"Drink some water before you eat."
"Thank you, sister. May I eat with you from now on? I'll give you food."
"Sure, we'll get half a pound of grain a day, plus room and board."
Xu Lin wasn't short of food, but she didn't want Xiang Qing to have a free lunch; a little kindness is appreciated, but too much kindness breeds resentment.
Seeing Xiang Qing eat, the others also felt hungry and took out their food to eat as well. They hadn't had much of an appetite these past few days because of the heat, and didn't feel hungry even at mealtimes.
This was the first time Xu Lin had eaten with everyone; before, she had always eaten alone with Zhou Pin in the car.
Wang Jing ate pickled vegetables with compressed biscuits, while Doctor Dai ate salted fish with compressed biscuits. Xu Lin didn't want to be different, so she took out the rice balls and snacks she had ordered from the outdoor gear store and started eating.
After finishing their meal and chatting for a while, the group prepared to go back to their car to rest. Driving at night is tiring, so they needed to be well-rested. Xiang Qing was taken away by Dr. Dai.
It was very hot inside the car, so Xu Lin and Zhou Pin decided to go into the space to clear the grass. Actually, it didn't matter whether they cleared it or not; the main thing was to go in and cool off. Clearing the grass wouldn't reduce the time spent in the space.
After weeding, I ate some chilled fruit and stayed for two hours before coming out. If I stayed any longer, I would be easily discovered. Xiang Qing came over shortly after I came out. She liked Xu Lin very much, and Xu Lin also had a good impression of her.
Seeing Xiang Qing's face flushed red from the heat, Xu Lin found her a thermostatic garment, while Xiang Qing handed Xu Lin a jade Buddha.
"Sister, this is what my parents took me to the temple to pray for. Here you go."
"I can't accept something so valuable."
"You saved my life, and I have nothing to repay you with, but I hope it will bless you."
"Keep it; it'll be something to remember you by. By the way, where are your parents and grandmother buried?"
"He was buried in our family cemetery, and the villagers helped with the burial."
Why didn't they take you in?
“They can’t even feed themselves, how can they care about me?”
"Don't you have food?"
“I didn’t tell them, since I can cook for myself and I won’t go hungry.”
"In the end, didn't he still get caught by those people?"
"Now I know, and I will definitely not be blindly confident."
"Xiao Qing, how old are you?"
"You're nine years old, didn't I tell you that already?"
"But you don't look like a nine-year-old girl at all."
After chatting for a while, it was time for dinner. Zhou Pin made instant noodles for the three of them, along with a sausage and a braised egg for each of them.
Wow, what a feast!
"Eat more if you like."
Xu Lin thought to herself, "What a pitiful child, so happy just eating instant noodles."
After finishing their meal, they chatted for a while longer. Then, the loudspeaker announced that they would depart at seven o'clock. Xu Lin deliberately waited until all the cars had passed before slowly following them.
Behind their car was Zheng Ming's car, and behind that were Miss Dai and Xiang Qing.
"We'll reach Bin City in 150 kilometers. Zheng Ming and Wang Jing will go to Nan City from Bin City, while we'll follow the main group and head towards Hebei Province," Zhou Pin said, looking at the map.
"At this rate, we'll have to part ways after we get some rest tomorrow morning, and I'm a little reluctant to leave them."
"They may bring their families to the base."
"Then forget it. The two of them are fine. Too many people will make things too chaotic." Xu Lin always believed that more people meant more trouble.
Xu Lin drove until 1 a.m., and Zhou Pin, who had taken a nap, came to relieve her. Now, only Xu Lin's car has two people to take turns driving. Zheng Ming is injured, so Wang Jing can only control the steering wheel by herself. Doctor Dai and Xiang Qing are also driving by themselves.
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