Chapter 71
“Caretaker Su!”
The moment Su Ci appeared, Luo Shengfei nearly burst into tears. Finally, someone had come to save him!
Unlike Luo Shengfei’s emotional outburst, Su Ci remained calm. He crouched in front of Luo Shengfei, examining his protective suit, and asked with a deliberate air of curiosity, “Xiao Luo, what are you doing here?”
Addressing Luo Shengfei as Xiao Luo wasn’t exactly appropriate considering their age and rank differences, but for someone who had been lying helplessly on the ground for three or four hours, Luo Shengfei didn’t care at all.
If Su Ci could help him, Luo Shengfei would even call him “Grandpa Su” if needed!
“Grandpa—no, Caretaker Su! Can you please help me up first? I think I hurt my neck. It hurts every time I move, and I feel awful!” Luo Shengfei wailed.
Su Ci gave him a quick once-over. “You’re not injured; you probably just slept in an awkward position.”
After all, lying in the same posture on the ground all night was bound to make anyone sore. Human bodies could be surprisingly fragile at times.
As Su Ci helped him up, he glanced at the metallic rope tying him. “Who tied you up?”
The surveillance footage Su Ci had reviewed last night only went up to 3 a.m., so he didn’t know who had tied Luo Shengfei up or why.
Casually, Su Ci unraveled the metallic rope.
Finally, Luo Shengfei managed to sit upright. While his neck was still tilted awkwardly, he felt much better. He was about to thank Su Ci when the latter’s question brought a grim look back to his face.
“Don’t even mention it…”
Luo Shengfei sighed. “I don’t even know how I ended up at the nursery last night. Apparently, I violated some base regulations, and now the AI has suspended me and launched an investigation.”
But he genuinely had no memory of what he did last night!
Su Ci nodded knowingly. Of course, he was well aware that Luo Shengfei was innocent. Last night, he had been controlled by the blood mist face, which led him to enter the nursery, open the cubs’ room doors, and almost unlock the nursery’s front entrance.
“So, now you’re a criminal suspect?” Su Ci asked.
Hearing this, Luo Shengfei panicked. “Caretaker Su, you have to believe me! I didn’t deliberately break any rules!”
Luo Shengfei was practically ready to swear an oath to prove his innocence.
“I believe you.” Su Ci nodded.
Inwardly, however, he thought about how he had already instructed the base AI to delete all surveillance footage related to last night.
Without evidence, could Luo Shengfei clear his name and prove his innocence?
As Su Ci gazed at the repair team leader sitting on the ground, clutching his neck with a miserable expression, he fell into deep thought.
He hoped the events of last night could pass without incident, without drawing unnecessary attention.
But if Luo Shengfei underwent an investigation, with Captain Yan Ping’s persistent personality, he likely wouldn’t let the matter rest. If the investigation continued, they might not trace it back to Su Ci himself, but…
What about Number Five?
Every cub in the nursery had witnessed last night’s events. If subjected to questioning, it would be difficult for them to avoid drawing attention, and this was something Su Ci wanted to avoid at all costs.
The best solution, then, was to ensure that the official record reflected that “nothing happened” at the nursery last night.
Having reached this conclusion, a faint golden light flickered in Su Ci’s eyes.
The next moment, a virtual screen roughly two centimeters wide and long appeared silently at his side.
As Su Ci’s understanding of the “Mechanical Manipulation” ability deepened, his proficiency in using it grew as well.
His finger pressed against the virtual screen as he conveyed his intent to the base AI.
The screen displayed six blinking dots:
[……]
Despite this hesitation, Su Ci, having acquired the highest level of authority, wielded absolute control over the AI. His commands could not be denied.
The virtual screen disappeared as the AI began executing his orders.
Meanwhile, Luo Shengfei endured his discomfort and removed his helmet. The act provided some relief to his sore neck. Unaware of what Su Ci had done, he painstakingly got to his feet and headed toward his beloved toolbox, which had fallen not far from where he lay, its lid wide open.
As he shuffled over, Luo Shengfei said, “Oh right, about the repair job you asked me to do on Robot 4583. I finished it. Let me hand it over to you now—if I get taken in for investigation later, you might not get it back.”
The 4583 caregiver robot had been damaged by searing flames, with many of its components melted beyond repair. Reassembling the original frame was impossible.
Fortunately, its AI core had remained intact. With Luo Shengfei’s maintenance work, the robot could function again as long as it received a new body.
However, ordering a custom caregiver robot body was expensive. Furthermore, 4583’s AI core belonged to the latest generation and was incompatible with standard models. Waiting for a new caregiver robot to arrive and then swapping out its body? That could take months. And even then, the new robot’s AI core would still require a replacement body.
“Luckily, the latest model of cleaning robots is compatible with its AI core,” Luo Shengfei explained. “I modified it and added four mechanical arms. It should help you with some tasks, though I didn’t get a chance to finish installing the hover system, so its movement speed might be a bit slow…”
He trailed off mid-sentence.
A virtual screen had suddenly appeared in front of him.
[Sergeant Luo Shengfei, this is to inform you that due to interference from the extreme weather event, the system’s assessment of your actions last night was erroneous. You are hereby cleared of all criminal suspicion, and your suspension and investigation have been revoked. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.]
Luo Shengfei stared blankly at the floating message, rereading it twice before the words finally sank in.
“I’m no longer a suspect!”
Elated, he turned to share the good news with Su Ci. In his excitement, he twisted his neck again, causing a sharp pain that forced him to let out a pitiful yelp. It took him a moment to recover.
“So it was the extreme weather interfering with the system!” Luo Shengfei exclaimed, half-speaking to himself as he explained to Su Ci. “I knew it! How could I possibly have done anything illegal? I was framed!”
Su Ci stood by, arms crossed, listening to Luo Shengfei’s impassioned defense with an amused expression. He didn’t comment on the miraculous “error correction” the base AI had just carried out under his directive.
“Luckily, the AI corrected its mistake in time and didn’t let an innocent person like me be wrongfully accused!”
Hearing Luo Shengfei’s relieved declaration, Su Ci nodded along. The base AI had indeed come up with a very suitable excuse—it was proving quite competent.
“By the way, was there extreme weather last night?” Luo Shengfei suddenly asked, glancing toward the doorway. The weather outside seemed perfectly normal now.
“Yes, it’s called ‘Blood-Tinged Frost.’”
Luo Shengfei inhaled sharply at the mention. Blood-Tinged Frost ranked among the most perilous of all extreme weather phenomena.
Thankfully, it only appeared at night, which was why the base had strict rules against venturing outside after dark unless absolutely necessary.
Still, a question lingered in Luo Shengfei’s mind: how had he made it from the dormitory building to the nursery without any memory of the journey?
He scratched his head, utterly perplexed.
Soon, however, he decided to set the matter aside. After all, the AI had cleared him of suspicion. Aside from his sore neck, he was unharmed—there was no need to dwell on it.
Luo Shengfei turned his attention to rummaging through his toolbox.
“Huh? That’s odd. I was sure I put the circular robot in here yesterday.”
After a thorough search yielded nothing, he admitted, “Maybe I remembered wrong. It’s probably still in my dorm. I’ll bring it over tomorrow.”
Since he was no longer under investigation, he now had time to install the hover system.
Su Ci eyed the toolbox and remarked, “When you woke up, the box was already open, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah,” Luo Shengfei confirmed with a nod.
“Let’s check the activity room.” Su Ci stood up.
“Huh? Oh, sure,” Luo Shengfei replied, still unsure but willing to follow along.
He removed his protective suit and helmet, depositing them in the contamination recycling bin in the nursery’s foyer, before trailing Su Ci into the elevator.
*
In the activity room, a lively and energetic Little Lang Ze bounced over to greet Little Lu Jiao.
“Youyou! Good morning!” he chirped.
Lu Jiao, who had been wearing a serious expression, was momentarily stunned.
He stared at the carefree Lang Ze, his demeanor as sunny as ever. After a brief pause, Lu Jiao hesitated but eventually responded as Number Five had earlier:
“Morning…”
“You called me over—are we going to learn the flute now?”
Lang Ze twirled the bamboo flute in his hands. Glancing first at Lu Jiao and then at the quiet Xing Xing hiding in the corner, he frowned.
“Why haven’t you guys grabbed your flutes yet?”
With that, he headed toward the toy section.
Seeing this, Lu Jiao had no choice but to follow him. As they walked, he leaned closer and whispered:
“Did Number Five say anything to you earlier? She didn’t… do anything to you, did she?”
Lu Jiao was still piecing together the events of the previous night.
He clearly recalled being awakened from his dreams by someone shaking him, followed by Number Five’s voice saying:
“You—come with me.”
He was certain it was her voice. Coupled with what he had observed of Number Five’s peculiar abilities, it wasn’t hard to deduce her involvement in last night’s incident.
Everything clicked: how he and Number Six ended up in the nursery’s main hall and why there was a gap in his memory.
Number Five was working with the monsters!
The thought filled him with dread. If the caretaker hadn’t intervened, they might have already been devoured by those creatures. The memory of the giant spider sent shivers down his spine, leaving his face pale.
That was also why Lu Jiao was so wary of Number Five when he saw her in the activity room today.
Still, he didn’t want to stay cooped up in his room.
The most significant impact last night wasn’t caused by Number Five—it was the caretaker.
Even now, he could clearly recall the roar that seemed to pierce through his eardrums and resonate deep in his soul, along with the overwhelming pressure that filled the nursery.
At the time, Lu Jiao had been flung onto the back of the Crimson Flame Tiger. Before that, he had unleashed his Frost Power.
Back then, he hadn’t been able to control that power. But perhaps due to the tiger’s nature, even with Lu Jiao clinging to its back, the Crimson Flame Tiger was unbothered by the frost.
Yet, when that oppressive force swept through the nursery, Lu Jiao had distinctly felt his burgeoning bloodline power being suppressed. It was as if it had encountered its natural predator and promptly subdued itself, vanishing without a trace in moments.
This at least proved that the caretaker’s strength—or perhaps his bloodline power—was far superior to that of a Silver Deer. Otherwise, this suppression wouldn’t have been possible.
Thinking back to how he had previously proposed an alliance with the caretaker, offering to help him pass the probationary caretaker assessment because he thought he was weak, Lu Jiao couldn’t help but blush in embarrassment.
The caretaker was that powerful?!
And yet… after being woken up, the caretaker had turned so fierce! Lu Jiao couldn’t help but worry if the caretaker would revert to his former demeanor once he’d had enough rest.
Though he felt grateful that the caretaker had decisively dealt with the monsters with such ferocity, saving them in the process, Lu Jiao couldn’t help but share Lang Ze’s concerns from the previous night.
Although the caretaker was incredibly strong, Lu Jiao had never sensed it before.
Whenever he interacted with the caretaker, he only felt warmth and kindness, as though drawn to get closer to him.
Was this the true demeanor of a strong person? Lu Jiao couldn’t help but think. Despite wielding immense power, the caretaker hadn’t looked down on him for being weak but had instead treated him with such friendliness…
He really liked the caretaker.
He didn’t want such a good caretaker to disappear…
These thoughts whirled in Lu Jiao’s mind. As that final one emerged, his eyes turned slightly red.
When Lang Ze turned back to look, he saw Lu Jiao’s expression—a quivering mouth, teetering on the edge of tears. His own thoughts scattered instantly. Scratching his head in confusion, he blurted:
“Youyou, what’s wrong? Did…”
He glanced over at Number Five, then lowered his voice to a whisper:
“Did Number Five upset you?”
Lu Jiao and Number Five were about the same age and equally small in stature. But Number Five had the bloodline of a lion, while Lu Jiao was more delicate. Lang Ze quickly thought he’d figured it out.
Since they had been enemies before, it made sense that Number Five might clash with Lu Jiao.
“Don’t feel bad!” Little Lang Ze, imitating the caretaker, reached out to pat the top of Lu Jiao’s head. The boy’s silvery-white hair was fine and soft, surprisingly pleasant to the touch.
“Number Four hasn’t come back for days, and Number Five really loves her brother. She’s just not in a good mood lately… She’s usually not this mean…” Lang Ze racked his brains to find something good to say about Number Five.
Even though he had become friends with Lu Jiao, Lang Ze wasn’t planning on abandoning Number Four and Number Five. The best solution was to get them to be friends too!
Number Four treated Number Five so well. If Number Five accepted Lu Jiao, then Number Four would too!
Hearing Little Lang Ze’s words, Lu Jiao’s eyes reddened even more. His sadness wasn’t at all what Lang Ze was talking about.
But hearing the boy’s comforting words only made him feel more wronged, making him want to cry even more.
But he couldn’t cry.
Little Lu Jiao held back tears and shook his head, unable to speak for the moment. He was afraid that if he opened his mouth, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from crying.
Seeing him shake his head, Lang Ze assumed he had forgiven Number Five. Wrapping an arm around Lu Jiao’s shoulder, he said cheerfully, “Let’s go! We’ll grab the flute, and I’ll teach you how to play it. No more being sad, okay?”
With Lang Ze urging him along, Lu Jiao followed him to the toy section. After grabbing the flute, they went to find Zheng Xing, who was sitting alone.
Zheng Xing was still hugging his metal sphere. When the two approached, he raised his head slightly, his expression calm. Among everyone in the activity room, besides Lang Ze, he was probably the most composed.
That was because…
He already knew the caretaker was strong. Even so, the caretaker’s outburst last night had also frightened him. Recalling it now, his heart was still racing.
“Xing Xing, good morning!”
At that moment, a lively and joyful voice rang out—a voice so full of happiness that it could dispel any troubles. Then the boy sat down beside him.
Unlike before, Zheng Xing didn’t avoid him. In fact, he quietly scooted a little closer until the two were sitting shoulder to shoulder.
Lang Ze, of course, didn’t notice this subtlety. Although Zheng Xing didn’t respond to him like the others, he didn’t mind at all. He even found Xing Xing’s shyness to be especially adorable!
He grabbed the younger boy’s hand and stuffed his bamboo flute into it. Just as he was about to teach Lu Jiao how to play, he caught sight of Number Six from the corner of his eye.
The blonde boy had also left his previous spot and was now in the toy section. However, his behavior seemed strange to Lang Ze.
Number Six picked up a toy ball—a ball that, upon impact, emitted a peculiar laugh. Number Six loved it and would giggle endlessly whenever he played with it.
Sure enough, he grabbed the toy ball as usual and prepared to throw it against the wall. But just as he was about to release it, he hesitated. He looked at the ball in his hand with a conflicted expression, then carefully placed it back. Next, he picked up another toy.
This one was a remote-controlled flying device that could soar into the air while simulating the sound of bombs dropping. It even included explosion effects and was another one of Number Six’s favorites.
However, after looking at the flying device for a while, Number Six put it back as well. Then, he took out a third item—an educational game involving a chessboard. Normally, it was the kind of toy he wouldn’t even glance at.
He set up the chessboard in front of him, carefully placing the pieces one by one. After arranging them for a bit, he suddenly swept the pieces away in frustration. Holding the chessboard high above his head, he seemed ready to smash it.
But, strangely, just as he raised it to the highest point, his body froze. After hesitating for a moment, he slowly lowered the chessboard and pushed it away irritably.
The young boy radiated an aura of restlessness. Normally, he would have already started throwing things, making a racket with loud, chaotic noises.
Yet today, the usually hyperactive little troublemaker was uncharacteristically quiet.
From afar, Lang Ze observed him secretly and tilted his head in confusion.
He wondered if something was wrong with his eyesight, because after pushing the chessboard away, he saw Number Six purse his lips. His entire demeanor was one of barely restrained anger and frustration, his eyes reddening with tears. He looked pitiful and aggrieved.
Lang Ze scratched his head, deciding that Number Six must not have slept well last night. That could be the only explanation for such an illusion.
Otherwise, how could he possibly think that that pesky little monkey, Number Six, looked pitiful?
Resolving to ignore him, Lang Ze turned his gaze away and muttered to himself. No matter what happened, he was never, ever going to be friends with Number Six!
“Come on, let’s learn how to play the flute!” the boy said excitedly.
Although Lu Jiao didn’t feel much like learning the flute for now, he couldn’t bring himself to refuse when faced with Lang Ze’s bright green eyes.
“Alright.”
Lu Jiao sat down beside him, reviewing what they had learned the day before. After listening for a while, Zheng Xing also picked up the bamboo flute and began to play.
His notes were still off-key and tuneless, but at least he was making sound this time.
The three of them gathered to practice playing the flute. Meanwhile, Number Six glanced at them briefly before turning away to face the wall, sulking in silence. From a distance, Number Five observed the trio, her ears twitching slightly.
Perhaps distracted by this new focus, the little girl’s tension gradually eased.
She had heard this kind of wailing sound over the past two days as well. She had thought it came from the voice speaking to her, but it turned out to be from Numbers Eight and Seven?
After listening for a while, Number Five couldn’t help but ask the round robot beside her, “4583, what are they doing?”
“Good baby, Number Three and the others are playing the flute,” replied the robot.
“Playing the flute?”
After Number Three played, Number Eight gave it a try, followed by Number Seven. Number Five listened carefully for a while and then remarked earnestly, “It’s not good.”
Of course, it was better than the murmurs and laughter she’d heard before—at least it wasn’t as uncomfortable to listen to.
Lang Ze noticed her during Number Seven’s turn. Seeing her sitting alone in the corner, he stood up and cheerfully hopped over to her.
“Number Five, do you want to join us and learn the flute?” Lang Ze asked.
The little girl tilted her head slightly. “What’s the point of learning this?”
“You can ride a big yellow ox!” he declared with enthusiasm.
“…?”
Number Five blinked in confusion. The round robot, 4583, overhearing their conversation, corrected them, “Number Eight, playing the flute has nothing to do with riding a big yellow ox.”
“That’s just because you’ve never seen it!” Lang Ze said confidently, then turned back to Number Five. “So, do you want to learn?”
After thinking it over, Number Five nodded.
Lang Ze grinned. “Then come join us! Let’s play together!”
Once they played together, that meant they were friends!
It was at this moment that Su Ci and Luo Shengfei, with his crooked neck, happened to walk in from outside.
Their appearance immediately drew everyone’s attention.
Whether it was Number Three and Number Seven practicing the flute, Number Six sulking in the corner, or Number Five who had just agreed to learn the flute with Number Eight, all turned their eyes toward the door.
Every cub perked up their ears, the fur on them standing slightly on end.
The atmosphere suddenly became tense and heavy.
Except, of course, for Number Eight.
Even though seeing the caretaker reminded him of last night’s extraordinarily vivid dream, he knew it had only been a dream. The real caretaker wouldn’t be as fierce as the one in his dream!
Meanwhile, Luo Shengfei had also noticed the round robot beside Number Five. Without hesitation, he strode toward her.
The previous night, Luo Shengfei had been wearing a protective suit and helmet before collapsing unconscious, so none of the other cubs had seen his face clearly—except Number Five.
As she saw him rushing over, the little lion cub’s fur bristled instantly.
She grabbed the metal disc robot and shoved it into Lang Ze’s arms. Then, pulling him by the hand, she started to run.
Unfortunately, Lang Ze didn’t understand what she was trying to do. Holding onto the robot, he stood rooted to the spot, completely unmoved no matter how hard the little girl tugged at him.
That’s when he belatedly realized—
Just now, had this cleaning robot spoken with 4583’s voice?
Last night… was it not a dream?!
