Data defense line
The phone screen emitted a faint glow in the darkness, illuminating Jiang Mo's slightly pale face. The message from Shen Zhiyan, like a cold line of code, yet carrying an undeniable power, pierced the clamor of this chaotic night. An encrypted link; the password was the debut date of her first film—he had not only intervened, but had also handed her the key in an almost hacker-like manner.
Without the slightest hesitation, her fingertips trembled as she typed in the string of numbers that had almost been forgotten. The page redirected, revealing a detailed data report. Complex network graphs, dense time-point analysis, obscure technical jargon… but the core conclusions were highlighted by Shen Zhiyan in bold red font:
[Abnormally highly synchronous diffusion, 99.7% confidence level. Not natural propagation; significant signs of human manipulation.]
Below, IP characteristic analysis of several key propagation nodes is even attached, pointing to several specific online troll groups.
This is not consolation, nor speculation, but a solid fortress of facts built with data and probability.
Jiang Mo immediately forwarded the report to Linda. The phone rang almost immediately afterward.
"MoMo! Where did you get this?!" Linda's voice trembled with excitement. "It's crucial! This is so much faster than us investigating on our own! With this, we can pinpoint the source of the attack directly, and our counterattack will be much more targeted!"
“Provided by…a friend.” Jiang Mo didn’t say much, but a weight seemed to have been lifted from her heart. In the real battleground of public opinion, Shen Zhiyan’s “data support” was more powerful than a thousand pale explanations.
"Is your friend a god?!" Linda exclaimed. "Alright, I know what to do! You get some rest, tomorrow... there might be a tough battle ahead."
After hanging up the phone, the room fell silent again. The city outside was still brightly lit, but the turmoil in Jiang Mo's heart gradually subsided because of the calm report. She opened the report again, her gaze sweeping over the charts and terminology she didn't fully understand, finally settling on the small note Shen Zhiyan had left at the end:
[Note: Emotional responses can exacerbate information entropy; it is recommended to maintain stability in information output.]
She could almost picture his serious and focused expression as he wrote those words. He was telling her in his own way: Don't panic, stay calm.
A warm current, mixed with indescribable complex emotions, quietly welled up in her heart. On this night when everyone else was telling her how to "fight," only he was teaching her how to "defend," how to maintain system stability.
The next day, Jiang Mo arrived at the lab on time. She wore slightly heavier makeup than usual to cover up the fatigue from staying up all night, but her eyes were clear and determined.
The atmosphere in the lab was somewhat awkward. Clearly, many had seen the online uproar, and the gazes directed at her were a mixture of curiosity, sympathy, and perhaps a barely perceptible scrutiny. As she entered, Researcher Zhou gave her a concerned look and asked in a low voice, "Are you alright?"
Jiang Mo smiled and shook her head.
Shen Zhiyan was already in the main control area, seemingly adjusting the equipment. Hearing the noise, he looked up, his eyes meeting hers. There were no extra greetings, no probing glances; he simply nodded to her very slightly, almost imperceptibly.
That was a confirmation signal. It confirmed that she had received his message and that she was alright.
Throughout the morning's recording, Jiang Mo remained exceptionally focused and composed. She strictly followed the procedures, answered questions clearly and logically, and even precisely cited a statistical concept she had just learned a few days prior during a group discussion. She didn't try to please anyone, nor did she show any signs of being affected by the controversy; she simply focused on doing her job well.
She remembered Shen Zhiyan's note: "Maintain the stability of information output."
During lunch break, she deliberately stayed until the very end. Shen Zhiyan was still there; he was organizing the experimental data from the morning.
Only the two of them remained in the rest area.
“That report,” Jiang Mo walked up to him, her voice low, “was very useful. Thank you.”
Shen Zhiyan paused for a moment while operating the tablet, but without looking up, she simply hummed in response.
"You didn't get enough rest last night, did you?" Jiang Mo noticed the faint bluish-gray under his eyes, which showed a hint of weariness compared to his usual meticulous demeanor.
“Processing data requires centralized computing power,” he answered evasively, still not looking at her, but the familiar slight blush on his earlobe reappeared.
Looking at his feigned composure, Jiang Mo felt a significant dissipation of the lingering gloom from the turmoil in her heart. She recalled the five cashmere sweaters in his office, his obsession with having a "backup plan" for everything, and his timely, clumsy yet powerful "data support" from the previous night.
She suddenly understood: this man's care was never spoken aloud. It was hidden in the ginger-yellow cardigan he handed her, in the text message reminding her of the noise, in the technical tips he relayed through Researcher Zhou, and in the encrypted reports he sent late at night.
It is a silent yet highly efficient daemon that runs at its core.
"Shen Zhiyan," she called him by his full name for the first time, her voice soft yet incredibly clear, "thank you."
Shen Zhiyan finally raised his head and looked at her. Her eyes were bright, without the frustration or anger he had expected, only a calm that had been tempered and made more resilient, and... sincere gratitude.
He seemed somewhat at a loss; faced with such a direct expression of emotion, his data processing system briefly froze again. He adjusted his glasses, looked away, and abruptly changed the subject: "The recording this afternoon requires an oscilloscope. The instruction manual is in the third level of the shared folder."
Jiang Mo didn't call him out on his clumsy attempt to change the subject. She nodded: "Okay, I'll check it in advance."
She turned and left, her steps no longer as hurried and heavy as yesterday.
Behind her, Shen Zhiyan watched her retreating figure until she disappeared through the doorway before slowly withdrawing his gaze. He looked down at the unfinished data on his tablet, remaining motionless for a long time.
He discovered that his initial model of Jiang Mo was being rapidly updated by a flood of new evidence. She was not the "troublesome sample with excessive noise" he had initially defined, but rather an exceptionally powerful entity that could maintain the stability of its core algorithm even in complex environments and could even iterate itself during attacks.
The "data defense" he created for her also seemed to have opened a small, yet undeniable, access port on the very boundary he was so carefully guarding.
In the evening, Jiang Mo received a message from Linda, her tone excited: "Mo Mo, the counterattack worked very well! The other side is clearly panicking and has started deleting posts! However... there's something strange. Several marketing accounts that were the most aggressive before received lawyer's letters from unknown IP addresses warning them. The wording was extremely professional and cunning, directly seizing on their past rumors, scaring them into immediately shutting up. This... wasn't the work of your 'divine friend,' was it?"
Jiang Mo looked at her phone, and the image of Shen Zhiyan's calm and aloof face appeared in her mind, along with the precise data report he had sent in the early hours of the morning.
She replied, "Maybe."
She went to the balcony, where the "Lu Gen" swayed gently in the evening breeze. She reached out and touched a newly sprouted leaf.
Perhaps she doesn't need to fully understand his complex "language system." Just as she doesn't understand whether "Lu Gen" can truly bring good luck, she's still willing to chant scriptures for it every day.
Some connections exist outside of logic and data.
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