Part 2
“I wouldn’t have even noticed if you didn’t say,” Hè Chí replied, leaning in. “It says here…”
Before he could finish, Zhù Shāngchén had silently appeared behind them. A dark shadow cast over the shelf gave him away.
Both men whipped their heads around.
Zhù Shāngchén stood there calmly, a small basket hanging from his arm, already containing a few items.
“Yo! You’re here too?” Shěn Qīnghuái said.
“Buying things alone?”
Zhù Shāngchén just hummed in acknowledgment. Hè Chí stared at them, completely baffled.
It seemed Zhù Shāngchén was even more detail-oriented than Shěn Qīnghuái. But how did he know what to get? He came here alone… how did he seem to know more about this stuff than I do?
Hè Chí was deeply confused. Just as he was about to ask Zhù Shāngchén something, Zhù Shāngchén suddenly turned. “I’m leaving.”
…
When they returned, Mǐ Qiū came out to the main hall and saw two bags by the sofa. Her hand froze on its way to grab the sanitary products.
She hadn’t even noticed Shěn Qīnghuái sitting there. Mǐ Qiū forced a smile. “Thanks! You went too?”
“Mhm.”
“Who paid for this?”
“Hè Chí did.”
Noticing her awkwardness, he tactfully stood up and walked away, giving her space to grab the bags.
Mǐ Qiū took both bags back to her room. Everything was there. Now she just had to deal with her… difficult situation. Thankfully, she had what she needed.
But her stomach still hurt, so much that she couldn’t stand up straight.
Mǐ Qiū came out of her room and glanced at Ruǎn Bái Bái, who was still sleeping soundly. She’d been in agony for so long, and looking at Ruǎn Bái Bái’s blissful sleep just made her jealous!
Mǐ Qiū grabbed the brown sugar and went to the living room. Shěn Qīnghuái saw her emerge. Seeing her still-weak appearance, he offered to make the brown sugar water for her.
“That would be great, thank you.”
“No need to be so polite with me.”
“Guide Mǐ Qiū, you should go back to your room and lie down.”
She hadn’t expected him to be so gentle. Mǐ Qiū returned to her room. A moment later, there was a knock.
Mǐ Qiū told him the door was unlocked, he could come in. Shěn Qīnghuái entered.
“The bottle listed the dosage. One cube should be enough, I think.”
“I used boiling water, so be careful, it’s hot.”
The cup was full. As Mǐ Qiū took it with both hands, her fingers brushed against his. His palm was warm, spreading a comforting heat.
Mǐ Qiū was instantly reminded of the dream—of them holding each other, their fingers intertwined…
The feeling was so familiar.
Mǐ Qiū pulled her hand away. Even if dreams could bleed into reality, she couldn’t let herself get lost in it.
Shěn Qīnghuái had surely taken the drug that made him forget everything.
Besides, his brainwave value was much more stable now. It was very likely he would be fully stable after just one or two more soothing sessions.
Thankfully, it was happening faster than Mǐ Qiū had expected. But Officer Hè hadn’t given her much time.
She only had half a day to rest. Mǐ Qiū decided to stay in her room and go nowhere.
When she got bored, she started playing a match-3 game that Hè Chí had recommended. Mǐ Qiū actually liked match-3 games; clearing the blocks was a great stress reliever. She spent the whole afternoon lying in bed playing, finally understanding the simple joy of being Ruǎn Bái Bái.
Ruǎn Bái Bái didn’t need any more training. It was well-behaved now, and as long as it wasn’t mischievous, it saved her a lot of trouble. Ruǎn Bái Bái was still most afraid of Mǐ Qiū; if she so much as frowned, the little rabbit would freeze, its black-bead eyes darting back and forth.
After playing dead for almost a full day, Mǐ Qiū finally recovered some of her energy.
The days were getting colder, so warm clothes were essential. The fleece-lined pillows and heating gloves she’d bought earlier could all be put to use. Mǐ Qiū would wear the heating gloves to keep her hands from freezing. The gloves had fingerprint sensors, so she could still use her light-brain while wearing them.
The StarNet’s connection speed was excellent.
Mǐ Qiū recently saw a popular app in the interstellar store and downloaded it. Here, she could watch videos about this Sentinel-Guide world. She even followed the Sentinel main base’s video channel.
There, she could see the White Tower and videos of Sentinels training.
The main base was called the Star Stem Base. The place was like a massive armory, with a huge stockpile of supplies. Behind it, she saw the building she recognized: The Guide Institute.
The original owner had come from there. Through some videos, Mǐ Qiū could see the Guides who were higher-ranked than her.
Those Guides wore beautiful uniforms. A-class Guides wore pink, which looked very bright. B-class was orange-yellow, C-class was blue, and D-class was purple. It was true: other than her, there were no F-class Guides.
Mǐ Qiū had never seen a Guide in silver-gray clothes.
Mǐ Qiū got a little addicted to browsing. She was still scrolling on her light-brain while eating breakfast.
In the middle of her meal, she went to the kitchen to grab a piece of buttered bread. Her light-brain pinged with a notification: You’ve liked 520 posts! Congratulations on earning the “Like Master” title!
Mǐ Qiū returned to the table and sat down. She had forgotten to close the video she’d just liked. Because the interface wasn’t fully closed, the audio started playing out loud.
Over a catchy BGM, a video of Sentinels on their morning run started playing.
The volume wasn’t that loud, so maybe no one heard?
Mǐ Qiū thought this as she anxiously scanned their faces. The two men across from her seemed normal.
She muted the volume and let out a sigh of relief.
But she failed to notice that Zhù Shāngchén’s expression looked a little lonely.
However, Zhù Shāngchén always maintained his calm, unreadable expression. He finished his breakfast and left without saying a word to her.
Even if Zhù Shāngchén saw that Sentinel training video, well, everyone appreciates beauty, Mǐ Qiū thought.
That physique… just thinking about it makes me drool…
Night fell, and Mǐ Qiū went to Zhù Shāngchén’s room.
Zhù Shāngchén was in the supermarket buying clean cloths to wipe his sniper rifle.
When Mǐ Qiū pushed open the door, he was still wiping it. He heard the faint sound from the doorway, and nothing escaped him.
Before she even saw him, she saw a sniper rifle pointed straight at her…
Mǐ Qiū froze.
What if it accidentally went off?
“It’s me!” Mǐ Qiū made a mental note not to just walk in next time.
Zhù Shāngchén: “The prey I lock onto… if it tries to escape, I pull the trigger.”
The next second, he lowered the gun. “It’s a model. No need to be afraid, Guide Mǐ Qiū.”
He even kept a model gun with him? Mǐ Qiū: “I came to put the equipment in first.”
“I might be disturbing you,” Mǐ Qiū explained.
Zhù Shāngchén: “I’m sorry, Guide Mǐ Qiū. It’s my fault. I scared you, didn’t I?”
How could she not be scared? She was terrified! Her heart was pounding!
“In that case, can you wait for me a moment?”
“Oh, you’re going to shower too?”
The woman tilted her head up, her moist eyes meeting a pair of deep, dark pupils…
Last time, Shěn Qīnghuái had said he showered at this time every night. So she just blurted it out.
“Why would you think that, Guide Mǐ Qiū?”
She didn’t want to think that, it’s just…
“Okay, I’ll wait for you.”
Mǐ Qiū yawned. She was really tired today. Maybe she had rested too much, which was why she felt so sluggish.
But when it was time for the hypnosis, she would have to truly focus. Concentration was key to a better hypnotic effect.
After Zhù Shāngchén washed up, he stood directly in front of Mǐ Qiū and asked her, “What should I do next?”
It seemed he had forgotten every single step.
“Just lie down on the bed.”
“Lie down?”
“Yes, just lie down.”
“Do I need to take off my clothes?”
Hearing the words “lie down,” Zhù Shāngchén naturally assumed it was the preparatory step for sleeping. He’d blurted it out unconsciously.
Mǐ Qiū waved her hands, signaling that wasn’t necessary at all.
“Just take off your shoes and lie on the bed.”
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