Chapter 7: I’m Back

Ever since the Interstellar Girls Group was formed, the six members had lived together in company-arranged dormitories. This was meant to foster camaraderie among the group members and to help them develop a deeper sense of unity.

So, from the group’s inception until now, although their fan circle had weathered its share of storms, none of it ever affected the bond between the girls themselves. The fans could sense the genuinely friendly and harmonious atmosphere among the members, and after the initial uproar and squabbling, even the fans rarely quarreled anymore.

Especially after witnessing THE ONE, a boy group that also came out of a talent show, disbanding after just one year due to an overly zealous fanbase—and seeing its solo members become mired in various scandals—fans felt all the more grateful that Youjian Entertainment had insisted on cultivating a strong group spirit.

Although fans still liked to grumble about Youjian Entertainment and occasionally lobbied for more resources for their favorite member, they kept things within reasonable bounds. Prominent fans would even step in now and then to advise those who got too carried away. As a result, the Interstellar Girls Group’s fanbase had become known throughout the Interstellar Federation as one of the most level-headed among idol groups—a benchmark in the world of fandom.

However, the Earth members of the girl group were now approaching thirty. While the other four members’ appearances remained unchanged, time had nonetheless left its mark on Cheng Wangshu and Chu Yunwan.

These traces weren’t changes in appearance, but rather the subtle transformation in temperament that comes with life experience.

Feng Jingyu disliked marketing that promoted “reverse aging” or anything that might provoke anxiety about appearance. Since neither age nor temperament allowed for pretending to be younger, she never forced the issue. Still, given that the alien members always exuded a youthful aura, the group’s stylist racked their brains each time to avoid making the six look incongruous when standing together.

Just as their manager was racking her own brain over how to chart the group’s future, she received notice that all six were needed for an advertisement shoot.

·

The commercial script Feng Jingyu wrote was set against a backdrop reminiscent of the Strange Tales. The story followed a human woman whose face had been covered in acne since childhood, leaving it pitted and scarred, and making her the subject of constant ridicule in her neighborhood. One day, she accidentally saved a little demon, who, in gratitude, told her that far from this town, in the depths of the sea, lived the merfolk.

It was said that the merfolk possessed a miraculous medicine called “Suxin,” capable of curing the woman’s acne. The little demon offered to accompany her to seek the medicine from the merfolk.

At first, the human woman was reluctant—she believed that true beauty lay within, not in outward appearance. But the little demon argued that physical beauty did not equate to moral character and that everyone had the right to pursue beauty. Since she had the chance, why not strive to become better?

Persuaded by the little demon, the woman set off with her new companion. Along the way, they encountered a flower spirit in need of healing, a tree sprite, and a stone sprite worried about their friend. Together, they helped one another, overcoming countless obstacles until they finally reached the merfolk’s dwelling. Moved by their story, a mermaid gave them a bottle of the miraculous medicine.

After reading the script, the Interstellar Girls all showed great interest—especially Cheng Wangshu, who was cast as the human woman. The original script had called for a human girl, but Cheng Wangshu felt the age range was too narrow. After raising the issue with the manager, the revised script was soon delivered, changing the role to a human woman.

As for the others: Sela played the little demon saved by Cheng Wangshu, Senyu and Shen Qiu were the flower and tree spirits, Guang Yi was the stone sprite, and Chu Yunwan was the mermaid who bestowed the medicine.

With the roles set, filming for the commercial began immediately.

·

The Earth negotiation team departed the Seventh Star System, having been met with a distant but polite attitude.

Perhaps all their luck had been used up in the Painted Realm Star System, for after visiting both the eighth- and seventh-ranked systems, they still hadn’t received any clear response.

The eighth-ranked system hadn’t even granted them an audience, rejecting the delegation outright via the official public communication channel, which sent them on to the seventh-ranked system.

Two consecutive failures meant that, of the remaining five seats, only three were still in play.

Morale among the negotiation team was low. What they had thought was a promising start in the Painted Realm Star System now looked more like a false dawn.

In her cabin aboard the ship, Cen Lan received a message from Feng Jingyu. Seeing the simple words “settled,” a rare smile touched her lips.

At least, there was good news from the Zhao Xing Star System.

Cen Lan walked out to the ship’s common area, just in time to overhear some of the younger members discussing the trip.

“Things went so smoothly in the Painted Realm Star System that none of us expected to be rejected twice in a row. If—just if—the remaining three systems all turn us down too, what do we do?” one of the negotiators asked, clearly worried.

“What else can we do? We’d have to wait another fifty interstellar years and let the next generation handle it,” another sighed.

Cen Lan spoke up directly. “This is something that must be accomplished by our generation.”

“Deputy Minister Cen.” The two who had been speaking hadn’t realized she was there; they immediately stood up, not daring to meet her gaze.

“It’s true, being turned down by two systems in a row means the negotiations ahead will only get tougher. But that’s no excuse for leaving this to the next generation. Every generation has its own responsibilities. Ours is to secure approval for a recount of the recognition rate. Do you really want our children to bear this humiliation for the next fifty interstellar years?”

“I’m sorry, Deputy Minister Cen. I won’t say anything like that again,” the young man replied, ashamed.

Cen Lan nodded. “I know everyone’s under a lot of pressure—we’re carrying all of Earth’s hopes. So let me share some good news: there’s a very high chance we’ll get the Zhao Xing Star System’s vote.”

Strictly speaking, things weren’t settled yet, and Cen Lan shouldn’t have said so prematurely. But right now, the team needed a morale boost.

Sure enough, after hearing her words, the two young negotiators looked visibly brighter, the gloom on their faces lifting.

“Deputy Minister Cen, can we share this news with the others?”

Cen Lan smiled and nodded. “Go ahead.”

After the two left her sight, Cen Lan stood there for a while before returning to her room.

·

When S-77 left the Decision Center, he felt a strange sense of dislocation, as if he’d been away for ages. After spending so long on Earth, he’d become more sensitive to the passage of time.

The Decision Center felt like a place where time itself stood still. Everything there was frozen—not just time, but people as well.

As he boarded the ship, S-77 glanced back at the distant building. The next time he set foot here, perhaps the people and things frozen in this place would finally be broken free.

S-77 entered the ship’s main control room, sat at the central console, and sent Cen Lan a message.

[Mission accomplished. As long as the vote passes, the Administrator will not stand in our way.]

The terminal indicated the message had been sent. Without waiting for Cen Lan’s reply, S-77 immediately pushed the ship to maximum speed, setting course for the central star system’s spaceport.

He wasn’t going there to visit anyone, but because the central star system’s spaceport was the closest to the Decision Center, allowing him to transfer to Earth as quickly as possible.

He was already longing for home.

·

Yu Huaiyin was in his home studio, putting the finishing touches on the arrangements for his new album. As soon as he was done, the promotional campaign for the album would begin in earnest.

After saving his work, Yu Huaiyin stretched, picked up the milk tea at his side, took a sip, and immediately set it back down with a frown.

“Why is this so sweet? Did I put in too much sugar again?” Yu Huaiyin muttered helplessly, calling for the smart butler to adjust the flavor.

He closed his eyes to rest for a moment. When he heard the door open, he didn’t even turn his head. “Just leave it on the table.”

“Yu Huaiyin, it’s me.”

Yu Huaiyin’s eyes snapped open. S-77 was standing in front of him, holding his milk tea.

“77!?” Yu Huaiyin looked S-77 up and down, took the milk tea and set it on the table, then pulled him into a hug, exclaiming in delight, “You’re finally back! You didn’t call, didn’t message—do you know how worried I was?”

A faint smile played at the corners of S-77’s mouth. He slowly returned the hug, speaking softly: “Where I was going, it wasn’t convenient to contact you. On the way back, I wanted to surprise you, so I didn’t say anything.”

Yu Huaiyin let go, laughing and scolding, “Well, look at you—planning surprises now.”

S-77 tilted his head slightly. “I learned from the best.”

Yu Huaiyin patted S-77’s shoulder. “This is perfect timing to welcome you home. Rest for a bit, and later let’s call Jingyu and go out for hot pot together.”

“Alright.” S-77 nodded. “I’ll go unpack—there are gifts in there for you and Feng Jingyu.”

“You even brought local specialties?” Yu Huaiyin’s smile grew wider. “Don’t give them to me yet—let’s open them together with Jingyu over hot pot.”

“Alright.” Another smile appeared on S-77’s face.