The bonfire was finally extinguished, but the people in the square were still unwilling to leave. Ah Qiao and the others were still dancing and singing.
Ding Meng was also unwilling to leave. He reached out with his right hand and flicked his fingers a few times, retracting his claws back into his sleeve.
He was still expressionless, but under the night sky, his eyes seemed even dimmer.
Little Rascal sighed. She didn't know how to console him, so she could only try to find a topic to talk about. "Ding Meng, why was the older brother of the previous generation named Zheng Ming?"
Ding Meng sighed. "Because he lived too idealistically. He always believed that this was a beautiful world, so he was named Zheng Ming. The meaning was to let him live a more understanding life."
"Then what about you?" Little Rascal's interest was piqued. "Why were you named Ding Meng?"
Ding Meng said, "It's because I understood things too well that I was named Ding Meng."
Little Rascal pondered for a moment before asking, "Does that mean you shouldn't understand things too well?"
Ding Meng sighed. "Sometimes it's not good to live too well, but what I understand is that you should never be kept in the dark. That's why my name is Ding Meng."
Little Rascal sighed. She was at a loss for words. She finally understood why Ding Meng was still brooding over Little Four's death. Along the way, Ding Meng's companions might have agreed to travel together, but they all left for various reasons. In the end, only Ding Meng was left behind.
Loneliness. Only when one's wish couldn't be fulfilled would one deeply feel its existence. It was like a person's shadow. If happiness was the sun, then loneliness was the other side of you. You could never shake it off. As long as you've experienced happiness, then you've also experienced deep loneliness. Perhaps you'll continue to be lonely forever.
"ACT5570, you're actually not lonely," Xiao Ai suddenly said.
Ah Qiao had walked over with Little Wei by her side. Ah Qiao's smile was very happy, even happier than usual.
"Ding Meng, why are you in a daze here?" Ah Qiao greeted him enthusiastically. "Don't you want to dance with us?"
Ding Meng chuckled. "If I dance for a minute, I might fall over a dozen times."
Ah Qiao also smiled and said, "It's alright, I'll teach you!"
Ding Meng quickly waved his hand. "Forget it. Xiao Wei will accompany you."
Xiao Wei did not dare to call Ding Meng by his name. He lowered his head and said, "Mr. Ting."
Ding Meng smiled. He could tell that Xiao Wei and Ah Qiao were closer than the others. But this was also good. Humans had to look forward and couldn't live in the past forever. Perhaps Xiao Wei and Ah Qiao would be able to shake off the shadows of their past and become friends, lovers, or even partners. No matter what, they would have a new direction and hope.
"Let's go too."
Ding Meng turned and walked towards the spaceport building. "Let's take a break and clean up. We'll wait for Commander Fang's good news!"
While he was patiently waiting for news, someone else was waiting as well. But they were waiting anxiously.
Chu Zhongyu sat on a long sofa and turned his head to look at the door at the end of the corridor.
This was a corridor filled with the atmosphere of a modern office. The decoration was simple, plain, and reserved, but no one dared to underestimate this place. This was the conference room of Haitian Group's headquarters.
Chu Zhongyu had lost count of how many times he had looked up. He had waited for two whole hours. Fortunately, the door was finally opened. A beautiful female assistant walked out with a mini optical computer. She said politely, "Young Master Zhongyu, Mr. Chu has asked for you to enter."
'Ask' him to enter instead of 'invite' him in. This was enough to show the attitude of the top brass of Haitian Group towards him.
This conference room was the same one Chu Yifeng had sent back from Sea Heaven's Pole Island using a long-distance projection. It was still as luxurious and grand as ever. The square conference table was still as simple and exquisite as ever. Nothing had changed. Even the people sitting at the table were still the same. The only change was that Chu Yifeng had returned to Haitian Group and was sitting at the end of the table.
The person standing behind him was Lan Bing. Lan Bing was still cold and expressionless, but she had changed her qipao into a black suit that was exactly the same as the female assistant's. Her hair was tied up, and she had light makeup on her face. She was full of classic beauty, and she had suddenly turned into a white-collar beauty with an outstanding fragrance.
This was something that couldn't be helped. At the headquarters of the Haitian Group, the etiquette was even stricter. Here, no one was allowed to be undressed.
The beautiful middle-aged woman was also there. When she saw the frowning Chu Zhongyu come in, she gently knocked on the table. "Sit down!"
Chu Zhongyu's position was directly opposite the white-haired old man and he was alone. It looked like the other three groups of people had surrounded him to judge him.
There was no helping it. The matter of the bandit corps on Cypress Ancient Planet was too big. Not many people in the Federation knew about it, but Haitian Group had lost an intermediate war elder and a beginner war elder because of it. It was the man in the suit and Hao Feng. This attracted the attention of the top brass.
And the real reason for the two war elders' deaths was laughable: Chu Zhongyu had feelings for Xu Mengqing and then contacted Lu Ming to go to Cypress Ancient Planet. The two behemoths Sheng Hao and Xing Hong were also involved.
The matter itself was not that big, but it involved a lot of people, so the beautiful middle-aged woman had to reprimand him. "Xiao Yu, can you spend more time on group affairs?
Don't think about women all the time. Have you never seen a woman before? "
Chu Zhongyu drooped his head. "Third aunt, I know I was wrong this time. I shouldn't have gone to Cypress Ancient Planet."
Third aunt's expression looked pained. "How many times did your mother scold you when she was still alive?
But you're getting worse every time. This time, you even killed two people. It's time for us to send you out to train. "
The so-called "sending you out" was like Chu Yifeng in the past. They threw you a few starships and let you go to a remote galaxy to manage the group's assets. It sounded interesting, but in reality, it was an ascetic life.
Chu Yifeng was lucky and got the memory of the K virus. In less than a year, he was called back to the HQ. But Chu Zhongyu was not Chu Yifeng. It was likely that he would not return for eight to ten years.
Hearing this, Chu Zhongyu panicked and quickly raised his hand. "Third aunt, I know I was wrong. I swear I won't do it again …"
"Cough!" Opposite Third aunt, a middle-aged man coughed softly.
There was no other meaning in this. It was just to remind Third aunt that her acting was not very good. It was nothing more than a scare in front of the old man. Chu Zhongyu would then make a statement and deal with the situation. But this time was different. Although the matter was small, there were many problems. The old man would not let them pass easily.
Sure enough, the white-haired old man had been flipping through the light screen on the table. He was the real helmsman of Haitian Group: Chu Mingliang!
All the major decisions of the entire group were made by him.
After flipping through for a long time, he slowly turned his head and said in a slow tone, "The memory of the K virus is not complete. Half of it was stolen."
Hearing this, Chu Yifeng had to speak even if he did not want to. "Yes!
It was stolen by Ding Meng! "
Chu Mingliang said, "According to the data, Ding Meng also participated in the acquisition of Cypress Ancient Planet."
"Yes!"
The person who spoke this time was Third aunt. This news was not a secret at all to people at their level. There was no evidence to show that the man in the suit was killed by Ding Meng. However, the fact that Ding Meng survived the explosion of the Hercules armor, while the man in the suit was reduced to ashes was very telling.
Chu Ming Liang suddenly laughed. When he didn't laugh, others would only feel pressured. But when he laughed, it made them feel even more guilty than when he didn't laugh.
"The person who discovered the K virus in the K8 system was this Ding Meng. The one who escaped was also this Ding Meng. The one who went back and found the memory was also this Ding Meng. After that, this Ding Meng caused trouble in the Celestial Wolf Corps. Then he went to Cypress Ancient Planet to steal the inverse source crystal and killed two of our group's War Supremacies. It seems that the way you usually do things is the same as when I was young …"
Chu Yifeng sighed, and his voice was very low. "Old man, I know you are blaming me."
Chu Ming Liang ignored him and looked at Lan Bing instead. "Lan Bing's report has already reached me. She repeatedly reminded everyone not to underestimate this person, but you all have suffered losses again and again. Miss Lan Bing is not bad."
Lan Bing lowered her head slightly to show her gratitude.
Chu Mingliang said in a deep voice, "From today onwards, Lan Bing will no longer be your secretary. She will be transferred to the deputy supervisor of the K virus project. She will assist Little Lei in following up on the progress of the project and report directly to me."
When this decision was announced, everyone at the table had different expressions.
Chu Yifeng did not have any expression, and no one could tell what he was thinking.
Third aunt and Chu Zhongyu looked a little happy. Lan Bing was Chu Yifeng's right-hand woman. With this transfer, Chu Yifeng's power would be greatly reduced.
Little Lei was the middle-aged man who had coughed earlier. His name was Chu Lei, and he had always been the person in charge of the K virus project. However, the project's progress had not been smooth since the beginning. Now that Lan Bing had been inserted into the project, it could only mean that Chu Mingliang was not satisfied with him. His face was dark, and he did not say anything. He stared at the table in front of him as if he was thinking about something.
Chu Ming Liang continued, "Yi Feng, you've been working hard in the K8 department for the past year. It's time for you to take a break. Use this time to calm yourself down. You can also go out for a walk. I suggest you go to KV303 to relax."
He said he was giving him a break, but in reality, he wanted him to reflect on himself. As long as the location of planet KV303 was mentioned, it meant that Chu Mingliang already knew everything that had happened.
Haitian Group also cared about its reputation. In the eyes of people at Chu Mingliang's level, the tragedy at the Green Arrow base was because Chu Yifeng could not restrain his subordinates and allowed them to do whatever they wanted. Since the accident had already happened, it was time to take back the power in his hands and go back to face the wall to reflect.
Chu Yifeng was like a drum. He did not need a heavy hammer to beat it. As long as this reminder was given, how could he not understand?
So Chu Yi Feng took a deep breath and slowly stood up. He bowed to Chu Ming Liang and said, "Okay, I will remember your advice. Thank you for your guidance."
After that, he straightened his suit and slowly walked towards the door of the meeting room. This place did not need him anymore.