Chapter 600: Long-Awaited Sunshine

Faced with Shane Walsh’s anxious questioning, Hayden Jennings remained perfectly calm.

He waved his hand dismissively and replied, "It’s nothing. Just that the previous caretaker was careless. She accidentally scratched her hand while delivering food to the test subjects and got infected... Luckily, those police officers reacted quickly and shot her dead in time."

Hearing Hayden Jennings’s words, Shane Walsh’s brow furrowed even deeper. He got up, walked over to sit beside Hayden, and said in a low voice, "...Jennings, I saw that video too..."

The gruesome scene in the video, with blood splattered all over the hallway, made Shane Walsh’s scalp tingle. ’That wasn’t the result we were aiming for!’

Shane Walsh glanced at the calm and composed Hayden Jennings, then looked up at Yuri Walsh standing nearby, and asked with a worried expression, "How far along is your research, exactly? How could you make this kind of mess?..."

"This is nothing like what we envisioned... Don’t tell me you’ve gone down the wrong research path..."

The moment Shane Walsh finished speaking, a rare flash of anger appeared on Hayden Jennings’s usually placid face.

’As a man wholly dedicated to his research, the one thing he couldn’t stand was someone questioning his scientific abilities!’

Suppressing his inner fury, he took off his gold-rimmed glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose, growling, "What do you know! Do you think scientific research is some kind of magic show, where you can conjure up whatever you want?!"

"Besides, what we’re researching now is a monumental achievement that could change the world! It’s not something that can be accomplished overnight! You know nothing, and yet you have the audacity to question our progress!"

Being yelled at like that by Hayden Jennings, Shane Walsh’s expression turned even fouler.

’This research wasn’t just funded by the Jennings Family, but by the Walsh Family as well! The Walsh Family has poured in billions, and to this day, they haven’t seen a single ripple. Why shouldn’t he be allowed to ask about the project’s progress?’

Shane Walsh shot up from the sofa. He looked down on Hayden Jennings and said with a cold expression, "You’re right. I don’t know anything about your science. You’re the great scientist, and Brandon and I are just common businessmen!"

"But... if Paige Walsh’s side discovers anything unusual, it’ll be up to us common folk to clean up your mess!"

Hayden Jennings let out a cold snort. He shot Shane Walsh a sidelong glance and said coldly, "Paige Walsh? That woman is a hack who only got her current position by riding the government’s coattails. You think she can produce any meaningful research?!"

Seeing that his father and his teacher were about to start a real fight, Yuri Walsh hurried forward to hold Shane Walsh back, trying to de-escalate the situation. "Dad, Mr. Jennings didn’t mean it like that. Please, don’t be angry!"

"So far, our research direction is sound. The latest strain can indeed control the test subjects’ central nervous systems, and it also enhances their physical strength and explosive power. The caretaker’s behavior in that video actually proves we’re very close to success!"

"It’s just that, like Mr. Jennings said, research can’t be accomplished overnight. We’re bound to encounter some uncontrollable factors during the process... What happened with the caretaker was just an accident. I promise you, it won’t happen again!"

After hearing what Yuri said, the expression on Shane Walsh’s face finally softened a little.

Just then, Brandon Walsh, who had been sitting silently to the side, suddenly spoke up. "Jennings, I recall you brought those test subjects back to your villa, right? ...Aren’t you afraid they’ll lose control?..."

Recalling the caretaker’s frenzied state in the video, Brandon Walsh couldn’t help but feel a chill. ’What if those test subjects are just as violent? Can Hayden Jennings really control them? It would be a disaster if they got out!’

Hayden Jennings’s expression darkened at the question. ’Brandon’s worry was the very thing he’d been concerned about.’

To better control the test subjects in his villa’s basement and prevent them from losing control and rampaging, Hayden Jennings regularly injected them with sedatives. However, this method had its drawbacks, as the drugs more or less interfered with the experimental results...

’If only there were a better way to control them.’

As he thought of this, Hayden Jennings once again recalled the miraculous drug in Melody Summers’s possession.

’If he could get his hands on that drug, it might be of some help to their experiment...’

******

In the blink of an eye, another half a month had passed. The new year was just two months away.

And to everyone’s delight, the rain that had lasted for more than half a year finally stopped this morning. The sun was finally out!

The long-awaited sunlight pierced through the clouds, casting a bright golden hue over the land. Melody Summers woke up and saw the sun shining into her room through the window screen, feeling as if she had been reborn.

She rubbed her eyes, stretched lazily, and fumbled for her phone to start scrolling through the group chat:

"12-1803AAA Lawson Building Materials (Closed): It’s finally sunny! I haven’t seen the sun in over half a year!"

"4-1209 Slacking Off: The sun’s finally out! I can air out my blankets!"

"6-702 The Lover: I’ve already put my blankets out to dry! After more than half a year of rain, my blankets were so damp they were practically dripping. If the sun hadn’t come out, I think I would’ve gotten rheumatism!"

"3-1007 Kiki, Mom of Two: Ah, I’m so jealous. Unfortunately, I can’t air out my blankets right now."

"4-1009 Lowell On Deadline: @3-1007 Kiki, Mom of Two Why not?"

"3-1007 Kiki, Mom of Two: @4-1009 Lowell On Deadline There are refugees living on my balcony. They’ve taken up all the space and won’t let us use it to dry anything!"

"4-1009 Lowell On Deadline: @3-1007 Kiki, Mom of Two That’s horrible! They’re acting like they own the place!"

"2-1408 Bella Grant: The sun is out now, aren’t those refugees leaving yet? How long are they going to stay in our complex?"

"2-1408 Bella Grant: Don’t get me wrong, everyone, but ever since the complex started housing refugees, public safety has gotten a lot worse. My family and I don’t even dare to go out at night anymore!"

"7-408 Gone with the Wind: @2-1408 Bella Grant I completely agree! The other day, I took my kid to get our disaster relief food, and on the way back to our building, we were robbed by some of those refugees! They ran and hid in the underground garage right after, so they couldn’t be caught!"

"2-1408 Bella Grant: Ugh, it’s so annoying. When are those refugees finally going to go home?!"

"2-1908 Coco: @2-1408 Bella Grant It’ll probably be a while. The sun just came out."

"2-1408 Bella Grant: @2-1908 Coco Why? I saw on TV that the floods have already receded in a lot of places!"

"2-1908 Coco: @2-1408 Bella Grant They haven’t receded completely. There’s still standing water in the South District."

"2-1908 Coco: Besides, even after the floods recede, the area needs to be disinfected. The floodwaters leave behind a lot of bacteria and viruses, and there are also all the Tricolor Parasitoid Wasp corpses to deal with."

"4-1209 Slacking Off: STOP! ’Tricolor Parasitoid Wasp’ is a taboo phrase in this group. Don’t mention it, you’ll make everyone remember disgusting things."

"..."