CH 49

TL: Moonlit

Strangely, without having met each other, Fei Luo and Liu Po from B Zone had the same thoughts. One felt that his little brother had been inexplicably taken away by a mouse, and he had accepted it wholeheartedly. The other felt that the well-behaved and obedient Xie Feng had been taken away by the same mouse, and he too felt deeply grateful and had no regrets.

Fei Luo’s expression was unpleasant, but Xie Feng didn’t notice as he usually did, offering apologies or comfort. Instead, he was enthusiastically counting his gains.

The greatest advantage of the low winter temperature was probably that the food didn’t spoil easily, which caused Xie Feng’s attention to be completely focused on the food. Occasionally, he would look towards the entrance of the tent, hoping to see the little mouse sticking its head out so he could finalize the deal of selling himself.

Inside the tent, Gu Langu had actually woken up quite early. However, when Shu Shuishui stretched and accidentally kicked him, Gu Langu fully woke up. His heart couldn’t help but beat rapidly, and he wondered if the little mouse today would turn into a human, just like before.

However, it was a pity that when the little mouse’s head squeezed out from between the fingers, Gu Langu knew that today the little mouse wouldn’t turn into a human. He became very curious about the rules or factors that affected Shu Shuishui’s transformation into a human.

What to do? He really wanted to hide the mouse and not let others see, but Gu Langu also knew that Shu Shuishui could become a better Shu Shuishui when free and that he shouldn’t be so selfish.

The conflicting feelings in Gu Langu calmed down as he greeted Shu Shuishui ‘good morning’. He gently kissed Shu Shuishui on the forehead and said, “Good morning, Shuishui.”

Gu Langu carried Shu Shuishui out of the tent, preparing to freshen up, but he bumped into the excited Xie Feng head-on.

Xie Feng’s gaze was particularly fervent as he looked at Shu Shuishui in Gu Langu’s hand. Gu Langu became alert and took a step back, shooting Xie Feng a cautious look.

Reacting instinctively, Xie Feng sensed the danger but was still eager to talk. “Hello, I asked, your name is Shu Shuishui, right? Since you bought me, I’ll be yours from now on.”

Shu Shuishui was startled. “No, no, no, I only have Gu Gu. You’re not mine.”

“I understand, but from now on, I’ll stay in this base. Please take care of me.” Xie Feng felt that selling himself to Gu Langu Base and selling himself to Shu Shuishui made no difference as long as Shu Shuishui remained in the base, he would be there too.

The others: “…” On the first day, he’s already patting the mouse’s butt. He looks silly, but his actions are quick!

Fei Luo, who was already on the verge of collapse: “…”

Gu Langu felt relieved that Shu Shuishui was still his, alone.

“Huh? Brother Luo, do you have something to do coming over so early? Look, all these are gifts from Shu Shuishui. I’ll roast this sweet potato later, and there’s a small cake, and this one, and this one…” Xie Feng seemed to have just noticed Fei Luo and enthusiastically introduced the food in his hand, some of which he didn’t even recognize.

Seeing the unfamiliar food in Xie Feng’s hand, both Yu Jin and Nan Fang exchanged glances and saw the same thought in each other’s eyes: try to keep Shu Shuishui away from this foodie and protect our food reserves.

After washing up, Shu Shuishui obediently squatted by the fire, heating his face. If he was quite far from the fire, his face will be prone to freezing.

Around the fire were breakfast and Xie Feng roasting sweet potatoes. During the wait, Shu Shuishui listened to Xie Feng tell a story that sounded like a TV drama.

Xie Feng’s talent in information technology allowed him to thrive, but one day, his curiosity led him to hack into a database of the Galactic Alliance, where he saw some classified content. Before he could carefully examine it or understand what it was about, he was inexplicably convicted and exiled to Cang Zhan Star.

In the beginning, Xie Feng had a tough time on Cang Zhan Star, where having access to the internet meant having god-like power, but without it, he was just an ordinary person. When he was on the verge of starving to death, he met Fei Luo. Back then, Fei Luo wasn’t the leader of the base, but just part of a small team. To thank Fei Luo for saving his life, Xie Feng followed him and used his abilities to provide significant help to Fei Luo.

However, Cang Zhan Star was strictly monitored, and the space for Xie Feng to showcase his information technology was limited. Despite his genius, without the necessary conditions and equipment, Xie Feng’s abilities were restricted everywhere. Nevertheless, he intercepted valuable information using his skills, set up an internal information network within the base, and repaired and built numerous electronic devices, greatly facilitating life in the base.

During the years being together, Fei Luo took care of Xie Feng a lot, leading Xie Feng to develop feelings he shouldn’t have. Xie Feng was cautious and didn’t dare to confess his feelings, thinking that Fei Luo was unaware. He was greedy and hoped that one day, Fei Luo would suddenly realize his feelings and accept him.

Until one day, a person named Shi An’an appeared, a strange individual seemingly blessed by good luck. Whatever Shi An’an said would come true. Shi An’an led them to discover hidden reserves, guided them to avoid attacks from mutant creatures, and in just half a year, gained the recognition and admiration of everyone in Fei Luo Base.

“What mascot? Nonsense! He can’t even compare to a single hair on Shu Shuishui’s feet. If he’s so awesome, why didn’t he get smashed in the face by a simulator!” When he mentioned this, Xie Feng was particularly angry and couldn’t help but rant.

Nearby, Shu Shuishui instinctively hid his little ‘jiojio’ behind a small stone. His foot hair! Gu Gu shouldn’t dislike him for that, right?

Unaware, Xie Feng went on to spend three thousand words thoroughly despising Shi An’an, feeling much better afterward. Especially in the morning when Shu Shuishui was still asleep, Xie Feng learned about Shu Shuishui’s heroic deeds, and in terms of luck, he felt that Shu Shuishui far surpassed Shi An’an. He felt an inexplicable sense of superiority, making Xie Feng’s mood quite good. He then used another five thousand words to express his love and gratitude towards Shu Shuishui.

Yu Jin, who was eavesdropping due to curiosity, “… ” Is this guy not an electronics expert but a writer? He talks too much!

Yu Jin didn’t know, but Xie Feng really wasn’t much of a talker. After all, nine out of ten tech geeks had communication barriers, and the remaining one was usually introverted.

Xie Feng was no exception, especially after arriving at Cang Zhan Star. His interactions were mainly centered around Fei Luo, while with others, he naturally avoided unnecessary conversations and focused on his research. Therefore, even though Xie Feng made significant contributions to Fei Luo’s base over the years, he still couldn’t win people’s hearts as effectively as Shi An’an did in just half a year.

In the perception of Fei Luo’s base, Xie Feng was often seen as a kid who clung to Fei Luo all the time. Some even speculated that the reason Xie Feng could stay was that he had climbed into Fei Luo’s bed. As for the convenience Xie Feng brought, it wasn’t publicized, and Xie Feng didn’t mind. Gradually, people forgot about it.

Xie Feng didn’t care how others in the base saw him, but what really chilled him was that every time he confronted Shi An’an, not only did the people in the base lean towards Shi An’an, even Fei Luo didn’t stand by his side.

Fei Luo remained the same, as always, being tolerant and gentle. He would soothe Xie Feng, pat his head, and tell him not to throw tantrums.

Once, twice, three times, four times…

In fact, Xie Feng was living quite well in Fei Luo’s base; after all, his abilities spoke for themselves. But he was still not happy, becoming less happy with each passing day, and yet no one could see his pain. Everyone thought a grown man like him was too melodramatic.

As time went on, Xie Feng suddenly had a terrible idea—to kill Shi An’an. The moment this idea emerged, he was shocked awake, realizing that this couldn’t go on. Either he would leave, or Shi An’an would leave.

During another confrontation with Shi An’an, while Fei Luo was comforting him as usual, Xie Feng finally erupted. He confessed his feelings and asked Fei Luo whether he wanted him to leave or Shi An’an to leave.

Fei Luo remained silent for a moment. “Xiao Feng, when you’ve had enough of this, come back. You’re still young, and you don’t understand what you’re saying.”

Suddenly, Xie Feng felt exhausted. He wanted to say that he was already twenty-two, but in the end, he said nothing and turned to leave. He wandered aimlessly around the camp and then saw Gu Langu and others sitting around eating roasted sweet potatoes.

By the time Xie Feng realized it, he was already standing by the fire.

Listening to Xie Feng’s account, Shu Shuishui looked bewildered. The complex relationships made his little dormouse head spin. Shu Shuishui couldn’t understand why Xie Feng didn’t like Shi An’an and why he wanted Fei Luo to make the decision of who would leave. Why didn’t he just move away himself or drive Shi An’an out of his territory? What did it have to do with Fei Luo?

And Fei Luo, he seemed like a snail, always avoiding something, being sticky and slow. Just as Gu Langu sat down, Shu Shuishui hugged his neck and said, “Gu Gu is still the best; not at all like a snail.”

Upon hearing Shu Shuishui’s analogy, Xie Feng was slightly stunned before bursting into laughter. “Shuishui is absolutely right! Fei Luo is not a snail; he’s more like a tortoise!”

After listening, Yu Jin also felt a bit indignant. “Fei Luo is clearly indecisive. It sounds like that Shi An’an is also like a lucky charm. He doesn’t want to let go, but he also doesn’t want to fully commit to Xie Feng. Let’s hope he genuinely likes Shi An’an; otherwise, losing to a roasted sweet potato will leave him regretting for a long time.”

Sitting back at the fire, Nan Ge, who was getting ready to eat breakfast, also found it strange. Over these days, he had frequent contact with Fei Luo, and Fei Luo was definitely not a hesitant person. Though he was indeed deep and calculating, it didn’t seem like he would manipulate his feelings to entangle others. Nan Ge couldn’t help but feel that Fei Luo might be heading for a big fall.

But it had nothing to do with him; Gu Langu Base had just gained another talented individual under the lifelong contract, which was cause for celebration.

Gu Langu wasn’t interested in Xie “suddenly-talkative” Feng, but he was intrigued by Shu Shuishui’s dislike of snails. “You don’t like snails?”

Shu Shuishui pondered for a moment. “If they were willing to lend me their shells to sleep in, I might consider liking them a bit.”

So Gu Langu added another entry in Shu Shuishui’s favorite things diary and also included snail shells in the search index.