So although Brian Carter had only been here for just over half a year, he was very well-liked at this satellite base far from the city, with old friends in almost every courtyard, so it was never boring. Every time he was on duty at the station, others just showed up to get the job done, all with gloomy faces, but he was always full of energy, as if he were on vacation—highly motivated, never late, and even if he arrived an hour early, he’d blame it on traffic. If his partner at home had nothing going on, he could get here before lunch and even save a meal.

Those who knew him understood he came here because there was plenty to do for fun; those who didn’t might think he was just extremely dedicated to his job. That’s exactly what the company leaders who didn’t have to do station duty believed. Because before and after every shift, you had to go to the company to pick up and return a copy of the work log, and someone like him, who always arrived early and left late, so enthusiastic about his work, was truly one of a kind. Even if there was no “model worker” award, in the eyes of the leaders, Brian Carter was still a good comrade and a good employee.

As for this perception from the leaders, the staff in the operations department all pretended to be deaf and mute, saying nothing. They couldn’t figure out what kind of relationship this new guy had with the leadership, so they didn’t dare to make any rash comments. Who would believe that Brian Carter had no connections with the leaders? Would anyone without connections dare to be so bold? He’d almost broken all the work rules, yet no one said a word. Not only that, but the leaders often praised him, which was basically telling everyone that this guy was one of their own—maybe even someone brought in by the leaders’ own bosses.

Even more bizarre, some colleagues speculated that Brian Carter had ties to the military industry or the General Staff Department, based on the fact that he quickly became close with the local garrison and had close interactions with people from several other satellite ground stations. These people weren’t part of the aerospace system; most were under the jurisdiction of the military industry or the General Staff. Without connections in those areas, they wouldn’t even give you the time of day. Even Director Walker, an old hand in aerospace, had to call ahead just to discuss something; otherwise, he wouldn’t even get in the door. But Brian Carter would just go back and forth between the ground stations as if he were at home.

That’s how strange things are in this world, especially in such huge organizations—everyone thinks they know everything, but in reality, everyone is trapped in a rigid way of thinking. When they encounter something they think is out of the ordinary, the first thing that comes to mind is that there must be some privilege or connection behind it. You can’t really blame them for being cynical; in fact, most of the time, that’s exactly how things work. Of course, Brian Carter was an exception—he was just someone with nothing to lose who stumbled into this by accident.

But Brian Carter was aware of these rumors—he was sharp, and while he wasn’t good at scheming, his powers of observation were strong. Faced with these misunderstandings from his colleagues, he kept his mouth shut and never explained. Not only did he not explain, but sometimes when colleagues tried to probe about his background over meals or drinks, hoping to pick up some clues, he would just smile and laugh it off, pretending not to understand. The more he did this, the more people felt they understood, and the more convinced they became of their original assumptions.

Brian Carter didn’t do this to muddy the waters, but just to make his life at work a bit more comfortable. With these rumors acting as a shield, even if someone didn’t like him, they’d still be a bit wary and wouldn’t dare interfere too much in what he did. And this kind of thing is self-reinforcing: the less they dared to interfere, the freer he became; the freer he was, the more they felt he was untouchable. Over time, his behavior became the norm, and everyone thought it was normal. Even if someone wanted to step in, it would be much harder.

But Brian Carter didn’t just bring negative effects to his colleagues—on the contrary, he was actually a big help, especially when it came to covering shifts. The youngest of his colleagues in the operations department was nearly forty, all with families and responsibilities. Every time a holiday came around, whoever was scheduled for duty on the holiday would be in for a headache. They’d be gone for two whole days, unable to go home, and if any friends or relatives visited, they wouldn’t even get to see them. By the time they got off work and went home, the most important and lively part of the holiday was already over.

That’s when Brian Carter’s value really showed! He was alone, with no family obligations, and he actually hated holidays, because when holidays came, everyone’s routine was thrown off—everyone went home to be with their families, and he had no one to hang out with. Plus, the holiday atmosphere always reminded him of his late parents, making him prone to self-pity.

So he became a real treasure in the operations department—anyone could ask him to swap shifts and avoid having to work during the holidays, so they could spend time at home. And Brian Carter would go on duty at the station with a company leader; the leaders would each stay half a day or a day and then leave, but sometimes he’d stay for two or three shifts in a row without leaving. Of course, not everyone could get this kind of favor—whoever had a good relationship with him benefited, and if you didn’t, well, sorry, it’s not that he didn’t want to help, it’s just that he promised someone else first. Maybe you should go talk to them?