One of the elders, an old man with kind eyes, had taken her hand with tears in his eyes.
"Boss Su," he had said, "you were like a blessing from the sky. We thought we were finished, but then you ca. You gave us another chance. We don’t know how to thank you."
Another woman, probably in her 50s, had nodded. "We trusted Leader Zhang for years... but now, I feel like he just used us. Always acting like a saint, saying he never wanted power."
A younger man nearby had added,
"You know, he used to go around saying he would never have a child. He swore it. Said he wasn’t the true founder of Luna Moon Base and didn’t deserve to pass the base to any child of his own. He promised all the elders that he would dedicate himself to leading, not building a legacy."
Su Jiyai had raised an eyebrow. "He said that?"
"Yes," the woman said firmly. "His wife and father-in-law were the true leaders. But they died nineteen years ago in a strange accident. So of us believed it wasn’t really an accident."
There was a pause.
The air had gotten heavy.
Su Jiyai’s voice had softened. "You an... you think he planned it?"
They had exchanged nervous glances.
"We don’t know," the old man had said finally. "There’s no proof. But after they died, he took full control. And he swore to never have a child, to make sure no one thought he was taking the base for his own family."
Su Jiyai had nodded slowly. But now, in the present mont, everything was falling into place. That "nephew" who stood beside Leader Zhang was not 10 or 12. He looked like he was 16 or 17. That would an he was born right after Leader Zhang’s wife died.
What a coincidence.
Or... not a coincidence at all.
A cold smile appeared on Su Jiyai’s face.
She turned and walked back into the monitoring room, then glanced at the screen showing Leader Zhang and his "nephew."
A voice spoke from the main speaker outside:
"Leader Zhang," the voice echoed through the quiet crowd, "is that boy really your nephew? Or is he your son?"
Everyone froze.
Leader Zhang’s eyes widened. His so-called nephew turned pale and stared at the speaker.
The mbers of Luna Moon Base looked stunned.
"What is this? What kind of trick is this?" one of them shouted.
Another quickly added, "Boss Su, this isn’t right! Just because we’re captured doesn’t an you can start making things up. Leader Zhang has always been a man of honor! Everyone knows he doesn’t have children!"
"He promised he would never have one! His wife passed away a long ti ago, and he’s been alone since!"
"Yeah! That boy is his nephew! His brother and sister-in-law died during a zombie wave, and Leader Zhang raised him like his own son!"
Their voices were filled with anger and disbelief.
They truly believed what they were saying.
Su Jiyai didn’t speak right away.
"How interesting. You’re all so loyal. But just now, my system did a DNA scan using advanced tech. Guess what we found? Leader Zhang and his so-called nephew... are biologically related."
The Luna Moon mbers gasped.
"No way!"
"That can’t be true!"
"Leader Zhang even showed us a DNA test before, years ago!"
Su Jiyai chuckled again. "That test must have been fake. After all, if he arranged it, he could have controlled the results."
Leader Zhang’s face turned red. He stood up shakily and shouted, "That’s nonsense! I don’t have any child! He’s just my nephew! That scan is a lie!"
The crowd started murmuring.
So of Leader Zhang’s people were starting to doubt.
Su Jiyai’s voice continued, calm and slow. "Fine. If you don’t believe our results, why don’t we do another DNA test? But this ti, let’s make it fair. How about we do it at your own base? Or we can ask the Alliance to choose a third party to test it."
The mont those words dropped, the air beca heavy again.
Leader Zhang’s face turned completely pale.
"No!" he shouted. "I don’t trust any of you! Boss Su will just find a way to change the results no matter where it’s done!"
Su Jiyai’s voice ca again from the speaker, steady and cold. "If you don’t trust , then what are you afraid of? The Alliance is neutral. If they run the test, you have nothing to worry about... unless you’re hiding sothing."
The Luna Moon mbers looked around nervously.
So of them began to whisper to each other.
Then one of them stepped forward. "Leader Zhang, just take the test. If you have nothing to hide, then prove it. We can clear your na and humiliate Boss Su in the process."
Another shouted, "Yeah! Do it! Show her she’s wrong!"
Others joined in.
"Take the test!"
"Show them the truth!"
"Clear your na!"
But Leader Zhang stood there, not moving. His hands shook slightly, and his face had gone stiff like a statue.
His nephew lowered his head, saying nothing. His lips were pressed tight.
That silence was louder than any words.
The people who had trusted him suddenly started backing away, their eyes full of fear.
"No..." one woman whispered. "He lied to us?"
"He has a son?"
"After all these years... he lied to us?"
So of them looked heartbroken. Others looked furious.
"Well, well. What a perfect man you are, Leader Zhang. So noble. So loyal to your wife’s mory. So trustworthy... and yet, the mont the truth cos out, you can’t even look your people in the eye."
Leader Zhang watched in shock as so of his own people stepped back, their faces red with anger.
"I don’t want to stay in Luna Moon Base anymore!" one man shouted, his voice shaking.
" neither!" a woman cried. "I followed you for years! I believed you! But you’re a liar!"
More and more people began to speak up.
"You tricked us!"
"You even used your own kid and lied to everyone!"
"I don’t care anymore. I’d rather start over than follow soone like you!"
Leader Zhang raised his hands quickly and shouted, "Wait! Wait, everyone! You’re misunderstanding !"
He took a deep breath and said, "I did a bone marrow surgery with my nephew years ago! That’s why the DNA test showed as his father! It’s just science! If you check hair or blood, it will always show that I’m his dad. But it’s not true! I swear on my life!"
He quickly pulled up his sleeve and showed a small scar on his arm.
"See? This is the mark from the surgery! I’m telling the truth! And if I’m lying, may I be struck by lightning ten tis!"
The crowd went quiet for a second.
So people looked confused.
Others looked unsure.
But they didn’t look convinced.
Soone in the back muttered, "But he said sothing different before..."
"Yeah," another whispered. "First he said it was fake, now it’s from surgery? Which is it?"
Leader Zhang looked around, panicking. Sweat rolled down his face.
Then Su Jiyai’s voice ca from the speaker again.
"I already looked into your dical records," she said calmly. "From what I saw, you never had any surgery. In fact, you’ve never even been sick. Your records show you’re one of the healthiest n alive. So stop lying."
The crowd froze again.
Then the anger returned.
"Liar!" soone yelled.
"You cheated on your wife!"
"And you killed her just to hide it!"
"Just so your secret child could take over the base one day?!"
"We believed in you!"
"We followed you for so many years!"
"You’re the most heartless man I’ve ever t!"
"Shaless!"
Leader Zhang shook his head over and over. "No! No! That’s not true! Please believe !"
But no one listened.
His "nephew" stood beside him, frozen, not saying a word. He just stared at the speaker with a blank expression, like he couldn’t believe what was happening.
Then sothing surprising happened.
The people of Luna Moon Base turned toward the speaker and bowed deeply.
"Boss Su," one of them said, his voice filled with guilt. "We are truly sorry. We were blind. We followed the wrong person."
Another added, "Please, we don’t want to stay in Luna Moon Base anymore. We are ready to leave it behind. We only have one request... Please let us live in Hope Base. We’ll do anything."
Su Jiyai didn’t reply at first.
But the people of Hope Base didn’t laugh or mock them either. They stayed quiet.
They understood.
They had once doubted their own leaders, too. They had made mistakes in the past. So now, seeing others regret their choices, they don’t judge. After all, everyone sses up sotis. Not everyone can make the right decision every ti.
Finally, Su Jiyai spoke.
"I’ll let you live here," she said. "But you have to prove your loyalty. You’ll have to contribute to Hope Base."
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