Chapter 45
I don't know if it's because Haohao's voice is too loud or because everyone is too idle and they all gather around when there is a little noise, anyway, during the time when Jiang Qing and Fu Yiming were packing up without knowing anything, almost all the children in the residential area knew about Haohao's "adventure".
Haohao did not show off in vain, and generously allowed grandparents, uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, and younger brothers and sisters who passed by... everyone to take a little taste and then sit down to listen to him.
From the overwhelming flocks of jackdaws to the cute Arctic fox bus, from the hot water that is scalding to the big house with light and electricity, to the beautiful scenery of the golden mountain in the sunshine and the gurgling stream in the bamboo forest, the children's eyes lit up and their mouths couldn't close.
Not to mention the children, even the adults passing by were stunned.
After all, Haohao is still young, so some of his stories are confused and unclear. He shares them entirely out of his passion for Nuannuan Hot Springs, but everyone can piece together a picture from them.
It was like a paradise on earth, making them feel fascinated just by listening to it.
…That was the world before the advent of games.
Some of the younger children had no idea about this, but after having the opportunity to observe and taste the spoils that Haohao brought back from his expedition, they couldn't help themselves and went home and asked their parents that they wanted to go too.
Thinking that Haohao could eat such delicious food three times a day, while they had to smack their lips and savor it for a long time after taking a bite, the more he thought about it, the sadder he became. The neighborhood was filled with the cries of children.
So those parents who did not go out were also alarmed.
What is going on?
Unable to figure it out, they all came to find Jiang Qing and Fu Yiming, the "culprits".
The narrow entrance was packed with people, and the two finally realized what was happening.
They never expected things to turn out like this. They exchanged glances, and Fu Yiming suppressed his laughter and said, "There is indeed such a hot spring hotel. We were not at home these few days, so we took the children to live there. Look, we came back this time to pack our things, and we have to leave soon. We plan to live there for a long time in the future."
He moved aside a little, and everyone looked inside the house. Sure enough, many things that were placed outside had been put away.
It looks like we'll be staying here for quite a while.
Jiang Qing and Fu Yiming are both very strong and have excellent interpersonal skills. The elders and children living nearby have all received help from them to some extent, and they are very respected and trusted in this area. After hearing what the couple said, all the doubts I had were dispelled.
"I have heard about this hot spring. It has been widely rumored recently and it is actually true." An elite player pondered, "Yiming, can you tell me more about it? If it is reliable, I will ask the captain for leave and take my parents to take a look."
The vast majority of combat players spend more than 300 days out of 365 days a year killing monsters in the wild. Even if they want to rest, they still have to consider the schedule of the entire team - after all, everyone's professional pairings have been carefully considered and coordinated over a long period of time. If one person is suddenly missing, many tactics cannot be implemented.
Therefore, they seldom take leave and are on the road all year round. They are often the last to know about the news circulating in the town.
"Okay, don't worry, it's absolutely reliable."
Fu Yiming agreed readily.
They had originally planned to visit their neighbors after cleaning up, but this actually saved them some trouble. Considering that the bus was about to leave, the two did not have time to talk in detail, so they made a long story short and listed the existing facilities and food in the hot spring one by one.
As for things like soaking in hot springs can restore physical strength and whiten and moisturize the skin, taking a foot bath can increase agility, and eating fresh meat buns can temporarily increase strength... Fu Yiming didn't mention any of these.
Just leave it as a surprise for them.
Jiang Qing was a man of few words, and was responsible for adding to the conversation from time to time. When the two of them finished speaking, everyone was speechless.
The two elite players, who were already being harassed by their children, immediately decided to go. "The hotel bus stops at the city gate, right? What time do you think it will leave? There's still some time. I'll go home and pack my things."
Just go.
Fu Yiming quickly stopped the man and said, "What are you still packing? I'll be back after lunch anyway."
"?" The man turned around in confusion, "Didn't you say it was a hotel? Since I'm going there, I must stay there for at least a day before leaving."
"Do you think you can stay there whenever you want?" Fu Yiming gloated, "All the rooms are fully booked this week. If you want to stay, wait until next week."
other side:"……"
"So you guys are packing up..."
"Of course it's because we got a room for the whole week, and it's the kind with a private hot spring." Fu Yiming was waiting for him to say this, and he was very proud. "You are welcome to visit our room after dinner."
The elite player hesitated to speak, rolled his eyes at Fu Yiming, and walked away under the latter's smug gaze.
Upon hearing this, the other player simply did not go home to pack his things, and walked towards the town entrance taking his child by the hand.
"Are we really going?" The child's eyes sparkled with excitement.
This is the first time my mother agreed so readily!
It is the happiest thing to have parents happily fulfill one's wishes.
"Go." Her mother nodded. "As long as you promise to go over and have a good meal, then from now on, as long as mom is at home, we will go over to eat every day."
Hearing this, the little girl cheered, "I will definitely eat it well! There won't be any left."
A smile flashed across the eyes of the female player. She nodded to Jiang Qing and left with her daughter who was jumping for joy.
She just saw Haohao's appearance. He looked paler than before he left. If you look closely, you can see that his little face has become a lot chubbier. The two children are about the same age, but when they stand together, my daughter looks thinner in comparison.
No matter how much canned food you eat in the game, it won’t make such a big difference. It’s obvious that you had some delicious food in the hot spring these two days.
The effect is so obvious, of course I have to take my daughter to try it.
Among the families who came to see Jiang Qing and Fu Yiming, two or three left on the spot, but some people stood where they were, looking still hesitant.
Jiang Qing took a quick look and found that the only people left at home were the elderly and children.
Seeing their friends being taken away by their parents, several of the remaining children pouted and were about to cry. The elders hurriedly comforted them, "Wait a little longer, okay? Wait until your parents come back and let them take you there."
"Uncle, actually the bus is very safe. We can get on it at the town entrance. There are elite players escorting us the whole way. There is also a barrier at the hotel, so no accidents will happen." Jiang Qing saw their hesitation and persuaded them.
What's more, she, Fu Yiming and several other elite players are here. If they really encounter danger, they will not stand idly by.
Think about it, before, ordinary players would hire senior teams to escort them, and they would have to walk the entire way. Now that buses have been opened, and with this group of elite players accompanying them the entire time, aren’t they more reliable than the senior teams?
"But... hey, there are so many monsters outside, we are scared just thinking about it. And we have a child to take care of, what if something unexpected happens... let's just forget it." The uncle next door hesitated for a long time, but couldn't make up his mind.
Seeing this, Jiang Qing stopped trying to persuade him.
It's not that she doesn't understand. These uncles and aunts are old and have stayed in the town for a long time, so it is normal for them to be afraid of the outside world.
"Besides, Xiaoqing, you just said that it costs several hundred yuan to stay there for one night?" Another lady sighed and shook her head, her face full of heartache, "It's too expensive. We only make 5 yuan for a cotton coat. How many do we have to make..."
Jiang Qing was even more speechless now.
Who can afford a house in a high-end residential area and would be short of these few hundred points? She had heard the youngest son of the family advise his parents more than once not to do manual labor to make money anymore and to just stay at home and enjoy their lives. But for these elderly people, the instinct of frugality was almost ingrained in their bones.
Living in the end times, there's nothing wrong with being a little frugal...but how can one be frugal on something like this?
Jiang Qing really didn't understand.
The boss's pricing is already very reasonable. Even the hotels in town cost several dozen yuan a night.
As for the old lady's cotton-padded clothes, she had also bought a few pieces and knew that they were sewn using the method before the advent of the game. They could only be worn as a base layer to make the cold-proof clothes more comfortable. They had no effect in keeping out the cold, so they were so cheap.
It is true that one steamed bun is worth three cotton-padded jackets, but does that mean we should not eat meat buns?
So what is the point of working hard to make money?
In Jiang Qing's opinion, precisely because we are living in the end times, we should spend more money when we should, and enjoy ourselves more when we should. Otherwise, if Shu Mo's shop disappears one day, they will be holding on to the points they saved but unable to spend them, and they will really have no place to cry.
However, this was a matter of personal consumption attitude, so Jiang Qing didn't say much. He just handed a bag of cookies to the old lady and asked her to go back and discuss it with her family.
The old lady couldn't refuse, so she took the packet of biscuits, turned it over and over, looked at it several times with cherishment, then carefully packed it into her backpack, and kept thanking the owner before leaving.
Jiang Qing smiled and waved his hand, sending her out.
Who doesn't like good things? She could see that the other party was just used to suffering.
It depends on whether their youngest son can persuade his parents.
*
Elsewhere in Guangming Town, passengers who got off the Arctic Fox bus also returned to their homes.
Xie Qiong supported her grandmother and led her down the stairs slowly, "Grandma, please be careful."
Then, he turned around and called to the middle-aged couple behind him, "Mom and Dad, don't dawdle! The bus leaves at 11 o'clock. There are toothbrushes, towels, shower gel and everything. Just arrive and you don't need to bring anything."
Xie Qiong's grandmother was dragged along by her granddaughter in a daze, not knowing what was going on. "Xiao Qiong, where are we going?"
"You finally got home, but you're in such a hurry to go out instead of just sitting at home." She scolded him, and took out a bottle from the inner pocket of her winter coat. "I've warmed up the water for you, do you want some?"
Xie Qiong lowered her head, saw the water in the bottle, and her nose felt sore.
There was no heating equipment in the game, and her grandmother felt sorry for her granddaughter suffering in the wild and drinking cold water every day, so she had to use the most clumsy method, using her own body temperature to warm up the cold water in advance and leave it for her granddaughter to drink when she came back.
Not knowing when Xie Qiong would arrive home, the old man would prepare a new bottle of water every day and warm it up. If Xie Qiong hadn't returned in the evening, he would give it to his daughter or son-in-law to drink.
The drinking water bought from the mall is put into a knitted cup cover knitted by my grandmother. It is clean and soft, and I can keep it in my arms all day.
The old man waited for his granddaughter to come home at the door, and he sat there all day.
Xie Qiong suppressed the bitterness in her eyes, took the bottle and put it in her arms, and tightened her other arm around her grandmother, and said softly: "Grandma, I'll save this for the road. I have booked a suite in a hotel, and our family will stay out tonight. The hotel is quite far, and we have to take a bus to get there. Now we have to catch the bus."
"Hotel? Bus?"
The old man was startled. "So we're going outside the town?"
"Yes, but don't worry, it's absolutely safe." Xie Qiong quickly comforted her, "I've checked it out in advance, the living conditions are very good."
"I'm already so old, I'd better not join in the fun." Grandma shook her head again and again, looking embarrassed, and was about to retract her arm, "Just you guys go, have fun with your mom and dad, and come back and tell grandma about it."
"How can that be possible?"
Xie Qiong had anticipated her grandmother's reaction and had already thought of a countermeasure. Upon hearing this, she said in a resounding voice, "I've already paid!"
grandmother:"……"
The words "I've already paid the money" hit the old woman's soft spot. She immediately lost her resolve and stammered, "... Can't I refund it? How much is it? It must be expensive, right? What did you spend the money on? What a waste... Can't I refund it?"
"You can't refund it. It's paid per person!" Xie Qiong said firmly, "Grandma, it would be a waste if you don't go."
Seeing that Xie Qiong insisted that she couldn't return the money, grandma had no choice but to tap her forehead helplessly, "You, save yourself some money."
"We have to live a good life once in a while." Xie Qiong smiled, secretly looking forward to her grandmother's reaction when she saw the hotel.
The Chinese-style family suite with a private hot spring is the most luxurious room type in the hotel, but she booked it for three consecutive days without blinking an eye, spending most of her savings for half a year.
But is it expensive?
Xie Qiong didn't feel that at all.
The sun was shining brightly outside, shining on the snow on the road. An old man and a child stepped on it, making a squeaking sound.
She could hear her grandmother's worried muttering in her ears, the bottle of water in her arms felt heavy, and thinking of the hotel waiting up ahead, Xie Qiong suddenly felt in a good mood.
*
With about ten minutes left before departure, all the players started to move. The high-end residential area was particularly lively because there were so many people going there, and the noise they made alarmed the neighbors.
"What's going on?"
Wu Sulan opened the door and happened to see people passing by her door one after another. She was shocked and thought something big had happened. She quickly grabbed one of them and asked, "Where are you going?"
Why are there still people holding hands with children?
The children looked very excited, as if they were going on a spring outing, but Wu Sulan thought about it carefully and found that there was no news about any activities being held in the town recently.
And looking at the direction the team is moving, why does it seem like they are heading towards the city gate?
Are you going out of town?
Wu Sulan was stunned.
In the apocalypse, she took her whole family out of the city. In her opinion, there was only one possibility: Guangming Town was no longer safe.
But as an elite player, how could she not have received the news? How could she not know that everyone had started to move?
Wu Sulan suddenly became anxious.
"Mom, what happened outside? Why is it so lively?"
At this time, another young man came out of the room. He looked a little awkward when talking to Wu Sulan. He didn't look into her eyes, but stared straight out the door and asked.
This is Wu Sulan’s son, Zhang Xiaoliang. He had a big fight with his parents about working a while ago, and they haven't reconciled yet. The atmosphere at home has been very depressing these days.
Wu Sulan was extremely anxious, "What's going on?"
"Don't worry." The neighbor who was pulled over guessed what she was thinking and laughed, "Have you heard that there's a hot spring hotel outside the city? You had to walk to get there before, but now there's a shuttle bus. It's said that it only takes an hour to get there, and more people are going there."
"If you don't have to go out with the team these two days, why don't you go and take a look?" She invited enthusiastically, "It is said that there are many things there that are not in the mall, and there is also a restaurant that serves different dishes every day. The hot spring is 50 points per time and there is no limit on the duration."
Wu Sulan was stunned. "Hot spring...?"
Zhang Xiaoliang, who was standing behind him, became excited halfway through the conversation. He strode to the door and looked at the neighbor. "Is the place you're talking about called Nuan Nuan Hot Spring? The one that posted the job posting on the bulletin board a few days ago?"
"It seems to be called this name." The other party thought for a moment and nodded affirmatively, "Yes, I remember there are duplicate characters in the name of the store - by the way, where can I find a second hot spring in this game world?"
She said, laughing.
"But I haven't seen the job posting you mentioned. If I had, I would really like to give it a try. Working there, I would definitely be able to drink hot water every day and eat employee meals provided by the cafeteria, right? Life would be so happy there."
Zhang Xiaoliang's expression suddenly changed.
The neighbor was in a hurry and didn't notice Zhang Xiaoliang's reaction. He left immediately after saying that. Before leaving, he reminded Wu Sulan, "The bus leaves at 11 o'clock sharp. If you want to go, you'd better leave quickly. I heard from the grapevine that the restaurant will have shredded pork with fish flavor for lunch today!"
Wu Sulan: “…”
After the neighbor left, the room fell silent. Zhang Xiaoliang suddenly spoke up, his eyes red with anger, "I told you that the hot spring really exists, and you still don't believe it!"
Faced with her son's questioning, Wu Sulan bit her lip and recalled what she had said in front of Liu Yan, the cleaning lady she hired at home a few days ago, and felt a little embarrassed.
At that time, she swore that this hot spring was definitely not reliable, and her words showed that she thought Liu Yan was ignorant and would believe such rumors. Who would have thought that just a few days later, even the neighbors in the high-end residential area went to this hot spring to consume?
This hot spring is actually real?
So the previous recruitment thing, was it true too?
Zhang Xiaoliang became angrier and angrier as he thought about it. His chest kept rising and falling like an angry little lion. "If you hadn't torn up my resume, I might have been selected! Aunt Liu and her daughter must be living in the hot spring now!!"
The resume he sent out on the day of recruitment was not the one he had written at the beginning.
The first resume was torn up by Zhang Xiaoliang’s father when he finished writing it and was about to go out and happened to run into his parents who were returning home from a long journey. The one he sent out later was another copy he quickly wrote after returning to his room. However, due to limited time, the application was written very sloppily, so as expected, I received a rejection letter. When my parents, who were left at home, saw it, another argument broke out.
If it was the first resume that was rejected, Zhang Xiaoliang would have accepted it, but the second one that was rejected was because it was not written carefully, and this was what made him most upset. In addition, he heard today that the hot spring recruitment was indeed true. He really missed a good opportunity because of his parents' arrogance. All kinds of emotions piled up and finally exploded completely.
"Zhang Xiaoliang, how can you talk to your mother like that?" Zhang Xiaoliang's father Zhang Ping had been sitting in the living room and listening from the beginning, but he hadn't spoken a word. He was also digesting the shock in his heart. When he heard his son's tone, he subconsciously frowned and scolded, "The fact that such an ordinary player was selected shows that the employment standards of this hot spring are not high. If all the employees are like this, how can it be a good place? Everyone just thinks it's strange and wants to watch the fun. You just didn't submit your resume. If you had, you would definitely be the one selected."
Wu Sulan reacted and advised: "That's right, Xiaoliang, if you really want to go, then wait until the next recruitment and submit your resume. Mom and Dad will take you there then."
"You still look down on Aunt Liu?" Zhang Xiaoliang looked at his parents in disbelief. He felt that he could not communicate with them. He stood up angrily and said, "I don't need you to send me there. I'm seventeen years old and can go there by myself! Don't bother with my affairs from now on!"
After saying the last sentence, Zhang Xiaoliang slammed the door and left in frustration.
Wu Sulan slapped her thigh and quickly pulled Zhang Ping over. "Why are you pretending to be an outsider? Were you the one who said Wenquan was unreliable? Were you the one who tore up his resume? Now you act as if it's none of your business... Hurry up and follow your son. Don't let anything happen to him."
Zhang Xiaoliang had already run towards the city gate, and the couple hurriedly followed him, feeling a little worried.
Although they didn't dare to say it out loud, they still had a glimmer of hope in their hearts.
What if the hot spring thing is fake and everyone has been deceived? By then, will my son be able to believe that his parents are right?
It's just a waste of a few dozen points of train ticket money, so just go and take a look.
...see if that miraculous hot spring is really that magical.
*
Shu Mo sent Bai Rongrong to post the flyer for the launch of the Arctic Fox Bus on the bulletin board yesterday at noon, and not many people knew about it at this time. Except for the group of people who happened to be standing at the city gate and were introduced by the passengers who got off the bus, the rest of the passengers on the return bus were almost all high-level players and their families.
When we went there, we carried more than 30 people, and when we came back, there were more than 60 people.
The advanced players who arrived first lined up consciously, and after finding out that their destination was also "Nuannuan Hot Spring", the later ones followed and stood behind them.
Haohao’s good friends, Xiaoyi and Momo, have both managed to get the opportunity to go to the hot spring together with their families. Now they are standing in the line with the adults, looking around constantly.
It was the first time for Xiao Yi to leave Guangming Town. He clung to his mother's clothes and whispered to his friend standing in front of him, "Haohao, where is the bus you mentioned?"
Seeing his good friend so nervous, Haohao became even more excited. He acted like an experienced person and pointed ahead calmly, "He's lying right there."
Xiao Yi: “?”
Xiao Yi opened his mouth in confusion and let out an "ah".
Their parents also silently repeated these two words in their hearts.
Lying down... ?
It was the first time they had heard this verb used to describe a bus.
Momo is much more lively than Xiaoyi and not as shy. Upon hearing this, she ran out of the team and took a look around the front. When she came back, the little girl's cheeks were flushed with excitement, "We are going to ride that big white dog over there?"
This is so cool!
The mimic beast lying in front of it moved its ears and became angry.
Who are you calling a dog?
"It's not riding, it's sitting..." Haohao explained with difficulty.
Is there any difference? Momo tilted her head, not figuring it out. She just felt more looking forward to the journey.
At 10:55, Yao Yonghui glanced at the system time, stood up, put the small chair he brought with him for rest into his backpack, and spoke loudly to the team in front of him.
"Everyone, we have five minutes to leave. We will arrive at Nuannuan Hot Springs at about noon. Hotel guests are free, and the rest of the passengers will pay 30 points. Children under 12 years old will pay half price. Passengers who haven't bought tickets, please ask me to buy them before boarding."
After saying that, the mimic stood up on its own accord. With a "bang", before anyone could see what was happening, a white bus appeared in front of them.
“Oh my god…”
They subconsciously raised their heads with their mouths slightly open.
"The bus we're going to make is transformed from a monster?"
“This, this…”
"What kind of monster is this? Can it transform at will?"
Those players who missed the grand occasion when the Beastmaster came fell into self-doubt.
The game has been around for ten years, why haven't they thought of using monsters as vehicles?
...No, where did this monster that can transform and change size come from? !
Being able to transform to this size, it is definitely not an ordinary monster. Moreover, the mimicry exudes a pressure that ordinary players can feel.
Zhang Xiaoliang accidentally looked into those blue eyes for a moment, and felt a chill running down his spine to the top of his head, making his scalp explode with fear.
He grew up in the city. The money his parents earned was enough for the whole family to live a good life. There was no need for their son to go out of the city with the team at the age of fifteen or sixteen to kill monsters to supplement the family income like Zhao Yu did. Zhang Xiaoliang had only seen an A-level monster once when he was very young. He thought that was scary enough, but at this moment he actually felt that the monster in front of him looked even more terrifying than the A-level monster.
His heart was pounding with fear and he subconsciously wanted to step back, but the next second he felt the gaze of his parents behind him.
Zhang Xiaoliang: “…”
He took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, stepped forward calmly, and bought tickets with Yao Yonghui.
On the other side, Momo's mother and Jiang Qing were elite players in the same fixed team. She stared at the bus for a while, realized something, and turned her head suddenly, "Is this a mimicry?"
The voice was so loud that everyone around looked over.
But most people had never heard of the name of the Mimic. After taking a few glances at the excited woman, they looked away and turned their attention back to the bus in front of them.
Compared with ordinary bosses, the Mimic is relatively rare. It has no territory and is rare in number. Only when one dies will another one randomly spawn on the entire map. Therefore, even many elite players do not recognize this monster.
But Momo's mother Xu Ruixi is different. She is keen on collecting all kinds of monster information to make guides, including body shape, characteristics, weaknesses, natural skills, common attack methods, drops, etc. For this reason, she even ventured to many remote monster settlements, and opened a larger area on the map than others.
For her, animal simulation is a rare research material. How could Xu Ruixi not be excited?
"This hot spring actually uses a mimic beast as a bus to carry passengers. This, this, this..." Xu Ruixi was so happy, "A monster with such strong attack power doesn't stay to protect its owner. Could it be that the boss has more powerful summoned beasts around him?"
Even Xu Ruixi herself didn't know that she had accidentally guessed the truth.
"Calm down." Jiang Qing said with a headache.
She knew her friend's personality as a strategy maniac, and she held her back helplessly, fearing that Xu Ruixi would leap out with a roar in the next second - Jiang Qing knew the temper of the mimetic beast, and if they offended this big-name employee of the hotel, would they still have a good life in the future?
Thinking of this, Jiang Qing felt a little dazed again.
For a moment, I didn't know whether I should complain about myself worrying about offending a bus, or complain about the fact that this bus was a big-name employee of the hotel.
Coming back to his senses, Jiang Qing said, "The boss of this hot spring is indeed unfathomable, but so far, I have never seen a summoned beast more powerful than the Mimic. She can send the Mimic out with confidence, probably because..."
Jiang Qing paused and lowered his voice, "Because she has a protective shield that can withstand a full-strength attack from an S-level monster."
As soon as the words came out, Xiao Yi's family looked at him in surprise.
"Are you serious?"
"This level of protective shield is extremely expensive in the mall."
They now understood why Jiang Qing and Fu Yiming said that the boss's pricing was fair.
Before they even arrived at the hotel, they had already experienced the service quality of Nuannuan Hot Spring that far exceeded normal standards.
"The function of that protective shield is not limited to this. It can also block out the extreme cold in the game. You don't even need to wear winter clothes when you stay inside. Do you think this can be bought in the mall?" Fu Yiming interrupted.
Seeing his friends' eyes wide open and eager to ask for details, Fu Yiming felt inexplicably proud.
"When we get to the hot springs, I'll be surprised at how many things you have to offer."
He left these words mysteriously and turned around to get in the car.
Haohao followed his father happily, also leaving a low-key yet slightly proud back to his good friends.
Everyone: “…”
Jiang Qing: “…”
No, this hotel is not owned by you two, what are you so proud of? !
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