As the car passed by the neighbor’s house, the enthusiastic neighbor still stood on the balcony, watching the movements of the police car from afar.
Lu Jianchuan wanted to roll down the window to greet the neighbor again, but as soon as he touched the window switch, the person beside him immediately stopped his action.
“Mr. Lu, this is a confidential vehicle.”
Lu Jianchuan turned his head.
The man had a long scar at the tail of his eyebrow, extending to his cheekbone, his gaze cautiously fixed on Lu Jianchuan, his body visibly tense, with one hand hidden behind his clothing, reflecting a bit of mechanical cold light from beneath the car.
Lu Jianchuan pondered for a moment: “You are called…”
“Li Xuan,” he volunteered, “Officer Zhang retired last week. Starting today, I am responsible for coordinating your affairs, including the ‘Pine Wood Plan’ currently in progress.”
Lu Jianchuan nodded, showing no particular reaction, only asking, “Are you very nervous right now?”
Li Xuan was slightly startled.
This was his first meeting with Lu Jianchuan.
Originally, they had agreed to officially hand over work at a restaurant this weekend, but due to a sudden police case transferred from the station, they met ahead of schedule.
In the archives of the Research Institute, “Lu Jianchuan” was the only one rated as A+ for danger but only D for management level, a special control subject, code-named “Jellyfish”, whose true form is a mass of wriggling tentacles, nearly invincible from a human perspective, powerful enough to swallow seventy-eight B-level out-of-control subjects in one cooperative mission.
And such a monster, seemingly unrelated to humans, was living in society under a human identity. Even more surprisingly, the last special control officer who liaised with Lu Jianchuan for ten years retired peacefully and without pain, passing this hot potato to him.
Facing the highest-rated monster of the Research Institute, it would be abnormal not to be nervous.
And the more he acted like a human, the more Li Xuan felt a chill down his spine.
He unobtrusively tightened his grip on the gun handle, admitting, “A little, you’re quite famous in the institute.”
Lu Jianchuan curled up the corners of his mouth, but his tone wasn’t very warm: “Don’t be nervous. Where are you taking me now? To the station?”
“No,” Li Xuan said, “According to the regulations, any police case involving special control subjects is directly transferred to the Research Institute for handling, and you haven’t actually done anything illegal, so there’s no need to go to the station. We can find a place you like and sit down to discuss the next plan.”
“Then turn around,” Lu Jianchuan said.
Li Xuan, compliant, told the driver, “Turn around,” then asked Lu Jianchuan, “Where to?”
“Home,” Lu Jianchuan hugged the box, “I’m not at ease with Zhouzhou alone at home.”
Li Xuan: “We have arranged police forces near Dr. Fang’s place. I think…”
He met Lu Jianchuan’s gaze.
The rest of his words were swallowed down, and Li Xuan chuckled dryly, saying, “…Okay.”
Five minutes later.
The two returned to Xiangxing Street, standing on the rooftop of a mall, their hair whipped by the whooshing cold wind.
Li Xuan watched in shock as Lu Jianchuan took out an old, faded telescope from the box, mounted it on his nose, and without any concealment, aimed it at the house across the street, focusing intently on what Fang Xingzhou was doing inside.
He held back and reminded himself not to judge monsters by human moral standards, took out a newspaper from his briefcase, and began to work.
The newspaper headline read:
“Lu family’s second young master spends the night on the street, suspected to be in an abnormal mental state”
“On the eve of a political marriage, lost and distraught, rich and young master hurt by love?”
Li Xuan said, “Mr. Lu, your recent abnormal behavior has attracted media attention. These news articles were intercepted by us before publication, but we can’t guarantee they won’t be quietly circulated on other social platforms. To ensure the smooth execution of the Pine Wood Plan and to guarantee Dr. Fang’s safety, we suggest you two separate for a while.”
Lu Jianchuan stood motionlessly in place, silent, just staring at the house across the street.
Li Xuan paused for a moment, seeing that he had no intention of speaking, and continued.
“The day of the net closing is getting closer, and I still want to repeat some information about the related plan to you.”
He put the newspaper away and took out a new set of documents.
At the top of the documents, a strikingly bizarre photo was printed. The woman in the photo had a young and beautiful face, but her lower body was an ugly, giant mass of flesh covered in mucus, grotesque as if from a horror movie monster.
Li Xuan placed the documents on the box Lu Jianchuan was carrying and said, “This mission’s target code is ‘Queen Ant’. She is adept at disguising, extremely cautious, and keen on swallowing grooms and brides-to-be about to get married, then impersonating the victims to kill her ‘partner’ on their wedding night, using ‘love’ and ‘desire’ as mediums for reproduction. We have been tracking Her for five years, paying a very painful price in several direct confrontations with Her. In the most recent confrontation, a colleague successfully implanted a tracking device in Her body, so we can confirm that Her true form is currently residing in Miss Wang’s body.”
Li Xuan paused briefly, noticing Lu Jianchuan’s stillness, his brows slightly furrowed.
He continued, “Pretending to engage in marriage is the quickest and most effective trap. The host had a brief encounter with you at a party before her death, and has since harbored affection for you, an emotion that has influenced the parasitic Queen Ant. She is currently very enthusiastic about marrying you, so Mr. Lu, please make sure to hide your identity before the engagement banquet.”
“If this mission is successful, according to our cooperation terms, you are free to deal with the spoils of war as you wish, even if it means eating the Queen Ant.”
Lu Jianchuan had no reaction.
Li Xuan’s brows furrowed tighter, somewhat displeased, “Mr. Lu?”
Lu Jianchuan sighed lightly, put down the telescope, turned around, and his inorganic pupils coldly fixed on him.
Just one glance made Li Xuan’s heartbeat inexplicably start to accelerate. He keenly sensed that the temperature around him seemed to drop further.
Years of licking blood off the knife edge made him instantly draw his pistol from his trench coat, but he didn’t even manage to chamber a round before a segment of tentacle silently sprouted from the shadows, starting from the legs, swiftly wrapping around Li Xuan and lifting him into the air.
Oxygen was cut off, Li Xuan’s face rapidly turned red, and decades of intensive training were futile in front of the monster. In the blink of an eye, he was completely deprived of the ability to move.
He could feel the suckers on the tentacles slowly wriggling on his skin, occasionally feeling something cold and sharp graze by – the teeth hidden deep within the suckers.
The monster, still wearing a beautiful human skin, politely said:
“You got one thing wrong, Mr. Li, and I think I need to remind you.”
Li Xuan couldn’t even hear what he was saying.
More than the disparity in strength, what made him feel utterly hopeless was the complete psychological suppression.
Every gene related to fear in human DNA was activated, even though he was a top special control officer who had trained his body and mind to the extreme, and even though Lu Jianchuan gentlemanly retracted all his sharp teeth, and the suckers were gentle as if massaging, just the sight of that tentacle segment stimulated his mind to the brink of insanity, his brain blanked out, unable to process any information.
Lu Jianchuan was still stating unhurriedly.
“The spoils of war…” he slowly savored the words, a smile curling up at the corners of his mouth, “It seems you’ve forgotten, I can completely avoid cooperating with the Research Institute, directly swallow the Queen Ant, and acquire Her reproductive ability.”
“However, as a qualified member of the new humanity, I must worry about the stability of society, and I don’t want this matter to affect my lover, so the ‘Pine Wood Plan’ you mentioned came into being.”
“So, our cooperation terms were never about the ownership of the Queen Ant, but about me helping you deal with the Queen Ant, and you helping me with the aftermath on a societal level.”
“Now, unfortunately, our cooperation doesn’t seem to be going well. Zhang Wenlin promised me that the news of the engagement would be kept absolutely confidential, but it reached Zhouzhou’s ears the next day.”
Li Xuan turned pale, his struggle gradually diminishing, making a heaving sound, and with all his strength barely squeezed out a few syllables.
“Very…sorry…but…”
Lu Jianchuan had no patience to listen to him bounce out words one by one.
He said, “With his current mental state, I can’t continue the cooperation. I will cancel the engagement tomorrow.”
Li Xuan: “…No!”
He was already starting to roll his eyes, his limbs hanging limp, blood gushing from his nostrils, yet still firmly remembering his mission.
Lu Jianchuan silently watched him for a few seconds, slightly tilting his head, his face no longer wearing the rich expressions he usually feigned. His features showed a chilling innocence and indifference, and his pupils even displayed curiosity, seemingly trying to understand the conviction held by the human in front of him.
“No… don’t… we will… make amends… for Fang…”
The fragile human body couldn’t withstand the impact brought by the monster’s true form. He heard faint bell sounds in his ears, as if death was very near.
A strong mix of guilt and regret surged within him. He was an experienced special control officer who had dealt with countless bloody incidents caused by special control subjects over more than a decade of service. Consequently, he inevitably harbored hostility towards special control subjects. So when Zhang Wenlin told him before retiring, “You have to treat ‘Jellyfish’ as a real human, interact with him as a friend to properly resolve tasks related to him,” he was dismissive. Later, when he read in the files about Lu Jianchuan’s deep-rooted love for a human, he was even more baffled.
It turned out, his approach was wrong.
He shouldn’t have applied his arrogant empiricism to an A+ special control subject… Even if it cost him his life, it didn’t matter, but the “Pine Wood Plan” had to be executed at all costs!
It can’t be…
No…
…
Just before losing consciousness, the restraint on his body was released.
The tentacle appeared out of nowhere and disappeared just as mysteriously, even considerately helping him to avoid falling before it vanished.
Li Xuan leaned weakly against the railing, gasping for air, his face covered in cold sweat and his chin smeared with blood, his gaze lingering on the person in front of him, unable to snap back to reality.
Lu Jianchuan patiently waited for him to catch his breath, handed him a tissue to wipe the blood, and returned to a gentle and harmless demeanor, softly asking, “Are you okay? Sorry, I’ve been a bit emotionally unstable lately, I didn’t mean to hurt you, just wanted to express my dissatisfaction with the Research Institute.”
“Don’t be afraid,” seeing Li Xuan still trembling, he added, “I never eat humans, because Zhouzhou would be angry.”
“…”
The howling north wind dried the cold sweat, and Li Xuan finally found a sense of being alive again amidst the cold.
Lu Jianchuan… and Fang Xingzhou.
He began to seriously consider the name “Fang Xingzhou.”
Li Xuan, fighting against the shivers, regained his composure with strong willpower, cleaned the blood from his nose, and wiped away the terrifying mucus from his arm, stammeringly, “…This leak of information… indeed represents our negligence, we’re very sorry for not fulfilling our cooperation promise.”
Lu Jianchuan leaned against the railing, squinting his eyes, looking interestedly at the new special control officer, “You mentioned making amends?”
“Yes, we’ve prepared a plan for making amends,” Li Xuan quickly switched back to work mode, digging his fingertips into his palm, changing the topic of conversation, “Mr. Lu, since things have reached this point, even if you cancel the engagement now, Dr. Fang will always remember you were once engaged to another woman. So canceling the engagement is not a good option. It would be better to turn the engagement into a perfect lie after everything is settled.”
This statement hit Lu Jianchuan’s weak spot precisely.
His pupils dilated slightly, no longer at ease, his tone filled with urgency, “A perfect lie?”
Li Xuan took out a third set of documents.
Lu Jianchuan took the documents from him, quickly scanning the content. Li Xuan wiped the sweat from his eyelashes, watching the lively expression on Lu Jianchuan’s face change completely, and he vaguely understood what Zhang Wenlin meant by his words.
He quietly picked up the gun that had fallen to the ground, not aiming it at Lu Jianchuan again, but clipping it back at his waist, barrel down.
Soon, Lu Jianchuan finished reading.
He handed the documents back to Li Xuan, revealing a smile once more, this time much more genuine.
“Good idea,” he praised sincerely, “It seems our cooperation still has a chance to continue.”
Li Xuan let out a slow sigh of relief.
“Dr. Fang will surely understand.” He also showed a slight smile, seizing the moment to add, “The host of ‘Queen Ant’ has repeatedly expressed the desire to have a meal with you alone. Constantly refusing might arouse her suspicions. Can we arrange the date for this weekend?”
“Sure,” Lu Jianchuan picked up his box again, whistled softly, sweetly glancing at the house across the street, his tone light, “I’ll follow your plan. It’s already late today, I need to hurry home, otherwise he won’t sleep well.”
This time, Li Xuan showed no incredulity. He nodded, saying, “Good night. Good luck.”
Lu Jianchuan smiled, “Good luck?1The first character in both phrases, 好 (hǎo), means “good.” The second characters, 运 (yùn) in 好运 and 孕 (yùn) in 好孕, sound the same in Mandarin Chinese but have different meanings. 运 means “luck” or “fortune,” while 孕 means “pregnancy.” The phonetic similarity in Mandarin between these two words creates a linguistic connection, making the phrases sound similar and thus linking the concepts of luck and pregnancy in a playful or auspicious manner. I like that blessing.”
He eagerly climbed over the railing of the rooftop, unable to wait to take the stairs. After ensuring no one was nearby, he jumped directly from the fifteenth floor, then crossed the street to return to the bottom of Fang Xingzhou’s building, sitting down by the flowerbed once again.
Li Xuan stood there watching him for a long time.
The cold sweat had completely dried up. He remained standing until he was completely calm, then pulled out his phone from his trench coat, opened the camera app, and aimed it in the direction Lu Jianchuan had been looking at, zooming in as much as possible.
…Through the lens, Fang Xingzhou was seen sitting at a desk on the second floor bedroom, slowly wiping a scalpel.
He appeared thinner than in the photos, with a fine nose and full lips, his features exquisitely androgynous but notably marked by bright phoenix eyes. Even hidden behind plain glasses, they couldn’t mask his sharp aura.
The scalpel was spotless, yet Fang Xingzhou kept repeating the action, clearly in a very bad mood.
After watching for a while, Li Xuan finally realized—
Fang Xingzhou and Lu Jianchuan might truly have mutual affection for each other.
This thought emerged, and he couldn’t help but recall the terrifying tentacles and suckers of Lu Jianchuan, contrasting them with Fang Xingzhou’s fair and elegant appearance, causing his stomach to churn.
…He shouldn’t harbor stereotypes about the relationships between humans and monsters.
Li Xuan took a deep breath, turned off the camera, and quietly returned to the “police car.”
Author’s note:
Li Xuan: “Good luck.”
Lu Jianchuan: “What? Good luck? Thanks for the blessing!”
translater: That is, the real title should be called “good pregancy”, but I still decided to go with “good luck”, just a need to understand that 好运/hao yun/ (good luck) and 好孕/ hao yun/ （good pregancy sound the same in chinese hhhhh so its just playing with sounds.
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