Having coerced a few crucial items out of the doctors who'd rushed in to treat him, Chen Yu allowed them to link him up to their various monitors again, then sent them out. He had actually wanted to leave Lei Jia completely, but this body was apparently even weaker than he'd estimated, merely climbing down from his bed had taken all his strength.
Fortunately, it wasn't a significant loss. His lover usually had some intersection with the original owner in each world, and the laptop he'd obtained was enough for Chen Yu to investigate Lei Xinxiu's limited circle of acquaintances.
Therefore, after fiddling around a bit with his new watch and some surgical instruments, he settled down and opened the computer to begin. The process was rather difficult, however; somewhat to his surprise, it seemed that there weren't many perverts around with a good voice, a habit of tapping his fingers, and a kink for biting necks.
Right as he was becoming tired of crossing off candidate after candidate, a firm knock sounded, followed by a neat row of people.
Chen Yu didn't intend to react to this presumptuous behavior; the only leverage he currently had was his health, and the self-harming play was scheduled to take place later. But an inadvertent glimpse of the gloating expressions on the faces of those doctors who had just been shooed away by him roused his curiosity.
No matter how neglected Lei Xinxiu may be, he was still the second young master of this family.
Accordingly, any caretaker with a brain wouldn't show his contempt so openly unless he had some impressive backing. Based on the reverent direction in which the group kept glancing, the person at the front of the line was the source of this overconfidence.
A bit intrigued, Chen Yu decided that since the diversion had served itself, he should graciously appreciate it. This was also a good opportunity to vent his irritation.
Disregarding the silent pressure coming from the procession, he thus leisurely studied the other person.
The man's tall figure was dressed in a lab coat, under which was a starched white shirt buttoned to the top and spotless gloves over his long fingers, while his pure sable hair was swept back to reveal a sharp widow's peak. This repressed aura was further compounded by the solid black frame glasses that obscured his eyes, along with the bloodless skin, sharp nose, and pale thin lips.
The coldly imposing person in front of him seemed vaguely familiar, but it took Chen Yu another review of the original owner's memories to recognize him as Chun'yu Dao.
By all accounts, this cheap guardian held an extremely disinterested attitude towards everything except medical research. It was to the extent that the original owner hadn't even known his identity.
In fact, Chun'yu Dao did visit Lei Xinxiu whenever he suffered a severe episode. It was only that the boy fell asleep within seconds of meeting every time, which was why it had taken some time for Chen Yu to identify him.
Thinking of this, he sneered, at least Chun'yu Dao bothered to personally check on his patient's post-operation care.
Nevertheless, this encounter could be said to be their first real meeting, so he politely nodded in acknowledgment, "Doctor."
Chun'yu Dao ignored this greeting, calmly finished his scan of the specimen's viability, and turned to his subordinates. "What happened?"
Chen Yu raised his brows slightly in amusement at the way the man acted, as if Lei Xinxiu was no different from an insensible doll, then resumed tapping away on his laptop. Anyway, it wasn't like anyone else would be able to explain his actions for him.
Indeed, a few minutes later, Chun'yu Dao clasped his hands behind his back and spit out a terse command. "Your request has been met. Behave properly in the future."
"Hm," Chen Yu pretended to consider his order, then shook his head, "I'm sorry, Doctor. I don't think I can. Who knows how long I'll be able to last under this kind of care?"
Satisfied by the inconspicuous annoyance on the man's impassive face, he languidly waved his hand. "Look around, Doctor, your team is clearly incompetent and inattentive. I've been meaning to discuss this for some time, but there was really no other way for me to summon you except by 'misbehaving.'"
A few of the professionals in the back who had opened their mouths to refute 004 were directly blocked by the second sentence. If they misspoke here, this whole incident might really be traced to their disregard for a research subject's opinions, so they honestly lowered their heads, their ears apprehensively perked up for any specific mention of their names.
"Putting aside the small details, Lei Jia has poured millions into research about my illness for more than a decade, yet my condition is worsening every year. For the sake of respecting my grandfather's wishes in appointing you as my nominal guardian, I've endured until now, but…" Chen Yu helplessly shrugged his shoulders, the faint smile on his face never fluctuating. "Maybe it's time to call a family meeting."
In his will, Lei laoye had left a certain clause that permitted the twins to entrust their custody to anyone from the Chunyu Group, so long as a majority of the Lei family voted in favor of dismissing Chun'yu Dao.
Due to how obsessed his lover was with joining up their family trees, Chen Yu had started his search for his lover by inspecting the perversion levels of Lei Xinxiu's relatives and, in the process, had happened to discover that there really hadn't been any attempts by the branch families to usurp the twins' positions.
While he hadn't taken the trouble of digging up their reasons, it was obvious that the status of Lei Jia's main descendants was currently unassailable. If matters really came to that point, it was therefore likely that he would be able to successfully switch out his keeper.
Chun'yu Dao furrowed his brows. Although there were few in Chunyu Group who would dare to oppose him, there would inevitably be some inconvenience if he wasn't entirely in control of this subject.
Of course, he was clear that 004's goal wasn't truly to dismiss him but to threaten him. Rather than dealing with an unknown number of demands to placate it, however, it would be simpler to simply…disable it.
With that idea, he tilted his chin and considered the best method to immobilize it. Anything that impaired its functions wouldn't do...Perhaps an electric shock treatment would do the job?
The man's movements shifted the angle at which the light hit his glasses, so that from his position lounging on the bed, Chen Yu could just discern the sharp glint that crossed his eyes.
Curling the corners of his lips, he kindly saved the other's time.
"Doctor, your assistants were thoughtful enough to provide a computer for me today. It's very easy to use, so much so that I couldn't resist writing a small program."
In the puzzled audience's sight, he raised his frail wrist to show off the modern watch and seemed to change the subject. "This is the latest SmartRescue model, I've heard it has an emergency function that can directly contact the national hospital if the wearer is in distress."
As he'd expected, Chun'yu Dao didn't react, certain that the government wouldn't interfere, yet Chen Yu only laughed blithely and continued on.
"Well, I figured if your team couldn't help me, neither could they, and in any case, I want to go freely once my time is up. But, afraid that leaving behind too much would sadden my brother, I chose to use this to lessen his burden."
Innocently blinking up at the group's impatient expressions with his glittering eyes, he casually asked, "Are you curious how?"
Chun'yu Dao twitched his fingers behind his back, his stare boring into 004's face. Somehow, the harmless face suddenly appeared a bit devilish, the smiling lips that were so chapped that faint lines of blood had surfaced more striking against the pallid skin.
At this sight, instead of concern about whatever meager safeguard the subject may have set up, his mind revolved entirely on when it had evolved enough to have such a distinctive personality. To have missed a significant development like this meant that he could have overlooked other changes as well. It seemed he would have to monitor 004 personally from now on.
Despite how gratifying it was to watch everyone except for the boring Chun'yu Dao burn in anxiety like ants on a hot pan, the fatigue in his bones convinced Chen Yu to wrap up the show.
Speaking slowly to prevent any confusion, he explained, "What I did was, I created a little server on my laptop and linked it to this watch. If the vitals on this watch become abnormal and I don't sign into my computer program account on time, the battery will explode. Of course, I added some things to enlarge the scale of the fire. It should be enough to destroy my corpse entirely, so Ah Zhen won't have to do it himself. What do you think?"
Once they grasped the implications of this design, the row of doctors dumbfoundedly gaped at the youth.
What did they think? They thought that they couldn't wait to cut off that wrist, or at least tear the watch off! It wasn't such a big deal if the person died, the point was that the body had to be left, ah!
Unable to stand the pressure, a junior doctor actually stepped forward to remove the threat, but he didn't manage to take more than two steps before he was jerked to a stop by 004's "Oh!"
Everyone froze and frantically checked the monitors to ensure that the numbers were stable, and even Chun'yu Dao tensed. A moment later, as if he'd just remembered, Chen Yu pulled down the collar of his hospital gown to reveal a bloodstained wound over his heart.
Gesturing toward the incision, he added, "I almost forgot to tell you, I took out the loop recorder you put in before and modified it. Now, it transmits its data to my server, and if there's any irregularity, its circuits will heat up and its battery will also blow up. My arrangements are quite reliable, so you don't need to worry."
By this time, Chun'yu Dao had no choice but to concede.
As soon as the other doctors walked out in a daze, the man approached the bed and straightforwardly asked, "What's your objective?"
Although he had had to disclose some of his trump cards in advance, Chen Yu had at last proven that he was in a position to negotiate, so he didn't waste time. "As I've said, Doctor, your treatment isn't effective enough for me. That being the case, I plan to research my condition myself."
Chun'yu Dao frowned, not having expected that this was really the issue. 004's demand wasn't hard to accommodate, but his experiments would be affected if an amateur tampered with the variables.
Loath to sacrifice so much, he bartered for the first time, offering, "That's impossible. In exchange, you can ask for two other conditions."
Chen Yu paused, then obediently nodded. "How about if I promise that you only have to provide a lab for me if I show you sufficient academic achievement in the medical field? And I won't alter my treatment plan without prior discussion."
From the tutors' periodic evaluations, Chun'yu Dao remembered that 004 hadn't displayed particularly outstanding learning talent that would enable him to become a doctor anytime soon, so he reluctantly agreed and turned to leave with a plain "En," only to be stopped yet again.
"Doctor, where are you going? I gave up that 'impossible' wish for two terms, not one."
That was indeed the literal meaning of his bid and, more importantly, the opponent had the strength to enforce his commitment, so Chun'yu Dao patiently turned back.
Chen Yu thus finally got to his main goal. "Two weeks after I begin my research, I'll have to trouble you to arrange my enrollment into Donghua Academy."
The request was made in a perfectly nonchalant tone, but Chun'yu Dao instinctively felt that this had been the aim of today's drama all along. Wondering what could incite such a substantial degree of evolution, he probed, "What's your purpose?"
This was precisely the question Chen Yu had been waiting for. As if he couldn't wait for everyone to know that he was pursuing Kan Yawei, he frankly responded, "I fell in love at first sight with that boy who came over a week ago, so I want to get closer to him."
The instant he declared his infatuation, a strange heat swept through Chen Yu's soul, causing him to jolt in shock.
While the sensation disappeared almost immediately, it was enough for him to recognize the extremely familiar feeling: that was the resonance between the imprints that had formed on their souls due to his prolonged dual cultivation with his lovers.
And it had arisen now, which indicated that this Chun'yu Dao...was his man.