Chapter 82 Orange Segments: A False Alarm
As soon as Zhou Chi's car pulled up to the gate of the courtyard, Ning Jia got in with Canglan, Xuecao, Gancao, and several other little figures.
As soon as the car door opened, the little people looked at the spacious "room" and, as if entering the home of a strange giant, hesitated to go in.
After Ning Jia placed a wet wipe next to the car seat, the children jumped on it to wipe their little feet before carefully stepping onto the black back seat, curiously looking around:
Wow, what a huge tree hole... no, it's a car house!
"Chieftain," Snow Grass whispered to Azure Orchid, "can this car really take us to Mother's?"
Although she had seen what cars looked like in picture books and had also seen various large metal boxes speeding along the road in real life, she was still a little skeptical when she was actually inside a car.
Canglan observed the dark interior of the car and found the various "decorations" rather strange. She said uncertainly:
"...It should be okay."
"Even if we don't trust this car, we should trust Ning Jia."
"...Yeah, that's true."
Xuecao seemed to have been persuaded and began to think about what would happen after she saw her mother again.
Canglan didn't have this problem; she paced back and forth in the back seat, continuing to observe the car's interior.
This car has such a big sofa and lots of glass windows, it's almost like home!
And this cold air coming from who-knows-where...
Could it be that this car actually has an air conditioner installed?!
It has a door, a sofa, windows, and air conditioning; it's practically a mobile house.
The technology tree in the world of giants is so advanced that it can create such a divine object!
Canglan clicked her tongue in admiration, then thought of the car's large metal shell and four big wheels.
To make such a big and heavy metal box move, it must be thanks to the power of the technology tree, right?
It seems that their clan still has much to learn...
Canglan was secretly touching the thick, springy back of the chair, wondering if it was made of the same material as the sofa at home, while the other little ones were already lying down comfortably:
"I heard it takes an hour to walk to Zhou Chi's house. Standing for the whole time must be tiring."
Canglan also liked the bouncy sofa in the car. Just as she was about to lie down, she leaned out the window to look out again:
"Where's Ning Jia? Why hasn't she come in yet?"
...
At this moment, Ning Jia was standing outside the car and asked Zhou Chi:
"By the way, you still have injuries, are you sure you can drive?"
"How about I...we take a taxi?"
Zhou Chi, who had already put on a mask to cover his wound, revealed a pair of smiling eyes and gently shook his head:
"It's nothing, just superficial injuries. Besides, taking a taxi would make it too easy to spot."
Ning Jia immediately understood what he meant.
That's true. Although the dwarves can become invisible, they can only maintain it for a very short time. Even if they all hide during the one-hour drive, there's still a risk of being exposed.
"Alright, then thank you for your hard work."
Zhou Chi smiled and waved his hand. Just as he opened the car door and got into the driver's seat, he saw Ning Jia turn around and come over carrying a heavy bag.
"Zhou Chi, can this fit in the back seat of your car?"
Ning Jia pointed to the contents of the bag:
"It's just some food, like popcorn, pumpkin seeds, and cut fruit..."
"Sure, are you going to eat on the way?"
Ning Jia smiled and shook her head. "It wasn't something to eat on the way."
Snow Grass, who was already lying on the big back seat with her little hands and feet outstretched, heard their conversation, quickly stood up, and loudly emphasized:
"These are the gifts we brought!"
She emphasized the word "gift," and Ning Jia took the opportunity to slip a gift box through the car window to Zhou Chi, winking at him.
"You'll get a gift too."
Zhou Chi paused for a moment, then stammered a "thank you," her face flushing red for some reason. Luckily, she was wearing a mask, so no one noticed.
In the back of the car, Gan Cao stood up to take credit, saying, "We cut these fruits ourselves."
Seeing that Zhou Chi didn't speak, Ning Jia praised him as she got into the car, "Wow, you guys are really great!"
"Of course! It shows sincerity when you cut it yourself!"
Snow Grass nodded happily, while Licorice proudly puffed out its little chest.
They completely forgot that they had cut the fruit into a mess and ended up eating half of it.
Meanwhile, the main fruit cutter, Dongkui, remained silent, lying quietly on the sofa.
After Ning Jia got into the back seat, she noticed that the little boy with light golden hair on the far side, Dong Kui, was unusually quiet, unlike the others who were lively and energetic. His little face was unconsciously tense, so she gently patted his head and asked in a low voice:
"Are you not used to the smell in the car? Would you like some fruit?"
She took out a bright yellow orange from the large pocket of her coat, peeled it in a few quick movements, and placed a peeled segment next to Dongkui.
"Eating some oranges will make you less prone to motion sickness."
"Um... thank you, Ning Jia."
Dongkui said softly, slowly sat up, hugged the crescent-shaped orange segment like a pillow, bit off the white peel on top, and ate it in small bites.
Tiny orange segments, about the size of grains of rice, burst open in your mouth like popping boba, releasing sweet and sour orange juice that flows throughout your mouth...
After Dongkui ate half an orange segment, her complexion improved significantly.
Others immediately raised their hands:
"I want an orange too!" "Me too!"
The large orange was quickly devoured by the little people, and even Canglan couldn't resist eating a segment.
Xuecao licked the orange juice off her hands, still wanting more, and asked:
"Ning Jia, is there any more?"
"No, that's all." Ning Jia shrugged. "What if I need to go to the bathroom halfway through the trip because I ate too many oranges?"
"That's true."
Upon hearing this, Xuecao was disappointed, but she still obediently lay down again.
"Even though we can't eat fruit, we can eat other things."
As if by magic, Ning Jia pulled out a small bag of cashews from her pocket, gave two to each person, and instructed them, "Don't drop the crumbs on the bus." She then handed the rest to Zhou Chi in front of her.
"Want some cashews? I just bought them, they're quite crunchy."
Seeing that Zhou Chi shook his head and didn't take it, Ning Jia took it back and threw all the cashews in the bag into her mouth.
It's a rare opportunity to go on a long trip, so let's treat it as a spring outing, no, a summer outing. How can we have the atmosphere without some snacks?
After the little ones finished eating the cashews with relish, Ning Jia took out his phone from his pocket again.
Well, looks like there's no food left.
The little people lay down again with disappointed looks, but they cheered up when they thought about seeing Bai Zhi and the others soon.
...
Zhou Chi glanced at the rearview mirror and saw that the adults and children were all safely seated in the back. He turned his head and asked:
"Can we set off now?"
"Anytime is fine."
Ning Jia gave him an "OK" sign, and Zhou Chi smiled and turned his head away.
The black Mercedes slowly drove out of the alley, and the windows on both sides slowly rolled up and quickly closed.
This sudden commotion startled the little people, who all sat up abruptly.
My goodness, is this window some kind of spirit? How did it close by itself?!
Just as everyone was discussing this, Gancao's face turned pale. She looked up at the sealed space and gasped for breath in terror, making rapid, panting sounds.
"Licorice?"
Ning Jia's expression changed. She scooped Gan Cao up from the seat, placed him in her hands, gently stroked his face, and whispered soothingly:
"It's okay, Licorice, don't be afraid, breathe slowly, don't be afraid."
Zhou Chi immediately pulled the car over to the side of the road and turned around nervously to ask, "Are you alright?"
Listening to Gan Cao's rapid breathing, Ning Jia guessed:
"It's probably because he was too stressed in the enclosed environment, and he experienced some alkali inhalation, which means he was poisoned by alkali."
Zhou Chi quickly opened all the car windows, and then Ning Jia asked, "Do you have any bags?"
"...It seems so."
Zhou Chi rummaged around in the car and handed over a semi-transparent car trash bag with a kitten printed on it:
"Is this okay? Isn't it a bit too big?"
"...Let's just make do with this for now."
At this moment, Ning Jia had already spread the blanket on the chair, carefully placed the licorice on it, and then said to the anxious little figure beside her:
"Chieftain, Xuecao, you two help Gancao up, slowly."
"Um."
Xuecao was so frightened that tears almost fell, but she held back her tears and helped Gancao up with Canglan.
With the two people supporting her, Gan Cao slowly sat up. Then, a pink kitten-shaped plastic bag was suddenly thrown over her head and put over her body.
...This bag seems a bit too big?
Ning Jia had no choice but to act as a human IV stand, holding the bag in one hand to prevent the licorice from being completely covered by it, and pinching the opening of the bag with the other hand to allow the carbon dioxide to gather as much as possible...
"Licorice, don't be afraid, try breathing with your stomach, slowly, it'll be alright, it'll be over soon..."
As Ning Jia spoke softly, the group stared intently at the licorice in the bag.
"Snow Grass, don't just stand there, talk to Licorice."
"oh oh."
With tears in her eyes, Xuecao whispered, "Gancao, don't be afraid, your sister is here."
Perhaps the carbon dioxide content in the plastic bag had increased; after a short while, Gan Cao's breathing gradually calmed down, and he opened his eyes wide, looking completely bewildered.
"...What...what happened to me just now?"
"It's nothing, just a minor accident."
Ning Jia removed the kitten-shaped trash bag and placed it aside. She then touched her sweaty forehead, feeling that she was covered in sweat.
Seeing that the licorice had returned to normal, Xuecao breathed a sigh of relief, her whole body went limp, and she collapsed into her seat.
Only then did she notice that the bag she had just received had a picture of her most hated fat cat printed on it, and she couldn't help but snort.
Why do giants like these stinky cats so much? They're everywhere! Even though this bag just saved Licorice, it's still a stinky cat bag...
Ning Jia also saw the cat on the bag, smiled and gently pinched Xue Cao's little nose, folded the "eyesore" bag neatly, and returned it to Zhou Chi.
Canglan remained calm throughout. She quickly took Gancao's pulse and after a long pause, she said:
"Your pulse is stable, so you should be fine."
"Very good!"
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and said happily.
Zhou Chi looked shaken, yet filled with immense admiration for Ning Jia.
"Ning Jia, you're amazing! Your reaction was incredibly fast!"
Ning Jia wiped her sweat with a tissue. "Well, I've learned my lesson."
As she spoke, she shared with Zhou Chi the thrilling incident that had happened when the little people were eating watermelon:
"I was really scared at the time. After that, I learned all the first aid knowledge online to prevent accidents from happening again."
Cang Lan looked at Ning Jia and said, "You are so kind, but as the saying goes, 'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.' Could you perhaps share some first aid knowledge with me..."
Ning Jia slapped her forehead, "That's right, I'll arrange the first aid training course when I get back."
Because of this little incident, the car window was kept half open afterward, and Gancao never showed any signs of panic again; in fact, she was even more active than the other little people.
"Licorice, don't climb out the window. If you accidentally fall, you could be killed."
Ning Jia quickly threatened him, then took out a banana from her pocket, broke off a small piece, and gave it to him:
"Eat some bananas to replenish your potassium."
Xuecao shouted, "Ningjia, you lied to me! You just said there was no other food!"
Ning Jia patted her empty pockets:
"This is the only banana I have left, really, I'd be a fool to lie to you!"
...
Along the way, the little ones chattered incessantly, asking questions. Under Ning Jia's watchful eye, they crouched under the car window, watching the street scenes flash by, amazed by the car's speed.
"Ningjia, Ningjia, the scenery outside is moving so fast!"
"It's much faster than your electric car."
Ning Jia nodded, "That's for sure. Cars are several times faster than electric cars. This is considered slow in the city, but it will be even faster on the highway."
Xuecao pondered in silence for a while, then suddenly looked up at Ningjia and said:
"Then I'll work hard to sell more sachets in the future, so I can buy you a big car too!"
Ning Jia chuckled and gently patted Xue Cao's head:
"Do you like this big car? It would be really convenient to have a car, and it could take you to even farther places in the future."
"Yes, I like it. Ningjia, let's buy a big car too," Xuecao said earnestly.
Ning Jia nodded. "Okay, I'll consider it later."
Xuecao then asked, "How long is 'later'?"
Ning Jia smiled slightly, recalling Ms. Ning who had just sent her a WeChat message.
"It won't be long."
...
When the car arrived at the entrance of Zhou Chi's residential area, the little ones had already taken a nap halfway there.
Wake up wrapped in soft blankets, they immediately jumped up full of energy and crowded around the window one by one:
"Are we almost there?!"
"What is Zhou Chi's home like? Is it the same as Ning Jia's?"
"I saw some in the persimmons before, but they seem a little different."
Ning Jia looked at the four golden characters "Hua Rui Manor" at the entrance of the residential complex and exclaimed "Wow!" in surprise.
"Oh, so you live in Huarui."
This place is a high-end villa area in H City. No wonder this person spends money so readily; his family must be very wealthy.
“Yes,” Zhou Chi said as he drove, “it’s the house my parents left behind after they passed away.”
This sentence contained a lot of information, and Ning Jia was stunned for a moment, not knowing what to say.
Instead, Zhou Chi took the initiative to speak:
"It's okay, don't comfort me, it's been more than half a year already."
Upon hearing this, Ning Jia was even more at a loss for words, and could only awkwardly say "Please accept my condolences," before changing the subject:
"I didn't expect Bai Zhi and the others to live so far away. No wonder the clan leader and the others couldn't find them no matter how hard they searched."
Zhou Chi recalled the scene when he first encountered the little people:
“They seemed to have come with a truck, but they couldn’t say how far they had gone or how far they were from their lost tribesmen, so I could only search slowly, section by section…”
Ning Jia imagined the enormous workload and said sincerely:
"You've really worked hard."
Zhou Chi smiled slightly, "It's alright. Anyway, there's nothing to do at home, so I'll just use this as an excuse to force myself to go out and get some exercise."
As they were talking, the car pulled up in front of a villa. Zhou Chi said, "You guys get out first, I'll park the car in the garage."
"Yes, thank you for your hard work."
Ning Jia opened the car door and let the little people jump out one by one. After getting out of the car, she took a look:
Goodness, white stone walls, arched windows, and carved black railings—isn't this quintessential European architectural style?
Although the house in front of us isn't very big, it looks romantic and elegant at first glance. It's decorated with flowers and plants everywhere, and the surroundings are quiet. It also has a lovely little garden. With such a good living environment, what more could you ask for?
When I have money, I'll buy a big house like this too.
The decorating style shouldn't be too cluttered, but the lighting must be good. We'll bring Ms. Ning over then, and oh yeah, the little people too…
As Ning Jia pondered this, she followed Zhou Chi and the little people into the beautiful house.
...
Wow, everything is so big!
The little children stood somewhat reservedly at the door, one "big" word after another flashing through their little minds.
Although they appeared eager, they didn't go in immediately. After wiping their little feet with a wet wipe that Ning Jia had taken out, they slowly walked in.
Upon entering the living room, the children's eyes widened in surprise:
They stood on the antique-colored floor, looking at the lavishly decorated room, then tilted their heads back to look at the ceiling as tall as a giant tree, speechless with astonishment.
Winter Mallow: "Licorice Bro, do you think the Tree God's tree hole is as big as this?"
Licorice: "That's still bigger than the Tree God's! Legend has it that the Tree God's tree hole was so, so, so big!"
Winter Mallow: "Licorice Bro, how long do you think it would take to run from one end of the living room to the other?"
Licorice: "Don't ask me, I'm bad at math..."
While the children were whispering among themselves as they toured the place, Ning Jia, wearing slippers, was dazzled by the magnificent sights.
Compared to Ms. Ning's fondness for Chinese style, Zhou Chi's parents are clearly enthusiasts of European style.
However, the older generation often has a particular characteristic when decorating their houses: they value complexity and dislike leaving blank spaces, wanting to cram in all the elements they like...
If Ning Jia's home decoration was considered moderately complex, Zhou Chi's home decoration was even more extravagant, describable only as extremely elaborate. Although the living room was large, it gave people a feeling of being completely stuffed.
No wonder the little ones haven't dared to run around for so long.
With so many decorations here, what if someone accidentally damages the furniture or hurts themselves?
Ning Jia glanced at the living room, which was filled with all kinds of high-end furniture and decorations, and soon felt that her eyes were getting tired. She couldn't help but turn her head to look at Zhou Chi.
Zhou Chi had already walked to the sofa in the corner of the living room and was leaning down to say something. Ning Jia noticed that there were about a dozen unfamiliar little people sitting on the sofa.
It seems that those are Canglan and her lost clansmen.
Ning Jia crouched down, pointed to the sofa not far away, and reminded her:
"Snow grass, licorice, winter melon... Don't rush to visit, your parents are right there."
-----------------------
A note from the author: Friendly reminder: If you experience alkali poisoning in real life, please seek medical attention immediately.
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