Chapter 11 Important People

The people of "Star Fortress" must have already thoroughly read Qi An's background and experience, and know that she participated in both major battles that killed the Ash Priest.

But Lan Jiarou still seemed surprised, her gaze shifting between Tan Fu and Qi An.

Surprised but also delighted, she quickly said, "Since we're friends, Xiao Fu must like Dr. Qi, right?"

She's here to help you purify yourself, so how about letting her stay with you for the next couple of days?

But Tan Fu's round eyes darted around, his smile faded, and he turned away, saying calmly, "We'll see."

This girl's temper is unpredictable.

Lan Jiarou, however, seemed used to it; her smile remained unchanged as she softly said:

"Let Dr. Qi stay next to you. If you need purification or want to visit friends, you can call her anytime."

Tan Fu ignored him, walked back, collapsed onto the bed, and grabbed a plush bear, tearing at it violently.

One of the bear's arms had come undone, and clumps of white cotton were spilling out, covering the ground.

The hunchbacked man frowned and said, "Even if you're unhappy, don't waste things. A single plush toy takes up a lot of cloth and cotton!"

Tan Fu paused slightly, then tugged twice more, casually tossing the tattered plush bear aside before rolling it up in the blanket.

Lan Jiarou asked Tan Fu a few questions, such as "Are you hungry? Is there anything you want to drink?" but he didn't answer. So she said goodbye softly and took Qi An to settle in.

The accommodation, of course, was placed next to that crystal house.

The Crystal House was bright and beautiful, but the room next door was just a normal room with a table, chairs, a bed, and a monitor screen.

This is clearly a staff duty room, usually occupied by doctors, purifiers, or security guards.

Once inside, Lan Jiarou took Qi An's bag and helped her put it away. She then invited Qi An to sit on the edge of the bed and began to recount the details of their visit:

“Strictly speaking, the ‘Star Fortress’ Research Institute is not a research institute, but a fortress.”

This fortress protects the nation's cybersecurity.

More than one of the Wisps was a senior engineer or a top hacker before the mutation; they have a team.

There are too many ruined cities on our land, and abandoned equipment and idle network nodes are everywhere, making them easy targets for cyberattacks.

The cybersecurity department here filters through billions of data points transmitted daily from the Starlink network to identify malicious attacks that attempt to intercept or tamper with information, as well as a constant stream of contaminated data.

During the Northwest War last year, the Fallen Insects' attacks on the Starlink Network reached a peak; at that time, the entire 'Starfortress' was in complete chaos.

Lan Jiarou recalled the situation at the time, a bitter smile appearing on her lips.

Not only did she have a wry smile, but there was also a yellowish-purple blister on the corner of her mouth, clearly caused by overwork and internal heat.

Qi An recalled that during the Brood War last year, there were several moments when the Starlink network communication quality fluctuated wildly.

The fluctuations eventually subsided, allowing them to win that extremely difficult battle.

Were the people fighting together on another battlefield the same people in this fortress?

"Actually, it's all thanks to Xiao Fu."

Her special ability is 'electromagnetic clones,' allowing her consciousness to enter the data world.

The hunchbacked man replied, "Ordinary AIs will have their cognition distorted by contaminated data, but Xiao Fu won't."

Xiao Fu is the ultimate firewall of Starlink and the manipulator of 'Vega'; she is crucial to national security!

His tone was extremely solemn, and he even straightened his posture as he spoke.

He looked at Qi An, as if seeking solemn approval.

Qi An nodded: "I understand."

Lan Jiarou sighed, "Although it won't distort cognition, polluting data will still harm Xiaofu."

Sometimes, when the attacks are too fierce and frequent, Xiao Fu becomes emotionally unstable, like she is now, and in severe cases, she may even harm herself.

Her safety is paramount, and cybersecurity is equally important; she can't be away from her post for too long.

"Dr. Qi, you've worked hard these past few days. Hurry up! Find an opportunity to get closer to her as soon as possible."

"Or can your mental soothing ability force..." the hunchbacked man said.

Qi An immediately shook his head: "No."

The hunchbacked man pursed his lips and remained silent.

Lan Jiarou hurriedly said, "In short, Dr. Qi will definitely have to work hard these next few days."

You should rest tonight, but don't sleep too soundly, and be aware of any noises from next door.

If you need anything, just press the call button by the bed. There's someone here 24 hours a day.

Qi An nodded.

It was getting late, so the two of them got up to say goodbye.

After leaving the house, the hunchbacked man glanced back and whispered, "I wonder if this 'mental reassurance' will actually work."

"Let's see, if it doesn't work, we'll think of something else." Lan Jiarou wanted to exhale, but felt that she couldn't exhale at all.

Given Tan Fu's current erratic and irritable state, they dare not let her return to the network. If this goes on for too long, and the AI ​​and human defenses are breached, causing the Starlink system to collapse, they will be the sinners!

How can you relax like this?

Tonight will probably be another sleepless night.

......

Qi An also remained awake for a long time in the duty room.

She looked around the room once more.

This was a very novel perspective; she had never been inside the duty room next to her glass room before.

So this is what it looks like.

Qi An opened the door and went out, walking to the semi-circular floor-to-ceiling glass.

Tan Fu didn't sleep either. He picked up the little bear again, held it in his hand like a flag, and waved it vigorously.

The cotton fibers were spreading even more wildly, like snow.

Qi An looked at it for a moment, then went back inside and pressed the button, saying to the person on the other end of the pager, "I'm a little hungry, could you make me a more substantial late-night snack and send it over?"

Both the man on the other end of the phone and the hunchbacked man in the monitoring room were stunned.

It's the middle of the night, want some midnight snack? And a really big one at that!

How can someone who's just arrived be so shameless?

Qi An repeated his request, and after a long pause, the other person finally spoke:

"...Okay, Dr. Qi, please wait a moment. The late-night snack will be delivered in about an hour."

It seemed quieter inside and out, but the late-night snack was indeed delivered to Qi An's door an hour later.

A bowl of noodles topped with a thick layer of meat sauce and a layer of bright green cucumber shreds, served with a side of eight-treasure pickles and a side of cold wild vegetables, is indeed a sumptuous and tempting meal.

Qi An smiled and thanked the soldier who brought him the meal, which surprised the somewhat impatient soldier.

Qi An carried the tray to the semi-circular glass, sat down on the ground, and then turned on the pager in the corner of the glass window and started eating.

She ate with great relish, making loud slurping noises.

The sound came through the pager into the room, and the girl on the bed sat up abruptly, looking straight at Qi An.

The hunchbacked man behind the surveillance camera also frowned as he looked at Qi An.

Qi An ate as much as she wanted—to be honest, the noodles were really delicious. She was only a little hungry at first, but the more she ate, the hungrier she got.

She was so focused on eating, her expression one of genuine enjoyment, that it made the onlookers' mouths water.

Tan Fuji put on his fluffy pink slippers and slowly walked to the glass.

Qi An picked up a mouthful of chewy noodles covered in meat sauce with his chopsticks, blew the hot steam onto the glass, and it turned into a cloud of white mist.

As she ate the noodles, chewing them like a hamster, she used the end of her chopsticks to draw a smiley face on the steam, and added a little star to her curved eyes.

Tan Fu chuckled.

Qi An picked up another piece of pickled vegetables with his chopsticks, chewing them with a crunching sound.

Tan Fu rested his chin on his hand and stared at it for a few minutes, then ran back and pressed the call button next to his bed:

"I want to have a midnight snack too, and I want to eat with her!"

The hunchbacked man sat up straight, and Lan Jiarou, who had been dozing, opened her eyes, surprised and delighted.

That's too fast! On the very first night, Tan Fu took the initiative to approach Qi An!