Chapter 224: Leaving

"You're leaving?" Zhang Wenda looked at him in shock. The news was so sudden that he couldn't quite process it.

"Everyone has their own path. You need to walk yours alone. I've given you the key; I can't help you with anything else."

"Then where are you going?" Zhang Wenda couldn't help but ask.

Hearing Zhang Wenda's question, the man's expression became complicated. "They say my home has collapsed, but I don't believe it. I have to go back and see. If my country has fallen, then I will rebuild it, brick by brick."

After saying this, he turned and walked toward the door. Just as he opened it and stepped out, his final words rang out. "I only taught you because of a deal I had with your superior. So, I am not your teacher. From now on, I'm even with you and Bureau 507."

In truth, Zhang Wenda felt no real sadness about the man's sudden departure. Their relationship had been a simple one of teacher and student, with no contact during their personal time. They weren't very close.

It was just that the sudden departure of his guide left Zhang Wenda feeling uneasy. No matter if he took a right or wrong turn in the future, whatever problems arose, he no longer had anyone to ask. From now on, he could only rely on himself.

"Sigh... better to rely on myself than on others. Let's begin!" Zhang Wenda rallied his spirits and strode out the door, determined to find his true self within this mysterious state.

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CLICK. Song Jianguo turned on the TV on the wall, a few black cats cradled in her arms. She stared intently at the pirate-themed puppet show on the screen.

Haozi had taught her how to use it the last time she'd pestered him to take her out.

She had been completely hooked ever since watching it once. It was nothing like the TV at Haozi's place that was used to hang meat, and what's more, this one was in color.

Song Jianguo watched and took careful mental notes. Don't be fooled into thinking she was just watching TV; while Zhang Wenda was racking his brains to increase his strength, she was also figuring out ways to enhance her own.

It was because she had seen a style of armor on TV that she'd gotten the idea to have the cats transform into armor.

The more TV shows she watched, the more diverse the forms the Black Cats could take became.

That's why she watched so intently, even treating the commercials like part of the show and studying them over and over.

Suddenly, she sniffed the air and looked toward the litter box. "Quick, scoop it! It smells. Otherwise, Haozi will start nagging again when he gets back."

With a chorus of meows, the black cats quickly gathered. A cat named Inky formed the head, Black Coal formed the left arm, and Coal Ball formed the right arm.

As the Black Cats coalesced, a Cat-Person formed from their various bodies finally appeared before Song Jianguo and Auntie.

The Cat-Person took out a garbage bag, walked over to the litter box, picked up the scoop, and began to clean out the waste inside. After finishing, it picked up two large bags of cat waste and headed for the door.

But its work wasn't done after throwing out the waste. On Song Jianguo's command, it picked up a nearby broom and began to clean the house. She then took off all her clothes and had it wash them for her.

After all that was done, Song Jianguo gave it her phone and instructed it to go to the Android Supermarket to buy groceries.

And these were all things she had learned from watching TV these past few days. It had to be said, watching television was truly educational.

"Hey, Mimi, has that kid actually been helping you find your memories?" Auntie asked, leaning against the window.

"He has. He asked someone here to look into my identity for me, but they didn't find anything," Song Jianguo replied distractedly, her eyes still on the TV.

"You call that helping? That kid doesn't keep his word. He's forgotten everything he promised me." Auntie's brow furrowed in thought.

"Auntie, to be honest, I don't really care that much about getting my memories back," Song Jianguo said, muting the TV and looking at her.

"That's not what you said before."

"I was just trying to make trouble for Haozi back then. I'd do anything just to make him miserable. I don't actually care at all about my past memories."

"Why care about what happened in the past? It's already happened and can't be changed. It's better to just live every day as it comes."

Auntie stroked her full beard, looking at her Mimi. "So you're not going to make trouble for him anymore?"

"No. He has enough trouble as it is." Song Jianguo turned her head back to the TV.

"Why don't we leave, then? It's too dangerous to be around that kid." Auntie watched the girl's expression as she spoke.

"Leave? And go where?" Song Jianguo looked at her in surprise.

"Anywhere we want. Didn't you used to love traveling all over the place?"

Song Jianguo thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Everywhere else is so unfamiliar. I don't want to go. Besides Haozi, I don't know anyone else here."

"I think this is great. I get to watch TV every day, my room and board are covered, and I even get a salary of 2,500 a month! I can buy so much good food!"

Auntie blinked at this. "So you plan to live like this for the rest of your life?"

"What's wrong with that? It's not a bad life."

"Alright then. Come over here. Auntie will teach you how to live your life."

"Auntie, you're being weird. Are you okay?" Just as Song Jianguo stood up and started walking toward her, the door was suddenly thrown open.

"Haozi! Our team got a mission to Tide of Thought Number 6—"

Wang Xiaohua stopped mid-sentence. She found herself locking eyes with Song Jianguo, who was completely naked as her clothes were in the wash. For a moment, she was frozen on the spot.

"I know you. You're... what's-her-name, right? What was it again?" Song Jianguo said to her.

"You... Why aren't you wearing any clothes?" Wang Xiaohua's expression became flustered, and she quickly averted her eyes.

"My clothes are in the wash. Are you here for Haozi?" Song Jianguo brazenly looked her up and down.

'I don't know why, but even though we've never really interacted, I just can't stand the sight of her. I really want to just beat her to a pulp.'

"Don't be so rude." Auntie walked over, gave Song Jianguo a jab with her elbow, and warmly welcomed Wang Xiaohua inside.

Staring at the 2.5-meter-tall Auntie with her full beard and red dress, Wang Xiaohua froze on the spot once again.

As a member of the combat team, she had seen her fair share of bizarre things, but she had truly never encountered a situation like this.

'Is my cousin's taste this extreme? The naked girl is one thing, but he can even stomach... this?'

"What is it, little lady? Are you looking for that kid?"

After Auntie called out to her a few times, she finally snapped back to her senses and said very quickly, "Our team has been resting for half a month, and we just got a mission. This one is to Tide of Thought Number 6. The captain wants to know if you guys are going. I tried calling him, but he didn't pick up."

"Oh, it's normal for him not to pick up. He's lost his mind recently, just running all over the place. Forget answering the phone, sometimes he doesn't even remember to eat. I have to feed him."