Chapter 172: The Secrets Hidden in Memory (3)
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Jason found the information so shocking that he began to stammer over his words. “He… he is also an AI?”
Jin Xiangdong did not respond to him. He turned to Lu Jia’er. Ian’s message was simple. He told Jin Xiangdong to take good care of Lu Jia’er, and that he was an AI as well. Ian also attached a photo of him and Lu Jia’er from the old days.
In the picture, the two of them were sitting on a bench, each holding a sandwich. They smiled a brilliant smile. Without special attention, people would not notice that Lu Jia’er’s eyes were empty.
Ian helped her to be free from all the tracking and told Jin Xiangdong to take good care of her. As such, it implied that he was up to his neck in risks and those could possibly be his last words.
How surprising, like her, he was also an AI!
While she was sentimental, Lu Jia’er, who had recovered her memory, was also wondering if Ian was already an AI in the memory of them together or if he turned into an AI later.
Lu Jia’er wiped away her tears and asked Jin Xiangdong, “Ace, can we locate him?”
“The mail he sent me is encrypted. But I looked into it. The server is in San Francisco.” Jin Xiangdong said.
“He lives in San Francisco?” Lu Jia’er asked.
“For now, I am not entirely sure because, after all, the location of the server could be a fake one.” Jin Xiangdong went on, “But I a.s.sume something must have gone wrong given that Su Han disappeared all of a sudden and you were being traced.”
Having heard Jin Xiangdong’s a.n.a.lysis, Lu Jia’er shared the worry she had on her mind. “My thoughts exactly. Something must have happened!”
Jason, who was on the back seat, added, “I will have someone looking into the records of exit and entry to see if Su Han and Ian have left the country.”
“Already done. Ian has but there are no records of exit and entry for Su Han.” Jin Xiangdong said.
“None?” Jason frowned.
“I think Su Han will be fine.” Jin Xiangdong comforted him.
Even so, Jason punched the seat. “Who exactly is manipulating Su Han?”
Jin Xiangdong went on, “I think the focus should be on who is doing those studies instead of trying to find the manipulator.”
Lu Jia’er turned to Jin Xiangdong again. She had the same thoughts. Who on earth was performing such studies?
Jason said with fury. “They are extremely skilled. Now, we are like monkeys in a zoo. Not only can’t we find out any information about them, I also believe that tomorrow, our news will be all over the place!”
“Previously, we were not able to find any useful information. However, now, there are some clues. There will be news but the worst of them will be some violation of traffic laws. I have told the PR team to follow up and get it handled tomorrow morning.” Jin Xiangdong interposed with a remark.
Clearly, because he was worried about Su Han, Jason was not thinking straight. But he managed to finally straighten out his thoughts. “Right, aren’t they exposing their tracks by following Professor Lu?”
Building on that, Jin Xiangdong shared his observation. “Next, they will exert more efforts to cover up the incident than we will.”
“Absolutely.” Jason agreed.
Lu Jia’er admired how calm and wise Jin Xiangdong was. She felt more at ease. She was not alone. He was her support.
Lu Jia’er gazed at the road and asked, “Ace, where are you taking us?”
“We need to settle down somewhere safe first!” Jin Xiangdong proposed.
Half an hour later, Jin Xiangdong brought Lu Jia’er and Jason to the seaside and then sailed out on his private ship.
Sailing out to the sea was indeed safer than traveling on the ground where signals were everywhere. If Lu Jia’er had really been freed from background manipulation, then coming out to sea was the best way to seek confirmation.
The sea breeze was refreshing but Jason was still frowning. Lu Jia’er understood that he was worried about Su Han so she patted him on his shoulders for consolation.
Jason looked at her. His eyes were filled with regret. “Professor Lu, you must think I have a fickle heart and a piece of sc.u.m.”
Lu Jia’er shook her head. “No, don’t say that!”
“I feel so sorry for Su Han.” Jason said.
“If Su Han were not an AI and you broke up with her so suddenly, I would probably think you did owe it to Su Han. However, it happened, and not without reason. You don’t have to apologize.” Lu Jia’er said words of consolation.
Instead of feeling relieved by the comfort offered by Lu Jia’er, Jason actually was in more pain. “Do you think I will never meet Su Han again?”
As for this question, Lu Jia’er could not give Jason an answer because she didn’t even know if she would ever see Su Han again.
Right at this moment, Jin Xiangdong stepped out from the wheelhouse and sat down next to Lu Jia’er.
Jason threw Jin Xiangdong a look and chugged down a bottle of wine he picked up from the table.
Jin Xiangdong did not stop him. Rather, Jin Xiangdong turned to Lu Jia’er and said, “Jia’er, can you tell me about Ian?”
“Ian?” Lu Jia’er mumbled his name.
“Ian as you remember. How did you meet and how did you fall in love?” Jin Xiangdong asked.
Lu Jia’er clenched her hands, subconsciously. In her mind, memories of her life in that dark world began to surface.
“He was my boyfriend back when I was a human being!” Lu Jia’er started.
Hearing this, Jason blurted out, “He really was your boyfriend?” Once those words escaped his lips, Jason felt it inappropriate. He stole a glance at Jin Xiangdong.
But Jin Xiangdong remained calm. He must have accepted this news and did not find it surprising.
Lu Jia’er lowered her head. “Yes!”
Jin Xiangdong could read these subtle movements. “You were blind, weren’t you?” He said, in a low voice.
Jin Xiangdong turned out to be the more careful one. He had noticed that once, she was blind.
Lu Jia’er turned to him. “Did you figure it out from the picture?”
“Yes.” Jin Xiangdong nodded.
Jason was surprised. When he was reading the message, he saw the picture as well, but his primary focus was on the fact that Ian was also an AI.
Jin Xiangdong grabbed Lu Jia’er’s hand, “I am not asking because I am jealous. I just want to know about your past!”
Lu Jia’er believed that Jin Xiangdong was a man of decency. It was not likely that he wanted to pry into his girlfriend’s privacy by asking these questions. So, Lu Jia’er told Jin Xiangdong what she could remember. “From the day I was born, I never had the ability to see this colorful world. When I was four, I was abused by my father who was an alcoholic. I had a high fever and lost the ability to hear. Since then, every day and every night, I was imprisoned in that colorless and soundless cage. My mom divorced my alcoholic dad over this. I began to use my other senses to feel the world under the guidance of my mom. But when I was seven, my mom died due to illness. I was sent to an orphanage, friendless and helpless. Since I could not see and could not hear, I was bullied every day. Then, there came Ian. He stood up for me and protected me. He became my guardian. I spent two years with him in the orphanage. Since he was exceptionally smart, many families wanted to adopt him. But he had this one condition and that was anyone adopting him must adopt me as well. But given my situation, many families were reluctant. Finally, a couple agreed to his terms and I joined this new family with him. My foster mom was a psychologist. She taught me so much. Gradually, I learned how to recognize others’ appearance and clothes by touching their faces or clothing. I learned to figure out my location based on the smell of plants and by touching the ground. I also learned braille and how to read people’s lips.”
Jason repeated this phrase, “Reading people’s lips? Few people can master this skill.”
“Yes, you are right. Few people can master this skill. But my foster mom taught me to read and write in braille, and to feel the movement and vibration of speech by using my fingers to read the speaker’s lips. It was important and difficult for someone like me without the ability to see or hear to master those skills. For this, my foster mom gave me compliments. She said I was her pride. Unfortunately, when I was 18, she pa.s.sed away. My foster father loved my foster mom very much. He became depressed because he could not take such a heavy blow. Eventually, he was diagnosed with depressive disorder. He was convinced that I was the reason for the pa.s.sing of my foster mom. Since she took me to her home, she had been making great efforts to take care of me and she devoted her time and energy to me. For this reason, my foster father began to reject me. One night, he drank too much, got carried away and beat me up. I did not dare to tell Ian. However, upon finding out about this, he hurried back from school. He helped my foster father to receive treatment. A year later, he was in much better shape. We spent another two years as a family.”
At this point, Lu Jia’er was no longer in the mood to continue.
Both Jin Xiangdong and Jason were looking at Lu Jia’er. They never expected that in her past, she suffered so much.
Jin Xiangdong felt so sorry for her. He tightened his grip on her hand. Jason could not stop himself from asking, “Then what happened?”
Speaking of what happened next, Lu Jia’er began to press her lips together and her expression became clouded.
Jin Xiangdong could tell from her looks that something bad must have happened. That being said, he was also interested and wanted to find out.
Lu Jia’er adjusted her emotions before she went on. “Two years later, on the birthday of my deceased foster mom, my foster father went out to get drinks because he was feeling blue. I got worried about him. When I went out to look for him, I was. .h.i.t by a car.”