# 1948
Chapter 1948: Lu Baoyou's Wish
Outside the office, in the corridor.
"Did he leave?"
"...Yes."
Su Yuan gazed at the empty corridor, her lips pressed tightly together.
Li Zhenzhen sighed softly, gently pulling Su Yuan's shoulder into her embrace, and spoke in a warm voice:
"Don't be sad... what you did was right. Although your brother is a fool, he'll understand your intentions sooner or later..."
"Whether he understands or not doesn't matter." Su Yuan, usually so cold and decisive, had a hint of redness in her eyes. "If I could choose, I'd rather he never understood..."
"I suppose that's true..."
Su Yuan微微抬起头，倔强的将眼角泪水逼了回去，随后转头看向Li Zhenzhen。
Su Yuan tilted her head up slightly, stubbornly forcing back the tears at the corners of her eyes, then turned to look at Li Zhenzhen.
"Sister Zhenzhen, then what about you and Captain Fang Mo... what will you do?"
"What about it?" Li Zhenzhen smiled. "It'll be like this... from the very beginning, we never expected to live like ordinary people. Getting married, having children—these things are too far out of reach for the Night Watch... Look at Commander Lin and Instructor Jialan, or Instructor Jiang Er and An... In any case, wherever he goes, I go. If he dies, I'll die with him. Maybe that's the unique romantic notion of the Night Watch—love."
Li Zhenzhen gazed at the tightly closed office door, her eyes bright and clear. There was no confusion on her face, only a pure and simple determination.
Su Yuan seemed to think of something, her expression growing complicated...
"The more you pursue, the more it hurts when you can't have it... Sister Zhenzhen, you really see things most clearly."
Li Zhenzhen chuckled lightly.
"Come on, I'm a love god's proxy—who could understand love better than me?"
Lu Baoyou listened to the conversation around him, standing alone in a corner against the wall, his gaze flickering slightly as he contemplated something...
After a long while, the office door slowly opened.
Everyone turned to look. Fang Mo, draped in a purple cloak, walked out with his head lowered, his expression complicated.
He closed the door behind him, and Li Zhenzhen and the others immediately crowded around.
"How was it? What exactly is the mission?"
"...Same as what was said before—sending someone off..."
"Sending whom?"
Fang Mo's fists clenched tightly. He took a deep breath and turned to look in a certain direction...
"Everyone, let's find a place to rest for now. I need to go see them first."
With that, Fang Mo walked straight out of the crowd and headed toward the exit of the headquarters, leaving the confused group standing there looking at each other.
"Is this mission really that mysterious?" Liu Jun asked, puzzled.
"...I feel like the captain's expression isn't looking good." Su Yuan turned to look at Li Zhenzhen, who was gazing in the direction Fang Mo had left, her eyes full of worry.
After Fang Mo left, the vice-captain Lu Baoyou became the person in charge of the [Demon] squad. He walked up to the group and said calmly:
"Alright... you're all free to do as you wish."
...
After Fang Mo left, the members of the [Demon] squad dispersed for the time being.
Lu Baoyou, who was already accustomed to working alone, broke away from the others and wandered around the Night Watch headquarters. After the sun rose and set, another day passed, and finally he made up his mind. He returned alone to the door of the Chief Commander's office.
Knock knock knock—
"Enter."
Lu Baoyou pushed the door open and walked in. Fate Monk was still sitting in that same position, as if he hadn't moved an inch overnight.
"Lu Baoyou." Fate Monk didn't seem surprised by Lu Baoyou's arrival. "You wanted to see me—what's the matter?"
"You said you'd fulfill my wish. Is that still valid?"
"Of course it is."
"I want to find someone."
"Find whom?"
Lu Baoyou opened his mouth, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated... This display of hesitation was extremely rare for someone usually so decisive.
"I don't know her name... She was a beggar, no wait—she probably isn't one anymore. She was about this tall, and... no, that still isn't right. It's been so many years, she must have grown taller too..."
Lu Baoyou tried desperately to describe something, but he realized he simply couldn't portray what the person he was looking for looked like... His brow furrowed tighter and tighter.
"No rush, take your time." Fate Monk looked into his eyes. "The person you're looking for—is female?"
"Yes."
"How old?"
"Five years ago, she was about sixteen or seventeen. So now she should be around twenty."
"When did you meet her?"
"Five years ago, New Year's Eve."
"And the location?"
"Shangjing City, the underpass in the western suburbs."
"The underpass? Did she have a specific address?"
"...No. I don't know where she went afterward either."
"Any distinctive features on her face? Or could you draw what she looks like?"
"I... I can't draw."
Silence filled the office.
Fate Monk's eyes narrowed slightly as he slowly spoke:
"So, you want me to help you find a female beggar around twenty years old—someone whose name you don't know, whose appearance you're not sure of, and who has no fixed address?"
"No, she was a beggar back then, but she shouldn't be one now..."
After saying this, Lu Baoyou himself felt the conditions were far too vague. The range given was practically useless. Among Great Xia's hundreds of millions of people, how was he supposed to find a girl with absolutely nothing known about her?
A hint of bitterness surfaced in his eyes. He shook his head and turned to walk toward the door.
"I'm sorry... pretend I never came."
"Wait." Fate Monk stopped him.
Lu Baoyou turned back, confused.
"You... what do you want with her?"
Hearing this question, Lu Baoyou was momentarily stunned.
In his mind, he suddenly recalled that New Year's Eve five years ago, when under the flickering fireworks at the underpass, she had slipped that piece of ham into his instant noodles, and with a bright smile, said those words: "Happy New Year, my hero."
He didn't know why he couldn't forget that scene, couldn't forget that little beggar girl wrapped in thick blankets, appearing in his dreams every single night... Although they had only met briefly, her existence seemed carved into his soul.
Was it love? Or was it... salvation?
Through countless dark nights afterward, Lu Baoyou had tossed and turned thinking about this question, yet he never found an answer.
Moreover, with five years having passed, she might have completely forgotten about him. Even if he found her... what would he even say?
"Lu Baoyou?"
Seeing Lu Baoyou frozen like a statue, Fate Monk spoke again.
Lu Baoyou came back to his senses. He stood silent for a long while.
"I don't know... but she might be the only person in this world I care about."
Fate Monk gazed at him for a moment, then nodded. "I understand your wish... but honestly, based on the information you've given me, finding this girl won't be easy. I can only do my best."
A glimmer of light appeared in Lu Baoyou's eyes. He looked at Fate Monk, and his straight, unyielding spine bent slightly forward.
"...Thank you."