Chapter 23 Green Chirp-Chirp Gui Banjing

　　Sitting at the dining table, Wei Yin ate slowly, but he felt uneasy inside.
　　Wei Yin: “Did I create a huge problem for the Major General?”
　　Shangyang: “Yes. But it isn’t your fault.”
　　Wei Yin: “That old bastard is definitely going to make a move, right?”
　　Shangyang: “Since Major General Sain is confident, instead of worrying about that, you should start studying as soon as possible.”
　　Wei Yin thought about it and realized that was true. So he quickly shoveled down the rest of his meal, turned toward Major General Sain, and asked, “Can I use the Star Network?”
　　Major General Sain picked up a napkin and wiped Wei Yin’s mouth, then nodded. “Of course. Taowu is equipped with an optical computer. You can use it.”
　　Wei Yin showed a happy smile and said to Major General Sain, “Then I’m full. Can I leave the table?”
　　“Mm.” Major General Sain put down the napkin and watched Wei Yin run upstairs.
　　Only after Wei Yin disappeared upstairs did Damm speak. “Madam is recovering very quickly. But if his condition continues to be this unstable, the outlook still isn’t especially good.”
　　“We can’t rush it.” Major General Sain shook his head.
　　Damm looked at Major General Sain. “You were too impulsive this time.”
　　Major General Sain looked back at Damm and said indifferently, “I thought all of you felt I’d tolerated them for too long.”
　　Damm froze, his expression strange. In the end, he only sighed, lifted his wineglass in a solitary toast, and smiled. “Then here’s hoping the Major General’s wife becomes a qualified Guide as soon as possible.”
　　Upstairs.
　　The Major General’s wife upon whom such great hopes had been placed was sitting on the carpet, repeatedly swiping his fingers across a light screen while searching for introductory Guide materials—because of how highly the Empire valued Guides and Sentinels, all introductory educational materials were free and publicly shared.
　　Wei Yin browsed around for a while and ultimately chose an educational cartoon for young children about basic Guide knowledge. He watched with great interest—the cartoon was aimed at early childhood education, and its main character was a mental tendril named Touchy.
　　Wei Yin opened the terminal, brought up his notes, titled the page “Touchy 01,” and began earnestly taking notes while watching.
　　Shangyang: “…” It was time to seriously consider an important question—exactly how high was its host’s IQ?
　　The more Shangyang thought about it, the more despairing it became. In the end, it simply had Taowu open another channel and enrolled itself in an advanced Guide course through a Star Network academy.
　　Taowu lay between Wei Yin and Shangyang. Although this was the first time in its entire existence it had been used as a learning device, it was extremely happy. One moment its tail curled around Shangyang; the next, it wrapped around Wei Yin’s ankle. It looked like a dragon sitting atop mountains of gold and silver, its face filled with contentment and happiness.
　　Sunlight streamed in through the window, making the quiet room feel peaceful and beautiful.
　　That harmonious stretch of time lasted until evening. The sun sank below the horizon, leaving only a brilliant wash of afterglow across the sky.
　　Wei Yin had just finished devouring the first season of the introductory cartoon and was stretching hugely when his bedroom door opened.
　　Wei Yin turned his head and came face-to-face with the object in Major General Sain’s hand—it was a leather collar with an extremely suggestive design.
　　Wei Yin was instantly stunned. “I always thought the Major General was the mild-clear-broth type. I never expected him to bepervert-level extra spicy!”
　　Shangyang said coldly, “That’s a mental-barrier simulation device.”
　　Wei Yin: “…Oh.”
　　Shangyang: “…” What the hell are you disappointed about?!
　　Major General Sain walked over to Wei Yin and crouched so they were at eye level. There was a hint of apology in his eyes.
　　Major General Sain: “Wei Yin, some bad people are going to come in a little while. I need you to wear this. It will protect you. All right?”
　　Wei Yin looked at the strangely shaped object in Major General Sain’s hand and showed an unhappy expression. But then he looked at Major General Sain again. In the end, he nodded reluctantly and even stretched his neck forward a little.
　　Major General Sain smiled, then fastened the collar around Wei Yin’s neck.
　　The collar caused no discomfort. It was very light and very soft, like an ordinary accessory. Wei Yin reached up and touched it. Fine—the extremely obscene-looking decoration was all fucking holographic imagery. Sigh. The Major General really was still a clear-broth dish after all.
　　Major General Sain pulled Wei Yin to his feet but did not immediately leave. Instead, he looked at Wei Yin and said, “Wei Yin, listen to me. Something may happen in a while that frightens you. You—”
　　“Like what happened yesterday? In front of Kalida, when you deliberately acted like that.” Wei Yin frowned. After speaking, he gave Major General Sain an accusing look. “I know now that you were pretending, but I was really scared at the time.”
　　Major General Sain had not expected Wei Yin to say something like that, much less bring up what had happened yesterday. For a moment, Major General Sain froze. But he quickly recovered and smiled—Wei Yin might be somewhat childish, but he was intelligent by nature.
　　Major General Sain nodded. “Yes, like that. But it may be a little more frightening. Also, you need to put Yangyang away. No one else can see it, and you can’t let it come out. You also need to pretend to be the way you were before. You don’t need to worry about anything. Just follow me.”
　　Wei Yin tilted his head and looked at Major General Sain. “You want me to pretend to be stupid?”
　　Major General Sain caught a small but important detail. “Have you pretended to be stupid before?”
　　Wei Yin immediately looked embarrassed at being exposed. He nervously twisted the hem of his clothes and said, “Because if I didn’t pretend to be stupid, Kalida would make me take medicine again. I just didn’t want to take the medicine. I wasn’t pretending on purpose!”
　　Seeing him anxiously explain himself, Major General Sain comforted him. “I know you’re a good child. Then in a little while, just pretend the way you did before. Remember, no matter what happens, don’t panic, because I’ll protect you. All right?”
　　Wei Yin looked at Major General Sain and suddenly showed him a smile. “Mm. I trust you.”
　　Major General Sain froze. An inexplicable emotion surged through his chest, filling it with a warm, almost scalding current.
　　“Good. Good.” Major General Sain said “good” twice, perhaps without even knowing himself what exactly was good.
　　Then Major General Sain rubbed the top of Wei Yin’s head, took his hand, and said, “Let’s go downstairs.”
　　“Mm.” With that, Wei Yin recalled Shangyang into his consciousness cloud. The instant he stepped out of the bedroom, he entered Film Emperor mode—in reality, he handed control of his body over to Shangyang.
　　Major General Sain brought Wei Yin into the living room. Damm had already left, but another person was waiting there. It was not Old Mike, but a strange middle-aged man.
　　The man had obvious East Asian ancestry and was tall and thin. He wore a gray suit and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. Along the edge of his suit collar was embroidered a branch-like pattern, the insignia of a registered treatment Guide. Guides who possessed registered IDs were usually high-ranking and highly experienced in treatment. They were well paid, generally highly capable, and treated almost exclusively members of noble families. For that reason, they had always been regarded as the “aristocracy” among Guides.
　　Major General Sain led Wei Yin to the sofa and sat down. The way he held Wei Yin’s hand looked like someone leading a pet, clearly having returned to his previous arrogant, unruly persona.
　　“Major General Sain, long time no see.” The man saluted Major General Sain, then looked at Wei Yin. “Madam, this is our first meeting. My name is Lu Qianhe. I am Major General Sain’s personal treatment Guide.”
　　Wei Yin’s gaze had not moved at all, but when Lu Qianhe bent down, he practically placed his own face directly in front of Wei Yin. Caught off guard, Wei Yin met Lu Qianhe’s eyes. Lu Qianhe’s eyes were brown, but behind the lenses they had a metallic quality—cold and hard, as though scrutinizing something. Any tiny flaw would be seized immediately at its vital point.
　　Wei Yin completely ignored Lu Qianhe’s “come-hither glance,” coolly watched him perform, and gave this “supposedly subtle threat delivered through the eyes” a score of fifty-nine.
　　Seeing that Wei Yin did not react, Lu Qianhe did not continue staring. As though he had merely glanced at him out of courtesy, he straightened again. Then he stood there properly, one hand resting in front of him, looking cultivated and refined.
　　—Mm. A living, breathing, walking template for a refined scumbag.
　　Lu Qianhe: “The interval before the Major General’s next deployment is too short, so Mr. Hera is somewhat worried and asked me to come ease the condition of the Major General’s consciousness cloud. Also, because Kalida mentioned that Madam’s condition has been somewhat unstable, Mr. Hera specifically instructed me to examine Madam as well.”
　　Major General Sain laughed when he heard that. In an odd tone, he said, “Grandfather is as attentive as ever to my ‘every move.’”
　　Lu Qianhe pretended not to hear the implication in Major General Sain’s words. He only continued smiling politely. “You are the relative Mr. Hera values most. Naturally, he cares deeply about you. Then, Major General, would you like me to examine you first, or Madam first?”
　　Major General Sain gave two cold laughs, lifted his chin provocatively, and said, “Since that’s the case, I’ll let you hear Kalida’s opinion first. Charlie, bring Kalida here.”
　　Old Housekeeper Charlie came in from outside the door and bowed slightly from where he stood by the entrance. “Yes.”
　　Lu Qianhe’s brows drew together for a fleeting instant. He had treated Major General Sain for nearly ten years and knew him far too well. Whenever Major General Sain became this easy to deal with, it usually meant the difficulty level of the treatment was about to soar straight upward.
　　Lu Qianhe’s intuition was correct. Kalida was quickly brought over, but the Kalida who appeared was just like Wei Yin. Her eyes were empty, and she allowed a personal guard to lead her forward without resistance, looking completely numb and unaware.
　　“Oh, right.” At that moment, Major General Sain’s utterly insincere voice rang out. “This morning, while Doctor Kalida was taking a walk around the estate, she accidentally got hit in the head by a meteorite. It probably damaged her brain. Doctor Lu, if you want to understand my wife’s condition, you’d better hurry up and cure Doctor Kalida first.”
　　A meteorite?
　　Shangyang was stunned. “The Major General can actually be this shameless too?”
　　Wei Yin: “What do you mean ‘too’?”
　　Shangyang: “Go look in a mirror later and you’ll understand.”
　　Wei Yin: “…”
　　Lu Qianhe’s face was nearly green. An extremely thin mental tendril suddenly extended from the back of his neck. It easily and rapidly invaded Kalida’s consciousness cloud, then withdrew and vanished again in less than the blink of an eye.
　　The green in Lu Qianhe’s face turned black. Shocked and furious, he looked at Major General Sain. “Major General. Do you understand what you’ve done? You actually destroyed her consciousness cloud!”
　　Major General Sain sneered. Then, without warning, every trace of laughter vanished from his face. His expression became completely blank and so cold that he resembled a lone rakshasa wolf emerging from the depths of an ice field.
　　“Then do you understand what the hell you are? Since when was it your place to question my decisions?”