"When did you know?"
Mo Jiali, did not bother denying it. She found this student…fascinating. The exam responses alone had put Lu Mian far ahead of her peers. Even known academicians would've had trouble solving questions as elegantly as she did,
But what stood out was how she navigated the hostage situation. She was calm under pressure, was tactical and knew how to use every advantage she had.
When Lu Mian re-established the comms at control tower Mo Jiali knew right then - this girl was destined for something far greater than any one of them could imagine.
Both of them had walked into a rather silent control tower, the two soldiers there had no idea there was a breach. Using her top-level clearance, Mo Jiali walked in without hesitation and went straight to the core terminal. She knew Project Nexus had to be erased.
A breach at this level meant there was a mole inside the project team and Mo Jiali wasn't taking any chances.
She would rather all her research goes to naught rather than have it fall into the enemy's hands.
However, it wasn't easy. Project Nexus wasn't designed to be deleted.
Using codes from her memory, she had to reconstruct the core lattice without the re-build encryption, and tried to mirror the codes. Otherwise, the data that got deleted would simply knit itself back up.
Despite her best efforts, Mo Jiali was stuck. The spoofing protocol didn't kick in and the system started building back. She felt really desperate then, her fingers flying faster, back cold with sweat.
That was when Lu Mian leaned in.
"Your checksum recursion is looping," the girl said quietly, as if commenting on the weather. "You need to sever the hash chain at the entropy anchor - not the surface node."
Mo Jiali froze.
"All you need to do is redirect the diagnostic buffer" she continued. "Tell the system to look for a different 'mistake' while you finish the deletion."
Mo Jiali's breath caught - at the sheer simplicity of the solution. Not bothering to argue, she immediately did as Lu Mian instructed.
The lattice collapsed.
But Lu Mian was already moving. She had begun to re-write the packet level encryption on the fly. So, not only was the data being deleted, but underneath, the discarded packets, a narrow-band emergency comms channel was created.
That was the SOS - clean and untraceable. All done in an instant, without thought. This was something the "top minds" of the country (like herself) had spent months working on. Lu Mian unraveled it in minutes, under pressure. AND repurposed it to suit her needs.
Mo Jiali didn't have time to react to Lu Mian's brilliance. They heard the entrance door being breached. Lu Mian had pulled her to take cover beneath the systems.
What she hadn't expected was Lu Mian shoving her forward to safety. As a teacher, as an elder (even though she was only 25), she always felt keenly responsible for the students under her.
When Mo Jiali walked out in response to Han Zheyu's threats, she was fully prepared to sacrifice herself for the student under her.
No amount of training would've prepared her for Lu Mian's unhesitating rescue - when she chose to save Mo Jiali and not herself.
That moment of bravery and selflessness was deeply entrenched in her heart. She owed this kid - her life and her life's work.
Deeply touched, she'd refused to part ways from the weird soldier who'd rescued her (he muttered and blushed so much!), until she could guarantee the safety of this one wonderful little girl.
"I suspected when you had clearance to the control tower" admitted Lu Mian truthfully. "I knew for sure when you started deleting project files."
The rumors about Mo Jiali in her last lifetime were false, Lu Mian realized. A researcher who would rather sacrifice her own work instead of surrendering was a rare treasure.
She respected that and also Senior Mo's formidable mind. She truly did her best to protect her.
"Thank you." said Mo Jiali quietly. "I am sorry I cannot offer to be your guardian, my situation is rather special… I - "
"Oh not at all Senior Mo" smiled Lu Mian. "I trust Uncle Shen." A soldier who does a surgical strike on a terrorist cell is formidable indeed.
Plus, she vaguely remembered how much her comrades in her last life admired Huo Shen. Seeing they work together, they must know his character best.
Lu Mian didn't question her choice. She instinctively trusted Huo Shen and knew she was making the best decision.
"I am curious - where did you learn to code? And to fight?" asked Mo Jiali - she'd been curious for a long time.
Had it not been for her young age, and the fact she so overtly acted against the Black Lotus, Mo Jiali would've suspected her to be a spy.
Lu Mian paused. She didn't want to fabricate a lie here. She glanced down, her head bowed recalling the past. It was a lifetime ago.
"Coding - it's my heart. I learnt to code as a little girl. At the beginning, it was my way of making myself awesome for my fiancee. The more I did it, the more I realized how much I enjoyed it - and it became my secret solace".
When the world was cold and uncaring, when her fiance ignored her, when she felt so unloved and alone, it was the string of codes on the system that helped her out.
"No one else knows" she whispered, the plea in her voice clear - can you please keep my secret?
At that moment, there was a knock on the door. Mo Jiali fixed her with a piercing stare and gave her a quick nod, when Gu Qingze hurried in.
He had been dragged away from an important experiment by Bai Renzhou under the single word urgent. His mind had raced through every nightmare scenario- Huo Shen's relapse, internal bleeding, another near-death incident…
None of them involved a little girl.
He stopped abruptly at the entrance and gaped. A girl at Huo Shen's place?!
"Stop staring at my ward and get to work" growled Huo Shen. He seriously regretted not having a woman in his team. What a bunch of pigs!
Gu Qingze blinked, taking in this new information. Since when did Huo Shen have a ward? How come he didn't know anything?
However, he wasn't the top professional for anything. He quickly readjusted his mind and reached out.
"I need to examine my patient and need privacy. Everybody out." ordered Gu Qingze pulling himself together.
"Like hell you will examine my ward without me. She's underage and needs her gaurdian." bristled Huo Shen.
"Uncle Shen, I am fine" Lu Mian protested softly.
Huo Shen's fingers curled. He hated it. He hated his girl being helped by someone else- hated leaving her behind.
Within a few short minutes of finding her again, his urge to have her within arm's reach was sharp and insistent.
It was irrational - and he knew it. With practiced discipline, he reined himself in. This wasn't about possession. This was about making sure Lu Mian was safe and happy under his watch.
Plus, he needed to have a conversation with the teacher. They still didn't know what happened at the control tower. His instincts told him the teacher would have answers.
"You've 10 minutes." he snapped at Qingze. And motioned Mo Jiali out. It was time to talk.
Gu Qingze, professional to the core once the door closed, turned his full attention to Lu Mian. He softened his expression deliberately, offering her a reassuring smile.
"You've got some nasty bruises," he said, hands moving quickly and efficiently as he checked her over. "But no internal injuries. That's the good news."
Lu Mian listened quietly, eyes calm.
"You'll probably spike a fever tonight," he continued. "Nothing serious. Ride it out, rest properly, and you'll be fine."
"Thank you, Doctor," Lu Mian said obediently, her smile polite and sincere.
Gu Qingze waved it off, eyes gleaming with mischief "Oh, no need to thank me. I got to hear old Huo be called 'Uncle'." He chuckled. "That alone made my day."
He glanced at her again, amusement softening into genuine warmth.
What an adorable little girl. Second brother's luck really was outrageous.
"Take good care of yourself," he added, more gently now. "No spicy food for a week. Plenty of sleep. Healing isn't something you can rush."
With that, he stepped out to report.
What he walked into was… unexpected.
Huo Shen and Mo Jiali stood facing each other in silence. It wasn't hostile. There were no raised voices or sharp words.
But it was unmistakably a standoff. They both were sizing each other up, calculating how far they could trust each other.
It was broken by Bai Renzhou "The grand commander general just landed at Qinghe. He wants a debrief."
Huo Shen spoke deliberately "I could take the call now - and have him digging deep for answers."
He leaned forward, his presence intense "Or, I could delay the call for 10 minutes and tell him only what you need him to know"
His implication was clear: tell me if you are not a threat and I would cover for you.
Mo Jiali however, didn't seem to mind. "Looks like the little girl was right to trust you" she smiled. "Let's talk in your office - and bring that shy soldier. I have a story to tell".
Huo Shen gave her a wry smile. It wasn't clear who held the upper hand.
"Study. Now" he ordered his team.
He turned to Bai Renzhou and gave more instructions "I want the paperwork for guardianship done asap. Don't let my dear father find out"
He turned on his heel and walked away.
First some answers, and then, he had to figure out how to outplay his father - his favorite hobby!