The milk tea substitution method

The Beijing.

The small courtyard allocated by the 749 Bureau.

Sing Sing returned from Guizhou the following day.

He pushed open the Siheyuan gate, carrying a bag of local specialties that Lao Liu had insisted on giving him, a bunch of houttuynia cordata, and several bottles of unbranded chili sauce.

As soon as I entered, I heard a deafening wail coming from inside.

"I want to drink!!"

"Just one sip! Beer is fine! Cooking wine is fine! Even Huoxiang Zhengqi Water is fine!"

Sing Sing paused in his steps.

In the courtyard, Edith Constance Sawyer was lying face down on the stone table, her blue skin tinged with a grayish-purple due to withdrawal symptoms.

It looks exactly like a stranded bluefin tuna.

Beside him, Xiao Liu held a glass of plain water, his face full of helplessness.

"Comrade Edith, the director said that drinking alcohol during working hours is strictly prohibited. This is a rule."

"Discipline my ass!"

The Wandering Girl cursed in broken Chinese, though I don't know who she learned it from, but her intonation was quite accurate.

"I wasn't working!"

"Director Wang said that since you haven't officially started working yet, all 24 hours count as working time."

"What kind of bullshit logic is this! If I'm not officially hired, I'm not an employee! And if I'm not an employee, why should I be subject to your authority?!"

Xiao Liu was speechless for a moment.

"... Anyway, that's what the director said."

The Wandering Girl let out a dying groan and collapsed onto the stone table.

Blue fingers were unconsciously picking at the table.

The dust under my fingernails was from yesterday when I tried to climb over the wall to buy alcohol at the corner store at the alley entrance.

That attempt to climb over the wall ended the moment she reached the top— Xiao Liu was waiting for her outside, holding a small Li Hongqi that read "No Climbing".

Sing Sing looked at it for three seconds, then turned and left the courtyard.

Xiao Liu shouted, "Brother Zhou! Aren't you going to do anything about it?"

No one answered.

Fifteen minutes later.

"The Blue Elf."

She weakly raised her head.

Sing Sing stood in front of her, holding a clear plastic cup in his hand.

The cup contains a caramel-colored liquid with a layer of black pearls at the bottom and a layer of milk foam on top, and a thick straw is inserted.

The ice cubes clinked against the glass, making a crisp sound.

"What is this?" The Wandering Girl looked at the cup warily.

"A national treasure of China," Sing Sing said seriously, "Full sugar, iced bubble tea."

I don't drink non-alcoholic beverages.

"Try it yourself before you say that."

The Wandering Girl took the cup with some skepticism and brought it close to her nose to smell it.

The aroma of caramel mingled with the fragrance of tea wafted into my nostrils.

She took a tentative breath.

The pearls slid down the straw into my mouth, their chewy texture bursting between my teeth.

The rich milk tea, with its slightly bitter black tea and sweet caramel, glides coolly down the throat.

The Wandering Girl's blue pupils widened.

"Oh my God!!!"

She took another deep breath.

In less than thirty seconds, half a cup of milk tea was gone.

The Wandering Girl looked up and gazed at Sing Sing as if she had seen a savior.

Is there anything else?

Sing Sing magically produced another cup from behind his back.

"Taro paste with boba," he said, "Is a crystallization of the wisdom of the China people."

The Wandering Girl snatched it away, not even having time to insert the straw, and immediately lifted the lid to drink.

Sing Sing nodded in satisfaction, took out his notebook, and made a note:

[A Wandering Girl: Milk tea. Cost approximately 15 yuan per cup, 97% cheaper than imported whiskey. Estimated daily consumption: 3-5 cups. Monthly cost: approximately 1350-2250 yuan. Controllable and feasible. Reimbursement through the logistics subsidy channel is recommended.]

After finishing writing, I added another line:

[Note: Do not let them discover the X Tea and X Snack shops at the alley entrance. Otherwise, monthly costs will double.]

"What are you writing?" the Wandering Girl asked, peeking over.

Sing Sing slammed his notebook shut. "Work Log."

That afternoon.

Office of the Director of the 749 Bureau.

A personnel file was laid out in front of Director Wang.

Sing Sing sat opposite him with his legs crossed.

"Are you sure you can manage a Mutants can teleport to any corner of the earth with milk tea?"

"Chief, you don't understand young people!"

"These days, bubble tea is life for young people. You could give her a million dollars and she might not work her life away, but give her a cup of full-sugar, no-ice bubble tea and she'd sell her life to you."

Director Wang stared at him for five seconds, and finally sighed.

"Okay. Let's test its usability first."

He took a kraft paper envelope from the drawer, with the word "Top Secret" stamped on it in bright red.

"This document needs to be delivered to a base in the Northwest Military Region within one hour, to Major Ma Weiguo."

Director Wang pushed the envelope towards him. "If your blue-skinned drunkard can be accurately located and delivered, I will approve her employment."

"One hour? Chief, you're underestimating our international express delivery service."

Sing Sing is a man of action; he took the documents and went straight to the lobby.

The Wandering Girl was holding a newly bought cup of mango pomelo sago in both hands, sipping it until her cheeks were sunken.

Sing Sing walked over and waved the top-secret envelope in front of her.

"Blue Elf, would you like to officially join the company?"

The Wandering Girl's straw made a hollow "glug" sound.

She looked down at the empty cup, then at Sing Sing.

"Is there milk tea for new employees?"

"Every day."

Edith's eyes lit up.

What are you doing?

"Delivering a package." Sing Sing took out his phone and showed photos he had taken in the Northwest Military Region.

"Deliver it here. You've been there before, you should be able to pinpoint the coordinates."

Edith leaned closer to look at the photo and wrinkled her nose.

"That stinky mud pit? Of course I remember it. I threw up there three times."

"Just remember that." Sing Sing stuffed the envelope into his inner pocket and held out his hand. "Come on, hold my hand."

Edith put down her empty glass, stood up, and placed her blue fingers on Sing Sing's wrist.

She closed her eyes.

In my mind, the image of the Northwest Military Region gradually became clear—barracks on the Gobi Desert, barbed wire fences, the main building with the Li Hongqi fluttering...

"Anchored." She opened her eyes, purple light surging from the depths of her pupils. "Hold on tight."

"Wait!" Sing Sing suddenly interrupted the spellcasting.

"What's wrong?"

"You didn't drink today, did you?"

"... No."

"Are you sure? You didn't even touch the cooking wine?"

I said no, so it's no!

"Alright. Let's go then. Just don't let it get sent all the way to the Sahara Desert!"

Edith rolled her eyes, and the next second...

Ma Weiguo's office.

Ma Weiguo was drinking water from a cup, with a training plan spread out in front of him.

"Puff--!"

A flash of purple light.

Two figures appeared out of thin air, one meter in front of his desk.

Ma Weiguo spat out the tea he was drinking, spilling it directly onto the training schedule.

He instinctively reached for the pistol at his waist with his right hand, pushed the chair back, and sprang up.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot! We're on the same side!"

Sing Sing raised his hands above his head, looking completely innocent.

Ma Weiguo stared at the man and woman in front of him, a thug in a white suit and a foreign woman with blue skin and red hair, his hands still on his gun holster, his chest heaving violently.

"Zhou... Sing Sing?!"

"You..." Ma Weiguo released his hand from the holster and leaned against the filing cabinet, catching his breath.

"Can't you just use the door?!"