“You enjoyed using me as a pawn, didn’t you?!” Xiao Lei’s head drooped lower with each question Xiao Han asked, his fists clenched tightly.
The woman closed her eyes in pain, sighing softly, followed by another fit of severe coughing.
“Speak,” Lu Shiyan finally said, his voice not loud, but carrying an irresistible pressure, “Your purpose. Or rather, who instructed you?”
Xiao Lei suddenly looked up, his eyes bloodshot, mixed with fear and despair, and then shrieked, “No one! I did it all willingly!”
“My mother is sick and needs medicine! The base doesn’t care at all! She’s barely holding on!”
“The Scorpion’s people don’t give us good things, and others only steal!”
So that was it. Su Wan’s heart sank slightly; such a young child had been forced to such extremes.
Lu Shiyan was expressionless: “That scene at the street corner, was that also arranged by you?”
Xiao Lei bit his lip and nodded, his voice choked: “I wanted you… to sympathize with me more… I was afraid you’d leave and no one would care for us.”
Su Wan asked, “Why did you choose Xiao Han?”
Xiao Lei quickly glanced at Lu Shiyan, with obvious lingering fear, then turned to Xiao Han: “I saw Pan Yong recruiting you when you first arrived at the base, so I knew you must be very powerful. I… I originally wanted to control that older brother. But he… he’s too strong, I can’t see through him, like a mist! If I even had a slight thought, I might be crushed by him instantly! Then my mother and I would both be finished!”
“So… I could only choose you…”
Xiao Han: “…”
So, I’m a soft persimmon, easy to squeeze, huh?! He was so angry that the veins on his forehead throbbed, wishing he could hang this little brat up and beat him! “What exactly is your ability?!”
Xiao Lei lowered his head, his voice tiny: “I don’t know… my eyes… can make others listen to me and do what I want them to do.”
He secretly looked at Xiao Han: “Just like in the plaza, I looked at you and thought ‘help me,’ and you… rushed forward.”
Xiao Han almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. It was that simple? He, a dignified ability user, was “arranged” by a little kid with just a look?!
Su Wan’s heart stirred. A mental ability? Or some unknown manipulation ability? If this ability was used well… it would be a divine skill!
How envious, people with abilities…
Lu Shiyan’s gaze swept over Xiao Lei’s tender yet feigned resolute face, finally landing on his now uneasy eyes.
Mental suggestion? Will interference? This little ghost’s ability is astonishingly effective!
He could actually lead Xiao Han, that fierce tiger, by the nose without him even realizing it! If nurtured…
“How many times did you use it on me, you bastard?!” Xiao Han’s forehead veins throbbed, he almost squeezed the words through clenched teeth, wishing he could crush this little brat on the spot.
Xiao Lei shivered in fright, counting on his fingers: “Once in the plaza, once at the alley entrance, and also… just now when you came in, I wanted you… not to be so fierce…”
Xiao Han: “…” Damn it! He felt like an idiot! His worldview shattered into pieces!
Lu Shiyan slightly raised his eyelids, glanced at Xiao Lei, then turned to Xiao Han, his gaze calm, yet it sent a chill down Xiao Han’s spine.
“What are you looking at me for?!” Xiao Han instantly bristled, “This little bastard is too insidious, impossible to guard against!”
Su Wan struggled to suppress a laugh, her shoulders subtly shaking. Xiao Han, this fool, was affected again.
She cleared her throat, breaking the somewhat awkward atmosphere, and spoke gently to Xiao Lei: “Xiao Lei, besides us, does anyone else know about this ability of yours?”
Xiao Lei shook his head, his voice trembling: “No. My mother only knows that I can make others treat us better, and bully us less.”
“Then your mother’s illness…” Su Wan looked at the woman by the wall, who was coughing so hard she seemed about to fall apart, her heart sinking.
Xiao Lei’s eyes instantly reddened, with a crying tone: “The doctor said it requires many precious medicines that the base can’t trade for! We don’t have contribution points…”
Su Wan sighed inwardly. No matter how peculiar this child’s ability was, he was still just a child, desperate to save his mother, and could only take risks.
She pressed on: “When you influence others, do they notice? Can they remember it afterwards?”
Xiao Lei and Su Wan’s gazes simultaneously fell on Xiao Han, and Lu Shiyan also looked over.
Xiao Han’s face flushed red then paled. In the plaza, he indeed felt a surge of passion and rushed forward after meeting Xiao Lei’s gaze, and afterwards even thought he was brimming with a sense of justice! That time at the alley entrance, it was also an overflow of sympathy!
“…No, no special feeling.” Xiao Han admitted begrudgingly, “A thought suddenly popped into my head, feeling like I absolutely had to do it, very strongly!”
“Tsk,” Su Wan clicked her tongue, “Silent and impossible to guard against. Xiao Lei, what’s your full name?”
Xiao Lei answered timidly: “Mo Lei.”
Mo Lei? Su Wan frowned, this name was completely unfamiliar in the book. It seemed the plot had completely gone off the rails.
Lu Shiyan’s gaze turned to the woman: “What illness?”
The woman looked up, her eyes blurry with tears, her voice hoarse: “Radiation sickness… late stage…”
Radiation sickness!
The two words hit like a boulder, Su Wan and Xiao Han’s breaths hitched! A terminal illness of the apocalypse, late stage meant waiting for death!
“Does the base have a treatment center?” Su Wan urgently asked.
The woman gave a tragic smile and shook her head: “Yes, but that’s for ‘important figures.’ We… don’t even have the right to get close.” She sobbed uncontrollably, trembling like a sieve.
This Mo Lei’s mind was indeed deep, but his motive was beyond reproach.
“What do you want?” Lu Shiyan asked, his voice without a ripple.
Mo Lei suddenly looked up, a strong will to live bursting from his eyes, and with a “thump,” he heavily knelt down, facing Lu Shiyan and Su Wan, his forehead hitting the ground!
“Please, Big Brother and Big Sister, save my mother!”
“As long as you can save my mother, my life, Mo Lei, is yours! I’ll repay you in my next life, even as an ox or a horse!”
Lu Shiyan’s gaze lingered between Xiao Lei and his mother. The air in the tent seemed to solidify, leaving only the woman’s suppressed gasps and Xiao Lei’s faint sobs.
“You know your own illness,” Lu Shiyan’s voice was calm, almost cold, directly addressing the woman, “Late-stage radiation sickness, even if you could find those so-called ‘important figures’’ treatment centers, it would be beyond help.”
Tears streamed down the woman’s face, yet a hint of relief appeared. She suddenly grabbed Su Wan’s hand, her nails digging deep: “I know… I won’t live… Please, take Xiao Lei, give him a way to live… He’s still young…”
Mo Lei knelt on the ground, his small body trembling violently, looking at Lu Shiyan with tear-blurred eyes, his lips quivering.
“Following us isn’t about getting free meals,” Lu Shiyan looked down at Mo Lei, as if appraising an object, “Your life will be mine from now on. Your ability can only be used for me. Can you do that?”
A flicker of bewilderment crossed Xiao Lei’s eyes, immediately replaced by a strong will to live. He heavily kowtowed, his forehead hitting the hard ground with a dull “thud.”
“I can do it! As long as my mother… as long as I can live, I’ll do anything!” His voice was choked with sobs.
“My mother…,” Xiao Lei choked, looking at his mother, his eyes full of reluctance and pain.
The woman smiled weakly, trying to reach out and touch her son’s head: “Xiao Lei, Mother is fine… Mother will be content to see you live well…” Her voice grew fainter and fainter, and her breathing became more and more rapid.
Su Wan’s heart tightened. She quickly checked her pulse; it was extremely weak, almost imperceptible.
“Lu Shiyan…” Su Wan looked at Lu Shiyan, her eyes holding a hint of inquiry and reluctance.