Chapter 216: Wallbreaker's Swan Song_1

The afternoon visit mainly entailed viewing the new district of Guanghan City and the Becker and Baixiangdong Memorial Halls; it was said there was also a Difengyi Memorial Hall on Mars.

Before going, Jiang Yu felt a bit odd inside, as he was a contemporary of these three individuals, and now they had all been memorialized.

But once arriving at the memorials, Jiang Yu fell into a long period of recollection, and he himself became immersed in sorrow.

The retired officials' gathering in the evening was full of acquaintances Jiang Yu knew; he and Number Three, as "youngsters," appeared somewhat out of place there.

However, none of the attendees treated Jiang Yu as an outsider.

To Jiang Yu's surprise, he also encountered Pei Yunqi at the gathering, who, since arriving in Guanghan City, not only finished his own book but also taught ancient Chinese and history at Lunar University.

Over the years, Pei Yunqi had never given up on the research into the "Black Square."

After watching the interpretation video by Wallbreaker Philip on the Tianshan Murals, Pei Yunqi received a lot of inspiration; he described himself as being close to deciphering the "Heifang Cloth Manuscript".

Regrettably, his energy was somewhat lacking, and he might not be able to finish the translation in his lifetime; he could only diligently compile work notes in hopes that future generations would complete the task.

Jiang Yu felt quite emotional; he hadn't expected this stubborn old man to still be striving for this goal.

Jiang Yu resolved that he must revive the research into the "Black Square" if he ever had the chance.

There were others like Lu Qingfeng as well, who all led satisfying lives in Guanghan City; being healthy at such an age, they felt content.

They were all heroes of the Wallfacer Project, and at the end of the gathering, Jiang Yu once again spoke, thanking them for their contributions.

In the following days, Jiang Yu made use of the network to understand the details of the Hermit Federation, from daily life to the people's demands and the government's level of governance.

Jiang Yu also planned to speak with the head of the Strategic Department, to learn more about some profound social issues between the Hermit Federation and Earth.

It was also during these days that the PDC belatedly learned that Jiang Yu had already arrived in Guanghan City.

They immediately sent someone to negotiate with Jiang Yu, hoping to have him side with them.

In addition, the leaders of each nation's Moon City, who were already in Guanghan City, came to visit Jiang Yu upon learning of his awakening.

However, Jiang Yu didn't meet with any of them; his plans for the immediate future had just taken shape and needed some refining before he could meet with various forces.

Just as Jiang Yu was preparing to meet with the head of the Strategic Department, Number Three hurried in, "Spaceport has just reported that an old man who was denied entry claims to be your Wallbreaker and hopes to talk with you."

Jiang Yu jolted, "Quick, let him in! Also, cancel this afternoon's meetings!"

Number Three nodded, "Should I publicize the process of how you defeated the Wallbreaker?"

Jiang Yu's two previous victories over Wallbreakers had greatly boosted the morale of the residents of the Federation Cities.

Although the second Wallbreaking process was only disclosed to a small audience, and the specifics were known to even fewer, everyone was aware of the event and the victory of the Wallfacers.

Jiang Yu smiled, "If I am not mistaken, this Wallbreaker truly managed to break through my plans. To avoid panic, it's better to keep this as quiet as possible!"

Number Three was somewhat surprised, Jiang Yu seemed to already know the identity of the Wallbreaker.

Jiang Yu added, "Prepare a few dishes, and bring some beer."

Number Three nodded and immediately set out to do so.

Waiting anxiously for nearly two hours, Jiang Yu was eventually joined by a shabbily dressed, somewhat disheveled old man escorted by the security of Guanghan City.

With just one glance, Jiang Yu recognized him; it was Kong Xiang.

Except he had aged considerably, with snow-white hair and age spots on his face.

Jiang Yu's eyes blurred slightly, "Teacher, I thought I would never see you again."

Kong Xiang also had tears in his eyes, "It's good that you woke up, otherwise I truly wouldn't have been able to see you."

Jiang Yu told the guards, "You can leave, I'd like to talk with him alone."

The guards were a bit reluctant; after all, this was a Wallbreaker!

Nonetheless, the orders of a Wallfacer were to be obeyed without question, and the guards left with some apprehension.

Number Three had left the room, and in the instant the automatic door closed, he glanced back at Jiang Yu profoundly.

The moment Jiang Yu called this person "teacher", everything became clear.

Jiang Yu asked Kong Xiang to sit down and poured him another beer.

Kong Xiang sighed, "It's been a long time since I've had a drink or such a lavish meal."

Jiang Yu silently took a sip of his beer, listening as Kong Xiang continued, "I had anticipated the dissolution of ETO, and so I managed to avoid the PDC's purge.

"Someone entrusted me with an important task afterward, and I entered hibernation, only waking up about a decade ago.

"With a bit of insight and my experience as a resistance leader's advisor, life was quite bearable."

"Hearing of your awakening, I hurried here at once."

He looked at Jiang Yu with a smile, "I claimed to be your Wallbreaker merely because it was the only way to see you.

"ETO has disbanded, and I no longer have any duty as a Wallbreaker.

"It's simply like paying a visit to my proud disciple before meeting King Yan."

Jiang Yu nodded, "Are you aware of the consequences of coming here?"

"I'm not senile yet! Of course, I know what I'm doing," Kong Xiang sighed:

"The Trisolarans are no match for you, and the most shortsighted decision they made was to abandon ETO prematurely.

"Someday, they will suffer for their shortsightedness."

Kong Xiang chuckled again, "If I were still a Wallbreaker, many truths would have been revealed today.

"If I'm not mistaken, this is the so-called Plan Nine, right?"

As he spoke, he raised a finger and pointed at the ceiling.

Jiang Yu was startled. The ceiling? The rooftop?

No! Space! The universe beyond the Solar System!

Jiang Yu smiled happily; Kong Xiang had indeed not disappointed him, correctly guessing the specifics of Plan Nine: to escape the Solar System!

Seeing Jiang Yu's smile, Kong Xiang knew he had guessed correctly, "Ah, I didn't expect that the 'Green Pastures Plan' was merely a cover for Plan Nine, while the Trisolarans thought you were after 'Climate Air Conditioning'."

He took a bite of his food and then said, "Your own plan is even more grand!"

Kong Xiang paused, then looked at Jiang Yu with a smile, "I still remember the conversation we had when we went our separate ways, at the top of that dilapidated building!"

Jiang Yu let out a long sigh; Kong Xiang had guessed it again.

His goal was actually not that complex, and he had mentioned it many times before.

It was just that reaching it required a very circuitous process.

For this purpose, Jiang Yu had already planned into the next three centuries, when Weide would invent the curvature machine, and prepared his own response.

If all goes well, that would be when he'd lay his cards on the table with all of humanity.

Knowing Jiang Yu's goal would allow one to have a certain prediction of his actions, so Kong Xiang spoke of Jiang Yu's plans vaguely; only the two of them understood the details.

Kong Xiang expressed his feelings, "Before my hibernation, I had never imagined my Wallbreaking process would be like this.

"Nor did I expect that my Wallbreaking would be the swan song of both Wallbreakers and ETO!"

Jiang Yu lamented, "I didn't expect ETO to collapse just like that."

At this point, he suddenly remembered that Number Three had never reported anyone from ETO coming to defect.

Jiang Yu asked Kong Xiang, "Were you the only one to escape the purge from ETO?"

Kong Xiang looked at Jiang Yu, "That is the second reason I've come to find you!"