Chapter 22
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After dinner, Lu Fenghan took a moment to look over the document that Vincent had sent him.
Weiss had been increasingly active in the past two days. After reorganizing his personnel, he was now preparing to interfere with the deployment arrangements on the front lines of the Southern Cross Region.
When Lu Fenghan was on the front lines, he had always left the deployment to Erich. Obviously, Weiss had an issue with Erich’s presence, so he had reported to Leto and asked to promote a lieutenant colonel to second deputy commander, with the actual goal of undermining Erich’s authority and consolidating the defense command into his own hands.
However, this report, once it reached the desk of the Central Army Commander, was promptly rejected.
The document Vincent sent was precisely about the candidate for the deputy commander position.
“Commander, this person is a young master from Leto. Just his family background alone fills a whole page! It’s too much, with a tangled web of complicated marital relationships. When I tried to sort it out the first time, I couldn’t even figure out which side he’s on!”
Lu Fenghan leaned back on the soft sofa, feeling a little uncomfortable.
On military starships, everything was designed for stability and durability first, and comfort second. After all, they could be in battle at any moment. The chairs he used to sit on were all cold and hard, and the beds were the same. They were built to last, not to be comfortable.
But here at Qi Yan’s place, the sofa was soft, the dining chairs were soft, the bed was soft, the towels and pillows were soft. Even stepping on the carpet, his feet could sink in a centimeter.
“Commander?”
Lu Fenghan composed himself before responding to Vincent, “Weiss made a blunder. Leto is still fighting over the position of commander-in-chief of the Expeditionary Force. It’s not clear who will win, so they’ve probably decided to put it on hold for now. This is clearly making him anxious and restless.”
Vincent: “Just how long he can continue acting as the acting commander?”
“Indeed. So he aims to wrest power from Erich’s hands to strengthen his position and maintain his hold on power. However, the role of the second deputy commander is too crucial. If he manages to oust Erich, whoever occupies that position will become the second-in-command of the Expeditionary Force. If handled adeptly, this could also firmly suppress the next commander-in-chief, rendering the position virtually powerless.”
“Hence, Leto won’t hastily finalize a candidate, especially not someone with such complicated connections,” Vincent remarked with a sigh. “Weiss’ foresight is lacking, but those Leto folks, always scheming and calculating, don’t they ever get tired?”
The faint hum of patrol aircrafts drifted in, prompting Lu Fenghan to gaze out the window. It was as if he could see each person’s pursuits and interests weaving together in the night, forming a vast web that enveloped them all.
Without acknowledging Vincent’s sentiment, Lu Fenghan responded indifferently, “After being rebuffed once, Weiss should keep quiet for a couple of days. Keep an eye out for any updates. Someone from ‘the other side’ is delivering a starship control system to Leto, passing through Fontaine-1. We need to find out how the precise travel information got leaked.”
Vincent: “No problem!”
After ending the communication, Lu Fenghan remained seated on the sofa for a few more minutes.
Until Qi Yan descended the stairs.
Catching sight of Lu Fenghan on the sofa, Qi Yan instinctively glanced upstairs. “I just came out of the bedroom and saw you closing the door to your room.”
Lu Fenghan corrected him, “You’re mistaken. I’ve been here the past half hour.”
He rose again. “What did you come downstairs for?”
Qi Yan’s habits were well known. Upon returning home, he would first take a shower, then bury himself in his own tasks after dinner. Sometimes it was with a pen and a stack of paper, sketching incomprehensible diagrams and formulas. Other times, he’d be glued to his computer, working until the late hours.
If he came downstairs midway, it was either because he was thirsty or looking for him.
“Water,” Qi Yan replied.
“Wait here,” Lu Fenghan said as he headed to the kitchen. He returned shortly, carrying a glass of water.
After finishing the water, Qi Yan stared at the glass for a moment, then suddenly asked, “Is this real?”
Lu Fenghan felt a pang of inexplicable pain in his heart. He suppressed it and gently poked Qi Yan’s face with his fingertips. In the other’s puzzled eyes, he answered with certainty, “Real.”
Seeing Qi Yan nod silently, Lu Fenghan sighed inwardly. He took the empty glass and casually remarked, “If you can’t tell, you can always ask me.”
Qi Yan stood behind Lu Fenghan, looked at his back, and replied softly, “Alright.”
The next day, after classes, Qi Yan took Lu Fenghan to the laboratory.
In the laboratory, Ye Pei was chatting with Mondrian, “What am I going to do? I couldn’t sleep on Fontaine No.1 because of the noise, and now that I’m back in Leto, I can’t sleep because it’s too quiet!”
Mondrian offered a suggestion, “You could play white noise to recreate the atmosphere of Fontaine No.1.”
Ye Pei obviously didn’t want this answer. “Don’t you think I’m a good fit for Fontaine No.1?”
This time, Mondrian understood. “You want to work at the space fortress?”
“Not necessarily.” Ye Pei hesitated when asked directly. “It’s not necessarily the space fortress. It’s just that after hearing Professor Fu’s words yesterday, I feel like I should start thinking about what I want to do in the future. Working at the space fortress or a space research station both seem like good options, don’t they?”
Seeing Qi Yan enter, she asked, “Qi Yan, Mondrian wants to pursue research in the future. What about you? What do you want to do?”
Qi Yan stood still, shaking his head. “I haven’t thought about the future.”
Ye Pei was delighted. “You haven’t thought about what you want to do in the future either? Hahaha, I’m not alone!”
Lu Fenghan was beside Qi Yan and couldn’t help but feel uneasy upon hearing this.
He remembered when he and Qi Yan went to the Diamond Sky Plaza together, he asked Qi Yan if he had thought about his epitaph. Qi Yan replied that he had, and he wanted it to read, “Amidst darkness, I once chased a flicker of light.”
What was Qi Yan’s response when he mentioned that the average age of the Alliance had surpassed a hundred years, and there was still time left for him?
Not necessarily?
Yes. Qi Yan had replied, “Not necessarily.”
Was he so certain that he couldn’t live a long time? Was that why he hadn’t thought about what to do in the future, or even considered his epitaph?
Lu Fenghan gazed at Qi Yan, his eyes holding depths even he hadn’t noticed.
Unaware of Lu Fenghan’s gaze, Qi Yan sat down in his usual spot and noticed that his light storage device was missing.
Mondrian had emphasized that the light storage device had a security clearance and couldn’t be taken out of the lab. So every time Qi Yan finished using it, he would leave it next to the optical computer.
He could recall that moment clearly in his mind. After saving the final analysis results, he had placed the light storage device about thirty centimeters from the edge of the table before getting up to find Lu Fenghan to go home together.
Every frame, every detail, he remembered vividly. But because of this, he felt uncertain.
Was this memory real? Or… did he fabricate it himself?
Did he really leave the light storage device on the table when he left yesterday?
Countless self-doubts crashed over him like waves. In that moment, Qi Yan’s face went pale, his fingers gripping the edge of the table tightly to control their trembling.
Which memories were truly real?
Which ones were genuine, and which ones were fabricated?
Instinctively, he glanced at Lu Fenghan, his eyes filled with confusion.
Lu Fenghan frowned.
Why did it seem like… he was about to cry?
He approached Qi Yan in two steps, subconsciously shielding him from any prying eyes. His gaze brushed past Qi Yan’s trembling fingers, which had turned pale from exertion. “What’s wrong?”
Qi Yan’s voice was hoarse. “The light storage device is missing. I remember leaving it here before I left yesterday.”
Lu Fenghan quickly caught on. “Are you sure?”
Qi Yan looked dazed, and it took him several seconds before he whispered, “I’m not sure, I…,” he bit his lip hard, “I can’t be sure.”
I can’t be sure of the truth of my memories.
He thought of what his mother had once said, “Even when it’s dark, remember to look up at the stars.”
But his mother hadn’t told him what to do if he couldn’t find the stars.
If he couldn’t find a single star, what should he do?
Lu Fenghan pinched Qi Yan’s chin with two fingers, ensuring his lips were only reddened and not bleeding. Then, he gently pried open Qi Yan’s fingers clenched on the table’s edge and enclosed them in his own palm.
The icy touch of his fingertips, like melting snow, caused a subtle contraction in a corner of his heart.
“Look at me, Qi Yan.”
Qi Yan instinctively shifted his gaze to meet his.
Lu Fenghan’s eyes were dark and deep, his lips sharp as the edge of a mountain, seemingly eternally steadfast and resolute, never wavering or doubting.
In this moment, he became Qi Yan’s anchor.
“You didn’t forget, because you have an excellent memory. You always place many things in the same spot out of habit.”
At home, the positions of water cups, books, and pens were always meticulously restored by Qi Yan after use.
“So the light storage device must have been placed in that spot by you. You didn’t forget.”
“I didn’t forget.” Qi Yan’s fingertips, held by Lu Fenghan, ceased their faint tremble. After several seconds, he spoke again, “My light storage device is missing.”
His voice was still hoarse, but it was evident he had broken free from the earlier emotional state.
“We need to check the surveillance.”
Ye Pei was startled when she heard the news. She spoke solemnly, “We must find it quickly. Whether someone in the group took it by mistake or it was stolen, we need to be certain.”
As the team leader, she quickly accessed the surveillance footage from last night using her authority.
In the footage, it was clear to see Qi Yan standing up and making a motion to place something on the table. However, due to a blind spot in the camera’s view, it couldn’t be confirmed whether what Qi Yan had in his hand actually landed on the table.
Soon after, Qi Yan turned and walked out.
After he left, Mondrian was the first to pass by his desk, followed by Xu Min, Laurent, and even Ye Pei herself, all passing by Qi Yan’s desk more than once.
Twenty-five minutes after Qi Yan left, Laurent and two others from another group passed by Qi Yan’s desk, seemingly discussing a problem.
At the thirty-sixth minute, Ye Pei passed by twice in both directions.
At the forty-third minute, Mondrian and two others from the same group passed by the desk again.
“There’s no need to continue watching,” Qi Yan pointed out, “The spot where I placed the light storage device is in a blind spot due to obstruction. If someone quickly took the device while avoiding the camera’s angle, it wouldn’t be noticed.”
Ye Pei fretted, “What should we do? You were the first to leave, so if we’re to suspect anyone, everyone who passed by your desk is under suspicion.”
She asked Mondrian, “Do you remember? When you passed by, was Qi Yan’s light storage device still there? Perhaps we can narrow down the time frame.”
Mondrian carefully recalled. “I don’t remember. At that time, I was discussing a formula and didn’t notice anything else.”
Laurent twirled the metal pen in his hand, lounging in his chair with a raised eyebrow. “Who would bother taking your light storage device? It contains your personal information. No one besides you can access it, so what’s the point of taking it? Maybe you just misplaced it and put it somewhere else absentmindedly.”
Qi Yan glanced at Laurent. “I didn’t misplace it.”
Ye Pei was more inclined to believe Qi Yan, thinking he had no reason to lie about this. She pondered further, “But if the light storage device is truly lost and we can’t retrieve it, what will you do about your previous work progress?”
“It’s okay, I can make up for it,” Qi Yan replied calmly.
“It does matter. With so much content, if you have to make up for it, you’ll definitely have to stay up late.” Ye Pei glanced back at the surveillance footage, resting her chin on her hand in worry. “Why don’t we all search our own areas first to see if there are any extra light storage devices? If not, then we’ll have to inform Professor Fu. After all, the light storage device has a security clearance and absolutely cannot leave the lab.”
At that moment, there was a knock on the laboratory door.
Ye Pei got up to open the door, speculating as she walked, “Could it be that it accidentally fell on the floor and was swept away by the cleaning robots? I wonder—”
Opening the door, she looked at the two strangers standing there, as well as the identifications they displayed, and suddenly felt a strong sense of foreboding. She heard herself ask, “Can I help you?”
“Special Affairs Division Five of the Alliance Security Bureau,” a man with brown eyes and black hair, resembling someone of Latin descent, spoke up. “We’re looking for someone named Qi Yan.”
Ye Pei suppressed the urge to look back, trying to remain composed. “Is there something you need with him?”
She had never heard of the “Special Affairs Division Five of the Alliance Security Bureau,” but just from the name alone, she could sense the seriousness of the situation.
The light storage device, Qi Yan—
The slightly shorter man said, “Comrade, I advise you not to inquire too much. Many times, knowing too much isn’t a good thing.”
At that moment, Qi Yan walked over and stood beside Ye Pei. He met the gaze of the two individuals opposite him and said, “I’m Qi Yan. Are you here to see me regarding the light storage device and the research project I’m involved in?”
The two men at the door exchanged looks, and one of them replied, “It seems like you’re well aware of what you’ve done.”
“No,” Qi Yan confirmed his suspicion, “I should say, I only discovered my light storage device was missing twenty minutes ago. Two minutes ago, we were reviewing the lab’s surveillance footage. Since I left the lab last night until now, the light storage device hasn’t been in my possession.”
Ye Pei couldn’t help but recall how Hedge, who had left the team earlier, was expelled by Turan for leaking project information. She hastily interjected, “There must be some misunderstanding somewhere!”
Just then, Vice Principal Caroline, dressed in a black dress, hurried over. Her expression was solemn as she stood beside Qi Yan and addressed the two individuals from the Special Affairs Division Five, “I’m the Vice Principal of Turan. Could I ask you all to come to my office?”
The man with brown eyes and black hair glanced at his colleague and replied, “That shouldn’t be a problem.”
Laurent sat in his chair, watching Qi Yan leave with the Special Affairs Division Five.
He felt a sense of satisfaction, knowing that this person would soon no longer be in this world.
How wonderful.
Suddenly, Qi Yan, who had walked a few steps away, turned back and locked eyes with Laurent. His gaze was cold and piercing.
It lasted only a brief two seconds.
Yet, in those two seconds, Laurent felt an uncontrollable chill. He didn’t even notice the metal pen slipping from his hand onto the floor.
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Thanks for the chapter!