With things being this way, Huai Shi simply pushed aside any thoughts of his undercover mission and started wandering the streets with his hands in his pockets.
The afternoon sun cast its slanting rays across the earth, warming his body.
In a daze, Huai Shi seemed to see the entire town wavering like a Reflection in the water, with countless shadows emerging from the heavens. But soon, the bizarre illusion faded, and everything went back to normal.
Leaving him drenched in cold sweat and shivering.
This place has a problem, doesn't it?
.
.
"The target has started to move."
Accompanied by the surveillance report, inside the temporary command center in the huge truck outside the town, everyone perked up, putting on headphones and looking toward the screens.
On the screen, in addition to the surveillance feeds from various parts of the town, the enlarged image in the center was of Huai Shi, who seemed to have nothing better to do than wander around aimlessly.
In the prolonged silence, everyone watched Huai Shi walk east and loiter west, looking like a listless idler wandering about with no particular purpose.
It didn't look like he was in hiding at all; he even seemed to shudder as if he had encountered a ghost.
Compared to Liu DongLi, who was like a fish in water and had already infiltrated the circle of elderly lady friends, Huai Shi seemed to just be slacking off, and there was no sign that he was under any suspicion.
Just when everyone was gradually becoming speechless, another report came from the front: "The target is starting to conne…"
The voice cut off abruptly.
In the image, Huai Shi ran into a small convenience store, bought a packet of cigarettes and a lighter with his undercover pay, and even indulged himself a bit by purchasing a five-yuan ice cream.
Then he squatted on the steps under the sun and started slurping it up.
An overwhelming salted-fish aura hit them in the face…
This guy was beyond help, wasn't he?
Ai Qing, who always maintained a calm expression, couldn't help but twitch a bit, beginning to question internally: Was there something wrong with me for suspecting that this salted fish was hiding something? How had that enthusiastic and lively kid turned into this sort of ghost after a few years of not seeing him? Could it be that time's chainsaw was truly a work of cruel, supernatural skill?
Seeing Huai Shi so committed to wasting his limited time in limitless slacking, the people in the command center didn't know what to say anymore. Some looked at Ai Qing, wondering whether to give him a push, but Ai Qing had not spoken from beginning to end.
Forget it, one more person or one less didn't make much difference. Their current work was a tangled mess; not only did they need to unravel the interpersonal relationships of Old Pond Town within a few short hours, but they also had to review past surveillance footage for any trace of clues. The Depth Detector had already been brought in and was being installed intensively; there was no time to waste on a salted fish.
And amidst the hustle and bustle, the listening device on Huai Shi picked up a distant hailing: "Hey, lad, yes, you, come over here."
In the image, Huai Shi looked perplexed as he got called over by a group of old men pushing handcarts.
"Yes, you, whose kid is this? Come over and lend a hand!"
Huai Shi was dazed for a long time, slurping on the leftover ice cream stick. As if he finally remembered his job as an undercover agent, he reluctantly went to help the group of old men push the cart and unload goods. After some effort, he managed to get the handcart into a nearby courtyard. Then, he was tasked with unloading a jumble of broken gongs, drums, and opera costumes from the cart and organizing them.
In the yard, there seemed to be a gathering taking place, with a bunch of dark-skinned old men sitting on the ground, chatting gleefully about something. Furthermore, some were gathered around a table playing cards, and in a corner, a pot was set up for boiling water. All that was missing were a few tables set up for a banquet.
It looked like there might be food to eat?
Huai Shi's eyes brightened.
The half-step he had taken outside was retracted back in.
Going undercover is impossible, not in this lifetime. I might as well blend in and get a meal without a fuss. I'm not even asking for extra meat; just enough rice will do.
But as Huai Shi waited and waited for the signal that the canteen had started serving food, he saw seven or eight old men on the ground picking up broken gongs, pipas, and suonas, starting to play the tune of a two-person comic show.
And when they realized they had a strange spectator watching, the old man in the middle playing the suona got even more excited. After blowing a long sequence, he proudly shook the instrument in his hand at Huai Shi, as if to say, "See how awesome I am? Be envious..."
Huai Shi felt no ripple in his heart. He just clapped dryly and even felt like laughing a little. If he hadn't come without his instrument today, he would have shown the old man what ABRSM Level Eight Performance was all about... What's more, combined with meditation, the emotional power of his cello was ridiculously strong; if he put in a little effort, he could make your cow cry.
To his surprise, the group of old men got even more enthusiastic, blowing one piece after another at Huai Shi, the spit flying several meters from the suona. Who knows what black technology they used to connect it to a subwoofer; it almost shook Huai Shi's molars loose.
After finishing, they even challenged Huai Shi by tilting their chins at him:
"Young man, how about a piece from you?"
"Alright then, I'll show you esteemed gentlemen a little something today."
Huai Shi curled his lips. Looks like reality won't allow me to keep a low profile anymore.
He casually rummaged through the pile of broken instruments, found an erhu that could be played, crossed his legs, no longer concerned about keeping a low profile or being undercover, and started playing a mixed mashup of "Horse Racing," "Moon reflected in Er-Quan," Bach's unaccompanied cello suites, "Above the Moon," and "Pomp and Circumstance."
The equipment was limiting, causing many parts to be terribly out of tune. Huai Shi had to emulate that fiend Paganini, attempting to play an entire piece on a single string. But unexpectedly, when he finished his medley and opened his eyes, he saw a dense crowd of heads before him.
Those old men who were playing cards, chatting, smoking, and playing instruments had gathered around without him knowing, pointing and looking serious and focused.
It's all over. Huai Shi's heart tightened. Have I exposed myself?
A few old men whispered among themselves. The one in the middle scrutinized Huai Shi with a puzzled expression, "Where did this young fellow come from? How come I've never seen him before?"
"I... I'm new here... just a worker!"
Huai Shi instinctively stood up to run away. "I'll go now, I'll leave right now..."
"No rush."
The old man grabbed Huai Shi's shoulder, smiling so happily it was as if he was someone stuck in the bathroom who finally saw someone bringing toilet paper. "Lee Lao San, that bastard, had a bad case of the runs and didn't show up today. Our Gospel Class is short of someone who can play the erhu. Come with us to the church talent show tonight. Forty bucks a gig, including dinner, what do you say?"
A church? A talent show? Wait a minute, how did I infiltrate so quickly?
Huai Shi's face was bewildered.
Although his gut reaction was to refuse, considering he was still under surveillance, he could only bitterly nod in agreement.
"Fine!"
He hesitated a moment, then laid down his condition, "But I need to eat first!"
Feeling the increasingly severe chill at the back of his head, Huai Shi could almost imagine a tangible death crawling on his back, grinning wickedly.
However, what did this have to do with him being a cold, unfeeling Negative Energy Generator? He'd think about hitting the road after eating his fill!