Chapter 84: Means

Jiang Miao worked at the company for a whole day, and Major Yan He stayed with her the entire time.

It seemed that these military men were all very patient. Whether it was the “Yan He” or the real Major Yan He, neither showed any signs of impatience or restlessness while performing such close protection duties.

The impostor used to flirt with Jiang Miao through the glass and sneak into her office during lunch breaks for who knows what.

The real Major Yan He just sat there, boringly.

During lunch, members of Jiang Miao’s team occasionally greeted him. Major Yan He acknowledged them with a nod.

“Do all your colleagues know him?” he asked.

Jiang Miao remained expressionless: “Someone tried to kidnap me before. He protected me closely for a month, staying in the company every day. Everyone got to know him.”

Yan He said nothing more.

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“Yes. Her makeup machine contained a message disguised as an update, which was just activated. The message was imported about three hours before the ‘Capitol Hill incident.’ It’s certain that this message was left by Troy. They must have a way to contact or meet,” the woman said.

Yan He asked, “What is the content of the message?”

The woman tapped her fingers lightly, and the screen was divided into two halves. On the other half, a jagged line appeared.

Yan He touched that half of the screen, swiping it towards himself to create a separate display. He examined the jagged line carefully for a couple of seconds, then stretched his fingers slightly, transforming the display from 2D to 3D.

The line was a series of twists and turns, seemingly random to a layperson. However, to a military man like Major Yan He, who had extensive experience in space combat, it was familiar. Once the line transformed from 2D to 3D, he recognized it.

“It’s a star map,” he said. “This is a route connecting eight planets.”

“Yes, Major,” the woman in the black suit nodded. “Our analysts have also confirmed that this is a star map.”

This was a significant discovery and an important lead in the hunt for Troy. It was a clue that he had found and reported.

Major Yan He’s breathing faltered for a moment but quickly steadied. Suppressing the hope rising within him, he maintained his professional composure and asked, “How long will it take to analyze and compare the results?”

The woman in the black suit sighed, “The estimated time is seven months.”

It was like a bucket of cold water was dumped over Major Yan He. He pressed his lips together tightly and demanded, “Why will it take so long?”

The woman explained, “Major, do you know how many planets there are in the full map of the star system? This is with the comparison range narrowed down from the capital star towards Nash. We are using the most advanced optical brain in the National Security Department.”

Major Yan He furrowed his brows.

The thought “Why not report it to the main brain?” flashed through his mind but was quickly dismissed. Instead, he asked, “What’s wrong with the main brain?”

The woman in the black suit pursed her lips in resignation and said, “That’s beyond your clearance, Major.”

“You don’t need to inquire about things you shouldn’t know. The key breakthrough now depends on Dr. Jiang Miao,” the woman continued. “Opinions are divided. One faction believes she should be arrested on charges of treason for concealing information and subjected to severe interrogation…”

Major Yan He interrupted her, “I personally do not support this.”

“State your reasons, Major.”

“Considering Troy’s meticulous nature and his personal relationship with Dr. Jiang, I believe that without Dr. Jiang personally drawing him out, the chances of successfully capturing him are very slim. It is more likely that Troy will not show up at all.”

“We could deploy an agent to impersonate Dr. Jiang…”

“Ma’am, no offense intended, but Dr. Jiang identified me as not being Troy within almost five seconds.”

The woman in the black suit fell silent.

Jiang Miao had recognized him in front of everyone in less than five seconds, without Major Yan He saying a word or making any physical contact, that he was not Troy.

If Troy were to meet Jiang Miao, he would certainly give himself enough time and distance to observe the “Jiang Miao” coming to meet him. The intimate connection between lovers includes subtle nuances that outsiders can’t detect or mimic, making it impossible to fool him upon closer inspection.

The risk of failure was too high.

“I agree with your assessment. I personally do not support using extreme measures on Dr. Jiang. However, Major, based on your observations, do you think Dr. Jiang’s concealment and attempted destruction of the information left by Troy indicates a tendency towards treason?” the woman in the black suit asked.

Major Yan He was silent for a moment before saying, “No, I don’t think so.”

“Dr. Jiang is a highly successful professional. I don’t believe she would commit treason for a man whose appearance she doesn’t even know,” he said. “Based on my observations, her concealment of the information left by Troy was more likely due to concerns about her child.”

“Oh?”

“Dr. Jiang likely feared that our efforts to capture Troy might lead to violent conflicts that could endanger her child. When she deliberately damaged the makeup machine this morning, she was visibly angry. I believe this anger was directed at Troy.”

“Indeed, that man is truly despicable,” the woman in the black suit couldn’t help but comment. “Completely unprofessional.”

As a spy, Troy should not have let personal entanglements interfere with his mission. Major Yan He agreed that Troy lacked professionalism in matters concerning Jiang Miao.

But, what if… he simply couldn’t help himself?

“Stand by for now. I will notify you once I have new instructions,” the woman in the black suit ended the communication.

Dinner was, of course, a meal prepared by the automated cooking machine.

Jiang Miao didn’t make an appearance; the food was delivered to her bedroom by a robot.

Yan He knew Jiang Miao was reluctant to see him. Officially, he was there to protect her, but in reality, he was monitoring her, a symbol of the government’s distrust. Personally, his face caused her both embarrassment and pain.

But Major Yan He insisted on knocking on her bedroom door.

“Before you go to sleep, I will check on your safety every hour. Please give me full access to the house or at least cohabitant privileges,” he paused and added, “I can also obtain permissions from the building’s central system, but that would alert the higher-ups.”

Major Yan He tapped the door frame.

Earlier that morning, before Jiang Miao smashed the makeup machine, she had revoked Major Yan He’s cohabitant access, which he had obtained while posing as “Yan He.” When he rushed over upon hearing the noise, the bedroom door was closed.

This metal door, capable of stopping ordinary people and even a few bullets, was like paper to Major Yan He. He had broken through the door.

Of course, by the time Jiang Miao returned home from work, all the damage in the house had been repaired. She had ordered new sofas and replacement furniture from her office, along with a new makeup machine and door.

Although she wasn’t home, the packages were received by Xiaona, and the property management sent installation robots. She monitored the house from her office, checking the surveillance footage occasionally.

Jiang Miao stared at Major Yan He.

“This isn’t a personal vendetta, Doctor,” Major Yan He said calmly.

“And what about my privacy?” Jiang Miao demanded. “Can I request a female security officer?”

“In non-emergency situations, I will ask for your permission before entering,” Major Yan He paused and lowered his voice. “What happened last night won’t happen again, I promise.”

His voice was so pleasant. It was the voice Jiang Miao had once claimed to be her “absolute favorite.”

In the lab during the day, when she called out “Xiao Du,” and that voice responded, she almost suffocated.

Fortunately, the glass walls of the lab were not only bulletproof and gas-proof but also soundproof, so Major Yan He, sitting in the rest area outside, couldn’t hear anything. When Jiang Miao glanced at him awkwardly, he had tensed up, sensing something.

Jiang Miao quickly turned away, pretending nothing had happened, and immediately changed Xiao Du’s voice.

Tanaka understood everything. He found it both funny and tragic, so his expression twisted between suppressed laughter and sympathy, looking quite peculiar.

Jiang Miao looked away and issued a command: “Xiaona, grant Major cohabitant privileges and permission to operate the door to my bedroom.”

“Thank you,” Major Yan He nodded, then asked, “Are you going to sleep now?”

“It’s too early; I plan to stay up until normal bedtime to adjust my jet lag,” Jiang Miao said.

Major Yan He nodded silently.

But as he said, he checked Jiang Miao’s safety every hour. He knew she didn’t want to see him frequently, but he did it deliberately.

In relationships between men and women, it always starts with the face.

He just wanted his face to appear in front of Jiang Miao a few more times, constantly reminding her that this face belonged to him, unlike Troy, a man she didn’t even know the appearance of.

After two times, Jiang Miao had enough.

She frowned and said, “I’m going to bed!”

“Okay,” Major Yan He said, then unceremoniously entered Jiang Miao’s dressing room.

He checked every corner where a person could hide to ensure safety before entering the bathroom.

The mirror on the sink had been replaced, along with the makeup machine connected behind it.

After checking the bathroom, Major Yan He tapped on the mirror with his fingers. When he looked up, he saw Jiang Miao standing at the bathroom door, her body tense, indicating she was nervous.

Major Yan He thought she must have believed that the domestic robots had cleaned up the mess in the morning. In reality, the National Security Agency had obtained ownership rights to the house from the building’s central system. After his report, the debris from the makeup machine had been taken away by National Security.

During their journey to Allison, he had kept talking to her so she couldn’t focus on checking the house’s surveillance.

Pretending not to notice Jiang Miao’s tension, he turned around and said, “Everything’s fine; you can rest now. Goodnight, Doctor.”

His actions seemed to weaken Jiang Miao’s aura a bit. She lowered her head and said softly, “Goodnight, Major.”

Major Yan He nodded and walked past her.

Only after hearing the door close did Jiang Miao raise her eyes.

In the mirror, Jiang Miao’s eyes showed neither anger nor the tension she had felt earlier. As she glanced at the newly repaired sink, her gaze was calm and rational, much like when facing mathematical formulas.

Major Yan He returned to his room but didn’t immediately go to sleep.

He ordered Xiaona to replay the house’s surveillance footage for him.

“Segments of three months when Major Yan He was alone at home,” he set the filter conditions, “Oh, you can ignore the kid.”

Xiaona then began playing clips of “Yan He” recorded when Jiang Miao wasn’t at home.

Yan He fast-forwarded through half an hour, finding nothing. The man was just taking care of the child, cooking, and exercising.

This house, Dr. Jiang Miao, and the child were evidently just props for him. He didn’t do anything else in this house.

Major Yan He was somewhat disappointed. He thought for a moment, then had Xiaona filter out segments of Jiang Miao interacting with the fake Yan He.

This time, it wasn’t disappointment; it was eerie.

The same face, as if watching himself falling in love.

The intimacy between the two was evident, not just inside the bedroom but also outside, often being affectionate. However, whenever things got serious, the footage disappeared.

The cunning man knew to disable the surveillance!

All these surveillance records had been copied by the National Security Agency long before Jiang Miao was detained at the military base.

Major Yan He closed the screen with a stern face.

Before going to bed, he received further instructions:

【Stay with Jiang Miao for the time being. Allow the use of any means without causing bodily harm.】

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Sansukini: I believe they can’t “outbrain” Jiang Miao. You can’t stop a mother from finding her son.

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