The Beautiful, Strong, and Tragic Female Lead is Mine [Transmigration Into a Novel] - Chapter 100

Xie Zhitian’s eyes flickered. “What kind of mistake?”

Guan Qin said, “I’m not sure. I just heard it from colleagues at the research institute. No one knows the specific details, only that after that, Dr. Meng became very cautious. But I know Dr. Meng is a perfectionist. A mistake like that must have made her very self-reproachful, and I can understand her current behavior. It’s just that seeing our district’s mining progress fall behind still makes me anxious and unwilling to accept it.”

Luo Yang asked, “So, you don’t actually doubt Dr. Meng’s motives? What you said just now was just said out of anger?”

A hint of guilt flashed in Guan Qin’s eyes. “Yes, everyone knows what kind of person Dr. Meng is. She has almost no materialistic desires, doesn’t like crowds or luxury, and never attends parties or goes shopping. She’s not short on money and can conduct her beloved research freely. Besides, her parents are also respected and high-ranking scientists. She has no reason to be a spy for the commander. What’s the point?”

Luo Yang agreed. “From the looks of it, Dr. Meng has no motive at all. Controlling the number of mining robots is likely still for safety.”

Guan Qin nodded. “That’s why I didn’t want to answer when you asked. We’re already in the eye of the storm, with so many people eyeing us. You’re new here and don’t know much about Dr. Meng. It would be troublesome if you misunderstood. This kind of rumor changes as it spreads and creates a bad impression.”

Xie Zhitian said, “Don’t worry, we will definitely not talk about what happened tonight.”

Meng Qiang can play a huge role in the mining plan. If this little incident were to be exploited by someone with an ulterior motive, it would not only slander Meng Qiang but also disturb public morale, which is of no benefit.

Seeing her resolute attitude, Guan Qin breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good.”

She then muttered to herself in a low voice, “I should go out in a bit and remind the two people at the warehouse door again.”

Although she felt that the two of them wouldn’t talk, she had misspoken, so it was safer to make another trip just to be sure.

After this small interlude, they returned to their quarters around ten o’clock.

Everyone was tired after a long day. After a quick wash-up, they returned to their rooms to rest.

Xie Zhitian lay on the bed and habitually pulled the person next to her into her arms. The familiar warmth radiated through her clothes, instantly making her feel safe.

Luo Yang was her home. When Luo Yang was there, she never felt homesick.

Xie Zhitian wrapped her arm around Luo Yang, carefully tucked her in, and then lowered her head to kiss her forehead. “You must be tired today. Rest early.”

Luo Yang looked up at her, her soft cheek brushing against Xie Zhitian’s arm. “Tiantian, I still want to talk to Dr. Meng.”

Xie Zhitian had the same idea but felt it was tricky. “But according to Guan Qin, Dr. Meng has a distant personality and doesn’t want to get close to anyone.”

Luo Yang suggested, “How about we find time to ask Isabella tomorrow? Isabella said before that she’s our assistant and we can find her with any problems we have. Dr. Meng is so engrossed in her work that someone must be taking care of her daily life, like delivering supplies. If that’s not possible, maybe we can take on that job. We can talk to her then.”

Xie Zhitian thought it was a good idea. “That works.”

Some scientists are so dedicated to their work that they neglect social interaction and eventually become isolated. This wouldn’t be an issue normally, but they are a team now, and communication is essential. The important thing isn’t to get Meng Qiang to budge and allow more robots to participate in mining but to get her to at least not reject communication with others before making decisions.

She intended to think about the matter some more, but as she did, sleepiness uncontrollably washed over her, and she quickly fell asleep.

Everyone woke up early the next day. Soon after they got ready, the base’s broadcast sounded.

“All cyborg warriors who arrived yesterday, please assemble at the base gate. Your rotation schedules will be arranged. Thank you for your cooperation.”

It was a soft female voice that spoke slowly and repeated the message three times before stopping.

Xie Zhitian and the others’ quarters were quite far from the gate. By the time they arrived, the empty space was already crowded with people.

Two staff members stood at the front of the crowd. Seeing Xie Zhitian and the others approaching, they greeted them and then read off their numbers from a list. “To make scheduling easier, we’ll be dividing everyone into groups for rotation. You’re all in Group Seven, numbers one to four.”

Xie Zhitian responded and, following the staff member’s instructions, circled their assigned area on the map she carried with her.

The outer area of the mine was also fenced off with metal railings. Although not as tall and sturdy as the district’s walls, they could somewhat defend against the aliens. Alarm systems were set up every few dozen meters, and they would immediately sound if any aliens approached.

The area assigned to Xie Zhitian and the others was exactly at the border of District A and District B, separated by a sturdy metal fence, with a clear boundary, as if the two districts wouldn’t interfere with each other.

It was almost nine in the morning. Looking around, the warriors had already completed their shift change with their last rotation partners and were in position, weapons in hand, ready for combat.

Workers also arrived one after another, fully armed, entering the mine area. Among them were a few small robots, about as tall as an adult’s chest.

Xie Zhitian hadn’t seen the small robots clearly from a distance yesterday, but now that she could observe them up close, she couldn’t help but take a few extra glances.

Probably due to limited technology and materials, the small robots looked a bit rough and weren’t aesthetically pleasing. Their dark gray metal shells shone in the sunlight, and their round tin heads were goofy, looking a bit silly.

However, the workers treated the small robots with great caution, almost gingerly, turning back to check on them every few steps, as if afraid they would get lost or damaged.

Xie Zhitian thought for a moment and then called out to a worker passing by with a robot, asking in a friendly tone, “Hello, may I ask what these robots do?”

The worker was a young woman with her long hair in a ponytail. Her healthy, tanned skin and long limbs made her look strong. She saw the curious looks on Xie Zhitian and the others’ faces and enthusiastically explained, “They can do a lot, everything. In places where the space is too small or dangerous for humans, they can follow instructions and complete the tasks successfully.”

The young woman must have been carrying a remote control device on her. The small robot followed her closely, and when she stopped, it stopped, too.

Luo Yang reached out to touch the robot and praised it sincerely, “That’s amazing.”

No wonder the workers were so careful. You could tell how useful something was by how people treated it.

The ponytailed girl smiled and added, “Dr. Meng personally selected these robots, so of course they’re useful. And don’t let their size fool you, they’re much stronger than us and don’t get tired. They do several times the work we do every day.”

She then sighed regretfully, “It’s just that there are so few of them. It would be better if we had more so we don’t get outpaced by District B.”

It seemed that while Meng Qiang’s requirements were strict, the workers weren’t overly dissatisfied. They were only regretting the small number of robots.

Just then, a companion called her to come along, so the girl didn’t stay any longer, said goodbye, and hurried away.

According to the rotation schedule, Xie Zhitian’s Group Seven was on the day shift today, from nine in the morning to nine at night, for a total of twelve hours.

However, while twelve hours sounds long, the nearby aliens had already been cleared out by the army, so there weren’t many left, and they didn’t have to fight all the time. When there were no alien attacks, they could eat, drink, and rest as they pleased.

Xie Zhitian, Luo Yang, and Tang Zhuoran could handle this workload easily. Only Xia Fufeng’s physical condition was weaker than a cyborg’s, and she could handle it once in a while, but not every day.

A few hours passed, and Luo Yang, seeing that Xia Fufeng was always tense, said in a low voice, “Xiaoxia, rest for a while. There aren’t many aliens here, and we can handle it completely without your help. When the time is right, you can continue to practice domestication.”

The surrounding area was open, and there was nothing to hide them from the other warriors. It would be too conspicuous to have the little fox help fight. With Xia Fufeng’s combat power alone, it would be difficult for her to engage in a direct confrontation with an alien.

Xia Fufeng pouted and said softly, “The robots can keep going, so can I.”

She knew her words were nonsensical, but every time she saw her companions protecting her on the battlefield, she would feel a deep sense of guilt, feeling as if she was holding everyone back.

“Xiaoxia, your strengths lie elsewhere. There’s no need to drain your energy like this. We are a team, and helping each other is what we should do.”

Tang Zhuoran, who was nearby, softened her gaze and gently advised her, “Rest more when you can. I heard we’ll be assigned to night shifts later. Save some energy, and listen to me.”

Tang Zhuoran’s words were effective. Xia Fufeng obediently hid behind everyone, staying put as much as possible and occasionally secretly practicing controlling aliens when the other warriors weren’t paying attention.

When she had the chance in her own district, Xia Fufeng would also follow the guards outside the district to practice domesticating aliens. Although the results weren’t very obvious, Xia Fufeng could feel herself improving little by little. Her success rate had increased from about 50% to about 60%.

She was happy about it from the bottom of her heart but still felt unsatisfied. She wanted to become stronger and gain more power so she could protect the important people in her life.

Several more hours passed, and it was now evening.

Domesticating aliens also consumed a lot of energy. Xia Fufeng had worked all day and was finally a bit worn out, so she sat down to rest. She took a drink of the water Tang Zhuoran handed her and grabbed some food to replenish her energy.

She couldn’t rush it. If she pushed herself too hard and fell ill, she would just be a trouble to others who would have to take care of her.

Xia Fufeng said to herself as she bit into the bread.

After resting for a while, an alarm sounded in the distance. Xia Fufeng tensed up and shrank back. She was almost exhausted and had no intention of entering the battlefield.

Xie Zhitian took out a pair of binoculars and looked toward the direction of the alarm. “There are more than ten aliens, but they’ve gone to District B.”

Throughout the day, they and the warriors in District B had a clear division of labor, not interfering with each other or caring about each other’s lives. Perhaps because of the No. 54 District leader’s prejudice and distrust of women, the warriors stationed in District B were mostly men. Although their combat power wasn’t as good as the female warriors’, they were able to unite and repel the aliens without much effort since the number of aliens was not large.

Luo Yang also leaned in to take a look. “More than ten all at once? The number is a bit high. Can those people handle it?”

“Probably. It’s not like there are no female warriors over there.”

Xie Zhitian answered calmly. Earlier today, there were two groups of difficult aliens in District B, both of which were handled primarily by female warriors. Without those female warriors, District B would have definitely suffered casualties.

She was about to put down the binoculars when she saw something and paused, raising the binoculars again.

Luo Yang noticed her change. “What’s wrong, Tiantian?”

“More aliens are coming.” Xie Zhitian observed the situation in the distance, her expression becoming serious. “Dozens have come at once… No, it’s hundreds.”

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