Insignificant things vanish in an instant; only the vast changes of time endure.
“It’s truly odd how so many things nowadays are arbitrarily given the suffix ‘treasure’ in their names. The people naming them must have the strangest ideas.”
“For instance?”
Ke Yiyi nodded in agreement with Li Qiwei’s observation.
“A device that keeps your electronics charged is called a ‘charging treasure’.”
“A device that warms your hands is called a ‘hand-warming treasure’.”
“And a device that keeps your home warm is called a ‘warming… hmm? Gan Lan, why are you so quiet?”
Gan Lan, pen in hand, meticulously sketched the empty bottle on the table into her notebook. Though her drawing wasn’t particularly beautiful—primarily due to an awkward angle—she remained utterly absorbed in every stroke, completely oblivious to her surroundings.
“Oh? That’s a really good drawing!”
Li Qiwei leaned over, popping a biscuit into her mouth.
“I couldn’t draw anything like that.”
Upon hearing Li Qiwei’s voice, Gan Lan quickly shielded her notebook, as if terrified someone might see what she had drawn.
“Why cover it up? It really is good!”
“Don’t look.”
Gan Lan simply clutched her notebook, much like a child caught in a misdeed.
“Alright, alright! You haven’t finished yet! Go on, what was that device that keeps your home warm called?”
Ke Yiyi smoothly changed the subject. Although she didn’t know the exact reason, she suspected Gan Lan might feel her drawing wasn’t good, and Li Qiwei’s praise might have sounded like mockery to her. She recalled Gan Lan’s personal file, which listed traits like ‘introverted’ and ‘not good with words’. In her work with the police force, Ke Yiyi had encountered all sorts of people; while each possessed a unique personality, their ways of interacting with the world often shared similarities, allowing for categorization.
Though she had never interacted with Gan Lan before, introverted individuals generally preferred not to engage with outsiders, maintaining their own ‘territory’. Li Qiwei had just inadvertently trespassed into Gan Lan’s domain.
Li Qiwei smiled, picking up on Ke Yiyi’s redirection. Her quick mind immediately grasped Ke Yiyi’s intention and realized she had unintentionally offended Gan Lan. She had initially thought to apologize but then considered whether an apology might cause a second offense. With that thought, she abandoned the idea of apologizing.
During her conversation with Ke Yiyi, she inadvertently glanced at Gan Lan and saw her resuming her drawing in her notebook, seemingly unaffected by the previous incident. A sense of relief washed over Li Qiwei.
‘It seems I’ll need to be extra careful when interacting with Gan Lan in the future,’ she thought. ‘I can’t be as carefree as usual, especially not disturbing her when she’s drawing, and certainly not commenting on her artwork.’
Li Qiwei wouldn’t ostracize Gan Lan simply because her personality and habits were somewhat unconventional. After all, there were plenty of people with even more peculiar personalities. Everyone had their own unique character and habits, and these couldn’t be forced or changed. One had to accept, adapt, and coexist harmoniously, rather than reject, distance, or forcibly alter them. This perspective perfectly aligned with Ke Yiyi’s own thoughts.
“Oh, I almost forgot, Uncle Fletcher!”
“Hm?”
Fletcher looked up in disbelief, as if he had just heard something extraordinary.
“Don’t look so dumbfounded! She’s calling you! Uncle Fletcher!”
Harshi chuckled, tapping Fletcher’s hand with the book she held, emphasizing the word ‘uncle’ with particular weight.
“Don’t call me that! I’m still young! I haven’t even gotten married yet! How did I suddenly become an uncle?”
“You’re experienced, you’re seasoned, and you’ve been at the Academy of Sciences longer than any of us. It’s not wrong to call you ‘Uncle’!”
Li Qiwei clapped her hands and laughed, but her smile vanished instantly. Ke Yiyi, noticing her abrupt change, realized they had both just shouted, potentially disturbing Gan Lan, who was still drawing at the table. Given Gan Lan’s quiet nature, it would likely plunge the atmosphere back into awkwardness.
Yet, Gan Lan continued to draw as if nothing had happened, seemingly lost in her artistic world, utterly unaware of her surroundings.
The two women exchanged glances, understanding each other’s thoughts, and shared a faint smile.
Meanwhile, Fletcher and Harshi watched them from the bar, like doting parents.
“It’s good, isn’t it?”
“Yes, to be able to perceive others’ thoughts, should I say it’s expected from those who came from the police and archives systems?”
Harshi nodded, taking a small sip of orange juice.
“You noticed too. Should I say it’s expected from someone from the research system?”
Fletcher’s remark made Harshi cast a sidelong glance at him before slowly swallowing her orange juice.
“Whatever you say.”
“Heh heh.”
Fletcher chuckled triumphantly, then addressed Li Qiwei.
“Alright! Call me whatever you like!”
As he said this, he glanced at Harshi, who, seeing him repeat her exact words, let out a soft laugh.
“You learn quickly.”
“So, Uncle Fletcher, why did you call me? Is it because you’re out of orange juice again?”
“Running out of orange juice is for later. Right now, there’s something more immediate.”
“Oh?”
Fletcher propped himself against the bar, listening to Li Qiwei with interest.
“Such as?”
“What about our work arrangements?”
“There’s no work for now; you’re free to relax until a notice comes from above.”
“Then where are we staying tonight?”
“You’ll be staying right here.”
Fletcher gestured behind him.
“This place used to have a resting area for staff traveling from various regions. It’s yours now. After all, this isn’t a club anymore.”
“I wonder when our luggage will arrive!”
Li Qiwei took a large gulp of orange juice, then drew a wide circle in the air.
“Sister Ke, I made a pumpkin pillow this big. When it arrives with my luggage, I’ll show it to you.”
“That size… isn’t that a bit too big?”
Ke Yiyi couldn’t help but be taken aback. Li Qiwei hardly seemed like someone involved in archives; her personality was simply too cheerful, making one wonder if she could truly handle confidential archival work. And the size of the pumpkin pillow she gestured… it seemed excessively large. Would anyone really use a pillow that big?
Ke Yiyi had done some needlework herself, so she thought Li Qiwei might have been too excited and misjudged the size. How could there be a pillow taller than a person?
Speaking of luggage… Ke Yiyi herself didn’t have much, at least not compared to Li Qiwei. From Li Qiwei’s previous descriptions, it sounded like her luggage would fill an entire vehicle.
Ke Yiyi had already entrusted her belongings to Wildfire Logistics when she left Shell City, and they should arrive here soon. Wildfire Logistics was affiliated with The Axiom Council. While its name included ‘Logistics,’ it also handled projects not explicitly mentioned in its name.
For instance, the transportation of important supplies, which even included various military equipment and classified documents. Another example was the inspection of ‘suspicious items.’ Every day at the Vega Academy of Sciences, staff members used Wildfire Logistics to transport all sorts of things, from personal luggage due to relocation, like Ke Yiyi’s, to gifts sent to acquaintances. Although these items appeared unchanged upon sending and receiving, Wildfire Logistics undoubtedly conducted relevant inspections before delivery. Such inspections had existed since before the war, and no one found them surprising. In fact, due to various reasons, such as the prohibition of large luggage on public transport, virtually all citizens of Vega were accustomed to entrusting their luggage to logistics services, not just staff members. Of course, none of these things escaped the scrutiny of Wildfire Logistics and other inspection agencies—even Ke Yiyi from the police force was no exception.
The doorbell abruptly rang. Ke Yiyi instinctively glanced at the clock; it was already past midnight.
“Could it be my luggage?”
Li Qiwei winked at Ke Yiyi and dashed to open the door.
“Sister Ke! The luggage is here! Not just mine, but yours too!”
Ke Yiyi couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion. She had just been thinking the luggage would arrive soon, and no sooner had the thought crossed her mind than it appeared.
The logistics personnel pressed down on their cap brim, verifying Li Qiwei’s and Ke Yiyi’s paperwork.
Ke Yiyi’s eyes widened in genuine surprise at the sight of Li Qiwei’s luggage. There were over fifty packed cardboard boxes alone, in addition to several overflowing travel bags, one of which was a large package taller than a person. Ke Yiyi guessed it must be the pumpkin pillow Li Qiwei had mentioned. There really was such a large pillow; she truly was too unworldly.
Given the sheer volume of luggage, Harshi and Fletcher quickly came to help, and Gan Lan also closed her notebook and followed. With more hands, the boxes were quickly moved. The logistics personnel said something to the person in the vehicle, and it swiftly drove off, leaving only him standing there.
“Come, come! You’ve worked hard, young logistics brother! Have a glass of orange juice!”
Fletcher was exceedingly hospitable, always eager to offer his orange juice to anyone he met.
“Am I the last one to report in?”
Li Yuyi slightly raised his head, looking at the clock on the wall.
“Hm?”
Ke Yiyi’s attention was piqued. Although he wore a hat, she believed she had seen him in previous records.
“You’re Li Yuyi, aren’t you!”
Despite not being able to clearly see the face beneath the deliberately lowered cap brim, Fletcher made his judgment based on the tightly wrapped weapon on the man’s back.
“A staff member from Wildfire Logistics in Nine O’Clock City.”
Li Qiwei casually picked up the roster from the table, flipped to a certain page, and scrutinized the newcomer.
“You haven’t answered my question yet.”
Li Yuyi looked at Fletcher, his gaze neither cold nor particularly friendly.
“Am I the last one to report in?”
“Evidently, no.”
Fletcher took the roster and handed it to Li Yuyi.
“You’ll know if you check the roster.”
“That’s good. Otherwise, being the closest one here and still the last to report would be far too embarrassing.”
Li Yuyi removed his hat, placed his twin blades aside, accepted the orange juice, and introduced himself.
“Li Yuyi, courtesy name Qufei, from Wildfire Logistics.”