Chapter 35: What is a Leaflet?
"Hey?" The three of them stared at Qi Xia in shock. The plan wasn't complicated, but every step of it sounded dangerous.
"You're going to keep gambling with your life against him?" Lin Qin asked. "That sounds way too..."
"This is the only way to break it for now," Qi Xia said. "If you all agree... we can start right now."
Qiao Jiajin thought for a moment, then said, "Liar, are you really not afraid of death?"
"I am," Qi Xia replied. "But I have to get out."
Tiantian sighed, then suddenly spoke with a serious expression. "Qi Xia... you should know that I didn't join this team because I trust you or want to rely on you. I came to 'here' because 'there' had no place for me."
"I know," Qi Xia nodded.
"So it's hard for me to believe that you'll eventually split the 'Dao' equally with me, and I don't think I'll be able to defeat you at the last moment and become the sole survivor."
"So?"
"So my cooperation with you is only temporary. If I feel the current situation is disadvantageous to me, I'll betray you at any time." Tiantian gave a bitter smile. "Although for me, surviving and dying here aren't much different, if there's hope, I'll fight for it. In short, I'm only joining you three to get my share."
Qi Xia didn't show any unusual expression after hearing this. Instead, he nodded with some relief. "That's good."
"Good?" Tiantian blinked. "Was I not clear enough? I'm only here for the 'Dao'. You don't have to trust me too much."
"The strongest relationship in this world is an employer-employee one," Qi Xia said. "I have no objections."
At this, Qiao Jiajin and Lin Qin exchanged glances. Tiantian had already laid her cards on the table... Could they really trust her?
"Now that we've all agreed, let's set off."
Tiantian seemed surprised that Qi Xia agreed so readily, which made her feel a bit uneasy. But thinking carefully, what did she have left to be tricked for?
With different feelings in their hearts, the four of them once again advanced deeper into the city.
The silent city constantly exuded a dangerous aura. Qi Xia noticed they seemed to be moving toward an increasingly bustling area.
Here, they could faintly see some 'Natives', wandering the desolate streets like living corpses.
"It seems like there are more people..." Qi Xia muttered to himself.
Not only were there various Natives, but animal masks could occasionally be seen standing in front of buildings. It seemed the deeper they went into the city, the more people they would encounter.
As Qi Xia was speaking, he saw a 'Native' carrying a stack of papers walking straight toward the four of them.
The person was as thin as the female shop assistant, like a skeleton.
Qiao Jiajin frowned and stepped forward.
Just as he expected danger, the person handed a sheet of paper to Qiao Jiajin and said, "Swimming and fitness, want to know more?"
Before Qiao Jiajin could reach out to take it, the person let go like a zombie, and the leaflet fell to the ground.
But he walked away slowly as if he hadn't seen anything.
"Heroic Sword God?" Qiao Jiajin blinked. "What the hell is 'Heroic Sword God'..."
He picked up the paper and looked at it. The writing on it was almost worn away, looking very old.
"There are people handing out leaflets here?" Tiantian found it hard to believe.
"If there are shop assistants in the convenience store, it's not strange to have people handing out leaflets on the street," Qi Xia said.
"What is a 'leaflet'?" Lin Qin asked.
That one short sentence made the other three pause slightly.
"What did you say?" Qi Xia thought he had misheard.
"I asked, what is a 'leaflet'?" Lin Qin repeated clearly.
What is a 'leaflet'?
All three of them gave her strange looks.
Was that a question a normal person would ask?
"You don't know what a 'leaflet' is?" Qi Xia asked.
"No, I don't," Lin Qin shook her head naturally. "Do you all know?"
None of the three answered, but they were still puzzled.
This Lin Qin had been acting strange from the start. She liked to cover her mouth and nose, insisted on following Qi Xia, and now she didn't even understand basic common sense...
Could she be... not human?
Or... was she one of the 'organizers'?
This terrifying thought began to swirl in Qi Xia's mind.
If she really wasn't human, what was her purpose?
"Hey, Lin Qin..." Qi Xia finally spoke. If he didn't figure out Lin Qin's identity, he couldn't possibly relax. "'Leaflets' are common knowledge items. How could you not know?"
"Common knowledge?" Lin Qin looked clearly puzzled. "Just because the three of you know it, that makes it 'common knowledge'?"
Qiao Jiajin interjected, "That's not about whether we know it or not. Leaflets aren't rare. Everyone should know about them. Why don't you?"
"Yeah..." Tiantian also nodded. "Haven't you ever seen a leaflet?"
"You people are really weird," Lin Qin was getting annoyed by the questioning. "So what if I don't know what a 'leaflet' is? Are you going to suspect me because of a piece of paper?"
Qi Xia looked at the girl in front of him. Her behavior was indeed hard to understand.
If she were one of the 'organizers' and had shown such an obvious flaw, she should at least have lied to cover it up. But she didn't seem to be hiding anything at all. She was genuinely annoyed.
She didn't think there was anything wrong with not knowing what a leaflet was.
Could she be innocent?
But what were the odds that a normal person had never seen a leaflet?
Qi Xia thought about it... If he had to say, there was a very small chance that someone had never encountered a leaflet. For example, if Lin Qin were a capitalist's daughter, growing up in aristocratic circles and being chauffeured everywhere. Or if she had been studying abroad somewhere and only recently returned to the country.
But regardless, that probability was very small. Moreover... she was just a psychological counselor.
"A 'leaflet' is an advertisement printed on paper," Qiao Jiajin explained to Lin Qin. "You've never seen one?"
"No," Lin Qin nodded earnestly.
Qi Xia didn't know how to ask further, frowning in thought.
"Hey, buddy!"
A shout came from across the street, startling the group.
There, a man with glasses and shabby clothes was waving. "Look here, buddy!"
This was the first time they had seen other normal people here, making them a bit nervous.
Was this person a friend or foe?
"Are you calling me?" Qi Xia tried to engage.
"Yeah! You're also 'Virtuous Persons,' right?" the man with glasses smiled.
"Virtuous Persons?"
"Normal people," the man said. "Don't you call them that?"
Qi Xia paused, then replied, "We don't look crazy, do we?"
"Haha! I knew it!" the man laughed. "We've found a good game. Any interest in earning some 'Dao' together?"
The man kept his distance from Qi Xia and the others, seemingly wary as well.
Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin exchanged glances, unsure whether to trust him. But thinking again, the rules of this place didn't allow stealing 'Dao'. If the man had ulterior motives, he could only rely on 'cheating'.
And when it came to 'cheating', Qi Xia wasn't afraid of anyone.