The grand hall of the National Institute felt less like an academic sanctuary and more like a courtroom. High ceilings, polished marble, and a row of seven Directors—the "High Council" of the tech world—sat behind a curved mahogany desk.
Li Yan and I stood at the center of the room. He was back in his "Cold Prince" armor: a charcoal suit, perfectly knotted tie, and an expression so neutral it was terrifying. I wore a sharp black blazer over a blue silk blouse, my hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail. I looked like a Lead Developer. I felt like a warrior.
In the corner, Ying Yue sat with a team of three high-priced lawyers. She looked pale, her "Ice Queen" facade cracking under the weight of the viral livestream.
"This hearing is to determine the true authorship of the 'Blue-Pulse' architecture," the Head Director announced, his voice booming. "Mr. Li Yan, you have bypassed security protocols and compromised Institute data. Do you have a defense?"
Li Yan stepped forward, his footsteps echoing. "My defense is the truth. The 'Blue-Pulse' logic was conceived in a high school library four years ago. It was developed in the dorms of two different universities. It was never Institute property because it was never written on Institute time."
"He's lying!" Ying Yue's lawyer stood up. "The metadata clearly shows the final commits were made on the Institute's VPN."
"Because I accessed her private repository to assist with a bug," Li Yan countered, his voice like a blade. "Accessing a file is not the same as owning it. If I look at a painting in a museum, do I own the canvas?"