The Qin-Surnamed Wasteland Hunters
Tuanzi sat in the car, deep in thought, "Can I ask you one more question?"
Qing Chen rubbed his cold hands together, breathing on them to warm them as he said, "Sure, you're willing to give me a ride. It's like saving my life. You can ask me anything."
Tuanzi thought for a moment and asked, "When exactly each year does the Federation experience the influence of the southwest monsoon and the southeast monsoon?"
Qing Chen looked surprised. "The Federation is only affected by the southeast monsoon, not the southwest monsoon."
This question was clearly chosen by Tuanzi specifically for Time Walker. In the Outer World, China's summer is influenced by two types of monsoons: the southwest monsoon and the southeast monsoon. However, the Inner World is vast, and the southwestern snow-capped mountains are higher and more magnificent than those in the Outer World, completely blocking the southwest monsoon.
If you're a good student from the Outer World, who would bother to look at things like monsoons after coming to the Inner World? If you answer this subconsciously, you'll reveal some information.
But Qing Chen happened to be the kind of person who would read textbooks when he had nothing else to do.
It wasn't that he was idle, after all, he also had the identity of a teacher at the Li Clan Academy, although he was a physical education teacher.
Seeing that Qing Chen's answer was so accurate, Tuanzi immediately laughed and said, "It seems that I remembered it wrong."
However, she wasn't worried. Since Qing Chen wasn't Time Walker, he wouldn't know why she asked that question; he would probably just think it was a slip of the tongue.
"These math questions you're asking aren't simple at all. What caused you to fail your exams?" Qing Chen asked innocently and naively.
"Huh?" Tuanzi was taken aback. "I... I had a fever at the time, so I didn't do well on the exam..."
In this Inner World, there's only one chance to take the college entrance exam. If you fail, you either have to work or learn a skill; there's no such thing as retaking the exam.
Actually, there was such a thing at the beginning, but many students knew that only the college entrance examination could help them cross social classes, so some people repeated the exam for six or seven years and then stopped working.
This kind of thing is completely against the values of conglomerates. They need workers, not people who strive to change their fate. That's why a parliamentary bill was passed more than 30 years ago to prohibit repeating grades.
Qing Chen looked at them. "Are you all students who failed the exam? I don't know if I can get into Qinghe University, but I heard that even if you get into Qinghe University, you may not be able to make a name for yourself."
Sun Chuci glanced at Qing Chen in the rearview mirror. "It's better than being a factory worker. You don't have to struggle to make a living in the wilderness like we do. As a white-collar worker, you'll have no worries about food and clothing. If you study law, you might even become a member of parliament."
At this moment, Tuanzi, Sun Chuci, and the others had confirmed that the "Qing Xiao Tu" in front of them was a native examinee from the other Inner World, so they felt much more at ease.
After all, what threat could a student pose?
Tuanzi sighed, "Your friend probably thought you'd die in the wilderness this time of year. If you hadn't met us, you would have been dead for sure; this would be considered murder. Report it to the police as soon as you arrive in City No. 10. The PCE Public Security Management Committee will handle these kinds of things, but candidates have special status."
The reason why the candidates are considered special is because it is uncertain whether they will have a bright future. Many students from Qinghe University have become white-collar workers, while some who studied law have become members of parliament or spokespeople for conglomerates.
Although they are puppets, they are puppets with a high social status, so the PCE Public Security Management Committee generally takes reports from test takers seriously.
At least they didn't arrive at the crime scene an hour late, unlike in the Lower Three Districts.
Qing Chen earnestly played his role. "Yes, I will definitely report this to the PCE. Once I get my money back, I will thank you for giving me a ride."
In fact, he wasn't suddenly abandoned; he parted ways with Li Ke Hu Xiaoniu after leaving Forbidden Zone No. 002.
He gave the SUV to the two people to take back to City No. 18, while he went alone to City No. 10 to report.
Before parting, Li Ke and Hu Xiaoniu both wanted to go to City No. 10 with him, but Qing Chen refused them both.
A spy from the Qing Clan Secret Intelligence Department was wandering around aimlessly with one of the heirs of the Li Clan's First Branch, creating a scene that was as bizarre as it could be.
Qing Chen originally planned to hike there since he had nothing else to do, but he happened to meet this team of wilderness hunters on the way, so he decided to give them a ride.
To be honest, the fact that seven of the people in the convoy were Time Walker was quite unexpected.
I figured that after reporting to the Secret Intelligence Department, I would inevitably have to deal with the Time Walker of Zheng City, and now would be a good opportunity to get to know them.
Zhengzhou has a much larger permanent population than Luoyang, so theoretically there should be a lot of Time Walker organizations, but for some reason, compared to the rest of the country, Time Walker are very low-key.
Qing Chen asked curiously, "I've never been to City No. 10 before. Is it really as people say, a gathering place for social elites, where you can see celebrities and politicians everywhere?"
Sun Chuci calmly responded, "That's the glamorous side of City No. 10. In my opinion, City No. 10 is actually one of the most chaotic cities in the Federation. The chaos and extravagance of the world of fame and fortune are vividly displayed here, as are human rights and all sorts of messy power demands."
Before Qing Chen traveled to this world, he searched for information about City No. 10 on the Outer World network and found that it was a very strange city.
Within the federation, each city is relatively independent and autonomous, with its own city council and its own relevant laws and regulations.
10 cities are cities where legal proposals are hijacked by public opinion.
In City No. 10, cats and dogs have identification cards, and the law stipulates that cats and dogs cannot be abandoned at will.
In City No. 10, the camera shutter sound of all mobile phones sold cannot be turned off, and any act of taking photos without permission is prohibited in public places.
There are many similar laws and regulations, and they are very good, but the labor law still allows the existence of servants.
It felt like the conglomerate was sacrificing the small to protect the big, making concessions wherever possible to keep the residents of City No. 10 happy.
Humanity's true and fundamental interests have never been guaranteed.
This is all done by the parliament and its members.
Therefore, when Li Changqing said he had "taken care of City No. 1," he didn't mean he had massacred the City No. 1 to ensure that the Li family would always have a "majority vote" in the council, and that the Republican Party, which the Li family supported, would hold a majority of seats in the City No. 1 council.
Democracy has become an empty shell, yet it still looks glamorous.
At this moment, Qing Chen suddenly felt something was wrong. He looked at Sun Chuci and said, "You're not heading due north right now."
City No. 10 was directly north of them, and the wilderness hunters' team was veering off course.
Sun Chuci glanced at the rearview mirror. "We have our own things to do, so we need to make a detour to another place first. Please stay in the car and don't ask us anything or care what we're doing. Don't worry, as long as you don't listen, ask, or care, we'll definitely get you safely to City No. 10."
"Okay," Qing Chen replied with a smile.
Wilderness hunters' convoys typically don't travel at night, and since it's only just dawn, it suggests that Sun Chuci and his group may have arranged to meet someone at a specific time to arrive at a certain location.
Four hours later, Qing Chen saw two pickup trucks parked at the edge of a grove of trees in the distance, with seven ragged, Wilderness People leaning against them smoking.
Qing Chen sensed something was wrong. He glanced at Sun Chuci, who was completely unaware of what was about to happen, and finally kindly reminded him, "Don't drive too close to the woods."
Sun Chuci was taken aback for a moment, and he glanced at the boy in the back row with surprise.
Qing Chen continued, "Those Wilderness People were smoking, but they were holding the cigarettes in their left hands. This was to keep their most dexterous right hands free so they could grab guns and attack at any time."
Normally, it's fine to hold a cigarette in either hand; there's no inherent advantage or disadvantage. However, it's unusual for all Wilderness People to hold cigarettes in their left hand.
Sun Chuci said, "Classmate, it's normal for them to be wary of us, and we should be wary of them too."
Qing Chen shook his head.
When they were about 400 meters apart, he made full use of his hearing ability and heard the Wilderness People whispering, "They're here."
"Have the brothers hide in the woods first, and wait for my signal before making a move. I need to ask them a few questions first."
Qing Chen looked at Sun Chuci and said, "Their car is parked with its back to the edge of the woods. There might be someone lying in ambush in the woods. Take my advice, it's better to park further away from them. It's always good to be more careful in this wilderness."
Upon hearing this, Sun Chuci subconsciously slowed down.
He's not stupid, nor is he a headstrong person; otherwise, he wouldn't have listened to everyone's advice and gotten Qing Chen into the car.
Therefore, he now felt that Qing Chen's words made sense. He gently tapped the brakes a few times and whispered into the car's walkie-talkie, "There might be something going on. Everyone be careful. I'll have them bring the falcon over to trade for the medicine. We'll take the falcon and leave."
"A falcon?" Qing Chen asked curiously.
Sun Chuci glanced at him. "Classmate, don't ask anymore, we don't want to talk about it."
Qing Chen nodded. "Understood!"
Tuanzi, standing to the side, curiously observed Qing Chen. This young student was in a completely different state than before, not at all like someone who had been stranded in the wilderness.
Moreover, regardless of whether Qing Chen's judgment was correct or not, he should be a very cautious person. How could he be let down by his own teammates for no reason?
As Tuanzi was pondering, she saw Qing Chen turn around and grin at her. For some reason, Tuanzi felt that the smile was very pure and without any impurities.
Qing Chen looked out the window, calculated the approximate distance, and said, "Alright, let's stop here and have them bring the goods over."
Sun Chuci glanced at Qing Chen in surprise. He didn't know if it was because Qing Chen's tone was too confident or for some other reason, but he involuntarily stepped on the brakes.
Su Chuci got out of the car and called out to the Wilderness People, "Long time no see!"
The group of Wilderness People exchanged glances, seemingly surprised that Sun Chuci had parked the car so far away.
However, they only hesitated for two seconds before walking over here.
A Wilderness People greeted him warmly, "Friend, did you bring what we asked for last time?"
Sun Chuci patted the truck bed. "I brought it all, it's all here."
Another Wilderness People approached and casually asked, "By the way, there's a group of wilderness hunters surnamed Qin near City No. 18. Are you familiar with them?"
Qing Chen suddenly realized that this was the key question the Wilderness People intended to ask.
Etc.
The Qin family hunter from City No. 18 —aren't they Xiao Yiyi's family?! Why are these Wilderness People asking this?!