Part 2
“I think you’re overthinking it. Let’s not bring this up. I just want to get back to the base safely. I’m done staying here, suffering and getting exhausted.”
The two went back and forth, basically clarifying the situation.
Mǐ Qiū didn’t know what would happen, and no one was willing to explain the cause and effect to her. After all, she was just a Guide here, not a key figure, so naturally, she was in a state of ignorance about many things.
Regardless of the facts, Mǐ Qiū knew she couldn’t participate in this topic.
“Uh, I guess we’re splitting into two groups to leave.”
“Aren’t we all going back to the base?”
“The Commander isn’t returning to the base. He said he has important business and will leave with Guide Mǐ Qiū.”
Code 16 leaned in closer to Mǐ Qiū, his eyes full of drama, and asked, “Guide Mǐ Qiū, your relationship with the Commander really is unusual. Otherwise, why would you be going off secretly with Commander Fù to who-knows-where?”
Mǐ Qiū didn’t speak, only smiling continuously.
“Tell us, why aren’t you returning to the main base? You wouldn’t… you wouldn’t be going on a date with our Commander Fù, would you? I don’t approve of that.”
Code 14 retorted, “Who asked for your approval? Guide Mǐ, is what he said true? Are you really…”
Mǐ Qiū felt like even ten mouths couldn’t explain this clearly. But fortunately, they reminded her that she had something to tell Fù Róngqīng.
After that, Mǐ Qiū buried her head in her food. Regarding this matter, she just shook her head. Whether they believed it or not was their business; she couldn’t control their minds or what they thought. Then, she returned to the tent.
Fù Róngqīng was there.
Looking at his tall back, Mǐ Qiū spoke up, “Commander Fù, you’re coming with me, right?”
Fù Róngqīng: “Yes, with you. But what can I do with you?”
He asked back coldly.
“It’s like this, Commander Fù can’t go directly to the island this time because I still have to pick up another guest. If you’re pressed for time, you can go back to the base with everyone else first.”
Fù Róngqīng couldn’t quite figure her out.
He said, “Guide Mǐ, you aren’t playing me, are you? We had an agreement, and now you’re changing it. Do you think lying is fun?”
Mǐ Qiū had to explain the whole situation to him. “Commander Fù, you’ve misunderstood me a little. From beginning to end, I haven’t lied to you, Commander. The island matter is settled. Originally, I was supposed to pick up two other guests as well.”
Fù Róngqīng let out a soft “Oh” and said, “I didn’t realize Guide Mǐ was busier than I am. In that case, I’ll go with you. I’ll arrange the time.”
Hearing her silence, Fù Róngqīng asked if she had any objections. How could Mǐ Qiū dare to have objections? She was merely following Officer Hè’s orders.
Fù Róngqīng: “Since there’s no problem, we’ll set off tomorrow morning as soon as it’s fully light.”
Mǐ Qiū showed Fù Róngqīng the map Officer Hè had sent her earlier and asked him, “It shouldn’t be far from that place, right?”
Fù Róngqīng: “Not far. It only takes two days on the fiber-optic boat, then two days and two nights driving a mecha vehicle, and finally riding a Star Donkey to get there.”
Ah… that’s not short at all!
“It doesn’t matter. Even if you plan to go to a wasteland, Guide Mǐ, I’ll accompany you to the end.”
Mǐ Qiū waved her hand at him. “Commander Fù, that’s too serious. If you think it’s too far, you really don’t have to go.”
“You mean you can find such a remote place by yourself? I need to remind you that the actual distance to get there makes travel difficult, and you don’t even know what the communication tools are. Besides, few people know about that place. I am taking you there.”
Fù Róngqīng added, “Right now, it should be early autumn there. Given the autumn temperatures, if it’s convenient on the way, you should buy a few more sets of clothes.”
“Shopping on the StarNet works too, and there’s a 12% discount. It’s cheap!”
Fù Róngqīng looked at her and said helplessly, “Starting tomorrow, we’ll be on the road constantly. Can you ensure your clothes will be delivered?”
Mǐ Qiū hadn’t seriously considered this problem; it was indeed her oversight. Mǐ Qiū accepted his idea. She’d listen to him; buying on the road wasn’t impossible.
Early this morning, everyone set off. Mǐ Qiū happened to wake up early, around six o’clock. With an hour left before departure, she told Fù Róngqīng she wanted to say hello to the Rear Support Area.
Fù Róngqīng naturally wouldn’t stop her, but he gave her a time limit: no more than 15 minutes. He was afraid they would worry about her, and seeing them one last time was good.
Moreover, in Mǐ Qiū’s view, apart from Officer Hè giving her orders in the past, few people truly cared about her. Squad Leader Qí was outside maintaining discipline among the Sentinels. Seeing Mǐ Qiū, he was quite surprised and walked towards her. “You only stayed in the Logistics Department for a few days before leaving. Fortunately, you’re safe and sound now. Do you have any plans for the future?”
“Mhm, I have to go to other places.”
“So you won’t be returning to the Guide Institute for a while?”
Mǐ Qiū thought for a moment and replied, “Squad Leader Qí, I can’t go back right now, and I still have a mission.”
Squad Leader Qí looked at her and said, “Actually, Guide Mǐ has luck on her side. To be honest, this war against the D411 aliens lasted a long time. If it weren’t for Guide Mǐ Qiū’s arrival, it probably wouldn’t have ended so quickly. So, it was Guide Mǐ Qiū who brought us good luck!”
Mǐ Qiū: “I’m not a very lucky person. Perhaps.”
Just as Mǐ Qiū finished chatting with Squad Leader Qí, she saw Lóu Chēng walking over.
Lóu Chēng froze for a moment when he saw Mǐ Qiū. He knew she was safe, of course, but her coming here was a pleasant surprise. He said, “Welcome back! Guide Mǐ Qiū.”
She walked up to Lóu Chēng and said, “Long time no see. You guys should be returning to the base, right? I just wanted to come here and say goodbye to everyone! I’m very happy to have met you all!”
Lóu Chēng: “Are you leaving again? Or going back to the island?”
“I have a private itinerary, inconvenient to reveal for now.”
“Since you’ll be staying on the island… in two years, when you match with a Sentinel, do you have a candidate in your heart right now?”
The sudden question stunned her. Mǐ Qiū could only say, “It’s a bit early for me to consider that.”
“It’s not early. If you match with a designated Sentinel, Guide Mǐ, you’ll feel happier and more joyful.”
She didn’t quite know how to answer him. At that moment, Fù Róngqīng came over to find her himself.
He tapped the watch on his wrist as a reminder. Time passed so quickly; had 15 minutes gone by just like that?
It seemed she really couldn’t chat with them any longer. After saying goodbye to the Sentinels in the Rear Support Area, Mǐ Qiū ran to Fù Róngqīng.
Fù Róngqīng looked at her and said faintly, “Guide Mǐ needs a sense of time. You’re two minutes over.”
“Fifteen minutes seems a bit fast.”
“Guide Mǐ, are you questioning me?”
Mǐ Qiū: “No.”
“Catching a fiber-optic boat here isn’t easy; that’s why I reminded you.”
Mǐ Qiū finally got on the fiber-optic boat.
Seeing Captain Shí again—seeing an old acquaintance was nice; she felt her heart settle.
“Captain Shí, it really is you.”
Captain Shí saw Mǐ Qiū and thought that the person taking his boat in this place had to be her. So he said, “Besides me, few people dare to drive to this place.”
“But the place you arrived at isn’t the Field Zone; this is the Rear Support Area. The Field Zone is further away, at least six thousand meters forward.”
Captain Shí smiled bitterly at her. “It’s good enough that I can stop here. Did you really plan for me to go to the real Field Zone? I’d have to be crazy.”
Seeing them chatting enthusiastically, a relaxed smile appeared on Mǐ Qiū’s face for the first time in a long while. Fù Róngqīng remarked, “You two are quite familiar!”
Captain Shí spoke first, “Yes, Commander Fù. When we came, Guide Mǐ took this very boat. How could we not be familiar?”
It was the first time Fù Róngqīng looked at Mǐ Qiū this closely. Mǐ Qiū belatedly cupped her cheeks and asked, “Commander Fù, is there something on my face?”
Since she had just eaten, it would be bad if there was rice or soup stains. She hadn’t checked herself before coming out, so Mǐ Qiū took a mirror from the small side pocket of her backpack and looked at herself.
Fortunately, there were no grains of rice or anything she needed to deal with.
The hull of the fiber-optic boat was enclosed. Although not large, the space inside was quite spacious.
It was big enough for two people to live in. The only issue was the potential for seasickness. Mǐ Qiū was only worried she wouldn’t sleep well when the waves rocked the boat; everything else was fine.
“Guide Mǐ…”
Was someone calling her? Mǐ Qiū looked around. There shouldn’t be anyone, right? Who would suddenly call her at this time?
She figured it was probably because she was a little seasick, making her head dizzy and causing auditory hallucinations, so Mǐ Qiū didn’t pay it much mind at first. She needed to organize her backpack, put things where they belonged, and take out dinner ahead of time so it wouldn’t spoil.
“Mǐ Qiū!”
There it was again?
Mǐ Qiū opened the door to her cabin and saw the door to Fù Róngqīng’s cabin opposite hers was open. He was lying on the floor. Mǐ Qiū rushed into his cabin and asked if he was okay and what was wrong. Captain Shí’s voice came over the intercom…
“The wind and waves are strong right now, you guys sit tight!”
As soon as these words came out, Mǐ Qiū realized Fù Róngqīng was likely seasick, and probably very severely so.
At this moment, Fù Róngqīng was dizzy and dazzled, his hands trying to unbutton his shirt.
“Commander Fù?”
“Undo the buttons. Need air. I’m seasick.”
Mǐ Qiū had thought she was the only one who got a little seasick; she didn’t expect Fù Róngqīng to have it so bad. Mǐ Qiū immediately asked Captain Shí if he had any seasickness medicine.
Captain Shí: “Where would I get seasickness medicine? We just have to ride it out. It’ll be fine in a while. This area has some wind and waves; it’ll be okay once we sail out of it.”
That was true, but she couldn’t just watch Fù Róngqīng suffer, could she? He needed air, so Mǐ Qiū helped him undo the top two buttons.
“Do you need more undone? Commander Fù?”
He looked terribly uncomfortable and couldn’t speak. Mǐ Qiū thought she should help him, so she undid all the buttons on his shirt to give him room to breathe.
However, Fù Róngqīng didn’t get any better. This wasn’t a solution. If the boat ride was only half an hour or an hour, they could just tough it out. But the journey was long, and Commander Fù was a guest. How could she let a guest suffer?
Mǐ Qiū felt uneasy. There was one other way: make him fall asleep. It had to be deep sleep; otherwise, he would feel seasick again as soon as he woke up.
Thinking this, Mǐ Qiū acted quickly. Soothing the spiritual body inside him and putting him into a deep sleep would keep him in the most comfortable state for now. Mǐ Qiū took out her hypnosis equipment and, following the previous steps, began the hypnosis. This time, she successfully entered the first layer.
First, she soothed the spiritual body—that very fierce male lion. Once Mǐ Qiū found the method, soothing his spiritual body wasn’t as difficult as the first time. Basically, she passed through without spending much time.
Next, Mǐ Qiū fell into Fù Róngqīng’s deep dreamscape.
A fast-forwarded plot flashed through her mind: it was them kissing in the car. Mǐ Qiū saw the person approaching. The person walking toward her outside the window wasn’t a stranger, but the First Guide, Bào Fú.
What followed was Mǐ Qiū getting severely scolded by her and punished with writing a 10,000-word self-reflection essay. Mǐ Qiū hadn’t expected that the scene of writing the essay wouldn’t be skipped. She had to write the entire essay without missing a single word. Everyone knew how strict Guide Bào was.
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