Ride in My Truck

At dawn the next morning, Xiao Wang and Linghu Ke got up.

After washing up, the two set off for the place they had agreed on the day before.

Forty minutes later, they arrived outside the warehouse from yesterday.

Three cargo trucks were parked outside the warehouse. They had already been loaded with goods and covered with tarps to keep out the rain.

Xiao Wang looked up at the sky and found it blanketed by dark clouds, as if rain was on the way.

Xiao Wang and Linghu Ke waited beside the trucks for a while before Sister Hua emerged from the warehouse, followed by someone else.

Xiao Wang took a look and recognized him as the man who had opened the door for them yesterday.

The two nodded to Sister Hua in greeting.

Xiao Wang noticed that Sister Hua had changed out of yesterday's short skirt and into loose black pants. Though the pants were somewhat baggy, they still could not hide her long, striking legs. Her high heels had been replaced by sneakers, and she wore a black leather jacket on top, making her look particularly sharp and capable.

Her chest was still full and prominent, impossible for even the leather jacket to conceal.

Looking at her outfit, Xiao Wang quietly asked Linghu Ke, "Second Senior Brother, is Sister Hua coming along for this delivery too?"

"Probably. Some people go in person, while others don't. But judging by what she's wearing, she'll likely be coming with us."

Xiao Wang said nothing more.

After a while, the remaining three—Zhang Jian, Ding Hanlin, and Xiang Menqing—arrived as well.

Once everyone was present, Sister Hua stepped forward, looked at them, and said, "I'll be counting on all of you from here on."

"You all know how to drive, right?" Sister Hua continued. Driving was practically a basic skill in this line of work.

Everyone except Xiao Wang nodded.

Xiao Wang had known how to drive in his previous life too, but he had never driven a manual diesel cargo truck. To be safe, he decided to let someone else handle it.

Sister Hua glanced at Xiao Wang but said nothing, instead addressing the group directly.

"Two people per truck. The remaining person rides with me, in my truck."

Hearing that, Xiao Wang followed behind Linghu Ke and headed toward one of the trucks.

After only a few steps, Xiang Menqing's voice sounded from behind them.

"Sister Hua, I'll ride with you."

Sister Hua ignored him. She looked over the group, then fixed her gaze on Xiao Wang. "You there? The youngest one?"

Xiao Wang turned toward Sister Hua and realized she really was calling for him.

He pointed to himself. "Me?"

"Yes, you. You're riding with me."

Xiao Wang looked at Linghu Ke.

"Remember what I told you yesterday? Go on. Be careful," Linghu Ke said.

Xiao Wang had no choice but to turn around and walk toward the cab where Sister Hua was standing.

As he passed Xiang Menqing, he could clearly feel the unfriendly look in the man's eyes.

Xiao Wang paid Xiang Menqing no mind. His attention was on Sister Hua, and he noticed that as he walked over, she had deliberately watched the way Xiang Menqing looked at him.

Sure enough, a little internal friction was what put her at ease.

Xiao Wang thought to himself. He naturally did not think Sister Hua had taken a liking to him. From the negotiations in the room yesterday, he could tell that she was no simple woman.

He knew Sister Hua was deliberately creating a controllable divide.

Even right before setting off, she still had to stir up some internal tension.

As for Xiang Menqing, Xiao Wang ignored him completely. After disregarding his glare, he walked straight to Sister Hua's side, opened the door, and climbed in.

Xiang Menqing looked at Xiao Wang twice before turning to get into Ding Hanlin's truck. Linghu Ke rode with Zhang Jian.

Sister Hua took a look, then climbed in as well.

She sat between Xiao Wang and her subordinate, who was responsible for driving.

Once the three were seated, Xiao Wang looked past Sister Hua and greeted the subordinate. "I haven't asked what to call you, brother?"

"Just call me A Qiang," the subordinate replied as he turned the key and started the truck.

"Good to meet you, Brother Qiang. I'm Xiao Wang."

"I know."

Before long, all three trucks had started, but none of them moved.

Everyone knew that the lead vehicle faced the greatest risk, and no one wanted to go first.

Just as Sister Hua was about to get out and say something, one truck pulled ahead.

Xiao Wang looked over and saw that it was the truck carrying Linghu Ke and Zhang Jian.

Seeing this, Sister Hua sat back down and told A Qiang to follow, taking the middle position among the three trucks.

And so, the convoy of three trucks rumbled out of the city.

The sky was thick with dark clouds, as if a torrential downpour could strike at any moment.

Sitting by the window, Xiao Wang watched the buildings on both sides slide backward. The houses grew lower and sparser until the landscape eventually became almost nothing but wilderness.

The moment they left the city, the truck began to jolt violently.

Xiao Wang looked at the road ahead. It was practically covered in potholes, with scarcely even a square meter of level ground in sight.

Everyone in the cab swayed with the truck, thrown from side to side and bounced up and down.

Sitting by the side, Xiao Wang gripped the handle tightly with his right hand.

A Qiang held the steering wheel, doing his best to keep himself anchored in the driver's seat.

Sister Hua sat in the middle with nothing to hold onto. She initially wanted to grab A Qiang's arm, but she was afraid of interfering with his driving, so she gave up. Left with no other choice, she grabbed Xiao Wang's arm with one hand.

Xiao Wang glanced at her but said nothing. He only saw that, with the truck's jolting, Sister Hua's chest heaved and bounced wildly.

Sister Hua noticed Xiao Wang's gaze and pulled up the zipper of her jacket, tightening it around her chest to reduce the movement.

But after doing so, she found that the effect was limited, so she simply stopped bothering with it.

Still, she noticed that after looking only once, Xiao Wang turned his head elsewhere and did not look her way again.

The jolting continued, growing increasingly severe.

At first, Sister Hua only leaned against him slightly.

But whenever they hit a large pothole later on, the bouncing became too violent, and she simply pressed her body directly against Xiao Wang.

Xiao Wang immediately felt a soft mass against him.

But as soon as they passed the pothole, Sister Hua immediately sat upright again.

After the truck drove on for a while and the jolting eased somewhat, Xiao Wang turned to Sister Hua. "Sister Hua, do you want to switch seats?"

Sister Hua chuckled softly. "It's fine. This is pretty good."

At the same time, she inwardly laughed at Xiao Wang.

The kid won't even take advantage of something like this. Is he really that proper, or just pretending to be?

The truck continued onward, still jolting without pause.

Sister Hua acted just as before, leaning her body against Xiao Wang whenever they hit a big bump.

And after seeing that Xiao Wang seemed completely uninterested in her, she became even less restrained.

Several times, Xiao Wang could even feel the softness being flattened beneath his arm.

"Linghu Ke said you're his junior brother? How old are you?" As Sister Hua spoke, she simply slipped one arm beneath Xiao Wang's armpit and hooked it tightly around his arm.

Xiao Wang heard her, but did not move his arm. At the same time, he recalled what Linghu Ke had said: being young was considered one of the factors that made someone seem unreliable in this line of work.

So...

"Twenty-two," Xiao Wang answered.

"Twenty-two?" Sister Hua froze for a moment. "You look so young. I thought you were only eighteen."