17: Chapter 17: The Letter of Credentials Delivered! Greetings from Cybertron!

Beijing, Sanlitun Embassy District.

A black Audi A6L slowly pulled up in front of the Egyptian Embassy in China.

The car did not have diplomatic plates, but its polished body and the driver's steady style caught the attention of the armed police at the gate.

The door opened, and Qin Yue stepped out.

She wore a well-tailored dark gray suit today, her hair neatly pinned in a bun, and a professional, sophisticated makeup look.

In her hands, she held a deep blue leather folder.

On the cover, a unique emblem was embossed in gold—a high-tech shield composed of circuit board patterns and gears.

Below the shield were two rows of gold-stamped text.

One line was in Chinese: "Cyber Freedom Republic."

The other line was in English: "Cyber Freedom Republic."

Today, Lin Zhou did not come in person.

According to him, this was the "principle of diplomatic reciprocity."

As the "Head of State," he could not personally deliver a request for negotiations.

Sending his "Minister of Foreign Affairs" was the highest form of courtesy.

Qin Yue took a deep breath, straightened her collar, and walked toward the heavily guarded embassy gates.

Meanwhile, in an ordinary commercial van parked nearby, a hidden camera transmitted everything in real-time via an encrypted signal to Lin Zhou's computer.

"The livestream can begin," Lin Zhou whispered into his headset.

Instantly, the "National Founding" livestream room, which had been silent for over a month, flickered to life without warning.

No announcement, no commentary.

The screen showed only the exotic gates of the Egyptian Embassy and the stern-faced armed police officers on guard.

Millions of netizens who had set notifications flooded in the moment they received the alert.

"Holy crap! It's back from the dead!"

"Where is this? The Egyptian Embassy?"

"What's the streamer doing? Storming the embassy?"

As the bullet chat buzzed with speculation, Qin Yue appeared on screen.

With steady steps, she walked straight to the embassy's guard post.

An armed police officer stepped forward to block her.

"Ma'am, how can I help you?"

Qin Yue offered a professional smile and held up her folder.

"Hello, I am Qin Yue, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Cyber Freedom Republic. By order of our Head of State, Mr. Lin Zhou, I am here to present our credentials to your embassy and formally request negotiations with your government regarding the establishment of diplomatic relations and related matters."

Her voice wasn't loud, but her enunciation was clear, transmitted through a hidden mic to everyone in the livestream.

The officer in the guard post and the one blocking her were both stunned.

They looked at each other, unable to hide their confusion.

Cyber... what republic?

They had been stationed here for years and knew the flags of over two hundred countries and regions, but they had never heard of this name.

"Ma'am, are you mistaken? This is the Egyptian Embassy," the officer reminded her kindly.

"I am not mistaken," Qin Yue's smile remained unchanged. "I am here specifically to deliver this document to the Egyptian Ambassador to China."

The scene became rather awkward.

The officer had clearly never handled such a situation; he reported the bizarre incident to his superiors via walkie-talkie.

The livestream chat was already losing it.

"Hahaha, I feel for the officer. He's really seen it all today!"

"Minister of Foreign Affairs! The streamer actually gave out official titles!"

"Cyber Freedom Republic... coming from a beautiful diplomat, why does it sound so cool?"

"I bet a pack of spicy strips she won't get through the door!"

Inside the embassy, this sudden event had clearly caused a minor stir.

A few minutes later, a young official in an Egyptian Embassy uniform walked out quickly.

He walked straight to Qin Yue, eyeing her with a mix of curiosity, caution, and a hint of absurdity.

"Ma'am, I am Ahmed, a secretary at the embassy. You say... you represent a country called the 'Cyber Freedom Republic'?"

"Yes," Qin Yue replied with poise.

Ahmed's mouth twitched, clearly trying his best not to laugh.

Of course he knew about the "Cyber Freedom Republic."

Over the past month, that name and the "atmospheric water generation" video behind it had gone viral on the Egyptian internet.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Egypt and intelligence agencies had held several meetings about it.

He just didn't expect them to actually show up at the door, and in such a formal—yet ridiculous—manner.

"Very well, Ms. Qin," Ahmed cleared his throat. "While I cannot confirm your country's legitimacy, out of diplomatic protocol, I can accept your documents on their behalf. However, I cannot guarantee the Ambassador will see them, nor can I guarantee any form of response."

His words were perfectly diplomatic, maintaining professional decorum while distancing himself from any responsibility.

"I understand," Qin Yue nodded. "My task is simply to place it in your hands."

She held the deep blue folder with both hands and presented it solemnly.

Ahmed reached out and took what was likely the most bizarre "credential" he would ever receive in his diplomatic career.

The folder felt high-quality and surprisingly heavy.

He instinctively glanced at the unique emblem on the cover.

Circuits and gears—cold and high-tech, yet possessing a sense of classical solemnity.

This scene was faithfully recorded by the camera and spread across the entire internet.

A virtual internet nation was delivering its first diplomatic document to an ancient sovereign state in the real world.

Regardless of the outcome, this moment was enough to be recorded in the annals of the internet.

Ahmed took the folder and turned back into the embassy.

The heavy doors slowly closed behind him.

Qin Yue bowed slightly toward the door, then turned and calmly returned to the car.

The livestream image froze at that moment, then slowly faded to black.

Only a single line of white text remained on the screen.

"We have knocked on the door. Now, we wait for a response."