability to engage practically was a source of regret, and beyond that regret was a sense of avoidance. Over the years, he had always been troubled by his physical limitations. No matter how exceptional he was, he felt a powerlessness stemming from these limitations. This sense of powerlessness magnified over time, leading him to ultimately give up a learning opportunity that was within reach, choosing instead to do what he believed was excellent within his safe confines.

He lacked a sense of security and felt a lingering dissatisfaction.

But now, there was a possibility for him. One day in the future, he might cross the seemingly insurmountable threshold of physical limitations that so many believed could not be crossed. Even though that day was uncertain, Su Mo felt a rare surge of excitement.

He was no longer living day by day; he now had a future.

A future where he could charge forward for his dreams.

Director Liu noticed that Su Mo had not spoken and assumed the boy was about to refuse again. He tried to persuade him in various ways, saying, “I heard that the first research institute has opened several new projects. In addition to the original loader project, they have recently focused on the medical field, claiming to have made breakthroughs in critical case studies. There are new developments in medical-grade mechanical design. You’ve always…”

Su Mo took the invitation letter from his mentor’s hand and said, “Can I take some time to give you an answer?”

Director Liu was taken aback.

The mentor’s expression brightened, and he replied, “No problem. There are still two to three months until their internship recruitment, so you can take your time to consider it. Once you’ve made a decision, just reply according to the contact address in the letter.”

Both the mentor and Director Liu were very pleased with this outcome. Su Mo was an excellent student at Capital University, and it was their hope as teachers that students could achieve even greater success. Especially with Su Mo being so intelligent, if it weren’t for his physical limitations, he would already be a celebrated genius in the Star Alliance, the subject of admiration from countless research institutes.

They worried about the boy’s health, yet they were also eager for him to make further progress.

The mentor and Director Liu went on to explain many of the advantages of the first research institute, focusing on aspects that interested Su Mo. They talked for over an hour before Su Mo finally found an opportunity to leave.

Yu Zhen was waiting for him at the school gate and, noticing that Su Mo was a bit late, asked, “Did something go wrong with the project?”

“No, it’s an internship invitation from the first research institute,” Su Mo replied, showing him the paper invitation. “I was discussing this matter.”

Seeing Su Mo holding the invitation letter, Yu Zhen asked, “Have you made up your mind?”

“Yeah,” Su Mo replied. “I’m almost there, but I still need to think it over.”

Yu Zhen inquired, “What are you thinking about?”

Su Mo responded, “I’m thinking about the future.”

Upon hearing this word, Yu Zhen’s gaze softened instantly. “In that case, you really need to think more.”

Su Mo glanced at him and silently reached out to hold his hand.

After returning home, Su Mo shared the news with his parents, who fully supported him. Since his parents were also researchers, they were naturally enthusiastic about their son’s aspirations.

Chen Shanxue asked, “Does mechanical research require a lot of parts?”

“Not too much,” Su Mo replied, “it depends on the project.”

Yu Zhen added, “The first research institute focuses more on medium to large machinery.”

Su Zhi Xing suggested, “We have two other houses that are empty and haven’t been tidied up for a long time. If the home laboratory is too small, we could convert one of those houses into a larger lab. It would be more convenient for you to do research in the future.”

Yu Zhen said, “I can help set up the laboratory. Getting safety approval for a mechanical lab shouldn’t be difficult.”

Su Mo, having accumulated a substantial amount of bonuses and savings over the years, felt a bit tempted at the idea of building a lab. “I want to buy a KL-type measuring machine. We couldn’t fit it in the house before, but our school has one, and it’s very useful.”

Su Zhi Xing replied generously, “Buy it.”

Lele sat nearby, listening to the discussions of the two adults, and made several calculations on a home budget. After finishing, it created a list. Even though it knew the family had money, Lele’s habit of being frugal made it unable to resist pondering how much they could spend!

After dinner, Yu Zhen didn’t leave; instead, he played cards with Su Zhi Xing and Su Mo. The night at the Su household was very lively, with Chen Shanxue and Lele already browsing laboratory renovation materials on StarNet, while the other three engaged in the traditional Chinese game, Dou Di Zhu.

“Did we measure Mo Mo’s temperature?” Su Zhi Xing suddenly remembered.

Lele responded, “Yes! It’s normal at night!”

Su Mo’s temperature had fluctuated greatly during this period. A few days ago, he had a sudden high fever in the afternoon, which startled Chen Shanxue and Su Zhi Xing when the alarm from the school sent them a message. By the time they arrived, Yu Zhen had already spoken with Dr. Wu, who said it was a normal phenomenon; the significant fluctuations indicated that Su Mo had entered a recovery stage. They had experienced a similar situation last year when Su Mo also had temperature fluctuations and often ran a low fever.

This sudden incident left both parents on edge, constantly worrying about Su Mo’s health.

Su Mo felt that his parents were being a bit overly dramatic. He knew that when he had a fever, it came on quickly but also receded just as fast. This year, he had clearly felt much better. In the past, after disconnecting from the holographic loader, he would take a while to recover, and the heaviness in his body was very noticeable. However, this year he rarely experienced that kind of fatigue and occasionally felt quite energetic.

Dr. Wu said that this was a sign of Su Mo’s body recovering to normal. Because of the brain area’s activity, various organs in his body were affected, leading to a range of positive reactions. If the stress was too intense or if a particular organ couldn’t keep up with coordination, symptoms like fever, cold, and headaches would occur.

This year was much better; at least he hadn’t had a nosebleed.

Su Mo remembered last year when he had gotten a nosebleed and had stained several of Yu Zhen’s clothes.

Grandma Cheng had moved over from the old house, and the house in the family area was also tidied up. Yu Zhen spent longer evenings at Su Mo’s home and would go to Grandma Cheng’s to rest at night. Chen Shanxue had a good relationship with Grandma Cheng; her cooking was quite good. It was said that Grandma Cheng hadn’t been well in recent years, so when Lele had free time, he would deliver nourishing soup to her.

Time passed quickly while they played cards.

Before long, it was past ten o’clock, and Yu Zhen headed home while Su Mo went to take his medicine and wash up.

While washing up, he didn’t forget to chat with his boyfriend.

-mo: Are you staying here for the next few days?
-Yu Zhen: Yes, shall we have breakfast together tomorrow?
-mo: Mom has been getting up early lately; she’s learning how to make breakfast from a breakfast shop. She said she would make it for us if we wanted it.
-Yu Zhen: Then I can only schedule lunch. Are we going out tomorrow? There’s a parts factory in the suburbs; I heard they just received a batch of old parts.
-mo: Which model?

In the bathroom, as Su Mo confirmed their plans for tomorrow, he had just finished washing up when he suddenly noticed blood streaks in the mouthwash.

He was slightly taken aback and used his fingertip to check, discovering that his gums were bleeding a bit.

Noticing the problem, Su Mo quickly tidied up the other items and walked outside. “Lele, can you measure it for me again? I have some bleeding symptoms.”

Upon hearing about the bleeding symptoms, Lele rushed to get the instruments, and Chen Shanxue put down her news and hurried over to check the situation. “Where is the bleeding? Let me take a look.”

Su Zhi Xing also came over. “I’ll go get some emergency medication.”

Su Mo slightly parted his lips and noticed his mother’s changed expression.

He wanted to ask why; his mouth had been fresh after washing up, but now that he spoke, he tasted a mouthful of rust. He realized that the bleeding might be more significant than he thought. Beside him, Chen Shanxue had already taken some medical gauze to stop the bleeding. She wiped for a long time and even gave him hemostatic medicine, but the gum bleeding still wouldn’t stop.

Lele brought over the testing equipment, and while waiting for the medical results, Su Mo experienced a nosebleed.

Earlier that evening, he had thought that this time he wouldn’t have a nosebleed, but to his surprise, the bleeding symptoms worsened and became uncontrollable. After a while, the medical device popped up with alerts indicating that various indicators were abnormal. Su Zhi Xing could no longer sit still and immediately contacted the Third Medical Station for an ambulance and reached out to Dr. Wu.

The medical report had already been sent to Dr. Wu, who was surprised to see it. “I’m heading to the medical station right now to get a blood test,” he said.

He then asked what medications Su Mo had taken.

Lele remembered clearly; he recited the names and dosages of the medications precisely, even reporting the amounts taken during each time slot throughout the day.

Throughout the entire process, Su Mo remained very alert. Even when it reached his usual bedtime, he felt no sleepiness at all. This was the first time he sat in an ambulance while fully conscious, and he was even able to keep messaging Yu Zhen.

After Yu Zhen sent a message, Su Mo didn’t reply right away. Several messages popped up, asking if he had fallen asleep.

Not long after, an alert notification came through on Yu Zhen’s side. The messages kept coming, and Su Mo suddenly remembered that when his situation had been unstable last year, Yu Zhen had linked the terminal to the medical device. If anything abnormal occurred on Su Mo’s end, Yu Zhen would be notified immediately.

In the ambulance, Su Mo reassured his boyfriend, explaining the bleeding symptoms and mentioning that they were on their way to the medical station, so he shouldn’t worry.

Meanwhile, Chen Shanxue and Su Zhi Xing wore serious expressions. Su Zhi Xing held his son’s hand gently. “Don’t be afraid; we will be at the medical station soon,” he said.

Su Mo put down the terminal and focused his gaze on his parents.

His mind was clear and calm, but the others couldn’t help but worry about him.

For so many years, Su Mo had been accustomed to going to the medical station alone for check-ups. He had never been afraid of the cold medical robots in the ambulance, but seeing the concerned expressions on his parents’ faces stirred an indescribable feeling within him.

He felt he shouldn’t be sick; he hoped he could recover quickly. He wasn’t afraid, and he wished the people around him wouldn’t have to be afraid either.

Yu Zhen couldn’t help but worry. Upon learning of the situation, he had rushed out immediately.

By the time he arrived, his boyfriend was sitting in Dr. Wu’s office, having just had blood drawn and waiting for the results. Dr. Wu wore a serious expression as he looked at the medical reports coming in from various instruments, seeming to encounter some tricky issues.

Su Mo’s bleeding had stopped, and he was bundled up in thick clothes in the temperature-controlled office.

The metallic taste of blood still lingered in his mouth, and when he spoke, there was a hint of bloodiness in his voice. “Didn’t you say there was no need to worry?”

“Is your head hurting?” Yu Zhen asked.

Su Mo replied, “No, I’m very clear-headed right now.”

The wait for results felt long. Su Zhi Xing had gone with a medical assistant to the examination room, while Chen Shanxue was discussing Su Mo’s condition with Dr. Wu. Yu Zhen sat next to Su Mo, holding his boyfriend’s slightly cold hand and noticing the dried blood stains at his fingertips.

Yu Zhen’s anxious heart didn’t ease up; it only intensified after arriving at the hospital. The only thing that could reduce his sense of panic was holding Su Mo’s hand.

“Still playing on the terminal?” Yu Zhen noticed him scrolling through the group chat. Although Su Mo hadn’t logged in that evening, the messages related to the game were still lively and bustling.

Su Mo leaned against Yu Zhen. “Ku Gua said there would be a party on the night of the meet-up.”

Yu Zhen held him tightly, feeling that Su Mo’s hand hadn’t warmed up at all. “You need to get better soon; I’ll take you.”

All the report results arrived in Dr. Wu’s office, and his furrowed brow remained tense as he earnestly said to Chen Shanxue, “You need to arrange for him to be hospitalized. His situation is a bit special, and he’ll need a full examination tomorrow.”

Chen Shanxue was momentarily taken aback. “Okay, I’ll go right away.”

Dr. Wu’s gaze lingered on the two people nearby who were leaning on each other for support. After a short while, he turned away and quickly contacted other specialists.

He scanned through the dense data on the photon screen, feeling a heavy weight in his heart.

Why had it all happened so suddenly?