16. Trading Secrets [Modern Warship in a Cultivation World]

“So… that thing can play back their voices now?” Lu Mingfe asked, walking along the corridor with Jessica from the kitchen to the sickbay.

Jessica nodded without looking back. “That’s how it works.”

“Fascinating way of documenting. But those men weren’t from some Imperial Family or high-ranking nobles of any kind,” Lu Mingfe observed, his curiosity sharp. “I know observers in the imperial court also document the state of peasants for future generations, but I am still at a loss about your specific role.”

As they reached the medical department, she opened the door. “I am a reporter, not an observer, after all. My role is not just about documenting for future generations,” she said, stepping inside. Lu Mingfe followed her in, where Lieutenant Sarah and her medical staff were working on charts.

Lu Mingfe cooperated, settling onto the bed as the medical staff began their routine check, with Jessica translating instructions for him.

“Sigh.” Jessica let out a frustrated breath as Lieutenant Sarah was finishing up checking his condition.

“I don’t get why you are in such a sour mood ever since your mentor and Minister Nolan left,” Lu Mingfe asked, as Lieutenant Sarah finished testing his blood pressure and removed the wristband.

“He is not a minister; he is an officer,” Jessica corrected, then continued, exasperated. “Of course, I’m upset! You kept following me and refused to cooperate with the medical staff here without me present.”

Placing the recorder into her side bag, she continued, “I wasn’t able to join in on the meeting they are having right now! So much valuable stuff that can be documented was missed by me!”

Lieutenant Sarah placed the blood pressure gauge aside. “It’s quite something. He is healing faster than I ever anticipated. That thing called Qi is really something.”

“What’s she saying? I feel like that was directed at me,” Lu Mingfe asked, raising an eyebrow.

Jessica translated: “She is fascinated by your recovery speed and the involvement of Qi in it.”

Lu Mingfe nodded toward Lieutenant Sarah, then said to Jessica, “What’s the issue if you didn’t get to sit in the meeting? Your mentor is there, right?”

Jessica replied, slipping into modern jargon “A military briefing is like one of the toughest scoops reporters get! Especially an intern like me!”

“What’s an intern?” Lu Mingfe questioned, his brow furrowed in genuine confusion.

Jessica paused, realizing her error. She took a breath, searching for an analogy he might understand. “An intern… is like an apprentice scribe. A junior learner who assists a senior master in their craft. In my case, the craft is reporting.”

“So, your mentor, Mister Holloway.. is the master scribe, and you are the apprentice,” Lu Mingfe deduced, nodding slowly as he pieced it together. “But you said you are a ‘reporter,’ not just an observer for a noble court. What is the difference? If you are not documenting for a specific dynasty or sect, for whom do you document?”

This was the core of their world’s difference. Jessica carefully considered her words, explaining the concept of a free press without revealing their origin of being from another world.

“A reporter… documents for the people,” she began, choosing her words with care. “Not for a single ruler or a specific army. We seek out stories and truths, what you might call ‘records of events’ and we share them with everyone. It is our duty to inform the common people so they may understand the world around them.”

Lu Mingfe’s eyes widened slightly, a flicker of astonishment crossing his features. “You gather knowledge… and give it freely to the populace? Without the command of an emperor or a sect leader? Your ‘station’… it has such autonomy?”

“Yes,” Jessica said, a note of pride entering her voice. “Our power, our only real power, comes from telling the truth as we find it. We are separate from the military on this ship. We observe them, we record their actions, but we do not take their orders on what to write. Our loyalty is to the story… and to the people who have a right to know it.”

Lu Mingfe fell silent, absorbing this radical idea. In his world, knowledge was power, tightly controlled. The notion of an independent group that deliberately disseminated information, answerable to no lord but the truth, was staggering.

“So,” he said slowly, the pieces clicking into place, “when you were frustrated about missing the meeting… it was because your duty as a ‘reporter’ is to witness and record such things for the ‘people,’ not because you were being denied a privilege by your superiors.”

“Exactly,” Jessica confirmed, relieved he seemed to be grasping the concept. “I wasn’t angry about being excluded from a secret. I was failing in my role. A meeting where the future of this ship is decided is a story the people back home would need to know. By not being there, I am not doing my job.”

Lu Mingfe looked at her with a new, profound sense of respect, tinged with lingering bewilderment. “Your role… is to hold power accountable by giving voice to the powerless,” he murmured, more to himself than to her. “A ship with warriors who follow one chain of command… and scribes who follow another, separate path of truth. A distinctive logic, indeed.”

He leaned back against his pillow, a thoughtful expression on his face as he stared at the ceiling, contemplating a world where the pen truly could be independent of the sword. The moment was abruptly shattered by the metallic click of the sickbay door. Lieutenant Sarah returned from the corner, her expression shifting from routine care to firm purpose. She looked pointedly at Jessica and Lu Mingfe.

"Jessica, Lu Mingfe," she announced, her tone formal and unwavering. "You're both needed in the Command Information Center immediately. The Captain wishes to speak with him."

A jolt, equal parts anxiety and excitement, shot through Jessica. The main briefing was over, but a direct summons to the CIC for Lu Mingfe could only mean one thing: a decision had been made. She nodded, her reporter's instincts screaming that history was about to be made, one way or another.

"Come on," she said to Lu Mingfe, her voice tight. "The Captain calls for you."

Lu Mingfe, sensing the shift in atmosphere, rose from the bed with a fluid grace that still seemed at odds with his injuries. He followed her without question, his own curiosity piqued.

The walk to the CIC felt longer than usual, the hum of the ship seeming to amplify the pounding of Jessica's heart. As the heavy double doors hissed open, the stark, illuminated heart of the Event Horizon was revealed.

Pax and Officer Nolan stood to one side of the central command console, their expressions unreadable but intensely focused. And in the center, standing before the main viewport that now showed the endless, alien sea under the triple red moons rising, was Captain Imogen Doors. She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, a figure of absolute authority amidst the glowing screens and quiet chatter of the crew.

Lu Mingfe's eyes went straight to her. He didn't need a translator to understand the hierarchy. The way she stood, the focus of the room upon her: she was the chieftain, the sect leader, captain, whichever title it was but the unquestioned master of this metal realm.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward, stopping a respectful distance away. He brought his hands together in a formal gesture and executed a deep, respectful bow, his head dipping low in a gesture of acknowledgment to her station.

Imogen watched him, her face a mask of calm command, but Jessica could see the slight tension in her jaw. The Captain's gaze swept from the bowing young man to Jessica, then to Pax and Nolan, a silent confirmation passing between them.

The moment stretched, the only sound the low hum of the ship's systems and the distant, rhythmic beep of a console.Then, Imogen spoke, her voice clear and deliberate, cutting through the tense silence.

"Officer Nolan," she said, her eyes fixed on Lu Mingfe. "Translate for him, precisely." She took a slow, steadying breath, her gaze unwavering.

"We have reached a decision. It is time he understood the truth of our situation."She paused, letting the weight of her words settle in the room before delivering the line that would change everything.

"Tell him... we are not of this world."