In order to avoid suspicion, You Zhengping not only couldn’t participate in the investigation, he also had to hand over his nanotech face-changing masks to Lian Yufan’s squad. The reason was that they had shown their nanotech mask faces in front of Zhen Li. Rather than wasting new masks, it was better to keep using these masks, equating these faces with the Xuyang District Protectors. It would also help to conceal You Zhengping’s squad’s identities. 

You Zhengping held the box with his mask in both hands. Lian Yufan reached out to take it, but You Zhengping didn’t let go. 

Director Xiao, Cen Xiao, and the others looked at You Zhengping, who was still holding on to the box. 

Lian Yufan raised his hands and yanked but felt that his strength couldn’t match You Zhengping’s. He smiled politely. “Captain You, I’m only temporarily borrowing this mask. When the investigation has ended, the Xuyang District will be your responsibility.” 

Director Xiao, Cen Xiao, and the others turned to Lian Yufan and nodded. This was right. 

You Zhengping clenched his teeth and said, “Yu Hua can’t have been replaced. I’ve been living with him for so many years. You think I couldn’t tell whether my partner had become a different person?” 

The observers saw You Zhengping’s steady look and thought that they ought to trust his judgment. 

Lian Yufan was different from You Zhengping. You Zhengping did things openly. He liked what he liked, hated what hated. His emotions were very sincere. Lian Yufan, however, was extremely formal and ceremonial in his work. He said, “Of course we trust your judgement and instincts as captain, but we need evidence for everything. We can’t draw conclusions solely based on your feelings.” 

The subtext was that You Zhengping might be blinded by his feelings. 

As everyone was well aware, You Zhengping’s feelings really were a problem. He’d even just smashed Director Xiao’s desk. 

You Zhengping was angry. Were they trying to say that his and Yu Hua’s back strength exercises the last few days had been fake? If he couldn’t even recognize his own husband at negative distance, then he might as well be dead. 

“I’m not opposed to investigating Yu Hua. We can only untie our emotional knots and continue our peaceful life if there’s a clear investigation. But I want to investigate for myself. I want to personally prove that Yu Hua is innocent!” You Zhengping secretly strained. The handsome uncle nanotech mask drew closer to him. 

Everyone’s gazes followed the box with the mask towards You Zhengping. 

“You’re joking!” Seeing that his strength couldn’t compete with You Zhengping’s, Lian Yufan furtively tore a corner of the box and used his repairing ability to pull the box towards himself. “When you were training at the base, your stamina, ability, reaction speed, and judgment really were all number one, but you failed in your reasoning grades again and again. Each time there was a worldwide Protector competition, your grades fell short of mine. You’ll always be second!” 

“Oh, so you were the number one cold-blooded bastard who abandoned his teammates every time a crisis approached, who did away with the ‘hostages’ and ‘family members’ to kill the ‘Destroyers’ in the tests along with them!” You Zhengping said in realization. “Then I really can’t entrust Yu Hua to you!” 

You’re using your special ability, are you? Do you think I don’t have a special ability?! You Zhengping saw Lian Yufan’s little trick. He stirred his thoughts, using an invisible space to wrap around the piece of the paper box that Lian Yufan had seized. Lian Yufan’s special ability was reduced to one tenth, and the box once again moved towards You Zhengping. 

“I only acted according to my instructors’ teachings each time, choosing the best, most correct option, the one that could protect the most people!” Lian Yufan put his back into it, using his whole body’s strength to fight for the box with the mask. 

“Bullshit!” You Zhengping was irritated enough to curse. “You’re only always abandoning the people closest to you because you don’t have the ability to protect everyone. If your ability isn’t strong enough, go train and become stronger. Don’t bully family members without powers and wounded teammates! Only a good-for-nothing makes choices. I want it all!” 

“You’re the one talking bullshit! Human strength is too insignificant in the face of the stars, in the face of the universe. Strength is limited, and so is energy. A reasoning test isn’t testing how strong you are, it’s testing your ability to put the interests of the country and the people above everything else when you truly encounter a situation where you’re faced with a difficult choice. For the sake of protecting this world, everything can be sacrificed, including yourself!” 

In contrast to the quiet and tranquil Yu Hua, You Zhengping had the ability to make people lose their tempers. The always rational and controlled, always smiling and polite Lian Yufan had been forced into real anger by You Zhengping. He was angry enough to start exchanging curses with him. 

The box with the mask was pulled this way and that by their every trick. Cen Xiao and the others, along with Lian Yufan’s squad, who had long ago accomplished the handover, moved their gazes left and right following the box, their necks twisting until they cramped. 

Director Xiao, however, was calmly listening to their dispute. He even poured hot water into his thermos mug, picked it up with both hands, and started to drink. 

Neither of the two men would give an inch. The struggle over the box with the nanotech mask was in full swing, both sides deploying their special abilities to the full. The air inside in the room was influenced by their power, colliding violently, actually curling up into a small-scale tornado in the office. 

There was a huge bang, and the box at the center of the power broke. The mask inside cracked into pieces. The two men fell back simultaneously. Their subordinates quickly surged forward to catch their bosses. 

Director Xiao was sitting in the middle of this. His mug exploded, sending all the boiling water splashing into Director Xiao’s face. The just-restored desk broke into two pieces again. 

Director Xiao calmly wiped his face and said in an impressive voice, “Has one of you gotten the upper hand?” 

The two men climbed to their feet at the same time. You Zhengping looked at the broken mask and frowned, but Lian Yufan put his hand over the mask, and the handsome uncle mask was restored. The mask at last came intact into Lian Yufan’s hands. 

While Lian Yufan had gotten the mask, he was still in an awkward spot. Their powers had collided, and You Zhengping had suffered no losses, while Lian Yufan had received an internal injury. Leaving aside the different forms of their special abilities, You Zhengping’s power far exceeded Lian Yufan’s. 

Lian Yufan wiped away the fresh blood at the corner of his lips and used all his strength to maintain his perfect upright posture. He strolled up to Director Xiao, grit his teeth, and repaired the desk and the thermos mug. 

Heaven knew how hard it had been for him to walk these few steps. With each step, he felt his legs were breaking. His ability could only be used on inanimate objects. It had no effect on living things. He could only bear the wound he had received. 

Acting as though the quarrel and loss of control just now hadn’t happened, Lian Yufan held the mask and signed the handover receipt, swallowed the blood rushing up his throat, and smiled politely. “Handover complete.” 

You Zhengping clenched his fist. In this struggle, his power had been stronger, but he had still lost to Lian Yufan. 

During the fight, You Zhengping had used his special ability to guard the mask, concerned that it would break in the struggle. But in the end, while both sides had been using their strength, Lian Yufan had quietly strained to destroy the mask. Only he could restore the mask once it had been destroyed. As soon as the mask was broken, You Zhengping had lost without a doubt. 

“A dirty trick!” You Zhengping said quietly. 

“Not dirty at all,” Director Xiao said. “Your power to protect lost to the power to destroy.” 

You Zhengping was seized with panic, staring blankly at Director Xiao. 

His superior was right. If his power to protect had been a little stronger, he would have won the struggle. 

“It’s always harder to protect than to destroy.” Director Xiao stood and went to the window with his hands clasped behind his back. “It takes at least ten days to construct a building, but demolishing it is the matter of only an instant. We are Protectors. We bear a calling and a responsibility. It’s often not enough to rely only on power.” 

You Zhengping slowly lowered his head. He had no actual combat experience, and the fight just now had made him realize what a difficult thing it was to protect. The slightest mistake, and everything was lost forever. 

Lian Yufan lifted his head haughtily. The pain he felt seemed to decrease. Then Director Xiao said to him, “But I haven’t said that you were in the right.” 

Director Xiao turned, gaze sweeping over the two young squad captains. While this generation of Protectors was immature, they had unlimited potential. 

Director Xiao undid his buttons, revealing an enormous scar on his body. The scar ran from his shoulder to his lower abdomen, cutting him in half. Everyone sucked in a breath when they saw that scar. 

Director Xiao said, “I got this wound when I was twenty-five. I was wounded by a Destroyer with an invisible laser weapon. My body was torn in two. I was about to die. I told my companion not to mind me. This Destroyer’s power was very special. It could hide the attack of any weapon. Someone had to bring that information back, or else more people would die. 

“But he didn’t abandon me. He took me away from that Destroyer and fled back to the base through the sewers.

“The lucky thing was, it had rained a lot that day, and there was a lot of water collected in the sewers. We hid among the sewage, and the Destroyer didn’t find us. 

“Back then, even if he’d left me behind, I wouldn’t have had a word of complaint. I would have died happy if it meant my companion could bring the information back. 

“But when my injury had healed and I went back home to visit my relatives, when I saw my parents’s faces, growing older by the day, I was exceedingly grateful to that companion, thankful that he had saved me.

“If he had left me behind, I would have died at only twenty-five, dealing a heavy blow to my family, who loved me and knew nothing about the situation. 

“The reason a life is so heavy is that it doesn’t only support a single person’s existence. It also supports the emotions of a household, of a group.” 

Looking at Director Xiao’s striking scar, Lian Yufan also slowly lowered his head. His hidden injury surged up. Lian Yufan couldn’t hold out. He coughed violently, coughing up blood. You Zhengping got out a tissue and passed it to Lian Yufan. After a moment’s hesitation, Lian Yufan took it. 

Seeing their interaction, Director Xiao nodded in satisfaction, put on his shirt, and said, “I have no way to judge which of your viewpoints is more correct. After all, historically, relying on emotion has led many people to disaster. 

“During training, we teach you rational behavior. But in actual combat, there’s just one thing you need to remember. We are Protectors. If we’re protecting our teammates, our families, or the enormous multitudes behind us, we aren’t in the wrong.” 

“Yes, sir!” You Zhengping and Lian Yufan raised their heads simultaneously, solemnly saluting Director Xiao. 

Following the salute, You Zhengping put his thumbprint on the handover receipt, saying to Lian Yufan, “I trust in Captain Lian’s rational judgment and analytical abilities. I request that you…verify Yu Hua’s innocence” 

Lian Yufan extended a friendly hand towards You Zhengping. “I also trust in Captain You’s intuitive judgment. I will find the evidence.” 

The two of them shook hands and made up. You Zhengping promised to cooperate with the organization’s activities, and Lian Yufan expressed that he certainly wouldn’t disturb their married life. 

Director Xiao looked at their clasped hands in satisfaction, nodded, and drank another mouthful of goji berry-infused water. 

The two squads left the base and went in opposite directions. When they were out of sight, You Zhengping and Lian Yufan spat simultaneously. 

You Zhengping said, “Bah! Lian Yufan couldn’t beat me, so he used treachery to steal the mask. Next time I’ll peel off his sanctimonious face for sure.” 

Lian Yufan said, “Bah! You Zhengping’s emotions are so unstable that he wouldn’t even give me a stupid mask. Intuitive judgment? Him? He’s an obvious patsy, and Yu Hua has definitely been replaced. Just wait for me to uncover the evidence!” 

The two squads: “…” 

Cen Xiao stared blankly when he heard You Zhengping’s words. “I thought you’d grown up, but in fact…you really have grown up. You’ve learned how to put on an act!” 

You Zhengping said, “You can’t be direct in dealing with Lian Yufan. In eight years of training, every time there was a worldwide competition, it was that bastard who got the better of me! One day, I’ll come out number one!” 

Cen Xiao turned his head and said to his teammates, “Did you see that? That amply demonstrates that it’s always your enemies who make you grow up.” 

You Zhengping ignored Cen Xiao and the others’ mental activities. He strode elegantly on his long legs, got on his police-issue motor scooter, put on his safety helmet, and said, “Didn’t they tell me to cooperate with the work? I’m going to go advise Yu Hua to quit!” 

Then he rode off on the motor scooter, leaving dust behind. It was a good thing the scooter’s highest speed was only 50 kph, or else You Zhengping would have been driving at a race car’s speed.

Cen Xiao and the others were half a beat too slow. By the time they got on their scooters, You Zhengping had already vanished. 

“Let's go after him. He’s so worked up that he might get excited and reveal our identities.” Cen Xiao and the others quickly chased after him. 

You Zhengping quickly arrived at Zhen Li’s studio. He didn’t have time to take the elevator. He ran right up the stairs to the twenty-first floor. 

At that moment, Zhen Li was practicing dancing in front of the phone. 

With his hundred million in three years, the stress Yu Hua had put on Zhen Li was too great. He didn’t want to earn the money illegally. When the money had been paid back, he still wanted to live in this world in comfort, accompanied by his wardrobe. If he went to prison, he would have to wear a prison uniform. Zhen Li thought prison uniforms were repulsive!

The only thing he could think of was to use his suddenly skyrocketing popularity and his precise kneeling technique to beg his fans for tips. 

Zhen Li didn’t know how to sing or dance. Luckily, at the end of each world, he’d used the points he’d won to raise his physical capabilities. A good body was the best asset for survival. Zhen Li had never stinted in that aspect. His current physique was still in the bounds of an ordinary person’s, but in every respect he was at the gifted level among ordinary people. 

After only a few days of study, Zhen Li could dance quite well. The livestream fans had witnessed his rapid improvement with their own eyes and had all sent him presents.

While Zhen Li danced, Yu Hua sat at a desk that the livestream camera couldn’t reach, flipping through the most recent financial reports, considering how to sell Zhen Li at a good price. 

Zhen Li had no idea of his future danger. Receiving praise from the livestream fans, he happily said to Yu Hua, “Great… Er, Human Resources Director Yu, what do you think of my dancing? Is this pose right? Does it look good?” 

Yu Hua didn’t let Zhen Li call him “great master,” and he didn’t permit him to use his full name, so this was the form of address Zhen Li had to use for him. 

Hearing Zhen Li’s words, the barrage was exceedingly excited:

[It looks good, it looks good, it looks very good! If I were Human Resources Director Yu, I’d kneel down before your yoga pants on the spot.]

[Director Yu is President Zhen’s only employee, a graduate of a top three university, proficient in eight foreign languages, a former senior manager at a top one-hundred enterprise with an annual salary of hundreds of thousands. Why would he resign to come to work at President Zhen’s crappy little studio?]

[For love!]

[President Zhen, let us have a look at Director Yu, I’ll send you a hundred submarines!]

[President Zhen may kneel down, but he still won’t let us see Director Yu. Give it up, guys. But President Zhen’s kneeling does look very good. He’s obviously a practiced hand at it.]

[I send a gift every day: when can we see Director Yu?]

When You Zhengping charged into the office, what he saw was Zhen Li in a provocative pose, asking Yu Hua whether it looked good. His eyes swept over the phone and caught sight of the [They’re together!] comments on the barrage. He was instantly mad enough to bust a lung. 

It didn’t look good at all! 

---

Author's Note

You Zhengping: Caught in the act!

Zhen Li: Director Yu, who is he? Aren't I the only one? (Aren't I your only collaborator?)

Yu Hua (to You Zhengping): …I can explain. 

Yu Hua (to Zhen Li): You’re dead!