Chapter 286: Special mission
The Luo Village community was relatively small, so it only took several hours for word to get around that Xiao Luo has a girlfriend, and a pretty one too. Not only was she beautiful, but she was also rich and drove around in a luxury car worth several million dollars.
“Didn’t I tell you? Xiao Luo’s so handsome and hardworking, how could he not find a girl for himself?”
“That girl looks just like a celebrity on TV! She’s so gorgeous that even ten of my daughters-in-law combined could not match up to her alone.”
“That’s right, Xiao Luo is just a low-key guy, and he’s humble, so he’s not the type to go around boasting about such a great girlfriend even if they’re dating officially.”
In no time at all, Xiao Luo had become the topic of everyone’s discussion in Luo Village. And they were all happy for Xiao Luo and proud of him too. To them, there was no one else in Luo Village capable enough to date a beautiful and rich girlfriend. So far, Xiao Luo had been the only one able to achieve that.
Of course, not everyone felt the same way, and some people even felt extremely envious and bitter when they heard the news.
And these people included An Yuan and Xiao Chaolai, and Xiao Qiudong.
Xiao Qiudong had always been the most outstanding of the younger community members in Luo Village. He was the person that everyone looked up to and praised, and not only did he do very well in businesses, he was also a winner when it came to affairs of the heart, as he found himself a Taiwanese wife. As far as everyone in the village was concerned, he was a winner in all aspects of his life. Whenever people spoke about him, nods of approval would follow, and on the other hand, heads would only shake when the name of Xiao Luo was mentioned.
Xiao Qiudong could not help noticing how effused everyone seemed as they kept giving praise to Xiao Luo, and that certainly took the s.h.i.+ne of his own stellar reputation, making him truly unhappy. And to make matters worse, his wife, Li Honglian, had gained a fair amount of weight after her childbirth, making her extremely obese. He could not even recognize her anymore, and he felt repulsed by the sight of her grotesque form, which added to his woes.
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Back in his home, Xiao Luo sat on the wooden sofa with his left hand under his chin, while the fingers on his right hand were tapping rhythmically on the armrest, judging the person before him, Ji Siying.
Ji Singyi was dressed in a high neck sweater and a pair of black jogger pants, accentuating her slender and graceful figure. She just stood there and stared back at Xiao Luo, looking a little out of place like a person who had yet to experience much in life.
” So, you’re Night Sparrow?” Xiao Luo coughed lightly and broke the silence in the room.
“Yes, Mr. Xiao Luo. I’m your liaison for the NSA. I’m in charge of conveying NSA’s orders and facilitate communication between you and the NSA. It’s my honor to be able to work with you, sir. As your liaison officer, I hope we’ll get along in this mission and others to come!”
Ji Siying was in awe of Xiao Luo, and her voice was gentle and confident, which was delightful to the ears. She bowed low after she had finished speaking.
Xiao Luo found this woman interesting, and what she had said did not irk him in the least. “Why did you lie about being my girlfriend?”
“As Mr. Xiao Luo’s liaison, I’d need to stay connected to you 24/7, so I used the cover of being your girlfriend as it would allow me to perform my duties and work with you closely. It would prevent unnecessary gossip about us.”
Xiao Luo could not help breaking into a smile as he said, “You’ve been pretty thoughtful, but this cover you came up with has made my life very difficult.”
It was true that the whole village now believed that he had found himself a girlfriend from elsewhere who was beautiful and rich. So curious were the villagers that even the threshold of his front door was almost worn down from the frequent visits by villagers who wanted to catch a glimpse of Xiao Luo’s new girlfriend. Fortunately for him, his grandparents were keeping them corralled on the ground floor, or they would undoubtedly have invaded the second floor and turned it into a wet market.
When Ji Siying heard Xiao Luo say that, it seemed like a knife had plunged into her heart, and she trembled inside. Bowing again, she said, “I’m sorry Mr. Xiao Luo, I did not know that’d make your life difficult, I… let me explain to them.”
She turned about to make her way downstairs after she spoke.
“Come back, you don’t need to do that.”
Xiao Luo was lost for words. The situation was already complicated as it was, and there was no point for her to explain and make matters worse.
“Roger!”
Ji Siying stopped immediately, and now she just stood there noticeably wringing her hands, looking just like a child who had done wrong.
“You can be at ease. Relaxed, just be yourself.”
Xiao Luo poured a cup of tea for himself and another for her. He then pa.s.sed it to her and said, “Please have some tea.”
Ji Siying was shocked by the gesture, and she immediately marched toward him to accept the cup of tea with both hands. “Mr. Xiao Luo, thank you!” she said.
Xiao Luo tilted his head slightly, confused by her constant use of “Mr. Xiao Luo,” questioning himself if she was his liaison or his subordinate. She was unbearably polite, and it was getting to him.
“Gu Zhanguo said you came along with twenty Level C soldiers?”
“That’s right.”
“Where are they now?”
“They have been deployed around Mr. Xiao Luo’s parents’ farm and have covertly prepared defenses around its perimeter to protect them. In the event of an attack, they will escort Mr. Xiao Luo’s parents away the moment any signs of the Cobra Mercenaries are detected,” Ji Siying said.
Xiao Luo nodded and was pleased to hear it, and his mind was now freed from the worry of his family’s security. Twenty Level C soldiers might not be able to defeat the Cobra Mercenaries, but they were sufficient to guarantee his parents’ safety.
He looked directly at Ji Siying again and asked, “What is your level?”
“Mr. Xiao Luo, I am a Level C soldier,” Ji Siying replied, bowing slightly with respect.
“Level C soldier?”
Still seated on the wooden sofa, Xiao Luo’s eyes squinted as he continued to eyeball her. Without any warning, he darted at Ji Siying, striking with his right hand, now formed into a claw with fingers as sharp as blades. His claw-fingers slashed through the air swiftly and locked on Ji Siying’s exposed neck.
Ji Siying’s reflexes were sharp, evading the strike by a whisker, then s.h.i.+fting back to a.s.sume a counter-attacking stance.
However, Xiao Luo shadowed her movements closely, not allowing her any s.p.a.ce to maneuver. His claw-hand followed through as he s.h.i.+fted his stance, making her evasive effort futile. She dropped the teacup in a hurry and used her left hand to parry Xiao Luo’s strike, as her right hand simultaneously drew a dagger from her waist. Swiftly moving to her right, she thrust the blade into Xiao Luo’s exposed chest.
Her mind remained calm throughout, and her reactions were intuitive and swift, the result of her excellent training and conditioning.
But before her dagger had reached its intended target, Xiao Luo struck first with a push-kick into her belly, which immediately broke her attack. She was forced back several steps before she regained control of herself.
It was all over before she knew it. Had this been an actual fight with an enemy, the exchange would have resulted in death.
“Mr. Xiao Luo, you…?!”
Ji Siying held her abdomen in pain and stared at Xiao Luo with a questioning look.
“Just testing your skills level.”
Xiao Luo handed Ji Siying the teacup, which she had dropped to draw out her knife, and not a single drop of tea was spilled. Ji Siying was stunned to silence and could not believe that Xiao Luo could catch her teacup so steadily in that brief moment they exchanged strikes.
“Your skills level as a Level C soldier is excellent, please spend more effort to ensure my grandparents’ safety. I might live here, but I can’t be sure I’ll always be there to keep them safe.”
Ji Siying took the cup from Xiao Luo and nodded. “Roger!”
The truth was that Ji Siying had not been totally honest with Xiao Luo, and providing protection to his family was only part of it. According to the NSA’s own investigations, Xiao Luo had led an average and ordinary life since his youth until about half a year ago. NSA was convinced that there was a secret to how he obtained his strength. And this was the other part of her special mission, to find out Xiao Luo’s secret. Ji Siying was embedded to dig it out from Xiao Luo slowly but surely.