AMBTMS Chapter 180

Dr. Bai’s eyes were saying: Boss, I never thought you were such a beast.

“Stop thinking about improper things,” Gu Lin saw Dr. Bai’s expression and knee he had misunderstood. Rubbing his temples, he explained, “Shu Shu’s body is even weaker than an ordinary person’s, which is extremely disadvantageous in the apocalypse.”

Because they didn’t know what might happen next, and since Li Shu wasn’t an evolver, his immunity was already weak. If they didn’t figure out a solution, should another crisis break out, the danger to him would be even greater.

The apocalypse had erupted overnight. Perhaps there were minor signs, but they hadn’t been enough for humanity to react properly, or else the losses wouldn’t have been as severe as they were now.

Dr. Bai stopped joking, “I understand. I’ll think of something.”

“Thank you.”

At that moment, Gu Lin heard a faint sound coming from the room and stopped talking. He went in to check on Li Shu, and Dr. Bai left.

When Gu Lin entered, Li Shu was trying to sit up, but after a brief attempt, he gave up. His body really couldn’t handle the strain.

Gu Lin brought over the water he had prepared in advance and helped Li Shu drink it. “I’ve already asked them to make food. I’ll go get it for you.”

Before he could leave, Dr. Bai came in with a bowl of steaming porridge. He handed it to Gu Lin and walked out, where he saw Xu Yanqiu leaning against the wall.

“Don’t worry, everything’s fine.” With his hands in his pockets, Dr. Bai couldn’t help but wonder, “Xu Yanqiu, are you overly concerned about the relationship between the boss and Li Shu?”

It wasn’t exactly about their relationship; more accurately, it was Xu Yanqiu’s excessive concern for Li Shu. If Dr. Bai wasn’t certain, he might have suspected that Xu Yanqiu had feelings for him.

“What are you thinking? Li Shu is someone the boss cares about. Of course, I hope he’s doing well,” Xu Yanqiu replied slowly.

“Is that all?” Dr. Bai didn’t believe him.

“What else could it be?” Xu Yanqiu spread his hands, giving off an air of indifference.

Dr. Bai thought about it carefully. Aside from being overly concerned, nothing else seemed wrong. But that one detail was already a bit off. Shaking his head, he said, “I don’t care what you do, just make sure you don’t cross a line.”

Everyone could see how much the boss cared for Li Shu. He was afraid Xu Yanqiu might act impulsively and do something irreparable.

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.” Xu Yanqiu smiled faintly.

“As long as you have a sense of propriety.” Dr. Bai had met Xu Yanqiu after the apocalypse. If they hadn’t worked together for so long, he wouldn’t have spoken so frankly with him.

Xu Yanqiu looked down at his hands, a complex emotion flickering in his eyes. His lips moved slightly, but in the end, he didn’t say anything.

After feeding Li Shu, Gu Lin held him in his arms and whispered, “I’m sorry. Last night, I went too far.”

Being taken care of so attentively, Li Shu had initially been angry, but now that he was full and his sore spots were being massaged by Gu Lin’s steady hands, his anger dissipated.

“I’ll let it go this time, but there won’t be a next time.” Lying in Gu Lin’s arms, Li Shu still felt drowsy. This was a typical sign of physical exhaustion. Even after sleeping for so long, he hadn’t fully recovered.

Gu Lin pursed his lips and didn’t respond, but he silently vowed to have Dr. Bai find a way to improve the physiques of ordinary people as soon as possible.

No one knew that the medicine that would later become popular in the apocalypse, which could enhance ordinary people’s physiques, was developed under such circumstances.

Of course, Li Shu wasn’t truly angry at Gu Lin. Although he felt uncomfortable afterward, he had enjoyed the process. Since he had derived pleasure from it, the matter was over for him.

After returning to the capital, Gu Lin became busier than ever. His former subordinates, who had been struggling under Ye Chengran’s suppression and had refused to join his forces, came to him immediately.

This time, with Li Shu’s intervention, Gu Lin returned to the capital three months earlier than in the original plot. Three months was enough for many things to change. Because of his early return, Ye Chengran and his forces hadn’t yet reached the point of having absolute control over the capital. The forces loyal to Gu Lin had only been suppressed, not entirely eliminated, which was undoubtedly advantageous for Gu Lin.

While Gu Lin was busy outside consolidating his power, news of his return wasn’t a secret. Within just a few days, he had gathered the forces that originally belonged to him. He had only gone missing, so his official position had been kept for him. Now that he was back, he naturally resumed his duties.

During this time, Ye Chengran had indeed rapidly expanded the Ye family’s influence, but the time was too short. He hadn’t yet reached the point where the capital was entirely under his control, as it was in the original plot. Gu Lin’s return disrupted the existing balance, causing many people to reconsider their alliances.

The Gu family still had significant influence in the military. Old General Gu, a leading figure of the previous generation, commanded respect. With him around, no one dared to underestimate the Gu family. If it weren’t for the fact that Gu Lin was the only heir left, and that he had gone missing, leaving the old general to support the family alone, Ye Chengran wouldn’t have been able to suppress them so easily.

It wasn’t that the Gu family couldn’t resist Ye Chengran, but that old General Gu hadn’t taken action yet. Gu Lin’s life and death were uncertain, and old General Gu, concerned about Gu Lin’s safety, was unwilling to confront Ye Chengran at this time.

Now that Gu Lin had returned, Old General Gu had no more concerns.

After returning to the capital, Gu Lin didn’t go back to the Gu family immediately. Old General Gu waited for several days but no one showed up. He was so angry that he sent someone to “invite” Gu Lin. After all, how could he return to the capital but not go home? Was he planning to pass by the door three times and not enter?

Gu Lin originally intended to handle matters outside before returning, but now that the old man had sent someone, he couldn’t refuse any longer, so he brought Li Shu back to the Gu family.

Old General Gu had naturally heard about the ordinary person accompanying his grandson and even knew that this person meant a lot to his grandson, and he showed him a kind of care he’d never shown before.

Having raised the child himself, old General Gu knew Gu Lin better than anyone. Deep down, his grandson harbored an indifference to the world. When he first heard that Gu Lin had a young man by his side, he couldn’t believe it. He asked the person delivering the news for more details, and the more he heard, the more astonished he became.

It wasn’t that he doubted anything, but it was simply hard to imagine Gu Lin having such a side.

As he stood by the window, lost in thought, a knock on the door interrupted him. “General, the young master has returned.”

Even if old General Gu hadn’t mentioned it, Gu Lin would have brought Li Shu back. Li Shu was the person he’d chosen to spend his life with. No matter what they faced, he wouldn’t allow anyone to mistreat him.

Li Shu deserved the best of everything.

Holding the young man’s hand, Gu Lin softly reassured Li Shu by his ear, “Don’t worry, Grandpa won’t do anything.”

Just as old General Gu knew Gu Lin well, Gu Lin also understood the old General. Now that the old man had asked him to bring Li Shu home, it was clear that he had accepted the situation and wanted to meet Li Shu.

Li Shu tightened his grip on Gu Lin’s hand and moved closer. “Don’t worry about me.”

“Do I really need to ask you three times before you can come home?” A voice came over before the person arrived.

“Grandpa.”

To everyone’s surprise, old General Gu didn’t even glance at his troublesome grandson. Instead, he warmly addressed Li Shu, “So, this is Xiao Shu, right? A good child. From now on, treat this place as your own home. If that brat Gu Lin bullies you, just tell Grandpa, and I’ll take care of him.”

The moment old General Gu saw Li Shu, he liked the boy immediately. Unlike the always indifferent Gu Lin, this child exuded warmth. He had never opposed their relationship, and now, after meeting Li Shu, he was even more pleased. Completely ignoring Gu Lin, he began chatting with Li Shu, asking about his well-being.

This old man, who should have perished alongside the infected not long from now, was still alive and brimming with energy. He hadn’t yet experienced the series of persecutions that would later force him to drag his old body to fight on the front lines. Even his death would not be given the respect it deserved.

His death was the final straw that broke the male protagonist. But for now, none of that had happened yet.

Suppressing his thoughts, Li Shu followed the old man’s lead and sat down to chat.

It was a typical case of “with a grandchild-in-law, the grandchild is forgotten.” Gu Lin was thoroughly ignored by his own grandfather. He sat beside Li Shu, peeling nuts for him, feeling somewhat helpless.

He knew his grandfather was upset that he hadn’t returned home right away. He had planned to come back in a few days, but the old man had grown impatient and sent people to fetch him.

The place they had been staying was only a temporary residence. Now that he had reclaimed his original identity, it was only natural for him to return to the Gu family. After consulting Li Shu, they formally moved back.

The reaction of the Li family upon hearing this news wasn’t the only noteworthy one. Ye Chengran also smashed the things around him in a fit of rage.

Gu Lin had protected Li Shu too well, and Ye Chengran had never found an opportunity to make his move. Now that Gu Lin had taken Li Shu back to the Gu family, with their defenses, it would be even harder to get to him.

Li Shu had asked 1314 to keep an eye on the movements of the villains, so he was well aware of Ye Chengran’s little schemes. In fact, he was eager to meet the man who had caused Gu Lin so much harm. If he didn’t settle the score and return everything with interest, it wouldn’t be fair to all the suffering Gu Lin had endured.

As for Professor Fang, the person Li Shu had deliberately released was indeed one of his test subjects. Professor Fang had been working with some people in the capital to conduct experiments on both ordinary people and evolvers.

With the large population of the capital, the occasional disappearance of a few people wouldn’t raise suspicions, especially during such chaotic times. With someone cleaning up afterward, the experiments had continued in secret without anyone noticing.

Ambition tends to fuel boldness. As Professor Fang’s experiments reached a bottleneck, they grew dissatisfied with the subpar test subjects and set their sights on higher-quality “goods.”

Gu Lin was Professor Fang’s most promising test subject. The various experiments performed on him had yielded significant results, some of which had already made it to market.

That night, Gu Lin had an important meeting and didn’t stay at the Gu family. Pretending to be asleep, Li Shu quietly slipped out. He had left a mark on the person who had managed to escape that day, just so he could find Professor Fang’s real hideout.

Power wrapped around his body, the dark cloak nearly blending him entirely into the night. Following the faint trail of energy, Li Shu arrived at a seemingly desolate location.

Li Shu stopped, squinting as he surveyed the surroundings. This was an abandoned part of the capital, sparsely populated—a perfect place to conduct activities that shouldn’t see the light of day.

[The entrance is 46 meters to the east.]

Following 1314’s guidance, Li Shu avoided triggering any alarm systems. The moment the guard made a sound, he was knocked out.

In the darkness, everything happened quietly and without a trace.