The First Order

Chapter 1009: First meal

Yang Xiaojin was born into a wealthy family. Other people’s children would attend kindergarten while she waited for private tutors to come and homeschool her.

The tutors were all carefully selected by the consortium. Even though she was just a little girl, the tutors still needed to possess knowledge of everything in the world.

She did not have any playmates, nor did she have a teacher who would bring her out to play games. The scholars would never let her play Drop the Handkerchief.

Only Yang Anjing would occasionally appear at the Yang Consortium’s manor and read her fairy tales, teach her nursery rhymes, and jump rope with her.

Yang Xiaojin cherished her time with Yang Anjing very much because those were the rare times she got to enjoy herself.

After attending elementary school, she went to an elite school in Stronghold 88. Although she did not really like her classmates there, she still enjoyed school very much. Because at school, she did not have to face the strict atmosphere at home.

Yang Xiaojin had lost all concept of home in childhood. The Yang Consortium’s manor was more like a hotel to her as she did not have to clean the place. Every day, a servant would just hand her the clothes after they were washed. She saw the servants very often, but she rarely saw her family.

Actually, Yang Xiaojin also felt that there was nothing to complain about. She was born into one of the best families in the world, and there was no need to worry about the basics, such as food, clothing, and shelter, or worry about not being able to afford her school fees. As long as it was something related to money, she did not have to worry.

The first thing Yang Anjing did when she brought her out of the stronghold was to show her how tough life was for the refugees. She even took her to live in town for a month.

Therefore, Yang Xiaojin knew very well that even though her childhood was boring, it was never tragic. There were many others who were much more miserable than her.

On the day she turned 12, Yang Anjing said to her, “Don’t ever think that it’s very unfortunate to have been born into the Yang clan. There are millions of people in the world who’d want to swap places with you. While you’re sitting in boredom in front of your brightly lit window, they have to carry bamboo baskets on their backs and go to the coal mines to earn their daily keep. I hate the Yang clan for their hypocritical behavior. I established the Saboteurs because I know that everything that’s happening now was caused by The Cataclysm. You’ll also have to understand what you want someday and start working hard to gain the strength and courage to defend it. At that time, you’ll have fully grown up.”

Yang Xiaojin would occasionally feel lost too. What did she want? The existence of the Saboteurs was Yang Anjing’s will, not hers.

The Yang Consortium’s ambitions belonged to those adults and had nothing to do with her.

That was until this moment. She watched Ren Xiaosu pace back and forth in the house before saying to her, “After the peach tree bears fruit, the two of us can go to the marketplace and sell off the excess harvest, or give them to our neighbors.”

As there was not enough kitchenware at home, they had to go out to buy some. They would also need to stock up on some spices.

Ren Xiaosu would handle the cleaning of the house on the odd days of the week, while Yang Xiaojin would take care of it on the even days.

There seemed to be a leak in the building’s roof, so Ren Xiaosu said he would go out tomorrow to buy some water-repellent felt to repair it.

At some point, Yang Xiaojin suddenly felt like she kinda knew what she wanted. All she wanted was a home. She could join Ren Xiaosu outside to fight and kill, but once they were home, this young man would immediately become the light of the house.

Yang Xiaojin looked at Ren Xiaosu, who had suddenly become naggy, and said with a smile, “I’ll cook you a meal tomorrow.”

Ren Xiaosu was stunned. Then he asked knowingly, “I thought you didn’t know how to cook?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t poison you,” Yang Xiaojin said.

This was the first time that Yang Xiaojin had volunteered to cook. Ren Xiaosu noticed that Yang Xiaojin’s mentality seemed to have changed a little. He smiled and replied, “Sure, let’s go grocery shopping tomorrow morning. I’ll eat whatever you cook even if I might get poisoned to death.”

Yang Xiaojin rolled her eyes. “You already know that I could cook, don’t you? I can remember the strange look you had in your eyes when you were cooking for me last time!”

Ren Xiaosu chuckled. “As expected of a sniper. You’re really sharp.”

…

The next morning, the two of them woke up early to wash up.

There were quite a few bedrooms in this small, two-story building. Ren Xiaosu was starting to regret it a little. He felt that he should have just bought a one-bedroom apartment instead.

But on second thought, that wouldn’t seem right either. If they really lived in a one-bedroom apartment, based on how cowardly he was, he would probably end up sleeping on the couch.

After the two of them finished unpacking, they each took a bamboo basket and headed out.

Just after stepping out, they happened to bump into their next-door neighbor. It was a middle-aged couple who looked like they were about to go to work.

Ren Xiaosu took a close look at them. The couple was slightly plump and both of them were quite well-dressed. The man was wearing a spotless suit and probably held a decent job.

The middle-aged woman greeted them with a smile, “I heard from Mrs. Wang yesterday that we were going to have new neighbors soon, but I wasn’t expecting you guys to move in so quickly. I didn’t even drop by to say hello yesterday, how rude of me! I’m Hu Xiaobai, and this is my husband, Wang Yuexi.”

The middle-aged man nodded as a form of greeting. He did not seem to want to interact too much with Ren Xiaosu and Yang Xiaojin.

Ren Xiaosu smiled and said, “That’s alright, Mrs. Hu. We should be the ones dropping by your place instead.”

“Are you going out to buy groceries?” Hu Xiaobai said with a smile, “I heard from Mrs. Wang that the two of you aren’t from Stronghold 144?”

“Mhm, we came from the Central Plains,” Ren Xiaosu said.

“It’s good that you came to the Northwest. The Central Plains has become so chaotic now, unlike our Northwest where it’s so safe!” Hu Xiaobai said with a smile, “Welcome, we’re all fellow Northwesterners now!”

Ren Xiaosu gave a grateful sigh. The consortiums in the Central Plains were still building their strongholds to prevent refugees from entering the cities, but the people in the Northwest were already starting to call those who came to settle down here their fellow “Northwesterners.”

It was obvious the Wang Consortium would not stop on their warpath, so more and more people would be migrating to the Northwest in the future.

Hu Xiaobai smiled and said, “Have you two found a job after coming to the Northwest?”

“No, we’d like to rest for a while first,” Ren Xiaosu replied.

“Mhm, it’s good to take a break too.” Hu Xiaobai said enthusiastically, “My husband works at the stronghold’s administrative center. If you two encounter any difficulties, you can let us know. He’s quite influential in the stronghold.”

Hu Xiaobai was just like many warm-hearted older women. She looked like she was quite helpful and liked chatting about random matters at home. From time to time, she would even unintentionally boast about her husband.

At this moment, Ren Xiaosu saw the man quietly tug at Hu Xiaobai’s sleeve. As such, he smiled at Hu Xiaobai and said, “There isn’t really anything we need to trouble the two of you with. We’re both very carefree people.”

“Alright, we’ll talk again when there’s time. Since we’re neighbors, let’s keep in touch.” Hu Xiaobai then went to work.

When they got farther away, Wang Yuexi grumbled softly to her, “Why are you telling them so much? More and more immigrants are coming to Stronghold 144, so there’s a lot of people looking for work. They’re either seeking approval for their business operations or asking to be recommended to a good job. If those two really come to me for help, how am I supposed to reject them?”

Hu Xiaobai whispered, “I was just being polite, wasn’t I? Besides, we’re neighbors, so what’s the big deal with helping them a little?”

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