Chapter 20
Fu Jingqiu went to take a shower. Considering that the RV bathroom was a bit restrictive for someone of his height, Jiang Qingyu secretly adjusted the height before he even set foot inside, so he would not have to spend the whole shower slightly hunched over. That would be far too stifling.
Not only that, he also made small adjustments to the other areas, focusing on making everything more comfortable to live in while also ensuring that no one could tell what exactly was different.
After all, ordinary people probably could not imagine the existence of something like an RV system.
Besides, Jiang Qingyu had already given him a heads-up earlier, saying the RV had been modified and had expandable compartments. So he did not need to inconvenience himself. He could use the expandable functions openly and let Fu Jingqiu move around freely inside the vehicle.
When Jiang Qingyu came out to pour himself some water, Meimei, who had originally been curled up in the bedroom, could not hold herself back and slipped out. She had smelled a stranger in the vehicle and was impatient to see what this stranger really looked like.
Fu Jingqiu had not expected that there would be a cat in his vehicle. She was a glossy, smooth-furred, plump little thing. When she walked, her small belly gently swayed. Her extremely fluffy tail waved slowly, and she lifted her pretty little face to curiously examine him.
Meimei was very bold, so Jiang Qingyu was not worried that she would get stressed. He took the opportunity to observe Fu Jingqiu’s reaction.
If Fu Jingqiu did not like cats, then sorry—no matter how excellent his conditions were, Jiang Qingyu would not be able to travel with him.
After his initial surprise, Fu Jingqiu crouched down and reached out toward Meimei, letting her smell his scent.
Meimei carefully sniffed him, taking tiny steps slowly forward, her tail gently swaying.
Jiang Qingyu stood to the side, quietly watching their interaction and waiting for Meimei’s reaction.
Meimei would not randomly scratch people. She had a very good temper. If she met someone she did not like, she would simply point her butt at them and ignore them.
If someone tried to forcibly pick her up, Meimei’s reaction speed was no joke. She could always run away the instant the person was about to pounce, making her extremely quick-witted.
He subconsciously held his breath.
Meimei tentatively sniffed Fu Jingqiu’s fingers.
Cats were very alert creatures. One sniff was nowhere near enough to make her lower her guard. Her pink nose sniffed several times before she tentatively placed a paw on Fu Jingqiu’s hand and lightly pawed at it twice.
Fu Jingqiu raised his head and glanced at Jiang Qingyu. Receiving his signal, Jiang Qingyu took the initiative to introduce her. “This is Meimei.”
“So she’s a girl.” He held Meimei’s paw and gently squeezed it.
Jiang Qingyu smiled, knowing that Fu Jingqiu had misunderstood. He explained again, “I mean, her name is Meimei. But she is indeed a girl.”
Meimei seemed to have already gotten used to Fu Jingqiu’s scent. Seeing that Fu Jingqiu kept crouching in front of her and knowing that he meant no harm, she rubbed her head against his hand.
That meant she was allowing him to pet her head.
Fu Jingqiu was very clever. He immediately cooperated with Meimei and stroked her furry little head and soft ears. Within just a few strokes, Meimei began to purr.
Jiang Qingyu secretly let out a breath of relief.
Fu Jingqiu had long since noticed a certain fish who seemed to be quietly standing guard beside them but was actually tense all over. As he stroked the cat’s head, he smiled knowingly and did not expose him.
Jiang Qingyu felt reassured and stayed with Fu Jingqiu for a while, petting Meimei together, before carrying her and saying good night as he returned to the bedroom.
Before closing the door, Jiang Qingyu hesitated for a moment at the electronic doorway, but still could not help saying one more thing. “Um, don’t overthink things. Sleep early.”
Fu Jingqiu was slightly startled, then understood. He smiled faintly at him. “All right. Thank you.”
After all, people were not plants. Even if Fu Jingqiu had already seen his mother and younger brother’s true colors, they were still family members he had spent so many years with. It was normal to feel hurt.
It was just that those two people really were not worth it, so he should not be too sad.
Jiang Qingyu did not know what Fu Jingqiu’s mood was like that night, but he himself still slept quite soundly.
With Meimei, his little motor, purring beside him, he barely had to make any effort before falling into deep sleep. When he woke up, it was already almost ten o’clock, and he felt very refreshed.
He thought Fu Jingqiu should be awake, so he got up and went to the living room to take a look. Unexpectedly, the other man was still properly asleep in the extra-soft bedding. His sleeping posture was very upright.
Perhaps because the drug had not been fully metabolized yet, he was still deep asleep. His brows were slightly furrowed, his lips lightly pressed together, and the lines of his side profile were very tense, as if he still could not relax even in sleep.
Seeing this, Jiang Qingyu quietly returned to the bedroom, changed clothes, then quietly got out of the vehicle and left, planning to buy something outside and bring it back to eat.
Otherwise, if Fu Jingqiu was sleeping well but got woken up by the noise of him cooking or heating food, it would affect his rest and recovery.
At this hour, many small stalls had already been set up outside, and restaurants were open for business. The signs were dazzling and varied. Wrapped in his coat, Jiang Qingyu wandered around for a while before suddenly being drawn over by a strong aroma. When he went closer to look, it was a stall selling sand onion and lamb pies.
The large black flat pan was glossy with oil. The ingredient containers beside the big pan were clean and tidy, and the sand onions were bright green. Wearing food-safe gloves, the lady boss grabbed a huge handful of vegetables and filling, spread it generously over the dough, then flipped it over with a slap. The dough had been fried until golden, and it looked fragrant at a glance.
Jiang Qingyu paid readily and bought three portions. Because he himself did not eat much lamb, he also bought a bag of beef baked buns next door, as well as a bag of sugar-fried chestnuts and a pot of salty milk tea.
Carrying the fragrant breakfast back home, as soon as he got into the vehicle, he saw Fu Jingqiu standing with his back to him and folding the quilt. It was a habit left from the army; he had folded the quilt and bedding into a neat, square tofu block. Jiang Qingyu could not stop himself from laughing. “You tidy up cleaner than I do.”
Fu Jingqiu greeted him, then said, “Sorry. I woke up late.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Jiang Qingyu said. “It’s nice to sleep until you wake naturally. I do that often.”
He took off his coat and hung it up. “Go wash up and get ready to eat. I bought several kinds of breakfast. I don’t know what you like, so try them all.”
Fu Jingqiu said, “I’m not picky.”
Jiang Qingyu let Meimei out of the bedroom. The plump little cat lightly jumped onto the booth seat, which had already been adjusted upward. Her fluffy fur seemed to sparkle under the sunlight, making her look beautiful like a little fox.
Since they were only eating breakfast, Jiang Qingyu did not extend the expandable compartment. The two of them could make do at the booth seating.
Fu Jingqiu glanced at Meimei sitting on the table and casually stroked her tail. Jiang Qingyu explained, “She often eats on the table.”
Fu Jingqiu said, “It’s fine. There’s still room on the table anyway. What does she eat?”
Jiang Qingyu grinned. “She can have a little of today’s lamb pie. There’s also a small box of shrimp in the refrigerator.”
Jiang Qingyu crossed one leg over the other and slowly drank the salty milk tea. The breakfast was steaming hot, and the vehicle window beside the booth was clean and bright. He narrowed his eyes as he basked in the sun, feeling extremely comfortable.
Fu Jingqiu sat opposite him eating breakfast, his face bathed in sunlight. Looking at him up close, he was extremely handsome.
Jiang Qingyu looked at him, took a sip of milk tea, looked at him again, then took a bite of a baked bun.
Fu Jingqiu: ?
Jiang Qingyu calmly shifted his gaze away, pretending not to see his puzzled expression, while silently thinking to himself: What is going on? Is there some kind of filter effect? Why does he look even more handsome?
Little did he know that in Fu Jingqiu’s eyes, the way he looked actually overlapped somewhat with Meimei, who had already eaten her fill, jumped off the table, and was now sitting beside him, contentedly licking her paws and washing her face.
The father and daughter’s heads both looked fluffy under the sunlight. Jiang Qingyu’s eye color was slightly lighter, and the patterns in his irises were like snowflakes.
They both looked very nice to pet.
As Jiang Qingyu ate, he discussed their route and arrangements for later with him.
First, they would go reapply for Fu Jingqiu’s ID card and have it mailed to their next destination. Then, they would use the temporary ID to go to the business hall to replace his SIM card and buy a phone.
Once these two procedures were done, Jiang Qingyu would not need to stay with him. Fu Jingqiu could do whatever he wanted, whether it was handling matters, going to the bank to withdraw money, or changing passwords.
For now, Jiang Qingyu did not plan to tell Fu Jingqiu about the RV and the space, so he would have to avoid him when stockpiling goods.
His positioning of Fu Jingqiu was very clear: they would mainly complement each other’s strengths. Compared to Fu Jingqiu, his own physique was truly too weak.
It did not seem very realistic to improve it in the short term. Jiang Qingyu also did not think he could train himself to become like Fu Jingqiu, so he had not even considered relying entirely on himself in that regard.
It was better for everyone to have a clear division of labor. Jiang Qingyu would be responsible for daily life, food, and drink, while Fu Jingqiu would help with physical work and protect him and Meimei’s safety.
His earlier plan had only included himself and Meimei. Now that Fu Jingqiu was added, the amount of supplies he needed to stockpile had to be doubled on the original basis.
There was not much time left before the apocalypse. He had to hurry up and buy things.
Reapplying for the documents was slightly troublesome, but Fu Jingqiu’s identity also brought him some convenience. His military rank had actually been retained even after retiring. Presumably, his experiences before retirement must have been very impressive.
After that, they went to replace the phone card and buy a phone. As usual, Jiang Qingyu paid for it. But as soon as the phone was activated and Fu Jingqiu logged into the payment app, he asked Jiang Qingyu for his receiving account.
Jiang Qingyu cooperatively gave it to him.
After getting the account, Fu Jingqiu immediately transferred over more than five hundred thousand in one go. He even explained, “This card only has this much for now.”
In fact, there was more.
It was just that he had previously linked a family card, and a lot of money had been spent by his mother.
Fu Jingqiu said, “There are also some fixed-term financial products and funds that I need to go to the bank to handle. I’ll transfer more to you then.”
Transfer more?!
Jiang Qingyu was shaken. If he did not have the system as his golden finger, his own savings would have been tight too. For an ordinary person, more than five hundred thousand was already a lot.
He said blankly, “Isn’t this a little too much?”
But Fu Jingqiu said, “For saving my life. Also, didn’t you say you were going to help me buy some things? Just treat it as an advance payment.”
During breakfast, Jiang Qingyu had casually asked about the sizes of his clothes and shoes, clearly intending to buy him clothes.
Jiang Qingyu said, “It was just a small effort. And I’m not buying designer goods. How would it need this much money?”
Fu Jingqiu said, “Then treat the rest as travel expenses. If it’s not enough, tell me.”
