Ye Wenjie, watch my moves closely.

Chapter 2 The Beginning of Red Coast

"The East is Red, the sun rises, China..."

The hum of the server rack mingled with the whispers of the radio.

In 1979, Li Youyu slowly opened his eyes in the launch room of the Hongan Base.

His head was resting on the hard cover of the duty log in a dozing position. Two colleagues sat to his left and in front of him. One of them was staring sleepily at the clock on the wall, while the other was flipping through a newspaper from many days ago, looking tired.

Directly in front, a short-haired woman in a dark green military uniform is hovering her finger over a red button on the control panel.

A hint of madness lurked beneath the woman's calm expression. Li Youyu looked at her and murmured, "Ye Wenjie."

Without much thought, he had already determined his time travel point.

It was the bloody dawn that Ye Wenjie betrayed all of humanity.

She's now just a finger's breadth away from becoming a traitor.

Out of a mischievous impulse, Li Youyu, who had just woken up, coughed suddenly, attracting the attention of his two colleagues behind him.

The two colleagues on duty turned around to look at him, and as their eyes darted around, they happened to see Ye Wenjie's actions.

Routine launch system maintenance usually begins at 8 a.m., and it's only a little past 5 a.m. now, which is far too early.

A staff member on duty instinctively asked, "Ye Wenjie, what are you doing?"

It was supposed to be a simple conversation, but Ye Wenjie, sitting in front of the control panel, seemed not to hear it and placed her hand on the button.

The two staff members on duty realized something was wrong.

This control console is directly connected to the satellite launch system at the Red Coast base and is its most valuable asset.

Ye Wenjie usually takes charge, but today, she spent an unusually long time at the control panel.

It was common knowledge at the Red Coast Base that Ye Wenjie had a questionable background, so even the duty officers who didn't understand the technology could order her around.

The duty officer asked again, but Ye Wenjie did not answer.

With just a glance, the two realized something was wrong. They stood up together and grabbed Ye Wenjie, but Ye Wenjie suddenly went crazy and struggled to press the button.

But how could one woman possibly be a match for two grown men?

In the blink of an eye, Ye Wenjie was pressed in front of the control panel.

"Comrade!"

One of the officers on duty freed his hands and shouted to Li Youyu, "Go find Political Commissar Lei quickly, we'll keep an eye on her!"

Ye Wenjie looked at Li Youyu, her face filled with despair.

Eight years ago, after learning that the sun might have a specular reflection phenomenon, she tentatively used the base's radio radar to send radio waves toward the sun in an attempt to verify whether the star had the function of a signal amplifier.

By a twist of fate, this radio wave drifted through the universe for four years before it was actually intercepted by an unknown civilization.

Just a few hours ago, she received a reply from this civilization.

The letter instructed her not to answer and not to reveal her location on Earth.

Otherwise, planetary systems will be invaded and the world will be occupied.

However, for Ye Wenjie, who had already given up on the world, this was not a choice at all.

This crazy world can no longer bring about change on its own; it needs the intervention of an external force.

Just like the Lord Jesus.

"Just a little bit more... just a little bit more..."

Ye Wenjie looked down at her fingertips, which were no more than thirty centimeters away from the red button.

If that button is pressed, the Trisolaran civilization will arrive and oversee the transformation of this world.

But now, it's all because of that duty officer's cough...

Ye Wenjie's eyes were filled with self-destructive hatred.

The duty officer who had been dozing off coughed at the most crucial moment, drawing everyone's attention.

If the political commissar of the Red Coast Base were to arrive, she might never have another chance to get close to the control panel.

Just as she was filled with regret, the coughing duty officer stood up.

To her surprise, he didn't go to the political commissar, but instead came over and patted the hands of the other two duty officers.

"Don't be too nervous, Ye Wenjie is pregnant."

Ye Wenjie was taken aback. "What...?"

"It's alright, she was just a little emotional, that's how experts are."

The duty officer pointed to his head, implying that Ye Wenjie might have some mental issues.

The other two men glanced at Ye Wenjie, and seeing her hysterical expression, they understood. They each took a half step back, loosened their grip on Ye Wenjie, and said casually, "Expert Ye, why didn't you say you were pregnant? Look at this misunderstanding..."

"ah,"

Ye Wenjie looked blankly around, then hastily forced a smile and said, "Thank you."

"Go on with your work."

The duty officer who helped her out of the predicament sent the other two away and patted her on the shoulder.

Ye Wenjie noticed the other person's gaze for the first time; it was indifferent and disdainful.

She felt as if her innermost secrets were laid bare before him.

But she was also a person of exceptional intelligence, and quickly suppressed the strange feeling in her heart. Pretending to be as usual, she went to the control panel and pressed the red button.

Click--tap

The control panel emitted the sound of a relay engaging, and the large device outside buzzed as it emitted electromagnetic waves carrying Earth's information in the designated direction.

The fate of human civilization quietly changed on such an ordinary night.

A few seconds later, the relay disconnected, and Ye Wenjie terminated the launch.

That intergalactic text message, capable of destroying the world, had already left Earth and was hurtling straight toward the sun at the speed of light.

No one can stop it now.

At this moment, Ye Wenjie became a traitor to humanity.

After finishing everything, Ye Wenjie felt a sense of absurdity.

She, a woman not accepted by society, was able to easily change the world.

She smiled at the duty officer, thanking him for helping her out of the predicament, but also mocking his seemingly all-powerful confidence, which had unknowingly led him to make a grave mistake.

Leaving the control panel, Ye Wenjie walked outside. The morning sun had already climbed over the ridgeline of the Greater Khingan Mountains, and the dim morning light made her dizzy.

She stayed up late last night, and the extreme emotional fluctuations left her feeling incredibly tired.

"Pregnant?"

Ye Wenjie lowered her head and touched her lower abdomen.

I do get tired easily lately, and my concentration has also decreased significantly.

It can't really be that coincidental, can it? That my prediction came true.

While thinking, Ye Wenjie suddenly felt her vision blur and her body fell backward uncontrollably.

Just then, a pair of hands caught her.

Ye Wenjie looked up, and through her blurry vision, she saw a pair of eyes that looked down upon the world.

The figure supporting him, bathed in the radiation of the starry sun, wore a half-smile.

"Ye Wenjie, what was it like communicating with an extraterrestrial civilization for the first time?"

he..…

Does he know what I just did?!

Ye Wenjie's pupils widened.

Just as she was about to ask something else, the weariness became uncontrollable, overwhelming her consciousness.