“Hello, your order has been delivered.
Enjoy your meal.” The Station Master’s office was evidently marked as a special location in the backend database.
The delivery bot skipped the facial recognition process, arriving outside the office and directly dispensing the meal set Asta had ordered.
“Mm,” the absorbed Station Master responded softly, her eyes fixed on the document in her hand.
Having apparently forgotten there was another person in the office, she habitually gestured for the bot to just place the food tray to the side.
Freshly prepared food was often very hot.
Eating it hastily could burn one’s mouth and esophagus; letting it cool down a bit could actually speed up the meal, saving more time for work.
There had been several times in the past when Asta had been so focused on her work that she forgot to eat, causing her food to go cold.
If her official duties were light, she could reheat it, but if it was a particularly busy day, the young woman could only hastily eat the cold food to roughly fill her stomach.
After all, if she failed to do her job as Station Master properly, she would have to go home and inherit the family business.
For Asta, that was not a good thing.
The soft sound of footsteps reached her ears, which she subconsciously ignored.
It wasn’t until several more minutes had passed that Hua Yi finally spoke.
“Miss Station Master, breakfast is ready.” “Ah?” Lifting her gaze, Asta found that Hua Yi had already cleared a space on the side of her desk and set out the meal trays.
He had figured out, by some method, which files, devices, and miscellaneous items on her desk were important and which were not, clearing out a space for them to eat.
He was remarkably accurate, not messing up the categorized piles of completed and unfinished documents, nor presumptuously moving any precision instruments.
Even the miscellaneous items he had moved to the side were arranged with careful consideration, making them pleasing to the eye.
Hua Yi had organized everything so methodically that, by comparison, the Station Master’s previous desk setup now seemed slightly cluttered.
“…” Asta had lost count of how many times she had been surprised by Hua Yi today.
She was gradually getting used to it.
She placed the file in her hands to the side.
“Thank you.” “I should be the one thanking the Station Master for treating me.
This spread looks, smells, and tastes wonderful.
May I dig in?” “Yes!
Please eat a lot.
If it’s not enough, I’ll have the bot send more.” The young woman’s stomach was rumbling as well.
She had heard about the Department of Lumina Archives activating an emergency protocol early this morning, requesting the Defense Department to secure a laboratory.
Then came the gathering of all five departments at Hua Yi’s dorm.
She had rushed over without any time to eat.
But even as her taste buds sent back pleasant signals and her stomach began to gurgle with satisfaction, Asta’s mind was still on her work.
Her eyes would occasionally drift towards her work terminal, which displayed various interfaces.
Then, she remembered the task she had given Hua Yi.
“How is it?
Have you had a look at the ‘Cosmic Finest’ website?” “I have.
It seems this shopping site operates on a member invitation system.
Unauthorized individual users can’t register an account on their own.
But I managed to log in.
Does the Station Master have invitation privileges?” “It’s because I’ve bought quite a few things from there—is there anything you want to buy?
We can add each other as friends, and I’ll clear your shopping cart for you, as a small personal gift from me.” Asta didn’t proactively ask if Hua Yi had found suitable suppliers based on the station’s equipment requisition list.
From the very beginning, she never intended it as a strict assignment.
She just hoped the super-rookie before her could get familiar with the station’s online shopping model, so that if he needed something in the future that the station lacked, he would know how to purchase it on the Interastral Peace Network.
But Hua Yi had, in fact, already completed the extra work.
“I was originally thinking of letting the Station Master focus on her meal and avoid bringing up work, but since we’re on the topic—please take a look.
I’ve compiled the following procurement plan based on the equipment list, after comprehensively comparing multiple shopping platforms and manufacturers.
Most of the items are from ‘Cosmic Finest’, but a few are from other shopping sites.
I discovered that several of the stores had the same shipping origin and used the same logistics company, meaning they were secondary distributors, so I just contacted the original manufacturer directly.” A newly completed procurement report was presented before Asta.
It was filled with images and text, clearly and logically listing the purchasing targets for the equipment the station needed, comparing the differences between platforms and merchants, and finally drawing a conclusion.
It even explained why a more expensive manufacturer was chosen for certain pieces of equipment, citing issues like deceptive pricing on the homepage, unreliable logistics, and certain inconspicuous supplementary clauses in the item details.
Hua Yi had also taken screenshots of product pages that had relatively high sales due to their low prices.
He pointed out where buyers’ reviews, which were hundreds of words long and full of praise, were likely fake paid reviews, while the negative reviews, each only two or three lines long, all pointed to quality issues.
This was his basis for choosing another store with more authentic user feedback.
Asta’s mouth hung slightly open, her gaze shifting back and forth between Hua Yi and the screen he was holding.
“This is so detailed!
Wait, why does the scrollbar on the side of the document look like that?
With this much content—you completed the procurement requirements for the entire list?!” “I’d say it’s mostly complete.
In the process, I used my Level IV Researcher authority to check the transaction records between the Department of Universal Things and these manufacturers to assess their historical reputation.
However, I discovered another problem.
Why are there so few equipment procurement records in the Department of Universal Things’ database?
It’s abnormally low; the numbers don’t match the quantity of equipment being decommissioned and replaced.” “Th-that’s because…” For some reason, seeing Hua Yi’s serious expression, Asta felt inexplicably nervous.
“I bought the equipment with my own money.
I didn’t go through the Department of Universal Things’ procedures.
I thought it would save the station funds and the deliveries would be faster…
That shouldn’t be a big problem, right?” “It’s a very big problem.
Even if the Station Master is a little rich girl and your act of paying out-of-pocket stems from a good heart, you shouldn’t continue.
This will not only cause you personal financial loss, but it is also detrimental to the long-term development of the space station.” A rookie researcher was pointing out the Station Master’s problems, and even calling her a “little rich girl” instead of “Your Ladyship, the Tycoon.” This was a true subversion of the natural order.
However, Asta’s first reaction was not annoyance at her authority being challenged.
The talent and wisdom Hua Yi displayed were convincing.
The gentle and kind young woman scratched her cheek, not even noticing the bread grease on her fingertips, her tone taking on a hint of seeking guidance.
“I haven’t spent that much, so it doesn’t really count as a financial loss…
Why would it affect the station’s future development?
I can keep buying the equipment with my own money, and I can sustain it for a long time.” —o—