The Beautiful, Strong, and Tragic Female Lead is Mine [Transmigration Into a Novel] - Chapter 104

For a full hour, everyone’s attention was fixed on the small scroll in Xia Fufeng’s hand.

Under the current circumstances, the appearance of this scroll was truly bizarre. While Milk Cake was intelligent and had a good rapport with people, it couldn’t have possibly tied the small scroll to its leg with a fine string on its own. It had to be someone with a purpose who had tied the scroll to Milk Cake’s leg.

However, while Milk Cake was not aggressive towards humans most of the time, it wasn’t a pet that could be handled by just any stranger. The fact that someone was able to tie the scroll to its leg and have it obediently bring it back showed that the person was also quite resourceful.

The small scroll was weightless in her hand.

Xia Fufeng carefully removed the outer plastic film and unrolled the scroll.

Tang Zhuoran brought the lamp closer, and the light illuminated the page, making the lines of text clearly visible.

Luo Yang exclaimed, “This… is an interview with Dr. Meng?”

The page in front of them was a fragment cut from a newspaper. Its edges were yellow and soft, giving it a sense of age. When unrolled, it took up half a page of the newspaper and included the date.

Tang Zhuoran glanced at the time. “An interview from about ten years ago, right before the apocalypse happened.”

At that time, Meng Qiang was only 23 years old. But because she had been a top student since childhood, she had shown amazing talent. She only needed a month to learn what others took a semester to learn, so she skipped grades multiple times and had already graduated with a Ph.D. at that time.

Although news reports are supposed to remain objective, the writer was clearly very impressed with Meng Qiang, with admiration evident in every line. The writer first summarized Meng Qiang’s current achievements, using lavish praise, before getting to the point.

“Dr. Meng, thank you so much for taking the time to accept our interview. We heard you had previously turned down invitations from many media outlets. Could you tell us what made you agree this time?”

Meng Qiang’s answer was: “I really don’t like socializing, so I’ve turned down some interviews before. I came this time because I heard that many customers have some misunderstandings about our latest robot design, and I wanted to take this opportunity to explain.”

After reading Meng Qiang’s answer, everyone was stunned.

Judging from Meng Qiang’s attitude in this interview, although she was unwilling to socialize, she would still provide necessary explanations for controversial content. But now, when faced with questions from others, she seemed completely unwilling to communicate. Why?

Xia Fufeng flipped the newspaper back and forth. “Could this thing be fake?”

“Doesn’t look like it. From a technical standpoint, it would be very difficult to achieve such a realistic aging effect today.”

Xie Zhitian mused, “But to be safe, we should take it back to the base and have someone familiar with Dr. Meng, like Guan Qin, take a look.”

Guan Qin had said that she greatly admired Meng Qiang and should have some recollection of her few interviews.

Everyone agreed this was a good idea and, with their questions, continued to read on.

The first few questions were more casual and lighthearted, about her daily life, hobbies outside of work, favorite foods, and so on.

Meng Qiang’s answers were not particularly special compared to those of an ordinary person. She said that, like many young girls, she liked to read, travel, and sometimes watch TV series. Her choice of words was also very approachable and easy to like. It seemed this scientist was just unwilling to socialize, not unable to.

The interview also boldly asked about the robot malfunction incident, and Meng Qiang did not hide anything. She candidly explained the cause of the error and the improvement measures. Although anyone could see that this was not the fault of the R&D personnel but an error in the production quality control, Meng Qiang still sincerely apologized and said she would strengthen communication with the production team in the future to ensure every detail was perfect.

After reading this part, Luo Yang was a little puzzled. “Why was Dr. Meng so open back then, but now she’s completely unwilling to explain herself?”

Xie Zhitian pondered, “If this document is real, maybe something else happened during the apocalypse that affected her personality?”

Tang Zhuoran said, “The top priority is to verify the authenticity of this report. But we don’t know anyone here. Who could have given us this report?”

She looked at her companions, who all shook their heads, indicating they had no clue either.

Xia Fufeng spoke up thoughtfully, “If this information isn’t fabricated, it means… someone wants to help us but can’t show themselves, so they can only pass on information to us in secret, right?”

But she immediately negated this idea. “No, not necessarily. An interview from ten years ago—many of Dr. Meng’s views and ideas might have already changed since then. Even if the interview is real, the information might be misleading due to the long passage of time.”

Luo Yang said, “No matter what, let’s ask others first. Even if some views have changed, it still contains some unchanging information, such as certain experiences and family relationships she has already had. We can analyze it properly when we get back. We can also slowly probe for other key points that might have changed.”

So, after the night shift, the group, without even taking a break, rushed to Guan Qin’s place.

Guan Qin was about to go out when she saw Xie Zhitian and the others arrive in a flurry, looking a little surprised. “What’s wrong? You all look like you’re in a hurry.”

Xie Zhitian pulled the small scroll from her pocket and unrolled it in front of her. “Miss Guan, do you remember this interview?”

“An interview? Are there still interviews now… oh my God!”

After seeing the contents of the newspaper, Guan Qin was startled. She simply took the newspaper from Xie Zhitian and held it in her hands. She leaned in a little, examining it carefully. “Is this Dr. Meng’s interview?”

Xie Zhitian replied, “Yes, I want to know if the content on it is real.”

“Let me see…” Guan Qin’s attention was captivated, and she read it seriously. As a voracious reader, she read extremely fast and finished the entire content in less than three minutes.

“It’s real. This was the last interview with Dr. Meng before the apocalypse started.”

Guan Qin looked up, her tone firm. “And Dr. Meng hasn’t accepted many interviews in total. I’ve read this report, and the content is about the same as what I remember. But where did you get this newspaper?”

Luo Yang thought for a moment and gave a vague answer. “We found it during our shift.”

Xia Fufeng explained from the side, “We were trying to get closer to Dr. Meng so we could talk to her, right? And it was as if someone knew what we were thinking—an interview just fell out of nowhere. This is too much of a coincidence to be accidental. We’re worried we might be misled by someone with bad intentions, so we came to ask you.”

The timing of the newspaper’s appearance was too perfect. It was clearly delivered by someone on purpose. And that person had some understanding of their current situation, at least knowing they were trying to approach Meng Qiang. This also meant that the person was resourceful and well-connected, not a simple character.

After hearing this, Guan Qin’s expression also turned serious. “If that’s the case, I suggest you contact the management of District 53. After all, so many years have passed, and I can’t be 100% sure about every single detail.”

Tang Zhuoran nodded. “We will, thank you, Miss Guan.”

The group had come here to investigate on the Queen’s orders and had reliable contacts in District 53 to prevent accidents. During her break, Xie Zhitian typed up the interview and sent it to the contact using the computer at the network center.

The contact replied that they would verify it as soon as possible, but since a lot of time had passed, it would likely take 1-2 days.

Xie Zhitian and the others were not in a hurry; in fact, they were more inclined to believe the newspaper was real. For one, it’s very difficult to find such realistic aging techniques now. For another, Guan Qin, who idolized Meng Qiang, did not think anything was amiss.

So, while waiting for the results, they reread the report many times, to the point where they could recite its contents from memory.

Xia Fufeng even found a small notebook and wrote down the things they all thought were useful.

“Dr. Meng said she likes to eat ice cream.”

Xia Fufeng looked up from the notebook and asked Xie Zhitian, “Do you have any tools and ingredients for making ice cream in your space? There’s basically no ice cream for sale now. What if Dr. Meng gets happy after eating it and is willing to talk to us?”

Xie Zhitian laughed. “I do, but I don’t think Dr. Meng is someone who’s greedy for food. Didn’t Guan Qin also say that Dr. Meng is a picky eater now and likes to cook for herself? Sometimes, when the district sends over delicious food, she has her people send it back, just like the coffee and tea we sent before.”

Tang Zhuoran gently advised her, “Besides, it’s so cold now. Even if Dr. Meng likes it, she probably won’t eat it this season.”

Xia Fufeng cupped her face and sighed, “You’re right.”

Luo Yang suggested, “Dr. Meng also said she likes to read science fiction novels. Do you have any in your space, Zhitian? I think this hobby won’t change.”

Xie Zhitian agreed. “Good point, let me look.”

The group, one after another, analyzed each question of Meng Qiang’s interview again.

They quickly got to the last question, which Xie Zhitian read aloud.

“What is the one thing you regret the most in your life?”

Meng Qiang’s answer was: “About ten years ago, I was out with a good friend. We saw a very beautiful pinwheel at a roadside stall. My good friend really liked it, but we didn’t have any money with us that day. By the time we went back to get the money and returned to buy it, the pinwheel had already been sold. I still feel very regretful when I think about it now.”

Xia Fufeng pointed her finger at that paragraph. “She remembers something from ten years ago so clearly, and even described the pinwheel in detail afterward. This is probably an example of how a childhood regret can last a lifetime.”

Luo Yang picked up the conversation. “We should remember to prepare this pinwheel. It shouldn’t be hard to make one just like she described.”

Xie Zhitian looked at the last question, deep in thought. “I still don’t quite understand.”

Xia Fufeng was stunned. “What don’t you understand?”

Xie Zhitian said, “This incident happened when Dr. Meng was about thirteen years old. Between the ages of thirteen and twenty-three, Dr. Meng’s life was very rich and colorful. You could say she experienced several turning points, from a young, naive student to an outstanding scientist with a career she loves. But in such an important period, nothing could compare to a pinwheel she didn’t get to buy. It’s really hard to understand.”

Tang Zhuoran said, “Indeed. And Dr. Meng doesn’t seem to be materialistic, nor does she seem like someone who would be so hung up on a toy for so many years.”

Luo Yang thought for a moment. “Could that pinwheel have some special meaning for Dr. Meng?”

She read the paragraph carefully again. “Wait, she said ‘my good friend really liked it,’ not ‘I really liked it’!”

Xia Fufeng caught on. “In other words, she’s regretting it for her friend. That must have been a very, very good friend, right? To remember it so clearly after so many years.”

The air fell silent. Everyone looked at each other, thinking the same thing.

Everyone who has ever mentioned Meng Qiang has emphasized that she likes to be a loner. How is it that no one has ever mentioned a friend who was so close to Dr. Meng?

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