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Fu Ming’s stomach ached from hunger pangs, and the smell of rice and meat in the house caused his stomach to convulse. He set aside his pride and asked if he could have a meal here.
The boy raised his hand with a serious face and said, “Don’t worry. I never eat free food. I can pay you with my points.”
Zhao Sihui didn’t go easy on him. After giving him a 22% discount, she swiped away most of the points the child had saved in his points card.
Fu Ming held the bowl full of meat with a painful expression on his face. When he thought of how the food was all in exchange for his own points, he immediately buried his face in the bowl and ate. He ate with ferocity, like a baby animal that had been starving for days.
After everyone was full, Fu Ming once again bowed respectfully to the people in the house and looked at Jin Yang with a hesitant look on his face for the first time.
After only a brief moment of hesitation, the boy summoned the courage to step forward and ask, “Big Bro Jin Yang, can I join your team?”
He remembered Team Morning Sun well from the various rumors outside. From that day on, the seed of yearning was planted in his heart, and he longed for such strong and reliable teammates.
He knew that this was equivalent to daydreaming, but today was a rare opportunity, and he had to give it a try.
“Although I don’t have evolved abilities yet, I can do a good job in logistics. I can do any cleaning work, and I am also willing to learn how to hunt. I will never be a freeloader!”
The smiles on the Zhao siblings’ faces faded a little. They personally liked this child, who was smart and tough enough.
At least, for a nine or ten-year-old child to travel alone to the City Z Base during the apocalypse, and being able to settle down and earn enough to stay and eat, showed that this kid had the potential to grow up to be an incredible person.
But the problem was that he was now just a child with no value. Did they really want to invest so much time and food just to cultivate a potentially outstanding teammate?
After all, this was a loss-making business.
Although the Zhao siblings liked Fu Ming, it didn’t mean that they would accept this child as their teammate. In the apocalypse, not only Jin Yang and Yin Yiliu were growing up, but everyone, including the Zhao siblings, was constantly changing in their understanding and thinking.
Jin Yang set down the papers in his hand, and for the first time, took a serious look at the child in front of him.
He was pursing his lips and lost in thought, and the atmosphere was a little gloomy for a while.
Actually, ever since Team Morning Sun became famous, there had also been many evolved people, who were not valued by the Niu and Li families, and powerful lone rangers who had visited them and expressed their desire to join the Morning Sun team.
These people had all been rejected by Jin Yang. He didn’t need teammates. If it hadn’t been for Bunbun, he wouldn’t even want the Zhao siblings to join them in the first place.
He thought about something, turned to look at Yin Yiliu, who was swaying her feet on the sofa, and asked, “Do you want a little companion?”
Jin Yang was still concerned that the little fella would be lonely. If Yin Yiliu truly believed that Fu Ming was not bad, he didn’t mind raising another smart idler.
Yin Yiliu was letting her mind wander when she was suddenly cued by Jin Yang. Before she knew it, everyone’s eyes were on her. She looked at the boy’s sweat-drenched cheeks and eyes full of anticipation.
She pursed her lips and turned her head away.
“I don’t need a companion.”
She had a slight moment of hesitation. Jin Yang left her to decide whether to accept Fu Ming or not, which imperceptibly put her under some pressure.
But she still obeyed her heart in the end. She could be of no help to Jin Yang, but she absolutely didn’t want to hold Jin Yang back because of her decision.
Fu Ming’s eyes were a little bleak. He was disappointed, but he knew that it was inevitable. If he were Jin Yang and Yin Yiliu, he wouldn’t want a little brat to join them either.
Before leaving, Fu Ming regained his optimistic smile. He looked at Jin Yang with a determined expression and asked earnestly, “Big Bro Jin, if I am capable enough and become an evolved person one day, will I have the chance to join Team Morning Sun?”
Jin Yang arched his brow. “We’ll talk about it at that time.”
Inside the house, Zhao Sihui was still lamenting. When she saw her brother lying on the sofa with a contented face after a satisfying meal, hating iron for not becoming steel1, she said, “When you were ten years old, you were still squatting in the backyard of the house playing with mud. But look at Fu Ming!”
“That’s because the way of the world is different now.” Zhao Qiyang said, his face flushed with dissatisfaction.
What was his life like when he was ten years old? He spent the entire day squatting in an air-conditioned room, drinking soda, and playing games. Every day, aside from attending school, he would only eat, sleep, and play. But what kind of lives were they living now?
Not to mention ten-year-olds, even a newborn baby had to face an extremely cruel world the moment they opened their eyes.
He thought of Fu Ming’s extremely firm eyes and muttered quietly, “But that kid does have potential.”
Footnotes
恨铁不成钢 (Hate iron for not becoming steel) (Idiom): To be resentful of somebody for failing to meet expectations and impatient to see improvement.