The carpet underfoot was thick, sinking almost past her ankles with every step, like stepping into cotton wool that offered no purchase.

Ziye stopped abruptly, her face pale, lips trembling, which greatly surprised Bran. He asked, "Are you still cold? I'll turn up the heating a bit more."

Ziye turned her head, her eyes fixed firmly on Bran.

Bran had a square face; he wasn't handsome, but his physique was full of muscle, his eyebrows thick and prominent, lending him an inherently imposing air. At that moment, his gaze was filled with fatherly concern.

All along, she had liked Bran more than Tang Wen precisely because he offered that paternal feeling.

Could a person like this deceive her?

She shook her head slightly.

Regardless of why Tang Wen bought the blueprints, he surely knew. If she asked him, he would probably tell her. Ziye’s lips parted and closed several times, but in the end, the question didn't come out.

Perhaps Tang Wen didn't know she ran the Budding Shop, or perhaps he simply enjoyed collecting blueprints, or maybe buying them was just a fluke... Even if Tang Wen had a motive, if he bought her blueprints when she was at her lowest so she could survive, then she should be grateful to him.

Ziye sorted through her thoughts, her mind slowly settling. After all this time together, she trusted them from the bottom of her heart.

Her momentary worry was just fear of placing her trust in the wrong person, but she feared the hurt that suspicion and misunderstanding could cause even more, and she dreaded that this potential loss might be her own fault.

She took a deep breath, looked up, and offered Bran a faint smile. "It's warm enough now; the chill from before is just lingering."

The corridor was long, and the scenery was exceptionally fine.

It could be said this was the most marvelous corridor Ziye had ever traversed.

On either side were halls of various kinds, each filled with items—blueprints, mech models, ship models, metal samples, and more. Walking through the corridor felt like touring a museum from the interstellar age, full of surprises at every turn.

However, Ziye's thoughts were temporarily elsewhere, drifting back to the Research Institute.

For an entire semester, Bran had taught her mech piloting and heavy bomber operation, while Tang Wen instructed her in close-quarters combat and design, treating her entirely as one of their own. The Institute hadn't even set up any access restrictions.

In space, secrecy was paramount.

The Research Institute itself was a secret, its contents deeply tied to the strategic weaponry of the Interstellar Federation. Yet, they had placed no limits on her movements; even when Tang Wen was drafting schematics, he never deliberately kept her away.

They trusted her completely.

This time, the fact that she was invited to Tang Wen's home meant he, too, considered her family.

Trust was the most vital element between people.

They gave her such immense trust; how could she possibly disappoint their intentions?

As she reached the end of the path, just as Ziye was about to take the final step out of the corridor, she suddenly heard the faint sound of a piano. Ding-ding-dong, it wasn't a structured melody, but it wasn't entirely unpleasant either.

Ziye looked in the direction of the sound and was surprised to see Tang Wen seated in the second-to-last hall.

It was an elegant music room, featuring delicate sheer curtains that offered a view of the mist-covered trees outside, yet it didn't feel cold. The entire décor was filled with sleek, streamlined colors. A white grand piano stood quietly in the center of the room, positioned slightly to the left. Tang Wen, dressed in white casual wear, sat before it, his long fingers dancing over the black and white keys. From Ziye's angle, she had a perfect view of his flawless profile.

Tang Wen was practically the perfect prince in the minds of interstellar girls, of course, if he weren't currently hunched over the piano.

What a 'dedicated' study session for the piano!

For some reason, Ziye felt a strong urge to laugh. Tang Wen was far cuter than she had imagined. She just wondered if Bran, his piano instructor, would spit blood upon seeing this scene?

She turned her head to look at Bran. Unsurprisingly, she saw exasperation etched across his face.

Since Bran didn't speak, she remained standing too, watching with calm amusement to see what Tang Wen would do next.

Tang Wen pressed a couple of keys, grew bored, and looked up at the sheet music. After flipping through several pages, he tossed it aside and began randomly striking the keys.

Listening to his disharmonious sounds, Ziye couldn't help but let out a suppressed giggle—so this was how the genius designer Tang Wen studied the piano; no wonder he never seemed to grasp it!

Tang Wen heard the sound and abruptly turned his head.

The instant their eyes met, Ziye witnessed a miracle unfold.

Tang Wen’s cheeks flushed deeply!

To say his cheeks merely flushed might be an understatement; the blush spread in visible layers, climbing from his neck up to his forehead, until his entire face was like a perfectly ripe apple.

His skin was fair, making it impossible to hide.

Ziye couldn't help but be amused. Tang Wen could actually get shy—what a rare sight!

Embarrassed, Tang Wen shot her a sidelong glance, then deliberately adopting a serious expression, he chastised Bran, "Ziye is here, why didn't you tell me?"

Bran didn't accept the reprimand; instead, he walked up to Tang Wen. "When you play the piano, you must sit up straight. If you slouch again, next time I'll balance a bowl of water on your head."

Tang Wen glared at him furiously, tossing out, "I’m not learning anymore!"

Bran suppressed a smile. He knew Tang Wen was embarrassed about being caught learning the piano by Ziye, and if he added a little fuel to the fire, Tang Wen would likely stomp him into dust after Ziye left.

Bran knew when to stop. He adopted a tone of great respect. "This piece is indeed quite difficult for a beginner. You’ve practiced for an hour today, you must be tired. Rest for a while first. I'll make you some tea."

Tang Wen let out a "Hmph," and only after Bran moved into the adjacent room did he offer Ziye a slight smile. "Ziye, are you cold?"

He rarely showed kindness to people, and this rare smile seemed to warm his entire being. Ziye gazed at him, slightly dazed, feeling as if she had never truly known him before, and only shook her head instinctively. "Not cold."

Tang Wen didn't notice Ziye’s distraction. As he walked toward the door, he said, "Come over here. Help me print out the blueprints for this design schematic?"

The third hall from the end was the design studio.

It was a hall over two hundred square meters, filled entirely with his designs.

Ziye collected her thoughts, glanced sideways at the man beside her. His emotions had retracted swiftly; he was now calm to the point of being cool, showing none of the previous embarrassment. Ziye silently marveled. Had she seen things wrong just now? How could that icy facade blush?

Ziye shook her head, pushing the thought aside, and focused seriously on his schematics.

Design drawings were the most difficult and crucial part of manufacturing a mech. The mech blueprints were derived from these schematics, and to print them correctly, one had to thoroughly understand the design first.

Oh, right, blueprints. She almost forgot.

Ziye looked at Tang Wen again. She truly wanted to know why he had bought all her blueprints? Why? After thinking it over, she shamefully got distracted again.

Thwack. Tang Wen casually picked up a book and tapped her head with it. "Focus."

Ziye rubbed her head where it was hit, feeling wronged, and decided to set aside the blueprint issue for the moment. The immediate priority was to thoroughly study the design schematic in front of her.

Otherwise...

She glanced once more at Tang Wen’s tightly furrowed brow.

Alas, otherwise, her head would be in danger.

Tang Wen headed toward the exit, saying as he walked, "I'll be in the library. If you have questions, you can come ask, or look up answers in the books."

Ziye nodded. After watching him leave, she found a comfortable spot to sit down and began examining the design schematic carefully. She grasped Tang Wen's underlying intent: if she could independently decipher his schematics, she was essentially ready to graduate.

Since she planned to enter the mech competition, she naturally needed to understand this entire system thoroughly.

Tang Wen’s action was truly a blessing in disguise.

The only doubt Ziye held was whether Tang Wen was intentionally testing her, because this design schematic was incredibly complex, incorporating knowledge she understood and concepts she didn't.

It could be said that this schematic inherited Tang Wen's perfected design philosophy: speaking through mathematics!

Little Sprout buzzed around her, asserting its presence. "Hey, little dummy, beg this Lord, and I’ll teach you a couple of tricks."

Ziye resolved to complete it independently, ignoring Little Sprout’s plea, and started puzzling it out herself.

Besides elements like color palettes and jump harmonic parameters, many other aspects—such as capacity and propulsion system visualization—were things Ziye hadn't previously considered conscious factors. Now, they seemed profoundly esoteric.

Should she ask Tang Wen?

Ziye decisively shook her head and decided to go to the library herself.

The impression gained from searching through materials herself would be much deeper than simply being told by Tang Wen, and she wouldn't risk being ridiculed by him. However, where was the library?

Ziye walked out, proceeding down the corridor. When she reached the end and took the first step out, she froze.

The last hall was an entirely different world.

It was higher and far more spacious than any of the preceding halls, soaring dozens of meters high, separated into tiers by circular, carved wooden bookshelves made of exquisite nanmu wood, shimmering with a noble sheen under the light from the skylight.

Various kinds of books, from bottom to top, row after row, column after column, filled every shelf. Their colors varied, and their age differed, making them look like solemn scholars sitting quietly, seemingly imbued with the power refined by time.

Ziye had never seen such an ancient library.

In an era where digitization had long replaced physical books, she thought the library at Silver Crest was rare enough, but this place housed even more vast and profound collections. Her own collection could not compare to his.

Tang Wen sat at a large desk, holding a pen in one hand and a book in the other, engrossed in his reading.

Not wanting to disturb him, Ziye tiptoed to the other side of the bookshelves, where a circular, rotating wooden staircase was located. She climbed to the third level of the shelving unit, searching for the volumes she needed.

Tang Wen slightly raised his eyes, watching the small squirrel-like figure moving high up among the shelves. Her footsteps were extremely light on the thick carpet, occasionally stirring up faint motes of dust that danced in the air.

The library was so quiet one could hear a pin drop.

"Huh?"

Ziye suddenly let out an exclamation. Tang Wen looked up to see Ziye turning toward him, holding a copy of Principles of Ship Engines with an incredulous tone. "How do you have this book?"

The copy of Principles of Ship Engines she had brought back from Silver Crest was a photocopy; even the annotations were copied. Previously, she hadn't thought much of it—the book had been secretly copied by Tang Shan, so having annotations was understandable.

But why was the original of that book here in Tang Wen's library?

Even the font used for the annotations was identical to the one on her copy!

PS: +Had something come up today, apologies for the late update. Thank you to those who sent gifts, kisses.+