Chapter One Hundred Forty-Five: The Courage to Speak and the Willingness to Listen

Bai Qingchu and Cao Fusheng had naturally fallen behind the others, and upon hearing the shout, they instinctively paused in their steps.

What does this virtual figure want?

“Come back and have a seat for a moment. At present, your direct involvement isn’t required for the current matters. I assume you aren’t too busy, so a few minutes won’t be an inconvenience, right?” The virtual figure’s voice was tinged with a faint, knowing smile.

Cold sweat suddenly broke out on Bai Qingchu’s forehead. He forced a laugh, hastily pulling a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe it away. “No inconvenience at all, just that the meeting room feels a bit warm…”

Cao Fusheng covered his face, silently wondering just how frail this guy must be, sweating as if there were no tomorrow. Could he have caught some illness?

“Hmm… let me think, how did that saying go? Conditions must be set first, chips held firmly—was that it? I just can’t remember which great figure said it, but it makes quite a bit of sense,” the virtual figure murmured.

Bai Qingchu spat out a mouthful of saliva, the handkerchief slipping from his grasp. He scrambled to catch it, casting a nervous glance at Cao Fusheng, betraying his unease.

“That… who said that? I don’t understand, why would the BOSS suddenly bring up that phrase?” Bai Qingchu forced a smile.

“Sigh, to be honest, I never intended to invoke the Tianzhu survival principle from the start, nor did I need to use it to pressure Captain Cao; that’s simply not my style. Rules are set, but they exist for the majority and are not inflexible. So, Captain Cao’s initial worries were unnecessary. As long as you don’t make a big scene, I won’t retract the privileges I’ve granted you,” the virtual figure’s tone carried a hint of bitterness, as if misunderstood.

“Besides, you asked earlier if we suspected you of being a spy for the Northern Celestial Kingdom. If you truly were a spy, wouldn’t your best option be to wait on the sidelines for us to be overwhelmed and perish in the corpse tide? Why go through the trouble of carving a bloody path? The ministers here are neither fools nor villains. No one begrudges another’s nobility or success. From now on, during your days in Tianzhu, you can place your full trust in our ministers—they each harbor great aspirations and convictions.”

Cao Fusheng gave a wry smile. “I suppose I have judged a noble’s heart with a petty man’s mind.”

“That’s not entirely fair. After all, any normal person tends to consider the worst possible outcomes. Only those truly pure in heart think solely of good and disregard the bad,” the virtual figure sighed.

Then she turned her gaze to Bai Qingchu. “But one thing did surprise me—you two… managed to urinate into the same pot so quickly?”

“That’s impossible! No, no, absolutely not! That was just an elder’s well-meaning urging to a junior! Yes! He’s my junior apprentice brother, so I merely offered some guidance…” Bai Qingchu shook his head like a rattle, his voice weakening and growing uncertain.

Cao Fusheng considered stepping in to defend his convenient senior apprentice brother but realized he had no grounds. The BOSS had already seen through everything—cause and effect were clear to him. No need for more words.

“All right, Minister Bai, don’t take it to heart. I meant no warning. Just avoid these little tricks in the future. Xiao Bai may be your creation, but don’t forget: I am the one in control of everything. If I can connect to all of Tianzhu, is it not trivial to link to a single intelligent AI?” The virtual figure’s tone was complex, tinged with sorrow.

There seemed to be some hidden matter beneath the surface.

Bai Qingchu clearly knew this, showing only a brief flash of surprise before recovering with a bitter smile. “I was too confident.”

“You should be confident. If this were the Old Era, you would surely be a world-renowned scientist. Your creations would be leading among the alliances. But I am just a bit too special.”

“One more thing—I have to commend Captain Cao’s astonishing intuition. I overheard your conversation in the lab. At that moment, I truly feared one of you wouldn’t make it out alive. Thankfully, Minister Bai remained composed, and you were rational. Honestly, the fault lies with me.”

Bai Qingchu’s expression darkened; he growled, “BOSS, you…”

The virtual figure waved a weary hand, leaning back in his chair with a soft voice. “Everything Minister Bai did was under my instruction. Whatever consequences arise, as the mastermind behind the scenes, it falls on me to bear them. The impact of the last experiment was beyond both our expectations.”

They began speaking as if no one else were present, completely disregarding Cao Fusheng.

“Exactly. If not for Old Lu bringing up the energy issue in the meeting, we might still be unaware of the mess we stirred. Fortunately, Junior Brother Cao arrived just in time; otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable!” Bai Qingchu’s gratitude was genuine as he patted Cao Fusheng’s hand warmly.

Cao Fusheng listened, bewildered. When he finally grasped the meaning, he asked, “Are you referring to that experiment involving space-time?”

Both nodded gravely.

“May I ask, Senior Brother Bai, how far have your studies progressed? Is it possible that, in the future, we might create a separate space within the one we inhabit, then manipulate it at will to store or retrieve objects?” Cao Fusheng inquired, curiosity evident.

Bai Qingchu furrowed his brow and pondered briefly before replying decisively, “Of course! But at our current level, it will take many years—could be several years, decades, even centuries. Scientific research is unpredictable; sometimes you gain insight in an instant, other times a lifetime is spent on a project with no results.”

“Actually, there’s something else—it’s easy to realize the existence of such a space, but controlling it deliberately and freely is extremely difficult.”

As the atmosphere turned awkward, Cao Fusheng, having asked his question, tactfully rose to leave. This time, neither the BOSS nor Bai Qingchu called him back.

There were things he shouldn’t know, and those he should know, he already did.

Frankly, Cao Fusheng’s doubts only deepened.

Why did this virtual figure trust him so much? Such sensitive topics should never have been shared with him.

After all, the other ministers were kept in the dark.

And his convenient Senior Brother Bai, too—they both trusted that he wouldn’t be a loose tongue.

One dared to speak, the other dared to listen.

Sometimes, hearing too much isn’t a blessing.

As Cao Fusheng reached the teleportation platform, he bumped into someone—a woman, to be precise—Ruan Luoluo.