In the same car

Ivy didn't understand why Lorraine suddenly had that expression.

It seemed as if she was surprised that she and Song Xu lived together in the storage car.

What's so surprising? Although she and Song Xu had a relationship that ended in failure, it wasn't the kind of relationship where one of them cheated on her and the other cheated on him, or they had a life-and-death quarrel and never talked to each other again.

Parting ways in peace actually gives us more trust than with ordinary friends.

The wasteland is not the "wilderness" in the true sense. There is only one consequence of getting off the car and camping rashly, and that is being captured by artificial intelligence for research or captivity. For safety reasons, the members of the expedition team all sleep directly in the car - the space inside the car is large, and the chairs can be pushed back and you can lie down to sleep. The disadvantage is that it is easy to fall off, which is not friendly to people like Ivy who don't sleep so well at night.

Lorraine confirmed: "You want to spend the night with him?"

Ivy wanted to say—yes, what else?

She came here secretly.

If I'm not with Song Xu, whose car can I get in? His car?

"Song Xu is the person I trust the most here," Ivy explained, "and he sleeps well. It's very comfortable to spend the night with him."

——Song Xu never moves around when he sleeps, so if Ivy falls off the "chair", she doesn't have to worry about being crushed by him while he's sleeping.

Lorraine's serious face became even more serious.

"Tell me this," he said slowly, "I don't know whether to commend you for your courage or for your candour."

Ivy wondered, "Is this something I can't say?"

Lorraine said nothing.

Not far away, Song Feng and Song Xu had already run over, both of them looked very surprised.

Song Feng was surprised that Lorraine was safe and sound and that he could keep his job;

Song Xu was surprised that Ivy was in good condition and his sweetheart was safe.

Lorraine introduces Ivy: "She discovered the anomaly of the building and bravely stopped the space transformation made by artificial intelligence-"

Song Xu was shocked: "Space conversion!"

Song Feng slowly turned his head and his eyes fell on Ivy.

His nose twitched, he took two deep breaths, stared at her, and frowned.

"My student," Lorraine said simply, "she follows Song Xu."

"I'm afraid this is not in accordance with the rules, sir," Song Feng said immediately, "Song Xu is still young."

Ivy realized that Song Feng had recognized her.

As expected.

Everyone knew that Song Feng hated her. When Ivy and Song Xu went swimming together as children, Song Feng would immediately have the water in the entire pool replaced.

His dislike was always obvious, and Ivy could only remember what he looked like when he frowned.

Every time they met, Song Feng had to hold his breath, as if her D-level gene would spread with the air - as if within ten meters of her, he could conceive and give birth to a group of screaming D-level gene children.

After breaking up with Song Xu, Song Feng sent her a long, sarcastic text message, hypocritically congratulating her on "successfully escaping the fate of being endlessly scrutinized" and congratulating her on finally "holding her freedom back in her hands." He then asked her kindly if she needed help in contacting some good-looking soldiers. Some people would not mind her being a D-class soldier, nor would they care about her former refugee status.

For so long after the peaceful breakup, most of the ridicule Ivy suffered came from Song Feng and his family who had a sense of superiority.

But so what?

Ivy is not a racist. She does not think that the so-called S-class and A-class are noble, nor does she think that the D-class and E-class are lowly.

Her first boyfriend was also a D-level doctor, but he was still so good that ordinary patients had to scramble to make an appointment.

"...He is not suitable to be with someone who is too smart," Song Feng said to Lorraine, but he stared at Ivy with a burning gaze, as if he wanted to stare her away. "Sir, I hope you can reconsider this decision."

Song Xu said: "Brother——"

"Shut up," Song Feng looked at Lorraine and repeated, "Sir."

"Otherwise?" Lorraine looked down at him, "You want me to send back a student who has made great contributions? There is no such precedent."

Song Feng looked painful.

He knew Ivy's identity, but no matter how much he hated her, he couldn't expose it directly in front of Lorraine.

Obviously, he crossed out Ivy's name with his own hands, so she must not have come here through legitimate means - now it seems that she must have seduced Song Xu, using threats and inducements to force Song Xu to send her here.

Does Lorraine know?

Song Feng had no idea. He only knew that if this matter was reported, not only would Ivy be punished, but Song Xu would also be implicated.

If Ivy were to ride in the same car with the others, it would sooner or later be revealed that she had "sneaked in";

If Ai Wei and Song Xu were together, young and energetic, what would happen at night?

Song Feng said: "...at least you can't ride in the same car with Song Xu. They once...had an unpleasant incident."

"With whom?" Lorraine asked, "Each car can only carry a limited number of players. Do you want her to squeeze in with you and your teammates?"

Song Feng said: "If it really doesn't work, Song Xu and I——"

Lorraine said, "I still have room in my car."

——It was originally reserved for Xin Lan, but before setting off, there was a problem with the lens implanted in Xin Lan's eye, the signal was disordered, and he had to repair it.

Song Xu was shocked: "Isn't it inappropriate?"

He looked at Ivy worriedly.

Lorraine is famous for his strictness. If Ivy rides in the same car with him, will he really not punish her?

Ivy was equally shocked.

She thought Lorraine disliked her.

"You choose," Lorraine turned, "to be sent back to—"

"I'll stay," Ivy blurted out, "Thank you for taking me in. It's my infinite honor to be able to ride in the same car with the teacher."

Song Feng's expression was disdainful, as if he was saying, "See, she is indeed a flatterer."

Lorraine didn't waste her time on such things.

He nodded slightly, turned and left, and ordered his men to seal off the building, cut off possible power sources and smart networks nearby, and contact the military to come quickly.

Song Feng clasped his hands together and said gloomily, "Should I praise you for your ability? You are married, but you are still good at using your pretty face to deceive people - what did you say to the commander? Now you can get close to him. Does the poor little soldier in your family know?"

Ivy asked Song Xu seriously: "Did you hear a dog barking?"

Song Xu was anxious: "No, only my brother was talking - don't worry about the dog for now, Ivy, do you really want to ride with someone like Lorraine? Do you know how terrible he is when he teaches? He even corporally punished a student - just because the student accidentally hit other students when throwing a bomb! He whipped the student twice!"

Ivy: "...In the face of life, I support this kind of corporal punishment. After all, we are half soldiers."

Song Feng said, "It's really despicable."

Ivy walked up to him, took off his mask with one hand, and saw Song Feng's pale and handsome face.

Song Feng didn't move, he was stunned.

Ivy raised her hand high and slapped him hard.

Song Feng was stunned.

Song Xu was stunned.

"I support corporal punishment and all forms of violence in response to insults," Ivy said calmly. "Call me nasty again and I'll see."

Song Feng gritted his teeth and said, "You... despicable fellow!"

Song Xu rushed over and hugged Song Feng tightly: "...Don't - don't fight!"

While Songfeng was being hugged, Ivy slapped him again without hesitation.

Song Xu tightly held Song Feng and changed his words: "—Don't hit my brother."

Song Feng was furious: "Whose brother are you?"

"You can go and cry and complain to someone, or tell the camp leader that I beat you because you made some discriminatory remarks about genetics," Ivy said, reassuring herself as she recalled what Lorraine had said to Song Xu. "We'll see who will be punished for speaking without restraint, or for me who is trying to protect my dignity."

Song Feng laughed in anger: "Do you think that just because Luo Lin helped you once, you can get close to him? Does he know that you are married and can sleep with anyone?"

Song Xu struggled: "Brother, please stop talking. If you keep talking, I will hit you too."

"Whatever you want," Ivy told Song Feng calmly, "I'm looking forward to his expression when he finds out you're making up rumors about him. Say more, I'm still recording."

Song Feng closed his mouth and looked at her with disgust, as if he were looking at a cut coconut. He was severely allergic to coconuts.

Ivy shook the recorder in her hand and said, "You don't want Lorraine to know what you said in private, do you? I heard that you really want to transfer to the military - your family doesn't seem to have any connections in the military?"

Song Xu felt that he could let his brother go.

"Then brush your mouth clean," Ivy threw him the last words, "If I hear unhappy words again, I will give it to Lorraine immediately."

Raising the recorder in her hand, Ivy winked at Song Xu and Song Feng: "See you tomorrow. I hope Song Feng will have countless sleepless nights."

Song Feng was furious: "Ivy!!!"

Ivy ignored him and walked briskly towards Lorraine's car.

She found Lorraine's car easily and opened the door easily -

And closed it like a whirlwind.

"I'm sorry," Ivy apologized sincerely outside the car, "Teacher, I didn't know you were changing clothes."

There was no movement inside. After a long time, Lorraine, wearing a new military uniform, opened the door.

He still had no expression.

Ivy added: "I didn't see anything just now."

——I only saw a little bit of Lorraine's chest, which was very clean. His skin was very white, and he unexpectedly managed his body hair, so there were a few faint, almost undetectable pink spots.

The vague memory of the drunken wedding night lingered in Ivy's mind, and she couldn't help but wonder, would the military require everyone to manage their body hair?

Lorraine looked at her.

Under such a gaze, it was difficult for Ivy to continue lying.

She admitted that the strict teacher made her feel exposed, as if she was the one being seen.

"I only saw a little bit," Ivy said. "Sorry, teacher."

"It's okay," Lorraine said solemnly, "Given our relationship, it's okay if we see it in private."

Ivy expressed her gratitude from the bottom of her heart: "You are so generous."

——The teacher appears to be serious, but in private, he doesn't mind being seen naked by his students at all.

What a wonderful contrast, she thought.

Lorraine frowned: "What kind of strange adjective is this?"

"I studied the use of Internet language by ancient people for a while in college," Ivy explained. "At one stage, they called those kind-hearted men who shared their bodies for free to others 'generous male bodhisattvas'."

Lorraine said: "You have a wealth of knowledge about sexual relations."

As he spoke, he handed her a military water bottle filled with clean water.

Ivy took the kettle, opened the lid, and took a sip: "Thank you, teacher, you seem to want to continue praising me."

Lorraine said calmly, "No, I was just being polite."

Ivy: “…”

The car Lorraine was in was not much more spacious than the supply storage vehicle. It was obvious that he was not the kind of person who enjoyed special privileges and did not get himself a more comfortable car just because of his high position.

Like the other team members, he was eating the rationed food and water and did not abuse his position to enjoy them.

It's just that he was too boring and hardly ever talked to her. He was not even in the car most of the time. He had to go to another car for a meeting to answer some of the team members' questions.

He is a teacher and currently the highest-level consultant in the entire Iris - or in other words, the invisible leader.

Before resting, Ivy chewed some small pellets that could quickly clean her mouth, and watched Lorraine, who had finally returned, take another pill.

She was curious: "What are you eating?"

After getting in the car, she noticed that Lorraine had already eaten two.

Lorraine said, "Some new drugs that suppress the five senses."

Ivy was shocked: "Why do you want to suppress your five senses? Are you feeling guilty about being too strict with your students? - Do you think your five senses are too sharp? Is it innate? Or can it be trained? I'm very curious, and I really, really want to have a sharp sense..."

Lorraine counted and she asked thirty-two questions in one breath.

Ivy was still looking at him eagerly.

Lorraine put it simply: "Post-traumatic stress syndrome."

Ivy closed her mouth.

She knew what these seven words meant.

Many soldiers who have been engaged in long-term battles with artificial intelligence have ended up in mental hospitals.

There are caregivers there to look after them and prevent them from committing suicide.

Lorraine was adjusting his chair, lying down on it, and adjusting it to an angle that was comfortable for sleeping.

"I'm sorry, teacher, I shouldn't ask you this," Ivy apologized, "Would it be better if I told you something light-hearted now?"

Lorraine said, “Maybe.”

He closed his eyes.

Ivy said, "But I didn't know what to say right away."

"You can tell me about your life," Lorraine said. "It might be boring enough to put me to sleep right away."

"Good idea," Ivy thought for a moment, "Then how about I tell you about my first love? Because the time I spent with him was the easiest. He was a very good and excellent doctor——"

"Ivy," Lorraine said calmly, "I suddenly feel sleepy. Please be quiet immediately. Thank you."