The door to the first floor of the laboratory building was pushed open, and several girls who were looking at their class schedules were the first to notice Lin Xiao. Their movements were almost synchronized; first, they saw a pair of large feet in flip-flops, then their gaze moved upwards, past two calves thicker than their waists, past the beach shirt printed with flamingos, and finally landed on the face that was mostly covered by fluorescent green sunglasses.
"Who's that?" A girl with a ponytail nudged her companion with her elbow.
"I don't recognize you. Are you here to film a movie?"
"Wearing this to film a movie in the lab building?"
"Maybe it'll be one of those—you know, one of those—unconventional campus comedies, where the muscular guy is actually a top student or something."
"His physique is amazing, I really want to go on a date with him."
"Shut up, you bitch..."
The girls were whispering, just loud enough for Lin Xiao to hear. A slight smile played on his lips as he continued walking.
He stopped at the top of the stairs and took off his sunglasses.
The moment the sunglasses were taken off, the air in the hall seemed to freeze for a moment.
The girls who had been whispering earlier fell silent. The vending machine was still humming, the fluorescent lights were still humming, but the voices were gone. Lin Xiao folded his sunglasses and hung them on his shirt collar, revealing his entire face—sharp eyebrows, a straight nose, a clean and sharp jawline, and skin that glowed with a healthy sheen under the cool white light. He casually brushed aside the hair that had been ruffled by his sunglasses, a move so effortless and dashing that it made the girls' eyes light up. Lin Xiao thought to himself that he finally had five-tenths of the charm of the original author.
Lin Xiao's lips curled up slightly, a hint of laziness in his expression.
I don't know who shouted it first.
"Oh my god, he's so handsome!" a girl blurted out.
Then the hall exploded.
Several girls were the first to gather around, followed by more students pouring in from both sides of the corridor. Some were taking pictures with their phones, some were tiptoeing to squeeze in, some were loudly asking, "What's your major?", and some were whispering to their companions, "His eyelashes are longer than mine."
Are you a new exchange student?
"May I have your name?"
Do you have a girlfriend?
"Can we take a picture together? Just one!"
"You're a supermodel, right? You must be a supermodel!"
Lin Xiao was surrounded in the middle, a signature gentle smile on his face.
"One at a time, one at a time." Lin Xiao raised his hands, palms facing outwards, his tone gentle. "I'm not a celebrity, really not. I'm just an ordinary person here to get things done."
Even he himself didn't believe what he said. But the girls around him clearly believed it, or rather, they didn't care whether they believed it or not; they just needed a reason to keep surrounding him. Someone handed him a notebook to sign, and Lin Xiao took it and wrote " Lin Xiao " in a flamboyant style. The handwriting was so ugly that even he couldn't bear to look at it, but the girl was so excited when she took it back that she almost fainted.
More girls surged over. Some ran down from the second floor, some rushed over from the other end of the corridor, and even a graduate student who had just come out of the lab, still wearing a white lab coat and holding a test tube brush, ran over. Lin Xiao was surrounded in the center, signed three autographs, took five photos with them, and was asked at least thirty times, "Do you have a girlfriend?" He patiently answered their questions while trying to move towards the stairwell.
"Excuse me, excuse me, I really have something to do--"
No one gave way, and the human wall only grew thicker. Lin Xiao began to doubt whether taking off his sunglasses earlier was the right decision.
He turned to look towards the stairwell and saw a man in a white lab coat looking down at a data tablet, walking briskly towards him. The man was tall and thin, wearing old-fashioned black-rimmed glasses, with slightly curly hair, and his focused expression seemed to place him in a completely different dimension from the surrounding commotion. He walked quickly, his eyes fixed on the few lines of data on the tablet, completely unaware of the expanding wall of people in front of him.
Lin Xiao recognized him.
Bruce Banner, a top expert in gamma rays, the future Hulk, now a hapless fellow, was oblivious to his surroundings, his entire focus on the data, and was walking towards Lin Xiao at a distance of two meters per second.
Lin Xiao could have stepped aside, but he didn't. He stood there, a very subtle smile playing on his lips.
Banner's reaction to bumping into Lin Xiao was probably similar to a rabbit running into a redwood tree. The tablet flew out of his hand, tumbled twice in the air, and was caught by Lin Xiao with lightning speed. Banner staggered back a couple of steps, his glasses tilting to his chin.
"I'm sorry!" Banner adjusted his glasses, apologizing before even seeing the other person's face clearly. "I wasn't looking where I was going, I'm so sorry, I--"
He looked up and finally saw Lin Xiao's face clearly.
Then he froze.
He didn't recognize the person at all, but the face was so striking that he thought if he looked like that, his paper's usage rate would triple if he posted a picture of him.
"It's alright." Lin Xiao handed the tablet back, his smile perfectly gentle. "I was in the way. Check if your tablet is broken."
Banner glanced down at the tablet, confirmed the data was still there, and breathed a sigh of relief. He looked up again, about to say something, when a woman's voice came from the edge of the crowd.
"What are you all doing? Blocking the lab entrance is unacceptable!"
The voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority. The crowd parted automatically, like the Red Sea parting before Moses. A woman in a white lab coat strode over, her long brown hair tied in a neat ponytail. She was quite pretty, but her brows were furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly. Her gaze swept over the group of girls surrounding Lin Xiao: "This is an academic research institution, not a Hollywood set, and certainly not a fan meeting! If you don't have anything important to do, disperse now. Anyone still standing here will have their access to the lab revoked tomorrow."
That last sentence was the killer move. The crowd began to disperse, and a few timid girls had already retreated. In less than twenty seconds, the once packed hall was almost empty, leaving only a few students pretending to look at the notice board but actually still sneaking peeks at Lin Xiao.
As she drew closer, Lin Xiao could finally see her clearly. Betty Thaddeus Ross, General Ross's daughter, head of the Cell Biology Laboratory at Culver University, and also his employer for this mission. She was much prettier than in the file photo, with brown eyes, delicate features, and wearing a light blue shirt and dark trousers under her white lab coat, exuding a capable and elegant beauty.
Betty walked up to Lin Xiao and looked up. Her gaze first fell on Lin Xiao's flamingo shirt, and she frowned slightly; then it fell on his beach shorts, and her frown deepened; finally, it landed on his face, and her frown disappeared. In that instant, perhaps a fraction of a second, her stern tone suddenly faltered.
"Sir... it probably didn't mean to, and it's also wrong of you to block the doorway."
Banner's expression became extremely subtle. He opened his mouth, wanting to remind Betty that she had just said she wanted to cancel the access control, so why did she say "it wasn't intentional" as soon as she saw Betty's face? But he wisely chose to remain silent.
Lin Xiao observed all of this and smiled inwardly. He bent down, his tone shockingly sincere. "Madam, I'm so sorry. I accidentally bumped into this gentleman just now, almost causing him to drop his tablet." He turned to Banner, bowing slightly, "I'm truly sorry, it's all my fault. You're her boyfriend, right? I bumped into you and caused trouble for your lab; I'm really sorry."
Banner's face flushed red visibly. He waved his hands frantically, his voice even faster than when he apologized earlier. "No, no, no, sir, you've misunderstood. Betty and I... we broke up a long time ago. We're just colleagues now. Maybe I was too focused on my research, and many things..." His voice trailed off, the last few words almost escaping his lips. His gaze involuntarily drifted towards Betty before quickly returning to his own.
Lin Xiao noticed that Betty's expression also froze for a moment, but she quickly returned to normal, crossing her arms over her chest and her gaze becoming sharp again.
Lin Xiao sighed softly to himself. Banner was indeed a nice guy. He apologized first when someone bumped into him, and reflected on himself when his ex was mentioned. No wonder he was chased and beaten by General Ross for so many years. With a personality like his, it would be strange if he wasn't bullied. A trace of sympathy flashed through Lin Xiao's heart, and his gaze towards Banner softened even more.
However, all of this took on a different meaning in Banner's eyes. The big guy was looking at him with "affectionate" eyes, which made Banner shudder and move further away from Lin Xiao.
Lin Xiao walked over unperturbed, patted Banner on the shoulder with just the right amount of force, and said, "Then you should apologize even more. I've caused trouble for both of you."
Betty coughed lightly, steer the conversation back on track. "Who are you? What brings you here?"
" Lin Xiao, sent by the Hidreleven Group." Lin Xiao took out the prepared document from his shirt pocket and handed it over. "I'm your new personal bodyguard."
Betty took the documents and flipped through two pages. Her brows furrowed again. She scanned the documents line by line, and when she turned to the second page, her fingers paused. She looked up and examined Lin Xiao again.
"Bodyguard?" Her tone carried an undisguised suspicion. "You?"
"It's me." Lin Xiao nodded, his expression calm.
"You came to report for duty dressed like this?" Betty's gaze lingered on his flamingo shirt. "Do you think you look like a bodyguard?"
"Personal style." Lin Xiao said without changing his expression. "There are no dress requirements in the company training manual."
"The manual doesn't stipulate that bodyguards can cause a crowd outside the employer's building." Betty closed the folder, her tone returning to its previous businesslike tone. "Mr. Lin, let me be frank. I don't need any celebrity bodyguards. My job requires a quiet environment, focus, and freedom from any irrelevant distractions. You caused a commotion as soon as you arrived at the gate today, which completely contradicts my requirements."
"What I need is someone who makes me feel safe, not someone who distracts my students. So, I'm sorry, this job needs to be filled by someone else. I will contact your company."
After saying that, she turned around, pushed open the laboratory door, and walked in without looking back.
Banner stood there, glanced at Betty's retreating figure, then at Lin Xiao, and gave him an apologetic smile. "She's not usually like this; it's just that the experimental data had a problem today. Don't worry about it." With that, he quickly followed her inside.
The laboratory door slowly closed in front of Lin Xiao.
Lin Xiao stood outside the door, looked down at the document Betty had flipped through in his hand, and smiled.
Interesting. This Betty, though momentarily captivated, immediately questioned his professional abilities. In this world obsessed with looks, women who can stick to their principles are few and far between. Her attitude towards Banner is also intriguing; despite their breakup, they still work in the same lab, pausing when discussing the past, but completely detached from personal feelings when it comes to work.
Then there's Banner, the future Hulk, who's currently just a nerd overshadowed by his ex-girlfriend, throwing all his energy into research, and even looking at data while walking. His Gwen Stacy, so gentle that it's heartbreaking.
Lin Xiao folded the documents and put them back in his pocket, then knocked on the glass of the lab door. After about ten seconds, the door opened, and Banner came out.
"Mr. Lin?" Banner adjusted his glasses, somewhat surprised. "You haven't left yet?"
"She didn't leave." Lin Xiao grinned. "Do me a favor and tell Miss Ross I'm waiting for her outside. No rush, she can come out whenever she's done."
Banner glanced at him, hesitated, then finally nodded, closed the door, and went back inside.
Lin Xiao sat down on a bench in the corridor, crossed his legs, and took out his phone to browse the news. Several girls wanted to come over and take a look, but because of Betty's scolding earlier, they just watched Lin Xiao from afar and didn't dare to approach. Lin Xiao didn't find it boring, so he just sat there and waited. Time passed by, and the moon slowly rose.
At 8:30 p. m., the lab door finally opened.
Betty looked extremely tired when she came out. She rubbed her temples, her ponytail was much looser than in the morning, and a few strands of hair were scattered around her ears. She had taken off her white coat and was draped over her arm. She was slightly taken aback when she saw Lin Xiao on the bench.
When Lin Xiao saw her come out, he stood up, grabbed an iced Americano, and walked towards her. He had bought the iced Lin Xiao was bored; he bought two in total, but he didn't drink the one he had. He wasn't a fan of the stuff, but he knew it could keep certain people going.
"Here you go." He handed the cup over.
Betty stared down at the iced Americano for several seconds, stunned. condensation droplets slid down the glass and landed on her fingertips. She looked up at Lin Xiao, her eyes showing surprise and a hint of barely concealed emotion.
"You've been waiting all this time?" she asked.
"The bodyguard can't leave until the employer has finished work." Lin Xiao said this as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"That's professional ethics."
Betty took the iced Americano and took a small sip. The coffee was room temperature; it had been sitting for too long, and the ice had long since melted. But she thought it was just right.
"I also need to go to the military laboratory."
Betty put down her cup, her voice slightly softer than before, "If you really want to prove yourself, then keep up."
The two walked out of the laboratory building one after the other and came to a Land Rover. She thought Lin Xiao would drive, but instead, Lin Xiao opened the passenger door, plopped down, and even adjusted the seat back three notches. Betty stood outside, gripping the door handle, her brows furrowing again.
"You made your employer your driver?"
Lin Xiao yawned, turned to look at her, raised his eyebrows slightly, and looked as innocent as could be.
" Miss Ross, I need to record your movements. It's my first time driving, and I don't know the way, so I can't drive. You can't expect a bodyguard who doesn't know the way to lead you to the best evacuation route in an emergency, can you?"
Betty stared at him for several seconds. In her brown eyes, reason and instinct were locked in a fierce tug-of-war. Reason told her that this man was full of fallacies, while instinct told her... instinct was currently busy looking at his profile.
"This is different from what your company said." Betty got into the driver's seat, started the engine, and her voice returned to its cold tone. "The company said they would send someone more professional, that's why I agreed."
"Am I not a professional?" Lin Xiao retorted.
Betty didn't answer. She gripped the steering wheel, staring at the road ahead, and the car quickly drove out of the campus and onto the main road.
"I'll still call your company," Betty said, her tone sounding more like she was trying to convince herself. "What I need is peace and quiet, and you've already messed up the first thing today. The whole lab building knows you're such a handsome guy; how am I supposed to explain this to the students tomorrow? How are they supposed to focus on their research?"
Lin Xiao grasped the key point, and the corners of his mouth turned up.
"Handsome guy?"
Betty blushed for a moment. She bit her lip and straightened her face again.
"I'm talking about people like you, people who make a living off their looks. I don't know why your company sent you, but I don't need celebrities, I need someone who allows me to focus on my work. I already have enough pressure from my research in the military; I don't have the extra energy to deal with the trouble you bring."
Lin Xiao didn't speak. He reached into his pocket, took out something, and held it out to Betty.
That was a White Rabbit Creamy Candy.
Don't be angry, have a candy.
Betty glanced at the candy, then at Lin Xiao, her expression instantly becoming incredibly complex—confused, helpless, amused, and even a little fluttering in her heart.
"How old are you?" she asked.
"Eight years old." Lin Xiao said without changing his expression, "Eating candy can make you grow taller."
Betty stared at him for several seconds. Then she reached out and took the candy from Lin Xiao's palm. The movement was so quick, it was as if she were doing something shady.
Betty unwrapped the candy, popped it into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out slightly, and continued driving, trying to keep her voice as indifferent as possible. "Mr. Lin, I want you to know something."
"Um?"
"I came to this university to conduct research, not for anything else. I came to the military lab to complete a project that my father considers very important. My life is simple: work, go home, and occasionally see a movie. I don't need anyone to disrupt my rhythm, understand? What I need is a safe environment and dutiful bodyguards, not..."
Before she could finish speaking, Lin Xiao pulled something out of his pocket—a solid steel plate about the size of his palm. He had accidentally taken it from a vending machine when he was bored and had been keeping it in his pocket ever since. Now he was holding it in his hand, like he was kneading a piece of clay, his five fingers clenched together.
The steel block made a very low, muffled thud in his palm, then, as if crushed by a hydraulic press, it transformed from a solid block of metal into a pile of irregular fragments. Steel shavings leaked through his fingers and fell onto the car's floor mats.
Betty heard the voice. She turned her head and saw Lin Xiao open his palm, showing her the few remaining pieces of steel.
"Is this enough to protect you, Miss Ross?"
Betty's eyes twitched, then she slowly turned her head back to look straight ahead. Her fingers tightened and loosened on the steering wheel.
After an unknown amount of time, the car stopped at the military checkpoint. Armed guards approached, and Betty rolled down the window, handing over her identification. The guards checked it, saluted, and let her through. Betty drove into the parking lot, turned off the engine, and unbuckled her seatbelt. She paused before opening the car door.
"Wait for me in the car. I might be gone for a long time. Tonight marks your official start of the job." After saying that, she pushed open the car door, got out, and walked inside.
Lin Xiao leaned back in the passenger seat, watching Betty's figure disappear behind the security gate of the military area. His face was expressionless, but his gaze lingered on the camera next to the security gate for a moment.
This should be the location of the needle. Lin Xiao had Doupao pinpoint the coordinates. The security at the entrance was high, with armed guards, triple identity verification, and at least four hidden cameras. He had counted them when he passed through the checkpoint earlier. The needle should be in that building right in front of him.
Just then, the overhead camera suddenly turned. Lin Xiao found it interesting, looked up, and waved in the direction of the camera. He didn't care whether the people in the monitoring room could see him clearly, and gave a standard good citizen smile.
The camera paused for a moment, then slowly returned to its original angle.
Lin Xiao leaned back in his chair, crossing his legs. He pulled another White Rabbit Creamy Candy from his pocket, unwrapped it, and popped it into his mouth, chewing loudly. A Doupao sound echoed in his mind, "Ding—The host's deliberate provocation has been observed by three on-duty monitors in the military region. Should this system interfere with the surveillance footage?"
"No need, let them see." Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes. "There will be plenty of opportunities later."
It was almost 3 a. m. when Betty finally came out. She looked like she had been completely drained of energy; her steps were unsteady as she walked out of the security gate, and she almost missed a step when going down the stairs.
Just then, a hand supported her arm.
Betty looked up and saw Lin Xiao standing in front of her.
A gentle smile curved Lin Xiao's lips.
"Be careful, do you need me to help you walk?"
Betty steadied herself without saying a word, simply watching Lin Xiao quietly.
After confirming that Betty was standing firmly, Lin Xiao let go of her hand and took his unfinished iced Americano from the passenger side door frame.
"This is?"
Lin Xiao chuckled.
"I don't like drinking this stuff, but I saved it for you. Drink it!"
Betty took it, took a sip, and the bitterness disappeared, leaving only sweetness.
Betty took a deep breath and lowered her head.
"Thanks."
"Get in the car. I'll drive this time. I know the way. Let me take you back." Lin Xiao opened the passenger door and made a gentlemanly gesture of invitation.
Betty just watched Lin Xiao quietly. Lin Xiao wasn't in a hurry either, a smile playing on his lips, but his eyes were wandering elsewhere—those legs were so white!