Chapter 81: Chapter 81 – Why Don’t You Believe It?
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Ren Suo took the file from Yu Kuangtu. There was no t.i.tle on the cover of the file, and it was just like a file that students used to store their examination papers. Ren Suo flipped open the file to the first page to see a front-facing file photo of him which he took when he graduated.
It was the file of Ren Suo’s personal details. From his relatives and his ancestral home to his educational background and lodging history to his lifelong achievements, there was a full record of everything about him.
Ren Suo was not surprised, however. The moment he was transferred to the Ministry of State Security, he knew that his entire background would have been traced and checked.
The most important information were:
“Base Pract.i.tioner Talent Score: 1.25, Potential: Low”
“Awakened Ability: First-aid Rescue”
Even though he knew long ago that his talent score was mediocre, his instructor had played it down during the training camp. Ren Suo had to work after the end of the training camp, and he gradually forgot about it.
But now that he saw that his potential was written as “low”, he could not help but feel slightly disheartened.
There was another page at the back:
“Born in Fofeng as a member of the Ren tribe. An offshoot of the Ren family of Luoyang. An Important Protected Member of the City.”
Key Protected Member of the City…
Ren Suo had only heard of key primary schools of the area, key secondary schools of the city, and key high schools of the province, but had never heard of key protected members of the city.
Yu Kuangtu looked up and saw that Ren Suo was looking at that page. He knew what Ren Suo was thinking about.
He said, “The Key Members Protection Plan is a special policy that was implemented recently. In general, there are currently only key members of the city, the province, and the nation. Most of the potential Awakeners who are willing to be a part of the nation’s Pract.i.tioner system are listed as key protection members.”
“This Plan was devised based on the prior protection plan for research center personnel. Currently, both the Awakened and Pract.i.tioners are tactical resources. The presence of certain Awakened people can rapidly increase the speed of the nation’s research, and Pract.i.tioners can also gradually awaken as their ability enhances. As such, it is extremely important to protect Awakeners who have weak combat power.”
“The term ‘key member of the city’ is for ordinary Pract.i.tioners who had some Pract.i.tioner talent. While it may sound exaggerated, it means that there would be more policemen in the area, and all foreigners would be scrutinized. The local security checks would also be much more stringent. In essence, it is an enhanced protection the city is capable of arranging with its police force.”
Ren Suo asked, “Is that sufficient? What if…”
“Is that not sufficient? Although no one can guarantee that foreign opposing powers would not infiltrate here, the most that they can do is also to bribe the jobless locals and instigate them to harm the key protected members,” Yu Kuangtu said with a laugh.
“Do you actually think that the nation would allow foreigners who have combat experience to roam around freely here? Do you think that mercenaries would be allowed across our borders? Even if it was to expand the tourism industry here, the public security bureau of the nation would still be extremely particular towards those groups of people.”
“But in general, members of the Countermeasure Division would not become a Key Protected Member. You are an exception,” Yu Kuangtu said.
Ren Suo said, “Is it because of…’Over My Dead Body’?”
“Yes. It looks like you have done your own research. The Ren family of Fofeng are said to be offshoots of the Ren family of Luoyang,” Yu Kuangtu said.
He paused for a moment before continuing, “You are part of the ministry, so there is no harm telling you this information… The nation has already confirmed that the Ren family of Luoyang did exist in the past.”
Ren Suo rubbed his palms as he felt his sweat between his fingertips.
Yu Kuangtu continued, “Traces of the earth elves have even been found.”
R en Suo was surprised. He exclaimed, “Earth elves?! Are they the earth elves that the Ren family performed spiritual exchange within the drama series?”
Yu Kuangtu leaned back in his chair and replied, “Yes, but there are merely traces of them. Someone was once saved by the earth elf, but that was it. I don’t know the details as I am not in charge of this area, so let’s go back to you… Although you have the surname Ren, you did not awaken the Blood of the Champion.”
“Of course,” Ren Suo said. “If I did, I would be living like a saint now.”
Yu Kuangtu said, “According to internal research, the awakening of the Blood is likely controlled by information in the DNA, which means that you would not awaken the Blood if it is not sufficiently ‘pure’. You would live just like an ordinary person, so you don’t need to worry.”
“Furthermore, not everyone who has the surname Ren would carry the blood of the legendary Ren family?” Yu Kuangtu said.
Ren s...o...b..inked. He asked, “What do you mean?”
“The ancient people often used the most common surname around their area as their own surname, especially if they wanted to ease into the local culture as fast as possible, or simply because they were too poor to have a surname. That is why there were entire villages of people with the surname Li or Chen in the past,” Li Kuangtu explained.
He continued, “In episode 21 of ‘Over My Dead Body’, a man who lived in the Ren village for protection changed his own surname to ‘Ren’.”
“And that was a very common thing to do at that time.”
Ren Suo said, “So, it is very likely that many people with the surname Ren today have such a surname due to their ancestor following the trend?”
Yu Kuangtu said, “Following the trend… I suppose you are not wrong to say so. Either way, your Pract.i.tioner talent score is so… ordinary, the Blood of the Champion will definitely not be awakened.”
Ren Suo received 4x the damage.
Yu Kuangtu continued, “But even so, there is still a slight risk. Of course, your personal file has been kept more secure after you joined the Countermeasure Division, and no one can access and view your background from the household registration system.”
“However, for precautionary purposes, you should avoid working on the field as much as possible these few days… Eh, I looked through your a.n.a.lysis of the monsters and I thought it was quite good.”
“At this time, the higher-ups have tasked the Countermeasure Divisions of all cities to a.n.a.lyze and study Naisser_Ren’s videos. They have instructed the a.n.a.lysis to be done from the perspective of the members of the Countermeasure Division. I was thinking about who the lucky person to work overtime would be… How about this, stay at home to complete the a.n.a.lysis report on ‘Naisser_Ren’ these few days. Submit a draft providing a comprehensive a.n.a.lysis of all three of his videos within five days. The report should be at least 20 thousand words long.”
Five days;
20 thousand words;
Which means 4000 words per day.
It was almost more words per day than the rate of update of a particular book!
Ren Suo gaped as he listened to Yu Kuangtu. He pulled the corners of his mouth as he asked, “Does that mean that I can work from home in the future?”
“You wish. After these few days, the foreign powers would divert their attention, and you can continue working diligently in the office,” Yu Kuangtu said. He glanced at Ren Suo and said, “Alright, you may leave now.”
But Ren Suo remained in his seat, asking, “Can I ask a question?”
Yu Kuangtu replied, “You may, but you have already asked a question.”
Ren Suo was speechless for a second. Who would have guessed that Yu Kuangtu would employ such tactics? Ren Suo decided to continue with his question and asked, “… the top, do they really believe that ‘Naisser_Ren’s’ videos are factual history? After all, it is a drama series in 4K resolution with its own opening and closing theme…”
“Anyone would think that it is just a drama series. Wouldn’t it be too…absurd, to believe that the drama series was real?” Yu Kuangtu said.
That was a question that Ren Suo actually thought of as well.
The previous two videos by “Naisser_Ren” involved numerous witnesses, proving that they were real.
But “Over My Dead Body” described stories that took place two thousand years ago. Were there video cameras two thousand years ago, that captured the exchanges between the saints and the famous historical figures, as well as the story of the saints eliminating monsters…
It was a ridiculous idea in itself. Who would believe all of that?
Yu Kuangtu stared at Ren Suo for a while before laughing suddenly. He said, “How would I know? I am just a worker here too. Do you think that I have the power to make policies?”
“… You have a point. I’ll go out now,” Ren Suo said. He thought that what Yu Kuangtu said made sense and stood up to leave his office.
At this moment, Yu Kuangtu suddenly continued again, “Nonetheless, what’s there not to believe?”
Ren Suo turned around to look at Yu Kuangtu. He maintained the smile on his face, but his glance was dead serious.
“In the age of Reiki rejuvenation, our nation has a Pract.i.tioner family with a long-standing history. Furthermore, they have a complete system of abilities that were pa.s.sed down from many generations ago…”
“As long as there are no loopholes in the videos, and the stories can be proven, why should we not believe it? Wouldn’t it be better if there were?”
“Furthermore, we do have the evidence.”
Evidence?
Ren Suo wanted to probe further, but Yu Kuangtu did not want to say anymore. With a light push of his left hand, Ren Suo was sent out the door.
Ren Suo returned to the office of Team Three. When he walked pa.s.sed Qiao Muyi’s desk, she said softly, “Remember about our dinner after work!”
Ren Suo said, “I have already ended work, see you!”