Bengtie: My death fueled their madness.

Qi Zhimu had no choice but to change the subject; he couldn't bear to continue the conversation any longer.

After much persuasion, the robin reluctantly ended the call.

Qi Zhimu breathed a sigh of relief, meeting the slightly gossipy expression on Black Swan's face.

We met by chance.

That past event contained no complicated factors; Qi Zhimu simply recounted it, satisfying the gossip of the Black Swan.

"That year, I was on a mission on a certain planet when I happened to witness a street brawl between local gangs."

"It has nothing to do with me. Just pretend I didn't see it and keep focusing on my own goals."

"People on the street panicked when they heard the gunshots. Although gangs follow an unwritten rule to avoid harming innocent people, bullets have no eyes; you can't just dodge them."

"A little girl, about three or four years old, tripped and broke her ankle, and her guardian is nowhere to be found."

"Just as I was about to pull the person out, a figure wearing a baseball cap and a mask, wrapped up tightly, picked up the child and held him in his arms."

"That person is Robin, but I had only heard of her works at the time and had never met her in person, so I didn't recognize her at all."

Looking back, Qi Zhimu still remembers the details of that time.

"And then?" Black Swan had a guess, but still asked softly.

"It's a classic, cheesy plot."

Qi Zhimu shrugged.

"The target I was watching was also surprised by the sudden firefight and was about to leave. I followed him secretly for only two seconds when I heard gunshots like firecrackers during the New Year, mixed with muffled groans full of pain."

"Without even looking at the source of the noise, I was able to pinpoint the exact location and confirm that the injured robin was the one that had just rescued the child."

"I'm still too compassionate. I can't bear to see good people being shot to death, so I stepped in to save them and also dealt with the gang fighting."

"You've taken them all down?" Black Swan raised an eyebrow.

"No, we just cut all the guns off everyone in half and let them fight it out. After that, we took Robin and the girl in her arms to the hospital."

"We confirmed along the way that as long as the rescue is timely, the little girl's foot injury will not leave any sequelae."

"Robin, the bullet only grazed the surface of her arm, it's not a serious injury, so I left without saying a word and continued my mission."

"She didn't try to communicate with you proactively?" Black Swan wondered.

Even disregarding the fact that Qi Zhimu is a sea patrol knight, his low-key style as a mercenary means that it's almost impossible for him to leave his name when he helps someone on the side.

Without saying a word, how did he develop the current relationship with the robin?

Seeing through Black Swan's thoughts, Qi Zhimu sighed.

"Yes, the robin asked me my name, but I figured we were just strangers I'd met briefly and would never see each other again, so I didn't bother to talk to him."

"To my utter surprise, two months later I received a new commission. The employer wanted me to protect robins."

"By now you should understand, the employer is Sunday, the current head of the Pinocchio family."

"What surprised me even more was that less than two seconds after I met Robin, the way she looked at me clearly changed."

"I have an urgent matter to attend to on Sunday and need to leave temporarily. Let me first discuss the specific details of the mission with Robin."

"Who knew that the first thing the little bird said was, 'Mr. Zhi Mu, thank you for what happened last time.' Well, that completely stumped me. I instinctively asked, 'What? Last time?'"

Qi Zhimu vividly remembers the scene at that time, as well as the robin's grateful gaze.

But before that, he hadn't taken the help he received two months ago seriously; he'd almost forgotten about it if it weren't mentioned.

"Then the robin clearly recounted the whole process, and I remembered that such a thing had happened."

"I see," the black swan said, suddenly realizing.

"No, no, no, that's not the case."

Qi Zhimu shook his finger and continued:

"At the time, I pretended to be confused and said that the robin had mistaken me for someone else, and I was certain that she could not see through my disguise."

"But you were seen through in an instant, weren't you?" Black Swan smiled faintly.

"Yes! She said that when I intervened and took the person to the hospital, I released an aura that left a deep impression on her. She also said that from the perspective of the same musical rhythm, I am 100% the kind person I was back then."

At this point, Qi Zhimu's expression became quite displeased.

"I continued to play dumb, insisting that she had mistaken me for someone else. I had a good plan and was confident that I could fool her, but I overlooked that siscon."

"Mr. Sunday?"

Qi Zhimu: "It's him. After that guy came back, he said he wanted to ask me some questions in a humorous way to confirm that I have no ulterior motives towards Robin."

"Anyone in the mercenary business knows that many employers do have similar rules. It's not surprising. As long as the bottom line isn't crossed, the mercenaries will agree."

"I was no exception, and the first question on Sunday made me lose my composure—"

Qi Zhimu put on a stern face, mimicking Sunday's tone.

“O soul of the three faces, brand his tongue and the palms of his hands with a hot iron, so that he may not lie or make false oaths.”

"I ask you: Is this your first time meeting the robin?"

"The result is obvious. That guy's methods can see through lies, and all his previous feigned ignorance was for nothing."

"Fortunately, after understanding the whole story, this result actually made Sunday trust me more, and after asking a few more questions, we happily signed the agency contract."

"Well, that's the sequel. We can't keep pretending we don't know the robin anymore."

"Later, many things happened during the commission period. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, we spent a memorable period together."

"Perhaps... that's when the robin gradually fell in love with me."

Black Swan suddenly said meaningfully, "At that time, Mr. Qi had not yet reunited with Ms. Black Tower and the others, so why didn't he respond to Miss Robin's feelings?"

As a woman herself, she couldn't think of a reason to refuse.

That's a robin, with a strong background, outstanding talent, impeccable looks and figure, and a gentle and kind personality. It's hard to find a flaw in him.

For a woman like this to pursue a man, the obstacles are not as thin as a veil.

therefore--

The black swan wanted to confirm whether something had been influencing Mr. Qi for thousands of years.

"Not developing additional relationships with employers or employer-designated targets is an unspoken rule in the industry."

"A tree lives by its bark, and a person lives by their reputation. If I break the rules, my reputation in the industry will be ruined after decades."

After hearing Qi Zhimu's answer, Black Swan had only two words in her mind.

commit a sin……

That's fine to say to outsiders, but she's a memory collector who specializes in collecting memories of everything.

There is indeed such a saying in the mercenary world, but many people don't take it seriously.

As long as both parties are willing, no one will criticize them, and it won't affect their reputation.

Will the ideological imprint that Ruan Mei left on Qi Zhimu truly vanish with his reincarnation?

It's hard to say, because reputable interstellar mercenaries are indeed very principled.