Lu Mingfei doesn't want to be a superhero

These people's job was to "transform scientific and alchemical theories into practical applications," but 90% of the practical applications they researched were explosives. From this perspective, a more fitting abbreviation for them would actually be "bomb maniac concentration camp."

After a brief "beep" sound, the call was connected.

"Hello, the user you dialed is not in service area, please try again later..." came the sweet voice of the female operator on the phone.

“Director Akadura,” Angers took a deep breath, “this is America, and you’re playing a Chinese alarm sound.”

The sweet female operator's voice was immediately replaced by a gruff male voice: "Hasn't our school already started promoting Chinese language across the board? I'm just aligning with the school's policy!"

"I don't care what standards you're aligned with!" Angers finally snapped. "Director Akadula, I demand an explanation for today's explosion!"

"Don't worry, Headmaster, it's just a minor mistake," Director Akadula said nonchalantly. "It's just an alchemical sulfur bomb."

"You planted a large bomb at the school? And there was an accident?!" Angers felt a headache coming on.

"An accident? No, who said there was an accident?" Director Akadula's tone finally changed, revealing a hint of anger as if he had been questioned. "This is an insult to the professional competence of our Equipment Department!"

"How could it explode if there was no accident?" Angers was stunned.

“We detonated it,” Director Akadula said, as if we had just popped some popcorn for a late-night snack. “How else could we test if it was successful? We are rigorous researchers; we must ensure that every piece of data is accurate and reliable…”

"Wait a minute!" Angers's hand, holding the microphone, bulged with veins. "So, you're saying you're conducting a test explosion of a large-scale alchemical bomb at the school?!"

“Actually, I’ve been trying to correct a mistake in your conversation since the beginning,” Director Akadula said.

"what?"

“We were indeed conducting a test explosion, but that alchemical bomb was far from being ‘large’ because it was just an initial prototype. The explosive power of this bomb was roughly equivalent to two tons of TNT. Calling it ‘micro’ was a stretch. We were just debating whether we should classify it as a ‘harmless’ type under the ‘micro’ category…”

“Harmless?” Angers suspected that the recent explosion had affected the communication lines, causing the syllables of Akadura to be rearranged, leading him to misunderstand the meaning of his words.

“Yes, the standard for harmless is a weapon with a yield of less than two tons of TNT. However, when we set the standard for harmless, we forgot to clarify whether it included two tons itself. Therefore, this alchemical bomb with a yield of exactly two tons is not easy to define…” Director Akadula explained.

"If my military knowledge is still up-to-date, the explosive power of a single hand grenade is about fifty grams of TNT. You call forty thousand hand grenades harmless weapons and test-fire them in a school?" Angers asked through gritted teeth.

"Don't worry, Principal, the energy of this bomb is mainly released as heat, so there won't be any major explosion," Director Akadula said.

"Stop this dangerous experiment immediately!" Angers ordered.

"How can this kind of experiment be considered dangerous?" Director Akadula's tone was full of doubt.

Angers: ...

He found that even after working together for so many years, he still found it difficult to keep up with the equipment department's way of thinking.

“How about this, you suspend the experiment that could explode, and I will apply to the board of directors to build a branch testing ground for you in the barren mountains 30 kilometers away from the academy. You can set up a branch laboratory there and conduct tests. What do you think?” Angers decided to change his approach.

"That's great!" Director Akadula immediately changed his previous nonchalant attitude, his tone revealing a respect that was somewhere between a lackey and a client. "Then we'll wait for your good news, Principal."

Angers breathed a sigh of relief.

Explosions at the school should decrease significantly in the future. As for building a laboratory branch for the equipment department... well, it's the board of directors' big spenders who will pay for it, so Angers won't care.

"But Principal, since we're going to suspend the experiment, could I also apply for a leave of absence for the Equipment Department?" Director Akadula asked, taking advantage of the situation.

“Wasn’t the only instruction to suspend your research on explosives?” Angers asked.

“But all our research is related to explosives,” Director Akadula said.

Angre hung up the phone, exhausted.

The steam from the Ceylon tea was still rising, but he was no longer in the mood for it.

He just wanted to get a good night's sleep and then go on a business trip immediately tomorrow, anywhere was fine, as long as he could get away from those explosive freaks at the academy.

Rubbing his temples, Angers picked up a stack of documents from the table. At the top of the documents was a table that resembled a resume, but with much more detailed information.

One item, highlighted in extra-large red font, stood out prominently—Awakening Status: Awakened.

The top right corner of the table is a photo of a young man with handsome features and a radiant spirit.

Vague memories churned in Angers' mind, like a photograph beneath the surface of water, where the shimmering light obscured the figures.

Only one face, so old it was almost yellowed, became increasingly clear, as if it could fit perfectly with the young man in the photo.

“Norma,” Angers said, “arrange a plane for me to go to China.”

"Are you going to the city where S-level student Lu Mingfei is located?" Norma asked. "I found a direct flight, but you can also take the Gulfstream G550, which has been modified by the Equipment Department. After applying, it can land directly at the airport, which will get you there faster..."

“I’m going on a trip to visit the descendants of old friends, not on a business trip,” Angers shook his head. “Let this old man take a comfortable mode of transportation.”

“Understood,” Norma said. “Your plane ticket has been booked. Do you need to prepare anything regarding Lu Mingfei’s admissions?”

“No rush, just prepare according to the normal dates. Although geniuses are always special, there’s no need for everything to be special,” Angers said. “By the way, let me inform Chu Zihang that I haven’t actually been to China many times. It would be more convenient if I had a local guide. Tell him that this can earn him extra credits.”

“Yes,” Norma said.

“By the way,” Angers paused for a moment, then suddenly said, “Norma, could you help me look up what gifts elders usually bring when visiting younger generations in China these days?”

Norma: "Huh?"

……

On the other side of the ocean, at Su Xiaoqiang's doorstep.

"Little Fairy, I'm coming in!" Lu Mingfei called out, then pushed the door open and entered.

Having been here many times before, he knew the way well and simply pushed open the door and walked into the living room.

Then I saw Su Xiaoqiang sitting on the sofa with his bow resting on his violin.

Seeing Lu Mingfei enter, Su Xiaoqiang glared at him and gestured for him to sit down quietly.

Perhaps because they had been arguing for so long, they had developed a tacit understanding. Lu Mingfei was able to vaguely understand such a complex look in her eyes, and immediately walked over quickly and quietly to sit next to Su Xiaoqiang.

Once Lu Mingfei was seated, Su Xiaoqiang slowly began to draw the bow.

The mellow and delicate notes flowed from the gap between the bow and the strings, revealing that this was a high-quality violin.

Su Xiaoqiang played the violin with abandon, as if she were reciting a beautiful poem, completely absorbed in the music.

Lu Mingfei listened attentively, resting his chin on his hand, occasionally yawning.

When the piece ended, Su Xiaoqiang put down her violin and looked at Lu Mingfei with disdain: "Tsk, you have no taste at all."

While she was playing a piece, Lu Mingfei was yawning non-stop, just like the old cow in the idiom "playing the lute to a cow."

"I can't stand this kind of highbrow music," Lu Mingfei said honestly.

“I’ll take you to the Vienna Golden Concert Hall another day, so you can broaden your horizons,” Su Xiaoqiang said.

“No, no, no,” Lu Mingfei waved his hands repeatedly, “I really can’t appreciate this kind of high art.”

He wasn't being modest; in Tony's world, he had been to the Boston Concert Hall and almost fell asleep there. If he hadn't pinched himself to stay awake, he probably would have been snoring away.

At that time, he had already awakened his ability to tell that those pieces were very beautiful and technically sophisticated, but unfortunately, they were not compatible with his taste, and he simply couldn't appreciate them. Just like caviar, no matter how expensive, some people still can't get used to it.

"From your own perspective, what do you think of my violin playing just now?" Su Xiaoqiang asked.

“The instrument is quite good,” Lu Mingfei said earnestly. “The craftsman who made it is very skilled.”

“Who asked you about the piano?” Su Xiaoqiang glared at him. “I asked you how well I played that piece just now.”

"Hmm... I'd give it a ten," Lu Mingfei said.

"Hmph, you have good taste." Although she knew Lu Mingfei was flattering her, Su Xiaoqiang was still quite pleased, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

“One hundred marks is the maximum,” Lu Mingfei added.

"You!" Su Xiaoqiang swung the bow, like a long sword drawn from its sheath, pointing it directly at Lu Mingfei's face.

From a personal perspective, Lu Mingfei's assessment is quite fair. Although Su Xiaoqiang's violin skills are already quite good for an amateur, not counting this time, the only time Lu Mingfei ever listened to the violin was at the Boston Concert Hall, where he listened to an internationally renowned orchestra perform.

He was only giving Su Xiaoqiang a score of 10 out of 10 because of their two and a half years of friendship, and he was doing so against his conscience.

However, seeing Su Xiaoqiang's frustrated expression, Lu Mingfei felt he should try to salvage the situation, since he was counting on tricking Su Xiaoqiang into making his first fortune.

"Although her piano skills only deserve a 10, the player is very beautiful, a feast for the eyes, so she deserves a 90!" Lu Mingfei said seriously, "Adding them together makes it a perfect score!"

"Go away! That's a veiled compliment, implying I'm just a pretty face!"

Su Xiaoqiang originally intended to hit him with her violin bow, but as she raised the bow, she suddenly realized that the bowstring was a bit thin and might hurt someone. So, she angrily put down the bowstring and the violin, stood up, and tried to hit Lu Mingfei with her hand.

Lu Mingfei quickly dodged.

The two chased each other around the living room. Lu Mingfei kept his speed at about the same level as Su Xiaoqiang, dodging left and right, and managed not to be touched by Su Xiaoqiang even once.

He couldn't help but feel a little smug.

It seems that the fighting skills Tony learned are still useful in Tony's world; Su Xiaoqiang will never be able to hit him again.

After chasing Lu Mingfei around, Su Xiaoqiang was slightly out of breath. She put one hand on her hip, feeling even angrier. She glared at Lu Mingfei, grinding her two little tiger teeth as if she wanted to bite him as soon as she caught him.

Lu Mingfei had a smug look on his face, his expression as smug as could be.

Su Xiaoqiang chased after him again, and Lu Mingfei dodged, but with his superb dynamic vision, he saw that Su Xiaoqiang was wearing slippers and kicked the corner of the table.

"Ugh..." Su Xiaoqiang lost her balance and fell down.

With a flash, Lu Mingfei caught her and held her securely in his arms.

The position was quite ambiguous, with Su Xiaoqiang's chest almost touching Lu Mingfei's chest.

But she wasn't ashamed, because the pain from kicking the corner of the table had already made her face contort.

Lu Mingfei quickly helped her sit on the sofa. After a long while, Su Xiaoqiang's expression, which had been contorted with pain, finally calmed down, and she glared at Lu Mingfei even more angrily.

He quickly changed the subject, saying, "By the way, Little Fairy, why have you suddenly started playing the violin? I've never seen you play it before."

"The school is going to hold some kind of talent show at the start of the new semester. They say it's to give the students a final break before the pressure of their senior year," Su Xiaoqiang explained, staring at Lu Mingfei. "All students can go up and perform their talents."

"Oh, I see, so you want to play the violin." Lu Mingfei suddenly realized.

"Well, I learned a little before, but I haven't practiced in a long time, so it seems I've forgotten it all," Su Xiaoqiang said, her voice slightly downcast. "Maybe I shouldn't sign up..."

"No, you have to register!" Lu Mingfei quickly stopped him.

As Su Xiaoqiang's close friend, how could he miss this opportunity to have some fun?

“But even you think it sounds bad…” Su Xiaoqiang shook her head.

“No, what do you mean by ‘even I think it sounds bad’?” Lu Mingfei said, dissatisfied. “I was just giving a fair opinion! I actually studied violin too!”

"You've studied this?" Su Xiaoqiang asked, her face full of disbelief. "Then play one."

"Ahem," Lu Mingfei coughed lightly twice, "I haven't played in a long time either. How about you lend me your violin for a couple of days so I can get back into the swing of things?"

"Hmph..." Lu Mingfei's behavior clearly showed he was guilty. Su Xiaoqiang sneered, "Alright, how about the day after tomorrow?"