Chapter 91: “Machine Soul

Yu Sheng realized his initial judgment had been slightly off.

Although Erin truly didn't take up much space, once inside, you'd still get squeezed—this had nothing to do with people, everything to do with the car.

This made Xu Jiali's ability to cram herself behind the steering wheel seem all the more miraculous.

How could a man nearly two meters tall have chosen such a car!

Yu Sheng and Hu Lizheng were crammed into the back seat (the front passenger seat was piled with two large cardboard boxes, leaving no room to sit), listening as the engine sputtered and shuddered to life at the front; only after the car finally pulled out of the neighborhood could Yu Sheng no longer hold back—he turned to Xu Jiali in the driver's seat and asked, "Is this your side job after work?"

"Yeah," Xu Jiali replied cheerfully, "I've got nothing better to do. When I'm not on a trip, I like driving around the city after work just to earn a little extra cash."

Yu Sheng's expression twisted in disbelief. He glanced at the trembling little car, then at the hulking man hunched in the front seat, thinking: This guy's a seasoned deep-cover agent of the Special Tasks Bureau—and after work, he drives for ride-hailing apps to make side money? And on a car that's probably as old as he is? Is the Bureau's staff really living in such dire straits?

No matter how he thought about it, something felt deeply wrong, but he couldn't bring himself to ask outright—it left him internally suffocating.

Fortunately, there was one person with thicker skin—among familiar faces, the little doll no longer needed to "pretend."

Erin's eyes sparkled back to life. She wriggled from Hu Lizheng's arms to the center of the back seat, leaning forward to ask, "Your car's pretty 'unique'—doesn't the Special Tasks Bureau even pay you?"

"Not at all," Xu Jiali laughed, shaking his head. "I've grown attached to this car. It was the first one I bought after starting work. Even when I got it, it was already used—but I've driven it for all these years. I just can't bring myself to replace it."

Saying this, he reached over and patted the gearshift beside him, tilting his head slightly: "And don't let its age fool you—this old buddy's never let me down. All these years, not a single breakdown—right, old buddy?"

No sooner had he finished than Yu Sheng heard a deep, powerful rumble from the engine up front, followed by two quick, cheerful beeps from the horn.

The event happened so fast that at first he didn't even realize anything was odd.

Only after several seconds did he belatedly realize Xu Jiali hadn't touched the steering wheel or pressed the horn—the car had genuinely responded to its driver's words!

"Your car…" Yu Sheng sat bolt upright, staring at Xu Jiali in disbelief. "Did it just… answer you?"

In that instant, his mind flooded with wild imaginings: the seemingly ancient, battered car secretly modified by elite agents, its rusted shell housing an electronic brain, the engine noise actually an AI simulation, capable at any moment of lifting off, wheels retracting to reveal eight twin missile launchers, exhaust pipes transforming into weapons…

Xu Jiali merely smiled, casually and naturally saying, "Nothing much. It's a machine soul."

Yu Sheng: "...?"

The reality was even more absurd than his fantasies.

Xu Jiali continued: "So a lot of people in the Bureau envy me. High-tech gear? Easy to get—budget's approved, you can have as much as you want. But machine souls? They're rare as hen's teeth. Only a handful of items in the whole team have souls. We treat them like treasures when off-duty—our captain's tried to buy this car several times. Until last time, when my old buddy got mad and chased him around the parking lot three times—he stopped asking. Hey, why are you all silent?"

Yu Sheng was still frozen in shock.

But from Xu Jiali's tone, he sensed the man treated this as common knowledge—at least within the Special Tasks Bureau's system.

So he forced his astonishment down, replacing it with a faint, peculiar awe: "... You're pretty impressive."

"Right? Now a lot of people in the Bureau are copying me—refusing to replace old cars or old phones, just stubbornly sticking with them, hoping to polish their old stuff into machine souls like me."

Yu Sheng: "..."

What the hell kind of machine soul is polished out? So in this world, if you use something long enough, it develops patina—and if you use a car long enough, it grows a machine soul?

Xu Jiali, focused on driving, didn't notice the subtle shift in Yu Sheng's expression. After a brief silence, he asked casually: "You're out so late—this address doesn't look like it's near any pedestrian streets or malls… going to a night market?"

As he spoke, he glanced at the little doll seated between Yu Sheng and Hu Lizheng through the rearview mirror: "And this doll lady is tagging along—her way of going out is quite creative."

Yu Sheng was about to speak, but Erin beat him to it: "We're going to work!"

Then she turned and looked at Yu Sheng, belatedly: "... Can we say that out loud?"

Yu Sheng didn't care: "Sure, it's not a secret op, and they're official anyway."

"Work?" Xu Jiali instantly understood. After a brief pause, his tone turned serious: "Need help?"

"No thanks," Yu Sheng waved him off. "It's not a big job."

Xu Jiali grunted, but after a few seconds couldn't help asking again: "Is it legal? Don't take it the wrong way, but…"

"Red Riding Hood referred us."

"Then it should be fine. The 'Fairy Tale' organization has excellent reputation—always follows the rules," Xu Jiali relaxed, but added two more warnings: "I know you've set up the 'Inn.' Let me say this: the Borderlands are a den of all sorts. No matter how many eyes the Bureau has, there are always corners it can't see. Watch out for scams, resist temptation. If anything or anyone seems suspicious, don't hesitate—just report it. Reporting is a virtue."

For some reason, Yu Sheng felt an odd weight in Xu Jiali's tone when he said "Reporting is a virtue."

"Don't worry, we get it," Erin waved her hand impatiently, urging, "Can you drive faster though? I feel like this car's struggling to move…"

"It does seem a bit tense today, not running smoothly," Xu Jiali scratched his head. "It stalled once when we passed your street—normally it doesn't do that."

Yu Sheng felt someone tugging his sleeve. He turned his head and saw Hu Lizheng staring fixedly at him.

"Master, should I tie one of my tails to the back of the car and push?"

Yu Sheng rejected the fox girl's idea without hesitation.

Come on—late at night, a rocket-assisted subsonic Xia Li racing down the street? Better to just run a rocket-assisted fox! At least the latter, being so absurd, might be believed by fewer people. If the former startled the Borderlands authorities, Xu Jiali's driver's license might be gone…

Regardless, despite taking nearly a quarter longer than a normal taxi ride, Yu Sheng's group finally arrived near the location Red Riding Hood had sent.

Yu Sheng glanced out the window and saw sparse streetlights ahead, with a large building faintly visible at the end of the road.

"We'll get out here—the path ahead's too narrow to turn around."

"Alright," Xu Jiali waved. "Take your belongings when you get out—if anything happens, call me."

Yu Sheng's group departed.

On the dimly lit street, Xu Jiali watched the two figures (Erin's small stature hidden by Hu Lizheng) grow distant. After a long while, he exhaled softly, loosened his grip on the steering wheel, and leaned back into the seat that felt cramped even for him.

The car started on its own, slowly gliding to the roadside out of the way, then the engine emitted a soft, rumbling hum.

Xu Jiali glanced at the dashboard with the corner of his eye, a faint smile on his lips: "Old buddy, scared?"

The engine grunted twice.

Xu Jiali stretched out an arm, pushing the limits of the cramped cabin, then placed his hand on the steering wheel.

"Say no more. Today's hard work—fill up tank #97."

…

Yu Sheng looked back.

In the distance, faint lights moved, turned, and vanished on the other side of the road.

Erin's voice entered his mind: "Do you think that was coincidence?"

"Doesn't matter," Yu Sheng waved his hand.

"Does it matter?"

"It's not like it matters whose car we hail anyway—I just wonder if we'll happen to see Li Lin 'coincidentally' driving a ride-share near our place later. Hopefully, his car will be bigger," Yu Sheng said cheerfully. "If this happens a few more times, I might as well stop paying fares; their bureau will definitely reimburse him."

"... Your mindset is quite carefree," Erin remarked sincerely.

Yu Sheng said nothing in response; he simply reached out to pat Erin's hair, then lifted his gaze toward the distance.

Under a slightly dim streetlamp, a petite young girl in a dark red coat stood quietly in the light, looking as though she had already been waiting for quite some time.

(End of Chapter)