Chapter 21: Carelessness – Someone is Even Trying to Fish for Info from Their Own Mother.
After the exams concluded, Yu Xia shifted more of his focus toward physical exercise. After all, health was one’s greatest capital, and now that the mountain of exams had been lifted from his shoulders, he could finally dedicate himself to his fitness regimen.
The day after the exams, Yu Xia headed to the hospital’s fitness center on his own, where he ran into Major General Ning.
Ning Qing had arrived a bit earlier than Yu Xia. Upon seeing him, she greeted him naturally, “Student Yu Xia, are you here to exercise as well?”
Yu Xia gave a small “Mm” and walked over to a treadmill. “Yes. I don’t need to review anymore, so I have more time to work out. I hope to raise my constitution level as quickly as possible!”
Then, he set the treadmill to Setting E.
Setting E was the second slowest speed on the machine. It was only slightly faster than a normal person’s walking pace; in fact, someone taller with longer legs could keep up with that speed just by walking normally.
Ning Qing had initially wanted to offer a subtle reminder, but she suddenly recalled his physical condition and quickly calmed herself.
To her, this might be a speed barely faster than walking, but for a Mental Power Disorder patient like Yu Xia, it was likely already quite fast. It was better not to twist the knife in the kid’s chest for no reason.
After all, through her observations over the past two days, she had noticed that while Yu Xia appeared no different from an ordinary person most of the time, closer inspection revealed discrepancies.
For instance, Yu Xia always walked a bit slower than others.
Ning Qing understood the reason behind this phenomenon. While Yu Xia looked normal on the surface, only he knew what he was actually enduring.
She stood by Yu Xia’s treadmill for a moment before sighing and walking over to another side of the room to use her own fitness equipment.
Right at that moment, a communication call came in.
Ning Qing glanced at the short-code ID. It was her youngest son, currently far away on Capital Star.
Raising an eyebrow, she accepted the call. Qin Yizheng’s figure appeared on the light screen before her. However, he didn’t look very well; he even had dark circles under his eyes. He ran a hand through his hair.
“Mom, did you go there specifically to find Tulip? What did you find out?”
Ning Qing curled her lips. “What did I find out? I didn’t find out anything. I just felt that my son has been spending all day immersed in the virtual network lately and wanted to see for myself what kind of young person could entice him so much that he’d forget to return.”
Qin Yizheng seemed choked by her words. “Don’t talk nonsense.”
Ning Qing glanced at Yu Xia, who was not far away, and chuckled. “By the way, has your ‘Tulip’ still not told you his name?”
Qin Yizheng pursed his lips. “Our relationship hasn’t reached that stage yet. He still doesn’t know who I am, either.”
Ning Qing shifted her posture, leaning against a nearby treadmill. “Heh, then I’m one step ahead of you—I already know his name. Oh, by the way, Ah-Zheng, remember to remind the freshman dean at Imperial Star Academy. Yu Xia’s condition is quite serious. Have him sign the military training exemption for Yu Xia in advance. If it’s any later, it’ll be too late.”
Qin Yizheng nodded, indicating he would handle it, but then asked, “Is his name really Yu Xia? The ‘Yu’ from Tulip? Which ‘Xia’ is it?”
Ning Qing wore a profound smile. “Didn’t you say your relationship wasn’t close enough for that? Why are you so concerned about Yu Xia’s name?”
Qin Yizheng pursed his lips stubbornly. “Mom!”
Ning Qing waved her hand. “Alright, alright, I won’t tease you anymore. Anyway, hurry up and talk to that dean. Yu Xia’s Mental Power Disorder is severe; he wouldn’t even be able to withstand ordinary military training, let alone the training at Imperial Star Academy.”
Having likely just finished his set time on the treadmill, Yu Xia happened to hear his own name and looked over. “Major General Ning, did something happen?”
Seeing that Ning Qing was on a call, he didn’t walk over. If he accidentally entered the frame and interrupted their conversation, he felt it would be rude.
Ning Qing waved him off. “It’s nothing. When the professor left with your exam papers earlier, he was in a hurry and I didn’t get a chance to remind him. Someone just called, so I mentioned it to them to have them prepare in advance. The first month after entering Imperial Star Academy is all military training, and the academy’s training is notoriously harsh. Your small frame can’t handle that. Once you enter the academy, you should first go to the school hospital for a physical checkup!”
Hearing this, Yu Xia understood immediately. “Thank you, Major General Ning.”
Although the physical checkups were miserable, they were still better than military training.
While he was exercising now, his workouts were worlds apart from a normal person’s military training; there was simply no comparison.
Ning Qing smiled. “You’re welcome. This is also for the sake of the person in charge of training at the academy. Otherwise, he’d be scrambling to handle these matters at the last minute. With your condition, it’s impossible to keep up with the standard training. We can’t actually let you participate, can we?”
Allowing a patient with Level 6 Mental Power Disorder to participate in training that made even ordinary people light-headed would be truly irresponsible.
After speaking to Yu Xia, Ning Qing turned her attention back to her son’s light screen, only to see that the person who had been sitting calmly was now standing up. She raised an eyebrow. “Why are you standing up? Trying to show off that you’re tall?”
Qin Yizheng, who simply wanted to catch a glimpse of Yu Xia, sat back down sheepishly. “No…”
Having become a Major General at a young age, the thing Ning Qing disliked most was people flaunting their height in front of her. After all, she had always been dissatisfied with her height of 169 cm, feeling that if she were just one centimeter taller, she could finally be considered ‘stately.’
Even though 169 cm could be called tall, the Major General was still hung up on that one missing centimeter.
However, she was in a good mood now. She smiled at Qin Yizheng and asked, “You want to see Xiao Yu?”
Qin Yizheng himself wasn’t sure if it was good or bad to sneak a peek like this, but he truly did want to see him. So, as if possessed, he nodded.
With a smile on her lips, Ning Qing turned her light screen. “Showing you the front isn’t very convenient, so I’ll just give you a look at his back. Otherwise, it would be bad if you picked up the wrong person when school starts. Even if it’s just a silhouette, you’ll still recognize him then, won’t you?”
A figure on a treadmill suddenly appeared in Qin Yizheng’s vision. His speed wasn’t fast, but every movement was distinct. Even his slightly rapid breathing seemed audible.
Of course, this was just an illusion. Modern optical computers were highly intelligent; sounds not belonging to the owner would not be identified and transmitted to the other end. He merely saw Yu Xia’s jogging figure and associated it with the voice he had heard on the virtual network. That was all.
Qin Yizheng watched Yu Xia for a long time before finally pulling his gaze back. “Doing that… must be very tiring for him, right?”
Ning Qing also looked over. “Likely so. With a condition like his, only he truly knows his own situation; everyone else is just speculating. But he’s quite positive right now. As long as one has a goal in life, it’s fine. I see his current goal is quite clear. Isn’t there a saying? ‘During the growth period, everything is possible.’ Maybe he really can catch up his constitution during this time?”
Qin Yizheng twitched the corner of his mouth. “While there is some theoretical basis for that, a person’s growth period is limited.”
“But at a time like this, you have to find ways to make him believe in that theory so he has hope for a complete cure.” Ning Qing looked at Yu Xia and sighed. “Otherwise, how could anyone possibly jump from D-rank to S-rank constitution in seven years? That’s asking too much.”
Qin Yizheng was stunned by Ning Qing’s words. “S-rank constitution? Mom, do you mean he…”
Ning Qing was momentarily confused by her son’s overly agitated reaction. Only after a while did she realize. “Eh? Yu Xia hasn’t mentioned his mental power to you?”
Qin Yizheng shook his head. “He’s been keeping that information hidden. I only speculated that he was at least above SS-rank.”
Ning Qing gave a calm response, “Oh. He has SSS-rank mental power. To fully match that, he would need an S-rank constitution.”
Qin Yizheng let out a light chuckle. “Sister Lu Yao has SSS+ mental power, and her training her constitution to B+ is already considered a ‘cure,’ even if there are some lingering effects. If Yu Xia only has SSS-rank mental power, he’d only need an A-rank constitution to be considered fully cured. There’s no need to specifically set his goal to S-rank.”
Ning Qing’s face turned cold. “If you already guessed it, why are you still talking? Can’t you just be happy in private? But then again, Yu Xia hasn’t even told you his specific mental power yet. Qin Yizheng, are you even capable?”
Qin Yizheng was not provoked by his mother’s jab. His mood was exceptionally good at this moment. “If you say he’s SSS, then he’s SSS. I know what you mean. I’m going to talk to the freshman dean about Yu Xia now. Hanging up!”
Plop. The light screen went black.
It took quite a while before Ning Qing let out a “Tsk” and retracted the screen.
She’d have to write a report later. Although she trusted Qin Yizheng, and leaking Yu Xia’s mental power rank to him wasn’t a huge issue—at most, it just let that brat named Qin Yizheng, who also had SSS+ mental power, be happy in private—the information had indeed leaked from her side.
She had been careless, so the report still had to be written.
Translator’s Note:
Hi everyone! (๑>◡<๑)
This chapter finally confirms what we’ve all suspected—Major General Ning Qing is Qin Yizheng’s mother! Our ML is really out here using his mom for intel while she teases him for being “incapable” of getting Yu Xia’s name or rank.
Also, a little clarification on the terms:
- SSS-rank: Ning Qing is purposely omitting the “+” to keep Yu Xia’s true potential (SSS+) under wraps, as we learned in Chapter 20 that SSS+ is a target for the Alliance.
- 169 cm complex: In China, being 170 cm is often the “gold standard” for a tall woman. Major General Ning being 169 cm and being salty about that 1 cm is such a humanizing touch for a high-ranking officer!
- Military Training (Junxun): In Chinese universities, all freshmen must undergo a few weeks of rigorous military training. Given Yu Xia’s MPD (Mental Power Disorder), he’d literally collapse, so the exemption is a lifesaver.
Can’t wait to see them meet in person! Stay tuned!
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