"Old Duan, what did you say? What ten years?" Nan Jing asked, frowning.
Duan Jingfu realized he had been lost in thought and had blurted out his innermost thoughts, so he quickly gave a vague reply, "I said Ruan Chen is only sixteen years old this year. Her situation is special. If we want her to be able to control her talent, it will take another ten years."
He looked at the shadow that seemed to be growing larger every day and sighed, "But where do we get ten more years? Hasn't the Prism Club selected any outstanding talents in the past few years? Should we send out all our existing observers?"
Nan Jing also looked worried. "The arrangements were made last week. Over the past two years, we have screened all the young people in China again and again, but we really can't find anyone. There are also a few students that I was very optimistic about last year, but their mental strength has declined so much this year that they can't even meet the minimum requirements."
Nan Jing seemed to remember something and tapped the table. "Old Duan, don't interrupt. Leave Ruan Chen to me. I'll take care of her. In a year at most, she should be able to support the northern protective shield."
Duan Jingfu didn't even bother to lift his eyelids, putting on the airs of an academic big shot. "Ruan Chen's student status has already been entered into the system. Do you think you can just take her whenever you want? That's not in accordance with the rules, is it? If you really like my student, then send a few more of your guardians to her, so that no fools will keep bothering her."
"I'm not going to argue with you. I've made plans with Ruan Chen this weekend. If she changes her mind and is willing to come to our hospital, you have no reason not to let her go." Nan Jing said smugly. He had information on Yan Qian and Su Ze, whom Ruan Chen cared about most, and there was a high probability that he could bring Ruan Chen to his side.
Duan Jingfu merely snorted coldly, "With your meager trump cards? Su Ze? And Crescent Bay as well?"
He didn't know about Yan Qian's situation.
Years later, the aged and dying Duan Jingfu recalled that ordinary night and thought bitterly that if that old codger Nan Jing hadn't held back and had told him about Yan Qian and Ruan Chen back then, perhaps everything would have turned out very differently.
At that time, Nan Jing simply smiled enigmatically.
Duan Jingfu also did not reveal Fu Jianzhi as his trump card, although he was certain that Ruan Chen would willingly stay wherever Fu Jianzhi was.
That was a bond between them that no one could sever.
The woman standing at the very front of the holographic projection spoke, ending this pointless argument, "Regardless of whose student Ruan Chen is, if it is confirmed that she is the candidate for the Northern Executor, then it is time to reveal the truth of the world to her."
She was so inconspicuous that before she spoke, no one would even notice that there was a woman standing in that spot.
But with her casual remark—though her tone was no different from that of a casual conversation—everyone's expression turned serious.
"Yes, Madam Hua."
-------------------------------------
Fu Jianzhi showed great enthusiasm for learning at Ruan Chen's home.
On Sunday, Ruan Chen slept soundly. When she got up and opened her bedroom door, she almost thought her grandfather had come back.
The cushions and blankets on the sofa were neatly folded, the messy table had been tidied up, the carpet was cleaned and drying on the balcony, and the floor had been mopped, still damp with watermarks.
A faint, refreshing fragrance permeated the air.
Ruan Chen couldn't bear to step on the shiny, worn-out floor.
She took a deep sniff of the fresh air and caught a faint, almost imperceptible aroma of food.
Just then, Fu Jianzhi came out of the kitchen, sleeves rolled up, wearing an apron, carrying a plate of steamed buns. When she saw Ruan Chen, she smiled sincerely and said, "You must be hungry to have slept this long, right? Come and eat."
Ruan Chen looked like she'd seen a ghost; she felt she saw kindness on Fu Jianzhi's face.
Fu Jianzhi seemed to understand what Ruan Chen meant. He put down the plate he was holding, quickly walked to the shoe rack, picked up a pair of slippers, bent down and placed them next to Ruan Chen's feet. "Change into these slippers and clean them."
"Oh." Ruan Chen wondered if she was still half asleep.
It wasn't until she sat down at the dining table and drank a mouthful of hot soy milk that Ruan Chen dared to confirm that this wasn't a dream.
She looked around the noticeably tidy house, a steamed bun in her mouth, and asked, "What time did you start cleaning? It's so clean, you must be exhausted. You're really something, I didn't know you were so good at managing the household."
Ruan Chen herself doesn't like to tidy up the house, so she calls a cleaning service every two weeks.
But she probably also knew that this kind of work would take at least three hours—and that's for a skilled worker.
How long will it take Fu Jianzhi to finish this job by himself? Ruan Chen glanced at the time and guessed that the kid would have arrived just as dawn broke.
Fu Jianzhi smiled gently, subtly pushing the receipt for the cleaning company payment deeper into his pocket, his face showing an expression of great satisfaction at Ruan Chen's praise. "Not bad, I like to tidy up at home, so I got it done quickly. I also washed the clothes in your washing machine, they're in the dryer now."
"The steamed buns are nice, where did you buy them?"
“It’s the breakfast shop downstairs, the one I used to frequent,” Fu Jianzhi didn’t dare to be shameless this time and instead said that she made it herself. To be honest, “I just changed the tableware.”
After finishing their meal, Fu Jianzhi quickly cleared away the dishes and stood in front of the sink, feeling somewhat lost.
He really can't do housework.
Fu Jianzhi was a little annoyed. He should have known better than to change the tableware. Why did he have to make trouble for himself?
Fortunately, Ruan Chen came to the rescue in time, saying, "Just leave it there, I'll wash it later. You've been busy all morning."
Fu Jianzhi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Around noon, Ruan Chen ordered takeout for Fu Jianzhi, telling him that she had to go out for a while and would be back soon.
Where to?
"The First Military Academy"
Fu Jianzhi lowered his eyelashes, a fleeting thought crossing his mind.
He could guess why the First Military Academy was looking for Ruan Chen at this time. He had already received a notification that the name of the Northern Executor had been basically decided, and it wasn't him.
The only person in China capable of handling this matter is Ruan Chen.
Fu Jianzhi silently got up and helped Ruan Chen pack her schoolbag.
Ruan Chen glanced at it and said, "You're still feeding me? Do you think I'm a child?"
"I'm worried you might be too busy to eat, so remember to grab a bite if you get hungry. If I come back too late, you can eat dinner by yourself or sleep here. Leave me a message when you go home."
"knew."
Upon arriving at the First Military Academy, Ruan Chen went straight to the research institute's canteen.
Nan Jing is quite interesting. Both times she asked Ruan Chen to go to the cafeteria for their conversations. Ruan Chen doesn't like talking or discussing things while eating, but Nan Jing is, after all, an elder.
Along with the dishes came a photo, which Nan Jing placed in front of her.
Guess what this is?
Ruan Chen looked at the planet in the photo, which glowed with a faint blue light, and on it was a red network that resembled blood vessels.
She had never seen a photo like this before, but it looked familiar.
But what caught her eye was the haze outside the planet, like a gray net trying to shroud the blue planet.
Seeing this gloomy scene, Ruan Chen's heart tightened.
Nan Jing said, "The academic name for this thing is a technology sieve, but of course, we prefer to call it 'the shadow from antiquity'."
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