A hundred-square-meter space held seven or eight computers, two servers, and eight bunk beds like a student dorm. The empty living room lacked even basic furniture like a TV. Instead, tangled power and network cables carpeted the floor. This was the Hive King Hackers Alliance’s main base in Shangjing City.
Guess a decade really can change everything…
Led by Wangcai into the room, I—the only girl—immediately drew the stares of four young men inside.
“Wangcai, is this your girlfriend?”
“Weren’t you picking someone up? Who’s this little sister?”
No one could’ve imagined that the now-famous Hive King Hackers Alliance had members looking this ragged ten years ago.
All around thirty, these youths had unkempt hair, greasy faces, and dark circles under their eyes. They looked nothing like successful professionals—clearly sleep-deprived for days. Instant noodle cups and takeout containers littered the floor. A faint trace of sweat and fermenting trash hung in the air.
Huh… Did my sense of smell sharpen after becoming a girl? I’d been through similar situations before but never felt this uncomfortable…
Coincidentally, I knew every one of them.
“Uh… She’s ‘Little Bee’,” Wangcai stammered under their gazes.
“Little Bee? I asked where the person we needed is!” A stubble-faced uncle snapped. “And I told you not to bring girls here… Sorry, little sister. We’ve been swamped with work. How about I take you to a milk tea shop outside?”
You think this is some child abduction plot?!
“She’s ‘Little Bee’,” Wangcai repeated.
“No one’s named ‘Little Bee’!” A youth shot up from his chair—then froze, eyes widening as if struck by lightning. “Wait. What did you say?”
*Dog*. Ten years later, he’d own Shangjing’s biggest chain of cake shops. Warm-hearted but prone to wild antics and cheekiness.
Wangcai shrugged beside me. “Haven’t you lot developed paranoia after all those attacks? I’ll say it thrice: She’s ‘Little Bee’. We ‘Kings’ never use real names. Get it now?”
The youth pointed at me, incredulous. “So she’s…”
“The real deal. This little sister tormented us for seven straight days.”
“How old is she?”
“Just turned sixteen.”
*Thud*. Dog slumped back into his chair, heedless of the water cup knocked flying by the impact. Staring blankly at the ceiling, he muttered, “I think I’m already a broken man.”
“Impossible. No way. She’s so young—where’d she learn these skills?” A square-faced, curly-haired youth stepped forward. “Bro Wangcai, are you messing with us ’cause we’re exhausted? Did you drag in your cousin or something?”
“I don’t have a cousin!” Wangcai set his laptop aside, took a sip of lukewarm water from a desk mug, and waved me over. “Bee Sister, explain it yourself. These guys are great except for being stubborn as mules.”
“Explain what?” I chirped playfully.
*Meeting you all again… it’s like reuniting with old friends at a random street corner after believing we’d never see each other again.*
“Just tell them how you hacked our servers these past days.”
“Well… My software handled attacks and defenses automatically during the day. I only had time after 7 PM. You used Linux OS, which made intrusion tough.” I smiled kindly at Dog in his chair. “But I recall you made a fatal mistake last Thursday.”
Every face in the room—except Wangcai’s—turned ashen.
“You intercepted my main data packet but confidently let a tiny 9KB decoy slip through. Planning to unpack it for analysis?”
*Exactly. If they hadn’t been arrogant enough to think they could crack my file, I wouldn’t have won so fast.*
“The server’s root password is JKR*bee.678914. I’ve already sent you the patch notes for the main vulnerabilities. Proof enough?”
Sharp gasps filled the room.
A middle-aged man in a floral shirt, cropped pants, and sunglasses—who’d been silent until now—finally looked up from his monitor. He walked over, removed his shades with a *clack*, and raked his hand up his face with a sigh. “You’re sixteen?”
“Yes.”
“You used just a home computer?”
“Yes.”
“For most of these seven days, you were in school. You blocked all our attacks with self-coded tools alone?”
“Yes.”
“You only fought us for under three hours each night.”
“Well… not even three hours every day. Sometimes Dad orders me to do homework.”
“Genius. A once-in-a-millennium genius.” His voice trembled. “At your age… I can’t fathom how far you’ll go.”
“Losing to a prodigy like you… I, ‘Windchaser’, accept defeat wholeheartedly.”
Windchaser. Thunder. Lightning. Dog. Wangcai. These were the five codenames here. Windchaser ran Shangjing’s Hive King branch and funded this hideout.
“Honestly, we barely slept these past days trying to fend you off. But we never imagined five people with eight computers were battling a home PC’s auto-attack software… and a sixteen-year-old kid.”
“Sorry for the trouble,” I murmured.
*My journey in tech started long before yours ever began.*
*The ‘me’ of this world was never meant to exist.*
“No trouble at all. After that grind, gaining a genius member like you is pure joy.” Windchaser carefully handed me a cup of water, then pulled a notebook from a folder beside his desk. “You know our rules?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Codename.”
“Bee.”
“Birthdate.”
“January 9, 2000.”
“Just to be sure… you’re a girl?”
“Yes.”
*Biologically speaking.*
“Welcome to the Hive King. I’ll apply for your membership card—it’ll take about a week. Pick it up here.” He set down the notebook, then turned. “Why join us?”
“I need Shangjing’s recent political movements,” I said bluntly. “Especially about Mayor Huang Zhiqiang and those who reported him. I need their files.”
Windchaser and Thunder exchanged glances. “That intel’s sensitive. We monitor it anyway—this scandal’s huge. But why do *you* need it?”
“The mayor’s daughter is my friend. I won’t let her get hurt.”
*I knew this exposed my identity.*
*But after TV and newspaper features, hiding from the Hive King was pointless.*
“I see.” Windchaser nodded, leading me to a monitor glowing with eerie light. “Bee, the whistleblowers aren’t individuals. They’re a team—a politically backed team. Like ancient peasant uprisings. You understand?”
I gave a soft, unsurprised hum.
“I know how you feel. But sadly, there’s no saving Mayor Huang. His actions impacted Shangjing—and all of Yixian Province—too deeply.”
“What’s the worst outcome?”
“No ‘worst outcome’. Everyone tied to the mayor is scrambling to prove their innocence to the media. By month’s end, Shangjing’s leadership will be completely reshuffled…”
“I’m not asking about Shangjing’s power structure. What happens to Mayor Huang?”
“Execution. Barring miracles.”
…
An hour later, I stood outside the temporary apartment Ouyang Earth had secured for Xiaodie. A USB drive in my pocket held all case files downloaded from the Hive King’s server.
This was an Air Force housing complex, mostly occupied by veterans. Ouyang Earth had apparently fought hard to get Xiaodie this unit.
“Yo, Yi Yao! Back late tonight?” Ouyang Earth boomed from the living room, setting aside a disassembled pistol. He didn’t notice my expression. “Two good news bits! Which first?”
I scanned the room, slipped on cotton slippers by the door. “Where’s Xiaodie?”
“In her room! Hey—you didn’t even ask about the good news!”
“Oh. What’s the good news?” I droned flatly, pushing open Xiaodie’s door.
Before I could see inside, a cat-like shadow pounced on me with a fierce *mrroww*.
*Thump-thump-thump!*
Caught off guard, I felt a small creature lick my face frantically. I lifted it down—under the fluorescent light, I saw… a baby tiger?
“Heh. It only cuddles you and Xiaodie. Tries to shred me every time I approach.” Ouyang Earth sauntered in, gripping the cub’s scruff. “First good news: The tiger cub you found in that cave? Fully recovered after treatment.”
*So it was sick all along?*
“Second good news: Xiaodie’s a natural sharpshooter. Her first test shots beat our army’s best sniper.”
Ignoring the cub scrambling against my leg, I looked toward the room’s center. A girl fiddled with a sniper rifle there—and our eyes met. In her bright, intelligent gaze, I saw my own reflection.
Thirty seconds later, Xiaodie looked away. “Well… I can’t go out. Browsing online gets boring. So I asked Ouyang Earth to teach me self-defense…”
