Chapter 3
Xi Yue's demeanor was so calm that the mecha soldiers had the illusion that "she was still a high-ranking first-class citizen."
"General Ishigami is too intimidating. Even if the debt is real, it shouldn't be enough to warrant a suspended death sentence, right?"
"Scare?" Shi Liheng sneered, "See for yourself."
At his signal, a mecha soldier took off the gold on his arm, took off the light computer and handed it to Xiyue.
Xiyue put on the optical computer, and the biometric function automatically logged into her account. Several unread messages immediately popped up, all from contacts she did not recognize.
The latest message came from the "Asset Management Center" under the name of the Central Star District. After clicking on it, it contained some nonsense such as "Since your father Xihai has been confirmed dead, the debtor change mechanism has been triggered."
Below the information is an extremely long list of debts with an anti-counterfeiting code from the asset management center.
The list was sorted by debt amount, and the amount in the first row contained a dizzying number of zeros. Xiyue counted them and found there were exactly 11 "0"s - 100 billion.
Well, in her previous life, her gambling father only owed 4 million in loan sharking debt. But here, he multiplied his debt 25,000 times.
All hundreds of them add up to: "4,000,100t,000,000" star coins, and this is just the principal.
The money in this world has become worthless due to inflation, right?
No, paper is very precious in this world.
"See?" Shi Liheng looked at her with interest. "Tell me, how are you and your brother going to pay it back? If you can't pay it back, where else can you go besides the contaminated area?"
Xi Yue also responded with an interested smile, calmly saying, "Whether or not we can pay it back is our business. However, there is one thing I would like to ask General Shi: does the code also stipulate that as long as the creditor determines that the debt cannot be paid, he can do whatever he wants to the debtor?"
"What's the meaning?"
"It's nothing special. I just wanted to remind General Shi that it's true that my father left us with 4 trillion in debt, but the most recent one isn't due until next month. Since the debt isn't overdue, what grounds does General Shi have for arresting us and even sentencing us to suspended death sentences? Could it be that the General's will is more important than the law?"
The Interstellar Codex is the cornerstone of this world order—common sense known to everyone in the galaxy.
Shi Liheng's smile froze completely. He stared at her suspiciously for a while, then raised his arm to look through his laptop.
As Xiyue said, the due date for the latest debt was January 1, and the creditor was him.
He had lent money to Xihai too many times. Xihai was already dead, and the money was destined to be never returned, so he even forgot when each loan was due.
Being refuted in front of so many people, Shi Liheng was embarrassed and looked gloomy: "None of you three have a single star coin on you. I don't believe you can pay me back in a month!"
"So, General Ishigami is going to sentence us to suspended death penalty in advance?"
Xi Yue retorted, "Oh, there's another rule everyone seems to know: debt disputes are economic cases and fall under the jurisdiction of the Public Security Bureau. Even the rulers of the star region cannot intervene without investigation and judgment. As an admiral, you should be more familiar with the contents of the code than I am, right?"
This common sense cannot be said to be known to everyone. At most, only some people know it. After all, the garbage citizens who make up half of the total interstellar population have no chance of owing debts at all.
If Xiyue hadn't been sensitive to words like loan and debt, she wouldn't have taken them seriously when collecting "common sense" these days.
After mobilizing a large force, only to be silenced by a citizen with a rubbish E-level mental power, Shi Liheng's expression was truly remarkable. His expression shifted several times before he finally waved his hand, "Take him away!"
Xiyao recovered from her shock and said in panic, "Sister is right, Uncle Shi, you can't arrest us!"
Xiyue glanced at her helplessly.
This girl still calls him "Uncle Shi" all the time. It is obvious that she has been spoiled by Xi Haifu.
Shi Liheng chuckled in anger, "Yes, I'm not arresting you. This Admiral is simply exercising the temporary jurisdiction of Star District 33 granted by the central government to deport these trashy citizens without residency rights! Throw them into Star District 29!"
Xiyue couldn't refute it, as she had no common sense of "temporary jurisdiction" in her mind.
But...Sector 29?
Isn’t that the garbage star zone where Xihai died?
Soon, Xiyue and her younger siblings were driven aboard a starship. Military starships were much larger than private starships, and besides them, they could seat ten more people, a whole fleet of mechas.
The pilot, but the starship did not start. Xi Yue glanced outside the cabin and found Shi Liheng.
He was talking to a bearded soldier.
Xiyue nudged Xipo: "What rank is that?"
"Captain, he should be the captain of this star team." Xipo replied, looking at Xiyue with a complicated look.
Being calm and composed was secondary. The fact was that he had never heard Xiyue talk so much since he was born.
Unexpectedly, in the end it was the eldest sister who had nothing to do with the matter who saved him and his younger sister.
Shi Liheng separated from the bearded man and turned to look at the starship. Inside the transparent glass, Xi Yue, sitting by the window, smiled and nodded at him.
There is a kind of smugness and pride.
Shi Liheng's anger, which he had suppressed with great difficulty, suddenly surged up and he poked the optical computer hard.
"Shi Liheng: If you fail, your position as captain will be over!"
"Hubi: Got it, I promise to complete the task!"
Because of this additional news, the bearded man couldn't help but glare at Xiyue when he walked into the cabin.
Xiyue also smiled and nodded at him.
It turned out to be a trap.
The starship lifted off, quickly approaching the horizon. Unnoticed, a black mecha warrior quietly took off from a corner outside the Commander's Mansion, passing through the survival barrier at a slightly slower speed.
Xiyue had seen a lot of space information on the Star Network, but no photos or videos were as shocking as seeing it with her own eyes.
Because the "space" in this world is too abnormal.
There are no celestial bodies such as planets or nebulae. There is only deep darkness above the head, and an endless blue light shield under the feet - the survival barrier of each star region.
Inside the star zone, the sun and sunlight are simulated by the survival barrier, and the temperature, humidity, and oxygen are all maintained by the barrier. At night, there is no moon in the night sky, and the starship's navigation lights are the stars in the night sky.
The survival barriers varied in height, size, and depth. The survival barrier in Sector 33 was abundant in energy and brightness. As the starship moved eastward, the brightness of the survival barrier gradually decreased, until at the end of the field of view, one barrier was so dim that it was almost invisible.
That is Sector 29, a cold, barren, and garbage sector.
About an hour later, the starship arrived at Sector 29. It was clearly morning, and while the sunlight in Sector 33 was gradually getting stronger, Sector 29 was shrouded in a haze.
Xiyue looked down and saw a big black flower blooming on the ground. A black spot split from the garbage star area, and countless straight black gullies radiated in all directions.
"Sister, we didn't bring any clothes..." The gloomy sky made Xiyao feel cold.
Xiyue turned around and saw the little girl looked timid, so she comforted her casually: "It's okay, there is always a way."
The mecha soldiers in the front and back rows sneered in unison after hearing this.
Xiyue ignored him and looked at Xipo again. The boy, who was already tall and strong, was about to become an adult, but now he looked as listless as an old man.
The injury was one reason, but another was probably that he had faced the place where his father died for the second time in a short period of time.
The starship landed at the edge of a ravine, with only one side of the hatch open, away from the ravine.
"Go down."
Following Hubi's command, several mecha soldiers raised their hands, which were then transformed into mechanical arms by the strange gold that emerged from the mecha boxes. On the back of each mechanical arm, a black hole-like muzzle appeared.
Xiyao shrank back.
Xiyue patted her shoulder, stood up first, and walked out of the cabin with her brother and sister. They were met with endless desolation. Not even a tree, let alone a person.
Murder is a serious crime, even for soldiers stationed at the garrison. Once convicted, the sentence is suspended death. Although Star Reputation can offset all charges, even if the victim is a low-ranking citizen, it still costs 1,000 Star Reputation points, which converts to 10 million Star Coins.
Whether Hubi had the money or not was irrelevant, as Shi Liheng, a District One general, could definitely provide it. However, Shi Liheng didn't want to give people a chance to criticize him in public, so he asked Hubi to take the people to the remote and desolate Garbage Star Zone.
It's only an hour's journey, and you can vent your anger and save 3,000 star reputation points. Why not do it?
Xi Yue analyzed Shi Liheng's psychology, took a deep breath of the cold air in the garbage star area, and turned around.
Hubie's eyes really changed to looking at a dead person.
"Don't rush into it." Xi Yue said.
Hubie narrowed his eyes. He'd actually seen through it? Then how could he still be smiling?
He is so brave, no wonder he dares to contradict the general in public.
Xiyue's words awakened her younger brother and sister. Xiyao immediately hugged her elder sister's arm, while Xipo asked hatefully: "You want to kill us?!"
Xi Yue signaled the two men to remain calm and continued to smile at the muzzles of the guns: "Sir, what time is it now?"
Hubie looked suspiciously: "What for?"
Xi Yue: "I'm a very open-minded person. Death is nothing. I just want to know the time and minute of my death. Today is December 9, 2198, but I don't know the exact time. That's all I ask. Commander, can you satisfy me?"
Hubie quickly glanced at his laptop. "10:05 AM. Do you still want to know the seconds? No problem. I can tell you it's 32 seconds."
10:05:32. No, there are still three minutes left before the calculated time.
She had to find a way to delay for three minutes.
"Thank you, sir." Xi Yue thanked him politely and took a step forward.
Hubie became alert: "What are you doing?!"
"Captain, someone is coming!" said a mecha soldier.
Hubi looked up suddenly and saw a black spot appear in the sky, leaving a dim circle of light on the higher survival barrier.
Obviously a mecha warrior.
He quickly weighed the pros and cons and ordered, "Put away your guns."
As expected, the person rushed over and quickly landed in front of Hubie. The black metal scales on the mecha's visor retreated to the sides, revealing a neutral face.
"Xiang Jia of the 33rd Legion, once served as Miss Xi's bodyguard. Captain, I would like to say goodbye to Miss Xi."
"Lieutenant Xiang." Hubi looked at the identification card projected from Xiang Jia's palm, thought for a moment, and nodded.
If Xiang Jia had put away the mecha as soon as he landed, I'm afraid he wouldn't have nodded, but would have fed him a bullet.
A team member sent a message: "Captain, what should we do?"
Hubi stared at Xiyue's eyes threateningly and replied, "If that Xi family brat dares to say a word, I'll do it to her too!"
As expected, Xipo and Xiyao became excited when they heard Xiang Jia's name, but Xiyue suddenly turned around and pressed their shoulders.
Seeing the hesitation on their faces, Hubi couldn't help but wonder what Xiyue had said to them. However, when Xiyue looked at Xiang Jia again, she just smiled and said, "Why are you here?"
There seemed to be no intention of asking for help.
She exchanged glances with Hubie intentionally or unintentionally, and took Xiang Jia at a distance.
Xiang Jia glanced at Xipo and Xiyao from the corner of his eyes and asked in a low voice, "Why didn't you leave?"
Why didn’t you leave? Why didn’t you leave? This is also the question Xiyue has been asking herself.
Xiyue smiled and shook her head: "It doesn't matter. Can you let me check the time?"
Xiang Jia was stunned by this strange question, and only realized it when Xi Yue tapped her left hand. When she put on the mecha, the optical computer and the mecha were connected. She raised her hand and projected a light screen from her palm.
"10:07:01"
The timing is perfect.
"Go back, thank you for your concern."
"But..." Xiang Jia originally wanted to help Xi Yue settle down in the garbage star area, but just then he received a notification.
"Sector 33, all members of the Legion, gather at the garrison immediately."
Xiyue saw the content popping up on the screen and urged with a smile: "Let's go, we are fine."
Military orders are as heavy as mountains, and this place is far away from the 33rd star zone, so Xiang Jia had to leave immediately.
"Take care of yourself, miss."
Xiang Jia felt that what she said was a bit insincere. The garbage star area was cold and barren, and even food was hard to find. If she came here with nothing, it would be difficult for her to survive, not to mention Xi Yue who had been pampered since childhood.
She closed the metal mask, and before leaving, she suddenly gestured to Xiyue's pen, and her metal-wrapped fingers tapped continuously in the air.
The action of pressing the password clearly means that the money from selling the mecha is still in the mall locker.
Xiyue responded with a smile and watched her disappear into the horizon.
Xiang Jia's departure made Xipo and Xiyao anxious, and made Hubi and others suspicious.
Hubie: "What did she mean at the end, what did you say to her?"
“005.”
"What?"
“003.”
Xiyue's inexplicable counting made Hubi start to feel uneasy. He turned his uneasiness into irritability and strode forward, pointing the gun at Xiyue's forehead.
"Speak clearly!"
Xiyue blinked and continued counting: "001."
"Are you looking for death?!"
"team leader!"
“Pollutant!”
"Hurry up and start the mecha, full power, full power!"
"Help!"
"Captain, be careful!"
Amidst the noisy calls, a ball of gray light appeared above Hubie's head. It was like a black hole, distorting Hubie's figure, the desolate earth and the dark sky, and all the light nearby.
It is expanding rapidly.
From the size of a fist to larger than a human head, it took only the blink of an eye. An invisible and mysterious force radiated from it, causing all things to flourish in the land where only cold-resistant ferns could grow.
Then, it suddenly exploded, and the gray mist was like a galloping horse, instantly engulfing everything around it.
The sudden outburst of screams made Hubie's mind go numb, and he forgot to pull the trigger for a moment. All he could hear was the loud noise of his teammates firing bullets and laser cannons.
An unusual feeling of restraint suddenly appeared in his legs.
The fern, a species unique to the Junk Star Zone, grew rapidly, wrapping around his boots. Dense, long, narrow scales appeared on the black plant's surface, all opening simultaneously to form sharp spikes.
The severe pain went straight to the top of my head.
Pollution, pollution has broken out here!
Hubie, after all, was a captain with extensive combat experience, and he quickly pressed the button on his chest. Inside the mecha's case, the Juhe core hummed softly, inducing the Qijin within to envelop his body.
However, his wrist suddenly hurt, and before he could look back, a gunshot rang in his ears.
In the violently swirling gray fog, Xi Yao turned his gun-holding hand over, looked at the trickle of blood gushing out from his brow, and smiled slightly at his wide-open eyes.
"000——Sorry, I'm one second late."
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