Li Wei was being shoved away by his classmates, all of them vying for the next spot to have their fortunes told.
“Hey, hey, hey, my shoes.” Li Wei had his hands and feet grabbed and dragged out of the circle by his classmates. Wang Ziming had snatched the next available spot.
“So I just pocketed a hundred star coins? These students’ money is really easy to earn.”
Passersby watched Meng Huai earn a hundred star coins with just a few casual words. Some, unable to stand it, dialed the Interstellar Police hotline.
“Hello, there’s a scammer at the market next to the Imperial Military Academy using some ancient metaphysics for fortune-telling. Yes, yes, that’s right.”
The hotline call had barely been made before Interstellar Police officers arrived at the market in their hovercrafts and quickly located Meng Huai’s stall.
The Interstellar Police arrived with incredible speed. Wang Ziming had just tossed the coins five times and was about to toss them for the sixth time when a pair of large hands snatched away the tortoise shell.
Wang Ziming stood up in anger, ready to lash out, but when he looked up, he saw it was an Interstellar Police officer…
Before Wang Ziming could say anything, the Interstellar Police officer held up the tortoise shell and said to Meng Huai, “A citizen has reported someone here using ancient metaphysics to scam people. The evidence is conclusive. You, come with me.”
As soon as the Interstellar Police officer spoke, the students panicked. They were just curious and playing around, so why had Meng Huai been labeled a scammer?
The students stepped forward one after another to explain to Meng Huai: “Officer, we are just classmates, playing around. It’s not like it’s fraud!”
Wang Ziming spoke to the Interstellar Police officer first, and the other students chimed in: “That’s right, Officer. We’re just playing, not scamming anyone.”
The Interstellar Police officer paid no heed, his face as cold as ever, leaving no room for negotiation: “Someone reported that this scammer charged a hundred star coins for fortune-telling. What is this if not fraud? The evidence is conclusive, no need to say more. Come with me to the police station. As for you all, go back to school and study, don’t mess around with this sort of nonsense.”
The Interstellar Police officer looked at these youngsters, guessing they were all military academy students, and lectured them with disappointment, as if they were his own disappointing children. Instead of studying properly, they were dabbling in all sorts of trivial matters.
The execution of duty by the Interstellar Police was undeniable. Even with so many students present, no one dared to stop him from taking Meng Huai away.
An upperclassman from a neighboring stall then said to Wang Ziming, “Quick, go find a teacher from the admissions office and see if there’s a way to help Junior Meng.”
This matter was neither a big deal nor a small one. In truth, as the students had said, it was just classmates fooling around, and the transaction was only for 100 star coins. However, the label of “ancient metaphysics fraud” was a serious one; it had been splashed across the news repeatedly in the past.
Meng Huai was placed inside the hovercraft, her seat locking her in securely, making escape impossible. Meng Huai was not in a hurry; she was studying the seat that held her captive, thinking that while this contraption looked sturdy, she could actually break free with just a bit of effort.
The officer piloting the hovercraft was unaware that Meng Huai was contemplating a hundred ways to escape. He thought the young girl was being very compliant.
And indeed, Meng Huai was very compliant. She made no move and was simply taken to the police station by the officer.
The Interstellar Police Station building appeared transparent from the outside, yet nothing could be seen within. It was unclear what kind of craftsmanship or material this was.
Meng Huai was taken to an interrogation room. Since the offense was not a major crime, Meng Huai was treated well; there were no handcuffs or leg irons. As she was a female, the officer had specifically found a female colleague to accompany the interrogation.
“Name,” the female officer asked for Meng Huai’s information, her deep voice sounding incredibly stern.
“Meng Huai.”
“Star Registry.”
“Garbage Star 915.”
When Meng Huai stated she was from Garbage Star 915, the officers’ expressions showed surprise. The female officer continued, “Garbage Star? What are you doing on the Imperial Capital Star?”
Did she come all the way to the Imperial Capital Star just to scam people? Or did she think people on the Imperial Capital Star were all fools with money to spare?!
“To attend school!”
When Meng Huai said this, her eyes were full of a gaze that seemed to ask, ‘What nonsense are you talking about?’, which greatly angered the female officer.
The female officer’s tone of questioning rose a few notches: “School? Which school accepted you? If you are going to school, why are you scamming people!”
She fired off a series of questions. Unlike the female officer’s anger, Meng Huai’s replies remained calm.
“Imperial Military Academy. I’m not scamming anyone.”
Although Meng Huai had been brought back to the police station from the market next to the Imperial Military Academy, no one had expected her to be a student there.
The female officer believed Meng Huai was still lying. “Imperial Military Academy?! This is the police station, don’t try to fool us! It’ll just be an additional charge, and you won’t be getting out of here.”
Meng Huai was finally speechless. She said with a sigh, “Why would I lie? It’s the Imperial Military Academy. I’m a student who just reported for duty today.”
What Meng Huai didn’t say out loud was: What is there to lie about? Honestly.
The police did not believe Meng Huai and scanned her optical computer with a device. Meng Huai’s information then appeared on the display screen:
Name: Meng Huai. Age: 19. Residence: Government Welfare Center No. 45, Unit 508, Garbage Star 915.
The subsequent information showed that her parents were unknown, and she had lived on government welfare funds since childhood. After coming of age, she worked in a restaurant. The schools she attended over the years were all the closest to the welfare center.
One could imagine the conditions of schools built near welfare centers; they were not good, only meant to allow children without means to complete their education.
But how did a child from the welfare center ultimately receive an admission notice from the Imperial Military Academy? The police couldn’t find this information, but the data did confirm that Meng Huai was indeed a new student at the Imperial Military Academy.
The male officer exchanged a look, and the two officers went out to speak.
“This is going to be tricky now,” the male officer said to his colleague, rubbing his chin.
They couldn’t simply detain a student from the Imperial Military Academy. The male officer continued, “Call the Imperial Military Academy and ask them to come pick up this student.”
“Just let her go like that?” the female officer asked incredulously.
“Otherwise? A student from the Imperial Military Academy! It’s a minor issue, just smooth it over. It’s not a serious crime; she’s just a child, a warning is enough.”
The female officer complied with the order, but before she could notify the Imperial Military Academy to send someone to pick up their student, someone from the Imperial Military Academy had already arrived at the police station.
A police officer at the station inquired about the teacher’s purpose and then led the teacher to the female officer.
“Xiao Li, this is the teacher of the student we just brought in. You can explain the details.”
After escorting the teacher, the officer went back to his duties. This female officer, named Xiao Li, then took the teacher from the Imperial Military Academy to the reception room to explain the situation.