At that time, his own psionic power had just awakened. He was utterly ignorant of the various ways to use psionic energy. It was Master Pang Qian who led him into the door of the psionic world, securing him the chance to undergo preliminary training.

Yang Ying now fully understood the chasm between a Master and a novice. It was as vast as the ground to the sky, a truly daunting distance.

Back then, Master Pang Qian could have easily assigned any standard psionicist to teach him the knowledge from the psionic and swordsmanship manuals, yet he chose to teach him personally. Furthermore, no matter how rudimentary the question he asked, the Master never displayed the slightest impatience.

Although all of this was a reward earned through his own efforts in saving lives, it did not negate the profound kindness shown by Master Pang Qian.

"I will await Master Pang Qian's arrival," Yang Ying told Randolph.

"Good. Then there is one final matter," Randolph’s expression grew even more enigmatic.

"What else is there?" Yang Ying inquired.

"This is my niece's private contact number. Get in touch with her when you have time." Randolph moved his hand slightly, and a message appeared on Yang Ying’s communicator screen. "My niece has been thinking about you these past few days. Don't keep her waiting; give her a surprise visit."

Yang Ying looked at the way Randolph's wrinkles bunched together, giving him a slightly lecherous appearance that made him feel an urge to throw a punch. He cleared his throat to mask his violent impulse and said, "No need to trouble yourself with that. Goodbye."

Seeing this, Randolph hurried, "Although my niece has your contact number, she is too shy to reach out to you herself. You, as the man, must take the initiative!" He spoke so urgently that this forty-character sentence blasted out like a machine gun in under two seconds.

However, before his voice even faded, Yang Ying severed the connection, tossed the communicator onto the desk, leaned back against the chair, and sighed, "That old fellow. He should really change careers and become a pimp."

At the Ceres Military Base, Randolph, sitting in his office, laughed at the silent communicator: "You need to put on a good show, boy."

He picked up Yang Ying's file from the desk, flipped through it, shook his head, and tossed it into the waste bin: "This information is absolute garbage. They couldn't even find out if he has other women around him. Those useless dogs in the Intelligence Department actually dared to boast they could find out the color of underwear the ambassador-singer wears. If they have the guts, they should really try finding that out for me!"

As he spoke, his voice grew louder and louder.

The office door suddenly swung open. Wen Jing, who had been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, entered wearing a crisp, sharp military uniform, carrying some documents. She said without mincing words, "Uncle Randolph, what on earth are you shouting about? Trying to investigate the ambassador-singer's underwear—if that gets out, it will create a terrible impression."

"Ay!" Randolph jumped, saying, "Little Jing, how long have you been here?"

Wen Jing gave him a strange look and replied, "Not long. I just reached the door and heard you yelling, starting from 'useless dogs in the Intelligence Department.' But before that phrase, I think there were words like 'woman' and 'find out'—I didn't quite catch them. Who were you talking about?"

"No, I wasn't talking about anyone. You misheard."

Randolph immediately adopted a very serious expression.

Wen Jing paused, then said, "No! Uncle Randolph, the first question you asked me wasn't what I was here for, but how long I’ve been here. Are you hiding something from me?"

"How could I be? Just venting some frustrations, afraid you'd hear them," Randolph instantly manufactured an excuse, then struck an Admiral's posture, speaking righteously, "Lieutenant Colonel Wen Jing, what is that attitude you're showing your Fleet Commander? Go back and reflect immediately."

"Uncle Randolph, have you forgotten? A few days ago, because everyone was so busy getting settled into this Ceres Base, you announced today was a day off for everyone to readjust their mindset?" Wen Jing stated calmly. "Look at what you’re wearing—civilian clothes. You are not the Fleet Commander right now."

Randolph knew perfectly well his niece wasn't afraid of him, and his mind raced for an evasion. Out loud, he asked, "Since it's a day off, why are you wearing a uniform and carrying documents?"

"Because while most people are off, some of us are still on duty, and I am one of the people on duty today. As for these documents, they are intelligence reports I just compiled from the recent period. I thought they were important enough to show you. Your secretary said you were in your office, so I came to find you." Wen Jing looked at Randolph's reaction, becoming increasingly certain he was concealing something.

Randolph was instantly overjoyed. He extended his hand, saying, "Then quickly give me the documents to look at."

Wen Jing hugged the file close and said, "Hold on. Don't change the subject. You are definitely hiding something from me. Explain it first before you look at these documents. These reports aren't that urgent anyway."

"This..."

While Randolph was scheming how to bluff his way out, Wen Jing glanced around the office and saw a stack of papers stuffed into the waste bin. Although rolled up, the contents of the first page were visible.

"Yang Ying's photo and name were clearly printed on the top sheet..." Wen Jing stared blankly.

Seeing Wen Jing lost in thought, Randolph followed her gaze to the waste bin and instantly reached out, spinning the bin 180 degrees, turning the paper surface away.

"Yang Ying," Wen Jing murmured, "So that's it."

"Little Jing, the situation is like this." Randolph was about to explain when—

"'Woman! Found it! Yang Ying!'" These three words spun in Wen Jing’s mind. Her face suddenly became crestfallen. "Is it because you found out Yang Ying has a girlfriend that you are hiding this from me, Uncle Randolph?"

"Ah?" Randolph's mouth dropped open in surprise. He was utterly astonished by his niece's misunderstanding.

Seeing Randolph's shocked expression, Wen Jing became even more certain. "Is that really true?"

She felt an indescribable tightness in her chest.

Her grip slackened, and the documents scattered onto the floor.

"No, no, that's not it!" Randolph immediately snatched the stack of Yang Ying's files from the bin and handed them to Wen Jing. "Look for yourself. It's just ordinary stuff. I was complaining precisely because this stuff is so ordinary."

Wen Jing hesitantly took the documents and devoured them at an incredible speed, flipping a page as she finished reading the previous one. She quickly scanned through everything and, seeing no mention of Yang Ying having a girlfriend, finally breathed a sigh of relief. "There’s nothing. Really nothing."

The tightness in her heart vanished.

When she looked up, she met Randolph's fox-like eyes, which were clearly enjoying the show. Wen Jing's face instantly flushed crimson. She placed Yang Ying's file on the desk, crouched down to pick up the papers that had fallen on the floor, and said while tidying up, "Uncle Randolph, you are not allowed to jump to conclusions!"

Randolph felt the initiative shift back to his hands, and he burst into hearty laughter. "My dear niece, how am I jumping to conclusions? I have evidence, after all!" He shook his head smugly. "Indeed, the dawn of hope!"

Embarrassed, Wen Jing snatched all the documents, threw them onto the desk, turned, and walked out without saying another word, rushing straight out of the office without looking back.

Watching Wen Jing disappear, Randolph smiled, stood up, took a bottle of Scotch whisky and a glass from a nearby cabinet. He poured himself a drink, raised the glass toward the light, and toasted, "To the dawn of hope!"

After Yang Ying ended his communication with Randolph, he leaned back in his chair. Katerina approached, picked up the communicator from the desk, glanced at the private contact code Randolph had sent, and asked, "Sir, it's been a while since you last saw Miss Wen Jing, hasn't it? Perhaps you should contact her?"

"If I contact her, what should I say?" Yang Ying wasn't sure if he was talking to himself or answering Katerina.

"Just say hello and talk about everyday things, just like you did with Randolph a moment ago," Katerina said softly.

"You really want me to contact Wen Jing?" Yang Ying sensed something unusual about her presence and tone, turning to look at her as he asked.

"Does the Commander have favorable feelings for her?" Katerina did not answer Yang Ying's question but countered with one of her own.

Seeing this, Kalia immediately performed a vanishing act, as if his feet were greased, disappearing without a trace.

Yang Ying ignored him and looked straight into Katerina's eyes, saying, "Answer my question first."

"Is this the Commander's order?" Katerina's voice was faint, but her tone was very serious.

By now, Yang Ying was certain Katerina's behavior was markedly different from usual; normally, she would have answered immediately when he asked her a question.

"This is not an order. You are free to choose whether to answer or not," Yang Ying stated.

Katerina fell silent for a long time, then broke into a gentle smile. "Then I choose not to answer."

"Why won't you answer?" Yang Ying immediately pressed. Then he added, "This time, you must answer—it is an order!"

Katerina instantly took half a step back, revealing a startled expression. "Sir, you are too cunning! You tricked me into talking!"

"This is out of concern for you, hurry up and answer," Yang Ying said with the smile of a victor.

"Th-This..." Katerina stammered, and simultaneously, her face gradually turned red.

Seeing her demeanor, Yang Ying felt a stir within him. His gaze shifted to the control panel next to the command room door, and he sent a pulse of psionic energy to close and lock the door.

Randall, who had just arrived five meters from the door, paused when the door shut right before his eyes. He stared at the door for a moment, reached out to try and open it, but suddenly heard a voice in his ear:

"Hold it."

Randall turned and saw Kalia behind him, gesturing for him not to open the door.

"What happened? Why is he acting so weird?" Randall asked.

"Don't worry about it. Just wait outside for the Commander to open the door," Kalia replied, squinting.

After finishing this chapter, I must shout out: This book will not follow the Harem route.