Lü Yongchang raised an eyebrow but did not speak right away.
"Zhengqing!"
Ren Feng's voice was filled with anxiety. "How could you..."
"This is for all our sakes," Zhang Zhengqing interrupted him. "What if something like this happens again?"
"Are we supposed to sit here and leave our fate to chance, just like we're doing now?"
Ren Feng was at a loss for words.
He hesitated for a moment. "B-but that's no reason for us to ask for these things."
"Don't forget, every one of us signed an agreement when we chose to stay on Proxima b."
Zhang Zhengqing's expression stiffened.
He remembered now.
There... did seem to have been such an agreement.
Thinking of how casually he had signed his name back then, Zhang Zhengqing suddenly looked embarrassed.
"All right."
Lü Yongchang chuckled and nodded. "I agree."
Zhang Zhengqing raised his head in surprise and looked at the holographic projection before him.
In the projection, Lü Yongchang was still looking at him with the same gentle smile he had worn at the start.
"W-what?"
Zhang Zhengqing opened his mouth and asked in a strained voice.
"I said I agree to your request," Lü Yongchang repeated with a smile.
Before Zhang Zhengqing could celebrate, he changed tack. "But I have a condition of my own."
Zhang Zhengqing steadied himself and nodded without hesitation. "Please, go ahead."
"Next, I'll transfer all access privileges to you."
"You'll have complete autonomy, and I'll transmit the full technological framework to you," Lü Yongchang said calmly.
"However."
"In return, you'll no longer receive Zero's help. You'll have to rely on yourselves for everything."
"Can you accept that condition?"
A hint of conflict appeared in Zhang Zhengqing's eyes.
But his gaze soon grew resolute.
He nodded firmly and said in a deep voice, "We can!"
"I