Yu Lian unceremoniously took the coffee and drank it in one gulp.
Just as he caught his breath, he saw a young girl with a bright smile.
Hmm, confirmed again, still an unfamiliar face.
This was a girl of fourteen or fifteen, quite beautiful, with a graceful demeanor.
She wore simple yet neat and tidy travel clothes, had a pair of violet eyes, and long, dark purple hair that was almost black.
Of course, from her eye and hair color, it was clear she wasn't from Earth.
This scene felt a bit familiar! Yu Lian thought.
“I’m sorry, you had to witness such an embarrassing scene.”
“I should be the one apologizing, Officer.
If you hadn’t arrived in time, it’s truly unimaginable what state everyone would be in now.
Thank you again.” The girl nodded to Yu Lian and extended a hand: “My name is Fredrica Wirbert…”
“This is Penny, and this is George.” The little girl then introduced the two small tag-alongs beside her.
One was another girl a year or two younger than her, and the other was a small boy of seven or eight.
These were two very ordinary, typical Earth children, but they were both quite cute.
“Your sandwich was made by Penny, and she really wants to hear your opinion on the taste,” said Miss Fredrica Wirbert, who was presumably from the Commonwealth.
Miss Penny blushed and nodded to Yu Lian.
The little boy beside her looked at the power armor and rifle Yu Lian had set aside, his face full of longing.
“It’s very delicious; I feel all my fatigue has been swept away,” Yu Lian said.
Although the ham and dried vegetables were clearly from a can, with no real skill involved, even with Yu Lian’s emotional intelligence, he knew what to say now.
“That’s wonderful.” The purple-haired girl thanked Yu Lian on behalf of her friend, but showed no intention of leaving.
“I heard that just now, the councilman hoped you could escort us into the city, is that right?”
Yu Lian carefully scrutinized the girl, who looked to be only fourteen or fifteen.
He had guessed that other public representatives would come to sound him out, but he truly hadn't expected the first one to be a young girl.
Dr. Banks had warned him earlier that the other Commonwealth citizen in the convoy was a very perceptive young girl.
But this wasn't just perceptive; she was clearly precocious to a monstrous degree.
He looked at the beautiful girl, confirming that he truly didn't know her and had never heard the name “Fredrica Wirbert” in the future.
Only then did he say, “Those are just some initial thoughts; the specifics will only be known after I’ve discussed them with everyone.
Speaking of which, Miss Wirbert…”
“You can just call me Fulei.” So familiar?
He hadn’t heard that Commonwealth noblewomen had this kind of persona.
And, looking at her style, you weren’t going for a frivolous or boisterous route, were you?
“Alright, Miss Fredrica Wirbert.
Are your adults here?
You didn’t come here to travel alone, did you?”
“Doesn’t Earth have a saying, ‘It’s better to travel ten thousand miles than to read ten thousand books’?
You can just say I’m here to collect material for my thesis.” The little girl said with a smile.
Seeing Yu Lian’s subtle expression, she added with a touch of youthful pride and self-importance, “I’m a student at Alliance Ocean University.”
…This can no longer be described as a straight-A student.
Or are you actually a legal loli?
“Also, my family has a small fortune, and we do have plans to invest in New Yumen, so I simply came to gather information.”
According to this somewhat familiar Miss Fredrica Wirbert, she truly wasn't a legal loli, but indeed the type of super genius who entered university at twelve and was almost graduating at fourteen.
However, that wasn't the main point.
This genius girl had indeed come to New Yumen for an inspection; her family were board members of the renowned Zixin Hui Group.
This was a colossal food enterprise, originating from the Commonwealth’s home planet, but now it had become a trans-galactic behemoth.
Its holdings included food import/export trade, snacks, canned and convenience foods, chain fast-food restaurants, chain bars and cafes, high-end restaurants, and so on.
It was a rather famous food enterprise throughout the All-Galaxy.
While inspecting plantations and ranches in New Yumen, she also met Mr. Pierce, Penny and George’s father, who was also there for inspection, preparing to invest in building a food processing plant.
“Dad is such a muddlehead; he even said the scenery here in New Yumen is beautiful, with lonely smoke in the vast desert and long rivers at sunset, with galloping horses and endless grasslands, so he brought the whole family to play.
This time, we really lost big!
If Officer hadn’t arrived in time, even our lives would have been in danger.” Penny had strong opinions about her father, but she didn’t show too much panic.
She even proactively made sandwiches for the soldiers to express her gratitude; she truly was a good girl.
Yes, she really was a good girl.
We cannot fault her just because she only remembered to make sandwiches for the soldiers and didn’t think about sharing the extra food with the ill-clad and hungry refugees.
Even adults couldn't do it, or didn't even think of it, so why should we expect a child to?
Fredrica Wirbert continued, “You are the officer, the most professional in this situation, and everything should be based on your judgment… If there’s anything you need our help with, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
Penny nodded.
She might not be as much of a genius as her friend, but she was also a precocious little adult.
“Well then, Penny, let’s take these to the other soldiers, gentlemen and ladies,” Fredrica Wirbert said.
“Penny, can I stay and watch?” George suddenly said, his eyes fixed intently on the rifle and power armor leaning nearby.
Penny hesitated for a moment, then looked at Yu Lian.
“Why not? Men also want their own space,” Yu Lian said with a smile.
The girls pursed their lips and smiled, leaving with a phrase, “Don’t cause trouble for the officer, okay?”, and then departed.
One carried a basket of sandwiches, the other a tray with a dozen cups of coffee, and they delivered them one by one.
“Big brother, big brother, is that an AS40?”
“Oh, you’re quite knowledgeable.” Yu Lian looked with interest at the chubby-faced little boy, whose bright eyes were filled with the excitement of “I finally saw the real thing.”
“Of course, I’ve been reading ‘Ship Knowledge’ and ‘Youth Science Defense Pictorial’ since I was three,” the little boy said proudly.
Yes, military enthusiasts really do need to be nurtured from childhood.
“That’s a C10, isn’t it?
It’s my first time seeing a real C10.” The little boy was excited for half a minute, but he was indeed a well-behaved child.
After much hesitation, he finally didn’t reach out to touch it, then still showed a disappointed expression: “But it’s not a Dragoon!
Big brother, you’re not Orbital Paratroopers or the Marine Corps, are you?”
“…We are the Colonial Guard.”
“Guard cannon fodder?”
How could this brat talk like that?
Yu Lian said with a smile, “George, your sister has been very smart since she was little, hasn’t she?”
“Yeah, I think she’s too smart.
She’s always so serious, even more so than the disciplinary committee at our school, and she reads those boring books all day long.
She’s definitely going to turn into an old maid who can’t get married.
But, I didn’t expect Sister Fredrica Wirbert to be even smarter; it’s the first time I’ve seen Penny admire someone so much.”
“Is that so… George, do you want to go into the city now?”
“Of course I do! Dad really wants to too, because we won’t have to sleep in the car once we’re in the city.
But Mom and Penny both say Dad is a big muddlehead, and big brother doesn’t have to listen to him.”
Mr. Pierce’s family status was truly pathetic.
“But, you must have had a tough journey following the convoy all this way.
Did you encounter any dangers?”
“Yes, yes!” The little boy’s big eyes began to shine.
Rather than being scared in retrospect, he was more excited, speaking in the tone of discussing what moves Ultraman used to defeat the monster yesterday with his friends: “When we first set out, we encountered a big sand crocodile, oh, right, and also a Shadak Giant, and wild raptor packs.”
Yu Lian listened, stunned, thinking, you really have been through a lot of hardships.
The only fortunate thing was that they hadn’t encountered Gravel Dragon and Bug Swarm, right?
As soon as he thought of Bug Swarm, he couldn’t help but shiver and tremble.
Even in the hot desert climate of New Yumen, he felt cold sweat on his back, his hands and feet icy, and tears unbidden… Oh, by the way, the sun has already set, and the desert climate is naturally cold at night.
In any case, the vicinity of Tulon had already become a meat grinder for millions of troops on both sides, and if nothing unexpected happened, warships should still be approaching in orbit.
The Bug Swarm, which should still be developing stealthily, probably wouldn’t dare to appear.
Probably…
While Yu Lian was thinking, the little boy’s narration (and bragging) continued.
“Fortunately, there was Big Brother Ash; he seemed to be the councilman’s bodyguard.
Dad also hired a few mercenaries, and Sister Fredrica Wirbert brought a few bodyguards, but all of them combined weren’t as formidable as Big Brother Ash.
Yes, all those cowboy uncles combined weren’t as formidable as Big Brother Ash!
Also…” The little boy paused, and a hint of seriousness and tension not belonging to his age appeared on his face.
“The day before yesterday, a car was pushed over by a sand crocodile, and it was Big Brother Ash who rescued everyone inside.
Otherwise, Xiaotao, Jimmy, and Aron, they would all have died.
Mr. Rowe, who owned the mine, was arguing loudly with Uncle Councilman, saying they couldn’t take Xiaotao and the others anymore.
It was Big Brother Ash who beat Mr. Rowe and almost threw him into the sand crocodile’s mouth, and that’s how it was resolved.”
The familiar name made Yu Lian feel a slight trance, but what comforted him was that the owner of that name was no different from the one in his memory.
George looked up at the silent Yu Lian and carefully said, “Big brother, I heard, I heard others say that Xiaotao and their parents are actually burdens or something.
If we hadn’t brought them, we would have already reached Tulon… Big brother, you, since you’ve come, you, you won’t abandon them, will you?”
At this moment, the gaze of a seven-year-old boy put more pressure on Yu Lian than that Gravel Dragon and the oversized Bakugan in the ruins.
If all children in the Commonwealth were like this, then this broken pot might not be beyond saving.
Thinking this, Yu Lian gently patted the little boy’s head: “Commonwealth soldiers are all Marshal Li’s students.
When have you ever seen us abandon civilians?”
Founding Father Marshal Li had passed away 30 years ago.
Thirty years was enough time for a long-dormant nation to be reborn from the ashes, but it was also enough for a thriving group to degenerate to the point of not even recognizing its own mother; it purely depended on the choices made.
Fortunately, Marshal Li’s legacy was still impressive enough, at least enough to impress children.
George seemed to sense Yu Lian’s determination, nodded heavily, and relaxed, then broke into a smile.
It was a pure and joyful smile, very fitting for his age.