Knowing that he had no interest in these business battles, Yu Jiuyuan changed the subject: "Rong Shenghan said he would invite the school board to watch the experimental demonstration this afternoon. Our glowing butterfly is finally going to take the stage."
When the experiment was mentioned, Yuan Xu's attention was immediately drawn back, and she began to excitedly check the airtightness of the display box.
Watching his busy figure, Yu Jiuyuan quietly took out her phone and sent a message to Rong Shenghan: "Lin Yanran went to the Astronomy Club. Could you please 'entertain' her, Vice President?"
The moment the send button was pressed, Xie Zhecheng was frowning at the computer screen in the astronomy club's observation room.
The nebula trajectory on the screen suddenly fluctuated abnormally, as if it had been interfered with by some external force.
He pulled up the backend data and found that someone had accessed the system five minutes earlier. The IP address showed that it came from within the school and had a very high level of privileges.
“Rong Shenghan?” he murmured to himself, his fingers flying across the keyboard as he tried to trace the source of the intrusion.
When the door was pushed open, he thought it was Yu Jiuyuan and said without looking up, "The abnormal period of radiation intensity has been found, and it matches your prediction..." His words stopped abruptly when he saw Lin Yanran standing in the doorway.
Lin Yanran was overwhelmed by the astronomical charts filling the room and impatiently said, "Xie Zhecheng, Yu Jiuyuan asked me to get the student council registration form." His arrogance seemed to diminish under Xie Zhecheng's cold gaze.
Xie Zhecheng ignored him and continued staring at the screen.
The source of the intrusion had disappeared, but he found something even stranger in the background logs. Someone had used his privileges to send a file to Yu Jiuyuan's private email address, titled "Rong Shenghan's Secret".
[Xie Zhecheng: Positive emotions +3, current level 32; Negative emotions -3, current level 14 (triggered "protective instinct" warning)]
His fingertip hovered over the "Open Email" button when he suddenly heard Yu Jiuyuan's laughter coming from the corridor.
She and Rong Shenghan walked side by side, talking about something interesting, their laughter as clear and crisp as wind chimes.
Xie Zhecheng quickly closed the email page, and when he turned around, his face had returned to its usual indifference.
He watched as Yu Jiuyuan naturally accepted the coffee Rong Shenghan offered, watched Rong Shenghan brush the fallen leaves off her shoulder, and watched the two of them standing so close together, like a harmonious yet jarring painting.
"Have you finished compiling the observation data?" Yu Jiuyuan's voice was filled with laughter, as if she hadn't noticed his unusual behavior.
Xie Zhecheng nodded and handed over a printed report. The edges of the paper were slightly wrinkled from his grip, as if he was trying hard to suppress some kind of emotion.
Rong Shenghan's gaze swept over the report, and he suddenly chuckled: "Student Xie's data model is very similar to the one I saw at the astronomy forum in Switzerland last week. Could it be that great minds think alike?"
Xie Zhecheng's eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly. The Swiss astronomical forum was a closed-door meeting, attended by top scholars in the field. How could Rong Shenghan, a high school student, have the opportunity to participate?
Yu Jiuyuan, observing the undercurrent between the two, suddenly chuckled, "The vice president knows so much, even dabbling in the astronomy forum." She then changed the subject, "By the way, Yuan Xu's experimental demonstration is about to begin, we should head over there."
As she left the astronomy club, Yu Jiuyuan deliberately lagged behind by half a step and whispered to Xie Zhecheng, "The system intrusion just now was done by Rong Shenghan. He wanted to test your technical limits."
Her fingertips lightly touched the back of his hand. "Don't be angry. How could a perfectionist's skills be stumped by such a small trick?"
Xie Zhecheng's body stiffened abruptly. How did she know? Had she already seen through Rong Shenghan's disguise?
[Xie Zhecheng: Positive +3, current 35; Negative -4, current 10 (Triggered a surge in "Trust")]
He watched Yu Jiuyuan turn around and catch up with Rong Shenghan, watched Rong Shenghan naturally put his arm around her shoulder, watched her look up at Rong Shenghan and smile, a smile as pure as an angel's, yet it inexplicably made him feel irritated.
On the screen in the observation room, the Orion Nebula continued to rotate slowly. Xie Zhecheng reopened the email and finally pressed the "open" button.
The document contained only one photo: Rong Shenghan standing at the entrance of the Yuan family laboratory, the man beside her a notorious gene trafficker on the international black market.
Meanwhile, at the experimental demonstration, Rong Shenghan was helping Yu Jiuyuan organize her presentation slides. His fingertip traced the page on "Application Prospects of Luminescent Genes," and he suddenly whispered, "Xie Zhecheng seems to be treating you a little differently."
Yu Jiuyuan's gaze fell on Yuan Xu, who was diligently adjusting the equipment below the stage, and she chuckled: "Isn't it true that a perfectionist's 'difference' is more valuable?"
She turned her head to look at the probing look in Rong Shenghan's eyes, then suddenly leaned closer, her voice so soft that only the two of them could hear, "As for you, Vice President, did you enjoy the astronomy forum in Switzerland?"
Rong Shenghan's smile froze instantly.
Yu Jiuyuan watched his pupils shrink, a smile playing on her lips that went unnoticed. She had already seen the email through Xie Zhecheng's backend access; Rong Shenghan's secret was far more interesting than she had imagined.
Rong Shenghan: Hidden favorability unlocked: 35 (triggering the "A worthy opponent" recognition)
As the system notification sounded in my mind, the lights in the demonstration room suddenly dimmed.
Yuan Xu placed the glowing butterfly into a transparent display case, and the fluorescence of its entire wing lit up in the darkness, like a flowing galaxy.
As applause erupted from the audience, Yu Jiuyuan looked at the three men beside her, each with their own thoughts: Xie Zhecheng's tense jaw, Rong Shenghan's probing gaze, Yuan Xu's pure smile, and Lin Yanran's disdainful yet irresistibly furtive glances from the corner.
This game, titled "Strategy," has finally reached its most crucial turning point. And she, the "beast tamer," stands in the center of the stage, gently raising the whip in her hand.
As for who will reveal their weakness first?
Yu Jiuyuan's gaze lingered on Rong Shenghan's face for half a second, her smile remaining as innocent as ever.
We'll find out soon enough.
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