Bone-Attached Disaster - Chapter 17:

Chapter 17: The Visit

Fu Jia’an’s visit to Jiang’s Pharmaceuticals was scheduled for the following Tuesday, from 10 AM to 12 PM. Since it was only a small seminar and attendance wasn’t mandatory for employees, they used the smallest conference room.

Around 11 AM, Jiang Yan called Lu Jie: “I said, where are you?”

Lu Jie’s voice was muffled, sounding like he was still in bed: “I’m at home, what’s up?”

“Did you forget Fu Jia’an is here today? The seminar is almost over, and you haven’t shown up.”

Lu Jie rubbed his eyes. “Did I say I was going?”

—I didn’t say I’d agree.

Fu Jia’an’s snide remark that day resurfaced in Lu Jie’s mind. He realized he was unconsciously being contrary again. It was genuinely just a chance late sleep, but it made him look like he was avoiding someone.

He adjusted his tone to sound less emotional: “I just accidentally slept in. Wasn’t attendance optional for that seminar? I’ll… arrive in the afternoon.”

He could vaguely hear Fu Jia’an’s voice over the phone, distant and ethereal, seemingly discussing a treatment plan for a case.

Jiang Yan lowered his voice: “Hurry up and get here. I have lunch with a few investors scheduled. You need to take care of things here, right? We invited him over, and it’s inappropriate for neither of us to be here.”

“Hurry up, fifteen minutes.” Jiang Yan hung up first.

“……” Lu Jie buried his head under the covers.

He never expected that years later, with different statuses, Lu Jie would still be the one to ‘look after’ Fu Jia’an. But recalling their high school days, Fu Jia’an struggled to integrate into the collective. He rarely initiated conversations, usually sitting quietly in his seat. If someone came to him with a question, he would teach diligently; if someone offered him a snack, he’d accept after saying thank you.

He was very well-behaved, with a good attitude, and held nothing back, but he was a bit like an AI.

Oh, and he accepted all the love letters from junior girls without exception.

In the eyes of observers, Lu Jie was the exception; Fu Jia’an was only slightly different around Lu Jie. However, Lu Jie himself didn’t feel strongly about it. After all, by the time he heard this sentiment, Fu Jia’an had been gone from Class 1 for a while. With the college entrance exams approaching, a flurry of mock papers consumed all their time, morning till night, turning problem-solving and lecturing into a mechanical routine.

Occasionally, he would recall the phrase “Fu Jia’an is only slightly different around Lu Jie” and, when attempting to investigate the meaning in his memory, felt quite ridiculous.

What was the point of seeking that kind of specialness? Fu Jia’an left without even saying goodbye to anyone, didn’t he?

—I’ve decided not to accept the early admission offer… It’s true, of course… Actually, early admission doesn’t matter. I want to stay and play in the senior year for a while longer.

—Classmates, Fu Jia’an will no longer be coming to school starting today. He has been given early admission to J University School of Medicine and will not be taking the college entrance exam.

It was all the same. That guy’s heart was already empty.

When Lu Jie arrived at the conference room, he was startled by the crowd. What was going on? It felt like a hundred researchers were crammed into this small office.

Because there wasn’t enough space, several people were standing outside the door. Jiang Yan seemed to have left. Lu Jie grabbed the nearby researcher, Xiao Xun, and asked him, “What’s going on? Are you even researching this area to be here?”

“We came for his reputation,” Xiao Xun didn’t turn his head, nudged Lu Jie with the back of his hand, and intently looked inside. “Don’t talk yet, it’s just reached the Q&A session.”

“……”

Lu Jie hadn’t realized his old classmate was so famous. Being tall, he could easily see the scene inside even standing outside the glass door. Fu Jia’an was wearing a black shirt today, sleeves slightly rolled up. It was a proper outfit, but on him, it exuded a simple nobility. His complexion was a bright ivory white, and his hair was a bit long, tracing the line of his neck.

“Do you think we can ask non-professional questions?” A female researcher in front nudged the sleeve of another girl, whispering a joke.

The other girl smiled knowingly and whispered back, “What should we ask? If Dr. Fu has a girlfriend?”

“No.” Lu Jie answered kindly from behind them.

“!!!”

The two realized President Lu was behind them and quickly bowed in greeting, the shy smiles completely gone from their faces. Xiao Xun heard the girls greet Lu Jie and realized the person he had just ignored was President Lu, instantly turning ashen.

Lu Jie’s face was expressionless. He usually didn’t get too close to his subordinates in a professional setting. While he wasn’t exactly harsh or terrifying, he was the company’s number one source of deterrence. After all, since Jiang Yan was usually jovial and liked to play the good guy, Lu Jie had to play the bad cop.

In an instant, the area inside and outside the conference room fell silent.

Fu Jia’an lowered his head to tidy the documents on the table and closed his laptop. “Does anyone have any other questions?”

After waiting a moment, seeing no one speak, Fu Jia’an looked up with a smile, meeting Lu Jie’s gaze across the crowd: “Then, President Lu, would you show me around the lab?”

“This is the top floor. We have three microbiology labs here, but it’s too much trouble to put on lab coats, so I won’t take you in. Oh, the last room is my personal lab. I usually work in there too.”

Fu Jia’an nodded. “For a startup, reaching this scale is impressive.”

“You’re not being very polite, sounding like you’re inspecting the leadership.”

“Not at all,” Fu Jia’an chuckled. “I just find the cutting-edge equipment quite exciting. Some of those instruments aren’t even available in J University’s labs.”

“Just ask to borrow our lab. No need to beat around the bush.”

“Will you give me a friendly rate?”

“You’ll have to talk to Jiang Yan about that.”

Fu Jia’an nodded, leaning against the polished glass wall outside the lab. His hands were in his pockets, one leg slightly bent, making his legs look long and straight.

He suddenly asked an unrelated question: “Lu Jie, do you like it here?”

Lu Jie smiled, finding Fu Jia’an’s question too otherworldly. He leaned against the other end of the hallway, his elbow resting casually on the windowsill. There was a separation between them, like a galaxy dividing different worlds.

“Who likes endlessly processing lab data, observing petri dishes, and killing mice? I stopped being that naive long ago. Any job that passes the time is fine. I’m not like you. I can only bury myself in one tedious task, while you flourished in college—skipping grades, double majors, the favorite student of a Nobel laureate professor, churning out papers one after another. And finally, you chose to nobly and grandly dedicate yourself to the medical profession and start from scratch. You can make choices freely in life. Must feel pretty good, huh?”

Fu Jia’an offered an overly humble smile. “How does President Lu know so much about me?”

Lu Jie’s phone vibrated twice. A message from Jiang Yan arrived:

[Remember to give little Jia’an a tour of the lab]

[And take him out for lunch]

He didn’t forget to worry about this while networking outside. Just like before, everyone was afraid he’d somehow offend this living Buddha.

Lu Jie put his phone back in his pocket, strode up to Fu Jia’an. “Let’s go. The tour is over. I’m treating you to lunch.”

“What are we eating?”

“You pick,” Lu Jie took out his car keys as they approached the elevator. “Jiang Yan told me to take good care of you. Anything you want.”

Fu Jia’an tilted his head to look at him and said, “Then let’s try your company’s cafeteria.”

“That’s it?” Lu Jie chuckled. “I don’t offer to treat people often. Aren’t you going to seize the opportunity?”

“Who says it’s not often? There will be plenty of time in the future.” Fu Jia’an said this casually, but Lu Jie found it strange. The tone suggested he could foresee what would happen next.

The two went to the cafeteria to get their food. After setting up their trays, Lu Jie looked for an empty table. But Fu Jia’an turned his head, looking toward a certain direction in the cafeteria, and pointed. “Should we sit over there?”

Lu Jie saw that there were indeed two empty seats there, but it was at a long table where several researchers were sitting, eating and chatting. He was hesitant, mainly worried that his presence would affect their atmosphere.

“Maybe not…”

Fu Jia’an turned slightly and said in Lu Jie’s ear, “Eating alone with just the two of us would be awkward, wouldn’t it? Do you have a lot to talk about with me?”

That made sense. If they had to struggle to find things to talk about during lunch, he’d probably get indigestion just thinking about it. But Lu Jie couldn’t keep up with Fu Jia’an’s rhythm—one moment feigning intimacy, the next pointing out the awkward atmosphere between them. What exactly was he thinking?

Lu Jie’s gaze lowered, catching the beautiful line stretching from Fu Jia’an’s raised profile. Time had sculpted his body, seemingly showering this person with every enviable, superior quality in the world over the past twelve years.

Every glance seemed to be a reminder of how unfair life was.

Before he could answer, Fu Jia’an walked over first, and Lu Jie had no choice but to follow. In that short time, the two had unknowingly attracted the attention of many onlookers. Employees stopped eating, their eyes wide like light bulbs, following them.

Firstly, the two were physically striking. Secondly, Lu Jie never sat among the employees, yet today he was following Dr. Fu, an unprecedented event. Although he looked as serious and calm as usual, he was somehow dejected, sullen, and a little helpless.

After Fu Jia’an sat down, the few researchers who were eating at the table desperately pressed down the corners of their mouths, afraid their excitement would scare the great master away. A few seconds later, Lu Jie sat down in the seat next to Fu Jia’an.

Everyone thought: Sure enough, we knew good luck and bad luck go together…

The desire to chat more with Dr. Fu was completely suppressed. Everyone lowered their heads and shoveled rice, the fear of Lu Jie completely outweighing their curiosity about Dr. Fu.

Fu Jia’an, however, looked completely at ease. He smiled and greeted the people at the table one by one: “Jiang Xiaoli, Xiao Xun, Director Pan, Niannian, Teacher Liang…”

A look of surprise flashed across their faces. They hadn’t expected him to remember their names after a brief self-introduction this morning!

Jiang Xiaoli secretly glanced at Lu Jie, who was like a backdrop at the end of the table. She plucked up the courage to talk to Fu Jia’an: “Dr. Fu, I didn’t expect your lecture to be so clear. It was a very obscure topic, but I felt like I understood everything today.”

“He wasn’t here to lecture today. It was an experience exchange seminar, and the cases he shared weren’t difficult,” Lu Jie’s cool voice drifted over. “If you really didn’t understand, you should reflect on whether your professional knowledge is solid.”

“……”

The atmosphere instantly chilled. No one spoke for a moment.

Usually, if Jiang Yan were here, he would say: Wow, Lu Jie, you’re really annoying, you know! Stop talking.

And the tension would magically dissipate.

But Jiang Yan wasn’t here, and the table was plunged into an eerie silence.

“So President Lu thinks what I talked about was meaningless,” Fu Jia’an said with a hint of sadness.

Seeing a god-like person look sad, everyone at the table felt their hearts ache.

Lu Jie’s brain spun rapidly. He was completely unable to defend himself: “I… that’s not what I meant…”

In fairness, Fu Jia’an’s ‘experience exchange seminar’ was very thoughtful. Hearing such a substantive explanation, which bridged theory and practice, was a valuable opportunity for the researchers.

However, Jiang Xiaoli was an intern who had recently joined the company. Her work attitude was decent, but she was too careless and constantly made mistakes with experimental data. Lu Jie remembered she had caused a few minor problems recently, which was why he couldn’t help but criticize her a little.

The result…

Lu Jie felt like he was going to spit bl00d with anger. Fu Jia’an’s subtle dig made him look utterly evil!

“I said the wrong thing. Are you happy now?” Lu Jie gritted his teeth, picked up the two chicken drumsticks from his plate, and placed them on Fu Jia’an’s plate, saying patiently, “Everyone is happy that you came, truly.”