NCCnovel Chapter 187 Zhuang Yan
Chapter 187 Zhuang Yan
Since Luo Congmin took office as president, Zhuang Yan has rarely been seen.
Each time, the family of three could only meet briefly in the cramped basement of the deterrence center at the end of the month.
When Zhuang Yan married Luo Ji, Luo Ji was still a Wallfacer. Now, their daughter has become the President of the Earth Alliance, and their husband has become the Swordholder.
If we were to say who suffered the most in this family, it would undoubtedly be Zhuang Yan.
When Lin Xuan was still alive, she asked Zhuang Yan if she needed to arrange a job for her in the local government, but Zhuang Yan refused.
She was originally from the PDC (Police-General Administration) system, and although she only served one mission in the PDC, entering politics was still not what she wanted most.
After the Deterrence Era, Zhuang Yan also received the immortality potion and was briefly hailed by the masses as the savior of humanity.
After all, without her decisiveness back then, Luo Ji wouldn't be who he is today.
Zhuang Yan was the catalyst for the establishment of deterrence. Luo Ji's awakening was 98% related to Zhuang Yan's departure, and the remaining 2% was due to Lin Xuan's kick.
Even after becoming the Swordholder, Luo Ji publicly stated this.
“I owe nothing to humanity. I have fulfilled my duty as a Wallfacer, and I will continue to serve as the Swordholder simply to fulfill my duty as a husband and father to protect my wife and daughter.”
When the Earth Alliance's higher-ups learned of this, they were so frightened that they immediately persuaded Zhuang Yan to also become an immortal, and used the highest level of protection to ensure Zhuang Yan's personal safety.
Centered on Zhuang Yan's entire home, there are even two escort ships on the same orbit, ready to attack at any time. If anyone attempts to harm Zhuang Yan, the main guns of the two escort ships will spare no effort to obliterate the opponent into molecular form.
It was both protection and surveillance. For decades, wherever Zhuang Yan went, she was followed by agents from the Earth Alliance. Over time, Zhuang Yan stopped going out much.
“Eat slowly!”
Zhuang Yan took off her apron and put it aside, then took the last dish from the smart food cart next to her and placed it on the table.
Nowadays, cooking has been completely replaced by machines, but the chef profession has not disappeared.
The emergence of intelligent robots generally impacts the backbone of an industry, having a negligible effect on the top performers and those at the bottom.
The culinary skills of top chefs are difficult for machines to imitate, while low-level restaurant chefs are much cheaper than robots. Such cheap labor cannot be replaced by expensive robots.
This applies not only to the culinary industry, but to all industries.
It's hard to imagine that in this era of widespread power armor, there are still construction workers earning 150 yuan a day.
However, compared to those who used to carry bricks by hand, they now possess more advanced prosthetic arms that can lift objects hundreds of times heavier than before.
But in essence, they are still doing manual labor on construction sites.
Luo Congmin's chopsticks were so fast they were almost blurry; Zhuang Yan hadn't even had a chance to touch the dishes before only the soup remained.
After eating three bowls of rice in one go, she got up and removed the water bottle from the water dispenser next to her, then gulped down the water.
Seeing Luo Congmin's eating habits, Zhuang Yan couldn't help but feel ashamed.
Who taught this girl to eat like this?
Could it be that Lin Xuan guy?
After eating and drinking her fill, Luo Congmin waved for a sofa, leaned back on it, and the sofa immediately adapted to her body curves, changing into a shape that suited her perfectly.
You seem to have something on your mind.
Zhuang Yan placed the bowls and chopsticks on the table into the dishwasher while looking at Luo Congmin, who was lying on his back.
"Ah."
"Is it related to your father?"
"It is."
"That must be something to do with the Earth Federation... Let me guess, it's about the development of warp drive spaceships."
After Zhuang Yan finished packing her things, she sat down next to Luo Congmin.
After not seeing her for several years, my daughter... well, she hasn't changed much.
The potion of immortality was so potent that even after nearly three centuries, Luo Congmin's age remained locked at 23.
Of course, Zhuang Yan's appearance was the same.
In fact, due to her clothing, Zhuang Yan even appeared younger than Luo Congmin.
"The development of warp drive spacecraft has encountered unprecedented obstacles. In order to prevent this technology from being abandoned, a person of sufficient influence must step forward to continue to support the development of warp drive spacecraft."
As Luo Congmin spoke, he rubbed his head.
"But considering the current situation of the entire Earth Alliance, the only person who can step forward is me, and only me."
“Then go ahead and do it. Since you’ve already made up your mind, then go ahead and do it,” Zhuang Yan said.
Luo Congmin shook his head slightly.
"It's not that simple. My term only lasts one year. After that, I will succeed my father as the second Swordholder. Although the Swordholder's power seems to be greater than mine now, they can't control the entire Earth Federation. The development of the warp drive will likely be directly blocked."
"So, you're in a dilemma, aren't you? To become the Swordholder or to continue serving as president? Choosing the former means giving up the warp drive, while choosing the latter means relinquishing the position of Swordholder."
Zhuang Yan immediately understood the crux of the matter.
"Yes, I'm really torn right now. It's a dilemma. Mom, I really don't know what to choose. It seems like both paths are dead ends."
Luo Congmin rubbed her long black hair, her face falling, just like when she faced those math problems back then, feeling a deep sense of powerlessness.
After a few seconds of silence, Zhuang Yan seemed to have thought of something and burst out laughing.
“You seem to have grown up, but you are not as decisive as you were when you were a child.”
Luo Congmin raised her head, looking at her mother with a puzzled expression, waiting for her to continue.
"You know, when you were a child, you made your own judgment without hesitation when faced with this kind of dilemma."
As Zhuang Yan spoke, she took out a picture album from the wall behind her. It contained photos of Luo Congmin playing with the trolley problem when he was a child.
Luo Congmin then simply laid the train across the road, turning what was originally a dilemma into a certain death situation, successfully resolving the trolley problem.
"Mom, you're still in the mood to joke at a time like this."
"Who said it was a joke?"
Zhuang Yan handed the picture book to Luo Congmin and gently ruffled her messy hair.
“You and your father are practically cut from the same cloth. You both insist on doing everything and think the world can’t live without you.”
"One became the swordsman, the other became the president, both known for their stubbornness."
"You want to shoulder everything yourself, that's why your pressure is getting bigger and bigger. Humanity doesn't need another Luo Ji, nor does it need another Luo Congmin."
“I used to advise your father in the hope that he could take on the responsibility of saving humanity, but now I’m advising you in the hope that you can let go of this responsibility and follow your heart.”
“I don’t understand politics, but I understand you. You know better than anyone how to handle this situation. So just do it. Hesitating and timidity is not the way you used to be.”
“But… this time is different from before. My father can no longer serve as the Sword Bearer. Once the position of Sword Bearer is lost and falls into the hands of someone else, then…”
Before Luo Congmin could finish speaking, Zhuang Yan interrupted her with her hand.
"There will always be another savior who steps forward. It doesn't have to be you, and it doesn't have to be you either."
As Zhuang Yan spoke, she put her coat back on Luo Congmin, clearly indicating that she wanted to see him out.
But as she stood up, Zhuang Yan couldn't help but speak again.
Do you believe Lin Xuan?
"Of course I do."
"That's enough. Trust him. He'll definitely find a solution."
"Mom, Lin Xuan can't even take care of himself right now, we can't count on him."
“Back then, when I entrusted you to him, he was also in dire straits himself.”
Luo Congmin fell silent.
She pondered her mother's words carefully, remaining silent for a long time.