Limited Ambiguity Chapter 25

Chapter 25

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Before going to bed, Qi Yan read a few pages of the epic, his fingers pinching the thin pages, his mind unknowingly drifting off.

Little scatterbrain?

Qi Yan curled up on his side, the book placed aside, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the rough fabric cover.

The silence was profound. He couldn’t help but wonder what the person in the room across from him was doing now, but he couldn’t quite figure it out.

He knew Lu Fenghan did physical training every morning, although he hadn’t seen much of it because by the time he woke up, Lu Fenghan was usually done with his training. Only a few times did he catch him sweaty, about to return to his room to shower.

Qi Yan was a bit of a neat freak, but Lu Fenghan was one of those rare people who, despite sweating, never looked dirty to him, nor did he have any strange smells. He had accidentally touched Lu Fenghan’s arm once, and the warm, damp sensation left a deep impression on him.

As for other things, he knew Lu Fenghan liked to watch the news. When he had nothing to do, he would browse through the data on his personal terminal, sometimes talking to Vincent. Usually during these calls, his aura would become fierce, like a knife hidden in a sheath.

It was rare for Qi Yan to think about someone in this way, so much so that it took him a while to hear the notification from his personal terminal.

After allowing the connection, he opened his mouth. “Elisa?”

“It’s me,” Elisa got straight to the point, “August found out a few hours ago that someone was looking into your real information, but they didn’t have enough clearance and were immediately blocked. He asked me to ask you about it.”

“Nothing happened. It’s just that the personnel from the Special Affairs Division Five were conducting an investigation,” Qi Yan summarized today’s events in a few sentences. When he mentioned the “Mantis” who sought information from Laurent, he added, “Have the rebels been particularly active lately?”

“Yes, the repercussions of the major defeat on the front lines are far greater than what’s apparent on the surface. Previously, the rebels were constantly suppressed by the Expeditionary Force, so they naturally didn’t have the time or energy to engage in petty tricks in the dark. Now that they have turned the tables, all of their tentacles have become active.”

Elisa chuckled again. “But you’re safe. The rebels would never suspect that you, a diligent student who attends classes and submits assignments on time, would be in Turan as a second-year student, albeit prone to dozing off during lectures.”

Sensing the teasing tone, Qi Yan interjected, “Elisa.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll stop,” Elisa replied with a smile, then continued, “It seems the arrangements this time were correct. When your condition worsened, news of the major defeat on the front lines also reached us. Regardless of where you were sent, there might have been a risk of the rebels finding you. Returning to Leto and enrolling in Turan unexpectedly ensured your safety.”

Qi Yan knew about the lengthy debates regarding where he should be sent for recuperation. It was upon the suggestion of his attending physician of eight years, Elisa, that he was finally sent back to Leto.

“You’ve never had peers around since you were young. Perhaps this is an opportunity for you to make friends and experience what daily life is like at your age,” Elisa expressed her concern, “Qi Yan, have you been happy during this time?”

Have you been happy?

Qi Yan pondered and concluded, yes, he had been happy.

He grew up in one place, rarely venturing outside. After arriving in Leto, he encountered many unfamiliar things and met many people, each one different. They spoke words he had never heard before, held different viewpoints, and experienced various joys and sorrows.

And then there was Lu Fenghan.

At the thought of this person, Qi Yan’s fingers, resting on the fabric cover, couldn’t help but grind against it.

Not receiving a response from Qi Yan, Elisa pressed on, “You’ve been happy, haven’t you?”

Qi Yan finally spoke, “Yes.”

“From a young age, you’ve always been quiet, like an insecure little animal, observing quietly.” Elisa seemed reflective. After a moment, she brought up again, “And now? How’s the frequency of reality distortion?”

“It’s irregular. Sometimes once a day, sometimes several times,” Qi Yan said, then hesitated, “No, I’m not sure. I don’t know exactly which memories are being distorted.”

As he uttered these words, strangely, Qi Yan felt no excess negative emotions or unease. It was as if amidst the ebb and flow, there was a clear point for him to anchor onto.

The communication ended at an uncertain moment, the glow from his personal terminal gradually fading. Qi Yan’s fingers rested on the book cover as he closed his eyes.

Lu Fenghan, having finished showering, was leaning against the bed, speaking intermittently with Vincent.

“The Special Affairs Division Five really embarrassed themselves this time. They went to Turan and targeted the wrong person, and now everyone knows. Apparently, their deputy director was furious when they brought the person back. Everyone from Division Five who’s not in trouble is scrambling to find things to do, especially field missions. They’re avoiding their deputy director like the plague to avoid getting caught up in it. As for that Soro and Parri trying to advance, I think it’s going to be tough!”

“Since when did you become a gossipmonger?” Lu Fenghan shut the window, noticing the sky was ominously covered in dark clouds, thunder already rumbling.

Vincent defended himself, “Commander, this isn’t gossip, it’s professional literacy!” He then grew serious. “By the way, you just asked me to keep an eye on the leak at Fontaine-1 yesterday, and today, the news is right in front of us.”

Lu Fenghan tapped his fingers on the bed surface. “Mantis?”

“Exactly, that ‘Mantis’! Feng Ji from Special Affairs Division Five personally took charge, digging into the ‘Mantis’ case, and he indeed uncovered quite a bit. The ‘Mantis’ had been hiding around Leto for nearly a decade, and their favorite pastime was preying on Turan’s freshmen,” Vincent sighed, “You know, those students, who have just come of age and fresh to Leto, are often strapped for cash and don’t have someone like you to support them. So, it’s not surprising that Mantis managed to manipulate quite a few of them.”

Lu Fenghan momentarily ignored the “someone like you to support them” remark, recalling what Lin Jia had mentioned during their visit to Fontaine-1. “Mantis managed to lure that Turan student who later joined Fontaine-1 after graduation?”

“Yes. Mantis is quite cunning. Several times, they paid a hefty sum to that student for seemingly worthless basic information, essentially probing for information. As graduation approached, when the student suddenly wanted out, Mantis used the past few years as leverage, threatening to expose everything if they dared to quit. Once the matter of selling stolen information was exposed, the student’s future, let alone his life, would be in danger. He had no choice but to continue cooperating with Mantis. One wrong step led to another.” 

Despite his reflections, Vincent didn’t harbor any pity. “And this time, that student was working at Fontaine-1. Mantis obtained information from them, learning that the researcher from ‘the other side’ was bringing the starship central control system to Leto, with a stopover at Fontaine-1 for a break.”

Hence the sudden attack.

Lu Fenghan never expected that by following the Laurent incident, so much would be unearthed.

Vincent gloated, “With this leak, Huo Yan must be tearing his hair out. Personally, I think he’s been enjoying his cushy position at Fontaine-1 for too long after stepping back from the front lines. It’s about time he started stirring things up. By the way, Commander, how did he react when he saw you last time?”

Recalling it now, Lu Fenghan felt a twinge in his eardrums. “What else could his reaction be? He probably thought he saw a ghost.”

Vincent couldn’t contain his laughter. “When you return to the frontlines, Erich and the others will surely exclaim ‘ghosts’ again!”

Lu Fenghan’s smile faltered, his thoughts elsewhere, his gaze momentarily distant.

Ending the communication, he leaned back against the bedhead, gazing out of the window.

The night had deepened in Leto, with thunderstorms raging. The twin moons that usually adorned the sky were concealed behind thick clouds, with no trace of moonlight in sight.

In truth, his time in Leto had surpassed his time on the front lines. Even though he had spent countless days in Leto before joining the Expeditionary Force, he found himself preferring the front lines.

Despite the hard beds, the monotony of canned nutritional supplement and the view of the bleak cosmos through the porthole, with occasional glimpses of desolate planets below, coupled with sporadic enemy attacks and unpredictable space storms…

Lu Fenghan still cherished that place.

He now understood somewhat why his father, Lu Jun, had spent years away from home, chasing pirates across the stars. Even during sporadic communications, he never seemed tired, his eyes always filled with vigor.

He realized he was just like his father, both thoroughly jungle creatures.

However, if he were to leave—

It would be easy to kidnap a person, but judging from Little Delicate’s personality, taking him to the front lines would be disastrous. Forget about the food, one night on a hard cot would surely have him complaining of aches all over.

At this moment, Lu Fenghan was startled to find that he, the honor graduate of the First Military Academy and the Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Force, was actually contemplating abducting someone.

A knock sounded at the door.

Three firm knocks, neither too loud nor too soft.

With only two people in the house, Lu Fenghan didn’t need to guess. He knew that the one knocking must be the very person he had just contemplated abducting.

Getting out of bed to open the door, Lu Fenghan raised an eyebrow at Qi Yan standing outside. “What’s wrong?”

He asked the question but took a step back to let Qi Yan in.

Qi Yan, clad in a black nightgown, cradled his pillow in his arms as he answered Lu Fenghan’s question, “I can’t sleep.”

Lu Fenghan’s gaze flicked briefly over his slender, fair ankles before he took over the conversation. “So, you want to sleep with me?”

“Yes.”

“Come in.” Lu Fenghan reached out and took his pillow, feeling its softness under his fingers. He thought to himself, even touching the pillow felt like holding a cloud.

He placed the pillow on the bed and then asked, “Will you be able to sleep just by sleeping with me?”

As he asked this question, the first thing that came to his mind was the first time he met Qi Yan. He had been pretending to be asleep, but soon after, Qi Yan curled up beside him and fell asleep.

With the pillow taken away, Qi Yan was left empty-handed, unsure of how to answer the question.

Fortunately, Lu Fenghan didn’t press further. He simply lay back on the bed and gestured with his chin towards the empty space beside him. “Not coming up?”

Qi Yan complied and climbed onto the bed.

The lights were turned off, casting the room into darkness, with no sign of the wind or rain relenting.

Unlike the single beds in Fontaine-1, the bed they were now sleeping in was wide enough for two people to sleep side by side, with half a person’s space still empty in the middle.

Qi Yan breathed in Lu Fenghan’s scent, and the emotions stirred by memories finally settled.

Lu Fenghan closed his eyes and habitually went over the news he had read today in his mind. At that moment, another clap of thunder reverberated outside, causing the windows to shake.

At the same time, he sensitively noticed Qi Yan’s breath tense up, only to relax again after the thunder faded away.

Coming over in the middle of the night clutching a pillow, Lu Fenghan speculated, was he… afraid of thunder? Was that why he came knocking on the door, wanting to sleep together?

He was reminded of a little critter. When encountering something frightening, it would immediately seek refuge in what it considered a safe place.

Lu Fenghan had excellent night vision and could see Qi Yan’s hands loosely gripping the bedsheet. As thunder rumbled in the distance, his fingers tightened, crumpling the sheet.

As the next clap of thunder sounded, Lu Fenghan turned to the side, covered Qi Yan’s ear with his warm palm, and gently soothed him with a hint of resignation, “It’s okay, I’m here. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

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