Interstellar to 80s: A Scientist's Farming Mission

An Ning nodded in agreement.

"Lin Wanwan was a warrior."

"Yes, yes, that’s right. She would never kill herself over an argument with a classmate. She really wouldn’t. My daughter wouldn’t do that."

It was likely this belief that kept Lin Wanwan’s parents from coming to trouble An Ning.

An Ning saw Lin Wanwan’s mother off. Standing at the school gate, she replayed the mother’s last question in her mind: How are we supposed to go on living?

’Yes, how are they supposed to live?’

Lin Wanwan was their only daughter, raised with meticulous care and endless affection. She had gotten into a prestigious university and had a bright future ahead of her.

But now, all of that was gone.

’I can’t kill Tao Quan... but what about beating him up again?’

A fierce glint in her eyes, An Ning gave herself tacit permission.

She left the school gate and went to Brother Shan’s for shumai. Before she knew it, she had eaten three steamers’ worth.

Only after she was full did An Ning remember she was supposed to have dinner with Hua Cheng that evening.

An Ning settled the bill, said goodbye to Brother Shan, and got into Yu Zheng’s car not far away, heading to the location she’d agreed upon with Jiang Xia.

In the car, An Ning sat in the back with Xiao Lang beside her. Da Huang was in the front passenger seat.

Da Huang had his head tilted and was staring intently at Yu Zheng, his eyes unblinking.

"Um, An Ning, can you please tell Da Huang to stop staring at me like that? My wrist is about to cramp up."

Every time Yu Zheng moved his hand on the gearshift, Da Huang’s head would inch a little closer. Though his brain told him Da Huang wouldn’t bite, he couldn’t help the fear creeping into his heart, and his palms were starting to sweat.

An Ning was also stunned by the scene. She leaned forward, patting Da Huang’s head. "Da Huang, are you trying to learn how to drive?"

Da Huang let out a low bark, then turned back to An Ning and... smiled.

"Uh, Da Huang, we should aim for a closed-mouth smile. You should put those teeth away."

An Ning pinched the fleshy folds under Da Huang’s chin and pushed them up. "Da Huang, you need to lose some weight."

"A-woooo—"

The dog’s whine, something between a pout and a plea, sent a shiver down An Ning’s spine. She said bluntly, "Da Huang, the cute-and-coy act doesn’t suit you. Let’s just drop it."

"Also, lean over toward the window. Be like other dogs—stick your head out the window, let your tongue hang out... Yes, yes, just like that. Fun, right?"

"WOOF!"

A cheerful bark was her answer. Some things truly are hardwired into your genes.

An Ning leaned back in her seat, pulled Xiao Lang onto her lap, and whispered in its ear, "You behave. If you rile Da Huang up again, I’m sending you back to the mountains."

"Whimper... whim-whimper..."

Xiao Lang climbed off An Ning’s lap very unhappily, turned its butt toward her, and sulked.

’I finally got myself a little brother...’

An Ning ignored Xiao Lang. The little guy was just like a child; give him an inch, and he’d take a mile.

The car sped along, and Yu Zheng went from feeling nervous to feeling cold.

Driving with the windows down in the middle of winter, letting the cold wind blow in, was a truly inhuman experience.

But compared to the paranormal event of Da Huang wanting to learn how to drive, Yu Zheng decided he preferred the cold.

"Yu Zheng, contact Director Zhao. Ask him if we have any points of contact with the Tao family in Beijing."

"Yes, ma’am."

An Ning leaned back. Since Yin San couldn’t get a clear read on Tao Quan, she would just have to make a trip herself.

A little over half an hour later, Yu Zheng stopped the car. They had arrived.

The place was quite far, a trip that took nearly an hour by car.

An Ning got out of the car and said to Yu Zheng, "You can head back. Take these two with you."

"Alright. How will you get back?"

"Don’t worry, Jiang Xia drove."

"Okay. Please call me if you need anything."

An Ning nodded, watching as Yu Zheng drove away. Da Huang still had his head sticking out, giving An Ning a goofy grin.

An Ning shook her head and chuckled. She turned to look at the place where she was meeting Jiang Xia, then glanced down at her clothes. ’Isn’t this a little too casual?’

’If I can’t get in... I’ll just beat Jiang Xia up. It’s his fault for not telling me the dress code.’

With a ’nothing to lose by trying’ attitude, An Ning walked toward the entrance.

A doorman, who was dressed far better than she was, stood by the double glass doors. He politely and gentlemanly pulled a door open for An Ning, bowing in an inviting gesture.

"Thank you."

An Ning walked inside, fully prepared to be kicked out by the staff. After all, some places did have a dress code.

You could always be unconventional, but sometimes, respecting the rules didn’t mean abandoning your principles. It was a sign of class.

"Ma’am—"

"I know, I’ll leave right now."

An Ning turned to walk out, not wanting to make things difficult for the attendant.

"Ma’am, please wait a moment."

The attendant behind her caught up with small, quick steps, her hands still gracefully clasped at her waist. Her etiquette was impeccable.

An Ning stopped and waited for her to speak.

"Hello, may I please have your name?"

"I’m An Ning."

The attendant broke into a lovely, ’just as I thought’ smile and gave An Ning a polite nod.

"Good evening, Ms. An Ning. This way, please. Mr. Jiang Xia has already made arrangements."

’He made arrangements?’

An Ning followed the attendant and asked, "How did he describe me?"

An Ning was very curious, and naturally, the attendant wasn’t going to say anything unflattering.

"Mr. Jiang Xia said that the one with the most unique aura and the strongest presence would be you."

"He said your presence comes from your self-confidence and that we would recognize you easily. The moment I saw you walk in today, I understood what Mr. Jiang Xia meant."

After hearing this, the way An Ning looked at the attendant changed.

"You... are far too talented for this job."

It wasn’t that being an attendant was a bad job, just that the woman before her was on another level.

"Thank you for the compliment. I’ll shamelessly accept it."

An Ning didn’t say anything more. She followed the attendant into an elevator and went all the way up to the fifth floor.

When the elevator doors opened on the fifth floor, there was no bustling scene, just a series of rooms that looked very soundproof.

An Ning followed the attendant to a door at the end of the hallway. "This is the private room Mr. Jiang Xia booked," the attendant said. "He mentioned that if you arrived first, you could feel free to start eating."

An Ning, who had a strong sense of awareness, first scanned the other side of the door with her spiritual power. There was a large table with a lazy Susan, and Hua Cheng was sitting there alone, bored, spinning a plate.

"Alright, thank you."

The attendant pushed the door open, and An Ning walked in.

Inside the room, Hua Cheng frantically set the plate on the lazy Susan straight. The moment he saw An Ning enter, he immediately stood up and greeted her respectfully.

"An Ning, hello."

"Hello, Hua Cheng. Where’s Jiang Xia?"

An Ning casually walked in and sat down. The attendant said, "I’ll be right outside the door. Please call me if you need anything."

The attendant left, leaving just An Ning and Hua Cheng in the room.

Hua Cheng, who was still standing, answered An Ning’s question. "Jiang Xia and I were supposed to come together, but my pain-in-the-ass dad insisted he had something to discuss with Jiang Xia, and Jiang Xia couldn’t really say no, so he had me come and wait for you first."

"He couldn’t get in touch with you at the time—he called Yu Zheng, but there was no answer—so he was afraid you’d make a trip for nothing. That’s why I came."

An Ning nodded and said casually, "He was probably just afraid I’d beat him up."

"Huh? How did you know that’s what he said?"

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