CHAPTER 104

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Since Director Xiao didn't punish him directly, You Zhengping could still move around inside the base within a small range. So he stayed in Junjun's lounge, occasionally looking after the child, helping control his temperature. Director Ha crouched beside them, head tilted, keeping its eyes fixed on the fluid solution bag, watching the remaining fluid solution amount for Junjun.

Junjun occasionally babbled in his sleep, terms like "numerical series," "permutations and combinations," "trigonometric function," "exponential logarithms," "electromagnetic fields," "organic chemistry." Listening to it made You Zhengping blush with shame.

He kept thinking that Junjun having this special ability awaken had to do with Yu Hua making the child study high school math and science too young. In order to do his homework, Junjun had been forced to grow up too quickly.

Yu Hua... You Zhengping laughed. When he had told Director Xiao that he already knew the black-cloaked man's identity but couldn't tell the organization, You Zhengping had been inwardly unperturbed. Unfortunately, even if he didn't say, when Junjun woke up, he would probably say it. Junjun didn't know that Yu Hua was the black-cloaked man, but if he only related what he had seen in the little world to the Protection Organization, with Director Xiao's intelligence, he would very quickly link Yu Hua with the black-cloaked man.

As You Zhengping changed temperature reducing pads for Junjun, he considered this with concern. But just then, Junjun's feverish ravings went from "segmented functions" to "I won't, ge-shu," "I won't say," "Xiao Ha, I don't blame you," and other such phrases.

You Zhengping's hand paused. Probably the only person Junjun would use the address "ge-shu" for was someone who sometimes appeared to have just graduated university and other times looked like he had lived for ages.

"Aw-aw-awooo." Director Ha lay on the ground, covering its head with its paws, head hanging down low, looking sorry.

You Zhengping understood what Director Ha meant. It was saying, "I'm sorry, Junjun."

Remembering Director Ha's ruthlessness towards children at the start and comparing it to this change now, while no doubt it involved Destroyer 192's soul constantly merging with the dog and being influenced by the body's instincts, there was also another reason—no one is born good or evil. Of course, extreme cases exist, but they're a minority, after all. Many more people only lack the environment in which to grow up and change.

This is the principle of being influenced by one's surroundings. You Zhengping had a feeling that in his attitude towards the levelers, Yu Hua had chosen two completely opposing methods. From high-pressure dictatorship to leaving them only a path towards good—it seemed that Yu Hua was trying to persuade himself of something.

"Thank you." You Zhengping tucked in the corners of Junjun's quilt.

Having made a resolution, You Zhengping settled something that had been weighing on him. He lay down beside Junjun's hospital bed and fell heavily asleep. He didn't even notice when Cen Xiao and the others came one after another to look at him.

Cen Xiao had come to counsel You Zhengping, though it wasn't to counsel him to reveal the black-cloaked man's identity; he wanted to make him properly look after Yu Hua. When he came through the door and saw You Zhengping sleeping, he didn't say anything. He sighed and left.

Zhen Li and Yuan Luori wanted to tactfully thank You Zhengping for keeping the secret, but they didn't know what to say. Yuan Luori sent his parrot to scout for them. Seeing that You Zhengping was asleep, the two of them turned circles by the door and left.

Lian Yufan's feelings were very conflicted. On the one hand, he wanted to criticize You Zhengping for being impulsive, for not recognizing what was important, for not considering the bigger picture at a time like this and sticking to his usual vile habit of "wanting it all," for being truly immature. 

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