Chapter 73: Chapter 72: Doudou Leading the Way
For a man who prided himself on being ready for anything, going abroad on a moment’s notice was a piece of cake.
Baru didn’t even need to go home to pack. He just called his family to let them know and left immediately.
As for Qin Xiaoxia, he didn’t linger in the United States either. By the time Baru had sent the message to Norton, he had already bought his plane ticket.
Later the next day, Jenny once again drove Qin Xiaoxia to the airport, while Mark and the others had already fanned out to handle their respective tasks.
Qin Xiaoxia carried a simple suitcase and wore a new, well-fitting, and comfortable trench coat, looking like a carefree young man on a trip to America.
Standing at the ticket counter in Los Angeles Airport, amidst the bustling crowd, he happened to glance back in a particular direction.
Baru was just coming in through that entrance, looking sharp and efficient, carrying only a backpack. A spirited young man followed beside him.
Feeling a familiar gaze on him, Baru looked up as he hurried along. Before him was a diverse crowd of equally hurried travelers.
Although he couldn’t see him, he could sense that familiar figure.
Qin Xiaoxia, with his extraordinary vision, gave a slight nod in that direction. He then retrieved his boarding pass from the counter, checked his luggage, and walked toward the security checkpoint without looking back.
At the entrance, Baru only resumed walking after he could no longer feel the gaze.
"Sir, what was that just now?"
The young man following closely behind Baru, also carrying a backpack, couldn’t help but ask out of curiosity.
This was a young man whom Baru greatly admired. He was full of energy and drive, and his character and integrity were beyond reproach—the type of person who was genuinely kind and filled with a sense of justice.
In the past, Baru wouldn’t have thought highly of such a young man. This type of person was often the easiest to take advantage of, the quickest to be crushed by cruel reality and never recover. In Baru’s eyes, they were the type who wouldn’t last long on the battlefield.
But he didn’t think that way anymore. People like him were the shining lights of humanity. When faced with darkness, if countless others hesitated, the first to charge forward would often be this kind of respectable "fool."
Baru turned back and smiled at him.
"Jonathan, you know I barely escaped that mine pit with my life. Sometimes I think I survived because heaven gave me a new mission."
Jonathan laughed and teased him.
"Uh-huh, we all admit you guys were pretty lucky to survive, but you’re clearly dodging the question."
Although Baru looked fierce, he was surprisingly easy to get along with, and Jonathan had long since hit it off with him.
"Hahahaha, you probably won’t believe this, Jonathan, but just now, I think I felt the gaze of destiny!"
After saying this, Baru quickened his pace.
The two were taking a private plane that had been arranged for them, and it was already prepped for takeoff.
Jonathan quickened his steps to keep up, scratching his head and yelling after Baru.
"Sir, isn’t that a bit over the top...?"
But all he heard from ahead was a "heh heh" and then silence.
Two planes, one private and one commercial, took off one after the other, nearly an hour apart.
Both would be in the air for a considerable amount of time before reaching their destination.
On the private plane, Baru and Jonathan took the opportunity to get some rest.
Meanwhile, on the other flight, Qin Xiaoxia closed his eyes, seemingly to rest.
「Qingzhen. Inside the association building.」
Inside the Secret Realm, the Shadow of the Red Demoness materialized from its hidden state and suddenly began to move.
In the new kitchen, Doudou, who was chugging a Coke while munching on a corn on the cob, suddenly saw the "Red Demoness" standing right behind him in the kitchen mirror.
PFFT— He spat out all the Coke in his mouth.
He spun around and stared at the Shadow of the Red Demoness as if he’d seen a ghost.
"How... how can you move on your own? Uh... Big Bro?"
The initially panicked Doudou suddenly sensed something familiar.
"Hrmm..."
The voice was soft yet ethereal, carrying the unique illusory and bewitching quality of a Sea Siren.
GULP. Doudou swallowed hard and hid the Coke behind his back.
"Um, Big Bro, this Coke was about to expire, so I had no choice but to open it... Uh, and this corn, I didn’t use your money to buy it. I ’borrowed’ it from a nearby field... And also..."
"Enough!"
The Red Demoness’s voice was suddenly sharp.
On the plane, Qin Xiaoxia almost lost his composure and sat bolt upright in his seat.
"Doudou, I’m going to call Su Su and have her come to Qingzhen. Go meet her when she arrives. I need her help with something."
The Shadow of the Red Demoness glanced at the mess on the floor and the table.
"Oh, and while you’re at it, clean up the kitchen."
Once the Red Demoness had spoken these ethereal words, it gradually vanished into thin air.
Doudou breathed a sigh of relief.
’I’d better hurry and wheedle some pocket money out of Gou Junbao or Huang Jiutian. If Big Bro gets back and finds fifty yuan missing, I’m so dead...’
...
It was morning, and Su Su was frantically brushing her teeth and washing up. Within five minutes, she rushed out of her house.
A private car and driver were waiting for her just outside the residential complex.
For a place like Qingzhen, basically no taxi driver would take a fare from Qiantang. Only private car services, with their bonus incentives, would make the trip.
Su Su, who had been sleeping in just moments before, suddenly got a call from Qin Xiaoxia before he boarded his flight. After hearing what it was about, she shot up from her bed in excitement, nearly hitting her head on the ceiling.
Even though Mr. Qin, her Mentor, had said he wouldn’t be there for the time being, she was finally getting to go to the place she had always dreamed of visiting.
In the car, Su Su kept taking out her Crystal Ball to steady her nerves.
’I absolutely cannot mess this up.’
The driver glanced in the rearview mirror at the pretty, mixed-race girl in the back seat.
"Miss, where exactly in Qingzhen are you headed?"
"Just keep driving, sir. You can drop me off anywhere in central Qingzhen. I’ll have someone come pick me up."
Su Su didn’t even look up, busy chatting with Doudou on WeChat. Suddenly, she saw Doudou send an address.
"Wait, wait, sir! You can just drop me off at the entrance of Ruixing Supermarket."
The driver replied, "Okay," and silently opened his phone’s navigation app to search for the supermarket that shared its name with a certain antivirus software.
When the car arrived at the supermarket entrance, Doudou was already waiting there.
Seeing Su Su get out of the car, Doudou didn’t even wait for her to express her joy before grabbing her and running into the supermarket.
"Hey!? Doudou, is our..."
Su Su lowered her voice.
"Is the... As-so-ci-a-tion’s... se-cret... base... in the supermarket?"
"Cut the chatter! Big Bro said you have to listen to me!"
"Right, right!"
Smiling, Su Su had the urge to pat Doudou’s head, but she managed to stop herself.
Ten minutes later, the shopping cart was piled high with snacks.
A completely bewildered Su Su pushed the shopping cart as Doudou led her to the checkout counter.
"Hello, your total comes to two hundred seventy-four yuan and thirty."
The cashier smiled at Su Su.
Su Su stared blankly at Doudou.
Doudou kicked her on her stockinged leg and said impatiently, "Pay for it!"
"Ah! Oh, right, right! I’ll pay, I’ll pay!"
Su Su quickly took out her phone to scan the code and pay.
PS: Thank you to reader Wo Kandao de Yuanfang for the 10,000 coin donation; thank you to readers Wo Shi Pangzi 211 and Leyuan Meng Luoli for the 1,000 coin donations; thank you to reader Lame Meng for the 4,000 coin donation; thank you to readers I’m not sure and cdcdc6314c6 for the 500 coin donations; and thank you to readers Ta Shuo Bu i, Blood Race Night Blade, Tou Di, and Yue Shang You Shu for the 100 coin donations~~
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