Chapter 1932: The Living Fetch a Higher Price
Xu Huo returned to his lodging and found his door wide open. The tables, chairs, and bedding that had been tidied up that morning were all ransacked again, even the bedsheet was slashed, and there were some foul-smelling unknown objects inside the stove.
Given the state of things, cooking was out of the question. He knocked on his neighbor's door and asked if she could help clean up the room, offering to pay.
The woman was initially wary of him, but upon hearing she could get money, she hesitated before opening the security chain and asked, "How much are you willing to give?"
Xu Huo handed her fifty and said, "I don't want anything in the kitchen anymore. Please take it all away."
A hint of a smile appeared on the woman's face. "I won't give you money for the things you're throwing away."
Only after Xu Huo confirmed he didn't want any money did the woman enter his room. She first straightened the bed and furniture, then took away everything from the kitchen and scrubbed it several times.
She left after cleaning up and didn't mention cooking for him again.
Given the situation, even if someone else dared to cook, he wouldn't dare to eat.
He used the bread he had picked up on the way for dinner, then slept until the middle of the night before silently getting up. He pulled out the wire from the light switch and unplugged it, then climbed out through the window.
At that moment, a group of people was heading his way. Among them were two familiar faces from yesterday and two newcomers.
Because they hadn't found him yesterday, these people were better prepared today. They brought knives, toolboxes, and bags. One of them mentioned, "The living fetch a higher price, but it's a pity he's an inspector."
When the four entered his room, Xu Huo lured a few drunk thugs from another street to the building where he lived. As the four were rummaging through everything, they "accidentally" sent a cup flying out, which hit one of the thugs on the head. Because they were so "engrossed" in smashing things, they didn't hear the cursing from downstairs. Soon, the thugs charged upstairs.
Both sides were armed with knives, and it didn't take long before someone was killed. The thugs were clearly organized and influential, immediately using their terminals to notify nearby companions. The four punks, realizing things had gotten out of hand, scrambled to flee, but the thugs' reinforcements arrived too quickly, blocking the downstairs exit. Of the four, two were killed on the spot, and the other two fled in different directions, though they probably wouldn't get far.
Xu Huo helped one of them by redirecting the thugs in another direction, then followed the man who had crawled out of a dumpster to his usual hiding place.
The one who escaped was a man with a scar on his face. After entering his own house, he didn't even bother to tend to his wounds before opening the cellar.
There were three people in the cellar—two dead and one alive. The living one was a young girl. When she was pulled up by her hair, her face was covered in tears as she stared at the bodies on the ground. Prolonged starvation had left her so weak she couldn't make a sound, and she was dragged out of the cellar by the man.
The scarred man pressed a dagger against her neck. "Come with me, or I'll make you die worse than those two old farts!"
The girl glared at him fiercely, wanting to resist but lacking the strength. She was forced into a box and loaded into a vehicle.
The scarred man started the car and contacted a buyer on the way, telling them to prepare the money for delivery.
Xu Huo threw a stone onto the road, causing the scarred man's car to flip over. The man and the box tumbled out, and the girl inside was thrown out as well. This drew attention on the street, but people only watched, no one stepping forward. The girl struggled to her feet and ran into an alley.
The scarred man immediately gave chase, but the alley the girl ran into happened to be where two members of the Rebel Army were meeting. Seeing the two people running in one after the other, one of them quickly slipped away, while the other stepped back against the wall, signaling with his actions that he wouldn't get involved. However, as the scarred man approached, the rebel swiftly pulled out a short knife and cleanly slit his throat.
Seeing this, the girl stopped running and turned back to viciously beat the scarred man's corpse.
The Rebel Army member silently prepared to leave, but the surviving girl immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed to him. Pointing to her tongue, she begged him to take her in.
The Rebel Army member said nothing and had no intention of taking her with him. He gave her some money and quickly left.
The drizzling rain continued to fall, and the dim alley seemed to harbor dangers everywhere. The girl chased after the rebel for a few steps but soon lost sight of him. Looking at the various people outside, she fearfully avoided everyone's gaze. When she saw a few young thugs approaching her, she turned and ran wildly.
The West District was too chaotic. Such a night was a breeding ground for crime, especially for someone who looked so fragile.
It wasn't that no one saw people chasing her, but most chose to look the other way. Occasionally, someone with good intentions didn't dare to take her in, only pointing her in a direction or causing some trouble for her pursuers.
Of course, some shop owners along the street signaled for her to come inside, but she was also afraid of them. She could only avoid the main roads and flee through the alleys.
She didn't know how long she ran before she collapsed, dry heaving, unable to get up again.
The men chasing her noticed and approached with grins. "Keep running, why don't you!"
"What are you doing!" Xu Huo appeared at the entrance of the alley. Seeing the situation ahead, he immediately drew his service pistol and aimed at the men. "Leave now, or I'll shoot! Five, four, three..."
Before he finished counting, the men cursed under their breath and left.
Xu Huo holstered his gun and walked over to the girl. Without touching her rashly, he asked, "Can you stand up?"
The girl flinched, then nodded vigorously. Her eyes were fixed on him, not daring to blink, as she tried to push herself up.
Xu Huo sighed and reached out to help her. "Do you have somewhere to go?"
The girl remained silent, not daring to trust him.
"If you have nowhere to go, you can stay at my place for the night," Xu Huo said. "If you think of a place to go, I'll take you there tomorrow morning. No need to go to the Supervision Department."
The girl hesitated, afraid to follow him, but when she heard the laughter of men and women on the street, her fear drove her to stumble after him.
Xu Huo knew she was following. He bought a bowl of noodles from a street stall for her.
Since the food wasn't given by him, the girl accepted it easily. After wolfing it down, she mouthed a "thank you."
Xu Huo smiled and didn't say much.
The rental house was now empty of people. Xu Huo swept the broken items aside and handed her a blanket. "Sleep in the outer room. The bedroom might have visitors in the middle of the night."
The girl nervously took the blanket and stood still.
Xu Huo turned and went into the room, locking the door behind him.
This slightly eased the girl's tension. She hugged the blanket and curled up in a corner, not daring to lie down, and fell asleep sitting up.
Once she was completely asleep, Xu Huo came out of the room, pulled out her arm, and injected an Evolution Agent into her vein.
(End of Chapter)