Zhou Jing was determined to move into Gu Xi’s small courtyard.
It wasn’t just because of the order from that person. The main reason was... Qi Xiang had already moved in.
’If Qi Xiang can move in, why can’t I?’
It was a matter of pride. Zhou Jing refused to be the "control group" in this comparison, and she certainly didn’t want to be outdone by Qi Xiang.
Previously, she had tried to get in through Qin Yi. That idiot, Qin Yi, was the very picture of a naive fool; she was easily won over with just a few sweet words. Her sister, Qin Shi, however, was extrely wary.
Since the two sisters lived together, and Qin Shi was not only highly vigilant but also seed to faintly dislike her, Zhou Jing gave up after a while. After so thought, she finally set her sights on Qi Xiang.
But just as she planned to use Qi Xiang to integrate into Gu Xi’s circle, Qi Xiang also planned to use her to complete the mission Gu Xi had given her.
It was just a matter of who was more cunning in the end.
But in this round, Qi Xiang had clearly won.
In just one day, Zhou Jing discovered that the lab assistants all seed to be on guard against her.
With things as they were, her plan to first get rid of her tool and then reap the rewards from the shadows was clearly no longer feasible.
On top of that, she had been wandering around Gu Xi’s orchard for half a month and found that the data from the fruit trees was completely normal, not at all like what the people on the other side had predicted...
The people in City A were pressing her again... Zhou Jing thought about it and, in the end, couldn’t resist sending a ssage to that person.
...
When Wei Heng returned, Lu Shiliu was in the courtyard, taking Da Hong for a walk.
After Lu Shiliu’s arrival, the happiest one in the courtyard was, without a doubt, Da Hong.
And right now, Da Hong was holding its head high as the Wild Chicken King, looking insistently toward Gu Xi’s cabin, trying to lodge a complaint:
...about how that cold-blooded, heartless, and cruel human woman often enslaved it, a re chicken, to find mushrooms for her to stew in chicken soup...
It was unclear if Lu Shiliu understood its crowing at all. In any case, after Da Hong had been clucking in a low, muffled voice for a good while, he, now riding on Da Hong’s back, stroked its large comb and sighed with envy.
"Da Hong, it’s only been a few months, and you’ve gotten so much fatter..." ’Look at this neck, so plump and fleshy. It’s clear how well you’re living here with Miss Gu.’
At this thought, Lu Shiliu’s heart ached. ’A man’s life is worse than a chicken’s. It’s confird.’
Da Hong was having none of it. ’Damn it! I held back my voice for so long, afraid of bothering that woman, and this is what you have to say to ?’
’Our friendship is over!’
Da Hong stuck out its rear, flapped its massive wings, and sent Lu Shiliu tumbling, butt-first, to the ground.
Wei Heng, who was just pushing open the gate, saw the whole thing.
Lu Shiliu: "..."
Wei Heng: "..."
Ti seed to freeze for a mont. But soon, Lu Shiliu scrambled back to his feet, dusted himself off, and walked over to Wei Heng as if nothing had happened. "You’re back? Miss Gu is waiting for you in the house."
Wei Heng nodded and headed for Gu Xi’s cabin.
Halfway there, he couldn’t help but glance back at Lu Shiliu.
’So thick-skinned. Truly worthy of soone who can mooch three als a day.’
Lu Shiliu looked up and grinned at him, thinking: ’What do you know? Miss Gu saved my life! They say the grace of saving a life is like being given a new one by your parents. So, if you round it up, I’m basically Miss Gu’s own son!’
’What’s wrong with a son coming to his own mother’s place for a few als?’
’That’s called being a filial son!’
Wei Heng: "..." ’Forget it. So people are just too thick-skinned. I should go talk business with Gu Xi first.’
When Wei Heng pushed open the door, Gu Xi was listening to the radio.
But unlike usual, she wasn’t holding that old dictionary. Instead, she was staring at a Light Screen, seriously recording sothing.
Wei Heng paused, his attention shifting to the content playing on the radio—
"...the above content was provided by XXX. Interested listeners may contact this Mr. Zhou. The contact thod is..."
Wei Heng paused for a mont, then saw Gu Xi look up at him.
"Wei Heng, in a few days, I need to make a trip to the Southwest..."
Wei Heng frowned slightly.
That night, Lu Chenyuan and Gu Xi’s conversation in the courtyard hadn’t been intentionally hidden from the others.
After all, they were all ability users. At that distance, how could they not have heard?
He, like Lu Chenyuan, didn’t want Gu Xi to take such a risk at this ti.
Gu Xi smiled. "Don’t worry. This trip to the Southwest is, at most... just to stir the pot and see what happens." ’So it shouldn’t be too dangerous.’
Wei Heng didn’t speak. Instead, he opened his personal terminal and sent Gu Xi the numbers and profiles of several people.
Gu Xi raised an eyebrow and quickly browsed through their profiles.
"Two of these are my forr comrades-in-arms. They went to the Yu City Base after retiring. The others are people I saved during missions... They might be able to help you." This was the only thing Wei Heng could do for now.
Ye Junhan had sent him a ssage two days ago, subtly reminding him that soone was already suspicious of his ability’s condition. Quite a few people were watching him now.
According to their previous plan, he had to stay here and continue using Qi Xiang as a cover.
This way... he could at least take so of the heat off Gu Xi.
"Thank you." After reading the profiles, Gu Xi knew that Wei Heng had likely spent the last two days thinking about nothing else. A few of the people on the list... might actually be useful on her trip to the Southwest.
Gu Xi thought for a mont, then turned her Light Screen to face Wei Heng. "Take a look?"
Wei Heng leaned in to look. It seed to be what Gu Xi had just been recording. But...
Seeing his frown, Gu Xi pointed to the last symbol on the Light Screen and said, "This one. You should have seen it before."
Wei Heng thought hard. He had indeed seen that symbol.
And more than once.
The most recent ti was at Camp No. 9527, at the entrance of the small sundry shop that had sold Gu Xi the radio for an exorbitant price...
Wei Heng suddenly realized sothing and looked at Gu Xi with a raised eyebrow.
Gu Xi was leaning lazily by the window. The brilliant sunlight from outside fell on her, seeming to bathe her in a golden halo and giving her a hazy, distant, and epheral air.
Wei Heng subconsciously took a step forward, as if to hold on to her.
Just then, Gu Xi looked back and handed him a can of cola, still cool to the touch.
"Want to try it?" she asked with a smile. This stuff hadn’t been produced for a long ti. Even back in her ti, it was a rarity.
Now, Gu Xi only had a few cans left in her space.
Wei Heng knew about cola; he had seen it ntioned on the forums before.
But this was the first ti he had seen the real thing.
"It tastes a little strange," Wei Heng said, frowning slightly after taking a small sip.
"You might not be used to it at first, but I think you’ll grow to like it." Gu Xi took a can for herself, sipped it through a straw, and imdiately closed her eyes in contentnt, leaning her back lazily against the windowsill.
Wei Heng took another sip and leaned against the window next to her, holding the cola in one hand and propping himself up on the windowsill with the other.
Suddenly, Gu Xi thought of sothing and smiled.
Her smile was actually a little distant, light and faint. But perhaps because the afternoon sun was so brilliant, and the golden specks of light falling on her were so warm, Wei Heng felt for a mont that the girl before him should be as scorching as the blazing sun, unleashing her own light.
Wei Heng lowered his eyes.
After a long mont.
"Oh, right." Wei Heng turned his head to look at Gu Xi. "Qi Xiang has been making quite a stir at the experintal fields these past few days. Zhou Jing has started to make her move. Should we...?"
Qi Xiang’s goal wasn’t to watch Zhou Jing, but since Zhou Jing was on the move, it presented an opportunity.
"Has that person co looking for you?" Gu Xi glanced at him and sipped her straw.
Wei Heng nodded. "Yeah. That person hasn’t shown up directly, but that girl, Fangfang, has ’coincidentally’ run into eight tis in the last two days..." The frequency was clearly abnormally high.
Wei Heng glanced at Gu Xi and subconsciously took another sip of the iced cola. The strange sensation of the bubbles fizzing on his tongue made him take another big gulp.
The saying goes, you flush the rabbit out by rustling the grass. Now that the grass was rustling, could the rabbit still sit tight?
Gu Xi was inevitably tempted, but...
"There’s no rush. Let’s wait a bit longer." Gu Xi rembered Qi Xiang gossiping once that while Fangfang seed quiet and withdrawn, she was actually the one with the most powerful background among the lab assistants.
Her background was so deep that even Lu Chenyuan had specifically reminded her to be wary of the girl when he left that day.
Wei Heng frowned. "How long do we have to wait?" He really disliked the way that girl looked at him.
"We’ll talk about it after I get back from the Southwest," Gu Xi said, her eyes downcast. "Oh, and have Shen Yue arrange for Qi Xiang and Zhou Jing to have more contact after I leave..."
Gu Xi explained her plan, but when she looked up and saw Wei Heng’s expression, she thought for a mont and added, "If you really don’t want to ’coincidentally’ run into that girl anymore, have Lu Shiliu co over and take Da Hong out for a few more walks."
"That could work." Wei Heng’s brow relaxed. ’With Lu Shiliu here to draw so fire, I can start thinking about that matter Mr. Ye ntioned last ti...’
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