Miss Beautiful C.E.O and her system

Chapter 781: I'm not ruthless enough

"Thank you," Kate responded and twirled around, showcasing her slim waist and curves.

"Right, girls, I'll be heading off work now. Don't forget to clean my office."

"Don't worry, President. We're already on it," one of the secretaries said with a wink.

Kate blushed and nodded. She knew the trio was aware of what had happened inside. What gratified her was that no gossip had spread among her employees.

At most, there were a few casual speculations about her relationships—nothing certain. These secretaries were her true confidantes.

Fortunately, they weren't on the list of traitors that Ling Qingyu had presented. Otherwise, she would have sunk into even deeper despair, with no one left to trust.

"Here, you forgot this," Kate said, handing over the jammer device.

Ling Qingyu glanced at her hand, her lips curling into a smile. "No, I didn't forget. It's for you. Next time you want privacy, you can use it as you like. In addition, it also has radar functions to detect bugs."

Kate was at a loss for words. Sure, she had once resented Ling Qingyu and Astrid, competing with them over vanity and popularity.

Although she hadn't done anything truly wrong, her attitude had never matched Ling Qingyu's goodwill. Now, she felt both indebted and grateful.

"Qingyu, I…"

"Of course, it only affects others. As for me, I can still eavesdrop on you through the jammer."

"Can't you just say something nice for once?" Kate said, exasperated. She didn't believe a jammer could spy on her anyway.

Little did she know, Ling Qingyu wasn't joking. Any electronic device that passed through her hands—and Athena's—contained tracking and surveillance functions.

Of course, they weren't so bored as to pry into others' secrets. But with the rapid advancement of electromagnetic technology and Athena's recent discoveries, the word "privacy" might soon become obsolete.

Athena had refined the existing concept of using electromagnetic waves for surveillance. There had already been concerns that even household Wi-Fi routers could reconstruct real-time 3D imagery under certain conditions.

Athena had gone far beyond that.

Her "daughter" had realized that, in most areas inhabited by humanity, concealment was becoming nearly impossible as long as one remained within the grid.

It didn't matter whether a network or server was isolated from public channels. With the satellites gifted to Ling Qingyu by Miss System, Athena could use them as transmitters to infiltrate external systems.

As long as there was even the slightest connection to the outside world, Athena could access it.

Unless a system was completely internal and relied solely on wired connections, nothing could truly remain hidden. Even local area networks using wireless connections were vulnerable—especially if Ling Qingyu placed a nearby device capable of bridging into the signal.

Regarding the use of Wi-Fi electromagnetic waves to generate live 3D imagery, Athena utilized a refined enhancement module to reconstruct scattered data into solid models.

Like a hologram, an entire live scene could be captured through electronic devices—particularly Wi-Fi routers, mobile phones, or any equipment that emitted strong electromagnetic waves.

Since controlled experiments had already succeeded with simpler AI systems, such a task was trivial for Athena.

Ling Qingyu didn't understand much of the technical discussions between Tang Ziyi and her "daughter." In fact, she couldn't follow along at all. However, one thing she did understand was the importance of keeping this technology a secret from the public.

No one wanted their privacy to be live-streamed at all times. Not even Ling Qingyu.

At first, she had been frightened, her mind spiraling into paranoia and conspiracy theories.

Later, after seeing how Athena could counteract and block those intrusive waves, she gradually calmed down.

Thinking about it carefully, perhaps no one could truly hide from others—only maintain an illusion of safety.

In nature, predators like sharks, despite their poor eyesight, could detect electromagnetic pulses generated by muscle movements— electroreception system Some species could even sense faint electrical fields emitted by living organisms, sometimes through obstacles.

Every atom possesses an electrical field, and since all matter is composed of atoms, it stood to reason that as technology continued to advance, nothing would remain truly hidden.

Sooner or later, people would come to realize this.

Ling Qingyu began to suspect that the only real countermeasure to such invasive surveillance was to wield technology capable of obstructing vision and distorting electrical fields.

Until then, the loss of privacy would simply be a matter of time— determined by the balance of power among those who controlled such capabilities.

Unless she transcended like the so-called immortals, capable of manipulating energy and universal fields at will, she could only rely on Athena's advantage to stay one step ahead and avoid potential disasters.

"Alas, whenever someone tells the truth, most people don't believe it," Ling Qingyu lamented with a sigh.

"Alright, Qingyu. I'm grateful for your help— and thank you for this as well," Kate replied with a smile. She shook the miniature jammer at Ling Qingyu before switching it off and slipping it into her purse.

"Surely I won't be harmed by the radio electromagnetic waves, right? Carrying it around might affect my health."

Ling Qingyu rolled her eyes. "Every substance emits electromagnetic waves, whether you like it or not. As long as it's within an acceptable range, there's nothing to worry about."

"Got it. Let's go out and do some shopping. I reckon you haven't toured around much, right? Let me, the local, be your guide," Kate said.

"I have toured around," Ling Qingyu replied, listing several locations as they headed toward the elevators.

"Tsk… as expected, you just searched online and followed netizens' recommendations. Come with me— I'll show you the true colors of the city," Kate clicked her tongue and patted her chest proudly.

Ling Qingyu nodded and followed Kate out of the elevator blankly, her eyes still slightly unfocused after having her thoughts flashing planets flattened earlier. She silently swore to avoid that experience again if possible and created satisfaction for others.

"Ride in my car. We still have a lot to talk about on the way," Ling Qingyu said.

Kate paused before nodding subtly. Their conversation wasn't finished, and it certainly wasn't appropriate to continue it in public. "Sure."

Without Ling Qingyu needing to say anything further, Athena had already communicated with the guards waiting nearby on standby.

Sure enough, by the time the two women reached the entrance, a Chevrolet Suburban was already parked outside.

They got in, and the vehicle drove off smoothly. Kate glanced around, carefully observing the interior, trying to spot differences between a standard and an armored version.

"What are you looking at, Kate?"

"I'm trying to figure out the difference. Your vehicle is armored, right? And not the simple kind advertised elsewhere, I presume," Kate said.

"It is armored. But if you're trying to compare, there's nothing to compare," Ling Qingyu replied with a smirk. "This one is fully customized."

"Customized? Where would you even find mechanics who rent out armored vehicles and customize them?"

"Oh, Kate, you're misunderstanding something. What makes you think this car isn't mine?"

Kate's lips parted in shock. "Wait… you bought a vehicle here?"

"Oh dear, Kate, don't act so surprised," Ling Qingyu shrugged as she casually explained the vehicle's capabilities.

With each word, Kate's eyes gleamed greener with envy.

"Let's not talk about my car. What do you plan to do with him?" Ling Qingyu asked.

Kate understood who her classmate was referring to. "I don't know, Qingyu. Honestly, the last person I would have thought to be a traitor is him. I never expected that. I saved him!"

"Perhaps, he doesn't see it that way. For sure, his ego doesn't. The unexpected always leads to lowered guard, which creates opportunity," Ling Qingyu said. "It's not your fault that you failed to detect any early warning signs. Even I was once assassinated—and they succeeded. It was sheer luck that I came back to life in the hospital."

In truth, the real Ling Qingyu hadn't survived, right? Otherwise, how could she have come to this world and lived as she did now?

Ling Qingyu paused, but that pause only deepened Kate's sympathy. Kate assumed the assassination had been the work of a business rival, not realizing her classmate had suffered for no reason at all— not in the same channel about silence.

"Gosh, Qingyu…" Kate gasped, urging her to explain what had happened. She was already shaken by betrayal from someone close to her—now hearing that Ling Qingyu had gone through something similar left her stunned.

Ling Qingyu knew Kate had misunderstood, but she didn't bother correcting her. "Let's not talk about me. Your situation is urgent. Tell me your decision."

"Why don't we inform law enforcement and let them deal with him?" Kate said, though her voice wavered with uncertainty.

Ling Qingyu simply stared at her without responding.

Kate quickly realized how naive she had sounded and backtracked. She knew full well that the connections behind that man were enough to keep him out of prison. It had been foolish of her to believe the justice system would work so simply.

She had understood this long ago—but when the moment came, she still couldn't bring herself to be ruthless. "Sorry to disappoint you, Qingyu. I just can't do it yet."

Kate bit her lips and mocked at herself. Ling Qingyu didn't blunder her or lift her friend up. Ling Qingyu had already decided and saved a surprise for Kate.

Eventually, the topic came to a halt as the car continued driving without a set destination—Kate had completely forgotten to give directions, leaving the driver and co-pilot speechless.

The two operators exchanged a glance, silently noting the strange chemistry between Kate and Ling Qingyu. They couldn't bear to interrupt since both of them were exchanging important ideas especially concerning a matter of life and death.

The group visited several luxury shopping malls, many of which Ling Qingyu had already explored earlier in the week with Mo Yunxi, Yin Jingfei, and Xiao Yue.

While Kate enthusiastically browsed through items, Ling Qingyu showed little interest, which only piqued Kate's curiosity further.

Now that she paid closer attention, Kate realized something—

Despite fitting modern standards of beauty perfectly, Ling Qingyu seemed to lack interest in everything else.