Chapter 69

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Chapter 69: Inquiry from the Special Operations Department

Luo Yu initially froze for a moment before lowering her head and pursing her lips. She walked to the edge of the sofa and sat down. “When I heard the name of the Deputy Director of the Special Operations Department just now, I was a bit dazed and thought it was a namesake. I didn’t expect it would really be you.”

Yao Chi chuckled, leaned forward, and picked up a teacup from the tray on the round table, placing it in front of her. She then took the nearby tea server and poured her a cup. “It’s been over two years since you officially transferred. Time flies so fast! The last time we met was when you came to me to request your transfer, right? It’s a shame I was so busy that year that I didn’t find the chance to chat with you privately before you left.”

Luo Yu took a shallow sip from the teacup and carefully studied Yao Chi’s face. She noticed that the lines around her eyes and between her brows looked deeper than before, and there was more gray hair mixed in with her black hair, but her small, bright eyes still sparkled as they did in the past.

Yao Chi was the vice-dean who taught her class back at the flight academy. At that time, she was strict and almost ruthless toward the academy’s pilots while being very politically savvy in the upper echelons of the academy. The students didn’t particularly like her, but that didn’t hinder her rise from an instructor at the flight academy to the position of foreign commander of the air defense forces.

In the first few years after Luo Yu left the flight academy to report to the air defense duty team, her mother had reminded her not to give her too dangerous tasks, since Yao Chi was an old acquaintance of hers. This special treatment left Luo Yu quite dissatisfied, and after learning of the reason, she even argued with her family about it a few times.

Later, Yao Chi stepped in and said she appreciated Luo Yu’s abilities, promising that moving forward, she would be treated equally. She also persuaded Luo Yu’s family, and that matter was settled.

However, after reflecting on that incident, Luo Yu realized that Yao Chi wanted to assign her to a leadership position but didn’t want to offend her mother. Thus, she “accidentally” leaked the situation to Luo Yu, prompting her to argue with her family. The more Luo Yu thought about it, the more she found Yao Chi to be quite cunning. So, though she was her senior and superior, she always felt a lack of respect whenever they spoke. Yao Chi, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind and maintained a businesslike attitude.

Now, this old leader of hers had been promoted again, becoming one of the six executive deputy directors of the International Special Operations Department, truly deserving of admiration for her career advancements.

The International Special Operations Department was affiliated with the World Unity Organization. All members officially belonged to no country but could utilize resources from various nations to maintain global order.

This organization was born ten years ago after countries nearly caused a thermonuclear war due to a misunderstanding. To prevent humanity from being annihilated by military confrontations, they established this peace organization to restrain nations. The Special Operations Department had the authority to intervene in any incident that could destabilize the world.

Thinking about this, Luo Yu set her cup back on the table. “I’ve heard that the Special Operations Department handles many affairs. The fact that you personally came to inquire about my small matter is related to the new Strategic Commander about to take office at the Space Administration, isn’t it?”

Yao Chi squinted at her for a moment and replied, “Yes, I guess you know who the incoming person is?”

“Yeah, I heard it’s a member of the Euyun family?”

Yao Chi nodded and poured herself some tea. “Jacob Euyun, the nephew of the Euyun family’s head, a frivolous lightweight.” After taking a sip of tea, she caught a glimpse of Luo Yu’s clenched fist amidst the rising steam.

The Euyun family was one of the world’s top financial empires, the main players behind the federal parliament and the masterminds behind the bombing of the asexual reproduction laboratory in the Northern Continent three years ago.

The previous Strategic Commander from the Space Administration also came from this family, and it was no surprise that this position was passed on to another family member. Luo Yu lightly snorted, “If the new appointee wasn’t from the Euyun family, that would indeed be strange.”

Yao Chi observed her for a moment before saying, “I was slow to realize it myself. I genuinely thought you requested a transfer three years ago because of your sister’s incident and wanted to change locations. Turns out you were already keeping an eye on the Euyun family. What have you discovered in the past two years?”

Luo Yu didn’t respond. After the incident in the laboratory three years ago, Yao Chi had prevented her from inquiring about who made the specific decision regarding the bombing. She spent two years confirming what she discovered but found herself once again confronted by Yao Chi, who seemed to imply she should ease off. Furrowing her brow, she looked at Yao Chi, somewhat displeased. “The Deputy Director of the Special Operations Department shouldn’t need to come to me to extract information about the Euyun family, right?”

Yao Chi merely returned her gaze lightly. “I’m not extracting information about the Euyun family; I’m gathering information about you. This situation is different from the past; the incident involving the Shan Hai Jing has ties to the former Strategic Commander. The newcomer definitely carries the task of thoroughly investigating this matter, which may be unfavorable for you, but I will negotiate with the relevant personnel from the Space Administration for you. So, regardless of what kind of official statement the Bureau issues in the coming days, please bear with it for now.”

Luo Yu understood. Yao Chi’s visit was to reassure her, fearing she might do something impulsive and disrupt their original plans due to the consequences of the Shan Hai Jing incident. It seemed Yao Chi wasn’t ready to tell her the specifics of their plan yet.

Thinking about this, Luo Yu shrugged. “Since this task encountered unexpected events, as the team leader, I naturally need to take responsibility. I will accept any punishment and won’t cause you any trouble.”

Only then did Yao Chi show a slight smile. The conversation shifted to the challenges they encountered during the mission, including their experiences from thirty thousand years ago. Luo Yu answered one by one according to the responses she had previously discussed with Zhu Huai and Ying Zhao.

At that moment, the upper right corner of Yao Chi’s glasses lit up, and the lens over her right eye glowed with a soft blue light. It indicated a message had come through for her. Seeing this, Luo Yu halted her words and raised her hand to take a sip of tea.

Yao Chi sat there, reading the message in her lens. After a while, she pressed the reception button on the temple of her glasses and replied, “Got it.” Soon, the blue light in her lens disappeared. She set her cup down on the table, saying, “I still have some matters to attend to. I’ve asked all the questions I needed to today, and we’ve chatted enough. You should rest well. After the next round of routine checks at the Space Administration, arrangements can be made for you to take a leave and visit home. Don’t forget to bring something for your mother and your little niece.”

Luo Yu nodded expressionlessly. After Yao Chi glanced at her and said nothing more, the two of them stood up and walked out. At the door, two uniformed guards stood watch. The person who had brought Luo Yu here again escorted her back to the door of the room where she had rested last night. They said they would arrange for her to return to the administrative base of the Space Administration with Zhu Huai and Ying Zhao after they completed their inquiries.

After today’s chat with Yao Chi, Luo Yu understood that this so-called inquiry from the Special Operations Department was merely Yao Chi’s way of emphasizing to her not to stir trouble due to the upcoming disciplinary documents. Thus, the inquiries Zhu Huai and Ying Zhao faced were just formalities.

Having thought this through, she felt a bit more stable. She then asked the officer on duty if she could make a video call to her family. Even though she knew the chances were slim, she wanted to ask anyway.

As expected, the officer replied in a businesslike manner that it was temporarily not allowed. Until the Space Administration completed its routine inspection of the three of them, they were not permitted to communicate with the outside world.

“However, the Space Administration has already notified your respective emergency contacts of your return. Although you can’t directly contact anyone, your family must know you are safe,” the officer added kindly, likely noticing her disappointment at not being able to communicate.

Luo Yu smiled slightly at her. “That’s good. Thank you for letting me know.”

The officer returned her smile. “Get some more rest. I heard you spent over thirty hours on the way back, which must be quite tiring. Would you like something to eat? I can help order some afternoon tea for you.”

Luo Yu hadn’t had much of an appetite, but upon hearing this, she suddenly remembered Ji Shu’s reminder before she left: “Make sure to guarantee your daily nutritional intake.”

So, she nodded. “Alright, please help me order some food.”

Before long, someone indeed pushed a food cart into the room, filled with various pastries and protein platters. After Luo Yu finished eating in her room and called for the cart to be taken away, she learned that Zhu Huai and Ying Zhao had each concluded their inquiries and returned to their rooms to eat and rest. Since they hadn’t completed the inspection by the Space Administration yet, they couldn’t meet privately, so Luo Yu simply responded, “Got it.”

Afterward, the officer explained the next arrangements to her. The Shan Hai Jing had already been escorted back to the administrative base of the Space Administration by escort leader Hu Jiao. They would rest here for another night before taking a government plane the next day back to the administrative base in Liujin City, located in the midwestern region of the Alliance, for return inspections by the Time Bureau and the Inspection Department.

Luo Yu lay on the fairly spacious bed, staring at the ceiling while various thoughts raced through her mind. After a while, she pulled out the two small vials of medicine she had kept close for safekeeping and checked inside; the small pills were neatly arranged and unharmed.

That night, none of the three were summoned by the Special Operations Department, and each had a chance to rest in their rooms. The next morning, personnel from the Space Administration came to take over from the Special Operations Department, inviting Luo Yu and the others onto a government plane parked outside the landing site.

It was the first time the three of them had seen each other since landing late the night before, but with many personnel from the Bureau present, they didn’t say much and only nodded slightly to each other. Once onboard, they each chose a row of business seats and settled in, accompanied by personnel sitting next to them in the outer business seats.

The plane took off quickly, and over three hours later, they landed at the airport of the administrative base of the Space Administration, where people were already waiting to greet them.

As they descended from the plane, they noticed many stern-faced administrative personnel from the Inspection Department and Time Bureau, all dressed in somber professional attire.

Among them was a tall individual wearing a bright orange tank top and shorts, with full-coverage laser glasses—a striking contrast against the crowd. It was Hu Jiao, waving and smiling at them.

Since joining Luo Yu at the Time Bureau, Hu Jiao had abandoned the rigid dress code and had fully expressed herself in her attire. She ditched the uniform of the air defense duty team and donned various colorful sportswear.

As they walked down, Zhu Huai clicked her tongue and adjusted her sunglasses. “What’s with Hu Jiao’s outfit? She looks like a giant persimmon!”