Early the next morning, when Yan Changfeng opened her eyes, Jiang Xiaoyu was already sitting obediently by the bedside.
Seeing Yan Changfeng wake up, she flashed a sweet smile. “Sister, I’m hungry.” Her gaze then drifted to Yan Changfeng’s jacket pocket, where the remaining three tubes of nutrient solution were kept.
The brat still hadn’t given up.
Yan Changfeng returned the smile. “Then stay hungry. Once you’ve been hungry long enough, you’ll probably remember where your home is.”
Jiang Xiaoyu: “…”
Despite her words, the feeling of hunger was indeed unpleasant. Yan Changfeng herself couldn’t stand it for long, let alone a young girl around ten years old.
So, Yan Changfeng got up and did some basic tidying. When she had showered yesterday, she had applied several layers of shower gel, nearly scrubbing herself raw before she finally washed away the stench of garbage.
She had also washed the bloodstains and filth from her clothes the night before; now, her outfit was merely a bit tattered.
Prices in the city were much higher than at the garbage dump, but looking at the 900 Star Coins in her account and the two wolf skins on the table nearby, Yan Changfeng felt a renewed sense of hope for life.
Yan Changfeng headed out carrying the wolf skins, with Jiang Xiaoyu—who looked as exquisite as a porcelain doll—following behind her. She hadn’t originally intended to take Jiang Xiaoyu out, but the latter had shamelessly clung to her leg and refused to let go, insisting on coming along.
“If you want to follow me, you’re not allowed to run off.”
Jiang Xiaoyu nodded.
“You have to listen to me in everything while we’re outside.”
Jiang Xiaoyu continued to nod.
“Tonight, I’m calling your family to pick you up.”
Jiang Xiaoyu’s nodding… stopped. “Sister, I told you, I don’t remember!”
That didn’t fool her? Yan Changfeng curled her lip. “Keep up.”
Just as they stepped out of the room, Yan Changfeng caught a glimpse of a figure flashing past the end of the corridor. It was so fast it was almost impossible to catch; if she hadn’t had her [Spiritual Eyes], she might not have been able to confirm it was a person.
She shot a thoughtful glance at the innocent-looking Jiang Xiaoyu, then pulled the girl in front of her. “Truly a bane.”
Still… she could serve as a mobile bodyguard.
Yan Changfeng inquired about places nearby that bought wolf skins. Ordinary shops didn’t take wild beast pelts. She went from shop to shop, eventually selling them in the black market for 1,000 Star Coins per skin.
With both sold, Yan Changfeng’s eyes lit up. Although she was still poor, at least she could afford to eat.
Yan Changfeng’s mood instantly improved. With a grand wave of her hand, she led Jiang Xiaoyu to a small roadside stall.
The aroma of skewers, mixed with dust and charcoal ash but carrying a unique flavor, immediately caught Yan Changfeng’s attention. Most ingredients on the Trash Star were synthetic; real vegetables and meat cost a fortune, and she might not even be able to afford a single meal with what she had.
But these synthetic meats and vegetables were different. The texture was a bit lacking, but they were cheap.
Yan Changfeng directly ordered a plate of meat skewers and a vegetable platter.
Jiang Xiaoyu looked like she was eating at a roadside stall like this for the first time. She used a rag from the table to wipe the chair before sitting down, then stared at the two plates of skewers for a long time without reaching out.
Yan Changfeng handed a skewer directly to her. “Try it?”
Seeing that Jiang Xiaoyu really found it hard to accept, Yan Changfeng was already considering going to a nearby shop to buy some nutrient solution later. She couldn’t just watch a child starve.
As for her own three tubes of nutrient solution—fat chance. She couldn’t even bring herself to drink them.
While Yan Changfeng was still thinking about the nutrient solution, Jiang Xiaoyu had already taken the skewer. Under Yan Changfeng’s surprised gaze, she pinched her nose and took a bite. It seemed the flavor wasn’t actually that bad.
Perhaps because her stomach was too empty, Jiang Xiaoyu soon abandoned her reserved manner and ate even more happily than Yan Changfeng.
By the time the two plates were empty, both of them let out a burp.
Jiang Xiaoyu rubbed her rounded belly and gave a somewhat fair evaluation: “It’s okay, the taste is just a bit fake.”
The stall owner passing by: “…”
Was she here to wreck the place?
Yan Changfeng quickly covered Jiang Xiaoyu’s mouth and gave an embarrassed smile. “The child is still young and doesn’t know any better.”
Then, taking Jiang Xiaoyu by surprise, she gave her buttocks two hard slaps.
Jiang Xiaoyu immediately looked as if the sky had fallen.
To punish Jiang Xiaoyu for her insolence today, Yan Changfeng made a snap decision to change their dinner to nutrient solution.
Jiang Xiaoyu looked delighted. “Nutrient solution?”
Yan Changfeng: “Yes, the kind I just bought.”
Jiang Xiaoyu let out an “oh” and immediately became as listless as a frost-bitten eggplant, but her appearance didn’t even earn a single glance from Yan Changfeng.
Yan Changfeng had a basic understanding of the brat now; she was a total poser and must not be fooled by her pitiful outward appearance.
The police line at the garbage dump was still there. Yan Changfeng heard that the search inside was continuing. She needed to leave before the search area expanded to the city.
It would take about a month to investigate the entire garbage dump area. To prepare for any emergencies, Yan Changfeng packed everything into a single bag. As soon as there were signs of those Men in Black Clothes finding her, she would bolt.
The bag was mostly filled with low-priced nutrient solutions she had scrounged and some medicine for lung disease. Although Yan Changfeng’s lung disease had improved significantly after drinking the physique enhancer and showed no signs of recurring recently, she still prepared some medicine just in case.
Watching Yan Changfeng briskly pack her things, a bad feeling suddenly rose in Jiang Xiaoyu’s heart.
“Are you not a beggar, but a fugitive?”
Yan Changfeng: “?”
Neither of those reputations sounded particularly good!
Yan Changfeng flashed a smile that could make the neighbor’s kids cry. “That’s right. Tomorrow I’m going to sell you and run away.”
Jiang Xiaoyu remained unfazed, even offering a suggestion: “Sister, you can sell me for a higher price. I’m worth a lot.”
Whether she was worth a lot, Yan Changfeng didn’t know, but raising her was certainly expensive. Yan Changfeng could survive on cheap nutrient solution, but as soon as that stuff touched Jiang Xiaoyu’s lips, she would spit it all out.
Only the more expensive nutrient solutions could make it into her stomach.
At first, Yan Changfeng had tried to take advantage of Jiang Xiaoyu being asleep to drop her off at the city’s police station, only to find they had met back in the room when she returned.
Jiang Xiaoyu had the gall to act as if nothing had happened, continuing to loiter in the room.
Thinking of the figures that appeared near the hotel from time to time, Yan Changfeng guessed they were likely bodyguards protecting the brat in secret. Keeping the girl by her side and getting protected along with her didn’t seem like a bad idea.
Thus, the two reached a strange balance. Yan Changfeng went out to pick trash during the day, while Jiang Xiaoyu stayed in the room, occasionally slipping out and bringing back nutrient solution and food from who-knows-where.
Yan Changfeng accepted them with a clear conscience, treating it as rent for sheltering the brat. She didn’t forget to remind her, “The nutrient solution from before wasn’t free. Remember to pay me back later.”
Jiang Xiaoyu curled her lip. “Sister, you’re a bit stingy.”
Yan Changfeng: “If you were as poor as me, you’d be even stingier.”
…
Actually, one could pick trash in the city too, it was just a bit embarrassing, and the supply was low while competition was high. But these weren’t problems for Yan Changfeng, whose physique had been enhanced.
Until half a month had passed, and Yan Changfeng heard that a group of people had come from the garbage dump to the city. They seemed to be looking for someone and had even posted wanted posters in the city area.
It seemed that group was starting to focus their search on the city.
She calmly pulled her hat lower, fed all the trash in her hands to the system, and then hurried back to the hotel where they were staying.
At that moment, Jiang Xiaoyu was at the table writing something on a piece of paper. Seeing her return, she quickly hid the paper behind her back.
“Why are you back?”
Yan Changfeng kept it short. “I’m going to run away.”
Jiang Xiaoyu: “!”
“Anyway, it’s hard to explain. Hurry up and contact your family to pick you up. I won’t need you to see me off; I’ve already found a way out.” Over the past half month, Yan Changfeng had been asking around and found someone selling starship cargo hold tickets at an extremely low price.
It was half the price of a normal ticket, exactly what Yan Changfeng could afford. She planned to buy a ticket for tonight and flee to another planet.
Picking trash was the same everywhere, anyway.
Seeing that Yan Changfeng didn’t seem to be joking, Jiang Xiaoyu’s expression turned calm as she stopped her. “Don’t rush. I’ll contact my family first. My family has some connections; you can come hide at my place first.”
Jiang Xiaoyu took out her optical computer and dialed an account.
The other side picked up almost instantly.
Immediately after, a sky-shaking scream erupted.
“Miss! Where on earth have you been?!”
Jiang Xiaoyu was startled, and the optical computer wristband slipped from her hand.
“Careful.” Yan Changfeng supported the nearly falling Jiang Xiaoyu with one hand and caught the optical computer with the other.
The person on the other side heard the voice and immediately grew wary. “Who are you?”
As a fugitive, Yan Changfeng’s current identity was hard to explain, so she paused and said, “Your miss is with me right now.”
The other side: “?”
Yan Changfeng: “Hurry up and come pick her up. First come, first served!” If they were too late, she would have to run away first and wouldn’t have time to hand her over personally.
A vicious voice immediately came from the other side: “I’m warning you, if my miss loses so much as a finger, I’ll twist your head off.”
Wasn’t it just picking someone up? Was there a need to be so fierce?
Yan Changfeng didn’t quite understand and was about to hang up the call, but Jiang Xiaoyu stopped her.
“Sister, the address hasn’t been sent yet!”
Yan Changfeng blinked. Didn’t these people know exactly where they were staying? Didn’t Jiang Xiaoyu go back to get nutrient solution and food every day?
Oh, she understood now—it was an act for her. Yan Changfeng showed her understanding, sent over the hotel’s address, and then hung up.
After the call ended, Jiang Xiaoyu put the optical computer away. She wrinkled her small face and said hesitantly, “Sister, what you just said might be a bit ambiguous.”
Yan Changfeng looked lost. “Was it?”
Then she carefully recalled their conversation.
It did seem a bit ambiguous. The misunderstanding might be quite large.
“But whatever, it’s not important.” Jiang Xiaoyu looked up, now more curious about something else. “What exactly did you do?”
She had only used a wild boar to forcibly exchange for goods worth about a hundred thousand Star Coins.
But looking at the attitude of those Men in Black Clothes, the matter didn’t seem that simple. Yan Changfeng didn’t believe someone would blockade an entire garbage dump for half a month and now the city area just for a hundred thousand Star Coins.
Yan Changfeng wracked her brain but couldn’t figure out what exactly she had taken that night. But no matter what was in that bag, she had already fed it to the system; there was no way to get it back now.
Yan Changfeng picked up her bag, led Jiang Xiaoyu to check out, and then the two waited at the hotel entrance.
The person responsible for picking up Jiang Xiaoyu seemed to be in a great hurry. Just a few minutes after they reached the hotel entrance, a black car sped toward the hotel and screeched to a halt in front of Yan Changfeng.
A middle-aged man stepped out of the car, a distinct scar across his face. His fierce expression was devoid of emotion, and the muscles beneath his suit were taut, looking as if he could kill someone with a single punch.
The moment he saw Yan Changfeng, he swung a fist at her.
What the hell? Could it be that he wasn’t here to pick someone up, but was one of Jiang Xiaoyu’s enemies?
Even with the enhancement from her [Spiritual Eyes], Yan Changfeng couldn’t fully see the middle-aged man’s movements. She could only rely on her body’s instinctive judgment to dodge. She let go of Jiang Xiaoyu’s hand and twisted her body as much as possible, but her shoulder was still struck by the punch.
She was sent flying, crashing into the hotel door.
Jiang Xiaoyu, who was scared out of her wits: “Ah!”
The hotel owner, an innocent victim: “Ah!”
Yan Changfeng, crawling up while leaning against the door: “Fuck!”
Yan Changfeng touched her still-trembling shoulder. Just as she touched the dagger in her boot, she heard Jiang Xiaoyu shout.
“Mu Zhuang, you hit the wrong person! Sister Yan wasn’t the one who kidnapped me!”
Upon learning it was a misunderstanding and that he had sent the savior of his miss flying, Mu Zhuang almost knelt on the spot.
No, he actually did kneel, but Yan Changfeng dodged quickly, not letting him succeed.
Mu Zhuang thought Yan Changfeng was unwilling to accept his apology. The two-meter-tall giant’s eyes instantly turned red. “Miss Yan, please rest assured. I will accept punishment for the accidental injury myself. As for Miss Yan’s medical fees, mental compensation fee, and the fee for helping take care of the miss, I will personally present them once we return.”
Jiang Xiaoyu pulled Yan Changfeng to the side. “Sister, don’t be afraid. Mu Zhuang is just like that, but he’s very generous when he pays.”
Before leaving, Mu Zhuang ran back into the hotel and, under the terrified gaze of the owner, paid for the repair of the door.
Yan Changfeng had guessed before that Jiang Xiaoyu’s family background might be unusual, but when Mu Zhuang drove the car into the villa district in the center of the city, she knew she had still underestimated it.
Although the Trash Star was generally poor, those who could live in the central villa district would be considered wealthy even on other planets. More importantly, those Men in Black Clothes would never focus their search on this area.
Jiang Xiaoyu’s parents didn’t live here. According to Mu Zhuang, they lived on another planet.
Mu Zhuang had come to the Trash Star with a fleet to expand experimental fields. As for Jiang Xiaoyu, she was an accident; she wasn’t supposed to be here, but she had sneaked out to play and boarded the wrong starship, only being discovered after it landed on the Trash Star.
Yan Changfeng shot a glance at Jiang Xiaoyu, who was acting like an ostrich beside her.
Why did she feel like the girl hadn’t boarded the wrong ship at all?
The person with the highest authority in the fleet was someone Jiang Xiaoyu called Aunt Mei. She was a gentle, intellectual woman whose every move was elegant to the bone. Her temperament was noble, and her speech made one feel completely at ease.
Aunt Mei: “Xiaoyu is mischievous; she must have caused you a lot of trouble. I know this child has never been one to put people at ease. First, she almost fell into a wolf’s mouth, and then she loitered at your place for half a month.”
Yan Changfeng: “It was actually alright. She’s usually quite obedient, though her expenses are quite high. She drank a few of my more expensive nutrient solutions.”
She couldn’t exactly speak ill of the girl on someone else’s turf; Yan Changfeng had at least that much tact. However, she couldn’t help but mention Jiang Xiaoyu’s expenses again, hinting at repayment.
She was very poor and couldn’t afford to let others owe her money.
Aunt Mei chuckled, not at all offended by Yan Changfeng’s bluntness. “Rest assured, Xiaoyu already gave me the little slip of paper recording her expenses during this time. I will repay you ten times over. However, there is one more thing.”
Her smile faded slightly, though her voice remained soft. “Xiaoyu’s life is something I cannot measure with money. Whatever reward you want, I will do my best to satisfy you, whether it be Star Coins, potions, mechs, or a favor from me.”
Aunt Mei’s meaning was clear: she wanted to buy out Yan Changfeng’s favor of saving the girl’s life.
Before Yan Changfeng could speak, Jiang Xiaoyu broke in with a noisy protest. “Aunt Mei, what are you saying! Sister Yan didn’t save me for some reward. It must be because I’m so cute and she likes me! Sister Yan, isn’t that right?”
Jiang Xiaoyu kept shooting looks at Yan Changfeng.
Although Yan Changfeng was currently very short on money, she didn’t like being misunderstood. Aunt Mei’s blatant treatment of her as a potential threat who would exploit a favor made her quite unhappy.
“A reward, huh.” Yan Changfeng’s gaze swept across the entire villa. Under Aunt Mei’s increasingly cold gaze, she suddenly looked at the wristband on Jiang Xiaoyu’s hand. “I happen to be short an optical computer. Let’s just use that to settle it.”
Aunt Mei was stunned for a moment. “An optical computer?”
Beside her, Jiang Xiaoyu also cried out, “What! Is my life only worth one lousy optical computer?!”
Yan Changfeng glared at the troublesome Jiang Xiaoyu.
Jiang Xiaoyu immediately tucked her head back obediently. Over the past half month, their interactions had always been like this. Whenever Jiang Xiaoyu caused trouble and Yan Changfeng gave her that look, it was a warning that she was about to get a beating.
Aunt Mei glanced at how the two interacted, and her resolve wavered slightly.
Yan Changfeng, however, was unwilling to deal with her any longer. “Aunt Mei, is the condition of an optical computer not okay? Or do you want to go back on your word?”
Aunt Mei: “Of course not. I’ll notify Mu Zhuang to take you to the shopping mall in a moment.”
“That’s good then. My thanks to Aunt Mei.”
After a few more superficial words with Aunt Mei, Yan Changfeng found an excuse to slip away. She didn’t have time to waste here. The city’s police line would be drawn tonight. As soon as she got the optical computer, she would immediately buy a starship ticket and leave.
Once Yan Changfeng had left, Jiang Xiaoyu furiously threw an ornament from the table onto the floor.
The crisp sound echoed through the living room, and shards of the ornament flew everywhere. A few pieces flew toward her and Aunt Mei, but were neutralized by a wave of light before they could touch them.
“Xiaoyu, stop it.”
Having been raised as a pampered child, Jiang Xiaoyu’s temper was naturally not great. She threw several more ornaments in succession before her anger finally dissipated.
Aunt Mei’s expression remained calm as she walked over to Jiang Xiaoyu with elegant steps, her voice soft.
“Xiaoyu, you have to understand that the human heart is hidden behind layers of skin.”
Seeing no sign of Jiang Xiaoyu calming down after a long while, Aunt Mei could only sigh and leave, giving her some space to be alone.
Once Aunt Mei had left, Jiang Xiaoyu calmly picked up the broken ornaments that had been flung onto the sofa, tossed them onto the floor, and then buried herself in the sofa, her hands still rubbing her optical computer wristband.