Chapter 43 2/2

“Goods.” Cen Lang’s gaze shifted to the production line, afraid he couldn’t resist the impulse to kiss it.

For the first drug developed over thousands of days and nights, Jiang Li had a special sentiment for the adenoma drug. He could even see its production line through the glass, and his eyes were a little warm.

“Support my shoulder; lift your foot.” Cen Lang squatted down to help Jiang Li put on shoe covers.

Jiang Li looked at the Alpha squatting in front of him and blinked, thinking about the days they spent together in space. This adenoma drug could be considered their joint effort, even though Cen Lang’s involvement was limited.

His belly also contained their shared blood and bones, although Cen Lang’s involvement was still not high.

Unconsciously, his life was filled with seeds left by Cen Lang’s dominance. They sprouted, bloomed, and crowded in front of Jiang Li during this hot summer. There was no way to treat them like air; after all, even the smell of disinfectant water suited his taste.

Cen Lang: “With shoe covers, walk slower.”

Jiang Li: “I’ve already gotten used to it.”

Cen Lang: “True; even more used to it than me.”

He lagged behind Jiang and paid careful attention. He had no interest in the production line; his eyes only had Jiang Li in them.

After a while, he quickly checked his phone messages, and his expression immediately darkened.

The assistant from the orphanage reported progress: “It’s strange; in the orphanage’s annual group photos, we can’t find Jiang Li. The director said he was frail and sickly in his childhood and couldn’t withstand the wind during the New Year, so there are no outdoor group photos.”

Cen Lang naturally didn’t believe this explanation. The constitution so weak that he couldn’t withstand the wind wouldn’t have grown into the current Jiang Li. He realized something—he would never see Jiang Li’s childhood.

A sense of sadness and resentment for missing something arose in his heart, and he couldn’t help but grasp Jiang Li’s hand. Jiang Li shook it off.

Cen Lang tightened his grip. “The floor is slippery; I’ll hold you.”

Jiang Li: “Forget it.”

Cen Lang: “Can I see your elementary school enrollment photos?”

Jiang Li frowned. “Why do you want to see that?”

Cen Lang: “To imagine what our future children might look like—probably more like you, given my limited involvement.”

Jiang Li: “…”

Jiang Li refused to share his childhood. “If you’re really curious, ask the old devil. Let him simulate some images according to genetic laws. Randomize the genes; thousands of them are fine.”

Cen Lang: “…” It didn’t sound fun at all. He’d find them himself.

Jiang Li’s mind was on the production line, not realizing that Cen Lang had been holding his hand all the way without letting go. At the exit, Cen Lang pointed to a white-domed building in the distance. “The lichen is in that research building.”

Jiang Li: “Go there now?”

Cen Lang: “Let’s have lunch first.”

Jiang Li withdrew his hand. “Oh.”

Cen Lang: “…”

There’s a nice private restaurant near the pharmaceutical industrial park. Most customers have high education levels, and the decoration suits the preferences of researchers.

Cen Lang took Jiang Li there. “You should like it.”

As Jiang Li reached the entrance, a group of people were at the front desk, paying. The leader had a somewhat sinister face, with a scar on his forehead. Jiang Li’s steps halted, and his joints seemed frozen, staring straight at that person.

The child Wang, who bullied Jiang Li in the orphanage, had passed twenty years, and everyone had changed faces, but some features remained.

Cen Lang asked, “What’s wrong?”

Jiang Li’s face turned pale. He trembled and gently grabbed Cen Lang’s sleeve. “I don’t want to go in.”

Cen Lang quickly glanced inside and noticed the group at the front desk. He held Jiang Li’s cold fingers; the temperature was just as cold as on the day of the defense.

“Okay, let’s go somewhere else.”

Inside the aircraft, Cen Lang rubbed Jiang Li’s hand and asked, “He bullied you.” With Cen Lang’s memory, he quickly found the corresponding person from the information provided by the assistant.

Jiang Li: “I’m not afraid of him.”

An answer that didn’t match. Cen Lang nodded. It seemed he had found the crux.

Jiang Li looked at Cen Lang. “I’m not afraid of him; I just don’t want to see him.” That person who would drag him into the mud in the orphanage, Jiang Li, at twenty-five, didn’t want to see him, feeling powerless for Little Jiang.

Cen Lang: “Well, Dr. Xiao Jiang is very brave.”

Jiang Li: “Are you investigating my past?”

Cen Lang remained silent. Jiang Li was too smart; just by asking about the photos, he sensed it.

Jiang Li: “No need to investigate; it’s just a bunch of kids playing around. The oldest is only ten.”

Cen Lang: “How old were you then?”

Jiang Li: “I wasn’t the youngest.”

Cen Lang could roughly guess the whole picture.

Jiang Li calmly said, “I don’t want people to know. Life has its dark moments, but they’re in the past. Forgetting is the best, just like your Alpha memory protection mechanism during loss of control.”

“Especially, I don’t want you to know.”

“Is that so? But I want to know what happened during the loss of control.”

Cen Lang didn’t buy Dr. Xiao Jiang’s sugar-coated shells. Jiang Li was already traumatized by being bullied; he might have developed psychological suggestions due to his long-term illness. If Cen Lang didn’t thoroughly investigate, how could he untie Jiang Li’s knot? Jiang Li was so outstanding; he should stand on the stage shining brightly, not panicking and fearing and hiding behind the scenes.

Jiang Li: “Stop the investigation, and I’ll consider your platonic love.”

Cen Lang’s tone was flat. “It’s too late; I’m pursuing it now.”

Jiang Li decisively refused. “Then forget it; let’s not discuss it again.”

Cen Lang: “…”

Wait, what did he just say?!

Can’t this be discussed again?