Pray for the family.
Jiang Yunyue was sitting on the sofa, still wearing an expensive custom-made dress, but her temples were a little messy and her expression was not as peaceful as usual.
Jiang Qi had been in a trance since he got home. He lowered his head and stared at his palm. His fingers moved and he muttered to himself, "I clearly have the trophy in my hand."
He seemed to be seeing an illusory scene, and his words were light and floating: "I stood on the podium holding the trophy. I gave my acceptance speech. Everyone was looking at me. They all thought I was amazing. I—"
"Jiang Qi!"
Jiang Qi's smile was interrupted by being suddenly stopped, and his face froze into a rather stiff expression.
Jiang Yunyue interrupted Jiang Qi's fantasy without any hesitation. Seeing her son staring at her blankly, she softened her heart again, "Jiang Qi, it's okay. There will be other opportunities in the future. You are the son of the Qi family and the heir of the Qi family. Not only the trophy, but even stepping on Qi Yan under your feet is not a difficult thing!"
Jiang Qi stared at Jiang Yunyue, and a look of fear suddenly appeared on his face: "Impossible, impossible!"
He recalled the time when he was standing on the podium and Qi Yan's cold gaze was as sharp as a knife, scratching him painfully.
"In the submitted report, it was stated that you were responsible for the data. May I ask how you calculated the second fixed value, se=81.927?"
This question was like a curse, and it instantly brought him back to the podium, surrounded by everyone's contemptuous and sarcastic gazes, but he could do nothing.
His hand on his thigh began to spasm uncontrollably. "The second fixed quantity... I don't know what the second fixed quantity is. Why is it 81.927? I don't know. I really don't know. Don't ask me... Don't ask me!"
Jiang Yunyue frowned.
She didn't expect that just an award ceremony and a few questions would scare Jiang Qi so much that he no longer had the desire to compete with Qi Yan.
How could her, Jiang Yunyue's son, be so useless
"Countless things happen to Leto every day, and the limelight will soon pass. You have to be patient. When you can have the final say, who will care about such trivial matters as academic fraud?"
"It's a small matter? I was fired by Turan, and everyone on Starnet is scolding me, saying that some people say I'm disgusting," Jiang Qi said in panic, "The league's laws have severe penalties for academic fraud, and I will be imprisoned!"
He seemed to have thought of something, "Mom, you clearly said that as long as we do as you say, nothing will happen!"
Jiang Yunyue couldn't believe it: "Are you blaming me?"
"Don't you blame me? I just listened to you!"
Jiang Yunyue's face was livid: "Who am I doing this for? I brought you out of an ordinary residential area, turned you into the young master of the Qi family, and let you gain a firm foothold in the upper class of Leto! I made you famous! Now, you blame me?"
"For me? Isn't it for yourself? I am just a means for you to win over Qi Wenshao, and a bargaining chip for you to marry into the Qi family! You asked me to compete with Qi Yan just to vent the anger that was suppressed by Lin Zhi! You asked me to please Qi Wenshao and study hard to enter Tulan. You are planning all for yourself!"
Jiang Qi felt relieved when he said this. Yes, it was all caused by his mother! So he said more without thinking: "If it weren't for me, do you think you can keep your position as the wife of the Qi family? You are just a person who did whatever it took to get to the top—"
Before Jiang Qi uttered the last word, Jiang Yunyue slapped Jiang Qi hard in the face.
She thought expressionlessly: This son is useless, as he is capable of doing more harm than good.
At this time, the door opened and Qi Wenshao, wearing a dark gray long windbreaker, walked in hurriedly.
Jiang Yunyue's face turned blue and tears instantly fell, and she clenched her hand that had hit Jiang Qi into a fist.
This time, Qi Wenshao seemed not to notice Jiang Yunyue's tears. He stood two or three steps away and said, "We have all the evidence of your academic fraud. Once the arrest warrant comes out, the police will come to your door."
Jiang Yunyue looked at Qi Wenshao with tears in her eyes. She moved her lips but no sound came out.
Qi Wenshao was a little impatient, and suppressed his anger: "Who are you crying for? I've only been gone for a few days, and you two have caused such a big mess for me! Don't you think the Qi family's reputation has been ruined enough?"
Jiang Yunyue wiped away her tears and choked up, "That's not the case. You know, Lin Zhi is so smart, and Qi Yan completely inherited her. He doesn't want to see Jiang Qi and me again, so he deliberately targeted us!"
Having been with Qi Wenshao for more than twenty years, Jiang Yunyue knew exactly what Qi Wenshao was worried about.
Why was she still favored by Qi Wenshao even though she was only average looking and a little clever? It was simply because Lin Zhi was too pretty and too smart.
Qi Wenshao fell in love at first sight, infatuated with Lin Zhi's beauty and the unpredictable feeling that Lin Zhi brought to him. He couldn't understand Lin Zhi and wanted to understand her very much.
However, he gradually discovered that there was an insurmountable gap between geniuses and ordinary people. He could not understand the goals that Lin Zhi was pursuing, nor could he understand the theorems and experiments that Lin Zhi mentioned casually.
Standing next to Lin Zhi, his self-esteem collapsed into mud and he felt an extreme inferiority complex.
Therefore, she had the opportunity to get close to Qi Wenshao and fulfill his self-esteem.
She still remembers that when Qi Yan was two years old, she had already shown an IQ and logical ability that surpassed that of ordinary people. Jiang Qi was only three months younger than Qi Yan, but his appearance and intelligence were very ordinary, and he was even slow in learning. She was very worried. But after a while, she found that Qi Wenshao hated Qi Yan and liked Jiang Qi more - because Qi Yan was just like her mother, which made Qi Wenshao feel inferior and fearful.
Even when talking, Qi Wenshao would call Qi Yan "little monster".
While she was mocking the man's fragile self-esteem, she used it as a breakthrough point and gradually secured her current position.
After listening to what Jiang Yunyue said, Qi Wenshao saw Jiang Yunyue with tears on her face and Jiang Qidu with a panicked expression looking at him, as if he was their only support and backbone, and the anger in his heart dissipated a lot.
It was not like he didn't know that Jiang Yunyue and Jiang Qi were just a little smart and would be at a loss when faced with problems.
Qi Wenshao slowed down his voice and said, "This is a big deal. When the police come, you should cooperate. According to the laws of the Alliance, the prison term will be at least nine months. However, I will find the best lawyer and pay a large fine."
Jiang Qi wanted to say something, but was stopped by Jiang Yunyue's eyes.
Qi Wenshao added, "When you are released from prison, Jiang Qi, you will not be able to attend Turan College, and Leto should not stay there yet, find another school. Yunyue, let go of the foundation and charity projects you are in charge of, and leave with Jiang Qi to avoid the limelight."
Jiang Yunyue was panicking. If she really left Leto, would she still be the Madam Qi when she came back? But she knew that the only person she and Jiang Qi could rely on was Qi Wenshao, so she said meekly, "I know. We will follow your arrangements." As she spoke, her eyes became red again.
Qi Wenshao comforted her: "As long as it has nothing to do with the military, the matter can be easily resolved. It's just a Roentgen Award. Don't worry, I will pick you up soon."
Jiang Yunyue nodded with tears in her eyes: "We are waiting for you."
No one knows what she is thinking.
The next day, the front page of Leto Daily published the scene of Jiang Yunyue and Jiang Qi being taken away from Qi's house by the police. For a time, the discussion about the Roentgen Award on Star Network became more heated.
The front-page headline of this issue of Leto Daily is two sentences in pure black and bold.
One sentence is: "Nie Huaiting, you are warmongering!"
Another one is: "Cremo, you are short-sighted!"
The former is Nie Huaiting, the commander-in-chief of the Space Force, the current commander of the Central Army Corps, and a four-star general of the Alliance. The latter is Woodrow Cremo, the commander of the Joint Operations Command, who is also a four-star general of the Alliance.
Nie Huaiting is a typical advocate of war and an iconic figure of the hawkish faction. In his inaugural speech, he stated in a resounding voice that he would do his utmost to resolve the major concern of the rebels during his term of office and fight for the Alliance.
Klimo is a supporter of the peace concept and a representative of the doves. He believes that the rebels and the Alliance have the same origin. He once publicly stated that although they are heading in different directions due to the stubborn disease of technological destruction, if one day the rebels are willing to return to the Alliance territory, they will still be brothers and sisters.
The two had been at odds for a long time and often quarreled openly, but because the expeditionary force had been stationed on the front line of the Southern Cross Region for a long time, it had been suppressing the rebels for nearly a decade and had made outstanding military achievements. The expeditionary force's commander-in-chief Lu Fenghan was Nie Huaiting's direct subordinate, which led to Nie Huaiting always suppressing Krimo.
At least there would never have been a situation where the two sides openly exchanged insults on the front page of the Leto Daily before, let alone openly accusing Nie Huaiting of "warmongering".
Seeing that Lu Fenghan didn't turn the page to the front page, Qi Yan bit his bread and asked him, "What are you reading?"
"The impact of the expeditionary force's second defeat on October 3 has already been revealed," Lu Fenghan looked up and saw that Qi Yan's cheek was bulging and a circular mark was bitten on the bread. His originally stern expression softened in an instant.
I feel that Qi Yan looks a bit like a hamster, but I also feel that there is definitely no hamster as good-looking as this in the entire league.
Qi Yan swallowed the food, read today's front page, and continued Lu Fenghan's words: "Because of the successive defeats on the front line, the expeditionary force has retreated to York Star, so General Nie Huaiting's voice has fallen into the hands of others, and the peace faction has taken over?"
"Not only that," Lu Fenghan twisted his fingers, "the rebels' successive surprise attacks and assassinations on the blacklist have caused fear among ordinary people, which is even more of a catalyst."
He said in a low voice: "When everyone is afraid and terrified, fighting or not fighting, fighting or peace, all lose their meaning. In the final analysis, the military is a knife of the alliance, and the handle of the knife is in the hands of all the citizens of the alliance."
"To defeat the enemy without fighting?" Qi Yan said, "It's not time yet."
"Indeed, but the signs have already appeared," Lu Fenghan said, unable to tell whether he was happy or angry. "Kerimo said that Nie Huaiting was belligerent and did not value human life. He really dared to say that. He is old but still shameless. The reason why the military has a special status in the alliance now is that the military personnel of the same level are actually at least half a level higher than the military and political personnel. A lieutenant colonel like Monger who appeared at the Qi family's celebration party would also be flattered by everyone because the war on the front line has always existed."
He did not shy away from speaking ill of the commander of the Joint Operations Command: "Krimo has tasted the sweetness and wants the military to maintain its superior status. He does not want to lose this supreme privilege, so he is afraid that one day the rebels will be wiped out and the Alliance will have no more wars to fight."
Looking at the words "warmongering" on the front page, Lu Fenghan snorted coldly: "He would like the expeditionary army to suffer two more defeats and confront the rebels on the front line for decades more."
Qi Yan thought for a moment and said, "This is not good."
"Everyone knows it's not good. How many people will die in a small-scale battle? In Krimo's eyes, the casualties and losses reported every time are just numbers."
Lu Fenghan's sarcasm became more and more obvious. "If Kerimo really gets promoted and says that the Alliance and the rebels will sign a ceasefire agreement tomorrow and give the entire Southern Cross region to the rebels, I will believe it."
Qi Yan noticed Lu Fenghan's irritability and depression.
He calculated the progress of "Po Jun" and comforted Lu Fenghan: "I will work hard."
Try your best to make "Po Jun" as soon as possible.
Lu Fenghan was amused by his serious promise: "What are you working hard for?" He bent his fingers and touched Qi Yan's face with his knuckles, "You, try to eat hard first, and eat more."
After breakfast, Qi Yan took Lu Fenghan to school. As soon as they entered the classroom, they heard Mondrian's voice: "... It is the perseverance of countless people working day and night and exhausting their energy..."
Seeing Qi Yan coming in, Xia Zhiyang said excitedly, "I was just listening to you saying that you voluntarily gave up the Roentgen Prize, and the next second you appeared in front of me!"
Qi Yan walked to his seat and sat down: "Are you watching the award ceremony yesterday?"
"Yes, wasn't the Roentgen Award ceremony broadcast live? I didn't watch it at the time, so now I can only watch it by looking for a video. But the number of views is incredible, even higher than that of Virgilina's live concert!" Xia Zhiyang exclaimed excitedly, "You guys are so cool!"
Qi Yan thought of the teams that came on stage later and borrowed Xia Zhiyang's adjective: "Well, they are all very handsome."
"'The glory here belongs to the truth!' I just learned that this sentence is written on the stone tablet at the entrance of the school history exhibition hall!" Xia Zhiyang was proud of it and sighed, "But Turan is too big. This is my second year at school. I have never been to the school history exhibition hall, so I didn't know there was a stone tablet there. You can't blame me for this."
Qi Yan thought that he was the same. Since he entered school, he only went between the classroom and the laboratory, and would go to the library when he had free time.
Xia Zhiyang's baby face was full of smiles, and his eyebrows were dancing with joy: "Yes, yes, I just wanted to say that the scene of Jiang Qi and his mother being taken away by the police was very satisfying! I was refreshed from head to toe! And I really don't understand why you have to cheat? So what if you are a poor student? Isn't it good to work hard to graduate without stealing or robbing?"
After saying that, Xia Zhiyang glanced at Qi Yan again and said, "What I really want to ask is, did anything happen on your way to the classroom just now?"
Qi Yan compared it carefully with his memories: "No, it's just that there are more people on the road today."
Xia Zhiyang covered his chest and said, "I'm so disappointed. I came to school early and heard several groups of people discussing how to stop you and confess to you, but no one said anything?"
Before Qi Yan answered, Lu Fenghan spoke first: "Confession?"
The tone was somewhat unfriendly.
"Yes, actually many people have been eyeing Qi Yan for a long time, but Qi Yan seems cold and hard to approach, so they only dare to watch from afar. At this awards ceremony, Qi Yan gained a lot of favor, so those who originally watched from afar realized that the competition was getting fiercer, so they planned to confess first!"
Lu Fenghan's tone was full of hostility that he himself was not aware of: "Your alliance's strongest prodigal student is so idle?"
"You can't say that. The ratio of men to women in our school is quite balanced, and marriages based on love are beneficial to human reproduction!" Xia Zhiyang made another comparison. "Of course, the ratio of men to women in the school across the river is seriously unbalanced, and all the students in the school are brothers who went to the battlefield together, so we won't include them in the scope of discussion."
Lu Fenghan finished recalling—it turned out that those people he met on the road who were always blocking his way all wanted to confess to Qi Yan
Those who were closest dared to stop only three steps away, stammering and unable to utter a word.
Confession
Oh, you don’t know your own limitations.
Xia Zhiyang touched the metal ring on his ear and thought hard: "Hey, Qiyan, could it be because he's always by your side that others don't dare to get close to you?"
"He" naturally refers to Lu Fenghan.
Lu Fenghan thought, was this asking Qi Yan not to take him with him, giving those unknown people a chance to get close
With his eyes darkened, Lu Fenghan leaned back in his chair and said, "It is written in the contract I signed that I will protect the personal safety of my employer at any time and any place."
He looked at Qi Yan, "Right?"
Qi Yan nodded: "Yes, he protects me."
After hearing this, Lu Fenghan's irritability subsided a little.
He thought to himself that he had to be more careful in the future and not let the little spoiled girl be coaxed away by others.