EBE Chapter 227 Confrontation
Chapter 227 Confrontation
“Captain Ralph, this is the Star Ring Group ship Star Ring. I am A.A., a representative of Star Ring Group. I request that you lift the blockade and allow us to pass through temporarily. We need to see Vader.”
AiAA connected with the Space Force command stationed there via the communication frequency. Normally, given her status, she wouldn't need to contact the other party separately; she would only need to show them her pass. However, given the current special circumstances, AiAA chose to follow the rules for the sake of stability.
"Who gave you permission to go there?"
Captain Ralph's voice could be heard on the communication frequency band.
This sudden question startled Ai AA.
She assumed the other party hadn't received the authorization document, so she sent them another copy.
"Captain, please look carefully. Our request has been approved, and it was President Luo Congmin himself who approved it. Are you going to question His Excellency's decision?"
"What's wrong, AA?"
Cheng Xin, who was contemplating life in the passenger seat, took off her earplugs and gave Ai AA a questioning look.
"It's nothing. I don't know why, but the people at the blockade suddenly stopped letting us through. I'm negotiating with them. It's not a big problem. I've seen our application. It was approved directly by the highest authority in the Brain Network. Currently, only three people have that authority: President Luo Congmin, Lin Xuan, and the AI secretary from the Earth Federation Council."
"However, currently only Luo Congmin should have this authority, so our approval should not be a problem."
As soon as AAA finished speaking, Captain Ralph's voice rang out again on the communication frequency.
"Please wait a moment, there's a problem with your approval documents. I need to report this to His Excellency the President in person."
"waste time!"
Ai AA was speechless. The approval had already been granted, so why was she asking questions?
If it weren't for the fact that this is a special period and everything must be handled strictly, AiAA would probably have already started cursing.
“AA, let’s wait and see. I also feel that something is not right.”
Cheng Xin, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up.
"Think carefully, who exactly approved our application?"
“Logically speaking, this kind of approval should not have directly alarmed Luo Congmin, but should have been reported from the military level by level. However, our approval skipped all departments and was directly authorized by the president.”
"But why?"
"It seems we're not very familiar with Luo Congmin. I did see her a few times when I was competing with her for the position of Swordholder, but we haven't had much contact since."
"So from any perspective, he has no reason to help us get this approval. So who will actually approve our approval?"
Only after Cheng Xin reminded her did Ai AA suddenly realize what was happening.
Yes, everything seems to be going too smoothly.
It's as if someone has been watching this from behind the scenes all along.
But at such a critical moment, who would have the time to keep an eye on these two inconspicuous people?
“Ms. Ai AA, we have already consulted President Luo Congmin, and she claims that she did not approve your two applications. In other words, this approval document is very likely to have been forged by the two of you!”
Upon hearing Ralph's words, both Ai AA and Cheng Xin felt a chill run down their spines.
Finished!
This is truly a situation that can't be resolved no matter what.
If even Luo Congmin, the only person with access to the system, is unaware of this matter, then it can only mean that they forged the approval documents.
"Damn it!"
Ai AA felt so angry she was about to vomit blood.
"Ralph, do you really think we're fools? If we really wanted to forge a document, would we forge one approved by the highest authorities? Wouldn't it be easier to forge one from the military?"
What AiAA said is indeed true.
Even including those two people, only three people hold the highest level of authority, making it incredibly easy to investigate if someone were to forge it.
On the contrary, the military has a large number of personnel, making the investigation extremely difficult.
It's like forging an admission letter from Tsinghua University; it's obviously fake. But if you forge a letter from China University of Posts and Telecommunications, people won't immediately realize it's a fake university.
"Yes, I know, so we are still investigating this matter, but just to be on the safe side, we will detain you two temporarily to prevent any unexpected events from happening."
"This is not fair!"
Ai AA slammed her hand on the monitor in frustration.
“We are representatives of the Star Ring Group. You have no right to detain us. In that case, we will leave.”
Ai AA didn't want Cheng Xin to see Wade in the first place; she didn't want Cheng Xin to get involved in these messy things again.
Now that she had this excuse, she naturally wanted to get away as soon as possible.
“Ms. Ai, this is a military regulation. You two are now our prime suspects, and there is no way we will let you leave.”
Ralph's attitude was resolute. As he spoke, the surrounding fleet had already formed an encirclement, seemingly intending to completely surround the Star Ring.
Seeing this, AiAA immediately became somewhat annoyed.
"Do you think you're the only ones with a fleet?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a fleet of warships sailed in from afar. They all bore the emblem of the Star Ring Group and belonged to the group's private army. Although their numbers were not large, there were still thirteen or fourteen ships, forming a confrontation with the surrounding fleet.
"Let me tell you, the fact that we've gone through the approval process with the military is already giving the Earth Alliance the utmost face. Don't push your luck. The Star Ring Group isn't under the Earth Alliance's management."
Although Star Ring Group is a company, it has long since broken free from the control of the Earth Federation. There are many such behemoths in the solar system.
Just as the atmosphere between the two sides was tense and they were about to come to blows at the slightest provocation, a voice rang out in the communication band.
"Alright, let them pass. This is such a small matter, and you're making such a fuss. You're really something."
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at the third person who had appeared on the communication frequency.
Ding Yi, dressed in a white research coat, appeared as a projection in the communicator between the two parties, holding a pot of tea.
"Old Ding."
Ding Yi's sudden appearance instantly dispelled the tense atmosphere.
Everyone looked at Ding Yi, wondering why he had suddenly appeared here.
"I just happened to be passing by and decided to take a look around. I didn't expect to run into an old acquaintance."
As Ding Yi spoke, his gaze fell upon the Star Ring, or more accurately, upon Cheng Xin aboard the ship.
Ding Yi didn't have much contact with Cheng Xin, but most of the old people in the Crisis Era had died, so Cheng Xin was one of the few old people Ding Yi was still somewhat familiar with in this world.
"Your name is... Cheng Xin, the technical consultant at PIA?"
Before meeting Lin Xuan, Ding Yi worked for PDC for a period of time, so she was not unfamiliar with PIA, which was a useless department... at least in the eyes of the science and technology association.
"Old Ding...it's me."
Cheng Xin wanted to stand up, after all, according to seniority, she was Ding Yi's junior, but unfortunately the cockpit of the Star Ring was too cramped, so Cheng Xin had to sit down again after standing up.
"They want to see Wade's approval document. Let me see it."
As soon as Ding Yi finished speaking, Ralph quickly sent Ding Yi the approval document that Cheng Xin had previously sent him.
“Mr. Ding, we have just verified with the President that she did not approve of this document. We suspect that the Trisolarans may have hacked into our brain network and tampered with this document.”
Ralph said.
"Hmm... good idea, but there's a problem. The brain network's terminal is bound to all of our brains. If the brain network is successfully hacked, the Trisolarans won't need to go to great lengths to modify an approval document. It's estimated that all of our information, including the data in our brains, will have already been lost."
Upon hearing this, Ralph fell silent.
Yes, he definitely didn't consider that possibility.
When he first saw that the president had personally approved the document, his intuition told him that Luo Congmin probably wouldn't care about such a thing.
When Luo Congmin confirmed it, his suspicions were verified, and he subconsciously felt that it must be a forged certificate.
The two representatives from the Star Ring group had absolutely no reason to do such a thing. Even if they went through the normal approval process, it wouldn't be too difficult for them to meet with Wade.
So his first reaction was that the Trisolarans had hacked into the brain network, but now that he thought about it, it didn't seem to make sense.
"Looks like Lin Xuan is coming back soon, that's good news."
Ding Yi turned around with a smile and left the communication frequency band between the two parties.
As soon as he left, the Star Ring Group and the fleets on the blockade line were immediately in an awkward situation, looking at each other blankly.
In the end, Ralph gritted his teeth and ordered the opening of one of the blockade lines.
At the same time, the adjutant also reported the strength of the Star Ring Group's forces to the Earth Alliance Army in detail.
Although I knew before that Star Ring Group might have a private army, I didn't know the exact number and scale.
This incident, however, actually revealed the true nature of the Star Ring Group.
From this perspective, the Earth Alliance side is at least guaranteed to make a profit in this round.
"Damn it, these guys tricked us!"
After Ai AA realized this, she was both angry and annoyed.
I'm clearly not suited to be a leader. The other side didn't do anything, but I just revealed my hand. If the Earth Alliance comes to settle accounts later, it will probably cause a lot of trouble.
"Ugh, being a CEO is so boring. All I do is scheme and plot. I feel like my brain isn't up to the task anymore. Could what Wade said be true? Does connecting to the brain network really make people stupid?"
The Star Ring quickly broke through the fleet's layers of blockade and came into view of the Gravity, which was surrounded in the center.
The ship lay there quietly, like a fish that had died in the sea of stars. Even the lights of its engines had gone out. Only when it drifted and changed position would the side engines emit a small amount of exhaust flame to correct its position.
"Here we are."
After docking the ship at the Gravitational's berth, Cheng Xin and Ai AA walked off the Star Ring side by side. Guan Yifan had been waiting there for quite some time.
"Welcome aboard Gravitational, gentlemen. Mr. Wade has been waiting for you here for quite some time."
Led by Guan Yifan, the two quickly passed through the various compartments of the ship and arrived at the center of the bridge.
Ai AA and Guan Yifan stayed outside the door, while Wade only allowed Cheng Xin to see him.
As Cheng Xin passed through the ship's gate, she immediately saw Wade, who was located in the very center.
At this moment, the slightly aged Wade was leaning back in his chair, but his eyes were still sharp as knives as he swept over Cheng Xin who was walking towards him.
"This is our third meeting, right? What are your thoughts?"
Wade smiled and looked at Cheng Xin next to AiAA, his eyes looking at her like they were looking at a child who had not yet grown up.
“Wade, I should be asking you that. The first time we met, you were the director of PIA, my superior. The second time we met, you were the Swordholder. The third time we met, you had become a prisoner. I imagine you must have a lot to say about that.”
Cheng Xin remained expressionless, because she knew that no matter what expression she showed, it would not cause any emotional fluctuation in the man in front of her.
"Yes."
Surprisingly, Wade did not refute Cheng Xin's words at all, and the latter even saw a hint of disappointment in his eyes.
That disappointment wasn't just for her, but for all of humanity.
"Wade, why?"
Cheng Xin asked aloud.
"What was the purpose of all this? I still can't understand it. Is the success you gained by killing so many people really meaningful?"
"It has meaning for those who are alive."
Wade's answer was resolute, without the slightest hint of regret.
"Live on, live on by any means necessary. Only by living on can there be meaning. Cheng Xin, giving up is easy, but choosing to live is hard. I am walking the hardest path."
"But did you ask them? Did you ask the wishes of those you killed?" Cheng Xin questioned.
"They wanted to live too. What did they do wrong? Should they die for the sake of all humanity?"
“Some people have to die. You have no choice, and so do I. So I choose to be the bad guy and make the choice for them.”
Wade let out a long sigh.
"If that's all you wanted to ask me, you can leave now. I'm just telling you, let me choose. If it's just to save one person on Earth, even if it costs the lives of all humanity to save that one person, I will do it!"
"Because there is only hope if we survive; a dead civilization is nothing."
Cheng Xin nodded slightly.
"Good, good, good."
She said "okay" three times in a row before finally speaking.
“Wade, you should trust humanity. You always like to think the worst, even though we have many ways to solve these problems, it just takes a little time.”
Will the Trisolarans give us time?
Wade countered with a question.
Cheng Xin remained silent this time.
After a long silence, Cheng Xin finally revealed the purpose of her trip.
“Wade, you still remember the promise you made to me, right?”
"Yes."
Wade remained noncommittal.
“But I am no longer the Swordholder, and I cannot give you the position of Swordholder.”
Cheng Xin shook her head slightly.
"No, I know that, so I hope you'll promise me something else."
As she spoke, she took a metal rod-like object out of her pocket and handed it to Wade.
"This is the key to the Star Ring. Its maximum speed is already close to the speed of light. The warp drive technology that you asked AA to research has been very successful. This is the sample."
"I will not allow you to interfere in human affairs anymore. You should give the choice to humanity itself."
“Wade, open your eyes and look outside. Look at the fleets surrounding you. You are no longer humanity’s protector. On the contrary, in humanity’s eyes, you are a hundred times more hateful than the Trisolarans.”
"So, I have only one request: board the Star Ring, leave this place, leave the solar system, and never interfere in human affairs again. Let humanity make its own choices, okay?"
Cheng Xin's words left Wade silent for a long time.
After thinking for about half a minute, Wade slowly spoke.
"If I were you, I would choose to shoot me dead rather than give me a key to escape from here."
Cheng Xin let out a long breath.
“I can’t do that. After all, you have protected humanity before. Although I don’t agree with what you did, your contributions to humanity are real and indelible.”
"Then I should thank you."
A relieved smile appeared on Wade's face, a smile Cheng Xin had seen on Luo Ji's face when Luo Ji revealed his identity as the Swordholder.
“If we have the chance, we will meet again,” Cheng Xin said.
At that moment, Wade took something out of his pocket and handed it to Cheng Xin.
"As a return gift, I also have something for you."
"what is this?"
Cheng Xin took the things that Wade handed her with some confusion.
"I've helped you get back the memories you lost."