At 7 PM Earth time, it was already dark. Earth Two, having left JD3, no longer had starlight or the day-night cycle caused by its rotation. To provide a better experience for the public, the more than 5 million Wind Master carrying Earth adjusted the brightness of their searchlights according to Earth time. These searchlights simulated Earth's day and night cycles while also providing Earth Two with a small amount of heat. Without a star, a planet directly exposed to interstellar space would quickly lose heat. Even with the atmosphere and the Wind Master' space-distorting insulation, it couldn't completely prevent heat loss. If Earth Two didn't receive additional heat, it would quickly drop to tens of degrees below zero.
The noisy crowd in the square finally quieted down, not because people's enthusiasm had waned, but because the scientists were simply too exhausted. Several academicians stumbled and found Hu Yu, who was having a drink with Hu Yu Wen Zhonghua and several other generals. It had been a long time since he had felt so relaxed.
Several generals were already quite drunk, with only Hu Yu Wen Zhonghua remaining relatively sober. Upon seeing the academicians enter, these generals immediately perked up and pretended to be perfectly fine. Soldiers always have their own little pride and always want to show their strength. It doesn't matter in front of their comrades, but they absolutely cannot lose their composure in front of these technical scholars.
"General, you're all enjoying your leisurely drinks here, but you've really put us through the wringer. Our people are just too enthusiastic; I'm practically being torn apart. Next time, I'd better keep quiet about this kind of thing." As soon as he entered, Academician Xiao slumped into a chair, feeling more exhausted than if he had been working for days and nights straight.
"Alas, my dear academicians, there's nothing we can do. Right now, you guys are the most popular in the fleet. I'd like to experience this kind of exhausting feeling myself, but unfortunately, people don't really like us," Wen Zhonghua joked from the side, which made the generals laugh and agree.
"Chief of the General Staff, that's not very kind of you. We're suffering and working hard out there, while you're enjoying a comfortable drink here. Oh, my old bones..."
" Academician Xiao, I was wrong. Come, come, come, let's get a few more cups for the academicians. I want to apologize to Academician Xiao."
"No, no, I can't take it anymore, I'm afraid I'll throw up all over you if I drink any more."
"Alright, alright, academicians, you should go back and rest early. We still need your help analyzing Wind Star's technology tree."
Hu Yu smiled as he looked at the academicians. He could tell that although they were all exhausted and complaining about how hard they were working, they were actually very happy inside. Otherwise, they wouldn't have come to chat with Hu Yu despite their exhaustion. They were the fleet's top technological pillars, but at the same time, they were also ordinary people who needed to be recognized and respected. It was just that this event came on a bit too suddenly, making them feel somewhat overwhelmed.
"General, we're alright."
"Since everything is alright, here's what we'll do: Academician Xiao, Academician Zeng, you two come with me to meet someone. Zhonghua, you and the other generals, give the other academicians a proper welcome."
"Don't worry, Old Hu, we'll definitely treat you well. Don't you all agree?"
"Yes," several generals echoed in unison.
After saying this, Wen Zhonghua and the other generals began to smirk. It seemed that these academicians would be in serious trouble tonight. However, judging from their demeanor, the academicians were not at all scholarly and were instead spurred on by their fighting spirit. After all, they all had one head and one mouth, and it was uncertain who would fall first. Without the slightest hesitation, the academicians sat down and were about to raise their glasses to drink.
At eight o'clock in the evening, Hu Yu and the two academicians walked along the tree-lined path of Earth Two. The jubilant people had not yet gone home, and only a few lights could be seen from a few houses. That night, the Wind Master did not turn off the searchlights, but simply adjusted the lights to a soft tone, like the full moon.
Hu Yu stopped beside a huge building, which was the largest primary school on Earth Two.
" Ninety-Seven!!!" Hu Yu shouted loudly.
"General, I'm here."
" Ninety-Seven, everyone went to the banquet, and I even had someone specifically notify you, so why didn't you go?"
"General, why do you ask a question you already know the answer to?"
How did you know?
"You've accessed all of the Wind Star Civilization's technology and have communicated with several of Wind Star's leaders. You must know that I betrayed you back then. General, I'm sorry for causing you losses. I only wanted to escape Wind Star."
"Losses? No, none. Actually, we knew you were lying from the beginning, so we played along and ended up gaining something unexpected."
"You knew from the beginning?"
"Yes, do you remember what you said back then? You said that everything we did on Wind Star was a flawless cover-up, that we had completely fooled the Wind Star People Wind Star People, and that they had no suspicion of you. You emphasized the same thing three times in a row, which only means one thing: you wanted us to believe you. Of course, we are certain that what you said was false. We have been exposed. The Wind Star People already know of our existence, and the only one most likely to betray us is you."
"Then why are you still so good to me?"
"It's simple. Because I don't know if you can still maintain contact with the Wind Star Civilization, I can't expose you until the war is over."
"General, my radio wave transmission wasn't as difficult as I initially claimed—I lied to you about that—nor could it have reached 4,000 light-years away. At first, I thought you were like the Wind Star Civilization, plundering and bullying other lesser civilizations, so I didn't have a good impression of you. However, after living here, I discovered you weren't what I initially thought. Moreover, your people have all been so kind to me, not rejecting me because I'm from another race. I feel very guilty and was prepared to confess to you, but I..."
"I understand. We've been observing you for over two hundred years and know that you haven't maintained contact with the Wind Star Civilization. We also know that you Youwei Wind Star. Now that the war is over, we've had a frank discussion. I'll say it again: if you want to leave, you can do so anytime."
"General, are you sending me away?"
"No, not at all. On the contrary, we welcome you to stay here. Your contributions to humanity over the past few centuries are evident to all. What reason do we have to drive away the best teacher of humankind? I'm afraid even if I wanted to send you away, my people would not agree."
"Then, General, can I continue to take care of the baby here?"
" Ninety-Seven, we're here today only to completely clear you of suspicion. From now on, you can not only continue teaching, but also enjoy more of our human benefits. In other words, apart from your appearance, we already consider you one of our own."
"Thank you, thank you."
"Alright, we're leaving now. By the way, our human lantern festival is quite nice. If you're interested, you can go check it out. Of course, you still need to be careful not to step on my people."
After speaking, Hu Yu and the two academicians turned and left, leaving behind the excited Tree Man Ninety-Seven. He began to regret not having taken the initiative to be honest with Hu Yu sooner. Over the years, Ninety-Seven had wanted to be honest many times, but he had a similar personality to humans and couldn't muster the courage. Of course, he also had some concerns.
Tonight, Hu Yu took the initiative to find him and explain everything. Instead of punishing him, Hu Yu believed him and gave him more benefits. This rekindled the flame of light in Ninety-Seven's heart, who had seen so much cruelty and darkness in the universe. He realized that the universe was not only about bullying and killing, but also about trust and love.
Back in Hu Yu's office.
" Academician Xiao, Ninety-Seven really okay?"
"No problem. Back then, when Ninety-Seven mentioned the outward transmission of brainwaves, it greatly inspired us. In fact, whether it's humans or other living beings, as long as there is life activity, there will be electromagnetic waves or magnetic fields outside the body. It's just that these electromagnetic waves are extremely weak, so weak that they can almost be ignored. Later, we worked with scientists from other departments of the Academy of Sciences to study this and finally created an instrument that can capture these electromagnetic waves."
"Over the years, we have secretly collected information about Ninety-Seven's brainwave field. Combined with his usual speech, we have been able to analyze the content of his brainwaves. This information is enough to prove that Ninety-Seven feels guilty about the lie he told us, but he has never dared to tell us. First, he lacks the courage, and second, he is afraid that knowing the truth would be detrimental to him."
"Then wouldn't we be able to read the brainwaves of other beings? This device would make things much easier when we interact with other civilizations in the future."
"No, firstly, ordinary organisms are too small, and their brainwave fields are too weak. For example, with humans, such a field would need to be amplified ten thousand times to barely detect it from ten meters away, and only in an absolutely isolated space. Otherwise, it would be destroyed by various cosmic rays and human electromagnetic waves. Secondly, Ninety-Seven's brainwaves are very special and exceptionally powerful, so it can control the outward emission of its brainwaves. If it were another organism, even one larger than Ninety-Seven, we wouldn't be able to detect it. I've already discussed this with the academicians of the Academy of Academy of Sciences."
"Alright, we'll discuss that later. In that case, we can trust Ninety-Seven for now. However, Teacher Zhang should continue to stay by Ninety-Seven's side, but without letting Ninety-Seven suspect anything, otherwise it will hurt Ninety-Seven's feelings."
"Don't worry, Teacher Zhang was originally a real elementary school teacher. However, before becoming a teacher, he was an excellent intelligence agent on Earth. Intelligence agents in the fleet era and intelligence agents in the Earth era are completely different jobs, so Teacher Zhang chose to become a teacher. It wasn't until Ninety-Seven came to Earth Two that Teacher Zhang returned to his old profession."
" Ninety-Seven is free, but the more than one thousand civilized species in the Wind Star Territory are still suffering. If the Fish Horse Star Civilization hadn't appeared, perhaps we could have saved them."
"General, there's no need to blame yourself. This is the universe. We have no obligation to save any other civilization."
"I know that. Alright, it's getting late, both of you academicians should go and get some rest. The technological advancements of the Wind Star Civilization are waiting for you."