Chapter 83.2
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Chairman Ning aka Ning Tianya: Ning family’s head.
Ning Tianxing: Ning Kongran’s father, Ning Tianya’s older brother.
Ning Kongran: Ning family current heir. Studying mecha manufacturing, unlike his family.
Chu Yan’s group progressed faster. He had logged off 30 minutes before Qiao Zhiya. Seeing the blond youth finally coming out of the cabin, he rushed over and handed him a glass of water. “In the morning, you said that there’s a problem with the drugs the Ning family provided during the war. What is the problem? Both Dage and Erge drank them…”
In order not to affect Qiao’s game, he kept himself from asking this question. Now that this round was finished, he finally couldn’t help asking it.
Qiao Zhiya’s thoughts were drawn away from the modifications to the mecha. He turned to see Zhuang Yu and Chu Rong sitting on the side, waiting for him. Zhuang Yu held his electronic book, and the slightly elevated mood due to the competition sank once again.
Chu Rong frowned, glanced at the impatient Chu Yan, got up, and led Georgia to sit on the sofa. He soothingly rubbed Qiao Zhiya’s ears and asked, “How was the competition?”
“I got promoted.” Qiao Zhiya sorted out his emotions first before answering. He put down the water cup on the coffee table, and saw Zhuang Yu. Without further delay, he explained first, “The drugs provided by the Ning family in the war are no longer sold. However, I reverse-engineered it from the formula I got.”
Zhuang Yu frowned, and asked, “Where did you get the formula? There’s no mention of this on the patent list.”
Qiao Zhiya yanked his pants with his fingers and replied, “Ning Kongran gave it to me. He gave it to my roommate Sang Bu, who forwarded it to me.”
Ning Kongran again.
Chu Rong squinted, holding Qiao Zhiya’s hand that was still subconsciously pulling the frayed thread of his pants, then said, “The war lasted a long time. The Ning family began to provide free medicine to the army in the later period. The main recipient of the medicine was the Chu family, because we were in the frontlines. Of course, that also means our medicine consumption was the largest. “
Hearing this explanation, Qiao Zhiya’s body went stiff. He looked at Chu Rong with sad eyes.
“It’s okay, you can say it directly.” Chu Rong touched his head, his eyes flashed. “I wanted to check the medicines after the war, but Ning family moved too quickly, and they found a reason to cut off the supply of medicine in advance. Later, they claimed that the formulation of the medicines was destroyed in the war, and the researchers who developed them were also killed, so I did not find anything useful. At that time, I felt that the Ning family had done something strange, but there was no doubt that those medicines hid something sinister. I thought the Ning family simply wanted to protect their trade secrets and profits.”
Later, the Ning family also launched an improved version of that medicine, making a lot of contributions for the Federation, so he put his suspicion down.
Qiao Zhiya, hearing this, squeezed his hand back and then took out a vial of medicine from his storage ring. He said, “This is the medicine I made according to the formula Ning Kongran gave to me.. Back then, it’s called ‘boosting replenishment1It’s more accurate to translate it as “supplement” (补充剂 – 补充 “to supplement/to complement” + 剂 “dose/medicine”) but there’s already nutrient supplement… (营养剂 – 营养 “nutrient” + 剂 “dose/medicine”). To avoid confusion, I’m calling it boosting replenishment. As in, something to replenish what you lost, but also can boost your performance… something like that.’, and the current nutrient supplements are an improved version of it.”
Boosting replenishment, a term that feels very distant nowadays.
In the years when the nutrients were scarce in the frontline, the army’s dietary needs during the war became a logistical nightmare. In order to protect the majority of the planet and its inhabitants, the war zone between humans and Zergs is mostly in space, and supplies need to be sent up regularly. However, since the Zergs may emerge from all corners at that time, and all transportation routes were unsafe. The army often faced situations where food supplies were not timely.
The emergence of boosting replenishment perfectly solves this problem. At that time, the “boosting replenishment” were different from the current nutritional supplements – they were more like a medicine, rather than purely a meal substitute. Besides providing calories and nutrients needed by the body, they also replenished the spiritual energy consumed. That also means they could help restore physical strength.
Under the circumstances at that time, the emergence of this medicament greatly reduced the burden of the army. The public’s gratitude and support for the Ning family instantly rose to a fever-pitch, laying a very solid foundation for the later Ning family’s good reputation.
“What’s wrong with this medicine?” Zhuang Yu couldn’t help asking.
Qiao Zhiya opened the vial, added a bit of powdered herb, and the color of the medicine quickly became murky. A pungent smell filled the air, causing everyone’s spiritual powers to stir anxiously at the mere scent.
“This is exactly why.” Seeing them all showing discomfort, Qiao Zhiya immediately covered the vial and continued, “This medicine can indeed replenish the body’s energy in a short period of time, but the side effects are also very serious. Moreover, these side effects have a latent period, meaning that the body will only show discomfort after a certain period following the consumption of the medicine.”
Chu Rong recalled his situation that year, and asked, “How long is the incubation period?”
“Anytime between 3 months to 5 years, depends on the body’s fitness level. In addition, this medicine can get passed via the placenta. The toxic compound is hard to digest by the body, and if there’s still a trace of the medicine available during pregnancy, it will be passed on to the child, and it could wreck their spiritual sea. In short, they might be born without spiritual power, or their spiritual power will be low and unable to grow, or incredibly unstable and prone to riots.”
Zhuang Yu’s expression got worse the more she heard it. She looked at Chu Rong in horror as she said, “Sir, the inexplicable spiritual riot of five years ago …”
“At that time, Dage’s spiritual power had a sudden lapse of instability… Oh my God, fortunately, Dage hasn’t had any children in these years, otherwise…” Chu Yan was also shocked, looking at the vial of medicine on the table, thinking, ‘What a poison.’
Chu Rong frowned, his expression was very heavy. “The group of children born after the war did have a high rate of birth defects, but everyone thought it was affected by the Zerg’s radiation… not caused by the Ning family’s medicines.”
In some kind of sick twist, the Ning family actually specially launched a soothing agent for babies, and once again earned the goodwill of the masses. Ning Tianya’s rise to his position as the Chairman was based on these boosting replenishments and baby soothing agents. It was also from that time that the Federation’s government pharmaceutical area began to be taken over by the Ning family. Prior to this, that area had been managed by the Federation’s official Association of Medicines. The Ning family was only a consultant.
“There’s one more thing.”
The topic being discussed now made Qiao Zhiya feel a bit breathless. He forced himself to project the two formulas using his communicator, saying, “Rather than saying the widely-used nutrient supplements nowadays are an improved version of supplements, it’s more accurate to say that supplements are the improved version of nutrient supplements. This is the formula given to me by Kongran, and this is the formula for the existing nutrient supplements. The two formulas are almost identical, with the only difference being that supplements have added a few unconventional stimulating herbs. Some of the miraculous effects and terrifying side effects… are thanks to these additional herbs. In addition, the forbidden herb Northtalk Grass is added to the potion now.”
Northtalk Grass2北语草; literally: North/northern; language; grass. It’s not a real plant (from my googling/baidu efforts). Clearly I need to apply some creative liberty in naming them. – it’s a spiritually-sensitive herb that was forbidden because it can disrupt the work of detectors. In short, drugs with this herb are impossible to be evaluated. It’s a sharp weapon of conspiracy designed to harm people.
Zhuang Yu frowned, at the same time a little confused about his determination, and asked, “Qiao, why are you so sure of your conjectures?”
“Because nutritional supplements were actually developed by Kongran’s mother’s natal family at the beginning of the outbreak of the great war,” Qiao Zhiya answered. He then took out a handwritten note from his storage ring and handed it to Chu Rong, saying, “This was sent to me by Sang Bu along with the formula. There’s a communication number on it. I couldn’t get through, so I guess this number is meant for you.”
Chu Rong looked down at the note, and tried dialing directly with his communicator in front of everyone. Soon, the call was picked up in mere seconds after the call was dialed.
“Marshal Chu.” Ning Kongran’s voice came from the other side, with a seriousness and sophistication that was completely different from his usual one. “I don’t know if my gift that the Yun family sent over is enough to show you my sincerity in this cooperation.”
The moment he heard his voice, Qiao Zhiya’s ears flattened, and his spirits fell rock bottom. ‘Sure enough, this communication number was for Chu Rong.’
Sensing this, Chu Rong stretched his arms to half-hug him while he responded to Ning Kongran. “Enough, what do you want to do?”
“I want the Ning family to never be seen again from the Federation.” Ning Kongran’s answer was simple and straightforward. He paused, his voice softened, as gentle as his usual from the past. “Qiao, thank you. And sorry… For me, you are my friend forever. I’m glad to be your friend.”
Chu Rong directly hung up the call. He pressed Qiao Zhiya, whose emotions seemed to be off, into his arms. He vigorously rubbed his head and scolded, “You are so meek at times, what wild thoughts have you been entertaining again?”
“I’m sorry.” Qiao Zhiya lifted his hand, clutching onto his clothes, trying to control the sudden surge of emotions but couldn’t. He could only apologize in a muffled voice.
He didn’t know what had overcome him. Although he logically understood that his friendship with Ning Kongran had developed naturally – their interactions were genuine, and Ning Kongran had genuinely helped him many times – the discovery of the formula and the note with the number inevitably brought a bit of a dreadful thought into his mind: ‘Is this person using me all along?’
He knew that thinking of that was wrong, and he felt guilty of that. But he couldn’t control this stifling feeling of being “betrayed”.
It’s as if, it was no coincidence that just as they were studying about the Ning family, this secret drug formula was delivered in a timely manner. Was Ning Kongran monitoring his movements all these times? This person, who Qiao Zhiya considered a close friend, actually used him? It left an awfully bitter taste in his tongue.
Now Ning Kongran’s explanation – which is not an explanation – is like an exposed wire, igniting the deeply depressed emotions during this period.
Both Chu Yan and Zhuang Yu’s were worried, especially since Qiao Zhiya’s mood has been wrong since the death of Rick. This was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Qiao Zhiya’s emotions bursted out.
“Let’s rest first.” Chu Rong carried Qiao Zhiya up, and dismissed both Chu Yan and Zhuang Yu with a gesture. He brought Qiao Zhiya out.
Zhuang Yu and Chu Yan stared at each other, sighed in sync, and tacitly dispersed.
After returning to their room, Chu Rong hugged Qiao Zhiya and leaned on the bed, letting him cry for a while. Then, he gave the youth a hot bath, fed him dinner, and coaxed him to sleep.
Dimming the lights in the room, Chu Rong frowned and looked at the corners of Qiao Zhiya’s red eyes.
He assumed that Qiao Zhiya had been too busy to feel sad or upset, forgetting that when emotions were bottled up, it would explode out in a more severe manner. During this period, Qiao Zhiya had been exposed to a lot of heavy information, and now his friend suddenly revealed his secret side – it was not a surprise that he couldn’t handle it all.
“Sorry.” He bent down and kissed Qiao Zhiya’s forehead, letting out a long sigh. “Sorry.”
It was his fault that brought this youth, who was supposed to enjoy his campus life, into this whirlpool of messy politics and conspiracies.
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Chairman Ning aka Ning Tianya: Ning family’s head.
Ning Tianxing: Ning Kongran’s father, Ning Tianya’s older brother.
Ning Kongran: Ning family current heir. Studying mecha manufacturing, unlike his family.
Chu Yan’s group progressed faster. He had logged off 30 minutes before Qiao Zhiya. Seeing the blond youth finally coming out of the cabin, he rushed over and handed him a glass of water. “In the morning, you said that there’s a problem with the drugs the Ning family provided during the war. What is the problem? Both Dage and Erge drank them…”
In order not to affect Qiao’s game, he kept himself from asking this question. Now that this round was finished, he finally couldn’t help asking it.
Qiao Zhiya’s thoughts were drawn away from the modifications to the mecha. He turned to see Zhuang Yu and Chu Rong sitting on the side, waiting for him. Zhuang Yu held his electronic book, and the slightly elevated mood due to the competition sank once again.
Chu Rong frowned, glanced at the impatient Chu Yan, got up, and led Georgia to sit on the sofa. He soothingly rubbed Qiao Zhiya’s ears and asked, “How was the competition?”
“I got promoted.” Qiao Zhiya sorted out his emotions first before answering. He put down the water cup on the coffee table, and saw Zhuang Yu. Without further delay, he explained first, “The drugs provided by the Ning family in the war are no longer sold. However, I reverse-engineered it from the formula I got.”
Zhuang Yu frowned, and asked, “Where did you get the formula? There’s no mention of this on the patent list.”
Qiao Zhiya yanked his pants with his fingers and replied, “Ning Kongran gave it to me. He gave it to my roommate Sang Bu, who forwarded it to me.”
Ning Kongran again.
Chu Rong squinted, holding Qiao Zhiya’s hand that was still subconsciously pulling the frayed thread of his pants, then said, “The war lasted a long time. The Ning family began to provide free medicine to the army in the later period. The main recipient of the medicine was the Chu family, because we were in the frontlines. Of course, that also means our medicine consumption was the largest. “
Hearing this explanation, Qiao Zhiya’s body went stiff. He looked at Chu Rong with sad eyes.
“It’s okay, you can say it directly.” Chu Rong touched his head, his eyes flashed. “I wanted to check the medicines after the war, but Ning family moved too quickly, and they found a reason to cut off the supply of medicine in advance. Later, they claimed that the formulation of the medicines was destroyed in the war, and the researchers who developed them were also killed, so I did not find anything useful. At that time, I felt that the Ning family had done something strange, but there was no doubt that those medicines hid something sinister. I thought the Ning family simply wanted to protect their trade secrets and profits.”
Later, the Ning family also launched an improved version of that medicine, making a lot of contributions for the Federation, so he put his suspicion down.
Qiao Zhiya, hearing this, squeezed his hand back and then took out a vial of medicine from his storage ring. He said, “This is the medicine I made according to the formula Ning Kongran gave to me.. Back then, it’s called ‘boosting replenishment1It’s more accurate to translate it as “supplement” (补充剂 – 补充 “to supplement/to complement” + 剂 “dose/medicine”) but there’s already nutrient supplement… (营养剂 – 营养 “nutrient” + 剂 “dose/medicine”). To avoid confusion, I’m calling it boosting replenishment. As in, something to replenish what you lost, but also can boost your performance… something like that.’, and the current nutrient supplements are an improved version of it.”
Boosting replenishment, a term that feels very distant nowadays.
In the years when the nutrients were scarce in the frontline, the army’s dietary needs during the war became a logistical nightmare. In order to protect the majority of the planet and its inhabitants, the war zone between humans and Zergs is mostly in space, and supplies need to be sent up regularly. However, since the Zergs may emerge from all corners at that time, and all transportation routes were unsafe. The army often faced situations where food supplies were not timely.
The emergence of boosting replenishment perfectly solves this problem. At that time, the “boosting replenishment” were different from the current nutritional supplements – they were more like a medicine, rather than purely a meal substitute. Besides providing calories and nutrients needed by the body, they also replenished the spiritual energy consumed. That also means they could help restore physical strength.
Under the circumstances at that time, the emergence of this medicament greatly reduced the burden of the army. The public’s gratitude and support for the Ning family instantly rose to a fever-pitch, laying a very solid foundation for the later Ning family’s good reputation.
“What’s wrong with this medicine?” Zhuang Yu couldn’t help asking.
Qiao Zhiya opened the vial, added a bit of powdered herb, and the color of the medicine quickly became murky. A pungent smell filled the air, causing everyone’s spiritual powers to stir anxiously at the mere scent.
“This is exactly why.” Seeing them all showing discomfort, Qiao Zhiya immediately covered the vial and continued, “This medicine can indeed replenish the body’s energy in a short period of time, but the side effects are also very serious. Moreover, these side effects have a latent period, meaning that the body will only show discomfort after a certain period following the consumption of the medicine.”
Chu Rong recalled his situation that year, and asked, “How long is the incubation period?”
“Anytime between 3 months to 5 years, depends on the body’s fitness level. In addition, this medicine can get passed via the placenta. The toxic compound is hard to digest by the body, and if there’s still a trace of the medicine available during pregnancy, it will be passed on to the child, and it could wreck their spiritual sea. In short, they might be born without spiritual power, or their spiritual power will be low and unable to grow, or incredibly unstable and prone to riots.”
Zhuang Yu’s expression got worse the more she heard it. She looked at Chu Rong in horror as she said, “Sir, the inexplicable spiritual riot of five years ago …”
“At that time, Dage’s spiritual power had a sudden lapse of instability… Oh my God, fortunately, Dage hasn’t had any children in these years, otherwise…” Chu Yan was also shocked, looking at the vial of medicine on the table, thinking, ‘What a poison.’
Chu Rong frowned, his expression was very heavy. “The group of children born after the war did have a high rate of birth defects, but everyone thought it was affected by the Zerg’s radiation… not caused by the Ning family’s medicines.”
In some kind of sick twist, the Ning family actually specially launched a soothing agent for babies, and once again earned the goodwill of the masses. Ning Tianya’s rise to his position as the Chairman was based on these boosting replenishments and baby soothing agents. It was also from that time that the Federation’s government pharmaceutical area began to be taken over by the Ning family. Prior to this, that area had been managed by the Federation’s official Association of Medicines. The Ning family was only a consultant.
“There’s one more thing.”
The topic being discussed now made Qiao Zhiya feel a bit breathless. He forced himself to project the two formulas using his communicator, saying, “Rather than saying the widely-used nutrient supplements nowadays are an improved version of supplements, it’s more accurate to say that supplements are the improved version of nutrient supplements. This is the formula given to me by Kongran, and this is the formula for the existing nutrient supplements. The two formulas are almost identical, with the only difference being that supplements have added a few unconventional stimulating herbs. Some of the miraculous effects and terrifying side effects… are thanks to these additional herbs. In addition, the forbidden herb Northtalk Grass is added to the potion now.”
Northtalk Grass2北语草; literally: North/northern; language; grass. It’s not a real plant (from my googling/baidu efforts). Clearly I need to apply some creative liberty in naming them. – it’s a spiritually-sensitive herb that was forbidden because it can disrupt the work of detectors. In short, drugs with this herb are impossible to be evaluated. It’s a sharp weapon of conspiracy designed to harm people.
Zhuang Yu frowned, at the same time a little confused about his determination, and asked, “Qiao, why are you so sure of your conjectures?”
“Because nutritional supplements were actually developed by Kongran’s mother’s natal family at the beginning of the outbreak of the great war,” Qiao Zhiya answered. He then took out a handwritten note from his storage ring and handed it to Chu Rong, saying, “This was sent to me by Sang Bu along with the formula. There’s a communication number on it. I couldn’t get through, so I guess this number is meant for you.”
Chu Rong looked down at the note, and tried dialing directly with his communicator in front of everyone. Soon, the call was picked up in mere seconds after the call was dialed.
“Marshal Chu.” Ning Kongran’s voice came from the other side, with a seriousness and sophistication that was completely different from his usual one. “I don’t know if my gift that the Yun family sent over is enough to show you my sincerity in this cooperation.”
The moment he heard his voice, Qiao Zhiya’s ears flattened, and his spirits fell rock bottom. ‘Sure enough, this communication number was for Chu Rong.’
Sensing this, Chu Rong stretched his arms to half-hug him while he responded to Ning Kongran. “Enough, what do you want to do?”
“I want the Ning family to never be seen again from the Federation.” Ning Kongran’s answer was simple and straightforward. He paused, his voice softened, as gentle as his usual from the past. “Qiao, thank you. And sorry… For me, you are my friend forever. I’m glad to be your friend.”
Chu Rong directly hung up the call. He pressed Qiao Zhiya, whose emotions seemed to be off, into his arms. He vigorously rubbed his head and scolded, “You are so meek at times, what wild thoughts have you been entertaining again?”
“I’m sorry.” Qiao Zhiya lifted his hand, clutching onto his clothes, trying to control the sudden surge of emotions but couldn’t. He could only apologize in a muffled voice.
He didn’t know what had overcome him. Although he logically understood that his friendship with Ning Kongran had developed naturally – their interactions were genuine, and Ning Kongran had genuinely helped him many times – the discovery of the formula and the note with the number inevitably brought a bit of a dreadful thought into his mind: ‘Is this person using me all along?’
He knew that thinking of that was wrong, and he felt guilty of that. But he couldn’t control this stifling feeling of being “betrayed”.
It’s as if, it was no coincidence that just as they were studying about the Ning family, this secret drug formula was delivered in a timely manner. Was Ning Kongran monitoring his movements all these times? This person, who Qiao Zhiya considered a close friend, actually used him? It left an awfully bitter taste in his tongue.
Now Ning Kongran’s explanation – which is not an explanation – is like an exposed wire, igniting the deeply depressed emotions during this period.
Both Chu Yan and Zhuang Yu’s were worried, especially since Qiao Zhiya’s mood has been wrong since the death of Rick. This was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Qiao Zhiya’s emotions bursted out.
“Let’s rest first.” Chu Rong carried Qiao Zhiya up, and dismissed both Chu Yan and Zhuang Yu with a gesture. He brought Qiao Zhiya out.
Zhuang Yu and Chu Yan stared at each other, sighed in sync, and tacitly dispersed.
After returning to their room, Chu Rong hugged Qiao Zhiya and leaned on the bed, letting him cry for a while. Then, he gave the youth a hot bath, fed him dinner, and coaxed him to sleep.
Dimming the lights in the room, Chu Rong frowned and looked at the corners of Qiao Zhiya’s red eyes.
He assumed that Qiao Zhiya had been too busy to feel sad or upset, forgetting that when emotions were bottled up, it would explode out in a more severe manner. During this period, Qiao Zhiya had been exposed to a lot of heavy information, and now his friend suddenly revealed his secret side – it was not a surprise that he couldn’t handle it all.
“Sorry.” He bent down and kissed Qiao Zhiya’s forehead, letting out a long sigh. “Sorry.”
It was his fault that brought this youth, who was supposed to enjoy his campus life, into this whirlpool of messy politics and conspiracies.
Chairman Ning aka Ning Tianya: Ning family's head.Ning Tianxing: Ning Kongran's father, Ning Tianya's older brother.Ning Kongran: Ning family current heir. Studying mecha manufacturing, unlike his family. Chu Yan's group progressed faster. He had logged off 30 minutes before Qiao Zhiya. Seeing the blond youth finally coming out of the cabin, he rushed over and handed him a glass of water. In the morning, you said that there's a problem with the drugs the Ning family provided during the war. What is the problem? Both Dage and Erge drank themIn order not to affect Qiao's game, he kept himself from asking this question. Now that this round was finished, he finally couldn't help asking it.Qiao Zhiya's thoughts were drawn away from the modifications to the mecha. He turned to see Zhuang Yu and Chu Rong sitting on the side, waiting for him. Zhuang Yu held his electronic book, and the slightly elevated mood due to the competition sank once again.Chu Rong frowned, glanced at the impatient Chu Yan, got up, and led Georgia to sit on the sofa. He soothingly rubbed Qiao Zhiya's ears and asked, How was the competition?I got promoted. Qiao Zhiya sorted out his emotions first before answering. He put down the water cup on the coffee table, and saw Zhuang Yu. Without further delay, he explained first, The drugs provided by the Ning family in the war are no longer sold. However, I reverse-engineered it from the formula I got.Zhuang Yu frowned, and asked, Where did you get the formula? There's no mention of this on the patent list.Qiao Zhiya yanked his pants with his fingers and replied, Ning Kongran gave it to me. He gave it to my roommate Sang Bu, who forwarded it to me.Ning Kongran again.Chu Rong squinted, holding Qiao Zhiya's hand that was still subconsciously pulling the frayed thread of his pants, then said, The war lasted a long time. The Ning family began to provide free medicine to the army in the later period. The main recipient of the medicine was the Chu family, because we were in the frontlines. Of course, that also means our medicine consumption was the largest. Hearing this explanation, Qiao Zhiya's body went stiff. He looked at Chu Rong with sad eyes.It's okay, you can say it directly. Chu Rong touched his head, his eyes flashed. I wanted to check the medicines after the war, but Ning family moved too quickly, and they found a reason to cut off the supply of medicine in advance. Later, they claimed that the formulation of the medicines was destroyed in the war, and the researchers who developed them were also killed, so I did not find anything useful. At that time, I felt that the Ning family had done something strange, but there was no doubt that those medicines hid something sinister. I thought the Ning family simply wanted to protect their trade secrets and profits.Later, the Ning family also launched an improved version of that medicine, making a lot of contributions for the Federation, so he put his suspicion down.Qiao Zhiya, hearing this, squeezed his hand back and then took out a vial of medicine from his storage ring. He said, This is the medicine I made according to the formula Ning Kongran gave to me.. Back then, it's called boosting replenishment1It's more accurate to translate it as supplement to supplement/to complement + dose/medicine but there's already nutrient supplement nutrient + dose/medicine. To avoid confusion, I'm calling it boosting replenishment. As in, something to replenish what you lost, but also can boost your performance something like that.', and the current nutrient supplements are an improved version of it.Boosting replenishment, a term that feels very distant nowadays.In the years when the nutrients were scarce in the frontline, the army's dietary needs during the war became a logistical nightmare. In order to protect the majority of the planet and its inhabitants, the war zone between humans and Zergs is mostly in space, and supplies need to be sent up regularly. However, since the Zergs may emerge from all corners at that time, and all transportation routes were unsafe. The army often faced situations where food supplies were not timely.The emergence of boosting replenishment perfectly solves this problem. At that time, the boosting replenishment were different from the current nutritional supplements they were more like a medicine, rather than purely a meal substitute. Besides providing calories and nutrients needed by the body, they also replenished the spiritual energy consumed. That also means they could help restore physical strength.Under the circumstances at that time, the emergence of this medicament greatly reduced the burden of the army. The public's gratitude and support for the Ning family instantly rose to a fever-pitch, laying a very solid foundation for the later Ning family's good reputation.What's wrong with this medicine? Zhuang Yu couldn't help asking.Qiao Zhiya opened the vial, added a bit of powdered herb, and the color of the medicine quickly became murky. A pungent smell filled the air, causing everyone's spiritual powers to stir anxiously at the mere scent.This is exactly why. Seeing them all showing discomfort, Qiao Zhiya immediately covered the vial and continued, This medicine can indeed replenish the body's energy in a short period of time, but the side effects are also very serious. Moreover, these side effects have a latent period, meaning that the body will only show discomfort after a certain period following the consumption of the medicine.Chu Rong recalled his situation that year, and asked, How long is the incubation period?Anytime between 3 months to 5 years, depends on the body's fitness level. In addition, this medicine can get passed via the placenta. The toxic compound is hard to digest by the body, and if there's still a trace of the medicine available during pregnancy, it will be passed on to the child, and it could wreck their spiritual sea. In short, they might be born without spiritual power, or their spiritual power will be low and unable to grow, or incredibly unstable and prone to riots.Zhuang Yu's expression got worse the more she heard it. She looked at Chu Rong in horror as she said, Sir, the inexplicable spiritual riot of five years ago At that time, Dage's spiritual power had a sudden lapse of instability Oh my God, fortunately, Dage hasn't had any children in these years, otherwise Chu Yan was also shocked, looking at the vial of medicine on the table, thinking, What a poison.'Chu Rong frowned, his expression was very heavy. The group of children born after the war did have a high rate of birth defects, but everyone thought it was affected by the Zerg's radiation not caused by the Ning family's medicines.In some kind of sick twist, the Ning family actually specially launched a soothing agent for babies, and once again earned the goodwill of the masses. Ning Tianya's rise to his position as the Chairman was based on these boosting replenishments and baby soothing agents. It was also from that time that the Federation's government pharmaceutical area began to be taken over by the Ning family. Prior to this, that area had been managed by the Federation's official Association of Medicines. The Ning family was only a consultant.There's one more thing.The topic being discussed now made Qiao Zhiya feel a bit breathless. He forced himself to project the two formulas using his communicator, saying, Rather than saying the widely-used nutrient supplements nowadays are an improved version of supplements, it's more accurate to say that supplements are the improved version of nutrient supplements. This is the formula given to me by Kongran, and this is the formula for the existing nutrient supplements. The two formulas are almost identical, with the only difference being that supplements have added a few unconventional stimulating herbs. Some of the miraculous effects and terrifying side effects are thanks to these additional herbs. In addition, the forbidden herb Northtalk Grass is added to the potion now.Northtalk Grass2; literally: North/northern; language; grass. It's not a real plant from my googling/baidu efforts. Clearly I need to apply some creative liberty in naming them. it's a spiritually-sensitive herb that was forbidden because it can disrupt the work of detectors. In short, drugs with this herb are impossible to be evaluated. It's a sharp weapon of conspiracy designed to harm people.Zhuang Yu frowned, at the same time a little confused about his determination, and asked, Qiao, why are you so sure of your conjectures?Because nutritional supplements were actually developed by Kongran's mother's natal family at the beginning of the outbreak of the great war, Qiao Zhiya answered. He then took out a handwritten note from his storage ring and handed it to Chu Rong, saying, This was sent to me by Sang Bu along with the formula. There's a communication number on it. I couldn't get through, so I guess this number is meant for you.Chu Rong looked down at the note, and tried dialing directly with his communicator in front of everyone. Soon, the call was picked up in mere seconds after the call was dialed.Marshal Chu. Ning Kongran's voice came from the other side, with a seriousness and sophistication that was completely different from his usual one. I don't know if my gift that the Yun family sent over is enough to show you my sincerity in this cooperation.The moment he heard his voice, Qiao Zhiya's ears flattened, and his spirits fell rock bottom. Sure enough, this communication number was for Chu Rong.'Sensing this, Chu Rong stretched his arms to half-hug him while he responded to Ning Kongran. Enough, what do you want to do?I want the Ning family to never be seen again from the Federation. Ning Kongran's answer was simple and straightforward. He paused, his voice softened, as gentle as his usual from the past. Qiao, thank you. And sorry For me, you are my friend forever. I'm glad to be your friend.Chu Rong directly hung up the call. He pressed Qiao Zhiya, whose emotions seemed to be off, into his arms. He vigorously rubbed his head and scolded, You are so meek at times, what wild thoughts have you been entertaining again?I'm sorry. Qiao Zhiya lifted his hand, clutching onto his clothes, trying to control the sudden surge of emotions but couldn't. He could only apologize in a muffled voice.He didn't know what had overcome him. Although he logically understood that his friendship with Ning Kongran had developed naturally their interactions were genuine, and Ning Kongran had genuinely helped him many times the discovery of the formula and the note with the number inevitably brought a bit of a dreadful thought into his mind: Is this person using me all along?'He knew that thinking of that was wrong, and he felt guilty of that. But he couldn't control this stifling feeling of being betrayed.It's as if, it was no coincidence that just as they were studying about the Ning family, this secret drug formula was delivered in a timely manner. Was Ning Kongran monitoring his movements all these times? This person, who Qiao Zhiya considered a close friend, actually used him? It left an awfully bitter taste in his tongue.Now Ning Kongran's explanation which is not an explanation is like an exposed wire, igniting the deeply depressed emotions during this period.Both Chu Yan and Zhuang Yu's were worried, especially since Qiao Zhiya's mood has been wrong since the death of Rick. This was the straw that broke the camel's back. Qiao Zhiya's emotions bursted out.Let's rest first. Chu Rong carried Qiao Zhiya up, and dismissed both Chu Yan and Zhuang Yu with a gesture. He brought Qiao Zhiya out.Zhuang Yu and Chu Yan stared at each other, sighed in sync, and tacitly dispersed.After returning to their room, Chu Rong hugged Qiao Zhiya and leaned on the bed, letting him cry for a while. Then, he gave the youth a hot bath, fed him dinner, and coaxed him to sleep.Dimming the lights in the room, Chu Rong frowned and looked at the corners of Qiao Zhiya's red eyes.He assumed that Qiao Zhiya had been too busy to feel sad or upset, forgetting that when emotions were bottled up, it would explode out in a more severe manner. During this period, Qiao Zhiya had been exposed to a lot of heavy information, and now his friend suddenly revealed his secret side it was not a surprise that he couldn't handle it all.Sorry. He bent down and kissed Qiao Zhiya's forehead, letting out a long sigh. Sorry.It was his fault that brought this youth, who was supposed to enjoy his campus life, into this whirlpool of messy politics and conspiracies.
