Chapter 56

The recent activity of the insect race had him on edge; under such circumstances, he couldn't afford to leave any loose ends.

"Understood."

Deep into the night, rescue personnel came and went, and the office light stayed on for a long time.

When Wu Ying woke up, Asher was not in bed. She reached out to touch the spot beside her—it was cold, so he might have gotten up early or not slept at all.

She didn't bother to think about it, rolling over to lie on her stomach and opening her Light Brain. Asher had left her a message in the morning: a meeting early on. It wouldn't be a criticism session, would it?

Wu Ying said it casually, but Asher was indeed in a criticism session. A group of old men, probably before their usual work hours, had gathered to criticize him today.

During the video conference, Asher sat casually in his chair, his gaze sweeping across the room. It was quite a spectacle—people had come from all over, high and low.

"Asher, do you realize what mistake you've made this time? We've always been considerate of your hard work guarding the defense line and never forced you to attend work meetings. But look at you—with your prolonged absence, your work ethic and sense of responsibility have fallen behind!" The speaker was an old man; Asher briefly glanced at his slightly tech-styled balding head, then at the stripes on his shoulders.

Asher said nothing, but another man couldn't stay silent. He stood up excitedly and accused Asher of abandoning a pile of mess at the defense line yesterday, neglecting his duty just to save his wife. "The insect race within the defense line is the Guard Army's responsibility. Are you really that distrustful? I think you're not taking your duty seriously at all!"

One after another, accusations of dereliction of duty and unfitness to command flew so thick you could nearly drown in the spittle.

Asher tapped his fingers on the table, and the video feed went silent instantly. They knew he was about to rebut, and they were ready—they had to bite off a piece of the Fourth Military District.

"May I ask on what grounds you're reprimanding me? A military district work meeting? If there's a lapse in duty, the committee will issue an investigation report, and I'll fully cooperate. As for you all, as my peers, you might as well take a break."

His attitude was utterly arrogant, and those who had been waiting for him to defend himself were so furious they nearly fell over.

A trap of self-incrimination? Asher simply flipped the table and took charge of the meal himself. After a round of mockery, he sent his materials to the meeting files. A long list of names, with some marked in red and yellow that were alarming.

"Military district security cannot be overlooked, and military secrets cannot be compromised. These people have shown suspicious behavior in our army. I have concrete evidence and intend to interrogate them. Since we happen to be in this work meeting, I'd like you all to be aware."

Aware of what? The leaders exchanged glances. They knew full well what forces these people represented behind the scenes. If interrogated and dug into, they wouldn't stand firm.

The Fourth Military District, stationed at the border, had strategic significance that went without saying. Even setting aside the harm caused, the mere act of transmitting information outward was enough to land them in a military court.

On the light screen, no one dared to make a sound. The leaders at the front had changed expressions, struck speechless for a long time, and the rest dared not speak even more.

He wasn't even flustered? They had thought that even if Asher didn't lose his composure, he'd admit some fault and back down a few steps. But this kid was so arrogant as to openly use their leverage to threaten them. Planting spies—that sounded scary, but it wasn't uncommon. Didn't Asher have people like that under his command?

He was just more skilled at it, not leaving any handle to grab.

Then, someone in the top-left corner who had been silent spoke up: "Since you have evidence, you can follow procedure. But as for today's matter, does General Asher intend to just brush it off?"

The dogs that bite don't bark. Asher's gaze turned cold and sharp, and he sneered at him. "Why would I need to brush it off? Since I've been stationed at the border, I've done my duty diligently, even pushing the defense line out by several planets. You casually call it a work lapse and want to convict me?"

"Last night, you clearly—"

Asher cut him off directly. "Last night, after the battle ended, I arranged the post-battle cleanup and submitted a leave request."

Only now did they understand—this was him playing dirty. He'd already said there were spies in the army, so how could they trace what a spy said? The Fourth Military District was Asher's one-man show; no one else could interfere. The battle was over, and he said he'd arranged the battlefield cleanup—who could directly check whether it matched? A leave request? That was just a matter of his word.

The meeting ended, and Asher came out victorious. In the end, he even went so far as to write a report about yesterday's insect race attack on the ship, claiming that the spatial anomaly was linked to the unusual activity at the defense line. Everyone was caught off guard, holding the report with nothing to say, and could only listen as Asher spoke.

But as they listened, something felt off. He started talking about the Guard Army problem, completely turning the tables, and in the end, Asher planted his own people into the Guard Army.

"So that's it. Meeting adjourned."

Asher didn't wait for others to respond; he hung up the communication directly. As his figure vanished from the video meeting, the first man to attack stood up in a fury—did the robber just get robbed instead?

"This bastard is simply lawless. He really thinks he can look down on us just because he's got a good old man behind him."

"His father wasn't this arrogant. If those father and son sit firmly in the military, the Federation will become the Sicel family's world."

They were all commanders and leaders of various military districts, but in the end, all they did was talk tough. The commander of the First Military District, his face livid, roared, "Enough! His father hasn't even made a move," and yet they'd been schemed to this extent—wasn't it embarrassing?

Over here, Asher had just finished the meeting when his father's communication came through.

"I hear you were quite the show just now."

Abner Sicel said calmly, and Asher didn't deny it. Indeed, his tactics had changed a bit, a little more shameless.

"Just a routine work exchange."

Abner didn't linger on that, instead turning to more important matters. Asher's move would inevitably cause varying degrees of shock across the military districts, and it also marked a shift in Asher's own power.

"I heard you've gotten involved in the Guard Army. That's a good decision. I'll have people cooperate with you." The two discussed their next steps naturally, as if everyone was happy about this arrangement.

Their voices were similar in timbre, both calm and restrained, their words concise and to the point. What could be agreed upon didn't need to be said. Within a dozen minutes, things were settled.

As Asher was about to end the call, his father shifted the topic to something else: "Did you leave the defense line only because the insect race there is connected to the border?"

At the meeting, they'd been going back and forth, and in the end, a bomb was dropped. Mentioning a leave seemed like a way to cover up saving his wife, but in others' eyes, it was to veil his involvement with the Guard Army.

Asher said directly, "No, it was for my wife."

Abner's expression shifted slightly. Thinking of what Ming Yu had said, he didn't think Asher really would be under someone's thumb. His son didn't need to be underestimated like that.

"Well, your mother isn't entirely wrong, then. She's very worried about you." Abner didn't throw Ming Yu completely under the bus either. Ming Yu had said Asher was bewitched by Wu Ying, to the point of delaying matters of war, and would only lose all sense of proportion in the future.

Looking at Asher, he was already frowning.

Asher knew his mother had always held prejudiced views about Wu Ying. He was worried about what his mother might say to his father.

Abner's gaze deepened. "Because of her, you're dissatisfied with your mother?"

Asher lowered his head in denial: "No, it's just that the two of them keep having conflicts."

"Let them handle it themselves."

Asher didn't agree. Wu Ying would only get hurt going up against his mother; his mother was strong-willed, and Wu Ying could only back down.

Abner frowned, truly puzzled. Wu Ying couldn't even handle her own family, so what did Asher see in her?

—

The school notified that this experimental activity was canceled, and the summer homework would be arranged separately. Compensation plans would be sent to students' accounts in due course.

Wu Ying analyzed the notification carefully. It seemed the school was also ready to cut its losses. True enough—students could easily argue with the school, but the school didn't necessarily have a place to argue for itself.

In the group chat, Su Yi had been asking about each of them since morning. The incident had happened so suddenly that she'd only found out this morning.

Everyone reported that they were safe, then shifted to talking about the summer homework. In the group, Cynthia was as adorably arrogant as ever, and Huo Lin seemed no different.

Wu Ying suddenly remembered Cynthia from yesterday, who had been cold-faced and silent. In that instant, Wu Ying felt like she had become a different person. Yet in that environment, it hadn't seemed out of place at all.

She looked at the two in the group, back to their usual selves, and the unease stuck in her chest. She was silent for a moment, but looking at herself, who also showed no sign of anything wrong, maybe everyone was like that.

Wu Ying got up, washed up, and pushed open Asher's private rest room. The sensor on the door beeped, and a mechanical voice told her she could use the internal channel to contact the kitchen to have meals delivered.

"What does that mean? I'm not allowed to go out?"

Wu Ying put her hands on her hips at the door, reaching out to give it a push. It wasn't locked. She stood still, turning in a circle, but ultimately didn't go out. She didn't know the situation outside; if the robot said so, it must be Asher's order.

"Annoying. Can't even explain properly."

Wu Ying flopped down helplessly. After a moment, the doorbell rang, and a soldier stood at the door with a tray of food. Seeing her come over, the soldier immediately raised the tray high.

"Thanks."

Before Wu Ying could finish, the female soldier saluted and turned to leave.

"Hey, wait. I'm not really clear about where I can and can't go here. Could you tell me?"

The soldier said plainly, "This is a warship, and military regulations are strict. I don't know what areas your clearance allows, ma'am."

That made sense. Wu Ying gave an embarrassed smile.

"Military regulations are strict, huh? So I can only stay in the room?"

Wu Ying picked up her chopsticks and picked at the food. The warship's cook wasn't great, so she had a few bites and put it down.

Bored, she pulled out her Light Brain to pass the time. People who knew she'd been in trouble had sent messages asking how she was, and Wu Ying replied to a few.

The next second, Wu Ying froze at a profile picture. After a long while, she opened it—a voice message from Xia Li, 'Wu Ying's' mother: "Wu Ying, how have you been lately?"