Jing Yuan turned to the strategist standing beside him and instructed, "Qingque, draft a formal contract immediately. And arrange a grand banquet tonight—Lady Herta has been most generous; we mustn't neglect such a distinguished guest."
Qingque bowed and hurried off to prepare the documents.
Then Jing Yuan turned back with his usual warm smile.
"To celebrate the sincerity of our cooperation, the Six Charioteers of the Luofu will drink with you tonight, Lady Herta—no one leaves sober!"
Though Jing Yuan's expression was impeccably courteous, to Herta it looked very much like the smug grin of someone profiting from another's loss.
Oh, so now I'm 'generous,' am I? Where was all that praise when you were frowning like an old man refusing to part with a coin?
And that "Yanqing" he'd mentioned—one moment a 'useless disciple', the next his 'beloved student.' A moment ago it was "I can't wrestle things from the young," and now it's "he's so broad-minded, it's fine if I decide for him."
Does your poor disciple even know you're using him like this?
"Hm."
Herta gave a curt nod, ultimately choosing to go along.
It was too late to protest now anyway.
"General Jing Yuan's kindness…" Herta paused, biting the words back between her teeth.
Kindness, my foot! After taking such a loss, you think I can just smile it away?
She forced the words out stiffly: "I appreciate the thought—but the banquet will not be necessary. I'd rather begin the research as soon as possible."
Social events like that had never interested her. In her mind, there was no greater waste of time than meaningless pleasantries. So, she declined without hesitation.
"What a pity," Jing Yuan sighed with exaggerated regret.
"I heard from General Feixiao that Du's Teahouse has produced a new brew. He was planning to bring a jar tonight to try something novel. I had hoped Lady Herta might join us to examine how they manage to seal tea in earthen jars."
Du's Teahouse? Tea in jars?
The senior officers barely reacted, but in the corner, Qingque's ears perked up.
She remembered hearing the Trailblazer mention that "tea house" recently—apparently, they were selling all kinds of wine, then tossing in a few tea leaves and slapping a fancy tea label on it.
Yeah, sounded like booze to her.
She wondered idly how much General Feixiao could drink. Judging by her battlefield aura, she probably held her liquor very well.
Unable to sneak off and play tiles in front of all these big shots, Qingque could only kill time by letting her mind wander.
Jing Yuan's laughter drew the room back to order.
"Lady Herta, the documents will take a while yet. In the meantime, might you share some insights from your recent travels?"
"Of course."
With nothing better to do, Herta summoned a large steel pod beside her—the [Cognitive Seal].
"This device was originally intended to be included in the research project as well, but since General Jing Yuan has already said—"
"No, no, not at all!" Jing Yuan waved his hand, grinning broadly. Then he turned to the strategist working at the holographic terminal.
"Qingque, pause what you're doing for now!"
Another ready-made research subject—he'd be a fool to pass it up!
Herta didn't object.
What was there to stop anymore? She'd already handed over a lifetime's worth of research; one more thing made no difference.
Her tone went flat. "This project's expenses will be borne entirely by the Luofu."
"Ah…" Jing Yuan put on that same 'this is rather difficult' look again.
Herta felt her blood pressure spike.
Fu Xuan discreetly gave Jing Yuan a tiny nod, signaling him to accept.
This one's cheap—barely costs anything, her glance seemed to say.
Jing Yuan caught the hint and broke into a genial smile.
"Very well! Lady Herta has already sacrificed so much—we can't afford to be stingy. Consider it a small favor repaid."
He called over his shoulder, "Qingque, write it exactly as Lady Herta says!"
Write your head!
Herta could have screamed.
Is this how Xianzhou generals operate—never taking even the tiniest loss?!
Her entire life's work, and this [Cognitive Seal], were not even remotely comparable!
Yet somehow, he'd made it sound like an even trade!
She clenched the hilt of the iron rod at her side, fighting the urge to smash that smug, white-haired fox right in the face—just to see if he was secretly listed under evil omens and calamities.
But under her seething glare, Jing Yuan remained utterly unfazed, his tone as polite as ever.
"Lady Herta, please enlighten us—what exactly does this machine do?"
At a glance, he could tell it had nothing to do with any Path-related energy. The outer shell wasn't even high-grade metal—less refined than a standard star-skiff escape pod.
No wonder Fu Xuan had signaled him earlier; this thing clearly wouldn't cost much.
Realizing there was no point in venting her irritation, Herta took a breath and explained evenly, "This device is called the [Cognitive Seal]. It can rewrite a person's cognition without altering their memories. Think of it as modifying the operating system's root code on a computer—by typing a few words on its console, one can implant impressions that never existed into a subject's mind."
"Rewriting cognition?"
Jing Yuan's eyes widened. After confirming that it contained no Path energy, he had instinctively dismissed it as trivial—now that seemed absurd.
Wasn't cognition shaped by information? And wasn't memory precisely the record of information? How could the two be separated?
And to accomplish such a feat with this unremarkable hunk of metal? Even members of the Garden of Recollection wouldn't dare claim they could manage that!
He struggled to believe it, yet reason reminded him: the Curios from that "trash can" shop had never failed to live up to their description.
"Would it be possible to test it?" he asked.
Seeing the surprise on Jing Yuan's face, Herta felt a flicker of satisfaction.
Ha, so even you can be caught off guard.
"Of course!" she agreed readily. "Who will be the subject?"
Jing Yuan, Fu Xuan, and Herta looked around at one another—none spoke up.
All three were Emanators; starting with them would be pointless for testing baseline effects.
So, who would be?
A sudden chill ran down Qingque's spine.
When she came back to her senses, she found every eye in the room fixed squarely on her.
"Uh… is there something you need me to do?" she asked nervously.
"Qingque," Fu Xuan said, pointing toward the metal pod, "sit inside. It's a good thing."
Qingque's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What kind of good thing?"
She hadn't heard their earlier conversation, but she was sharp enough to sense danger.
If Lady Fu Xuan's face didn't show even half a smile, there was no way this was "good"!
Jing Yuan smoothly took over the conversation, his voice rich and reassuring.
"Qingque, is it? Lady Fu Xuan has often praised your wit and capability. Every task entrusted to you, she says, you've carried out beautifully."
"Ahaha, really? So, Master Diviner says that about me?"
Qingque scratched the back of her head, embarrassed but pleased. Sure, it was true she'd done some things well—but she'd also gotten on Fu Xuan's nerves plenty of times. Still, she hadn't expected such a glowing report to reach the General!
"Of course! And since you've worked so diligently, I've decided to reward you personally."
Jing Yuan's tone was gentle, persuasive, carrying a natural authority that invited trust.
He gestured toward the [Cognitive Seal].
"Step into the chamber and follow our instructions. It'll only take a few minutes. Once it's done, I'll see to it your performance evaluation rises by an entire tier."
"Alright! I'm going in!"
Delighted, Qingque sprang up, opened the hatch, and climbed inside.
After all, the Luofu's year-end bonuses followed a bottom-cut policy—and just one more performance tier would secure hers solidly. A few minutes of work for three months' extra pay? Who could say no to that?
Jing Yuan turned to Fu Xuan with a faint smile.
"See? Much smoother this way."
Fu Xuan sighed.
And that… is why I'll never become a proper Arbiter-General.
Herta ignored their banter. She stepped up to the [Cognitive Seal]'s control panel and asked evenly, "What shall we modify?"