Chapter 114
April 4th, 9:02 AM
Texas drove to Shi Lei's place and found the warehouse shutter door closed, so he called him to urge him to hurry up.
Shi Lei had been racking his brains about his promotion location all night, and didn't go to bed until after 2 a. m. He stretched and got up, quickly washing up.
Don't worry if you're sleepy, you can catch up on sleep on the bus.
"Heh~"
Shi Lei blinked, changed his clothes, put on his sunglasses, and set off. He locked the roller shutter, got into the passenger seat, yawned, and asked:
"I remember we were supposed to meet at 9:30? How come you drove over at just past 9?"
"Go early so you can buy fresh vegetables."
After Texas finished speaking, she turned her head to look at his black suit and sunglasses, and asked with a strange expression:
Why are you wearing this out?
Shi Lei shrugged, looking indifferent.
"I washed the two sets of company uniforms last night, but they're still not dry, so I'll just have to make do with this one."
Texas shook her head slightly and suggested:
"When we get back from the base, I'll go with you to Taigu Plaza to buy some clothes. This is too formal."
"Sure, I don't have anything else to do anyway."
When talking about new clothes, Shi Lei wanted to order several sets in the style of the Rex Lapis, which would definitely make him look handsome.
But he just keeps getting lazy and would rather play on his phone at the company than make a trip by himself.
While waiting at a red light in Texas, he continued to ask:
"Why are you wearing sunglasses today when there's no sun?"
"Ugh, I didn't sleep well last night. I'm planning to take a nap in the car later, to block out the light."
In fact, Shi Lei's words were entirely a setup. He wanted to get everyone used to him wearing sunglasses so that it wouldn't seem out of place when he wore them again after transforming into the Golden Dragon Eyes.
Improving one's cultivation level will probably have to wait for now. The most urgent matter is advancement. If conditions permit, perhaps we can handle both at the same time.
Ten minutes later, Texas drove up to a supermarket. She pulled a shopping cart out from the door and walked ahead, holding the handle. Shi Lei, yawning, lagged behind, pushing the cart.
After entering the supermarket, there was a snack section, Texas had no intention of buying anything and walked straight in.
Shi Lei looked around and suddenly stopped her:
"Hey, wait a minute."
When Texas turned around at the sound, he picked up a few cans of candy from the shelf and put them in his shopping cart. He also took some potato chips and other things.
"There are four kids at the outpost; they'll probably like these snacks."
Texas, as was her habit, remained silent and listened quietly to his explanation of the reasons for the purchase, without raising any objections.
It has to be said, they looked a lot like newlyweds shopping at the supermarket. Except usually the wife is the one talking, but this time it's the other way around.
Alright.
Further down was the meat section, Texas's main battleground. She handled all the selecting, identifying, and comparing herself, leaving Shi Lei completely uninvolved. He then willingly became the laborer, pushing the shopping cart from behind.
"I want this piece, and this piece too, thank you."
Texas pointed to a few pieces of meat, casually brushing her hair behind her ear. The light from the meat section illuminated her profile, giving her a surprisingly beautiful, housewife-like appearance.
Before long, the shopping cart was full.
On their way to the cashier, the two were stopped Feline two people selling skincare products.
"Beautiful lady, we've been..."
Texas, maintaining her icy demeanor, continued walking forward before the other person could finish speaking. The saleswoman, slightly embarrassed, had no choice but to try and get through to Shi Lei:
"Sir, your wife is so beautiful, she must take good care of her skin. Like our..."
Texas stopped in her tracks upon hearing this, seemingly changing her mind for some reason. She quickly returned to the salesperson, grabbed a skincare product, and tossed it into her shopping cart.
Finally, he urged Shi Lei to hurry up:
"Let's go, otherwise we'll have to queue again later."
She was referring to the queue at the checkpoint connecting the Upper City Lower City, where there would be long traffic jams at noon.
"Hey, here it comes."
After paying at the checkout, the two took the items out of the shopping cart and put them into a large plastic bag.
Shi Lei used U-shaped Rock Element artifacts to string the bags together, saving both time and effort. As he walked out, he noticed Texas secretly chuckling and couldn't help but ask:
"Did you think of something happy?"
"Ah?"
"Then what were you laughing at just now?"
No, you're mistaken.
She raised an eyebrow and glanced at Shi Lei, then added:
"I feel happy because I think they will be happy to receive so much food."
Really.
Shi Lei nodded in agreement, finding no problem with it.
If it were him, he would be happy to see those Sarkaz children and adults happy too.
The two got into the car and headed to the Lower City. They arrived at their base around 11:30 a. m.
The Sarkaz mercenary on guard duty saw the two men take a lot of meat out of the trunk and chuckled, complaining:
"Oh, sir. You've come all this way, why are you buying all this? It's too formal!"
Although he said that, his actions spoke louder than words as he went over to help carry the plastic bags.
The three walked through the array of red and white colossi and continued onward. En route, Sarkaz mercenary explained:
"Sir, the boss took leave yesterday and went to make up for lost time today. He should be back around 12:30."
Texas arrived in front of the low building but didn't see Lappland. She turned around and asked:
Where is she?
Sarkaz looked embarrassed, hesitant to speak. But with Lord Shi Lei present, he had no choice but to tell the truth:
"She broke the eldest's favorite Clay Sculpture yesterday and got a scolding. Now, she should be in bed."
174 Midday Anecdotes
Texas heard that Lappland had been punished by Mudrock for being impulsive, and asked about her injuries:
"How badly is she injured? Is it serious?"
Lappland already has a fracture that hasn't fully healed and is currently recovering. If she gets other injuries, she'll probably have to stay here even longer.
The Sarkaz mercenary shook his head and explained:
"No, they're just superficial injuries. The boss knows his limits; they won't hurt your ribs. If you want to visit her, I'll take you there now."
"No."
Texas only wanted to ascertain the extent of her injuries and had no intention of visiting her. She didn't want Lappland to ramble on and on, ruining her good mood for the day.
"Shi Lei, it's about time we went."
"No, it's almost midnight, time for lunch. Why don't you eat before you leave?"
Seeing Texas shake her head, he offered another reason that she couldn't refuse:
"Miss Texas, we don't know how to cook elaborate dishes. It's such a waste to cut up such good meat and throw it into a pot to boil. Could you teach us?"
Mercenaries' pay isn't split evenly; it's based on reputation, skill, and the number of kills they get. Low-ranking mercenaries like them often earn the pay for canned food while doing head-threatening work.
They eat simply to fill their stomachs and fill the body's basic energy gap. They usually eat whatever is available and never pick and choose. They throw edible ingredients into the pot after the water boils and cook them without any intention of preparing them properly.
If they hadn't followed Mudrock, they might have died long ago in the merciless meat grinder of war.
Texas knew these mercenaries had suffered terribly in the past, and turned to ask Shi Lei for his opinion:
"Do you want to eat here? Or go back to eat?"
Shi Lei, who was just there to freeload, smiled and replied:
"I'm fine with anything, whatever you say."
Texas, seeing that he had already said so, and also because she was in a good mood that day, agreed:
"Okay, take me to the kitchen. I'll teach you how to do it today, and you can try making it yourselves tomorrow."
She followed Sarkaz inside, but soon returned to the entrance on the first floor. It turned out the kitchen only had salt; they needed to go out and buy some other seasonings.
With nothing else to do, Shi Lei went out with the two men. Texas saw that the shop had homemade rice wine and bought ten jin (5 kg) of it. By the time they returned, it was almost noon.
To increase speed
Texas had the three Sarkaz who came to learn cooking debone and slice the meat. She also had them wash the vegetables and cut them into sections as instructed.
After marinating the vegetables in cooking wine for fifteen minutes, she heated oil in a wok, then quickly stir-fried them. Gradually, the aroma of the ingredients filled the air. Everyone praised Texas's culinary skills, which she thoroughly enjoyed.
By the time the food was plated and served, it was exactly 12:30.
Mudrock hasn't returned yet, so we can't eat. Judging by the time, he should arrive in a few more minutes.
One of the Sarkaz remembered that Texas had bought snacks earlier that day, so he took the opportunity to give them to the children. The little girls had never seen anything like them before, and their eyes lit up.
Do you like it?
"Like!"
Seeing their children happy, the infected women beamed with joy and reminded them:
"Then why aren't you saying thank you?"
The children's smiles were pure and beautiful, without any impurities, as if they possessed a power that struck straight to the heart.
"Thank you for the gift, Lord Shi Lei!"
"Thank you, Lord Texas!"
"Lady Texas, you are beautiful, have a great personality, and can cook wonderfully! You are truly amazing!"
For a fleeting moment, Texas even started fantasizing about what her child would be like. But she was still single, and nothing was even remotely happening. She quickly calmed herself and banished this unrealistic daydream.
Seeing the children's happy smiles, Texas seemed deeply touched. She abandoned her usual aloof and icy demeanor, breaking into a warm grin. Lunch hadn't even started, but a joyful atmosphere had already begun to fill the air.
"The boss is back!"
Upon learning of its owner's arrival, Mudrock trotted over.
Shi Lei smiled and waved to her, gesturing for her to sit down next to him for lunch. Now, everyone except Lappland was present.
Unsure of Texas's stance, he asked:
"How about we invite her down to eat with us?"
Texas gets a headache just thinking about that guy; she neither agreed nor refused, which can be interpreted as tacit consent.
Sarkaz mercenaries then went up to inform her and brought Lappland down. However, she walked with her legs tucked together, which looked rather strange.
It wasn't until Lappland touched the chair and stood up in pain that Shi Lei realized where the other was injured. He guessed she'd angered Mudrock and gotten a swollen butt.
However, the weight on Lappland's wrists made it difficult for her to hold the bowl while standing. Shi Lei immediately removed the weight from her Rock Constructs and planned to give her a lighter one after the meal.
Lappland stopped sitting and started eating standing up.
She clashed with Mudrock last night, and was completely outmatched in both close combat and Originium Arts.
It turns out that Mudrock wore heavy armor that day not because his physical defense was weak, but because it created a visual deterrent effect on the enemy.