8: Chapter 8: Getting Married and Living Together! For the sake of the country, let's start tonight!

"Forming... a family?"

The tear stains on Qin Zihan's face were not yet dry, and she was completely stunned upon hearing those words.

Her mind was still immersed in the thrilling academic storm from moments ago, making it impossible for her to comprehend the meaning behind Elder Chen's words.

Forming a family?

With this man?

This man who had just used god-like wisdom to crush all her knowledge and pride?

What did this mean?

An alliance through marriage?

For what purpose?

"Elder Chen, I don't understand."

Qin Zihan forced herself to calm down. Her superior IQ allowed her to quickly find the core question amidst the confusion. "My mission is scientific research; everything I have should serve that purpose. Marriage... what does this have to do with my work?"

"Furthermore, this doesn't comply with regulations."

Her tone remained cold, but it lacked the previous distant aloofness, replaced instead by a hint of... bewilderment.

"Regulations are made by people. In the face of the nation's highest interests, all regulations can make way."

Elder Chen's voice was resolute.

"As for why..."

He glanced at Lin Yun, signaling for him to explain.

This was a test for Lin Yun, and also a key step for him to completely win over this female genius.

Lin Yun took a step forward and stood before Qin Zihan.

The two met each other's gaze.

One was as cold as an iceberg, her eyes filled with inquiry and confusion.

The other was as calm as the deep sea, his gaze possessing the clarity of one who sees through everything.

"Dr. Qin, I know you have many questions right now."

Lin Yun spoke, his voice devoid of any emotional color, as if stating an objective fact.

"I can tell you the reason, but before that, I want to ask you a question first."

"Do you think the theories you just saw are the endpoint of your current research?"

Qin Zihan was taken aback and instinctively shook her head. "No, that's only a starting point. It has opened a brand new door for us. The world behind that door is ten thousand times broader than we imagined!"

As soon as scientific research was mentioned, a fanatical light reignited in her eyes.

"Very good."

Lin Yun nodded, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

"Then let me tell you three things."

"First, as you delve deeper along the new theoretical framework I provided, you will encounter the first bottleneck within six months: the problem of 'super-distance instantaneous collapse of quantum entanglement states.' Existing observation methods cannot capture this process, which will lead to a fatal vulnerability in your key distribution protocol."

"Second, after solving that problem, within a year, you will encounter the second bottleneck: the problem of 'stability of multi-photon entanglement sources.' With existing crystal materials, once entanglement exceeds 12 photons, the decoherence effect will grow exponentially, rendering your communication channels worthless."

"Third, even if you are lucky and spend ten years solving all the above problems, you will still encounter the final and most unsolvable difficulty: once a true 'quantum supremacy' level computer appears, all the encryption efforts you make today will become like a thin sheet of window paper that can be punctured with a single poke."

With every sentence Lin Yun spoke, Qin Zihan's face grew a shade paler.

Because the three problems Lin Yun mentioned were not predictions at all!

They were the three most terrifying 'theoretical abysses' that she herself had vaguely sensed in the deepest parts of her mind but had not dared to think deeply about!

They were the three Swords of Damocles hanging over the heads of all quantum communication researchers!

And now, this man had clearly laid them out before her one by one, with such nonchalance!

"How... how could you know..."

For the first time, Qin Zihan's voice truly trembled.

"I don't just know," Lin Yun said, looking at her and emphasizing every word, "I also have the methods to solve all these problems."

"A brand new observation theory, a new type of 'Quantum Locking Crystal' that transcends all existing material science knowledge, and even... a higher-dimensional 'Space-time Encryption' algorithm that can counter 'quantum supremacy.'"

Boom!

Qin Zihan's mind completely exploded!

If the three whiteboards from before had opened a door for her...

Then what Lin Yun was describing now was a grand road behind that door, leading straight to the pinnacle of the temple!

For a fanatic who valued scientific research as much as life itself, this was a fatal temptation!

"What do you want?"

Qin Zihan stared fixedly at Lin Yun; she didn't believe all of this was free.

"What I want, Elder Chen has already made very clear."

Lin Yun's expression became serious.

"Dr. Qin, I'm not pursuing a romance with you, nor am I making a request. I am presenting a cooperation proposal to you."

"You can think of me as an information port from a higher-dimensional civilization."

"And my capability, or rather the bandwidth of this 'port,' needs to be continuously unlocked and upgraded through a special 'biological key.'"

"This 'biological key' is my offspring."

"The higher the bloodline potential of the offspring, the more advanced and abundant the information I can unlock."

"And you, Dr. Qin Zihan, possess the top-tier genes and intelligence in the Dragon Country today. Our union, from a probabilistic standpoint, is the best choice for birthing offspring with the highest potential."

Lin Yun used the calmest and most scientific language to explain this most absurd matter.

"Therefore, our 'marriage' is essentially a partnership."

"You provide your genes for this project."

"I provide a continuous stream of 'revelations' for your research and for the technology of the entire Dragon Country."

"This is a transaction—a transaction for the country, for science, and for the future. Are you willing?"

Qin Zihan fell silent.

She looked at Lin Yun, remaining silent for a full three minutes.

Her brain was operating at billions of cycles per second, analyzing the pros and cons of it all.

Emotions? Secular norms? Ethics?

In her science-filled brain, the weight of these things was so low it could be ignored.

She only saw two things.

First, the supreme temple leading to scientific truth that she dreamed of.

Second, a great future where the Dragon Country's technology achieves a breakthrough and stands at the world's peak.

And the cost was merely her genes and a marriage.

This deal...

Was an absolute steal!

"I am willing."

Qin Zihan slowly raised her head, an unprecedented fire burning in her cold eyes.

It wasn't the fire of love, but the flame of seeking knowledge and dedication!

"I have only one condition."

"Speak."

"I need to join the core team of the 'Pangu Project.' I need to know every piece of technology you bring out, and I need to be involved in it!"

She could not tolerate being just a tool for providing genes.

Lin Yun smiled.

"Welcome aboard, my... partner."

...

One hour later.

The Jiangcheng City Civil Affairs Bureau was temporarily cleared by a supreme order.

Under the personal witness of two serious-faced staff members and Elder Chen, Lin Yun and Qin Zihan pressed their red thumbprints.

There were no flowers, no vows, and no blessings.

Only two fresh red marriage certificates were solemnly handed to them.

In the legal sense, they were now husband and wife.

"For the sake of confidentiality and security, you will move into Base No. 1, which was specially built for the 'Pangu Project.'"

In the car, Elder Chen spoke to the two who sat side by side in silence.

Half an hour later, the motorcade drove into a suburban villa area that was scenic yet heavily guarded.

A modern villa occupying thousands of square meters, integrated with top-tier security and living systems, appeared before their eyes.

"This will be your home from now on."

After escorting them to the door, Elder Chen tactfully led his people away.

The heavy alloy door slowly closed, isolating everything inside from the outside world.

In the massive villa, only Lin Yun and Qin Zihan remained.

The atmosphere instantly became a bit awkward.

They were husband and wife, yet they were more like strangers than strangers.

Guided by the smart butler, the two toured the villa and finally arrived at the master bedroom on the second floor.

The room was large, with a minimalist and high-tech decor. A two-meter-wide bed stood in the center, appearing particularly prominent.

Qin Zihan walked to the window and watched the patrolling Dragon Shield Special Operations members, remaining silent for a long time.

Lin Yun didn't speak either, giving her enough time to adapt to everything.

Finally, Qin Zihan turned around, having regained her iceberg-like calm expression.

She looked at Lin Yun, pushed her rimless glasses up the bridge of her nose, and spoke in a rigorous tone as if discussing an academic problem:

"Lin Yun."

"Yes?"

"According to what you said before, the higher the potential of our first offspring, the more critical the technology you unlock."

"Yes." Lin Yun nodded. "If an S-grade offspring can be born, as a 'birth gift,' I can provide... for example, the complete set of technology for a 2nm Lithography Machine."

Qin Zihan's pupils suddenly constricted!

A Lithography Machine!

The eternal pain in the heart of the Dragon Country!

"From a project management perspective, we should reach the first 'milestone' as soon as possible to verify the feasibility of the entire plan and lay a foundation for subsequent progress."

Her tone was as calm as if she were reading an experimental report.

"Therefore, from a purely logical and efficiency standpoint..."

Qin Zihan raised her head, her cold gaze meeting Lin Yun's eyes as she said word by word:

"We shouldn't waste any time."

"Tonight, shall we begin?"