Barren Star – Chapter 9
by Little PandaI’m not a bad person.
“The first problem is easy to solve; we can leave it entirely to Beidou,” Hua Zhuoyu cleared her throat. “As for the second one, after the bad weather passes, I’ll head out for a bit. Unless you want to join me?”
Ning Buyi pretended not to notice Hua Zhuoyu’s wink, and she didn’t give a definite answer, just brushed it off with, “We’ll see.”
As an AI created by “God’s Hand” Carlson, Beidou was more capable than Ning Buyi had imagined. Yet, at the same time, she felt a bit puzzled. When the Ning family moved out, they practically stripped the place bare, so why was an intelligent robot like Beidou still left at the base? Ning Buyi couldn’t figure it out, so she stopped trying. As long as she was sure that Beidou was loyal only to her, that was enough.
After submitting the application to stock the shelves, the logistics flight pod from the Starlight platform took off for Barren Star. Both receiving and shipping were entirely handled by intelligent robots, meaning Ning Buyi wouldn’t encounter any other living person here. While she felt relieved, she was also a bit disappointed. Just imagining the long and lonely life of farming on Barren Star made her feel a sense of loneliness deep inside. Even though she thought she could stay home with just the internet, sometimes emotions are just uncontrollable.
The Starlight platform had everything, with goods of all kinds. Even if vegetables appeared in the trading area, it wouldn’t raise any questions, only cause a frenzy. In her first trade, Ning Buyi mainly dealt with parts from the Night Wolf, only listing ten cabbages. Who ended up with them or what disputes they might cause was none of her concern.
Ning Buyi focused her thoughts on the crashed flight pod.
On a beautiful day, she left the base with Hua Zhuoyu to search for the flight pod. They finally found the signal of the ship three kilometers east of the base, buried under a sand dune, and dug it out from the sand. Unfortunately, most of its parts were already useless after the crash, with no value for reuse. However, Ning Buyi wasn’t disappointed; her main goal was to ensure that this thing didn’t send out any signals. If the Empire’s people found the base, it would mean big trouble.
By evening, the brilliant sunlight painted a grand picture across the vast sky, with gorgeous ribbons of color stretching across the heavens, gradually swallowed by dark gray.
Ning Buyi held onto Little Feng Jiu’s tail feathers to keep it from running around everywhere. After some time recovering, this not-so-smart little creature was full of life again, bouncing and hopping around. It didn’t stay in the room but instead dove into the vegetable patch. Not only were the cabbages pecked into a mess, but even the newly sprouted watermelon vines were nearly killed under the merciless beak.
“It’s been half a month. Aren’t you planning to contact the people from Xingting?” Ning Buyi glanced at Hua Zhuoyu. After spending quite some time together, she had figured out Hua Zhuoyu’s character. Before Hua Zhuoyu could respond, Ning Buyi cut off her excuses, “Since you are Hua Zhuoyu, your identity chip surely hasn’t been destroyed. You’ve probably hidden it somewhere.” Ning Buyi was very certain.
Hua Zhuoyu’s tone was inexplicable: “Are you trying to kick me out?”
Ning Buyi lowered her lashes and paused for quite a while before continuing, “As a Judge, don’t you have duties to perform?”
Hua Zhuoyu raised her eyebrows and smiled at this: “Aren’t I just inspecting the planet?”
Ning Buyi didn’t believe her words. She thought Hua Zhuoyu stayed here because of the fruits and vegetables at the base. For instance, not long ago, she exchanged accumulated dark pollution for fresh watermelon seeds—Hua Zhuoyu didn’t ask about their origin but was enthusiastically interested in their variety and taste. Hua Zhuoyu said she had eaten genetically synthesized “melons”, which tasted like eating a bowl of rotten clam meat mixed with sugar.
“Then you should walk around instead of being rooted in the vegetable patch like Little Feng Jiu. It’s a little dimwit; are you one too?” Ning Buyi expressed her dissatisfaction. She was afraid that Hua Zhuoyu might not resist touching the plants, and then… then the new little melons would just wither away. In her original world, she had such an experience; she wanted to watch over the little watermelons, but they ended up dying, and she got a good scolding. Since then, she couldn’t stand people staring at melon vines.
“Are you doubting me? I wouldn’t do anything to them; I’m not that bad,” Hua Zhuoyu defended herself.
Ning Buyi glanced at her, her skepticism unhidden. In the novel, the female lead was described as having “the character of a clear moon and cold river, with high integrity” (a metaphor describing someone noble and virtuous), truly not a bad person, but now reality couldn’t be equated with the novel. Maybe calling her “bad” was too harsh, but lacking in shame and honor was true enough.
In Da Xia Star, the capital city:
The city was brilliantly illuminated, dazzling and colorful. The usually quiet Hongbin Pavilion was crowded and lively. A brand-new red carpet stretched along the long street to the crossroads, with beautifully dazzling “fire trees and silver flowers” (a metaphor for bright and festive decorations) on either side of the road—all these changes were because the Empire’s Crown Prince and the Princess of the Feng Jiu tribe appeared at Hongbin Pavilion.
In the private room:
Xia Tu elegantly raised his wine glass, introducing the delicious dishes of Da Xia to the Princess of the Feng Jiu tribe. Of course, these delicacies from the mountains and seas couldn’t compare to the plate of hand-torn cabbage in front of Feng Yi—this was fresh, low-priced vegetable Xia Tu had snagged from the Starlight platform, not knowing which lab it came from, but that didn’t matter. What mattered was that he finally had the pleasure of the beauty’s company tonight.
He had even called out the palace chefs, so the taste wouldn’t disappoint.
The Empire’s Crown Prince, Xia Tu, stood tall and handsome, unmatched in his beauty. Normally, Feng Yi might appreciate him a bit, but now, with her sister missing, how could she be at ease? Feng Yi’s brow carried a hint of clear sorrow, not as proud as before. Her demeanor only stirred Xia Tu’s sympathy more. Adjusting the cuffs of his formal attire, Xia Tu smiled gently, “Princess, there’s no need to worry. As long as she’s within Da Xia’s borders, we’ll surely find her.”
“Let’s hope so,” Feng Yi sighed. Her sister had been missing for over half a month. If there was a way, she would have been found by now, but who knows which planet she might have ended up on. Her sister was still in a cub state, unable to transform into human shape or even speak. Does she really have a chance to survive?
Xia Tu offered more comfort, saying, “Good fortune will surely find the virtuous.” He stood up and pulled out his chair, intending to move closer to Feng Yi. But suddenly, there was a loud bang behind him, and a stranger rushed clumsily into the private room. Just as Xia Tu was about to get angry, he saw the newcomer’s strikingly beautiful and bold features, and his breath caught. A flicker of heat crossed his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it and politely asked, “Who might you be?”
Before the newcomer could answer, Feng Yi stood up abruptly, her face cold, and said, “Ling Shu!”
Xia Tu recognized the name; she was a guest from the Dragon Tribe. He had only heard her name before and had never met her in person. Now he finally saw what Ling Shu looked like. “Since it’s—”
“Sorry, Your Highness, I have to leave now,” Feng Yi interrupted, not giving Xia Tu a chance to finish. She looked pale and tired, too pressed to worry about being rude. She took a few steps forward to Ling Shu, grabbed her wrist, and walked out.
Ling Shu’s eyes were filled with anger, but she stayed silent. It wasn’t until they were back at Feng Yi’s residence that she pulled her hand away and said with dissatisfaction, “Feng Xuan is missing, and you still have the heart to wine and dine with a man?”
Feng Yi looked exhausted. “Don’t you understand why Feng Xuan is missing?”
“I know it’s my fault, so I’ve been running around looking for her. But what about you? Have you gotten any useful information from hanging around Xia Tu? Or have you forgotten about Feng Xuan’s safety?” Ling Shu raised her voice. She had just returned to Da Xia’s imperial star and saw such a grand scene outside Hongbin Pavilion, making it look like the Feng Jiu tribe was about to ally with Da Xia through marriage.
“What do you mean by that?” Feng Yi shook with anger, turning her gaze away to suppress her fury. “I don’t want to argue with you.”
“Fine, then let’s fight!” Ling Shu crossed her arms, her dark eyes flashing with a golden light, turning into cold, vertical pupils.
Feng Yi: “… Are you crazy?” She couldn’t follow the Dragon Tribe member’s logic and pushed her out of the room. The planets near Greedy Star had all been searched, with no trace found. But if Feng Xuan had ended up somewhere farther… was it some kind of power?
Pushed out, Ling Shu leaned against the door, sulking.
Since Little Feng Jiu went missing, she had asked all her extended family members to search around Greedy Star, and she herself had been traveling between planets. Yet Feng Yi, that woman, wasn’t even worried and was relying on someone she hadn’t known for long!
She must be hiding something from me!
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