Jiang Weihua was used to bullying others in the base by relying on his uncle’s status. He felt unwilling to accept the loss he received from Li Shu. With a roll of his eyes, he decided he’d teach him a lesson and let him know that there were some people in this base who should not be provoked.
Regardless of what Jiang Weihua might be plotting, Li Shu led Gu Li to the adjacent laboratory. There were already people inside—These people were Li Shu’s assistants, and they would be there wherever Li Shu was doing research.
There weren’t many of them; including Gu Li and Qin Le’an from the base, there were only seven people. Strictly speaking, these people weren’t members of the base because before the merman appeared, they weren’t conducting research here. It was Li Shu who transferred them over later.
These people were very familiar with Li Shu’s way of doing things. In a working state, they were fully focused, highly concentrated, and extremely efficient. Besides the main research topics, they were also working on some derivative products.
Over the years, the original owner and his team had achieved many research results. Most were profiting under the Li Corporation, while a small portion of the results, due to significant side effects, hadn’t been marketed.
When Li Shu came in, the laboratory was already bustling with debate over a certain issue—an unusual occurrence. Usually, everyone worked on their tasks silently instead of gathering to argue.
They preferred to let facts speak rather than engage in verbal disputes. When disagreements arose, they would present their research results to see whose conclusions were more convincing.
The five people were expressing their views, completely unaware of Li Shu’s entrance.
Li Shu knocked on the table, silencing them.
“What are you discussing? Why is it so heated?” Li Shu took the files from Gu Li and placed them on the table.
The five looked at each other, and no one spoke. They were debating a question Li Shu had already addressed,an issue settled long ago, so they shouldn’t be arguing over it now. In retrospect, they couldn’t understand how a calm discussion had turned into this.
“What? Is there something you can’t tell me?” In the original owner’s memory, these people were always focused on their research. Each of the five had different areas of expertise, and such disputes had never occurred before.
“Professor,” finally, the youngest couldn’t hold back, “we are discussing the merman.”
It turned out that after verifying the possibility of the merman being an intelligent creature, some in the team believed the merman should no longer be used as an experimental subject and should be treated with corresponding respect. Others thought that the research was at a critical stage and couldn’t be abandoned. Besides, if the research succeeded, it would benefit all of humanity.
Both sides couldn’t convince each other. Since Li Shu hadn’t conducted experiments on the merman recently, they had tacitly avoided the topic, but today, for some reason, they suddenly started arguing.
This was an issue that needed to be faced sooner or later and avoiding it wouldn’t solve the problem. Li Shu knew that to complete the research and achieve the desired results, the merman was indispensable. This was also why the original owner remained in the base.
This base housed various rare creatures, not for display, but because they had many aspects not yet explained in human medicine. The pharmaceutical company under the Li family has developed rapidly in recent years and has established a firm foothold in the international market at the fastest speed, which is inseparable from these research results.
Just talking about the original owner and his work team, they have invented no less than ten drugs for treating major diseases and put them on the market over the years. The pharmaceutical company under the Li family is also showing signs of becoming a leader in the industry.
The original owner was researching a cancer treatment drug this time. Cancer had always been a daunting subject; no matter how advanced technology became, various cancers remained insurmountable. In the original plot, just as the original owner was nearing success, the protagonist escaped the laboratory, and a flood destroyed the base completely.
None of this had happened yet, but according to the original timeline, that day wasn’t far off.
“What do you all think?” This was an urgent issue. Without the merman, the research could only be temporarily shelved, and whether it could continue would depend on fate.
“I think we should continue. Sometimes sacrifices must be made, it just depends on how large or small the result is. If we achieve the expected results, the sacrifice is worth it,” the man with black-rimmed glasses spoke first. He always felt that some team members were overly kind. After all, the merman wasn’t human. In special circumstances, even humans had been used for drug trials. The current test subject was merely an intelligent merman.
Moreover, the man adjusted his glasses, the merman’s self-healing ability made him an ideal test subject.
The laboratory fell silent. The man’s words were correct. Sacrificing the few for the greater good wasn’t just an empty phrase. Throughout history, many studies that benefited mankind used some unacceptable methods in the invention process, but…
Understanding was one thing, but whether one could overcome their internal moral barrier was another.
Li Shu’s team consisted of people who had been working with him since their student days. They were entirely devoted to their research, and spent 360 out of 365 days in the laboratory. Especially the youngest, he had just graduated and was now pursuing graduate studies under Li Shu. He had not yet experienced the harshness of society, so his thoughts were relatively pure.
“Do you all agree?” Li Shu didn’t comment on the previous statement and asked the others.
Some nodded, while others were uncertain.
“I don’t agree with Yue Huaming,” the youngest, Yi Ziqi, stood up, “Professor, I’ve been thinking about this issue for a while. You can say I’m being overly kind, but if you decide to proceed with the original plan, I will withdraw.”
“Ha,” Yue Huaming sneered, “Yi Ziqi, what’s the point of saying this now? As if you didn’t experiment on the merman before.”
“I…” Yi Ziqi was unable to refute. He opened his mouth, but could only utter weakly, “This is different.”
What was different? Everything was different.
Initially, they did not know that the merman was an intelligent being. To research this mysterious creature, they had conducted some routine tests, such as blood tests. Later, they discovered a miraculous factor in the merman. To prove it, their methods became harsher. But those were different from the upcoming experiments. Back then, they were mostly doing research and did not cause great harm to the merman. But now, Yi Ziqi could almost foresee the merman’s miserable future.
Call him selfish or cowardly, he did not want to face such a scene.
Li Shu suddenly recalled that in the original plot, after the male and the female protagonists first escape attempt failed and they were captured, the original owner conducted a series of inhumane experiments on the male protagonist out of spite.
[The water in the petri dish was murky and emitted a foul odor. The merman curled up in a corner, devoid of his former vitality. His seaweed-like hair was dry and tangled. The merman closed his eyes, seemingly enduring intense pain. The scales on his tail had fallen off, the bloodstains mottled, no longer as glossy as before. The merman’s body was covered with untreated wounds. Soaked in seawater, the flesh around the wounds almost began to rot, with fresh blood constantly seeping from the wounds and the gaps between the scales, dyeing the water red.]
The image appeared in his mind. The contrast between the dying merman and the current merman was too stark. Li Shu pursed his lips. It was his negligence. Facing the lively merman, he forgot that the merman’s current identity was an experimental subject that could be slaughtered at will.
If the original owner really did such things, no wonder the merman would flood the entire experimental base.
After recalling the original owner’s memories, Li Shu found no details about the future arrangements for the merman. He lowered his gaze, concealing his emotions.
“Do you have any questions about the upcoming plans?” He wasn’t sure if his received memories were incomplete or what, so he had to probe first.
“The professor asked us to draft the plan ourselves and discuss it today.” Yi Ziqi said humbly. He really admired Li Shu, otherwise, he wouldn’t have fought so hard to join Li Shu’s team.
‘Discuss it today?’ Li Shu had been in this world for some time, and today’s visit to the laboratory was a sudden whim. He was certain this wasn’t in the original owner’s memories, so what was going on?
“According to the usual practice, state your views first.”
Yue Huaming spoke first, with Yi Ziqi being the last. This was a discussion about the future merman experiment plan. Apart from Yi Ziqi, the others leaned towards Yue Huaming’s viewpoint.
This did not surprise Li Shu. After all, “those not of our kind must have different hearts.” However, Yi Ziqi’s attitude surprised him; he treated the merman not as an experimental subject but as an equal.
In the original plot, Yi Ziqi played a significant role in the successful escape of the male and female protagonists. Considering Yi Ziqi’s character, Li Shu thought it was unsurprising that he would help the male protagonist escape the lab.
“I’ll take the plan back to review. Ziqi, come with me.”
After discussing this matter, it was already afternoon. Yi Ziqi held the plan and followed Li Shu nervously.
Li Shu led him to the adjacent room. The merman was resting in the water, and upon sensing an unfamiliar presence, he suddenly opened its eyes.
Caught off guard by the merman’s crimson, murderous eyes, Yi Ziqi yelped and noticed that the petri dish’s protection wasn’t activated. He asked tremblingly, “Professor, why isn’t the protection activated?”
‘Because even when activated, it wouldn’t help much.’ Li Shu skipped the question and asked, “Do you think he’s beautiful?”
Yi Ziqi wanted to ask what Li Shu meant, but his subconscious told him that the professor was referring to the merman. At some point, the merman had looked away, and he gathered his courage to look at the petri dish.
“Beautiful…” He almost exclaimed in awe. No matter how many times he saw this scene, it always shocked him. However, he couldn’t understand what the professor meant by this. “Professor?”
“I agree with your view,” Li Shu said while walking towards the petri dish. “There are always some beautiful things in this world that we need to protect. Sometimes, it’s not impossible to find a way to have the best of both worlds. Don’t you think so?”
“Yes…”
The merman swam towards Li Shu and placed his palm against the spot where Li Shu had placed his hand, their palms aligning.
Yi Ziqi stared blankly at the scene before him, his eyes widening.
“He is mine.”
