Jingyi's steps paused, her fingers instinctively tightening around her cuffs. The prospect of asking a scholar known for his rationality—and even a certain coldness—to allocate precious terminal resources made her instinctively hesitate. Yet, Keqing's commission, the crisis in the experimental plots, the food security of the entire Serenitea Pot... these weighty responsibilities outweighed her subtle anxiety. She took a deep breath, smoothed the hem of her slightly wrinkled Fontaine-style suit from prolonged sitting, straightened her slender spine—which was striving to shoulder these duties—and walked forward.
"Mr. Alhaitham," Jingyi stopped two paces away from him, bowing slightly. Her voice was clear yet carried an imperceptible tension. "I am deeply sorry to disturb your verification work. I have been directly dispatched by the Yuheng, Lady Keqing, to execute an urgent official mission." Carefully, using both hands, she retrieved the document signed by Keqing from the inner layer of her portable ancient tome folder and presented it with both hands. "The task requires querying certain restricted information, and I earnestly request you to arrange a short period for me to use the terminal's advanced search permissions."
Alhaitham shifted his gaze away from the floating, softly glowing elemental light-curtain of the restricted local-run mini-permission catalog before him. His emerald-green eyes fell calmly on Jingyi's face, his scrutinizing gaze seeming to pierce through he…
Chapter 81