Chapter 54 Troubled Times

At the end of last night, Chris had no idea how he fell asleep...and one of the biggest drawbacks of staying up late is that Chris was always dizzy the next day.

Although Chris had no classes in the morning, he was still thinking about finding a part-time job and investigating. He got up from the bed according to his biological clock and rummaged through the quilt with sleepy eyes to find the terminal that he had thrown into some corner before going to bed.

"Uh..." Chris covered his throbbing forehead with one hand and opened the terminal with the other hand to check if there was any response to the resume he sent out last night.

As he expected, because of the original owner's rich part-time resume, Chris successfully passed the resume screening, and both positions sent him a final interview notice in a few days.

After recording the interview time in the terminal memo, Chris slowly got out of bed and dragged his heavy feet to the bathroom in the bedroom to wash up.

Chris changed into a more casual college uniform and tiptoed out of the bedroom. Lauren's door was closed, probably because he hadn't gotten up yet. He gave up the idea of ​​making breakfast in the dormitory and walked out of the dormitory with the terminal.

When he was alone, he didn't know what to do. He mechanically got on the shuttle bus, got off at a random cafeteria, and followed the crowd. He stared at the delicious food in the window, but had no appetite. He had to choose randomly and sat down at a table in the corner with his tray.

With his mind racing, Chris ate his food sporadically, his eyes darting around the cafeteria: there were young men and women gathered together, chatting animatedly; there were also people multitasking, eating while staring at the terminal in their hands; and there were also people, like Chris, sitting alone.

"...Can I sit with you?" Kris's sight was suddenly blocked by a figure in the uniform of the Medical Logistics Department. He looked up in surprise and saw a familiar face.

"Tim?" Kris asked uncertainly. The man who came was Tim Jax, whom he hadn't seen for a long time. He looked paler and thinner than the last time they met.

Thinking about how Tim had been bullied by Duke and his gang before, and how June had followed Tim to discover the black market, Chris would let Tim sit with him no matter what: "Sure."

Tim shook his head nervously, and before sitting down opposite Chris, he did not forget to look around. After confirming that there was no problem, he reluctantly breathed a sigh of relief and curled up to sit down.

He didn't say anything, just ate his breakfast by himself, occasionally making a few noises as quiet as possible, as if he was afraid of disturbing anyone.

Chris wanted to break the silence, but he didn't know what to say. Tim on the opposite side looked not in good condition, and Chris was worried that he would say something wrong.

There was very little food on the plate in front of Tim. After he sat down, he kept stuffing his breakfast into his mouth quietly at a fast speed, as if there was a flood or a beast chasing him from behind.

"Eat slowly, don't be in a hurry." Chris was already six-tenths full, and he deliberately slowed down his pace in order to wait for Tim's next move.

Tim ignored Kris's warning and shoved the rest of the food into his mouth, swallowing it with difficulty. He finally had time to speak: "...Don't follow me anymore."

"What?" Corris' heart sank, knowing that someone on Joan's side had been exposed. However, he pretended to be ignorant and asked with earnest concern, "Who's following you? Tell me, I can help you."

"Don't get involved in this, if you don't want to suffer like me." Tim's eyes were as gray as a lamb waiting to die, and the corners of his mouth were straightened due to suppressed emotions. "Also, the so-called help will only hurt me. I don't need it."

Tim's tone was indifferent and gentle, but the content of his words was as deafening as thunder. Chris's lips opened and closed in shock, but he could not say any words of comfort or persuasion... Tim had lost all hope.

For some reason, Chris's throat tightened and he uttered with difficulty, "I understand." He looked down at his plate, which still had some food left, but he couldn't eat anything.

Tim knew that he had said everything he wanted to say, so he didn't stay any longer. Without saying a word, he picked up his food plate and left. Chris could only watch him go away.

Chris lost his appetite, threw the cutlery in his hand onto the plate, and leaned back in the chair behind him in annoyance, feeling that everything was rushing towards him at once.

He sat there, lost in thought, for a moment, until his emotions calmed down before packing up and leaving. Placing the used dishes securely on the conveyor belt, Chris turned and walked out of the cafeteria. Standing at the door, he closed his eyes, then opened them again, took out his terminal, and sent a text message to Joan:

【Chris: Tim found out about your situation, let's just leave him alone.】

[Chris: Although I always feel that something is wrong, his attitude is too firm, and I can't persuade him...]

After a moment, Joan replied to Corris:

【Qiong: Yes.】

She did not clearly indicate her attitude, and Chris had no way of knowing what Joan's emotional inclination was from the word "hmm". He could only pray that everything would be fine and that there would be no changes in the process.

Kris had wanted to discuss this with Nuhra and ask for his opinion. Then, he realized that if he told the whole story, it would inevitably involve his team's investigation into the black market... Kris sighed helplessly and exited the communication page with Nuhra.

Chris has always adhered to the style of dealing with things quickly and decisively. He can make decisions decisively when faced with many choices... This is the first time he has encountered such a complicated and interconnected situation. Chris feels at a loss for what to do and is afraid that whatever he does will be inappropriate.

Heartbroken, Chris slowly strolled to the shuttle bus stop. After a moment's hesitation between returning to the dorm and going to Training Hall No. 2, he decided to go for training. After all, his classes today were in the afternoon and evening, so he probably wouldn't have time to exercise.

Sitting in the shuttle, Chris habitually looked out the window, reviewing the current progress of various matters: First, Lauren's frame-up; they were stuck at the surveillance investigation stage, and the identity of the strange man was impossible to verify; second, the team's plan to investigate the black market, which was only a rough outline at the moment; and finally, Tim and the people behind him were unwilling to let Chris and his team provide Tim with any assistance...

Everything was a struggle. Kris rubbed his face, trying to clear his head. The distance from the cafeteria, where he'd had breakfast, to the training hall was quite far. Kris's classmates hurried in and out, changing groups before he finally got off at his stop.

There were not many people in the training hall in the morning. Chris originally planned to go straight to his usual training room, but he stopped a second before entering the elevator. He had another idea and wanted to walk around the entire training ground. This might be his part-time job in the future, so it would be good for him to know about it in advance.

Moreover, Chris also wanted to find out the direction and angle of the video that reported Lauren for carrying contraband. It might bring some new ideas to their investigation.

As Corris walked in the training ground, he did not forget to memorize the internal layout in his mind. He walked around the first floor, visited several areas, and then slowly got on the elevator.

Starting from the second floor, there are training rooms available for rent. According to their specific functions, each floor has different types of training rooms with different areas and equipment.

Joan rented a comprehensive training room for them, which was on the second floor. Chris went straight to the training room as usual, but went to the opposite side of the training room.

Relying on his memory, Chris checked every corner of the floor one by one, and even used the terminal to simulate shooting in the direction of their training room, and finally locked onto a position diagonally to the left opposite to Training Room No. 6.

"It's right here..." Kris muttered to himself as he stared at the footage on the terminal.

"Classmate, what are you doing here?" Not far behind Corris, there was a person standing there without anyone noticing. He was so scared that the terminal in his hand almost fell to the ground.

Corris quickly put the terminal away and gave an apologetic smile, "Sorry, I don't know the way very well."

"Oh..." The man didn't look like a student. He was wearing the uniform of a training ground maintenance worker. Kris glanced at his name badge and remembered that his name was "Side" and he was a regular employee.

"Then where are you going?" Said's attitude was neither hot nor cold. He was wearing a baseball cap and standing in the dark. Chris couldn't see his face clearly. The first impression Chris had of his temperament was gloomy.

"I want to go to the tea room." Chris casually said a place, intending to fool Said, but unexpectedly Said took the initiative to say: "Come with me."

Chris was already in a bad mood, and now he had to deal with Sayid, so he had to endure it and pretend nothing happened and followed Sayid to the tea room.

Said led the way, and Corris followed cautiously about two steps behind him, saying casually, "Are you a staff member here? I signed up for a part-time job at Training Ground No. 2... I might work here later."

"Oh." Sayid replied indifferently without turning his head. "So, what's the matter?"

"It's okay, I just want to have a chance to ask you for advice." Chris knew that this person was really difficult to get along with, so he didn't want to make himself unhappy and kept his mouth shut.

"Heh..." Said turned his head slightly, seemed to glance at him out of the corner of his eye, and laughed for no apparent reason.

They walked one after the other until Sayid stopped in front of the tea room door and pointed inside, meaning "here we are."

Even though Chris was somewhat dissatisfied with his attitude, he still remained polite and thanked Said. However, Said obviously did not appreciate it and turned away without saying a word.

Chris stayed in the tea room for a while, and after confirming that Said had left, he made a detour to their usual training room. He had already been caught by Said once, so he didn't dare to take the risk again and went to training honestly.

Considering that he needed to complete today's training quota ahead of schedule, Curris first explained the situation in their team's group chat:

[Chris: Everyone, I have classes this afternoon and evening, so I can't join your training. I can only go to practice first. Sorry.]

Ian, who was always the quickest to reply, replied with a "received" emoji and reported the progress of the surveillance investigation to everyone:

Ian: I spent almost the entire night looking at it, but couldn't find the problem... I'm going to find someone knowledgeable to help me today.

Lauren: Thank you for your help.

Lauren also woke up and saw that Ian had put a lot of effort into this matter, so she immediately expressed her gratitude in the group.

[Margaret: I won't be attending training today. I'm going to the Student Union to inquire about the situation.]

Joan showed up last and replied with a “hmm” just like she did to Chris’s private message. The group fell silent and no one spoke again.

Kris put away the terminal and walked into the training room. He put his things in his locker and went to the system control panel to debug the training equipment himself.

Just as Chris was struggling to decide which training mode to choose, the intelligent system announced that someone was visiting outside the door. Chris had to temporarily leave the console and confirm who the visitor was through the real-time video screen.

He moved closer to the screen, and the man outside the door looked up at the same time, and his dull black pupils met Corris's gaze directly - it was Said he had just met.

Even the good-tempered Kris couldn't help but curse inwardly, "Why does this guy look so haunted?"

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The author has something to say: [Come on][Come on][Come on]