Cheng Weilu stared at the projection panel for a while. The man who had awakened after spending 50 interstellar years in the hibernation pod had perfectly normal vital data, aside from some slight physical weakness. His entire person radiated the dazed confusion of someone who had only just awakened.
The man’s features were exceptionally sharp and handsome, while his pupils were a quiet gray, lending him an air of composure. In this era, altering one’s appearance through various artificial means was as easy as could be, but the man’s basic data showed that his face was completely natural.
Cheng Weilu was usually a little more patient with beautiful people, but the fact that the man kept staring at her without blinking still made her feel slightly creeped out.
Robert spoke extremely quickly, rattling off words without receiving any response from the man. He turned his eyes toward it and frowned slightly, as if he hadn’t understood, or perhaps was struggling with what he should say.
“Your hibernation pod’s main system is damaged. The backup system can only operate for a maximum of 50 interstellar years, and it’s already almost at the end of its service life. So I had no choice but to wake you up. I’m a space salvager, and this is my ship. You’re currently safe.”
She paused briefly. “If you understand, please nod or blink.”
The man blinked, looking bewildered, then slowly nodded.
“Since your identity is unknown, I will provide you with basic assistance in accordance with the principles of interstellar humanitarian aid until you recover your basic physical abilities.”
Following the salvager’s regulations, Cheng Weilu slowly explained the basic situation to the man. Then she fell silent for a moment, took out a thin, matte-black ring-shaped wristband, and looked up at him.
“This wristband contains a powerful anesthetic and… a highly lethal biological neurotoxin, MCPF-27. They will be released when the wristband receives a command or is forcibly damaged. The powerful anesthetic can render a person unconscious within three seconds. MCPF-27 has no antidote, and the mortality rate within half an hour is 99.7%.”
“If the main control system or I detect any inclination or concrete action on your part to harm me or this ship, a command will be issued depending on the circumstances.”
“This wristband is only a self-defense tool. I will not actively harm you. When you leave this ship, I will help you remove it. I hope you understand.”
Cheng Weilu finished speaking in a calm, measured tone. She was using the universal interstellar language, yet throughout the entire process, the newly awakened man merely stared at her intently, blinking slowly several times. It made her suspect that his brain had only just awakened and still couldn’t understand what she was saying.
“If you understand, please nod again.”
The eyelashes of the person lying there, thick as a brush, moved slightly. His eyelids lowered, partially concealing his gray eyes, and he gave a gentle nod.
Cheng Weilu didn’t know if it was just her imagination, but she actually felt that his expression… carried a hint of vulnerability.
Putting a wristband that could kill someone at any moment on a beautiful man who had just awakened did seem a little cruel. But her heart was hard as iron. Expressionless, she lifted one of his wrists and fastened the wristband around it with a soft click.
“Your bodily functions will recover to a basic level within three days. You’ll probably need about a week before you can move normally. This ship can’t provide more advanced rehabilitation or medical treatment. If you need help these next few days, Xiao Wei will respond to you. Come find me promptly if necessary.”
“And me~” The short robot poked its head out from beside the hibernation pod and waved a mechanical hand at the man lying there.
Cheng Weilu thought about it and decided it was necessary to introduce them. She raised a hand and pointed at the ceiling of the ship’s cabin.
“Xiao Wei.”
“That’s me.” The gentle voice of the system sounded throughout the room.
Cheng Weilu then pointed at the mechanical head poking out beside her.
“Robert.”
“Wahla wahla, that’s me, that’s me~” The mechanical hand began waving enthusiastically.
The man lying in the hibernation pod nodded again. The corners of his mouth and facial muscles twitched slightly, indicating that he understood.
Cheng Weilu gave him one last look. She wasn’t sure whether he was smiling and wanted to offer a polite response, but perhaps even that movement was still somewhat difficult for him.
After finishing her instructions, she immediately turned and left. “Then I’ll leave you to rest.”
The person with the unusual eyes left. The man watched her back, looking somewhat disappointed. The gentle expression he had just painstakingly created disappeared, leaving him looking cold and stern. His unfocused gray eyes had an almost inorganic chill to them.
But the robot that spoke at an incredibly fast pace was still there. It noticed him and moved closer before once again launching into rapid-fire speech.
“This is the first time I’ve ever gotten a close-up look at a living human male aboard this ship.”
Robert clasped its mechanical hands together and continued bashfully, “You’re very handsome. You look quiet and composed, completely different from those big guys who love showing off their muscles that A Luo and I saw on our previous trips. Although you look quite tall too, there’s something so special about the feeling you give me…”
“I think you probably went through some things, but don’t worry. A Luo and I are both very nice people. This ship, and I, will make you feel like you’re at home!” Robert concluded.
“……”
The man turned his face toward it without saying a word, then lowered his eyes to look at the black wristband.
Robert quickly understood what he was thinking. “You don’t need to worry about this. It’s very safe, as long as you’re not a bad person. A Luo will take it off for you. Actually, this wristband—”
“Robert, please let this gentleman rest.” A mechanical voice sounded from the ceiling, interrupting the robot’s incessant chatter. The lights in the room immediately dimmed. “You’d better leave.”
Robert reluctantly left the Sleeping Beauty. It rubbed its metal fingers together, then thought of the man’s pale face, vulnerable expression, and tattered combat uniform. It clutched its chest, feeling a pang of sadness.
Its innate programming to care for others made it impossible to stand by and do nothing when faced with someone who was barely clothed (only because his clothes were torn) and unable to move. Robert thought about it and decided to make the Sleeping Beauty a set of clothes.
…
Normally, the return trip after completing a salvage job was the time when Cheng Weilu felt most relaxed. She would usually have Xiao Wei switch the ship to autopilot, put herself into vacation mode, and spend her days entertaining herself. If she happened across an obscure planet that interested her, she would even go down to explore it before continuing home while having fun along the way.
This time was different. She had plenty of time, but there was a stranger aboard the ship.
Although the beautiful stranger stayed quietly indoors, slowly recovering under the care of the intelligent system and robot, Cheng Weilu had not gone to see him again since the day she woke him. Every day, she merely took a routine glance at the man’s physical data recorded by Xiao Wei.
It was not until the fourth day that Cheng Weilu saw the owner of the hibernation pod, who appeared to have fully recovered.
“Hello, Miss Cheng.” The man’s voice was unexpectedly low and gentle. “My name is Li Xu.”
Cheng Weilu looked up at him. His tall, slender figure was even more striking than when he had been lying down. He wore a white linen shirt and loose khaki casual trousers, while his slightly long black hair was tied into a half-ponytail at the back of his head.
He still looked somewhat too thin, but his complexion had improved considerably. From his hair to his face, he looked neat and refreshed, appearing even more like someone on vacation than Cheng Weilu herself.
Cheng Weilu immediately recognized that his outfit was Robert’s handiwork. That short robot’s overflowing compassion was always getting the better of it. She put away the electronic projection, sat up straight, and gave Li Xu a polite nod.
“You seem to have recovered well.”
“Yes. Thank you for saving my life.” Li Xu sat down across from her with a smile. His posture was relaxed, carrying an inexplicable touch of elegance. His interlaced fingers had clearly defined knuckles, while the black wristband around his wrist made his skin look even paler. Cheng Weilu stared at his wrist several times before looking up and discovering that Li Xu was watching her intently.
“And thank you for providing me with the clothes.”
This man seemed to really like staring at her. Cheng Weilu withdrew her gaze and lowered her eyes to avoid his. She waved her hand dismissively.
“Robert gave you the clothes. You can thank it. All the everyday clothes on this ship are generally made by it. It doesn’t have much to do with me.”
The two chatted for a while. Cheng Weilu dealt with his words of gratitude according to the salvager’s principles, telling him that she had merely acted according to the principles of interstellar humanitarian aid and that he didn’t need to take it to heart. Li Xu spoke in a refined and gentle manner and seemed easy to get along with, which made Cheng Weilu relax slightly.
However, Li Xu still never explained his identity.
Cheng Weilu searched the public network for the name in connection with the Alliance military but found no relevant information. After completing the salvage four days ago, she had only reported the information about the reconnaissance vessel.
Now, aside from her, no one knew about the hibernation pod or the person in front of her. Cheng Weilu tapped her fingers silently.
Of course, she had her reasons for not reporting him in the first place.
Cheng Weilu made money by accepting jobs. Li Xu and his hibernation pod were not part of the salvage jobs available to her. Saving him had merely been something she happened to do while taking care of the reconnaissance vessel assignment. More importantly, even if she reported him, she wouldn’t get paid, even if he happened to be an Alliance soldier.
After being a space salvager for all these years, Cheng Weilu knew very well just how stingy the military was. When someone voluntarily reported a matter like this, at most they would receive a token reward afterward, and the amount held no appeal for her.
Judging from the high-specification hibernation pod Li Xu possessed and the classified data access involved, Cheng Weilu felt certain that he wasn’t an ordinary Alliance soldier.
Yet a high-ranking officer who had disappeared 50 years ago had never had a bounty issued for his whereabouts. Either no one knew he was still alive, or… no one wanted him to be alive.
If it were the former, she might receive a meager reward, followed by layer upon layer of confidentiality reviews. If it were the latter, she might get dragged into endless trouble.
“In three days, the ship will reach the vicinity of Baicheng Star in the Alliance. I need to go there and hand things over to the military.” Cheng Weilu thought for a moment. “Mr. Li, I don’t have access to your hibernation pod’s data, so I don’t know your identity. That’s why I haven’t reported you yet.”
Li Xu lowered his eyelids and thought for a moment. His long lashes concealed his gray eyes, making it difficult for Cheng Weilu to see his expression. She cautiously asked, “Your combat uniform is the Alliance standard issue. You should be an Alliance soldier.”
Li Xu neither confirmed nor denied it. Cheng Weilu continued, “Do you need me to contact the Alliance first and report you as an Alliance soldier of unknown identity, so they can send someone to meet you?”
“…Can you hold off on reporting me for now?” There was no discernible emotion in Li Xu’s voice.
Just as she thought.
Cheng Weilu readily agreed. “Sure.”
He was conscious and physically fine, which meant he was capable of making his own decisions. If Li Xu himself didn’t want the military to know about him for the time being, there was even less reason for her to get involved in this mess.
For someone who had been in hibernation for 50 years, no matter who he was, his identity information should have been frozen after disappearing for half a century. If he didn’t contact the military, Cheng Weilu had no idea how he intended to resolve his identity issues.
But those matters had nothing to do with her. All she needed to do was get him off the ship as soon as possible.
Cheng Weilu continued, “I’ll let you off the ship at the public transit platform near Jump Point G103. You can make your own way back to Baicheng Star.”
“Thank you, Miss Cheng. You’re truly a very kind person.” Li Xu tilted his head and smiled at her. His eyes curved slightly, his expression gentle, and he was so handsome that Cheng Weilu’s vision seemed to waver.
The tips of her ears grew warm. She lowered her head and coughed lightly, turning her face away as she said, “You’re welcome.”
In the face of beauty, one must hold firmly to one’s principles. Cheng Weilu silently repeated to herself: I am a space salvager with a heart of iron. Only the eternal expanse of space and bounty money can make me stop in my tracks!
…
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