Dragon Clan: Lu Mingfei from All Quiet on the Western Front

Chapter 189 Father and Mother

"Mom?" Lu Mingfei looked at the woman in front of him with some disbelief.

"Mingfei, long time no see." The woman looked at Lu Mingfei with a smile, but her eyes were a little red. She slowly walked towards Lu Mingfei and held him in her arms.

Lu Mingfei was suddenly at a loss. He didn't know where to put his hands. He thought his parents were fake and all his memories about them were fabricated.

But when he really saw this familiar yet unfamiliar face, he became a little uncertain again.

Lu Mingfei froze in place, as if frozen in time. Confused thoughts were surging in his mind, and those memories from the past that he regarded as false now surged up like a tide.

Her voice, her breath, and even the barely perceptible familiar scent on her body, are all so real...

"Ming Fei..." The woman's voice was choked with sobs. Her embrace was neither tight nor loose, as if she was afraid that using too much force would wake up her son in front of her. "You must have suffered a lot over the years, right?"

Lu Mingfei's throat seemed to be blocked and he couldn't make a sound. He tried hard to speak, but in the end he could only utter a dry sentence: "You...really...my mother?"

The woman let go of him, the redness in her eyes deepened. She gently stroked Lu Mingfei's face with her hand, her eyes full of pity and guilt: "Of course it's me, what else?"

“But I…” Lu Mingfei took a step back, his lips trembling slightly, “I thought you… weren’t real, I thought those memories…” He paused, lowering his voice, “were forged, they were fake.”

The woman's expression froze slightly, and a complicated look flashed in her eyes, but she quickly regained her composure: "Your father's decision did conceal a lot of things, but..." She lowered her head, her voice so low that it was almost inaudible, "We never thought of abandoning you."

Lu Mingfei was stunned, and fragments of his childhood flashed through his mind quickly - those ordinary yet heartwarming fragments deeply buried in his memory. He couldn't help but clench his fists, his nails digging deeply into his palms, until the pain pulled him back from his trance.

"If it's true..." Lu Mingfei's voice was low and cold, and he stared at the woman sharply, "Then why did you disappear? Why did you leave me alone?"

The woman opened her mouth, as if she wanted to explain something, but in the end she didn't. She took a deep breath and said softly, "There are some answers... When the time comes, I will tell you."

Lu Mingfei did not continue to ask questions. He was still full of doubts and uneasiness, but at this moment, he knew that there were more important things to deal with. He raised his head and said with unquestionable firmness: "No matter what the answer is, now... tell me what's going on with this submarine."

The woman looked at him, with complex emotions in her eyes. Finally, she nodded gently: "Follow me."

She turned around and led the way towards the depths of the submarine. Lu Mingfei followed closely. Jiude Mai and Rijileifu stood aside, looked at each other, and quickly followed.

As the submarine door slowly closed, those cold and deep secrets were gradually surfacing.

The lights inside the submarine were dim and soft, footsteps echoed in the long and narrow corridor, and the air was filled with a faint metallic smell and the damp and cold breath of sea water.

Lu Mingfei followed the woman with steady steps, but his heart was in turmoil.

He glanced at Mai Jiude and Rijirev who were walking beside him. They both looked a little wary and uneasy. This scene was full of unknowns and dangers for everyone.

"The equipment here looks very advanced." Jude Mai whispered, scanning the instruments and equipment in the submarine, "but it's also a little... weird."

"Weird?" Ridgelife frowned.

Jude Mai nodded. "Did you notice those control panels? Some of them don't look like modern technology. Instead, they look more like some kind of composite design mixed with traces of the supernatural."

The submarine swam forward and soon came to a huge mountain. A gap opened in the mountain for the submarine to swim in.

The submarine slowly entered the huge underground facility inside the mountain. The surrounding rock walls were illuminated by strong lights, reflecting the rough but solid rock texture.

The space inside the facility is surprisingly spacious, with wide waterways extending deep into the ground and surrounded by pipes and supporting structures, like a steel city buried underground.

"Where...is this place?" Lu Mingfei couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

His mother stood in front of the console and pressed a few commands. The submarine gradually approached the shore and stopped. She turned to look at Lu Mingfei with a complicated expression: "This is one of the secret bases of the Kingdom of God's research, and it is also the starting point of our last mission."

"Research on the Kingdom of God?" Jiude Mai immediately grasped the key words, and she asked vigilantly, "What is the connection between you and the Kingdom of God?"

The woman did not answer directly, but gestured for everyone to follow her on foot into the depths of the facility.

Her voice echoed in the empty space. "A few years ago, we discovered the existence of the Kingdom of God. Its technology and power are beyond human comprehension. In order to study it, we formed a special team to try to unlock its secrets."

At the end of the corridor was a heavy metal door, surrounded by complex electronic equipment and rune-like carvings, like a combination of technology and supernatural power. The woman placed her hand on the scanner next to the door, and the system started up with a slight buzzing sound.

"This is not only a place to study the Kingdom of God, but also a doomsday fortress." The woman explained, and the door slowly opened at her command. "This place can preserve the fire of mankind when the world ends."

"Come on, your father is waiting for you upstairs. Let him come and explain it to you."

Lu Mingfei paused slightly, and a complex emotion flashed in his eyes.

Father, this is a word that is more unfamiliar yet familiar than “mother”. In those vague memories, even his appearance is not very clear.

"He's waiting for me?" Lu Mingfei's voice was low, with a hint of restrained sarcasm, "He disappeared for so many years, and now he suddenly wants to explain to me?"

The woman stopped and turned to look at him, with an indescribable complex emotion in her eyes: "Ming Fei, we never thought of abandoning you. We left to... protect you." She paused, as if she had used up all her strength before continuing, "But it is true that there are some things that he owes you an explanation for."

"Protection?" Lu Mingfei sneered, his eyes turned colder, "Protection means letting a child grow up alone and being involved in a bunch of inexplicable things for no apparent reason?" Jiude Mai and Rigidrev stood aside, watching this scene silently.

Mai Jude tried to speak to ease the atmosphere, but eventually she kept her mouth shut. Rijirev shook her head slightly and signaled Mai Jude with her eyes not to interrupt.

The woman was silent for a moment. In the end, she didn't make any more excuses. She just turned around and continued to move forward: "Whether you are willing to accept it or not, now is the time to face these problems."

Lu Mingfei clenched his fists, and after a moment of silence, he followed. At the end of the passage was a huge elevator, surrounded by metal supports and complex pipe structures, exuding a strong apocalyptic atmosphere.

There are windows on both sides of the corridor. There was a sharp sound of wind coming from outside the window, but there was also an opaque shield outside the window, so Lu Mingfei could not see what was happening outside the window.

Lu Mingfei's mother Qiao Weini stopped in front of the door at the end of the corridor and touched his head. "Your father is waiting for you inside. I won't go in."

Lu Mingfei was a little surprised, but didn't say anything.

"You guys wait for me outside." Lu Mingfei said to the people around him, then pushed open the door.

This is a Bauhaus-style office, simple, practical, and without too much decoration. Half of the wall is occupied by screens of various sizes, displaying data and graphs that Lu Mingfei cannot understand.

The large desk was piled with documents. The man was buried in the pile of documents, writing and drawing. Just like his previous working habits, red and blue pencils could be seen everywhere on the desk. It's not that he can't use a computer, but he is still used to writing and drawing by himself when thinking.

He kept reporting various parameters, apparently trying to build a mathematical model, while his assistant, a young woman in a white shirt and one-step skirt, sat in front of the keyboard, helping him enter data and build models.

Hearing the door open, the man raised his head and stretched his neck, looking over the piles of papers and facing Lu Mingfei. He had gray hair, thick plastic-framed glasses, and many wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, but he was still handsome and elegant.

This was different from the impression Lu Mingfei had of his father. Although this man was unkempt, at first glance he looked like an intellectual who had held a high position for a long time, and he exuded a hint of majesty.

The father and son made eye contact for a few seconds, then separated tacitly. Lu Mingfei walked to the sofa for guests.

"Natasha, please give us some time to talk alone." Lu Lincheng said, "I haven't seen my baby son for almost ten years.

Upon hearing this, assistant Natasha nodded slightly, put the documents in her hand neatly aside, then stood up and left, closing the office door before leaving.

The door lock made a slight click, and the room suddenly became quiet, with only the father and son sitting opposite each other.

Lu Lincheng took off the heavy glasses on his nose, rubbed his eyes, and looked at Lu Mingfei steadily. The expression on his face was complex and subtle, with joy and relief, as well as guilt and a subtle hesitation.

"Ming Fei..." His voice was low and hoarse, as if he had too many unspoken words. "You have grown up and are stronger than I thought."

"I have indeed grown up," Lu Mingfei sneered, raised his eyes and looked at him, with a hint of sarcasm in his tone, "After all, when no one cares, you have to learn to support yourself, right?"

Lu Lincheng paused for a moment when he heard this, a flash of pain flashed across his face, but he quickly regained his composure. He stood up and walked to the desk, poured two glasses of water, and handed one to Lu Mingfei.

"I know you have a lot of problems and a lot of grievances." He whispered, placing the cup in front of Lu Mingfei and sitting down on the sofa opposite him, "I don't blame you."

"Of course you don't blame me." Lu Mingfei said coldly, tapping the rim of the cup with his fingers, his eyes never leaving Lu Lincheng's face, "But the question is, should I blame you? Ten years have passed, and what else have you left me except loneliness?"

Lu Lincheng was silent for a moment, took a deep breath, and seemed to be thinking about how to explain.

His eyes dropped slightly, and there was a hint of deep self-blame in his voice: "We left you because we had no choice. The situation at that time... was not only to protect you, but also to allow you to live normally. We know that leaving you alone is cruel, but this is the only way to get you out of danger."

“Dangerous?” Lu Mingfei’s eyes sharpened and he sneered, “That sounds really high-sounding. So, tell me, what danger was I in at that time?”

Lu Lincheng raised his head and met Lu Mingfei's gaze, his eyes revealing a bottomless complex of emotions: "Mingfei, do you know the connection between your bloodline and the Kingdom of God?"

Lu Mingfei was stunned for a moment, frowning slightly: "My bloodline? What's the connection?"

"I heard that you are now the Prime Minister of Japan. Dad is very happy. Then do you know where the power to become the Prime Minister comes from?"

"Oh, isn't it because I'm a monster?" Lu Mingfei sneered.

"Of course not. You are my son. How can you be a monster?"

"You are just parasitized by something."

Lu Mingfei paused, and the cup made a slight sound on the table. He raised his head, stared at Lu Lincheng sharply, and said coldly: "Parasitism? What do you mean by that?"

Lu Lincheng put down his water cup, clasped his hands on his knees, and spoke in a heavy tone without evading the question: "When you were very young, we discovered that your body was a little different from that of ordinary people. There is a special energy in your blood. This energy does not come from humans, but from the legacy of the Kingdom of God."

"The remains of the Kingdom of God?" Lu Mingfei frowned. "Are you saying that I was born a monster?"

"No, Mingfei, you are not a monster." Lu Lincheng's tone was extremely firm, and a trace of pain flashed in his eyes. "That energy is not you, but a parasitic state. It resides in your blood and gradually merges with you over time. The reason we hide it from you is because we want to try our best to slow down the speed of this fusion so that you can have a normal childhood."

Lu Mingfei sneered, his eyes sharp: "Normal? What you call normal is to let me live alone and face those inexplicable dangers by myself?"

"I admit that we didn't do well enough." Lu Lincheng looked up at Lu Mingfei, his eyes full of guilt, "But we really had no choice at that time. Mingfei, do you know what the Kingdom of God is? It is the source of power beyond human understanding. All humans and organizations that covet it will pay a heavy price, and you are their focus."

(End of this chapter)