"Thanks."
"Hmm."
Cheng Xinghai accepted Chen Ming’s gratitude, then added, "There’s one more thing. Lou Wei is actually not targeting you; he’s targeting Uncle Bai."
"Lou Wei and Uncle Bai knew each other from before, but their relationship wasn’t good. He seized this opportunity to make a mountain out of a molehill by using you as a stepping stone."
Chen Ming imdiately extracted the main point from Cheng Xinghai’s words, saying, "So, in simple terms, he’s using as a tool to eliminate soone, right?"
"Yes, that’s the gist of it."
"Do you know about what happened to a few days ago?"
"What happened?"
Cheng Xinghai’s reaction suggested that Bai Quan hadn’t ntioned the seemingly accidental but actually man-made incidents that happened to Chen Ming when he arrived at the branch.
This left Chen Ming uncertain if Lou Wei’s actions were part of a newly orchestrated plan, and he would have to ask Bai Quan for clarification.
"Never mind, it’s nothing. What about his student, Di Jia?"
"He’s no big deal, just a regular classmate I knew in school. Although the ntor has issues, he should be fine—at least for now."
"Oh, and another thing. Uncle Bai has been consistently suppressed over there at the main camp, and it’s basically Lou Wei’s faction doing it."
"Uncle Bai has been displeased with him for a long ti, and now I’ve even had to cut back on a week’s worth of gaming because of this, which I find intolerable."
Cheng Xinghai’s sowhat ga-addicted nature nearly made Chen Ming burst into laughter.
"So what’s the usual way to handle this kind of situation? I an, in cases where it results in unexpected research outcos?"
"Normally, it would be settled by monetary compensation. If it’s more serious, a demotion could be the consequence."
"And what about cheating?"
Cheng Xinghai didn’t answer imdiately but asked Chen Ming with so uncertainty, "You didn’t cheat, right?"
"Of course not."
"That’s good."
Cheng Xinghai breathed a sigh of relief, thought for a mont, then said, "If it’s on the scale of the match we had earlier, soone cheating would just result in no one wanting to challenge them to simulated battles in the future."
"If it had been just arranging battles from the start, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but Uncle Bai said the results and performances would be shared with each person’s school, which changes things."
"So this match is a bit more formal, and cheating will definitely be punished."
Chen Ming asked again, "So what’s the specific punishnt for cheating?"
"Cheating is considered a violation. The final punishnt would depend on the impact’s severity."
"If you cheat, at most, you’d just get scolded a bit, which wouldn’t really matter to you."
"But Uncle Bai seems to have vouched for you without any cheating, so if you did cheat, it would be a blemish on his record and might affect his future."
Chen Ming slightly furrowed his brow, saying, "So, Lou Wei is basically cutting off soone’s future, right?"
Cheng Xinghai was visibly upset about Lou Wei, with an undercurrent of restrained anger in his tone, "Right."
"Then however I deal with him now, it’s fine, isn’t it?"
"Right."
"That’s good then."
Suddenly, an idea struck Chen Ming, and he didn’t continue the conversation with Cheng Xinghai.
He also stopped talking about the loss of his research achievents in the simulation, and instead, turned to Lou Wei, whose face was stiff and unsure what to do, saying, "Hypothetically, I an if I really cheated, this was just a private match, what could you do about it?"
"In contrast, isn’t your action of directly sabotaging my research results a thousand tis more serious than cheating?"
Lou Wei suddenly seed to grasp a key piece of evidence, eagerly seizing on Chen Ming’s weak point, saying, "When Bai Quan said the records of this simulation would be sent to each school, the simulation ceased to be a private exercise and beca a formal competition organized by the Vice Admiral."
"The consequences of cheating in a match at this level and my actions seem quite comparable, don’t they? With Vice Admiral Bai vouching for you, a cheater, it’s hard not to wonder a bit about so things."
The bait was taken.
Chen Ming’s face briefly showed an unpleasant expression, and he said, "A simulation match that Cheng Xinghai privately invited to play around with now being talked about at this level? You’re quite the talent."
"Why would a private match need to have its results reported to each school? Do you really believe that?"
Chen Ming quickly restored a blank expression, but his clenched fists on the table gave away his true feelings, "Then why not compare this battle to an official tournant?"
Lou Wei grew more confident as he spoke, "As far as I’m concerned, this is indeed an official tournant."
"Look at the participants: five champions from Legion’s internal simulated competitions, three Imperial Level simulation competition champions, one runner-up, and you—at least you’re a Psychic."
"Even if Vice Admiral Bai wasn’t leading the organization, this competition wouldn’t just be a private simulation. It’s a formal duel."
Chen Ming suddenly slamd the table, pointing at Lou Wei’s face, and said, "I dare you to report this match and see who would call it a formal confrontation?"
Chen Ming’s words reminded Lou Wei, who imdiately got in touch with soone to take care of this.
With his authority and the backing of his connections, he indeed could get the approval for this matter in a very short ti, even without majority consent.
Lou Wei held his silence until the people he arranged swiftly took care of the competition’s approval.
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