Don't call me a singing god, I just want to go back to doing scientific research.

Ling Luo bent down and reorganized the suitcase that she had messed up when she took out her toiletries.

There weren't many things in the box; a few changes of clothes were neatly folded, like soldiers in formation.

The soft sound of the zipper closing was particularly clear in the quiet room.

Hearing the noise behind him, he turned his head to look at Li Mingjun, who had followed him in.

"Brother Mingjun, is something the matter?"

Li Mingjun closed the door very quietly, instantly turning the small room into a closed world.

He didn't speak immediately. His brows were furrowed on his face, which was weathered by years of hardship, as if he was trying to come up with a very difficult sentence.

Only after Ling Luo pushed his suitcase into the corner and straightened up did he ask in a deep voice, "Mr. Ling, what exactly is your relationship with Mr. Gu Yang?"

Ling Luo patted non-existent dust off her trouser legs, then paused.

In an instant, he regained his nonchalant demeanor, even managing a forced smile, though the smile didn't reach his eyes at all: "Just a friend. Why do you ask that, Brother Mingjun?"

"Mr. Ling, I'm responsible for your safety, not trying to pry into your privacy." Li Mingjun's tone was calm but serious. "For the past month, Gu Yang's gaze towards you has been unmistakable."

He paused, then added, "And what you see in his eyes when you look at him is genuine."

Li Mingjun pulled up a chair and sat down opposite Ling Luo, his tall figure exuding a unique sense of authority characteristic of soldiers.

  

"Mr. Ling, I need a definite answer. If it's a male... cough, special relationship, then Mr. Yang's protection level needs to be raised immediately. For ordinary friends and family, our approach is completely different."

Upon hearing this, the barely maintained smile on Ling Luo's face finally vanished completely.

He didn't look at Li Mingjun again, turned around and sat down on the edge of the bed, his back slightly hunched, like a cat that had let down its guard.

The room was eerily quiet, with only the occasional sound of wind coming from outside the window.

After a long while, just when Li Mingjun thought he wouldn't answer, Ling Luo asked a completely unrelated question.

"Brother Mingjun, how many years have you and your wife been married?"

Li Mingjun was taken aback, clearly not following his train of thought, but still answered truthfully: "Six years."

"Six years," Ling Luo repeated softly, as if savoring the word, "So, in those six years, how many times have you met?"

Li Mingjun's hands, which were resting on his knees, suddenly tightened, squeezing the neatly pressed fabric of his suit trousers into deep wrinkles.

He served in the army for eight years, six of which were spent on the front lines. For him, the phrase "separate for most of the time" wasn't just a description; it was life itself.

Seeing his silence, Ling Luo knew the answer.

"People outside only know that military spouses suffer, but not many people know that being a researcher's spouse is just as difficult as it is for us."

Ling Luo suddenly sighed, leaned back, and fell onto the soft bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"You know Minister Tang, right? He's the logistics minister at the 303 Research Institute. He doesn't have access to core secrets."

"Twenty-four years ago, he was transferred to a research institute by a single order and disappeared without a trace. Four years ago, his project came to an end, and he returned to his hometown by relying on his memory. His son, who used to ride on his shoulders, graduated from university and only then learned that his father was still alive."

Ling Luo's voice was soft, yet it struck Li Mingjun's heart like a hammer, each word hitting him hard.

"The father and son barely exchanged a few words before he received orders to go to Shuangqing City to pick me up. And that pick-up took another four years."

Ling Luo suddenly chuckled softly, her laughter filled with bitterness. "I later overheard Minister Tang say that in the past twenty-four years, he, his wife, and their children have actually spent less than forty-eight hours together in total."

"Two days. Twenty-four years, exchanged for two days."

"If I were just an ordinary person working a 9-to-5 job at a tech company, I would run to him without hesitation, even if I got hurt."

"But I am not."

"My research could consume me at any moment. One phone call and I could disappear for a year, two years, or even longer."

He turned his head to look at Li Mingjun, his eyes filled with an almost cruel clarity.

"But what about Gu Yang? He's different. He's pampered by his parents in the capital and doted on by his grandparents in Shuangqing. From childhood to adulthood, he's lived in sunshine and love, as clean as a vacuum. Why should I gamble my entire future on whether he'll spend the rest of his life in endless waiting and worry?"

"Sigh!" Ling Luo choked up, as if a large stone was blocking her throat: "I don't deserve it."

"So things are fine as they are now. He will meet someone more suitable in the future, someone who can have meals with him, watch movies with him, and grow old with him. I will also do my best to bring him to the altar, so that from now on—his loyal bones will be buried in the yellow sand, and his brilliance will shine on the King of Singers."

Lingluo's gaze drifted to the window, as if she could already see the scene decades later.

"When the time comes, I, this old bachelor, will come out of the research institute for some fresh air and run into him on the street. He'll proudly introduce him to his wife, saying, 'Look, this is my friend Ling Luo, and he's still single.'"

By the end, his voice was barely audible.

Li Mingjun remained silent for a long time before slowly relaxing his clenched fist.

Any words of comfort would seem inappropriate given Ling Luo's newly exposed and bloodied heart.

He simply returned the chair to its original position, his voice regaining the composure expected of a soldier: "Mr. Ling, get some rest."

The door was gently closed with a click, separating the two worlds.

Inside the room, Ling Luo remained lying on the bed, her arm over her eyes, concealing her expression.

In the silence, the lines of his shoulders tensed imperceptibly, then suddenly relaxed.

A drop of water slid down his thin cheek, fell into the quilt, and silently spread a small dark patch.

……

In the room next to Ling Luo's, Li Mingjun leaned against the window and dialed an encrypted number.

The night wind blew in, making the hem of his clothes flutter.

"Commander, it's me, Li Mingjun."

A calm and authoritative voice came from the other end of the phone: "Speak."

"Regarding Mr. Gu Yang's protection level, I suggest it be raised," Li Mingjun said succinctly. "His relationship with Mr. Ling is not that of ordinary friends."

"Not friends?" The voice on the other end paused, tinged with inquiry.

"Yes," Li Mingjun said, looking out at the deep night, carefully choosing his words, "they have a... special relationship."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone, so long that Li Mingjun thought the signal had been lost.

After a long pause, the commander, as if he hadn't understood, asked again, "Mutual? What do you mean by mutual?"

Li Mingjun was a bit of a headache. As a frontline security guard, when did he have to be responsible for explaining these kinds of emotional issues?

"They...like each other."

"..."

Another deathly silence fell.

This time, the leader's voice could no longer remain calm; it rose eight octaves: "Mutual affection?!"

"Yes, sir," Li Mingjun replied, forcing a smile, "but Mr. Ling doesn't seem to intend to break the ice, but..."

"But what?"

"But I'm worried that Mr. Ling might regret it later, so I'm calling you now to ask for your instructions."

"Wait a minute, let me sort this out!"

The sound of the leader pacing back and forth on the other end of the line could be clearly heard even through the radio waves.

After a long while, the commander finally calmed down and gave a decisive and swift order.

"Raise Gu Yang's security level by one level, secretly, so Ling Luo doesn't find out."

"yes!"

"Also, prepare a confidentiality agreement. Once they establish a relationship, have Gu Yang sign it immediately!" the leader emphasized.

"clear!"