On the seventh day of traveling along the Star Banner Route, the spaceship had already passed six star jump points. At its current speed, if everything went smoothly, they would pass through the seventh star jump point on the ninth day and complete the Star Banner Route.
“Why are you doing this to me?” Cheng Weilu lay sprawled against the door of the exercise cabin, slapping the transparent hatch in despair. “Why are you locking me up?”
Outside, Li Xu watched the data panel, his expression as steady as a mountain. He answered coldly, “Because I’m your client, and because you have absolutely no perseverance. The moment things get tiring, you run off. It’s safer to keep you in the sealed cabin.”
“The contract never said I had to exercise!” Cheng Weilu struggled desperately.
“It says I’m responsible for your personal safety,” Li Xu said. “I think your physical fitness needs improvement. It will increase your chances of survival in an emergency.”
He was wearing a simple workout outfit, a fitted black sleeveless top paired with black shorts, revealing his long, well-toned arms and legs. The muscular lines of his chest, shoulders, waist, and abdomen were pleasing to the eye, and his skin was smooth and lustrous. But at this moment, Cheng Weilu had no time to appreciate the beautiful body in front of her.
“Li Xu,” Cheng Weilu looked at him in exasperation. “Don’t forget your life is in my hands.”
“You mean this?”
Li Xu raised his left hand. A thin black wristband clasped his wrist, looking more like a minimalist accessory. His tone was cool as he said, “I haven’t forgotten. But if you poison your client to death, you won’t get the final payment, and Zhou Yan will hunt you down, too.”
Robert, who had no principles and would only indulge her, had been shut outside the gym by Li Xu. With no other choice, Cheng Weilu began shouting toward the ship, “Xiao Wei! Save me!”
“I’m here. I’ve had the gym’s surveillance cameras on the whole time,” Xiao Wei replied. “Sorry, A Luo. The system has detected that you are currently very safe and are not facing any threat to your life.”
“Also, I think Li Xu’s statement is 87% reasonable. I support you doing moderate exercise. Your physical fitness data isn’t very good. Keep it up, A Luo.”
“How exactly did you calculate that 87%?!” Cheng Weilu protested.
“Just a reminder. You have five minutes of rest time remaining.” Li Xu opened a small hatch on the exercise cabin and passed a glass of water through. “After that, walk for another forty minutes. Once you finish, you can come out.”
Looking at Cheng Weilu, who was listless and no longer wanted to talk to him, Li Xu said, “I’ve already sent your friend Lin Qi’s personal information to Zhou Yan and asked him to help find her.”
Cheng Weilu’s eyes immediately lit up. She looked at Li Xu expectantly. “Any news?”
“The records we found show that she passed through the Hel Star System more than ten days ago. It’s extremely remote there, and only a very small number of star regions have Star Network coverage.”
“You’re such a wonderful person! Tell me as soon as you hear anything else. Thank you!” Cheng Weilu took the glass and gulped down the water. “Good person, how about I only walk for another twenty minutes?”
“No.” Li Xu promptly closed the small hatch and snorted. “I’m the client, not some good person.”
…
On the ninth day of traveling along the Star Banner Route, they successfully reached the seventh star jump point. Li Xu docked the spaceship at the spaceport platform. There was still plenty of time before their appointment with 1247, so Li Xu and Cheng Weilu left the spaceship and wandered around the commercial district on the platform.
This was the final jump point along the Star Banner Route. Before entering the next section of their journey, most spaceships would stop here to rest and resupply. Restaurants, hotels, and commercial streets were bustling with people.
After eating food cooked by Li Xu for nine days, Cheng Weilu wanted a change of taste, so Li Xu made a reservation at a restaurant, and the two came over at mealtime.
Sitting across from her, Li Xu was dressed with great formality in an exquisitely tailored suit. His face and hair had also been carefully groomed, making his whole person practically shine.
Cheng Weilu looked down at the somewhat worn work clothes she was wearing and felt a little guilty about how formal he had dressed. She looked dusty and drab, making the great diamond beside her seem somewhat dim by comparison.
After ordering their food, the two chatted while waiting for their meal. A gaze swept over from behind Cheng Weilu. Li Xu raised his head and stared ahead, his right hand reaching toward the gun at his waist. That person’s target was Cheng Weilu.
Completely unaware, Cheng Weilu looked at Li Xu, who had suddenly become serious, then turned around in confusion. “What’s wrong?”
A woman emerged from behind the lush green wall of plants. She wore a white shirt, black trousers, and knee-high boots. With golden hair and blue eyes, she had a tall, alluring figure. Smiling brightly, she waved at Cheng Weilu. “A Luo, little sister, we meet again.”
When Cheng Weilu saw who it was, she stood up. Her back stiffened, and she took half a step back. Li Xu noticed her movement, stood up, and moved closer to her, positioning himself behind her.
“Hello, Lanka.” Cheng Weilu nodded at her.
“I had a feeling that the person who used mental strength to save people at the Fourth Star Spaceport was you. And now that I see you, it really is.” Lanka leaned slightly toward Cheng Weilu, her gaze carrying a hint of aggression as she looked her over. “After all, in all my years, I’ve never seen anyone with stronger mental strength value than you.”
She could sense the use of mental strength at the Fourth Star, so she must have been one of the two people who had helped them before. Li Xu leaned closer to Cheng Weilu, his voice gentle and his manner intimate. “A Luo, do you want to introduce me to this lady?”
The sudden use of “A Luo” made Cheng Weilu’s back prickle. She turned her head speechlessly to look at him. This man was acting again.
It seemed only then that Lanka noticed Li Xu beside her. She narrowed her eyes and looked him over before smiling. “Oh, I really haven’t seen this one before, A Luo.”
Cheng Weilu thought about the identities and backgrounds of both sides. She felt that telling the truth carried too much risk, but she didn’t want to lie and deceive anyone either, so she cautiously chose her words.
She pointed to Li Xu, who was looking at Lanka with an indifferent expression. “This is Li Xu, a member of the Alliance. He’s currently traveling with me and taking my spaceship to the Freedom Corridor.”
Then she pointed to Lanka, whose eyes were filled with disdain and whose presence was imposing. “This is Lanka. She’s currently a free citizen and does some interstellar trade.”
The two introductions were technically accurate but extremely distant. They sounded as though neither person had anything to do with her at all, successfully offending both sides.
Li Xu’s expression darkened, and he pressed his lips together without saying anything. On Lanka’s side, she crossed her arms and spoke in a wounded tone. “A Luo, little sister, we’ve been through life and death together. Don’t make us sound like strangers.”
“I’ve been through life and death with her, too,” Li Xu said.
The remark left Cheng Weilu utterly baffled. She had no idea what the two of them were competing over.
Li Xu looked at Lanka and frowned slightly. “You’re not 1247.”
“What’s 1247? A code?” Lanka ran a hand through her long, curly golden hair and looked at Cheng Weilu. “I saw someone using mental strength to take control of a spaceship and rescue people at the Fourth Star Spaceport. I guessed it was my A Luo, so I came here specifically to wait for her.”
“It was me.” Surrounded by the restaurant patrons’ occasional heated, gossiping glances, Cheng Weilu felt a little uncomfortable. “Um… we came here to eat.”
By “we,” she meant the two of them, her and Li Xu.
Li Xu’s expression eased slightly. “Miss Lanka, are you planning to dine with us? I only reserved a table for two.”
Lanka shot him a glance and gave a soft snort. “Forget it. I’m not eating with a stingy man.”
“Our A Luo is kind and interesting, just a little bad with words. She’s such a quiet person.”
Lanka walked over, took Cheng Weilu’s hand, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into her embrace. Staring at Li Xu with her blue eyes, she said, “Little sister, don’t be fooled by his looks. Speaking from my own experience, just have some fun and leave it at that. Men can’t be relied on.”
Cheng Weilu, who was accustomed to being alone and had so few friends that she could count them on one hand, was completely helpless when faced with someone as outgoing and physically affectionate as Lanka.
Trapped against Lanka’s chest and not daring to move, Cheng Weilu heard Lanka rub against her arm and say, “I’ve always felt that we really clicked. I’m doing legitimate business now, too. Dump him and come with me. Tell me what kind of person you like. There are plenty in my city. Pick whoever you want.”
Li Xu’s face behind her had already turned frighteningly dark. He grabbed Cheng Weilu’s other wrist and looked at Lanka coldly. “Let her go.”
Cheng Weilu had no idea what had caused the situation before her to become so tense. She used all her strength to break free, looked at the two of them, then pointed at the food-serving robot approaching them. “Sorry, I… I want to eat. Are you two eating?”
Lanka patted Cheng Weilu on the head and smiled. “Eat well. When you get back to Freedom City, remember to contact me. I’ll take you somewhere even better.”
Then she tossed her hair and left.
Li Xu straightened his clothes and began arranging the dishes and pouring her water, acting as though nothing had happened.
But given Li Xu’s personality, he would definitely investigate Lanka’s identity. Lanka’s identity… Cheng Weilu thought about it while eating, her mind restless throughout the meal.
After they finished eating, the two wandered around the commercial district for a while before returning to the spaceship. Cheng Weilu finally couldn’t hold back any longer and asked, “Did you also investigate Lanka’s background?”
Li Xu sat upright as he studied the star map and nodded. “I had Zhou Yan investigate her while we were eating.”
“She was the leader of the interstellar pirates who were active along the Tewell Route, Lanka Adelo. She doesn’t engage in piracy anymore and now smuggles supplies between star systems.”
She squeezed her palm and asked, “You’re not going to cause trouble for her, are you?”
“I’m not acting as an Alliance soldier right now, and Zhou Yan is also involved in arms smuggling. I have no grounds to take the initiative against her,” Li Xu said calmly. “I’m more curious about how you know her.”
Cheng Weilu rubbed her nose. She felt that there was something strange about the interrogative tone in Li Xu’s voice, but she was indeed a little uneasy, probably because of his background in the Alliance military.
The identity of an interstellar pirate was simply too sensitive. Although Lanka had never harmed her, Cheng Weilu couldn’t pass judgment on what other people did and crudely categorize them as either good or bad.
Cheng Weilu had encountered Lanka by chance when she had just become a salvager. At the time, she hadn’t been in this era for long, and her curiosity about exploring space was extremely strong. She often took on odd jobs and ventured out, as long as the pay could cover the cost of the round trip.
Cheng Weilu entered the Tewell Route because of an operational mistake. Extremely unlucky, she encountered a stellar storm that affected her spaceship and caused it to veer off its original route.
After the storm passed, she discovered that she was near an unfamiliar planet. Her star map had not been updated with this star system, so she had no way to check any information about the planet. However, she discovered a disabled starship near the planet.
The enormous starship’s automatic system had malfunctioned and kept circling around a strange central point. For some reason, however, the pilot aboard the starship was unable to switch to manual control.
Naive and unaware of the dangers, Cheng Weilu went over and sent a short-range signal asking whether they needed help. When the other party asked her to board the starship and operate it, she parked her spaceship alongside theirs without the slightest precaution, successfully using her mental strength to take control of the starship and help them return to their destination planet.
It was a small planet. The entire planet was essentially one enormous city. Innocently curious, Cheng Weilu got off the starship and met its owner, Lanka. After asking her subordinates about the entire course of events, Lanka warmly welcomed Cheng Weilu and expressed her fondness for her, hoping she would stay.
Cheng Weilu ultimately declined Lanka’s invitation, boarded her spaceship, and left. After leaving the Tewell Route and returning to Freedom City, her friend Qiqi, who had been unable to contact her for more than a month, told her in shock that the planet was the base of the interstellar pirate group operating along the Tewell Route, and Lanka was their leader.
Lanka’s pirate group originated from a resource planet on the outskirts of the Tewell Star System. Its productivity was underdeveloped, and it barely survived by exporting resources. After the resources were exhausted, the population declined sharply, and most of those remaining could no longer maintain even basic survival. In order to stay alive, the people rushed into space and became interstellar pirates.
Their targets were the starships of the large monopolistic companies operating along the Tewell Route. These companies extracted mineral and metal resources from multiple remote planets and then completely abandoned them once they had finished exploiting them.
Although it had ultimately been a false alarm, after that, Cheng Weilu always tried to update her star map as much as possible before setting out, download whatever resources she could, and avoid actively approaching troublesome situations whenever possible.
Cheng Weilu glanced at Li Xu beside her. Judging from the current situation, however, trouble was not something she could avoid simply by refusing to seek it out.
After listening to her story, Li Xu lowered his head and gave a quiet laugh. “When you left that base, I’m afraid it wasn’t as simple as you make it sound, was it?”
Someone with exceptionally powerful mental strength was a scarce resource. There was no way a pirate leader would let such a valuable resource that had practically delivered itself to her door walk away.
Cheng Weilu recalled the incident and said, “I think so, but I really wanted to return to Freedom City, so she didn’t press me any further. She asked me to salvage several other starships that had gotten into trouble, and I agreed.”
Starships were extremely expensive to build and were important tools for transportation between star systems. At the time, naive Cheng Weilu had even thought that Lanka really was worthy of being the ruler of a city, since she had so many enormous starships. It was only after returning that she discovered they had all been seized by the pirates.
“Later, I ran into her again in Freedom City. She said she wasn’t a pirate anymore and had started a cargo transportation company, and that she had just bought another planet. Then, later on, I encountered her again during a salvage job. Her spaceship broke down because of a magnetic storm, so I salvaged her again.”
Cheng Weilu rubbed her neck. “Lanka is way too outgoing and enthusiastic. Every time I run into her, I can barely handle her.”
Li Xu looked at Cheng Weilu with a complicated expression, yet he also felt that it was hardly surprising something like this had happened to her. If not for her habit of casually salvaging people, he would already have been sleeping forever on the outskirts of the star system.
Lanka was one of the people who had helped with the transfer of the spaceship, so her mental strength level should not be low either. Li Xu made a note of her in his optical-brain. Looking at Cheng Weilu curled up in a chair, scrolling through Star Network messages, he reminded her, “You haven’t done today’s exercises yet.”
“Sir,” Cheng Weilu wailed, “to celebrate the fact that we’re about to finish our journey along the Star Banner Route, shouldn’t we take a day off?!”
“No.” Li Xu put down his optical-brain and dragged her toward the gym with an expression of absolute impartiality. “You’ve only been at it for a few days and you’re already slacking off.”
“Lanka was absolutely right.” Cheng Weilu struggled desperately. “Men can’t be relied on. At first, you promised me both money and a bodyguard, and now you’ve become a drill instructor who orders me around.”
“I think she was completely wrong,” Li Xu turned around. “Your mouth isn’t clumsy at all. You can come up with all sorts of ways to talk back to me.”
…
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