The strange look in Charlie's eyes disappeared right away. Pleasantly surprised, he turned around to look at the black-haired young man who had appeared out of nowhere and said incoherently, "I-I didn't see anything, boss. Y-You're here …
There was a big earthquake in the farm this afternoon … "
Suddenly noticing that the young man's face was as pale as a ghost, he choked and was stunned for a long time before asking in panic, "W-What's wrong, boss?"
"It's nothing, Charlie. It's just that I've paid some price to obtain some kind of strategic power to become the 'overlord' on the chessboard. Haven't you heard of a proverb that says' to wear a crown, one must first bear its weight '?" A hint of irrepressible joy appeared on the black-haired young man's face as he casually replied.
After that, he walked to a sofa that had tilted to the ground and waved his hand casually, summoning a breeze to lift the single-seater sofa up. After sitting down, he asked, "Charlie, how's the farm's loss?"
"I've just contacted the rescue team. In terms of personnel, so far, we've found 164 people with minor injuries, 39 people with serious injuries, five people dead, and about 30 missing people.
The material loss hasn't been evaluated yet, but the preliminary estimate should be quite huge. "
"It doesn't matter how big the loss is in terms of money. The key issue is the reputation of the LS Group. We must compensate the injured farm employees and the families of the deceased as much as possible and minimize the impact of the earthquake at all costs, understand?" Zhang Lisheng stared at his short and fat agent and said solemnly.
"Yes, boss. Please rest assured, I know what to do." Charlie quickly nodded and replied seriously.
"Very well, I'm most at ease when you're doing things.
Oh, that's right, there's one more thing. It's Christmas soon, and I'll go back to Earth for a long time after Christmas. Perhaps tonight will be the last time I see you before I leave. The construction of the farm in the next few months will be completely handed over to you and Edward.
As for how to carry it out step by step, we'll just follow the plan we've made before. Goodbye, Charlie! " The young man said as he stood up. At once, thick fog condensed around his body and slowly drifted out of the simple prefab house, blending into the thick night.
In the fog, the young man avoided the huge light beam shot by the helicopter flying above his head and flew ten feet above the ground with the search and rescue team on the ground. Crossing the grassland and sand, he stealthily traveled for nearly 200 kilometers and finally rushed back to New Washington A in the early hours of the morning.
Turning into the avenue from a remote alley on the edge of the city, he casually flagged down a taxi and rushed to the community where his mother lived.
On the way, the noisy dark-skinned driver excitedly talked to Zhang Lisheng about the earthquake that happened during the day. He asked and answered his own questions, enjoying himself. The young man in the back seat, on the other hand, was lost in his thoughts and did not say a word.
It was only until Zhang Lisheng inadvertently glanced out of the window and saw that the fountain square that should have been empty in the city center was filled with people that he snapped back to reality and blurted out in astonishment, "Is there an all-night Christmas parade today, Mr. Driver? Why are there so many people crowded in the square?"
"Christmas all-night parade? Now it's a Christmas parade …" The taxi driver's eyes widened. Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, he looked at the black-haired young man sitting in the back seat from the rearview mirror. "Oh, buddy! Looks like you have a big heart that's not nervous at all!
In the afternoon, the entire New Washington A had almost turned upside down. Who knew if it would happen again in the evening!
I'm afraid, other than you, everyone in New Washington A is afraid of another earthquake, so everyone is hiding in an open place to spend the night. "
Only then did Zhang Lisheng realize that the crustal tremor that he triggered to subdue Taotie had scared the residents of the surrounding oasis cities to the point that they were panicking. Chuckling, he casually said, "Don't worry, buddy. There won't be another earthquake."
"How do you know? Don't tell me you're a seismologist? Oh, you really look like a scientist or an engineer, but even if you're a seismologist, you can't predict when an earthquake will happen, can you?
I just heard from the radio that an earthquake can't be predicted. It can only be detected by instruments after it has happened.
However, since the earthquake has already happened, what's the use of detecting it … "The black man said blabbermouthed and turned the steering wheel to turn the car into a quiet community.
The surrounding streets had become much narrower, and the houses on both sides of the street had also changed from skyscrapers to traditional wooden houses in the US.
From a rational point of view, the seismic index of a high-rise building was much higher than that of a wooden house. However, due to the reason that the collapse of a low-rise wooden building would not cause too many casualties, it was more comforting on a psychological level. For this reason, the residents here did not simply look for an open space to hide. Instead, they turned off their power and sat on the lawn in front of their house all night.
The taxi turned left and right in the community for a while before stopping in front of a two-story wooden house that was painted milky white. "Buddy, you're home."
Zhang Lisheng looked out the window at the candlelight that decorated the entire street like a galaxy and said, "Thank you." Then, he handed a 100 dollar bill to the driver and pushed the door to get out of the car.
The instant his shoes stepped on the ground, he heard a pleasantly surprised incoherent voice resonating from afar. "Oh my God! Oh my God! Baby, you're alright! I knew you're alright!
Praise the Lord! Praise your mercy … "Then, he was hugged tightly by a warm embrace.
"Of course I'm alright, mom. What's wrong with you? Why are you so excited?" Zhang Lisheng twisted unnaturally in his mother's arms.
"Don't you know that there was a big earthquake in the afternoon, Lisheng? At that time, your mother began to contact you frantically, but she couldn't get through to you no matter how hard she tried. She's been so anxious these few hours, "Lavin, who was wearing a police uniform and holding a candle, answered on behalf of his lover as he slowly approached. Behind him was a beautiful black girl wearing a casual leather outfit.
"It's not right that I couldn't get through to you.
Oh mom, didn't I say this before I left? I'm going to collect materials for biological research in the desert. There's no communication signal there … "The young man glanced in the direction of the voice and frowned imperceptibly. Then, he looked at his mother and said, only to be choked by Lili's surprised gaze.
He could only wait for his mother to calm down in silence before breaking free from her embrace. Under the bright moonlight, Zhang Lisheng nodded to Lavin by the side. "Uncle Lavin."
Then, he smiled at the black girl next to the tall police officer and said, "Major Allison, why are you here? Don't tell me that you're here to avoid the aftershock?"
"You know, Lisheng, I don't have any family in New Washington A. I only have Rayli and a few other reporters as my friends. I had nowhere to go during the Christmas break so I asked Rayli out to go shopping, but in the end, we encountered an earthquake …" The former military intelligence officer who had been transferred to the Foreign News Center of the Department of Defense had inexplicably become very familiar with the eldest daughter of the Lavin family, who was a media person, explained with a smile.
Lili, who did not have any racist thoughts in her heart and had a good impression of the black female officer who would usually chat a little more when talking about her eldest son, immediately added, "When Miss Allison sent Rayli home, she happened to see me calling you. She's also very concerned about your safety so she deliberately stayed until now to comfort me."
"Oh, thank you, Major Allison." No matter how suspicious Zhang Lisheng was, he could only thank her in this situation.
"How many times have I told you, Lisheng? Can't you just call me Allison like how you did in Shrimp World No. 2? Don't tell me that you like people calling you 'Dr.' that much?" Allison joked.
"It's just a title. Is there a need to be so serious?" The young man looked at the black female officer's beautiful face that was as delicate as silk under the candlelight. Not wanting to talk nonsense over such a trivial matter, he shrugged and said, "But since you mind it so much, okay, I'll pay attention to it in the future."
Upon hearing this, Allison nodded in satisfaction. Then, with a concerned expression, she asked, "Where were you when the earthquake happened, Lisheng? Did you encounter any danger? Are you injured?"
"Allison, it's not like you've never seen my Kung Fu in Shrimp World No. 2 before. How could an earthquake of this level possibly hurt me?" Zhang Lisheng used a lie that he had long thought of to dodge the question. "Actually, when I was catching sand animals in the desert bought by the LS Group in the afternoon, I didn't pay any attention to it at all.
It was only when I saw the cracks everywhere on the way back to New Washington A that I realized that the impact of the earthquake was so great. In the end, my car broke down in the sand, so I had to walk back to the city. "
"Did you walk back to the city, baby? You must be tired and hungry. I-I'll go make a delicious sandwich for you right now.
Just wait for a few minutes, it'll be ready soon … "When the mother next to him heard the lies made up by her son, she hurriedly ran back home from the street, not even giving Zhang Lisheng a chance to stop her.
Allison looked at Lili's disappearing back and sighed inexplicably. Pursing her lips with a strange expression, she whispered with a profound meaning, "Lisheng, you have a mother who is overly doting in the eyes of ordinary Americans. Even though this is not worth showing off, it's really enviable.
I believe you'll never let her be sad and disappointed in the future, right? "
Zhang Lisheng became silent for a moment and did not answer. Instead, he smiled at Lavin and the female officer and strolled onto the lawn before sitting down next to the Lavin siblings.
"Hey, brother, are you alright?" Randy, who was on the lawn, immediately high-fived the young man and asked, attracting the concerned gaze of Riley, Michelle, and the rest. It was apparent that the siblings did not follow their stepmother and father to surround the young man not because they did not care about his life but because they were afraid that Zhang Lisheng would feel awkward.
"Thanks for your concern, I'm fine, brother," The young man replied with a smile. "You guys, on the other hand, look terrible. An earthquake is not the end of the world."
"Even though it's not the end of the world, it's still terrifying enough, Lisheng, especially when the entire city is swinging around like an egg in a pan," Riley said with lingering fear.
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