My Honkai: Star Rail System Arrived Early

Then, Tingyun began explaining to Ji Yuan all about the Orion star system.

Although Ji Yuan's main goal was to chat with Tingyun, he was genuinely curious about the outside world. As a Celestial Ark Native, he still had several hundred years of life ahead of him if nothing unexpected happened. It would be a terrible waste not to visit other planets.

Ji Yuan decided that once his life crisis was resolved, he would definitely travel the sea of stars thoroughly.

After finishing her explanation about the Orion situation, Tingyun casually chatted with Ji Yuan about the Yaoging Star-skiff as well.

"The Yaoging Star-skiff you come from is far more martially vigorous than our Luofu. It makes this little lady quite frightened. Especially when I met an officer named Suyi—just one look from her made me feel like I'd fallen into an icy abyss."

Hearing Tingyun say this, Ji Yuan said in surprise, "You've met my mother?"

"She's your mother?"

Tingyun was equally surprised.

"Yes, she's my adoptive mother." Ji Yuan nodded. "After my birth parents died in battle, she took me in."

"So that's how it is." Tingyun's gaze toward Ji Yuan grew a bit more caring.

She spoke a few more words of comfort to him.

After talking for a long time, the system's voice finally rang in Ji Yuan's ears.

His heart was filled with anticipation.

Yanqing had obtained such powerful swordsmanship—what about Miss Tingyun?

What would I get!?

[You conversed with a talking corpse for half a day. Reward: Corpse Sewing Experience +1]

Ji Yuan's expression instantly changed.

"What's wrong?"

Tingyun, watching the young man who had been chatting with her for so long suddenly change his expression, was taken aback.

Did I say something wrong?

Why did he suddenly step back as if he'd seen something!?

She was a little confused.

Chapter 4: Tingyun: This Guy Is Like a Chameleon

In the following moments, Tingyun truly learned what it meant to be a Celestial Ark bureaucrat, a Luofu Chameleon.

The young man who had been trying every way to keep talking to her immediately switched to a standard, businesslike demeanor. His expression was still smiling, but it no longer carried that eager, almost confessional look from moments ago.

Even though Ji Yuan confessing now wouldn't have gotten Tingyun's agreement, this abrupt shift in attitude left her feeling as if a fox's claw were scratching at her heart.

"Have I already gotten old, with a generation gap between me and today's youth? Do young people nowadays give up after a few hours of meeting someone if it doesn't work out?"

Tingyun thought to herself.

But after careful consideration, she didn't think she was that old yet.

After thinking it over for a long time, Tingyun still couldn't figure out the exact reason.

Just then, the cargo inspection was finished. Ji Yuan wrote up the review documents and said to Tingyun, "Miss Tingyun, the goods have been inspected. You can have the workers unload them."

"Thank you for your trouble." Tingyun continued looking at Ji Yuan with her fox-like gaze. "There are several more shipments from the Orion Trading Company arriving tomorrow and the day after. We'll have to trouble you Trade Officials again. How about I treat you to dinner tomorrow afternoon?"

"Sorry, Miss Tingyun, I have something to do tomorrow afternoon."

Tomorrow afternoon, he had to go leech Yanqing's swordsmanship so he could escape death sooner. How could he waste time on something like eating?

Hearing Ji Yuan's refusal, Tingyun's expression froze.

How did my charm vanish so instantly?

"Miss Tingyun, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave." Ji Yuan bid Tingyun farewell and turned to go.

After a few steps, his conscience pricked him. He thought it over, then turned back to say to Tingyun, "Miss Tingyun, no matter what you do next time, make sure to protect yourself well. If possible, it's best to always have a few dozen bodyguards with you."

He hoped she would take this advice to heart, so she wouldn't end up as a corpse at some random point in the next hundred years. After all, dying so young at her age would be truly regrettable.

Hearing Ji Yuan's words, Tingyun's mind grew even more confused.

Wait, is he worried about me?

Tingyun was a shrewd merchant; she could clearly see through Ji Yuan's intentions.

His initial enthusiasm wasn't fake, his middle coldness was real, and his final concern came from the heart. This rollercoaster of shifts left Tingyun completely unable to guess Ji Yuan's true thoughts.

As for Ji Yuan's suggestion to bring dozens of bodyguards, Tingyun didn't take it seriously. Setting aside the cost of hiring that many bodyguards, even if she had the money and the people, she couldn't bring that many to negotiations.

The Resonant Flame Trading Company did legitimate business.

"But I suppose this counts as his concern for me."

Tingyun thought to herself.

Ji Yuan returned to the door of his dormitory.

Standing at his door, he didn't go in right away. Instead, he silently took out his phone from his pocket. Opening it, he looked at the camera inside his room. After confirming that no one had entered the room during his daytime shift, he felt at ease and walked into the dormitory.

After entering the dorm, Ji Yuan immediately shut the door tight and activated the alarm device to prevent anyone from breaking in. Only after doing this did he let out a sigh of relief.

To stay alive, he had no choice but to act this way. The prophecy that he would become a corpse in a hundred years hung over Ji Yuan's head like the Sword of Damocles.

Becoming a corpse in a hundred years didn't mean he would only die after a full century—it meant he could die at any time, at any moment within those hundred years. For this reason, Ji Yuan had to be cautious, terrified that some accident might claim his life one day.

Lying on his bed, Ji Yuan originally planned to skim through the news of the Luofu Starfaring Vessel before sleeping.

Just then, a message came through on his communication software. Ji Yun glanced at the contact name marked [Mother] and quickly grabbed it to open.

His adoptive mother Suyi and adoptive father treated him with the same care as their biological daughter, but they were strict about academic requirements, wanting both of them to join the Yaoging Star-skiff's Cloud Knights when they grew up to campaign against the Abundance Fiends.

[Mother: Your father and I just got home, and you actually gave me the slip? What, is it that you don't want to join the Cloud Knights?]

[Ji Yuan: Well... I wanted to go out and explore the world.]

[Pleading expression.JPG]

[Mother: Explore the world? You've just come of age—don't go down the wrong path.]

[Ji Yuan: That won't happen. I've already passed the exam to become a Trade Official on the Luofu Starfaring Vessel.]

He then sent a photo of his work ID.

Seeing the photo Ji Yuan sent, Suyi was silent for a moment.

[Mother: Fine. If you have your own ideas, go ahead and explore first. But don't give up your swordsmanship training. If the work at the Tenpai Department doesn't work out, you can still join the Cloud Knights.]

[Ji Yuan: Mm-hmm.]

[Nodding expression.JPG]

Just as Ji Yuan thought his mother's interrogation was over for now, another message came through.

[Mother: Oh, right. Sushang will be temporarily transferred to the Luofu in a while. Make sure you take good care of your little sister then.]

Seeing this, Ji Yuan immediately sat up.

[Ji Yuan: Changchang is coming to the Luofu?]

[Mother: Yes. She'll come to you when she arrives. By the way, I just cut down a few Abundance Follower pirates and got quite a bit of loot. Use that money to buy a house for you and Changchang's residence on the Luofu. I just sent Sushang a message—she'll come straight to stay with you.]

Following this message was a large transfer of Credits.

Although the Starfaring Vessels had their own currency, using the Interastral Peace Corporation's Credits was more suitable for long-distance transfers like this.

Hearing that Sushang was also coming to stay, Ji Yuan knew there was no easy way to refuse this.

After accepting the transfer, Ji Yuan silently began calculating how to use this money to buy a house on the Luofu.

The house needed to be big enough for him and Changchang to live in, located in a safe area, preferably surrounded by Cloud Knights, and so on. More importantly, the house had to be equipped with plenty of defensive and surveillance devices.

Guaranteeing the house was one hundred percent safe.

"If this money really isn't enough, I'll use my parents' pension then," Ji Yuan thought to himself.

Too bad he couldn't use too much, or Suyi-mother would definitely find out, and then he'd get a thorough scolding.

After thinking it over for a long time, Ji Yuan decided to take a good look around at house listings on his day off.

Having made up his mind, Ji Yuan put down his phone and drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 5: Qingni

["Hey, Qingni, do you know that Trade Official Ji Yuan from your Tenpai Department?"]

[Sitting in the Nevernight Marquis shop, sipping a cup of their specialty tea, Tingyun asked her friend, the Tenpai Department clerk Qingni, who sat beside her.]

A hint of trouble showed on her lovely face, her right hand propping up her cheek, clearly invested in the question.

[After sending those goods into the port, the others from the Resonant Flame Merchant Guild would take over Tingyun's work. Finally free to relax, Tingyun had come to the Nevernight Marquis at Starboat Sea for a couple cups of tea. Coincidentally, she spotted her acquaintance Qingni there, and remembering that she also worked at the Tenpai Department, Tingyun couldn't help but go ask her about Ji Yuan's situation.]

What was up with this guy!?

Across from her, Qingni was startled by Tingyun's question and waved a hand in front of her face.

"You're not falling for the boy at first sight, are you? I've heard from Mother that he's not even two hundred years old yet—still a minor. If his written exam scores weren't so outstanding, there's no way he would have been hired," Qingni said, trying to dissuade Tingyun.

She'd better keep her cougar tendencies in check.

Even if it was legal, it wasn't exactly moral.

["It's not like that. I just happened to see tonight that the Tenpai Department actually had such a fresh-faced young man working as a full Trade Official, and it caught me off guard. I'm a bit curious about him." Tingyun cut off her friend's wild speculations. She organized her thoughts but ultimately didn't mention what had just happened.]

[If word got out about someone suddenly showing fervent romantic interest, then quickly cutting ties, and finally expressing concern—such chaotic, capricious emotional behavior—it would easily invite gossip about Ji Yuan.]

If everyone started talking like that, how would the kid ever find a girlfriend in the future?

Ruining someone without knowing the truth—Tingyun couldn't do that.

She looked at Qingni, tilting her head, and said, "So I want to know about his romantic situation—like whether he's shown interest in anyone, or confessed to anyone."

"That's still first-sight love," Qingni shot Tingyun a look and muttered under her breath. But she quickly assured Tingyun, "Don't worry, leave it to me. I'll go ask around when I go to work tomorrow."

"Good, I'm counting on you."

Tingyun gently patted Qingni's hand and said cheerfully.

She explained once, but seeing that Qingni didn't believe her, she simply stopped explaining.

Let Qingni think whatever she wanted.

After the two had drunk tea for a while, Tingyun bid Qingni farewell and prepared to go home and rest.

There were still many goods from the Orion Trading Company to deal with tomorrow, and Tingyun had even more work waiting for her the next day.

[The next day, Ji Yuan arrived at the Tenpai Department a little later than usual.]

[He had worked overtime last night, and as per convention, as long as it wasn't wartime, coming in a bit later in the morning was fine.]

[But as he stepped into the Tenpai Department, he noticed that the usually fully staffed office was missing quite a few people. Ji Yuan looked around carefully and realized that many of those absent were Trade Officials.]

Just as he was pondering this, the black-haired Fox Folk woman Qingni appeared before him.

Seeing Ji Yuan, she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward their workstations. As they walked, she said to him, "Ji Yuan, you're finally here for work. There's still a lot of work left undone over at the Trade Officials' side. I've been temporarily reassigned there as a clerk, and I don't know much about most of it."

"Qingni, what exactly is going on?"

Ji Yuan asked his colleague.

[Qingni waved her hand and complained, "Ah, don't even mention it. From last night until today, I don't know what happened, but shipments from Flowing Cloud Ferry just keep coming in batch after batch. The port is almost blocked now. Most of the Trade Officials have been transferred over to inspect the goods, and the Tenpai Department is really short on hands right now."]