It was unclear to Zhuo Lin whether they had transmigrated, and everyone was tired. They simply recounted the day's events and then retired to their rooms.
The next morning, they packed up the mutated creatures and prepared to head back.
Since there was now a giant mutated tiger, ordinary helicopters were not suitable for transporting it. Considering the possibility of accidents, they decided to transport it by vehicle.
This process required escorts to maintain constant vigilance.
The vigilance was not against external dangers, but rather, based on their experiments, ordinary sedatives had little effect on these creatures. They needed to prevent a sudden outbreak during transport that could lead to the destruction of the vehicle and loss of life.
After implementing layers of protection, the captain was still uneasy. He got into the vehicle and said to Zhuo Lin, "Miss Gu, it's too far back to C City. Do you have any way to keep it quiet during the journey? Or could you lend us that special weapon you use temporarily?"
Zhuo Lin had casually made up the story earlier and had almost forgotten what it was. After a moment, she remembered and brushed it off, "You can't use this weapon yet. I'll go take a look."
The others took her seriously, believing that the new special weapon could only be used by her. Who would have known that there was no weapon at all from the beginning, and she herself was the most formidable weapon?
She boarded the truck transporting the large tiger. In addition to the glass cage it was in, they had also added an iron cage outside, locked securely.
However, they had all witnessed the explosive power of this large tiger, so they dared not be complacent.
Zhuo Lin observed the tiger from all sides. She had intended to subdue it with a palm strike, but upon meeting its pleading eyes, she said, "You recognize that man, don't you? Your master is here too, so you'd best not make any sudden moves. Come back with us peacefully. If you try to escape midway, I'll take off your heads, one by one."
The large tiger trembled, seemingly understanding her words, and was frightened.
The others, not having heard her clearly, only caught the gist of her threatening the tiger. Seeing its genuine reaction, they marvelled.
"I didn't expect this beast to understand human speech."
Although it could understand human words, Zhuo Lin was still unwilling to take the risk. She took out two small magnetic discs, placing one on the glass cage and the other on the ground.
Instantly, a protective shield seemed to appear between the glass enclosure and the cage.
"What is this?"
"An energy shield." This technology would be unveiled soon, so Zhuo Lin didn't intend to hide it from them. "It's our newly developed technology that can block their energy. Notify me when you arrive, and I'll open it."
The others instinctively assumed the energy shield was locked and only she could open it.
The captain reached out to touch the seemingly solid shield and smiled, "Thank you, Miss Gu."
With this, their journey would be much easier.
"You're welcome, you've all worked hard."
After exchanging pleasantries, Zhuo Lin returned to the plane and left C City with Uncle Sheng and the other researchers.
By the time she returned home, it was almost dark.
The Lunar New Year was approaching, and it was bitterly cold outside. Many people were bundled up in down jackets. Compared to them, Zhuo Lin, dressed in a casual sweater and skirt, looked like someone who prioritized style over warmth.
When she entered, the auntie was taken aback. "Miss Gu, why are you wearing this? This is for indoors. Didn't I put away your down jacket for you? It's so cold, and you've just given birth. Come quickly and warm up."
As she spoke, she turned up the air conditioning a few more degrees and brought a thin blanket to drape over Zhuo Lin.
"I was in the car the whole time, I'm not cold."
In the world, nothing was warmer than her, except for the sun in the heavens.
How could she possibly be cold?
"Where are A Yan and the little one?"
It took the auntie a moment to realize that "little one" referred to the baby. She chuckled and said, laying the thin blanket on the sofa, "The baby just fell asleep. Mr. Zhu carried her back to the room to sleep."
The child was not yet a month old. No matter how abundant her spiritual energy was and how unlike an ordinary person she was, her body couldn't withstand excessive activity. She needed to sleep fifteen to sixteen hours a day to have some energy at other times.
"Miss Gu, the baby is a girl after all. If you keep calling her that, it might not sound good if it becomes well-known later."
Zhuo Lin felt it didn't matter.
She wouldn't be staying in this world for long. Her true age was perhaps just a small portion of her childhood. When she returned, no one would know about this "nickname." It was no big deal.
The auntie, sensing her thoughts, advised again, "If it were a boy, it wouldn't matter. But it's a bit inappropriate to call a baby girl that."
Zhuo Lin could only agree, "I'll be more mindful from now on."
As they were talking, Zhu Chongyan came out.
He was still holding the baby.
"Didn't she fall asleep? Why did you bring her out again?"
Zhu Chongyan looked at her first with surprise, then with a hint of confusion. "She was asleep just now, but for some reason, she woke up and seemed quite energetic."
He walked over with the baby. Zhuo Lin took her. The baby's rosy, tender little face, with eyes as clear as crystal, blinked at Zhuo Lin, clearly recognizing her, or perhaps sensing her presence even earlier, which is why she woke up.
"You're quite clever," Zhuo Lin murmured, kissing her forehead. The baby immediately let out a string of bell-like giggles and cooed and babbled in her arms.
Zhu Chongyan looked at her, full of confusion. "Why is she so energetic? She should be asleep at this time normally."
Zhuo Lin smiled and sat down, "Perhaps she's happy to see me."
Zhu Chongyan rolled his eyes and chuckled, "She's so little, what could she possibly know?"
Zhuo Lin didn't argue, rocking the baby in her arms. "If you're sleepy, go to sleep. I'm here."
When she spoke to the baby, she always did so as if the child could understand. Zhu Chongyan had always thought this was just her habit, never imagining that the baby could actually "understand" Zhuo Lin's meaning.
A short while later, she truly fell asleep again.
Zhu Chongyan found it strange, almost questioning his own reality.
The auntie had prepared dinner. To accommodate Zhuo Lin, the household meals had been light and nutritious lately. Zhu Chongyan, having stayed at home for over two months, had also gained a healthier complexion.
After dinner, the couple took the baby back to their room.
The baby was mostly cared for by the confinement nanny. Occasionally, when Zhuo Lin felt like it, she would bring the baby to their room to sleep with them.
Both of them were new parents, young, and had no experience caring for children. The auntie was surprised the first time they said they wanted to bring the baby into their room.
She even paced nervously outside their door late at night, but ultimately didn't go in to check.
If they had seen that the couple hadn't even placed the baby in a crib, but directly between them, they might have fainted from shock.
The two looked at the sleeping baby, feeling an immense sense of warmth and happiness. Even Zhuo Lin, who usually had eyes only for him, would soften at such moments.
"The baby is so cute!"
"She is quite cute." And obedient, well-behaved, soft, and fragrant.
Zhuo Lin increasingly felt that keeping her had been a wise decision.
They lay down. The baby, who had been sleeping soundly, was now sleeping soundly again. The family of three lay together, the atmosphere incredibly peaceful and beautiful.
"I wanted to ask you that day, what name should we give the baby?"
"You decide."
"How can one person decide? The baby is so cute, let's give her a cute name."
"Zhu Ke'ai?" (Zhu Adorable)
Zhu Chongyan froze for a moment, then couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Be serious."
"It's just a title. We'll discuss it later." She patted both the adult and the child. "I'm a little tired, let's get some sleep."
"Oh, then, goodnight!"
"Goodnight."