Limited Ambiguity Chapter 11 Part 2

Chapter 11.2

<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>

After the class ended, Qi Yan was preparing to leave when Xia Zhiyang hurriedly called out to him, “Qi Yan, wait!”

The night before, Chen Mingxuan stayed up late playing games, barely making it to class on time. Now, sporting dark circles under his eyes, he stood forlornly on the side, looking worn out.

Qi Yan stopped. “Did you call me?”

Xia Zhiyang, concerned that Qi Yan might not know, explained, “Have you seen the data packet Professor Fu sent? It’s huge. If you use the RN3 model for data mining, ordinary devices won’t handle it. You need to use the large optical computer in the computer room. It’s expensive, but it’s incredibly effective for data mining!”

He sighed again. “I don’t know if we can successfully upgrade this model. Otherwise, we’ll have to spend the night in the computer room.”

“Alright, I understand,” Qi Yan paused, “If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can ask—”

Before he could finish saying “me,” Xia Zhiyang interrupted.

“You haven’t dealt with this model before. I’ll send you my previous notes. Take the time to look over them. If you can’t understand, just review the first-year textbooks. And if you still can’t complete it, Professor Fu certainly won’t blame you. After all, you missed an entire year of classes.”

Qi Yan could only reply, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome! We’re all friends here!” Xia Zhiyang felt a bit embarrassed and scratched the back of his head.

As Laurent approached, he overheard their conversation. Carrying a portable recording tablet, he walked straight ahead without glancing sideways. “Sorry to interrupt. Excuse me.”

Originally intending to go straight home, Qi Yan recalled the Qi family’s celebration banquet last time, where Caroline mentioned a room in the library specifically for the principal’s collection of paper books. He obtained the password from the principal and went to the library first.

Lu Fenghan asked Qi Yan, “You’re not going to the computer room to use the optical computer for data mining?”

At times like these, he instinctively made comparisons.

Judging from Xia Zhiyang’s tone, there were definitely more than one large optical computer in Turan’s computer room. There should be many, and they were all open for student use.

Meanwhile, across the river at the First Military Academy—

It was better left unsaid.

Qi Yan answered his question, “I don’t need to go to the computer room. I have one at home.”

Lu Fenghan, unusually slow to react, asked, “Have what?”

“An optical computer,” Qi Yan elaborated, “The one at home is an optical computer, so I can mine data at home.”

Lu Fenghan: “…Oh, I see.”

Qi Yan used the password to open the door to the library.

Lu Fenghan had little interest in paper books. To him, paper books, as a fixed medium that could be easily destroyed by water or fire, were too fragile and had little practicality.

The library room illustrated his point. Inside, there was an empty compartment, originally designed for fire and explosion safety. Beyond that, there was another door, leading to rows of bookshelves.

So, while Qi Yan read inside, he didn’t follow him in. He waited in the compartment separated by a layer of transparent glass.

His personal terminal vibrated. Vincent had sent a communication request.

Seeing Qi Yan immersed in reading, Lu Fenghan leaned against the wall, accepted the connection, and activated “personal mode,” so that only he could hear the other side’s voice.

At the same time, “Dong—”

The clock tower in the center of Turan Academy chimed on the hour.

Vincent’s words took a turn, “Commander, are you at Turan Academy?”

“Yes, in their library.” Lu Fenghan stood lazily, occasionally peering through the glass wall to see what Qi Yan was up to.

“The library? Didn’t their school’s alarm system kick you out because you’re from across the river?” 

“Get lost. I came in openly.” Lu Fenghan briefly explained Qi Yan’s submitted application.

Unexpectedly, Vincent became particularly excited. “Commander Lu, as an honor graduate of the First Military Academy, you’ve successfully infiltrated the enemies’ territory! You’ll surely go down in the annals of the academy’s history!”

Lu Fenghan, eyelids flickering, dismissed the praise, “Get to the point, too much chatter.”

Vincent’s tone turned serious. “Commander, remember when you asked me to investigate who brought Weiss Will to the Expeditionary Force two years ago? I have some results.”

Lu Fenghan lowered his gaze. “Is he dead?”

“How did you know?” Vincent exclaimed, then continued, “This Weiss is from the Messier Region. His parents died in a navigational accident when he was 16.”

Lu Fenghan gave a brief instruction, “Go on.”

“In the remote areas of the Messier Region, there are some relatively neglected space lanes where maintenance may not be up to par. You know, the countless planetary explosions caused by the Great Technological Catastrophe left behind various hazards. When his parents were traveling, their civilian starship happened to encounter a particle storm, severely damaging the space lane. The entire starship exploded, and very few people survived. This incident had a significant impact, and at the time, the Leto Daily News had headlines about it for a whole week.”

Lu Fenghan listened attentively, “Go on.”

“Later, he enrolled in First Military Academy and went through the military procedures as usual. His superior was named Dison, a lieutenant colonel, who consistently promoted Weiss. When Dison was transferred to the front lines, Weiss naturally followed his superior into the Expeditionary Force. The front line offered ample opportunities to accumulate military merits, and Weiss’ rank rose faster than that of the average soldier. He’s now a lieutenant colonel. About three months ago, Dison was reassigned to Leto due to injuries and illness, but just two months after returning, he died in a hovercar accident.”

“A hovercar accident?”

“Yes, the official report cited a malfunction in the hovercar’s fully automated operating system. But I suspect it’s more likely that the system was hacked. Someone wanted him dead.”

Vincent sighed. “Nowadays, there are very few people who don’t use the fully automated driving mode for hovercars. It’s so easy to hack into the system, fabricate an accident, and kill someone.”

Lu Fenghan’s gaze fell on Qi Yan, who was searching for a book on the shelf—this person was one of the few who preferred manual driving from among the “very few” mentioned earlier.

“You can stop investigating the Dison connection. Since he’s dead, any traces would have been wiped clean,” Lu Fenghan pondered for a moment, “Don’t make any moves in the next few days to avoid attracting attention from those with ill intentions.”

“Yes,” Vincent reflexively responded, then remembered, “By the way, I happened to, really just happened to, look into Qi Yan.”

“Qi Yan?” Lu Fenghan’s tone carried a hint of danger.

Vincent, having served as Lu Fenghan’s adjutant for three years, was adept at interpreting his superior’s tone. As soon as he sensed Lu Fenghan’s displeasure, he hurriedly added, “I really just happened to stumble upon it! I didn’t mean anything else by it! But, the results of the investigation are a bit… peculiar.”

Without waiting for Lu Fenghan to respond, Vincent continued rapidly, “Qi Yan’s information is very easy to find. He left Leto at the age of three and was sent to a remote planet in the Messier Region to live with his grandparents. Then it was the usual routine—school, exams.

“His file includes all his report cards, medical records, purchase history, entertainment expenses—everything, large and small, all very detailed. Similarly, the information about his grandparents is the same.”

Lu Fenghan’s eyes flickered slightly.

“Commander, you’ve noticed, right? The military has a long history of intentionally making someone’s profile inconspicuous and meticulously detailed.”

Vincent’s tone grew serious. “Moreover, from the records, whether Qi Yan’s grandparents actually exist is uncertain. If Qi Yan didn’t receive care from his grandparents, then who took care of him for the past dozen years? And where exactly did Qi Yan live—was it in the Messier Region or somewhere else? And furthermore—”

“There’s no need to investigate further,” Lu Fenghan interrupted Vincent, his hand habitually reaching for his pocket, only to find no cigarettes.

Vincent paused, reconsidering what he was about to say.

He recalled an incident from his time on the front line in the Southern Cross Region when he was suspected of leaking military secrets during an emergency mission.

In such situations, the person with the highest rank present had the authority to carry out on-the-spot executions. And at that time, the highest-ranking person, who had accused him of leaking secrets, had just been transferred from Leto to the front line and wasn’t on good terms with Lu Fenghan.

He knelt on the ground, hands cuffed behind his back, thinking he was about to die.

Unexpectedly, Lu Fenghan initiated a video call.

The image was distorted by cosmic electromagnetic interference, but it was still clear enough to see Lu Fenghan’s wrinkled military uniform, his hand gripping the black metal barrel of a gun, his lips curled, his gaze icy.

He spoke slowly and deliberately, “The lives of my people are mine to decide. Even in execution, it will be by my hand. Otherwise, whoever dares to kill him, I will kill them.”

That was why many people say that Lu Fenghan was a typical jungle beast, extremely territorial and fiercely protective.

And Qi Yan, clearly, had already been placed under his protection.

Those he protected belonged to him.

No one else had a say in the matter.

Overly confident yet commanding respect.

If you enjoy this novel, support the Translator ginevre on her ko-fi account :))

<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>