Chapter 97: Origin

He Yan didn’t know what happened to Jiang Miao when Little Fish carried her away to the bedroom during the time he was detained in the cabin. However, Little Fish must have made Jiang Miao very unhappy; this was evident from the intensity with which Jiang Miao beat Little Fish in the confinement room, as seen through the surveillance video.

After beating Little Fish, Jiang Miao calmly drank a glass of water and then asked He Yan, “What’s the story with the Young Master He of the Bardock family?”

He Yan was delighted that Jiang Miao took the initiative to ask about him, and his eyes shone.

“Bardock is my adoptive mother’s surname,” he said.

Jiang Miao said, “Sounds like a big family?”

In Gita’s social culture, the upper class still has large families like the Allisons and the Alvas. In Nash, a country that preserves the marriage and family system, family culture is likely to be even more intact.

He Yan nodded in acknowledgment.

“My adoptive mother was the late Five-Star General Evelyn Bardock of the Republic of Nash,” he said.

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Kkydt Ykys: “…”

Kkydt Ykys awccle bla qsalblye.

“Fs Nkvvzl Wkpb byvlp usw vs vbl nsal cwv eslpd’v eyal vs jkzz usw…” pbl pyke.

“Tl qlyap vbl Jyaesnj qyxkzu’p alvyzkyvksd,” Tl Zyd yexkvvle.

Gzvbswtb bl oyp yd yesrvle psd, bkp yesrvkhl casvblap yde pkpvlap olal yzz cktoktp kd vbl xkzkvyau…

“Typ ydusdl lhla pyke vs usw psxlvbkdt zkjl, ‘Ls osdela usw clnyxl y xyfsa yv pwnb y uswdt ytl’?” Kkydt Ykys nswzed’v blzr cwv ypj.

“When I hid my identity, no,” He Yan said. “I don’t have the Bardock surname, and my race is different. If I don’t say it myself, no one will know.”

“And later?” Jiang Miao asked.

“Later…” He Yan’s expression became subtle. “Later, I became too high-profile. That year, I earned the title of ace pilot. Some bored people in the military started digging into my student records and found that it was General Jude Bardock who attended my parent-teacher meeting. That’s how they discovered I was an adopted son of the Bardock family.”

“And then people started gossiping?”

“Yes, and then some even more bored people began to sarcastically call me ‘Young Master He.'”

Jiang Miao was thoughtful. After a while, she asked, “The ones who dug into your information… were they female soldiers?”

He Yan’s gaze drifted slightly.

Jiang Miao understood immediately; it was definitely the jealous male colleagues who were being sarcastic.

Alright, I’ve learned enough for today. Jiang Miao nodded and said, “I’m going to take a shower.” After all that fussing around earlier, she was sweating.

She turned to leave, but He Yan grabbed her wrist. “Miaomiao!”

“I admit, my family has definitely helped me with resources, including arranging for me to join the peacekeeping forces. But all my battle achievements are real, earned with my life,” he said softly.

Jiang Miao calmly replied, “I know.”

If He Yan were a pampered young master, he wouldn’t have been sent on such an important mission to an enemy country. Being chosen already indicated he was an elite in the military.

Moreover, his excellence was evident in his youth.

He Yan breathed a huge sigh of relief and said in a low voice, “Thank you.”

Jiang Miao was puzzled. “Thank me for what?”

He Yan leaned down and gently pecked her cheek. “Thank you for being willing to see me differently.”

Jiang Miao was stunned for a couple of seconds before responding woodenly, “No need to thank me.” She pulled her hand free and went to take a shower.

He Yan watched her slender figure disappear at the door, his eyes showing a long-missed look of contentment.

Since they had left Gita, Jiang Miao and Rui Rui had finally had a real-time communication session after such a long separation.

Unlike the last time when Jiang Miao only filmed a video for Rui Rui, this time General Jude Bardock, He Yan’s elder brother, appeared on the call.

“Hello, Doctor,” the middle-aged man said with a smile. The man had deep crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes.

He Yan had mentioned before that Evelyn Bardock, who adopted him, was old enough to be his great-great-grandmother. Her eldest son, Jude, was old enough to be He Yan’s father, and indeed, he raised He Yan as his own son.

The middle-aged man’s appearance and the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes indicated his age. If this were ancient Earth, he would probably be an old man with white hair by now. But with the longevity of interstellar humans, he appeared only middle-aged.

“Hello, General,” Jiang Miao responded. “I’m sorry for any trouble Jiang Rui has caused you during this time.”

“Not at all, not at all,” General Jude said with a happy smile. “My boy has been the one causing you trouble.”

Jiang Miao didn’t understand why he was so happy. She wasn’t concerned about that; she only cared about Jiang Rui. “May I ask where Rui Rui is now…?”

“Oh! Rui Rui! Sweetie Rui Rui! Come, come, come to Uncle!” General Jude called out.

Rui Rui quickly appeared on the screen, being held and sitting on Jude’s lap.

It had been more than two months since the last video recording, and Rui Rui had obviously grown a bit. Jiang Miao’s eyes instantly turned red.

When Rui Rui saw Jiang Miao on the screen, he hadn’t forgotten her. He opened his little hands and grinned happily, “Mama! Mama!”

Jiang Miao nearly burst into tears but held back, asking, “Rui Rui, are you okay?”

Rui Rui’s bright eyes looked at her, a bit confused by such a general question.

Jude gently patted him. “Rui Rui, tell Mama if you like it here with Uncle.”

“I like it!” Rui Rui’s face lit up. “Rui Rui likes Uncle! Likes fireworks!”

On the secret return trip, there were no actual fireworks. However, explosions in space indeed looked like fireworks. Amidst the darkness, the barrage of bullets and explosions were quite beautiful.

Jude was taking a route filled with smuggling ships and space pirates.

Jiang Miao bit her lip and said to Jude, “Thank you for taking such good care of him.”

Rui Rui’s cheeks had filled out, and he looked not only healthy with a rosy complexion but also more active and lively. It was clear he was well cared for.

“No need to thank me. You don’t have to worry about Rui Rui while he’s with me. I’ve had four children, all raised by myself,” General Jude said with a smile. “Besides, Rui Rui is my little nephew. It’s been over ten years since we’ve had a new baby in the family, and I really miss when my kids were little. When we return, everyone will be so happy to see Rui Rui. Doctor, I need to remind you to prepare yourself mentally. We are a large family with many members. Coming from Gita, you might need some time to adjust.”

“As long as Rui Rui is safe, I don’t mind anything else,” Jiang Miao said with a faint smile. “And I adapt very well.”

“That’s wonderful. Doctor, ever since I learned about your existence, I have been sincerely looking forward to meeting you,” General Jude said. “The rest of the family doesn’t know yet, but once they do, they will be just as eager to meet you.”

His tone was earnest, clearly expressing his welcome and stance as the head of the family.

Jiang Miao nodded. “I am also looking forward to meeting He Yan’s family.”

“Very well, Doctor. We’ll see you at Eagle Fortress.”

“Okay, General.”

After the communication ended, He Yan turned off the light screen and said, “As you requested, I didn’t mention anything about Little Fish.”

“Thank you,” Jiang Miao said. “I’m afraid that if your brother knew, he would demand that you confiscate the teleportation device immediately, leaving me no chance to study it.”

He Yan couldn’t deny this possibility. After all, everyone has their own stance.

Seeing Jiang Rui healthy and safe with a rosy complexion, He Yan thought Jiang Miao would be happier.

But Jiang Miao became gloomy instead.

She hadn’t even been this way when she first reunited with him. Back then, she was full of anger and determination, with all her energy focused on finding her child.

He Yan couldn’t understand why Jiang Miao seemed even more unhappy now. When he tentatively asked, Jiang Miao only stared coldly at him.

It seemed that although they had made some progress, this real-time communication had set them back.

He Yan felt even more depressed than Jiang Miao.

Jiang Miao spent most of her time locked in the lab, studying the teleportation device. All high-tech devices come with manuals or operation guides, but unfortunately, as He Yan had previously told Jiang Miao, this device was not of modern manufacture. It came from the ruins of an ancient, now-extinct advanced race, and naturally, it used a different language.

In addition to extracting data from the device, Jiang Miao often went to the confinement room to talk with Little Fish, trying to get more information from him.

“I don’t know,” Little Fish shrugged. “The person who initially helped me understand how to use this thing is dead.”

Jiang Miao was silent for a moment and then said, “Don’t tell me you killed him.”

Little Fish smiled smugly. “Otherwise, how could I have monopolized this thing?”

Jiang Miao gave him a hostile look.

“My silly doctor,” Little Fish sighed. “The outside world is like this. How many countries are as closed-off as Gita? In this entire human habitation zone, Gita is the only one. In a way, you people living in Gita’s inner region are quite fortunate, despite knowing nothing about the outside world.”

His words made Jiang Miao fall silent.

As they met more often, they naturally talked more.

Later, Jiang Miao asked Little Fish, “What grudge do you have against He Yan?”

If it were just the relationship between a soldier and a bandit, He Yan, on a secret mission in Gita, would have remained undercover even if he recognized Little Fish. Jiang Miao didn’t believe He Yan couldn’t have that level of restraint. But He Yan had drawn his gun right away, indicating there was more than just a professional conflict between them. There was clearly a personal vendetta.

“Aiya, it’s a long story,” Little Fish said. Being bored in confinement, he much preferred talking to Jiang Miao over He Yan and was happy to chat with her.

“Back then, I wasn’t the big shot I am now, just a petty thief. Once, at a black market, a group of guys came to raid the place. In the chaos, my partner and I stole a ship.”

“The ship was just an ordinary private one with some unknown equipment onboard. However, we found some interesting documents inside. We intended to sell these documents, but the buyer got too excited when he saw them. My partner and I figured there must be profit involved, so we secretly followed that person for half a year.”

“That person used the documents to discover some buried ruins on a deserted planet and found some interesting stuff. My partner and I robbed him. We didn’t kill him right away because we didn’t understand what those things were for. Once we figured it out, we killed him, and then I killed my partner…”

“Aiya, it’s a common story. No need to look at me like that.”

“We sold most of the stuff, but I kept this teleportation device. It’s great for escaping. With this and my first earnings, I built my cannibal fish empire. Pretty eventful life, right?” Little Fish said proudly.

Jiang Miao was silent for a long time.

She understood everything. Little Fish was the petty thief who had stolen He Yan’s family spaceship in the chaos.

“So He Yan knows?” Jiang Miao asked.

“He knows,” Little Fish said, a bit annoyed. “My life has been so exciting, how could I not boast about it to others? Who knew that would attract the mad wolf. He’s been after me like a lunatic. If not for the teleportation device, I’d be dead several times over.”

“You indeed deserve to die,” Jiang Miao said. “He Yan’s family could have escaped. Because the spaceship was stolen, they had nowhere to go and perished on an alien planet. It makes sense for He Yan to chase you to the ends of the earth.”

After saying that, Jiang Miao punched Little Fish in the face.

Jiang Miao seemed to find a new way to vent. Whenever her research on the teleportation device made no progress, she got upset. When upset, she went to beat up Little Fish. After beating him up, she felt a bit better.

At first, He Yan was worried. After observing a few times, he decided it wasn’t a big deal and stopped interfering.

However, four days before the spaceship was due to reach Eagle Fortress, Little Fish escaped, taking advantage of Jiang Miao’s carelessness.

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Sansukini: Did Miaomiao let Little Fish go?

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