AYLS -Chapter 154

On one side, the couple was cuddling sweetly while discussing how to catch the parasite.

On the other side, Su Weizhen was also talking to Xu Yuanzheng about the situation.

It started when Xu Yuanzheng returned with a gloomy face, sighing nonstop. Su Weizhen asked several times before he finally explained what had happened at the training ground.

“I didn’t believe it before, but after seeing it today, I really have no choice but to believe it.”

Su Weizhen said, “Could it be a health issue?”

Xu Yuanzheng sighed. “That’s the problem—he already got checked, and nothing came up.”

Su Weizhen still felt it was likely a physical problem. Some illnesses simply couldn’t be detected.

She wondered whether her arrival had changed certain things. Perhaps Gu Huayuan was no longer destined to die on the battlefield… but because fate was fixed, he would still die—only this time from an illness?

The more she thought about it, the more anxious she became, even more than Xu Yuanzheng.

If it were an accident, she might be able to prevent it. But illness? What could she possibly do? Her space could help with planting and raising animals, but it didn’t have any miraculous healing properties.

If it really turned out that way… how devastated would Xiao Qiao be afterward? Su Weizhen’s heart twisted in agony.

In contrast, Lin Qiao was completely carefree, not worried at all.

After being muted, the fat cat was pacing anxiously in the space, hopping around and clawing at its own fur.

By the time Lin Qiao released it the next morning, the ground was covered with its shed hair.

Seeing it like that filled Lin Qiao with pure joy.

Serves you right—who told you to keep doing bad things?

“Why did you mute me? What did he tell you? You didn’t tell him everything, did you? Don’t forget the consequences. I really didn’t lie to you about this!” the fat cat immediately yelled.

Lin Qiao patted her own hair as she sipped tea in the office. “Why so anxious? It’s not the first time I muted you. I was just getting closer to Gu Huayuan.”

“Just that? I don’t believe it. He looked really serious yesterday,” the fat cat said nervously. “Did he figure something out? Did he find out about me?”

“Find out what? My Gu Huayuan wouldn’t waste his attention on you. His focus is all on me. I look this good—why would he look at you?”

The fat cat still didn’t believe her and suspected Lin Qiao was lying. “So that’s really all that happened yesterday? You really didn’t say anything?”

“I said a lot. Like how much Gu Huayuan likes me. You know how it is—when we’re being affectionate, he gets especially good with words. So sweet.”

Lin Qiao wasn’t lying. After their verbal discussion last night, the two also rode the heat of the moment into a deeply intimate physical exchange. The whole experience had been wonderfully satisfying.

Otherwise she wouldn’t be giving the fat cat such a cold face today.

Seeing her expression, the fat cat finally believed—at least halfway. It had always looked down on this player’s intelligence anyway, and didn’t think she was capable of anything clever.

It let out a breath in relief. Good thing nothing had been discovered.

Although it believed that even if Lin Qiao did discover it inside her mind, she couldn’t do anything to it, it still felt a sense of danger.

This backward-world native was giving it a sense of crisis.

“You shouldn’t have picked this identity in the first place,” the fat cat couldn’t help complaining. “If you’d chosen a farm girl or a factory girl, we wouldn’t have to be this cautious.”

Lin Qiao snorted and said nothing, but in her heart she was cursing the fat cat a dozen times over.

Be a farm girl or factory girl? Who knew how many hardships would come with that?

Her lucky guess choosing to become Gu Huayuan’s fiancée was the only reason she’d made it this far. With him teaching her, she could survive.

If she’d started as a farm girl, working herself to death in the fields, who knew where she would’ve ended up now.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?” the fat cat asked, suddenly alert.

Lin Qiao said, “I was reminiscing about last night.”

“…” The fat cat rolled its eyes, then casually asked, “Did you forget about Gu Huayuan being injured? How can you not be worried at all? How can you not feel bad for him?”

Lin Qiao chuckled inwardly—she had been waiting for this exact question.

Thankfully, she and Gu Huayuan had already discussed everything last night. She didn’t need to panic at all.

She took a moment to brew up the right emotions, thinking back to how devastated she’d felt when her father announced the existence of an illegitimate child. A few tears slipped down, and she managed to feel sad for that brief instant.

The fat cat was happily absorbing energy when Lin Qiao suddenly brightened up again.

“Why aren’t you sad anymore?”

Lin Qiao wiped the corner of her eyes. “The timeline stretched a bit too long. If I force myself to stay sad now, it feels fake. Forget it, it’s all in the past. I’ll just take good care of him from now on. I hope Gu Huayuan won’t get hurt again.”

Fat Cat: “…”

There’s a time limit for sadness?

Lin Qiao added, “But I really don’t want him to get hurt. He’s the person I’m closest to in this world.”

She sighed as she spoke, visibly upset. “He doesn’t cherish himself at all. It just makes other people feel heartbroken for him.”

Lin Qiao sank into sadness again for a moment, feeding the fat cat a bit of energy.

The fat cat still wanted more.

But over the next few days, Lin Qiao was cheerful every single day. She was happy at work, happy at home—there wasn’t a moment she was unhappy.

There wasn’t much negative energy to absorb; instead, her consistently positive mood slightly increased the task progress bar.

Fat Cat originally wanted to get under her skin verbally, but Gu Huayuan went to work with Lin Qiao every day.

After work, the two of them always went home together. They were practically glued together.

It simply couldn’t find an opportunity.

Actually, this was something Gu Huayuan and Lin Qiao had planned. To prevent Xiao Qiao from getting too close to anyone else—which might give the cat new targets—Lin Qiao had been keeping her distance from other people, happily sinking into the sweetness of romance.

The fat cat grew anxious as it watched its energy reserves dwindle. It decided to make one big move.

Gu Huayuan had been extremely cautious every day.

He knew the cat was probably preparing to act.

The closer things got to the end, the more ruthless its attack would be.

The fact that the parasite hadn’t acted earlier and was only starting now meant it was running low on energy.

And from how desperate it had seemed when fighting Old Xu last time, that was obvious.

Gu Huayuan had previously told Lin Qiao that he would trick the fat cat into attacking him and that he’d protect himself, but in truth, he had already prepared for the possibility of getting hurt.

You can’t catch the wolf without sacrificing the bait.

So after a month passed since he had reassured Lin Qiao, and once he felt the parasite had likely lowered its guard, he applied to Captain Sheng for pre-return training.

Captain Sheng was delighted when he heard Gu Huayuan had finally figured things out. “This time you’re really sure?”

Gu Huayuan answered honestly, “I can’t guarantee it, but I want to try.”

Captain Sheng nodded. “Then give it a proper try. You’re a man—stop hemming and hawing. Go handle the paperwork and start training. You’ve raised chickens long enough; don’t forget how to hold a gun.”

Gu Huayuan laughed. “How could I forget? I train in my dreams.”

Once the application was approved, Gu Huayuan went home and told Lin Qiao his plan—that he wanted to return to the frontlines and lead a squad again.

He’d been handling rear-duty work for a long time, but his heart was still tied to the front.

And rear-duty roles were meant to care for retired soldiers. He didn’t want to occupy one of those positions.

Even though Lin Qiao knew he had another motive, she still looked worried. “You really want to go back? I think raising chickens is pretty nice, actually.”

“I know it’s nice. But Xiao Qiao, I have my own path.”

His gaze spoke more clearly than words. Lin Qiao knew he wasn’t acting—these were his true feelings.

He’d waited a long time to deal with the fat cat. He was probably already eager to return to his real post.

Lin Qiao felt that in this matter, she had to cooperate fully to help Gu Huayuan achieve his dream. “Alright, then go. But promise me… don’t get hurt again. Otherwise my heart will hurt so much.”

Gu Huayuan reassured her, “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

The fat cat stared blankly. Your word means nothing.

The scouts in the recon unit were thrilled to see Gu Huayuan return. They all crowded around him.

Even the deputy captain let out a sigh of relief. He said he’d been worried Gu Huayuan wouldn’t return, and if that happened, he wouldn’t be able to control these troublemakers.

Not to mention, he suffered even during daily training when they landed a few punches.