“Is this… the country’s secret underground base?” Xu Jiao guessed in her heart.
Before she could think further, the girl who had claimed to also be recruited leaned closer to her. “This is one of the underground bases the state built to combat the apocalypse.”
“You definitely wouldn’t guess how long it took to build this base.”
Hearing this, Xu Jiao’s curiosity was piqued, and she guessed, “Half a year?”
Based on the girl’s tone, the construction speed must have been very fast.
“Seven days.”
As Li Sang gave the answer, she raised her hand and patted Xu Jiao’s shoulder, signaling her to follow.
Upon hearing this answer, Xu Jiao was completely stunned, her eyes filled with disbelief.
What? Had she heard correctly? How long did the girl say it took to build this underground base? Seven days? Seven days wasn’t even enough to excavate such a massive site, yet they managed to construct such a large underground base?!
Xu Jiao felt her worldview being challenged. To what extent had the country’s technology advanced without her knowledge?
Initially, when she heard Li Sang say in the car that hundreds of underground air-raid shelters across the country were completed simultaneously within a week, she thought she was exaggerating. But if the underground base before her had been built in just seven days… then it was entirely possible for hundreds of shelters to be completed at once in seven days!
After standing still for about a minute, Xu Jiao finally stepped forward to keep pace with Li Sang and the others.
Jiang Taian walked at the front of the group, his face cold, moving forward without a pause. Even though he was riding a motorcycle, he wasn’t slow at all, arriving here almost at the same time as Li Sang’s group.
The shock in Xu Jiao’s heart had not yet subsided. If her trust in Li Sang and the others was only fifty percent when they were in the car, it had now soared to ninety percent. For her to fully believe them, she needed to see some sufficiently authoritative figures—for instance, the kind of people who only appeared in political news.
Funnily enough, Xu Jiao had taken the civil service exam for five years, never succeeding but never giving up. Now, reborn in a new life, the official position she had long yearned for was actively seeking her out.
She walked silently beside Li Sang. After an unknown amount of time and several layers of security checks, they finally reached their destination.
It was an extremely spacious area where dozens of large vehicles, standing at least three meters tall, were parked. They were all made of a new type of material, strong enough to withstand gunshots and over ten tons of pressure. Moreover, these vehicles did not require fuel; as long as there was air, they could keep running.
To develop these, the state had invested immense manpower and financial resources. What was parked here were the finished products that remained after thousands of failed prototypes. Their cost was exorbitant.
“Uncle Lin.”
While Xu Jiao was sizing up the vehicles, the girl beside her suddenly jogged a few steps toward a middle-aged man with a bit of gray hair. From the expression on her face, she was clearly acquainted with this man called Uncle Lin.
Li Sang moved so fast that even Jiang Taian couldn’t outpace her, only following closely behind and calling out, “Uncle Lin.”
Behind him, Qi Yan and Ling Lan bowed toward Uncle Lin, their voices respectful. “Academician Lin.”
Academician Lin, named Lin Shushan, was the one responsible for the dozens of large vehicles made of new materials parked in this open space. They were the result of research by him and his wife, Academician Jiang Chunlan, along with countless researchers.
Xu Jiao walked up to Lin Shushan two steps behind the others. Unsure of how to address the middle-aged man, she followed Qi Yan and Ling Lan’s lead and spoke respectfully, “Hello, Academician Lin.”
Lin Shushan had been researching how to mass-produce these vehicles today. As the date estimated by astronomers for the disintegration of the comet drew closer, his anxiety grew, and he had intended to see no one during this period.
However, when he heard that Li Sang and Jiang Taian had brought a woman back, he couldn’t sit still for a moment and immediately left his lab. Although he was only in his forties or fifties, his temples were already white, and he didn’t have much hair left on top. It was clear how much effort he had poured into his scientific research.
“Little Sang, is this the… rebirther with the space?”
Lin Shushan wore glasses on the bridge of his nose. As he spoke, he walked toward Xu Jiao.
Hearing this, Xu Jiao opened her mouth, for a moment not knowing what to say. She felt as though she couldn’t say anything at all.
In the end, it was Li Sang who answered Lin Shushan’s question. She nodded. “Yes, she possesses a space that can store everything.”
The reason Lin Shushan believed Li Sang’s words so readily was simply that he wanted to properly protect his research results. He wanted to use those results when they were needed, rather than having them destroyed by the comet crashing into Earth.
So, rather than saying he believed Li Sang, it was more accurate to say he believed in the dream Li Sang had woven for him. Li Sang had told him that with this space, his research results would not suffer even a fraction of damage when the comet struck. To researchers, their results were like their children, like their lives. It was precisely because of this that Lin Shushan believed Li Sang. He hoped what she said could become a reality.
Now, Li Sang told him that the person had been found and was willing to help them.
With Li Sang’s affirmative words, the smile on Lin Shushan’s face brightened significantly. “Hello, my name is Lin Shushan. You can call me Uncle Lin, just like Little Sang and Little An.”
Xu Jiao’s gaze lingered on Jiang Taian and Li Sang for a moment. After receiving a reassuring look from Li Sang, she spoke tentatively, “Uncle Lin…”
Xu Jiao was actually quite introverted and didn’t talk much, only showing significant changes under specific circumstances—like when Qi Yan had picked her up by the waist and she thought she was going to die.
Upon hearing her, Lin Shushan immediately nodded. “Ah, can you let me see your space?”
See the space? That was the necklace her grandmother had given her…
Xu Jiao wanted to refuse, but before she could think of a suitable excuse, Li Sang immediately stepped in front of her and spoke on her behalf. “Uncle Lin, this space is quite mysterious. It is bound to her, and only she can enter. You won’t be able to see it.”
Xu Jiao was momentarily stunned by these words. Did Li Sang not know, or was she… helping her? After all, if they knew the so-called space that could store everything was just her necklace, would they make her hand it over? Regardless of the reason, Li Sang’s words were beneficial to her. Xu Jiao immediately said, “I can put things inside right in front of you, but no one else can go in.”
She thought saying this would bring a look of disappointment to Lin Shushan’s face, but it didn’t. He was only slightly surprised but quickly recovered and said, “Then, can you put this car inside right now?”