Chapter 1566: Internal Changes in the Special Defense Department
"Do you think this is real?" Xu Huo didn't seriously answer the question but instead turned around and asked this.
The child's small face held a peculiar contradiction. He raised his hand and patted Xu Huo's arm. "Actually, it's okay if you're not that strong. In my heart, you're still the best."
"You're very understanding." Xu Huo smiled.
Tongtong said proudly, "What can I do? You're my brother after all. Let's go, I'm starving. I'm going to eat two bowls of rice today!"
During the meal, Xu Huo learned about the recent changes in X Country from Ms. Yu.
Because more and more players were joining the Special Defense Department, the government had regained control of the country. Violent incidents involving players had significantly decreased, especially in major cities, where the safety of ordinary residents was greatly ensured. During this period, many players from other countries lurking within the nation had also been caught, which was quite satisfying.
Limiting the number of high-level player instance runs didn't have much to do with ordinary people. But since it was a national policy, and so many countries in District 014 had agreed to it, it must be good for District 014.
"Still, I feel like there are a lot of new faces in the Special Defense Department." Ms. Yu paid more attention to what was happening around her. "I used to recognize a few players who were active near our neighborhood, but recently, they've all been replaced. The new people are also very unfriendly. The old man on the 7th floor of the next building used to often bring food to the Special Defense Department guards on duty. Now, not only do they refuse it, but they almost injured him. The old man's son is also a player, and the two sides nearly got into a fight."
"I'm not sure how it was handled afterward, but that family moved away. I don't know where they went..."
"Did you have a conflict with someone from the Special Defense Department?" Father Xu knew a bit more. "I feel like some players are particularly targeting our family."
Xu Huo paused his eating motion. "Has anyone given you trouble?"
"Not exactly," Father Xu chose a more tactful way of putting it. "But there's no goodwill in their eyes, that's for sure."
"Things in District 014 won't improve in the short term," Xu Huo said. With other forces entering the Special Defense Department, veterans like Jiang Qiao and Team Leader Lu were already at risk of being sidelined. He thought for a moment and then said, "If you really feel unsafe, you can move to another district. I have a place in another district with a good environment."
Father Xu and Ms. Yu were both stunned. After exchanging a glance, the former asked, "Is it that serious?"
"Not yet, but the situation will probably get worse." Xu Huo smiled. "But you don't need to worry too much. This is all internal government affairs, not much to do with ordinary people. Even if I'm not home, no one will come looking for you."
The child had a different focus. Tongtong looked up. "Are the other districts fun?"
"Tongtong." Ms. Yu frowned. "Eat your meal properly."
Once Tongtong buried his head in his food again, she said to Xu Huo, "We don't understand anything. We'll listen to you. But what about Qingqing..."
Xu Huo had already seen the barrage of text messages from Yu Qingqing. She had a good relationship with the Special Defense Department, especially Team Leader Wu, who had cleaned up a few messes for her. She was very sensitive to the changes in the Special Defense Department's personnel. In her messages, she had already mentioned that the Special Defense Department might be in trouble and advised him to come home less.
As for messages from others like Yuan Yao, Zhou Ning, and Liu Jia, they had stopped over a month ago. They were probably still in the game.
The contact from Gu Yu of the Spring Rain Association and Tan Yang, the president of the First Player Association, was just ordinary concern, with a side note about the restrictions on high-level players running instances—official players were restricted, so other player organizations were even more restricted. First of all, the government wouldn't sell instance guides to them at low prices.
It was also normal for District 014 to slow down the overall upgrade speed. Because of the Super Item incident, the entire district was forced into the era of universal players ahead of schedule. The fact that it hadn't collapsed during the transition meant that a large number of high-level players were bound to emerge. However, this didn't mean that District 014's overall strength had caught up. At least, judging by the environmental evolution, it was still far behind. To some extent, the number and quality of players would affect how quickly a district fully merged with the game. This should be a major reason why various countries were restricting high-level players from running instances.
"She's fine. She's not in District 014 for now." Xu Huo knew Ms. Yu's concerns. Not to mention anything else, the Yu family still had many people; they couldn't completely cut ties. "I'm just suggesting. We don't have to move. Don't worry too much. It hasn't come to a point where we have to choose one or the other."
After the meal, he received a call from Team Leader Lu. She entrusted Jiang Qiao to send her daughter to Jing City for treatment.
"I can't return to Jing City for now. I can only ask you to look after them." Team Leader Lu said. "I heard from Team Leader Wu that you asked about Nie Xuan's situation. He's not in danger. He'll return to the Special Defense Department soon."
Xu Huo said "okay" and hung up. He went back to his room and released Meng Cun.
As soon as the other person came out, he almost couldn't stand. His condition was much worse than when he was locked in the basement. His face and lips were deathly pale, as if he could die at any moment.
Xu Huo helped him to a seat and first injected him with a stamina-boosting potion.
"Can you hold on?" As the potion was slowly pushed into Meng Cun's arm, his complexion gradually recovered. He looked around the room, which was full of personal character, and said, "Is this your home?"
"My hometown. Your place isn't here." Xu Huo pulled out the syringe.
Meng Cun looked out the window. "The weather is so nice. So many people."
"This place is much luckier than District 017." Xu Huo said.
Pain flickered in Meng Cun's eyes. "What's happening in District 017 now?"
"It won't end that quickly. You'll be able to see the news in the new district by then." Xu Huo let him rest in the room and asked Li Chun, who had been standing by receiving messages, to take care of him.
Li Chun had already seen Tongtong. She hesitated and wrote, "But I want to go out and play."
It was supposed to be a trip out for her, but most of the time she was stuck to her clothes.
"Alright, you can play with Tongtong for a while, but don't let anyone into this room." As he spoke, Xu Huo patted the stack of white paper piled nearby.
Li Chun immediately put on a smiling face and promised to complete the task he had assigned, then quickly opened the door and went out.
"Sister Li Chun!" Tongtong's happy voice came from outside.
Xu Huo changed rooms to deal with the items in "Addicted to Theft."
During this trip to District 017, he had gained more information than anything else. Whether it was the intelligent xenomorph, the ticket from Ms. Gong that might contain news about Dr. Wu, or the fighting style of the Eerie Sound Knights members, the items he obtained from other players were not particularly outstanding. He could organize them and sell them in a bundle.
What was somewhat surprising was that "Addicted to Theft" had actually managed to steal some items. He had obtained two theft-type items before, but he hadn't used them much. Sometimes he would specifically take them out, but they usually didn't steal very good items, as if good items were harder to steal. This time, however, it was unexpected. It had actually stolen an A-grade item and a B-grade item.
(Chapter End)