When Bretta woke up, she found herself lying in her bed, clutching a long-cold roasted corn cob. Had Mr. Lin Dao returned?
Little White lazily stretched its vines away from him, having fallen asleep due to the cold last night.
Remembering his promise to Chu Hui, Bretta didn't have time to think about anything else. He quickly got out of bed to pack, wondering what he could bring Chu Hui if he didn't have any money. He saw the two pieces of clothing and the ear of corn in his bag, nodded, and for the sake of work, reluctantly slung his bag over his shoulder and put on his deerstalker hat to protect his ears.
Before leaving, he made sure Lin Dao had left. Just as he was about to open the door, he suddenly noticed a dagger stuck in the door and a scabbard on the ground.
Blaita hesitated for a moment, then bent down to pick up the scabbard from the ground.
Suddenly, I noticed four numbers engraved on it – “1117”.
This is... the password Mr. Lin Dao left him to open the door?
Bretta pulled the dagger from the door, sheathed it, thought for a moment, went outside, closed the door, and then tried entering those four numbers.
With a "click," the door really opened.
Bretta blinked, somewhat pleased; Mr. Lin Dao had given him a dagger. He thought for a moment, then, imitating some bounty hunters, tucked the dagger into his waistband and hurried towards the place he had arranged to meet Chu Hui.
When he arrived at the abandoned corner of the slum from yesterday, he heard Chu Hui's voice overhead.
"Not bad, quite punctual."
Turning around, the boy standing on the abandoned shipping container jumped down.
No sooner had he finished speaking than Little White nimbly darted out of Bletta's arms, defiantly extending its rose thorns as if protecting its master.
Chu Hui glanced at it with a smile and tentatively said to Xiao Bai, "You forgot, I'm friends with Bretta now."
Sure enough, upon realizing that this white rose variant could understand him, it shook its branches and leaves in displeasure.
Bryta immediately said, "Little White, put it away."
Seeing the thorns on the vines recede and the white roses reluctantly wrap around Bryta's shoulders, Chu Hui's eyes flashed with admiration.
Chu Hui noticed the bulging bag on his back and raised an eyebrow, asking, "What did you bring?"
Bretta immediately unzipped the entire bag, happily took out two pieces of clothing and a cold roasted corn, and handed them to him, saying, "Here, take them all."
"..." Chu Hui looked at these things with a dark expression. Although warm clothes and food were important in the slums, he didn't expect that Britta, who looked decently dressed, was so poor.
Bryta said somewhat awkwardly, "I'm sorry I tore your clothes last time. These will keep you warmer."
Chu Hui was taken aback by what he heard, then turned his head away and said, "Consider it compensation from me." He took off his tattered cotton coat and stuffed it into his bag, then took out his brown jacket and put it on. Sure enough, he felt much warmer instantly.
To Bleta's surprise, his clothes were only slightly too big for Chu Hui. Chu Hui looked thin and malnourished, but he had a decent frame and only reached about the tip of Bleta's ear.
Still young at heart, Chu Hui was happy to be dressed in clean clothes. He casually asked, "I'm eighteen this year. How old are you?"
"Huh?" Startled by the question about his age, Bretta was a little confused. He knew that mice typically lived 1-3 years, with most reaching a year and a half, and two years considered long-lived. Moreover, their relatives in the lab had even shorter lifespans. Therefore, their reproduction rate was very fast. Hmm… but Bretta thought he might not be able to find any suitable female mice.
If converted to human age, he should be around... Bretta frowned seriously and thoughtfully, almost fifty?! Bretta, who had studied arithmetic, was shocked by this result, it, it, it, it is actually that old?!
Seeing his surprised expression, Chu Hui urged him impatiently, "What? You're not a little girl, why do you have to keep this a secret? I think you're at most three years older than me?"
Bryta, realizing what was happening, nodded. "Yeah. I'm... 21 now." He thought to himself that he seemed to be getting better at lying lately.
But since that's the case, he needs to act like a guinea pig, no, like an adult.
Wow, growing up goes by so fast.
Chu Hui didn't know what he was standing there lost in thought about, so she urged him, "Come on, I'll take you to see where you work."
Bryta followed Chu Hui as they wandered through the slums, and when they saw a house with a red lantern hanging in front of it that looked somewhat dilapidated and messy, and the entrance was dark, they felt a little lost.
"What are you standing there for? Come in." Bryta was pulled forward and stumbled inside. Once inside, he was greeted by a cacophony of voices and some old-school jazz dance music he had never heard before.
This was the first time Bretta had ever heard human music, and he was somewhat surprised, but he liked it. As he followed Chu Hui deeper inside, he looked around cautiously, both bewildered and curious.
More and more people came and went. When someone passed by Blaita and was about to leave, they would deliberately bump into his shoulder and look at him with amazement when he looked up.
Bleta hurriedly bowed his head to apologize, but before he could finish speaking, Chu Hui reached out and pulled him away.
Inside, the dance floor was almost entirely filled with men—women in this apocalyptic world are precious reproductive resources. Because it's a mixed base, people of all races, skin colors, and professions are there, but most carry weapons, and the majority are bounty hunters and scavengers with combat skills. Recently, with the dungeon sealed off, business in the slums has actually picked up.
Inside, colorful lights swayed and flickered to the music. Some people chatted and flirted at the bar, while others swayed on the dance floor. Bretta looked up and saw a handsome young man on the stage in the center, dressed in a hot and daring style, almost naked in bright-colored clothes with tassels. He was holding onto a steel pole with one hand and dancing with great enthusiasm. Many men were whistling at him, and on the virtual screen next to him, the number of donations kept increasing.
Bretta's eyes widened in shock; in just a short while, the number had risen from 300 to nearly 800.
"See that? That person's face is covered in heavy makeup, and he's not even half as good-looking as you. He just stands there and twists and turns, and he can earn so much. Not bad, right?" Chu Hui noticed his gaze and commented at the opportune moment.
Bleta nodded blankly.
"Ah Hui, is this the friend you introduced?" A woman's voice sounded behind Bretta. Bretta turned around and was surprised to see a very beautiful woman. She was wearing a tight-fitting outfit with a strappy design that exposed one shoulder. She had a great figure, handsome and refined features, and exuded a charming and sexy aura with a dashing and heroic spirit. She held a cigarette with sparks in her hand.
Chu Hui turned around, raised an eyebrow, and called out, "Sister Xiang."
The woman hummed in agreement, then turned and looked Bryta up and down without any restraint.
Bryta nodded somewhat awkwardly to her: "...Sister Xiang."
"Not bad, this beauty's bones look delicious." Chu Xiang lowered her head with satisfaction, took a puff of her cigarette, blew a smoke ring in Bryta's face, and asked with a smile, "How old are you? What did you do before?"
“21, selling drinks in the underground boxing arena.” Bleta felt a little uncomfortable smelling the pungent smoke and answered honestly.
Chu Xiang understood, slightly raising her willow-leaf eyebrows, and said, "Hmm, I've been to the underground city, not bad. Looking at your rosy lips and white teeth, I thought you were some lost child from a noble family in the empire."
Upon hearing this, Chu Hui inexplicably thought of that man, and her eyebrows twitched as she looked at Blaita again.
Chu Xiang asked, "Do you know what you're going to do?" She slightly raised her chin, gesturing for him to look at the boy dancing an adult erotic dance in the middle of the dance floor, and said, "Just like that, can you accept it? As for who you're willing to be with in private, I won't ask. You get two-tenths of the tips you receive, and I'll keep eight-tenths."
Upon hearing this, Bryta blinked and did some serious mental calculations. Even if it was two, it was still a pretty good commission. He could quickly pay off his debts, pay his rent, eat delicious roasted potatoes, and even consider buying canned luncheon meat and popcorn!
Bretta was thrilled with the prospect of a wonderful future.
Chu Xiang looked at his undisguised excitement and asked, "How about it? Shall we do it?"
"I'll do it!" Britta was so excited to have found a good job that her little face flushed.
He was led to a room, where someone pointed to a sequined, revealing, tight-fitting dance costume and told him, "Pick one to wear first."
“…” Bleta looked at the clothes with a blank expression, and inexplicably felt her face getting hot.
Fortunately, he was alone in the room. Bretta looked at the clothes; they were all revealing, either the top or the back, and he felt something was off. He didn't know which one to choose when Little White suddenly appeared and picked one out for him—a bright red one.
Blay hesitated, holding the clothes, when Chu Hui's urging voice sounded from outside the door: "Are you dressed? Hurry up."
Britta hurriedly took off her clothes, then awkwardly put on the bright red striptease bodysuit. She then whispered awkwardly towards the door, "...I'm dressed, it's just a little tight."
The door was pushed open with a "click," and Chu Hui's impatient gaze froze when she saw his appearance. Chu Xiang, who had followed, glanced over lightly, her eyes also showing amazement.
Bretta had naturally pale skin and a very good build; he wasn't short, but his innocent-looking face was incredibly deceptive. The almost gaudy bright red dress, on him, made him look like a vibrant, dewy red rose, strikingly beautiful. His voluminous golden curls fell perfectly beneath his amber eyes, and coupled with his somewhat reserved expression, made him even more alluring.
Chu Xiang looked down and saw Chu Hui staring in disbelief. She smiled and teased, "Hui, you've really found a treasure for me."
Afterwards, Chu Xiang found the dancer who had performed on stage earlier and came down to teach Bleta some dance steps. She discovered that Bleta was extremely light and agile, and learned the moves very quickly, so she kindly taught him a few more. Then she told him to practice diligently when he got back, and that he might be able to perform on stage in just a few days.
Bretta gratefully noted everything down. During this time, Chu Hui squatted nearby, watching him practice repeatedly in front of the pole. Although Bretta was talented, she was pure of heart and lacked any seductive charm; when she jumped, there was a strange, almost peculiar, lightness to her movements. Chu Hui watched with a frown, a vague sense of unease creeping into his heart. He had initially only intended to trick her into doing some illegal work in the slums, but why was he being introduced to his sister's place before they even entered?
The more he thought about it, the more he felt that it was a waste to only have two pieces of clothing and one ear of corn.
Bleta hadn't eaten anything last night, and after practicing for most of the day, he was starving. Soon after, his stomach started rumbling.
"Here! Catch!" Chu Hui tossed him half a corn cob, which had been reheated. Bretta smiled gratefully at him and said, "Thank you."
Chu Hui turned her face away, her face hidden in the darkness looking somewhat uneasy.
For several days in a row, Blaita practiced here and then continued practicing at home. Fortunately, although Mr. Lin Dao was so busy that he was rarely seen, he would always suddenly produce some food and put it in Blaita's room. This was probably because he noticed that Blaita had never touched the food placed on the table outside.
That night, after taking a shower, Britta was very nervous about her official stage performance the next day. She put a clothes rack in the room, held it with one hand, and skillfully twisted her waist and hips, dancing earnestly and with great enthusiasm.
Lin Dao, who had just returned home weary from his journey, heard the noise and hesitantly went over to open the door—
The next moment, their eyes met.
Bryta froze, his body stiff with embarrassment.
"..."
"..."
Author's Note: Thank you for your support! A big thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants between 2022-01-27 23:25:16 and 2022-01-29 22:25:46!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Daydream (10 bottles); Memories (3 bottles); 52459441 and Loulang (1 bottle each);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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