Chapter 120

It rained yesterday and in the early morning there were many tired travelers ordering food in the hotel lobby. The boss and the only employee were extremely busy.

Shi Yu bought the cheapest breakfast - a tube of nutritional supplement and a small piece of bread with butter. While the food was being served, she asked the boss to borrow the communicator.

"Communicator? Sure, I'll find it for you later."

The owner agreed with a smile. Shi Yu didn't expect it to be so smooth. She took the terminal and thanked him happily. Then she went upstairs with breakfast and the communicator.

When Xiu saw her come back, he didn't say anything. He fiddled with the obviously old and outdated machine in his hand. Shi Yu glanced at him and carefully placed breakfast beside the bed.

"Have a meal."

Xiu seemed to have anticipated what she was going to say. His cold, curt refusal sounded like an order. Shi Yu lowered his head and explained, "I ate. I'm full."

Xiu silently looked through the terminal for a while, then closed his eyes and put it down, reaching into the lunch bag next to him. Shi Yu didn't understand what he was going to do until he picked up the piece of bread and pretended to throw it. Shi Yu understood and rushed forward in panic to stop him.

"What are you doing?! At this time..."

"Eat it or not? If not, I'll throw it away."

Xiu lowered his eyes and casually picked up the poor piece of bread with two fingers. Shi Yu hesitated for a moment: "I... I still can't. You are injured. You should replenish your nutrition."

Xiu was about to throw it away when he heard that. His posture was too scary. Shi Yu was so upset that she hugged his arm and had to compromise: "I'll eat it! I'm done! Don't waste food."

In the end, Shigure only ate half a piece of bread and took a sip of the nutritional supplement. She gave the rest to Xiu, claiming she was trying to lose weight. This time, he didn't say anything. He swallowed the rest of the bread in one gulp, chewed it twice, and then tilted his head back to drink almost the entire bottle, motioning Shigure over with his eyes.

Animals generally relax their vigilance to a certain extent when eating, and Alpha seemed to be the same. As the weight of the food filled his stomach, Xiu Meizhong seemed to relax a little, like a leopard that was full and in a good mood.

However, what he said was not so comforting: "The regional signal is limited and I can't contact anyone," he said.

"What should we do then?"

"Find a way to get to the central area and see if there's anyone with a terminal that's not restricted by the regional network."

Shi Yu nodded, not disguising the worry in his expression: "But your legs... can you still walk?"

"Are you worried about me?"

Xiu chuckled softly, "You should worry about yourself."

Shi Yu was stunned for a moment before she realized what Lai Xiu meant with her ears reddening. Feeling guilty in her heart, she swallowed her anger and let the other party take advantage of her.

Xiu had no intention of cleaning up. Since he had decided to leave, he had to clean up the mess in the room first. Shi Yu gathered the sheets and Xiu's clothes and planned to put them in the public washing machine to wash them.

When holding Xiu's coat in his arms, something floated past his eyes. Shi Yu looked down in confusion and found a white ribbon lying on the floor.

Shi Yu felt that he looked familiar.

However, before she could recall anything, Xiu reached out and grabbed the ribbon in his palm. Shi Yu looked at him and suddenly blushed. She couldn't help but scold him: "Pervert!"

She remembered that this was clearly... the strap he had pulled off her skirt at the family dinner!

Did he keep it all this time? How could there be such a person?

"After washing the clothes, ask nearby if there is a transport vehicle that can take people. Don't go too far."

He didn't even move while trimming his eyebrows, his eyes were focused and his expression was calm as he instructed,

In return, the girl angrily slammed the door and shouted angrily, "Got it!"

After throwing the clothes into the washing machine, Shi Yu went downstairs to return the communicator to the boss and asked him if there was any transport truck about to depart nearby.

After getting the address, Shigure told Xiu and went to the nearest transport station.

"Can't it really be any cheaper?"

Shi Yu was distressed, and so was the driver: "This price is already the lowest, and we're not making any money..."

After discussing for a long time, Shi Yu reluctantly paid the deposit. The transport truck would leave in the afternoon, and she could take a lunch break when she returned, so she could just catch it.

Xiu's injuries were very serious and he had to struggle to walk. Shi Yu used the little money he had to buy anti-inflammatory drugs and bandages, plus the nutritional supplements necessary for the journey. After getting off the transport vehicle, they only had enough money for one more dinner.

"When we get to the next town, I'll look for a day job, okay?"

Shi Yu began to worry about his livelihood.

"We'll talk about it when we get there."

Xiu didn't say yes or no. With a sullen face, he was supported by Shi Yu as he went downstairs. When they reached the door, several land vehicles of the same model sped past on the dirt road in front of the hotel, one row after another. Shi Yu looked around curiously, but Xiu lowered his voice to remind him, "Don't be too curious. Keep your head down."

"Oh, okay." Shi Yu did as he was told, then asked with some confusion, "...they went to the suburbs? There's nothing there, why did they go there?"

"I don't know. Maybe they're here to arrest us."

Shi Yu was startled, thinking he was joking, but she couldn't help but gasp in panic: "How could it be? Haven't those people already..."

Xiu told her about some of the situations yesterday this morning. She originally thought that the matter was over. At most, they would still have to deal with York and Ivan. She never thought that there would be a team chasing them later.

Looking at Xiu's frowning and thoughtful expression, Shi Yu's voice gradually faded away, and his heart felt cold.

"Let's go," he said. "It's better to be careful."

In order to obtain more information and before angering the kidnapper's mastermind, Xiu surveyed the terrain. The marginal areas were not under the control of any forces and transportation was not convenient. If they stayed here for two days, they would suffer a little at most, but there would be no personal risk.

But the current situation is unexpected.

The two groups of people and vehicles heading to the suburbs might have other motives, but such coincidences rarely occur in the world. Assuming the worst-case scenario, it's assumed that someone was worried about the spacecraft's self-destruct program and sent people to check for their bodies.

Rather than being cautious, this was more like fear. The other party took his threats seriously and firmly believed that he had the ability to strangle his lifeline.

And the other party also has the right to reach out to the border. It is impossible for them to be some small local forces or some nobles in the business community... It is also unlikely.

This is interesting.

In the bumpy transport truck warehouse, the view was dark. Xiu leaned on the cargo box to sort out clues with clear eyes. In contrast, Shi Yu's head was shaking and he was about to fall to the side in a short while.

Xiu pulled her back indifferently, and Shi Yu fell on his waist and abdomen.

The boy's mouth twitched and he didn't touch her again. Shi Yu slept heartlessly. At eight o'clock in the evening, when he was called down by the truck driver, he was rubbing his eyes sleepily as if he had not woken up yet.

"Thank you," she said, then noticed the man's tired look and asked sweetly, "Are you still going to drive? Be careful at night."

"No, no, no," the master waved his hand, "My home is right here. I'll take a rest for a night and open it again tomorrow morning."

Shi Yu was stunned for a moment, and exchanged a glance with Xiu before suddenly asking, "Where's the car? Is it parked here?"

"This place isn't like the big cities where there are garages everywhere. Oh, I'll just put it here."

Shi Yu watched the fat figure of his master leave, carefully walked around with Xiu, turned back, picked up two branches from the ground, and squatted by the door of the truck to cheer him on.

"Almost there! Come on! I didn't expect you could pick locks."

"I've practiced it before."

"Oh...ah, be careful! Don't break the lock, or you'll have to pay the master later."

The two men, who had officially declared bankruptcy, struggled for a place to stay, and twenty minutes later, they finally returned to the friendly little truck warehouse.

It was a bit chilly at night. Shi Yu put on Xiu's coat and stared outside through the gap in the car door in a daze.

The tempting smell drifted into the warehouse along the air flow. Shi Yu's nose twitched and he took a slight breath.

Wow, why did the driver park the car next to the restaurant? It smells so good!

But they had no money to eat, and the spare nutritional supplements had already served as lunch a few hours ago. Shi Yu covered his stomach, almost crying, feeling like a small cabbage adrift in a pot of clear soup, pitiful, weak and helpless.

Xiu leaned against her with his arms folded, taking a nap with his eyes closed as if to save energy. Shi Yu glanced at him, then lowered her head to look at the wound on his leg and pursed her lips.

"Where are you going?"

His pronunciation was clear, and he was obviously awake and alert.

"I'll go check across the street. It's not far." Shi Yu turned around and smiled at him. "You can see me if you open the door. Didn't you say you were looking for a communication device? I'll go ask."

Xiu: "It's too late now. Let's talk about it tomorrow."

"...I'll just go take a look." Shi Yu lowered his eyes, his expression almost pitiful and guilty. "If Noah picks you up sooner, you can receive treatment sooner. I...have to go."

Shi Yu feels sorry for Xiu.

Although she didn't say it, she had been weighing this matter on her mind. Xiu was clearly injured for her, but now not only could he not get treatment, he also had to endure hunger, which made Shi Yu extremely unbearable.

Xiu looked at her for a moment without saying anything. Shi Yu opened the door and ran towards several lighted shops on the roadside.

The night wind blew through the girl's waist-length black hair, and her nimble figure jumped into the night like a little deer.

Wind chimes jingled, and as Shi Yu came out of one of the shops, he touched his black hair that was cut short to his ears, and shook his head from side to side, feeling a little curious.

"thank you."

She turned around and smiled sweetly at the hairdresser.

Growing hair has such unexpected benefits! It seems that the interstellar era has not solved the problem of baldness... Shi Yu sighed, took the money from selling hair, and walked into a nearby restaurant with a little confidence.

"I'm back!"

In less than an hour, Shi Yu brought back two bags of food with sparkling eyes, as well as some pork rib soup that she had made using ingredients borrowed from the restaurant. She was like a domestic cat that had gone out hunting and had a good harvest, excitedly showing Xiu a bunch of things in her mouth.

"Because we're about to close, the boss gave me a lot of dishes at half price, worried they'd get stale by tomorrow. This is steak, and there's a bag of fried fish I think. Oh, and there's also the soup I made. Would you like to try it?"

"I've asked a few shops about the communicator, but the owners' devices are all restricted to certain areas. The restaurant owner told me that we can contact the capital by walking to Hall County, which is probably still a few hundred kilometers away. We'll find a transport truck tomorrow."

"Noah should have noticed the problem and come to us by now, but where is he... why is he so slow..."

She had just put the vegetables on the box when she felt a sinking sensation on her shoulders. She immediately turned around and nervously hugged Xiu's fallen shoulders: "What's wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable?"

Xiu raised his eyelids, stroked the ends of her hair, and said something that was rarely out of character.

"Don't you think it's a waste?"

"Don't waste it," Shi Yu understood it differently, "What's wrong with eating something good? You're injured!"

With long hair, she looked quiet and shy, but with short hair and a smile on her face, she looked silly and easy to bully - Xiu silently increased the strength of his hands, just wanting to turn her into a ball of cotton, rub and squeeze her flat, so that he could do whatever he wanted with her and it would be convenient.

"How stupid." He sneered.

"Why are you swearing?!"

"Did you forget to take your suppressant today? You can smell it."

"Ah?! I really forgot. Luckily, the shop owners I met couldn't smell it," Shi Yu said with lingering fear. "Then I'll get the injection? You let go..."

"The inhibitor is almost gone. To prevent any accidents, I'll use it later."

"Is that okay? What do we do now?"

Xiu lowered his head to look at her. As Shi Yu's smile gradually disappeared and turned into a panic expression, he picked up the girl with an expressionless face and placed her on the cargo box on the other side.

"I'll help you."

The author has something to say:

Countdown 3!

(Not necessarily correct, just for fun)