Chapter 117: The Forbearance of Yun Shichu

The retinal display indicated it was eight o’clock in the morning, Earth time. Yun Shichu had already finished his morning workout and was now beginning his workday.

"Advisor Zhou is certainly early," Yun Shichu said with a smile, greeting Zhou Xingtong, who had arrived at the headquarters at the crack of dawn.

Yun Shichu couldn't detect any change in Zhou Xingtong’s expression; the man wore his signature harmless, amiable smile year-round.

"Commander Yun is also quite early," Zhou Xingtong replied. His voice, like his expression, remained in a perpetual, tepid monotone.

Skipping the pleasantries, Yun Shichu knew exactly why Zhou was here. In fact, even if he hadn't come, Yun would have found a way to summon him.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, Advisor Zhou?" Yun Shichu leaned back in his chair and spoke directly. Even though he knew the reason, he had to play the part of the oblivious official. Yun had become intimately proficient in these petty games.

"Commander Yun seems to harbor significant wariness toward me." Zhou Xingtong didn't answer directly; for some reason, he suddenly threw out this observation.

Yun Shichu was amused by the comment, though he maintained his habitual smile. "What are you talking about, Advisor? On matters of duty, I am strictly impartial and transparent." Of course, he left out the unspoken sentiment: *As for personal matters, it’s none of your damn business.*

"I feel that Commander Yun may have some misunderstandings about our Department A. I’m not sure what has caused you to harbor such prejudice against us." Zhou Xingtong, for some unknown reason, was fixated on this issue. Yun Shichu had no desire to get bogged down in it.

"Advisor Zhou, you’re quite fond of pinning labels on people, aren't you? We are all working for the Chinese nation. There is no prejudice here; we are all just working together to do good." Yun Shichu’s bureaucratic doublespeak was masterful. It stood in stark contrast to his reputation as a fearless, hot-headed commander, but without such skills, he would never have reached his current position.

"Since Commander Yun says so, I would like to ask you to provide an explanation for this incident." Advisor Zhou displayed a set of files via a holographic screen.

Yun Shichu thought to himself, *As I expected.* What Zhou Xingtong had brought up was indeed the rescue of Liu Shaoyu. Although the military had not officially authorized the mission, the individuals involved were undeniably soldiers. There was no denying that. However, the incident itself was riddled with suspicious elements. If the five-man team was fine, why did anyone feel the need to rescue Liu Shaoyu? The very nature of the "rescue" stemmed from a specific declaration.

Clearly, the anonymous individual who left that information wanted to blow this incident out of proportion. Only a handful of people, including Yun Shichu, had seen that declaration.

What truly intrigued Yun was that the declaration had been delivered on physical paper. That made things far more interesting.

"Advisor Zhou, I’d like to know first: are you asking me this as a representative of Department A, the Five-Man Team, or the Chinese nation?" Yun Shichu shifted his posture, resting his elbows on the desk as he stared at Zhou.

Zhou Xingtong’s calm, mask-like face flickered with a subtle change before returning to stillness, but Yun Shichu caught it.

"Does it make a difference, Commander Yun?" By the time he spoke, Zhou had returned to his smiling mask.

Yun Shichu had never dealt with anyone else from Department A, but Advisor Zhou alone felt incredibly enigmatic. He couldn't help but wonder how many mysteries lay hidden behind him.

"If you are representing China, then I have no answer for you," Yun Shichu said slowly.

Zhou Xingtong hadn't expected that answer, but he was curious about the others. "And if I were representing the Five-Man Team?"

"If you are representing the Five-Man Team, then please release the data on this incident to the public. Once we compare the two sides' accounts, we will eventually reach a conclusion." Yun Shichu rattled off the response he had already prepared.

Hearing this, Zhou Xingtong understood Yun’s stance. It was clear: Yun Shichu had no intention of giving him any explanation, or at least, none for the Five-Man Team.

"So, Commander Yun is admitting that this incident was carried out under your orders?" Zhou Xingtong pivoted, attempting to pin a major accusation on him.

"Hahahaha, Advisor Zhou, you flatter me. These people come from who knows how many different military units. If I could mobilize them with a single word, I wouldn't need to be this combat commander." Yun Shichu chuckled at the absurdity of the claim.

A flicker of frustration finally crossed Zhou Xingtong’s face. He could not understand why Yun Shichu was laughing at his line of questioning.

"Commander Yun, I want you to understand the gravity of this conversation. Please weigh every word you say carefully. Every part of our dialogue will be conveyed back to the Five-Man Team," Zhou warned, his dissatisfaction showing.

Ever since their last conversation, Yun Shichu felt as if Zhou Xingtong had become a different person—or perhaps this was his true self. After all, they had only just begun to interact. Regardless, Yun Shichu didn't take the threat to heart. If he were easily intimidated by a few words, he might as well go home and retire.

"Advisor Zhou, I think you have a misunderstanding. My current position is Commander of the Provisional Combat Command of the Republic of China. My authority and responsibilities lie wherever war occurs. If you want an answer from me, or if you believe this was done under my orders, am I to understand that there is an enemy presence where the war is taking place?" Yun Shichu said sternly.

Zhou Xingtong was well aware of Yun’s status, but he couldn't confirm the implication of that statement.

"In a certain sense, yes," Zhou replied cautiously. "However, we cannot rule out an abuse of power. Of course, I am addressing the issue, not the person."

Yun Shichu laughed. "I understand what you’re implying, Advisor. So, your point is that I am abusing my power?" His tone sharpened as he finished the sentence.

"You’ve misunderstood. As I said before, I am addressing the issue, not the person," Zhou explained.

"In that case, my answer remains the same. I don't know what I am supposed to account for regarding this incident. However, I would like to ask Advisor Zhou for an explanation from your side," Yun Shichu finally went on the offensive.

"An explanation for what?" Zhou asked.

"Why was there an armed attack on a military warship?" Yun countered.

"Because we were attacked, Department A retaliated," Zhou replied, having memorized the incident reports.

"Attacked and retaliated? Is that the definition given by the Republic’s Radiance?"

"It comes from the Five-Man Team."

"If I recall correctly, isn't Department A supposed to be responsible for matters concerning the Republic’s Radiance? Advisor Zhou?" Yun fired back immediately.

Although Department A was indeed a subordinate branch of the Republic’s Radiance, as Yun Shichu noted, everyone knew of the intimate relationship between the Five-Man Team and the Radiance.

"I don't think that has any relevance to our current conversation," Zhou replied, unable to openly discuss matters outside the official record.

"Is Advisor Zhou trying to stir up internal conflict?" Facing Zhou’s evasive answers, Yun Shichu adopted the same tactic of moral labeling.

Zhou Xingtong felt like he had hit a wall at every turn today. For the first time, he felt that the reputation of Department A didn't carry the weight it once did, and he had no strategy to deal with it. The Republic’s Radiance was indeed having problems—problems that had never appeared in any of Department A’s previous maintenance logs. Even more terrifying was that Department A’s access permissions within the Republic’s Radiance had been downgraded, a situation that had never occurred before.

The implication was simple: Department A no longer possessed the immense power it once wielded.

While these permissions seemed abstract, they were vital in practice. Most notably, the Republic’s Radiance theoretically collected all information in the Federation, down to the most microscopic details. But just because the system *knew* didn't mean Department A did. They needed to exercise specific permissions to access that data.

In short, the Republic’s Radiance used to tell them everything; now, it didn't. It was as simple as that, and just as fatal.

"Commander Yun, regarding this incident, I represent the Five-Man Team and our department. On other matters, I can only represent myself," Zhou said, deliberately avoiding Yun’s sharp questions.

The conversation ended on a sour note, with Zhou Xingtong receiving no clear answers. Yun Shichu, however, had gained some crucial information. He believed that some people were clearly sincere, but that didn't mean he had to cooperate with them.

*They are rats in the sewer, afraid of the light,* Yun thought. He didn't know who they were, who they represented, or how much power they held, but as a Commander of China, he felt no need to fear them.

Still, at the right time, choosing temporary cooperation was an option.

Compared to their investment, what those people wanted in return was simple: to break free from their reliance on the Republic’s Radiance. Clearly, this coincided with Yun Shichu’s own thoughts, but in practice, it was far from simple.

The Federation’s reliance on the Republic’s Radiance was bone-deep. If the system were to crash, the Federation’s technological level would effectively regress to the feudal era. That was no exaggeration.

"Why has no one thought of this before?" Yun Shichu wondered. Could it really be that no one realized what a catastrophic decision it was to be so highly dependent on a piece of technology?

The files on the Republic’s Radiance were top secret; even Yun Shichu lacked the clearance to view them. According to the earliest documented records, the emergence of the Republic’s Radiance coincided with the era of humanity’s technological leap. But that didn't prove anything. Did the technological leap create the Republic’s Radiance, or did the Republic’s Radiance create the leap? That was the critical question.

Yun Shichu pulled himself out of his thoughts; there were other things to attend to.

"Attention, all command staff, report to the meeting room," Yun issued the order, then headed to the conference room to wait for them.