Chapter 1324: Don't Let Your Guard Down

Seeing Xia Qing carrying a bag while Daya and Zheng Chen each helped her carry a box out, Zhang Song, who had been waiting, stepped forward. "Sister Qing, let me carry that for you!"

Xia Qing tightened her grip on the bag of steamed buns. "No need, it's not heavy. If you're free, Song Ge, come with me to check on that monk-faced monkey?"

Zhang Song immediately beamed and nodded, following along.

Zhang Han, who had just walked out of the main cafeteria, hurried after them. "Sister Qing, may I go to your territory's apiary to run a few tests for comparative analysis?"

The smile in Zhang Song's eyes faded a little, but he didn't speak.

Xia Qing's expression remained unchanged. "Sure, let's go."

On the way, Zhang Song, sitting in the passenger seat, asked with a smile, "Sister Qing, did you bring the door key? I'll open the door later."

"Alright, Song Ge, be careful not to fall."

Xia Qing never forgot her key. Zhang Song's words were a reminder that she could contact the people guarding the territory in advance and hide anything or any animals inside that Zhang Han shouldn't see.

It wasn't that Xia Qing didn't understand—she had already checked the group chat on her way back from Mountain 67 to her territory and learned that Zhang Han had gone to the beekeeping greenhouses of Territory One and Territory Two that morning, so she had made preparations before going to Territory Seven to deliver supplies.

Seeing Xia Qing so calm, Zhang Song felt reassured and began trying hard to erase her stereotype of him. "Last time I fell off the car, it was because I wasn't used to the height of this vehicle. I absolutely won't this time."

Zhang Han, sitting in the back, spoke with a smile. "When there's work, the disciple does it. Teacher Song, you and Sister Qing stay in the car. Later, Sister Qing can give me the key, and I'll go down and open the door."

Xia Qing still said nothing. Zhang Song replied, "Xiao Han, you're new and don't know yet—once we leave the lab, everything follows the territory's rules."

What's your relationship with the Lord of Territory Three? The key to open the territory gate isn't something just anyone can touch.

Zhang Han wasn't stupid—she could hear what Zhang Song meant. But Zhang Song had said it with a smile, so she pretended not to understand and replied with a smile, "Alright, I'll seriously study the territory's rules and act according to them."

Zhang Song had no temper in front of Zhang San and Xia Qing, but that didn't mean he was easy to deal with. Zhang Han was playing dumb with him, so he flipped the table directly, his face dark as he said coldly, "Your psychological resilience isn't bad, but there's indeed quite a lot you need to learn."

Zhang Han lowered her head and dared not speak again. The atmosphere inside the off-road vehicle grew tense. Xia Qing continued driving with an unchanged expression.

It wasn't until the off-road vehicle entered the passage between Territory Three and Territory Two, and Tang Huai ran out from Territory Two, that the silence was broken. "Sister Qing! You're back?"

Xia Qing rolled down the window and nodded calmly.

"Song Ge, Researcher Han." Tang Huai ran to the vehicle and greeted the people inside first. Seeing Zhang Song go to open the door, he didn't rush over to help, only chatting casually with Xia Qing. "Did Sheep Boss eat grass later?"

Xia Qing nodded. "He did."

Tang Huai lifted his nose and sniffed. "What smell? Did Sister Qing get fresh fruit?"

The dragon fruit had just been picked by Xia Qing from the standardized greenhouse in Territory Seven and wasn't packed, so a fresh, sweet fruity fragrance filled the car.

Xia Qing answered calmly, "I got fresh herbs from the Evolution Forest this morning and traded them with Third Brother for dragon fruit."

The Yi snakes Xia Qing had brought back were for research and couldn't be traded, but the plant samples she brought back could be.

Dead-leaf flowers weren't considered precious, so logically they couldn't be traded for two boxes of dragon fruit, but Zhang San's standard for trading had never been price—it was his mood.

He was in a good mood today, so Xia Qing could trade a bunch of grass and a few flowers for two boxes of fresh green-light dragon fruit; if he were in a bad mood, Xia Qing couldn't even trade for a piece of dragon fruit skin.

Tang Huai's envy dripped from the corners of his mouth as he pleaded, "Sister Qing, can you take me along next time you go on a mission? I can pick herbs too."

Xia Qing proposed a mission. "On November 21st, I'm forming a team to go to the third and fourth peaks of Mountain Fifty to look for herbs. If you're free, you can come along."

The supplies for renovating the hidden valley could be transported over in the next couple of days, and construction should be organized. Before construction, Xia Qing planned to form a team to go to the fourth peak of Mountain Fifty to harvest the edible kudzu roots there.

"I'm free! Song Ge, get in the car, I'll lock the door later!" Tang Huai happily agreed, stepping aside to let Xia Qing drive home.

"Alright." Zhang Song replied cheerfully, carefully getting into the car and settling down before commenting, "Little Tang Dong talks a lot in front of Sister Qing, which shows he feels very happy when he's with Sister Qing."

Zhang Han, silent in the back……

Tang Huai did indeed talk a lot, and most of it was nonsense. Xia Qing pressed the intercom with an unchanged expression. "Xiao Jiang, what's your location?"

Xiao Jiang, who was guarding Xia Qing's territory, immediately replied, "In the greenhouse feeding the chickens."

"Come over and pick up Researcher Zhang Han from Territory Seven, take her to the beekeeping greenhouse. I'll take Song Ge home first and then head over."

"Copy that."

"Sorry to trouble you, Sister Qing." Seeing Xiao Jiang walk out from the small house by the farmland, Zhang Han got out of the car with her instruments.

Xia Qing replied calmly, "No trouble, you've worked hard."

After hearing the car drive away, the irritation and grievance in Zhang Han's eyes, who was heading straight north, flashed for a moment.

Zhang Song in the car glanced at Zhang Han and reminded Xia Qing, "Zhang Han has started actively testing you. Don't let your guard down just because she's fresh out of the ivory tower."

"Understood, thanks, Song Ge." Regardless of where Zhang Han came from or what background she had, Xia Qing wouldn't let her guard down. In a year of natural disasters, trusting others easily was a death wish.

Zhang Song leaned back in his seat, looking weary. "Human evolution has gone too far—desires are too many and too complex. Something at the level of the evolved wolves now is just right."

Xia Qing never thought about such complicated questions. She looked up at the wolf dog Wolf Lao Er, crouched among the weeds on the ruins of the house south of the yard, ready to strike at any moment, stopped the car, and instructed Zhang Song, "Song Ge, don't get out of the car yet."

"Understood."

Seeing Xia Qing take a dragon fruit and get out of the car to walk toward the evolved sheep standing at the sheep pen gate, Zhang Song smiled silently.

Human needs and desires are highly subjective, individually variable, and inducible. In a few years, once society stabilizes a bit more, strengthen education for school-age children and raise the level of rule of law in society, and more advanced evolved humans like Xia Qing will be educated.

So humanity still has hope.

"Boss, I'm back! Little Huang Niu has been protected very well by you. Boss, you've worked hard. Look what I brought you!"

Sheep Boss had long ago caught the scent of food. When he saw the dragon fruit in Xia Qing's hand, his eyes immediately widened.

"Baa~~~"

"Yes, this is dragon fruit, Boss's favorite."

Xia Qing brought Sheep Boss into the room, cut the dragon fruit into pieces, gave the larger portion to Sheep Boss, a few small pieces to Daigua and Ergua, and Little Huang Niu got a piece of dragon fruit skin.

Zhang Song……

Sister Qing, does Third Brother know you eat dragon fruit like this?

Xia Qing took the last piece of dragon fruit and returned to the car, calling out toward the house ruins, "Lao Er, it's Song Ge in the car, one of us. Do you want to come down and eat some dragon fruit?"

Wolf Lao Er, hidden atop the house ruins, didn't show itself. It was watching the human who had entered the beekeeping greenhouse, and until the danger was cleared, it had no mind for food.

"Sorry to trouble you, Lao Er. I'll first ask Song Ge to check Ergua's health, then go to the beekeeping greenhouse to keep an eye on that stranger."

Xia Qing cheerfully tossed the dragon fruit into her own mouth, called Zhang Song to get out of the car, and went to check Ergua's health.

Actually, she could do this herself, but since Zhang Song had eagerly offered, Xia Qing had no objection. It also gave Zhang Han a chance to come in and look around.