QTIMP -Chapter 75 Character Persona – Lazy (Part 23)

But even so, it was still all guesswork and assumptions. She was extremely dissatisfied with this approach—after all, this was scientific research material. Even the slightest error could cause irreparable damage to future research activities.

She suddenly stood up, startling the two people who had been watching her. It was only then that she realized there were others in the room.

“Go find someone to call Deputy Director Shen back. How am I supposed to translate this? I simply can’t.”

The two who had been sitting looked at each other, but the man didn’t move. He gave a look to the woman, who hurriedly opened the door and left.

Si Qiu calmed herself and sat back down. She opened the thermos to check the temperature—it was fine—and drank a couple of mouthfuls of formula in one go.

Before long, Shen Xuan came rushing back, and the first thing he did upon entering the room was take off his glasses and wipe the sweat from his forehead.

“Sī… Si Qiu, what happened?” he asked, slightly out of breath.

“Don’t rush, sit down and rest for a moment. We’ll talk slowly,” Si Qiu said, thinking that research personnel usually weren’t in great health. She didn’t want him to collapse from the sudden rush.

But apparently, her words didn’t have much effect. The good news was that he seemed physically fit, and soon calmed down. “I can’t not rush! Ah, you don’t understand… whatever, just tell me what happened!”

This time it was Si Qiu who scratched her head. “Director…”

“Deputy, deputy,” he corrected her quickly.

“Director or Deputy doesn’t matter. What matters is the material you asked me to translate. I can tell you with full responsibility that this person’s native language is probably English, and their German is… just okay. When writing in German, they’re very colloquial, and their choice of words and grammar are inconsistent. This is absolutely untranslatable. After all, this is extremely rigorous research material. Even the slightest deviation could have serious consequences, which I cannot take responsibility for.”

The young man in his twenties who had come with him suddenly had a look of revelation, then loudly exclaimed, “I knew it! I knew it wasn’t that my skills were lacking—it’s that the person themselves has problems!”

Then he ran up to Si Qiu. “Comrade, could I see the document you just translated?”

Si Qiu had signed a confidentiality agreement and didn’t dare move. Director Shen waved his hand, and only then did Si Qiu hand over the few sheets of paper.

The man pushed up his glasses and began reading carefully. He examined every sentence, every phrase, pondering each one meticulously.

Finally, he returned the two pages and looked at Si Qiu with a beaming expression. “Comrade, your translation skills are indeed better than mine. Your translation is more accurate and more fitting than mine.”

“Director Shen, what happens next is no longer my concern. I’m going back now.”

She put the lid back on her thermos, slung her crossbody bag over her shoulder, and was about to leave when Director Shen snapped back to reality and grabbed her bag strap.

“No, no, don’t leave yet. Teacher Zhou, take Comrade Si Qiu to the cafeteria first. I already made arrangements over there—today we have a special meal prepared.”

Teacher Zhou was the woman who had gone out earlier to call him. Hearing this, she came over enthusiastically and linked arms with Si Qiu. Normally, our two directors are as tight-fisted as iron, but today they had specially prepared a small feast. We had to go try it.

Si Qiu, a little dazed, followed her to the cafeteria. The smell of food immediately caught her attention. She hadn’t eaten well in the morning, and now, at noon, she was indeed hungry.

Besides, she was naturally easygoing and never fussed over small matters.

After they left, the few people remaining in the room wore worry on their faces. The man who had lodged the complaint spoke first: “Director, I still need to arrange security, so I’ll leave first.”

Shen Xuan waved his hand. Once the man left, he took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You… you go have lunch first. I’ll make a call. This matter can’t be delayed any longer. The embassy has already received several warnings.”

The young man by the table, looking at the translation documents, seemed hesitant to speak. In the end, he turned and left.

Shen Xuan wasn’t sure who he was calling, but eventually, the other side agreed to send a translator and also initiated a more detailed review of Si Qiu.

Si Qiu had a decent lunch there and then returned, resuming a normal workday, but in some places, things were no longer calm.

That day, Lu Xianzhong received a call from the elder, asking him and his wife to come over for a meal after work. He knew it wasn’t going to be just a meal, but he still didn’t understand what had happened.

He called his wife’s workplace and then waited until the end of the day.

The elder lived in the general’s building within the compound. By the time they returned, it was around quitting time, and the streets were full of acquaintances, greeting each other along the way.

He showed no sign of what he was thinking.

When they arrived, they greeted the guards and saw the elder sitting on the sofa reading a newspaper. He waved for them to come over.

Wang Hong set down her things and instinctively went to see the old lady. Father Lu helped his father to stand, and the two of them headed straight to the study.

“Dad, how’s elder brother up there?” The study door was firmly shut, a guard leaning against it.

“This time, the reason you were called back is because your elder brother made a call. A few days ago, Hongjun was on a mission and brought back some important materials, earning merit.”

Lu Xianzhong picked up the teapot and poured tea. “I know that.”

“The material was in German. Once it arrived, a number of agents got involved. That’s when they decided to have it translated.”

“I heard from the boss… it seems he even asked his wife?” He put down the cup he was about to drink from, realizing the elder was getting to the main point.

“Indeed, it was Hongjun’s wife who did the translation. But the German in the material was completely inaccurate.”

The elder stopped there. Lu Hongjun slammed his teacup onto the table. “Damn it, these sons of b**** tried to fool us with fake material!”

Could he not be angry? Because of this material, a high-level undercover operative had lost his life. Only two people returned from an escort team, and two members of the squad his son went to support also had to retire.

“What’s the rush? You’ll never change your temper.”

Father Lu was scolded and finally calmed down.

The elder frowned. “We haven’t confirmed whether it’s real or fake yet, and translation personnel have been sent again. Even if it’s fake, some of the data inside can still be used. But if it is real, the translation requires much more caution. Based on Hongjun’s wife’s translation, it’s a very advanced air-to-air missile.”

Seeing his son breathing a little heavily, the elder refilled his scattered teacup. “Your elder brother urgently needs this kind of weapon for balance. The country also urgently needs strong weapons for deterrence, so Hongjun’s wife is under review again. These are the points I wanted to discuss with you today. Stop overreacting all the time. You’re completely unsteady, and your second brother always sides with you because of it.”