Did You Destroy the World Today?
Chapter 26: Send Me to Mars

Asperger's...

When these four syllables came out of the security guard's mouth, Lin Xu was completely stunned.

What kind of instant karma was this??

He had just fabricated an Asperger's identity, and now the person he was looking for turned out to actually have Asperger's syndrome??

If this had happened before, Lin Xu would have dismissed it as coincidence.

But now, he couldn't help but wonder what exactly was going wrong here.

Wait, was he some male version of Haruhi Suzumiya or something?

If he made up a lie about Gundams appearing tomorrow, would Evangelion angels immediately descend to destroy Tokyo?

----Actually, this might be more effective than Mount Fuji...

With his mind full of questions, Lin Xu walked toward Lizhao Lake. From a distance, he could already see a figure doing radio calisthenics by the lakeside.

His movements were exaggerated yet precise.

And extremely eye-catching.

But the surrounding students seemed completely accustomed to it, with no one giving him a second glance.

How should he approach this?

Lin Xu scratched his head.

He still wasn't good at this kind of interpersonal communication work.

He should have consulted some client managers for advice before coming here.

Well, time to bite the bullet.

Seeing that Xu Jin had reached the final section of his calisthenics routine, Lin Xu walked directly up to him and said:

"Xu Jin?"

Xu Jin seemed startled, his body twitching nervously as he blinked rapidly over a dozen times before taking a sideways step away, asking warily:

"You...who are you?"

"Never mind who I am, I want to talk with you."

"No. No talking."

Xu Jin turned to leave, with Lin Xu keeping pace beside him.

Every time Lin Xu tried to get closer, Xu Jin would sidestep, maintaining at least two meters of distance between them.

When Xu Jin was nearly backed into the lake with no more room to retreat, he suddenly broke into a run, circling around to the other side.

How was he supposed to talk like this?

A mischievous idea popped into Lin Xu's head.

He called out:

"You didn't finish your last movement!"

The moment these words left his mouth, Xu Jin froze in place.

His entire body tensed up as if enduring tremendous agony.

He wanted to keep running away, but his feet refused to move.

After standing rigidly like this for over ten seconds, he suddenly began retracing his steps.

Moving cautiously backward, step by step along his original path.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder.

This was severe OCD in action.

Seizing the opportunity, Lin Xu continued:

"I have something important to discuss with you. If you refuse..."

"You don't...you don't have anything important at all you're lying to me!"

Xu Jin's speech was erratic, slowing down before suddenly accelerating into a machine-gun burst of words.

"You're completely lying you want to impersonate officials but you're not one at all."

"You're too...you, too, young, your hair's too long you haven't shaved you have no fingernails your clothes have backpack imprints you always walk looking down your eyes only focus on one target."

"You...are not...any...official."

"You're here to recruit! You're a programmer!"

"......"

Lin Xu was speechless.

Completely seen through!

This Xu Jin was undoubtedly a genius, and his talents clearly extended far beyond just materials science!

No wonder he had developed those two crucial materials.

No wonder he became one of the core members of that mysterious "Planetary Reincarnation" organization.

Lying to him was clearly the wrong approach.

"Alright."

Lin Xu said:

"My name is Lin Xu. I am indeed a programmer, and I am indeed here to recruit."

"But what I want to discuss with you will definitely interest you."

"I'm not interested."

Xu Jin had finally backed all the way to his original position. He looked down to locate his footprints, carefully adjusted his stance, and then began moving again.

Radio calisthenics, section one.

Damn.

Starting over from the beginning?

Well, at least this would give him more time to communicate.

"I guarantee you'll be interested in what I have to say."

"I'm offering you a chance to participate in high-strength carbon fiber material development."

"PEEK material, and M46X."

Lin Xu played his trump card directly.

It wasn't that he didn't want to dance around the subject, but with Xu Jin's condition, being direct might yield better results.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Xu Jin's movements paused momentarily.

But he still clenched his teeth, refusing to speak until he had completed the entire calisthenics routine, followed by a series of strange hand gestures in the air. Only then did he finally turn to Lin Xu.

"How do you know I'm researching these materials? You...have you been investigating me?"

"Unauthorized access to citizen information is illegal I'll call the police they'll arrest you I..."

"Stop!"

Lin Xu raised his hand to interrupt Xu Jin.

"I haven't accessed any of your information."

"Your basic details were found online, and your research topics came from your classmates and professors."

"We genuinely need you, and we need these two materials."

"We're Tianqiong Technology, dedicated to making space travel accessible to ordinary people."

"If you..."

"I accept!"

"...Huh?"

Lin Xu was stunned.

Just like that?

He had expected changing Xu Jin's mind would require a lengthy process, with today's conversation merely serving as preliminary groundwork.

But now...

Damn, were these two materials really that compelling?

After a moment's hesitation, Lin Xu asked:

"What about your other job offer? You've already passed the interview at the Materials Research Institute, right?"

"I can decline."

Now Xu Jin seemed completely normal, his expression instantly composed.

None of that characteristic Asperger's "wisdom mixed with confusion" remained on his face.

He looked like any ordinary person.

Lin Xu took a deep breath and extended his hand toward Xu Jin.

"There's no need to rush. We can work out a solution that accommodates both."

"Regardless, thank you for giving me this opportunity."

Xu Jin looked at Lin Xu's hand hesitantly, then after several seconds of silence, pulled out a bottle of hand sanitizer from his pocket.

"...Never mind, we can skip the handshake."

Lin Xu withdrew his hand.

"Let's set a time then."

"Take my contact information, and I'll pick you up tomorrow."

"Before we officially begin work, there are some things I need to brief you on."

"Is that alright?"

Lin Xu looked at Xu Jin with sincere expression.

Truthfully, before meeting him, Lin Xu had been racking his brains about how to make this whole arrangement work.

Even if Xu Jin agreed to play along, making the act convincing enough to fool company executives wouldn't be easy.

But...

Since Xu Jin genuinely had Asperger's, many things suddenly became explainable.

Any inconsistencies could simply be attributed to Xu Jin's condition.

"Okay."

Xu Jin nodded.

Just when Lin Xu thought everything was settled, Xu Jin suddenly said:

"You have problems."

Lin Xu froze.

"I've never told anyone what materials I'm researching. You couldn't have learned that from my professors or classmates."

"You must have investigated me but it's fine I don't care now."

"Are you really a programmer at Tianqiong Technology do you really send ordinary people to space?"

"We absolutely do."

Lin Xu nodded solemnly.

Of course - Tianqiong Technology would become a major player in space tourism within twenty years. Sending someone to space would be child's play by then.

Xu Jin could clearly tell Lin Xu wasn't lying.

He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.

As if releasing some heavy burden.

Then he continued:

"In that case...can you...can you..."

"Send me to Mars?"