Chapter 298
Who is experiencing the first stirrings of love?
Chapter 298 Who is experiencing the first stirrings of love?
"I remember."
"Our mission this time is to exchange supplies with them."
"Is it an exchange for fruit with energy?"
"Yes. Moreover, this time we plan to ask them how to grow it and try it ourselves. Of course, we also know that it is not easy to grow it successfully. Even if it survives, it will take several years for it to bear fruit, and it is also hard to say whether the fruit will mutate. So, we are just trying it out."
"What if we succeed!" Zhao Lexi encouraged. "There are so many people in the base, there are never enough fruits to go around. The more fruits we have, the stronger humanity will become."
“That makes sense.” Li Zheyuan’s smile grew even gentler, his eyes filled with affection, which made Zhao Lexi’s face flush slightly, unsure of what was wrong with her.
Gao Jue's gaze swept over, seemingly carrying a hidden murderous intent.
There's something wrong with this man!
Just now, he was clearly thinking: "If only I could marry her. 81 level-5 evolved humans, some might even be level-6. With that kind of strength, the Li family would have to obey me. Taking over the Jianghai base wouldn't be a problem. Then I could coax her into having a child, slowly sideline her, and everything would belong to me. Even though she'd raise the child, I'd have the power and status. As long as the child isn't stupid, it'll know who to be close to. If all else fails, I can have children with several women; I'm sure I'll eventually find one that satisfies me!"
Gao Jue was even somewhat impressed by the man's imagination. If he hadn't set his sights on the girl he had his eye on, he would have genuinely been prepared to remain a bystander and watch the show unfold, observing how the man would take the first step. After all, Zhao Lexi was completely clueless about romance...
Gao Jue suddenly noticed that Zhao Lexi's expression was not quite right.
She was clearly still a young girl who hadn't yet experienced love, but at this moment, she seemed to have suddenly become aware of it, showing a shy expression to Li Zheyuan.
This is impossible!
Gao Jue was quite certain that Zhao Lexi was slow to warm up to feelings, and it was extremely unusual for her to suddenly fall for someone. Gao Jue did not think it was a coincidence.
Unless, this is his special ability?
That's not right either. If it were a superpower, there would be energy fluctuations, and Zhao Lexi would definitely be alert.
Gao Jue's mind worked very quickly. He thought that he was born with the ability to hear people's thoughts. Could it be that this man also had this innate ability?
The ability to pick up girls?
Even Gao Jue, who was well-informed and experienced, was speechless with shock.
He immediately called out to Zhao Lexi: "Lele, the sour soup tastes good."
Upon hearing Gao Jue's voice, Zhao Lexi swayed slightly, her gaze shifting to the steaming pot in the car, and she sniffed, "This smells very unique, but I like it."
Xue Hua smiled and said, "This is a local specialty. We use fermented cherry tomatoes as the soup base, then add various seasonings, and finally stew meat for hot pot. You can eat it however you like."
Li Zheyuan added, "Lele likes it, we'll take some with us later."
"Hmm." Zhao Lexi looked at him and suddenly found him particularly pleasing to the eye; she couldn't get enough of looking at him.
However, while she found him pleasing to the eye, she felt he wasn't as handsome as Gao Ge. These two conflicting opinions clashed in her mind, causing her to frown involuntarily.
Gao Jue's expression was a half-smile, his lips trembled slightly, and he looked very unnatural.
"What's wrong, Lele?" Zhao Shikang noticed his sister's unusual behavior and immediately asked with concern.
Zhao Lexi leaned on her third brother's shoulder and whispered, "Third brother, do you think Gao Ge is more handsome, or Li Zheyuan?"
Zhao Shikang was taken aback; why would his sister ask about this?
Zhao Shikang knew Gao Jue might like Lele, but he was their comrade-in-arms who had gone through thick and thin together, and he never revealed his feelings to Lele's face, nor did he deliberately try to get close to her. So Zhao Shikang happily pretended not to know; exposing such a thing would only make things worse. But what kind of person was this Li Zheyuan, daring to covet his sister?
"Who is Li Zheyuan...?"
"The person behind me is named Li Zheyuan. I've been to the Beicang base before and met him once."
I've only seen it once!
Could it be that Lele has fallen in love with him at first sight?
Zhao Shikang didn't want to believe it, but his sister's current behavior was clearly abnormal. With his second brother's experience as a cautionary tale, he knew that matters of the heart could only be guided, not suppressed. If he spoke ill of that person now, his sister might develop a rebellious attitude. In any case, the two groups would soon part ways and never see each other again, so it was better to pretend he didn't know anything.
After a moment's hesitation, he casually said, "I think Brother Gao is more handsome."
"Really?" Zhao Lexi hesitated for a moment. "I also think Gao Ge is more handsome, but I think Li Zheyuan is also very pleasing to the eye, and I want to keep looking at him."
Zhao Shikang's heart was filled with alarm bells, but he still tried to remain calm and said, "Alas, it's a pity that his home is in the Jianghai base, so he can't come back to Beicang with us."
Zhao Lexi remained silent, her expression conflicted, as if she were struggling internally.
Zhao Shikang wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by Li Hou.
He stood up: "Let's go eat."
Jianghai Base prepared many disposable tableware. Rice was served first, and then the sour soup meat was placed on top. In addition to the meat of the evolved beasts, the sour soup also contained dried mushrooms and dried vegetables. It was fragrant, sour, and spicy, and everyone ate more than one bowl.
Zhao Lexi ate a lot, practically staying by the pot the whole time; no one knew how many bowls she ate in the end. Li Zheyuan stood beside her, behind her, holding a spatula, ready to serve her rice at any moment.
He wore a doting smile, but inwardly he was amazed at how much she could eat. He couldn't even count the bowls anymore; there were at least thirty.
Urged on by Zhao Shikang, the convoy continued its journey, his gaze never leaving Zhao Lexi, clearly noticing her unease. Zhao Shikang harbored a deep hatred for Li Zheyuan. Unlike Gao Jue, he couldn't see through his true intentions, but he could guess that Li's motives weren't pure. He secretly resolved that if his sister insisted on staying with that man, he wouldn't hesitate to kill him.
"Third Brother, shall we go with them to that base and take a look?" Zhao Lexi asked Zhao Shikang coquettishly, holding his hand.
Zhao Shikang was like a dormant volcano, his heart churning with magma: Li Zheyuan, is it! You have a path to heaven but you don't take it, you have no way to hell but you barge in, I gave you a chance to live but you didn't take it, you insisted on courting death, then don't blame me for being impolite!
On the surface, he seemed indulgent and calm: "Okay."
Gao Jue remained silent, only the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned as usual.
Xue Hua noticed that Zhao Lexi was acting strangely, but in this kind of situation, she would support whoever Lele liked, and if Lele wanted to stay, she would stay too. Therefore, she was the least conflicted of the four.
Zhu Jinxian was an old and shrewd man, and he could not hide Zhao Lexi's changes from him. He chuckled to himself, "The little girl is just beginning to fall in love."
Gao Jue and Zhao Shikang shot four murderous glares at them.
Zhu Jinxian didn't care at all; as long as he didn't cause trouble, Zhao Lexi was his protector.
However, to everyone's surprise, Zhao Lexi turned her head and looked over, asking in confusion, "Who? Who's experiencing first love? Who's taken a fancy to?"
Four people...
Zhu Jin blurted out, "Don't you like Li Zheyuan?"