The First Order

Even though the group from the Trinity Institute was able to eat meals during the past few days, they were having the leftovers the Pyro Company soldiers could not finish. Furthermore, the large pot of rice had gotten cold after being taken out for nearly an hour.

In the current season, they were already very cold due to the weather. If they were to have a cold meal on top of that, you could just imagine how unbearable that felt.

Moreover, there was as good as no meat in the leftover rice. At most, the cooks would just pour some meat broth over it. But now, their mess tins were covered by large servings of braised chicken cubes, and the rice was also a nice soy sauce color due to the meat broth, making it look extremely appetizing.

Liang Ce and the others gobbled up their food while harping, “Xiaosu, you really have a way with people. You can even get along with the people of the Pyro Company.”

As everyone had not bathed for many days, and having to eat and sleep in the truck, their faces were now very dirty. They looked no different from the escapees.

Ren Xiaosu opened up a mess tin and handed it to Wang Jing. “Elder, eat while it’s hot.”

Wang Jing said with a smile as he looked at Liang Ce and the others, “Aren’t you all going to thank Ren Xiaosu?”

Sima Gang immediately took the lead and said, “Thank you, Xiaosu. If it weren’t for you, we probably wouldn’t have made it to the medical center.”

“Gratitude received from Sima Gang, +1!”

Liang Ce said with a chuckle, “Xiaosu, with our relationship, I’ll skip the thanking. But if you need any help in the future—”

“I think it’s better that you thank me,” interrupted Ren Xiaosu.

Liang Ce said, “Thank you…”

“Gratitude received from Liang Ce, +1!”

Everyone in the back of the truck burst into laughter. They did not know why they were laughing, nor did they know what had triggered it. Perhaps it was the full meal they just had or because Ren Xiaosu had insisted that Liang Ce thank him.

Their fatigue from the past few days seemed to have been swept away.

However, it did not sound so nice to the other escapees when they heard the laughter. In fact, it even sounded a little annoying. After all, while Ren Xiaosu’s group had filled their stomachs tonight, the other escapees did not manage to get any food. They could only wait until tomorrow morning to see if they would have a chance of eating something.

At this moment, a meek voice came from outside Ren Xiaosu’s truck, “Um, excuse me?”

Not all the escapees were as hostile as that middle-aged man.

The escapee who came over this time was a tall and skinny young man. He looked at Ren Xiaosu and said, “I have a gold ring here. Can I buy a few meals off you?”

Everyone in the vehicle looked at one another. Although Wang Jing was the leader of the Trinity Institute’s medical team, he would definitely not make any decisions for Ren Xiaosu at a time like this.

Ren Xiaosu thought for a moment before turning him down. “I’m sorry, I was only allowed to collect our meals after receiving permission from the Pyro Company. I can’t make the decision on this matter. Rather than looking for me, I think it’s better that you approach them directly.”

The escapee standing outside wore a look of reluctance. It was obvious that he was too afraid to interact with the Pyro Company members.

For Ren Xiaosu, he had dealt with the Pyro Company on many occasions, so he did not feel scared at all. But the average person would not feel that way when faced with the enemies that destroyed their cities and homes.

Ren Xiaosu simply ignored the man. Right now, he only wanted to protect the group from Trinity Institute and did not care about others.

What if the Pyro Company members stopped providing any meals to the Trinity Institute when they saw that he had secretly accepted money from other people?

When that escapee left in disappointment, Wang Jing suddenly asked, “Actually, you can help him, right?”

“Elder, there’s too many people in the world that need help. One more won’t make a difference anyway,” Ren Xiaosu replied calmly. “Do you think I did the wrong thing?”

“No, no, no.” Wang Jing shook his head. “It’s just that I’m a little sad and sorry all of a sudden. A good kid like you must’ve experienced a lot of hardship to make a choice like that. You’re not in the wrong, and I’m in no position to criticize you either. It’s just that we don’t know when the world will become better again.”

Ren Xiaosu was stunned. He did not expect Wang Jing to say this, so he fell silent.

Wang Jing was right. It was the world that taught him how to live in it. He had suffered countless hardships all those years, so how could he have the mindset to help others?

At some point, Ren Xiaosu remembered that someone had told him before that he was also a ray of light.

Ren Xiaosu suddenly asked Wang Jing, “Elder, do you think I’m a good or a bad person?”

Wang Jing asked, “If it weren’t for us, what would you have done when you encountered the Pyro Company troops?”

Ren Xiaosu thought for a moment and answered, “They couldn’t have stopped me, so I’d’ve left.”

“So you only stayed behind for our sake, right?” Wang Jing said with a smile, “A good person doesn’t have to save everyone in the world. It would be too tiring for them otherwise. You’ve already done all that you could, so your conscience should be clear.”

Wang Jing did not directly answer Ren Xiaosu’s question, yet it seemed like he answered it.

The Pyro Company continued advancing northwards with a rumble. Ren Xiaosu sat in the jostling truck with a blanket covering him and looked out at the starry sky and wilderness.

Yang Xiaojin was quietly holding his hand under the blanket. Her soft hand was warm but had a firm grip.

Ren Xiaosu suddenly smiled. Why was he thinking so much?

But at this moment, for some reason, Ren Xiaosu suddenly remembered what the artificial intelligence had said to him before. It had witnessed the way humans treated other lifeforms at Stronghold 61.

At that time, Ren Xiaosu said the creeper vine was eliminated because it had hurt humans. The artificial intelligence then told him it had also hurt humans before.

Just as Wang Jing had just said, humans would always make decisions based on their past experiences. Thus, if the artificial intelligence also had a life of its own since it was created, then like a baby born into this world, would the things it saw also affect its future choices?

Just like when Ren Xiaosu saw Zhang Baogen being taken away by Stronghold 113’s soldiers, he immediately decided to stay hidden and regarded them as imaginary enemies.

Otherwise, he would not have kept his identity a secret either. But he would feel freer if he could just be a supernatural being openly.

And now, wasn’t the artificial intelligence that had concealed itself similar to him who had concealed his identity as a supernatural being back then?

Thinking about it, Ren Xiaosu drifted off to sleep with his hand still holding Yang Xiaojin’s hand tightly.

…

The next morning, when the Pyro Company troops were regrouping and eating again, Ren Xiaosu decisively dashed to the cooks with two stacks of mess tins. The cooks’ eyelids kept twitching when they saw him. They looked like they were afraid Ren Xiaosu would call their names and dare them to respond.¹

After breakfast, Ren Xiaosu eagerly went to look for P5092 again. He wanted to ask if today’s newspaper had arrived yet.

P5092 was amused when he saw Ren Xiaosu. “You came to visit so early in the morning? You really think this is your home?”

“Well…” Ren Xiaosu looked at the newspaper in P5092’s hand and said, “… since you’ve already finished reading the first and second pages, why don’t you let me read them?”