The cramped underground space fell silent for a mont.
The atmosphere suddenly grew tense.
Suddenly, Li Ming smiled gently and looked up at Gu Xi. "Xiaoxi, is there sothing you want to ask ?"
"Yes." Gu Xi looked up at him and said bluntly, "This ti, Zhang Cheng’s proactive, almost desperate offer to send us to the Central Base has forced to rethink this whole affair..."
Initially, it was Zhang Cheng who hinted to her that there was a private farm on the outskirts of South City.
At the ti, because of what happened in the NX1984 Area, Gu Xi was wondering, ’Is soone trying to get their hands on the artificial Crystal Core energy?’
Since this was very likely connected to the thirty years she had inexplicably lost, Gu Xi made the trip, even though she knew Zhang Cheng had ulterior motives for revealing the information.
Afterward, Zhang Cheng hinted to her through Qi Xiang that the affair had likely escalated to involve the farm’s livestock station...
Sure enough, she later discovered three more of her own Crystal Core Fragnts inside the No. 003 Grand Canyon, along with a large number of High-level Zombie Crystal Cores and experintal equipnt.
At the ti, Gu Xi had simply assud that Zhang Cheng, for his own reasons, wanted to use her to expose the situation. ’And at the sa ti,’ she’d thought, ’he could extricate himself from it and muddy the waters.’
That was until Shen Yue told her soone had used the low-quality Crystal Cores from the private farm outside South City in a bait-and-switch sche to steal a huge number of High-level Crystal Cores from the base’s strategic energy reserve!
The implications of this were enormous. It could be said that it had shaken the very foundation of the nation, enraging the military high command!
Once the situation blew up, Gu Xi finally realized sothing was wrong.
In the post-apocalyptic world, the energy and food crises were two swords of Damocles hanging over humanity’s head.
The Zombie Crystal Cores were particularly critical. Not only were they a vital strategic energy source, but so had even proposed that studying these remaining cores might reveal the cause of the apocalypse’s sudden onset—and thereby offer a solution to the current food crisis.
And, coincidentally, Gu Xi had been involved in every one of these Crystal Core-related incidents.
The NX1984 Area was where she had first appeared; she was also on the scene during the incidents at the South City Restaurant and the No. 003 Grand Canyon.
Even the private farm on the outskirts of South City, which had been destroyed in advance, was later implicitly linked to Gu Xi.
It was impossible not to be suspicious.
And those in power were, by nature, suspicious.
More importantly, Gu Xi had recently announced her intention to get involved with crop seeds. Because of her ability, scientists were even beginning to see the possibility of successful reverse evolution in plants.
This was undoubtedly a massive leap forward in humanity’s progress toward solving the food crisis.
One could say that Gu Xi’s appearance had cleverly linked the two crises of energy and food.
Just like that, Gu Xi was thrust into the spotlight, the center of everyone’s attention.
This clearly made certain people anxious.
Because once a conspiracy is dragged into the light, it can only beco an open power play.
And with everyone watching, petty tricks were no longer as effective.
The value Gu Xi now represented was enough to make everyone wary.
That’s why you first had Zhou Jing privately probing her attitude, followed by Zhou Jinyu deigning to travel to South City to propose a collaboration...
Although she’d been thrust into the spotlight, it wasn’t entirely a bad thing for Gu Xi.
After all, this way, her safety was much more assured.
So, once she had pieced it all together, Gu Xi began to dig into the matter from the very beginning.
"Ming," she said, looking calmly at Li Ming in his wheelchair, "I imagine this was all within your calculations. After all, you were the one who told to start with the seeds, and you were also the one who suggested I find Zhang Cheng."
Everything was linked, one event after another, all arranged with perfect clarity. ’Only Li Ming has this kind of skill,’ Gu Xi thought.
"It was," Li Ming admitted, a gentle smile still on his face.
He didn’t explain, but instead, just as he had in the old days, he looked at Gu Xi with encouragent in his eyes. "So, Xiaoxi, do you know why I did it?"
Gu Xi sighed softly and gazed at him, her expression complex. "Ming, you really didn’t have to do all this. I truly don’t care about it..."
"But I care." Li Ming’s tone was still gentle.
But beneath that gentleness was an undeniable force.
"Xiaoxi, I gave you a choice."
Li Ming looked at Gu Xi with a smile, speaking almost one word at a ti. "But since you chose to return, I will make sure everyone knows you are back. Openly, in the spotlight, with a presence so commanding that no one can stand in your way."
They will fear you, they will be wary... and they will be utterly helpless to do anything about it.
’This is the kind of prestige the captain of our post-apocalyptic squad should have.’
’It’s also what this world... owed Xiaoxi from the very beginning!’
Gu Xi fell silent, a bittersweet feeling spreading through her chest, heavy and profound.
She didn’t actually need that honor and glory, but Li Ming clearly didn’t see it that way.
Perhaps Gu Xi’s sudden thirty-year disappearance had fostered a kind of obsessive conviction in him; he felt that the world owed her far too much, but Gu Xi herself didn’t care.
Li Ming smiled.
He seed to want to raise his hand and pat the top of her head.
But the vine coiled around his wrist clearly wouldn’t permit such a large movent.
Li Ming could only give up the idea.
Not wanting her to get lost in her thoughts, Li Ming took the initiative to change the subject. "Xiaoxi, I actually had countless ways to achieve the current situation. So think again, why did I insist you make contact with Zhang Cheng?"
Li Ming was teaching her, and even... paving the way for her.
Gu Xi thought for a mont, her expression certain. "Because you wanted to lure the snake out of its hole."
"I’m guessing the people experinting with artificial Crystal Core energy in the NX1984 Area aren’t the sa group as the ones who opened the private farm on the outskirts of South City."
"Although the powers behind them are intricately connected and deeply entangled..."
"And you, Ming, were already aware of all this, but you lacked an opportunity to blow the lid off the whole affair."
"Because of my connection to Shen Yue, I’m close with the military. With Xiao Yu also providing backing, I was the perfect catalyst."
"And you, Ming, have always been good at reading people. You knew that if I went to Zhang Cheng, he would definitely seize the opportunity..."
"Once those two affairs were completely exposed, neither the military nor the base’s high command would just sit back and watch."
"With both sides striking forcefully, the power of the state apparatus is not to be underestimated. At that point, how could those people possibly sit still? And you could follow the clues and seize the chance to find the mastermind behind it all."
"And once we know who the mastermind is, with my power, I can show up at their door and finish them off in minutes."
"That way, we can cut through this tangled ss decisively."
"My analysis is correct, isn’t it, Ming?" Gu Xi asked, shaking the vine in her hand with a slightly smug look in her eyes.
The other end of the vine was wrapped firmly around Li Ming, connected to his very lifeblood.
His life and death depended on a single thought from her.
Sitting in his wheelchair, Li Ming nodded with a smile, his face full of admiration and relief. "Xiaoxi, your analysis is excellent."
Unfortunately, neither Li Ming nor the person behind Zhang Cheng had expected that after the No. 003 Grand Canyon incident, Gu Xi would actually go to the military’s farm.
And this ti, soone, eager for a quick victory, saw Gu Xi deliver herself to their doorstep and couldn’t wait to steal samples of her blood and energy. They ignored the arrangents of their "big boss" and acted rashly on their own initiative...
Such an unauthorized move undoubtedly infuriated the "big boss" who had been hiding in the shadows.
It also made him realize that his subordinates were probably starting to have their own ideas—especially after Gu Xi had demonstrated such imnse value.
Afterward, the "big boss" must have done sothing... which is why Zhou Jinyu proactively went to South City to seek her cooperation, and why Ye Xin delivered those nas in the manner she did.
It even explained why Zhang Cheng was so eager to arrange a flight to send them to the Central Base.
"Ming," Gu Xi said, sitting cross-legged on the bed with her chin in her hand. "It’s Zhang Cheng’s recent attitude that I can’t quite figure out."
It doesn’t seem like he’s trying to curry favor, but it’s not pure wariness either. All in all, his behavior strikes as a bit strange.
Li Ming tapped his fingertips together and began his analysis. "Zhang Cheng may be a minor figure, but he’s a minor figure who clawed his way up from the bottom. And people like that have their own kind of street smarts."
Seeing Gu Xi looking at him with such a serious expression, Li Ming couldn’t help but smile. It felt as if he had returned to the days when he would ticulously teach the young girl...
He explained to her in an unhurried tone, "This Zhang Cheng is a consummate opportunist. He must have sensed that the attention his backers are paying you is... unusual. Therefore..."
Gu Xi understood instantly. "So, he’s trying to sound out my identity? Or... he wants to use all this to determine my value in the eyes of his ’big boss’?"
’In other words, Zhang Cheng isn’t actually that obedient?’
’Perhaps he could be useful to ?’
Gu Xi raised an eyebrow.
Li Ming nodded, a look of paternal gratification on his face.
’His Xiaoxi was as sharp as ever,’ he thought. ’She understood with just a hint.’
Just then, Li Ming suddenly broke into a violent coughing fit.
Gu Xi grew worried and quickly stopped him from continuing.
"Ming, we can talk about this later. You need to rest for a bit. Let help regulate your body..."
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