Floor 495, Block C, Number 11.
This was the "big room" Long Yuehong had secured for his parents.
Compared to their previous residence, this place could be partitioned into two small bedrooms, finally granting Long Yuehong's younger brother and sister their own space.
As Long Yuehong pushed open the door, he saw his mother, Gu Hong, listening to the radio while knitting a sweater with knitting needles. His father, Long Dayong, sat beside her, lightly tapping along to the music reverberating through the room.
The radio program at this time was a bedtime music show.
Upon hearing the sound of the lock turning, Long Dayong and Gu Hong simultaneously turned their gazes towards the door, one brewing a scolding, the other preparing to cooperate.
But as they clearly saw that the person at the door was Long Yuehong, both of them immediately stood up.
Gu Hong put down her knitting needles, an irrepressible smile spreading across her face:
"You're back?
"You've been gone for so long. For the past few months, I've been afraid the people from the 'Safety Department' would come looking for me. They only visit when they have a reason..."
As she spoke, Gu Hong fell silent, her eyes slightly reddening.
She was a fair-skinned middle-aged woman who had gotten a perm with large waves during the New Year holidays, giving her a rather stylish look.
Long Dayong quickly interjected:
"What are you saying? Isn't he back safe and sound?"
He was a little over 1.7 meters tall, of a rather sturdy and robust build.
Gu Hong swiftly composed herself and, while walking towards the cabinet, said:
"I exchanged some yarn during the New Year and knitted you a sweater. Try it on and see if it fits."
Long Yuehong closed his eyes for a moment and said with a smile:
"It's already spring."
"It's a thin one, you can wear it in spring. Besides, inside our company, how clear are the distinctions between spring, summer, autumn, and winter?" Gu Hong said, opening the cabinet door.
Long Yuehong pulled up a chair and sat down, looking around and saying:
"Where are Xiao Ai and the others?"
He was asking about his younger brother and sister.
"Now that they're older, their wings have hardened, and they don't like staying at home anymore. You won't see them until lights out!" Gu Hong complained.
Long Yuehong didn't have much to say about this because, at that age, he also didn't like staying at home, preferring to squat with Shang Jianyao and Yang Zhenyuan on street corners, listening to radio programs and randomly chatting about topics.
He smiled and said:
"That's a good thing. Maybe they'll even find love."
Gu Hong, who had just taken out the new sweater, paused for a moment and said hesitantly:
"Oh, right, Old Zhang's daughter used to like you quite a bit. Before the New Year, she kept asking when you'd be back, but your dad and I couldn't say for sure. Later, it seems like she, uh, found someone."
Although Long Yuehong had been somewhat prepared for this, he still couldn't help but feel a bit wistful.
He sighed with a smile:
"When it comes to these things, let nature take its course."
He was now very certain that the "Old Task Force's" missions were dangerous, and he felt that dating any girl before completely withdrawing was unfair to them.
But thinking about potentially dying on a mission and still being someone who had never even had a first love, he felt unwilling.
"Let nature take its course..." Gu Hong repeated the phrase, looking at Long Yuehong with suspicion, "Did you suffer some kind of setback out there?"
Long Yuehong was momentarily speechless, raising his hand to display the muscles on his arm:
"This is called having more experience, a more mature mindset."
Gu Hong glanced at him and threw the thin sweater at him:
"You've become more eloquent than before..."
Long Yuehong didn't retort, smiling as he took off his coat and tried on the sweater under his parents' watchful eyes.
...
Inside the "Sea of Origins," Shang Jianyao swam for a long time, the front still a vast ocean.
He was not only not disappointed by this, but also revealed a smile.
This meant he had finally passed the third island.
--Previously, every time he swam a certain distance, he would return to the original island, but now he had left the corresponding area.
With a thought, the blue-green luminous pearl appeared above Shang Jianyao's head.
At the same time, he transformed into nine again and materialized things like megaphones, directly testing the changes in his abilities.
After the tireless efforts of the nine Shang Jianyaos, using themselves as experimental subjects, they came to a preliminary conclusion:
The range of the "Reasoning Clown" ability had expanded to between eight and ten meters, and the number of targets it could simultaneously affect had increased to nine, but because there were significant differences between many targets, if the conditions were not specifically tailored to each individual or pair, but rather extracted from a collective formula, the effect would not be ideal.
Similarly, after the megaphone enhanced the effective distance, the number of targets that could be affected also became nine, but the targets had to be concentrated within a three-meter radius, and the corresponding effect would decrease sharply.
The effective range of "Affectation Person" was now close to fifteen meters, and it could also target nine people simultaneously, with no other major changes.
The usage distance of "Missing Hand Movements" had increased to thirty meters, and it could allow different targets to miss different movements, without the need for uniformity.
These were the test results of the Shang Jianyaos in the mental world, and there would definitely be some differences compared to the real environment, as this place allowed one to "make their heart's desires come true," but the essence would not change.
After finishing this, Shang Jianyao felt exhausted and withdrew from the "Sea of Origins."
...
Opening his eyes, Shang Jianyao saw that the streetlights outside the room were still on, not yet extinguished.
He picked up the bronze key and, in the gentle music emanating from the radio, left room 196, put his hands in his pockets, and slowly walked towards the "Activity Center" located in Block C.
At this time, it wasn't long before lights out, and there weren't that many employees in the "Activity Center." There were only two tables of people playing cards and groups of teenagers chatting in the corners.
Shang Jianyao found an empty spot, pulled out a chair, sat down, and quietly watched everything.
What entered his ears were arguments and laughter, and what entered his eyes were faces with different expressions and outfits of similar styles.
Everything was so vibrant.
Shang Jianyao watched silently, his expression unchanged, calm and gentle.
After a minute or two, the supervisor of the "Activity Center," Chen Xianyu, noticed his presence and walked over with a slightly hobbling gait.
"I thought you guys died out there," the white-haired old man said with a smile.
Shang Jianyao glanced at him and smiled:
"I saw Chen Xufeng."
This was the Pangu Biology intelligence agent lurking in the Wildlands City, and also Chen Xianyu's youngest son.
Chen Xianyu's eyes suddenly widened:
"Ah?
"That little brat is still alive?"
Shang Jianyao's expression became serious, and he slowly shook his head.
Chen Xianyu's eyes immediately lost their luster.
"Just kidding." Shang Jianyao smiled again.
"..." Chen Xianyu was first stunned, then snorted, "I knew it. If he died out there, wouldn't the Safety Department notify me?"
Without giving Shang Jianyao a chance to speak, he asked, feigning nonchalance:
"How is he now?"
He asked vaguely because he knew that his youngest son's overseas mission had a confidentiality level, and there were many details that the other party couldn't say even if they wanted to.
"He's doing well, and he's about to be promoted to a higher employee rank." Shang Jianyao also gave a vague answer.
Chen Xianyu clearly relaxed a lot, smiling as he sat down next to Shang Jianyao:
"You've been gone for several months. It seems like you've been to many places."
"They're all very interesting places." Shang Jianyao said, smiling as he looked at the group of employees playing cards.
Chen Xianyu glanced at the teenagers in the corner and chuckled:
"Really? Back then, the squatter camps I visited were all more miserable than the last."
Shang Jianyao responded sincerely:
"One must have an eye for discovering beauty."
"Where... where did you learn those words?" Chen Xianyu was both amused and exasperated.
Shang Jianyao pondered for a moment and said:
"My superior, Ms. Jiang Baimian."
They had only chatted for a few sentences when the card games ended one after another, and the employees, taking advantage of the fact that the corridor lights had not yet been extinguished, hurried home and to the different public toilets with laughter and chatter.
Soon, the entire "Activity Center" became empty and quiet, just like the night that was about to arrive.
Shang Jianyao slowly stood up, waved goodbye to the old man Chen, and returned towards Block B.
As room 196 came closer and closer, he suddenly raised his head and looked at the surveillance camera on the ceiling.
There was no movement there, only the characteristic red light was on.
Shang Jianyao immediately made a face at it.
ps: It's the beginning of the month again and it's double the points, advance update to ask for guaranteed monthly tickets~