Chapter 75: The trigger is ready

Translator: Abo Dammen

☆

Case Four: Sicilian Defense

Lin Mei’s funeral was held at the cemetery. Some of her former military colleagues and people who had worked with her at the city government attended.

A light rain fell from the sky. A single burial plot was enough to hold the mourners. Black umbrellas gathered and dispersed like petals, as if to say that all good feasts must come to an end.

Luo You cried bitterly, his eyes swollen and puffy. He clung to Xu Pei’s arm, occasionally bowing his head to wipe his tears on Xu Pei’s shoulder. 

Xu Pei, dressed in a black suit, found both shoulders doomed to be dampened—one by Luo You’s incessant tears, the other by the rainwater dripping from the umbrella’s edge.

Somewhat surprisingly, Li Menglan also attended Lin Mei’s funeral, placing a bouquet of lilies on her coffin.

This was Xu Pei’s first time seeing Li Menglan in person. She resembled the Lin Mei of old, possessing a certain decisiveness and ruthlessness. It was said that this new mayor had started cracking down on the entertainment industry as soon as she took office. He Maohu had washed his hands of it just in time, but Ling Feng had suffered a devastating blow.

The day after learning of Lin Mei’s death, He Maohu rushed back. It was he who arranged Lin Mei’s funeral. 

The once formidable figure had also sheathed his edge, his sharp corners worn smooth by the unpredictable trials of life. Although he had once resolutely declared they would have nothing to do with each other until death, when facing He Yixun, he hesitated several times, words seemingly stuck in his throat. Finally, before leaving, he patted He Yixun’s shoulder. “Call me if you need anything.”

“No need,” He Yixun responded.

He had arrested Zhou Ye. Zhou Ye wasn’t made of steel. He hadn’t been locked up long before he spat out a string of names, not one of which could withstand scrutiny.

Throwing himself into his work was an excellent way to heal. He Yixun adjusted faster than Xu Pei had anticipated. After one night of despondency, he returned to his normal state, seemingly reverting to his former work machine. But he always found time to send messages to Xu Pei, reporting his whereabouts, as if he had developed a new layer of reliance. 

Xu Pei didn’t go to the police station much because his olfactory issue still wasn’t resolved.

A couple of days ago, he went with the police team to search the mountains for a missing person. At the time, they weren’t sure if the person was dead. As a result, he located the decomposing corpse before the police dogs did. The stench of death left him reeling for a long time.

Staying at home, idle hands being the devil’s workshop, Professor Xu simply took on all the household chores.

After a busy day, he heard the sound of the door opening while cooking. He went to the entrance hall holding a spatula. “So? How about it? Just tell me, aren’t I capable and virtuous?” 

He Yixun stopped at the doorway, looked at the glaringly obvious water stains on the floor, and was silent for a moment. “Capable and virtuous.”

“I also cleaned the windowpanes,” Xu Pei added.

He Yixun looked up and saw dried water stains on the windows too, meaning he would have to clean them all over again.

A burning smell suddenly wafted over. Xu Pei cried out “Oh no!” and hurried back to the kitchen. “It’s going to burn!” 

He Yixun took a deep, pained breath, mentally prepared himself, and walked out of the entrance hall, unsurprised to find a disaster zone of a kitchen.

Unable to bear it any longer, he undid his cufflinks, rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, grabbed a kitchen towel, and started wiping the countertop covered in food scraps.

“Go sit down, I’ll clean up,” Xu Pei said in dissatisfaction, waving the spatula and accidentally flipping a piece of meat out of the pan. It bounced onto the floor, leaving a greasy stain.

“Enough.” Having reached his limit, He Yixun turned off the stove with one hand, snatched the spatula from Xu Pei with the other, then hooked an arm around his waist and physically relocated him out of the kitchen. 

“Hey, what are you doing? Let me cook!” Xu Pei’s legs kicked wildly in the air, but even losing his slippers couldn’t stop He Yixun from carrying him to the living room.

“You have no talent for cooking. Don’t force yourself.” He Yixun dumped Xu Pei onto the sofa, took the apron off him, and put it on himself. “Don’t do the housework from now on either. I’ll handle it.”

Having said that, he picked up Xu Pei’s slippers and neatly placed them by the sofa.

“You look down on me.” Xu Pei slipped his feet back into the slippers and followed him back to the kitchen. “I’m the youngest professor at the National Research Institute. If I want to learn something, there’s nothing I can’t master.” 

He Yixun, unable to stand the kitchen’s dirt and disorder, had immediately picked up a cloth, but hearing this, he paused. He used chopsticks to pick up a piece of meat from the pan and held it to Xu Pei’s mouth.

Judging by his years of cooking experience, this meat was definitely tough and stringy.

Xu Pei took a bite. The confidence on his face gradually vanished as he chewed. He swallowed with difficulty, turned, and walked away, muttering to himself, “Maybe I’ll look into gardening as a hobby instead.”

It was half an hour later by the time they ate. The kitchen was as spotless as if it had never been used. He Yixun had made two additional dishes and a soup, all ordinary home-style cooking, tasting as reliably good as always. 

Xu Pei had to admit that perhaps he really had no talent for housework.

It was fine that He Yixun took care of every aspect for him, but…

Biting his chopsticks, he drifted off in thought, which was precisely captured by He Yixun. “What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing,” Xu Pei said, lowering his head to eat. 

“You’re thinking about something.” He Yixun put down his chopsticks.

Lately, for some reason, He Robot seemed to have had an epiphany, becoming able to detect even Xu Pei’s subtlest moods. Sometimes, if Xu Pei merely wrinkled his nose, He Yixun would know he was uncomfortable.

To be honest, initially, Xu Pei hadn’t thought He Yixun could be a competent “alpha,” given their significant physiological differences. They couldn’t even communicate via pheromones.

But it seemed now he had worried unnecessarily. Although He Yixun wasn’t an alpha, he was absolutely a qualified boyfriend. His attentiveness was enough to compensate for Xu Pei’s difficulties adjusting to this world. 

“I just don’t want to stay home all day,” Xu Pei ranted. “I want to work outside. Being a police consultant is great, but…”

He couldn’t adjust his olfactory sensitivity. Whenever he encountered a strong smell, he had to rest at home for several days.

At first, having intense sex with He Yixun would help him recover significantly, but now even He Yixun’s semen wasn’t as effective anymore. He didn’t know if his nasal mucosa was getting increasingly damaged.

Once the blocker ran out of power completely, he might not even be able to leave the house. 

“I checked the weather forecast. There will be a thunderstorm tomorrow,” He Yixun noted. “We’ll go over, settle things, and come back.”

Xu Pei had the same plan. “Okay.”

But this time, going back… the odds were probably against them.

“First, we deal with your blocker issue. Capturing Zhen Li isn’t a must,” He Yixun habitually started planning. “Based on last time’s experience, encountering danger triggers the time reversal. This time, when we go, we’ll most likely be on the run. 

“You’re in better physical condition now. I’ll try to find a place to drop you off. You go back to get the charger, then rendezvous with me.

“After that, we’ll find a place to hide and wait for the next thunderstorm.”

“Wait,” Xu Pei interrupted He Yixun. “What if we can’t rendezvous?”

“I might get captured. You find a thunderstorm day and rescue me.” 

He Yixun said it lightly, but Xu Pei only saw countless difficulties. “How could I rescue you?”

“Use Zhan Gao. He doesn’t know we can travel during thunderstorms.” After saying this, He Yixun paused. “Trust me, and trust yourself.”

Xu Pei felt like saying, maybe forget it.

Zhen Li would definitely find a way to come back. They could just have people watch for him. 

But…

Could he really spend his whole life at home?

If only, when they went back this time, the time reversal would go a bit further. As long as they weren’t in the car, everything would still be manageable.

After dinner, Xu Pei sat on the living room carpet, making different plans based on different possible time points. 

“Best case, time goes back to before we were attacked by Mo Xin. If that’s not possible, before exposing Zhan Gao would work too. That way, at least you wouldn’t be arrested.”

He muttered to himself for a long time, but there was no response from the kitchen. Xu Pei looked up and asked, “Are you listening?”

“Yes,” He Yixun replied.

Xu Pei began recalling the map of Nucheng. In the worst-case scenario, if they returned to the middle of their escape, they could at least find a better route. 

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, He Yixun had just finished putting the dishes in the dishwasher and opened his chat with Chen Zhen when his phone rang—it was Chen Zhen calling.

Considering the timing, news was about due.

He answered the call and turned down the volume. Chen Zhen’s voice came through the receiver. “Sir He, that trigger device I had someone make is ready. What’s it for?”

He Yixun glanced back at Xu Pei, who was focused on his plans, and said quietly, “It’s useful.”

Author’s Feed:

This is the second half of yesterday’s chapter that I didn’t finish writing. Sir He’s plotline is finally wrapped up!

Returning to the ABO world tomorrow~ So excited!