Chapter Fifteen I belong to you now

"Where's the bathroom?" 

"In the engine room."

Su Zijing didn't say anything more. She gritted her teeth and transferred the money to Liu Fei. Full of anger, she climbed down to the engine room below, only to realize she hadn't asked about the power switch.

The engine room was very dark, and Su Zijing could only rely on the faint light from the cockpit above to search for the power switch.

With a "smack," Su Zijing fell to the ground.

"Trash, stingy, money-minded..." groping in the darkness, Su Zijing felt like she was going crazy, cursing the person above desperately. She could imagine how dirty this engine room, turned into a bathroom, must be.

Finally, the light came on. After adjusting to the brightness, Su Zijing couldn't help but stare blankly. Contrary to her imagination, the engine room was not filthy at all; instead, it was very clean, to the point of being spotless.

Was this a men's restroom?

Su Zijing became more cautious in her movements. She had a feeling that she was the dirtiest thing in the entire engine room.

After inspecting for a few minutes, Su Zijing finally became familiar with the structure of the engine room. It was a highly utilized small space. The entrance to the engine room was a maintenance opening for the engine, with only the armor removed. Seeing that dark opening, Su Zijing quickly covered it with the heavy armor plate, securing it, which gave her a sense of security.

The original engine area of the engine room had been converted into a small toilet and a washing area, both connected, making it surprisingly spacious.

Opposite the engine room, the metal wall had been turned into a row of shallow metal cabinets, lined up like school lockers.

Overall, the engine room looked empty from above because both the cabinets and the multi-functional toilet and washing area were relatively small, probably to avoid feeling cramped. However, from below, it seemed crowded, with only a narrow passage in the middle.

What would these cabinets hold?

Su Zijing was curious about the personal belongings of a janitor. She didn't know why she had such a thought.

With that in mind, Su Zijing walked over to the row of cabinets as if possessed. When she reached the edge of the cabinets, a blush appeared on Su Zijing's face. What was there to look at in a smelly man's things, hmph!

"One hundred Zhuo'er coins allow you to use everything here, like the toilet."

This thought was fleeting, as immediately Liu Fei's words came to Su Zijing's mind.

Hmph, I spent one hundred Zhuo'er coins, I have the right to do so, no need to hold back!

Curious, Su Zijing opened the cabinets, only to be disappointed. She had thought that these exquisite and clean cabinets would contain some treasures collected by the janitor, but after opening them, there was nothing but neatly folded clothes and clean shoes.

Yes, this was where Liu Fei and Ironhead stored their clothes and shoes.

Looking at the neatly folded clothes, Su Zijing was not polite this time. She picked out a pair of jeans and a white shirt.

If it were any other man, Su Zijing would definitely find it dirty, but she had no such thoughts about Liu Fei's clothes. This spotless room was enough to show that Liu Fei was cleaner than her. Although the clothes in her hands were cheap goods, they were clear in texture, and had a faint fragrance when held in her hand. Su Zijing was very reassured.

Of course, Su Zijing's main mentality was mischief. After all, she paid for it, so why not use it!

Twenty-two minutes later, Su Zijing, with wet hair and a disheveled appearance, rushed out of the washing area. She had the urge to kill because she hadn't finished washing yet, and the water ran out.

"Why did you turn off the water? I paid for it!" Su Zijing climbed up to the cockpit and asked loudly.

"Oh... I forgot to tell you, the water recycling system can only provide a maximum amount of water for twenty minutes each time. You should know that water resources on Zhuo'er are very scarce... Huh, why are you wearing my clothes?" Liu Fei looked up, surprised to see Su Zijing wearing his clothes. The baggy jeans and loose shirt made Su Zijing look ridiculous.

"I paid for it, you said I could use anything here!" Su Zijing rolled up her sleeves confidently, revealing a smooth, white arm.

...

Liu Fei's mouth hung open, stunned. He couldn't find anything to retort because he had indeed said that.

"Hmph, I'm hungry. Is there anything to eat?" Su Zijing felt a wave of satisfaction seeing Liu Fei's defeated expression.

"Yes." Liu Fei's response was brisk as he turned and handed Su Zijing a box from the shelf behind him.

"How... how do I eat this?!" Su Zijing frowned tightly at the neatly arranged nutrient solution and compressed rations in the box.

"However you want." Liu Fei focused on carving the unfinished wooden carving in his hand. This was his last unfinished wooden carving. Liu Fei was someone who saw things through to the end. Even if Master Cheng didn't want this wood carving anymore, he would finish it.

Su Zijing wasn't really hungry; she just wanted to tease the stingy janitor and make him feel sorry. But instead of making him feel sorry, she only made herself more frustrated. With a huff, she placed the nutrient solution on the metal shelf, watching as Liu Fei continued to work, increasingly annoyed but also helpless, she could only sulk alone.

It was only then that Su Zijing noticed the small bedroom converted from the cockpit.

The original equipment of the cockpit had all been completely removed, replaced by two opposing metal beds. In the middle of the beds was a corridor less than two meters long. At one end of the corridor was a foldable metal table with a makeshift mini-brain inside. The janitor sat on one of the beds, hands on the table, carving the dark wood, while Su Zijing sat on the other bed, which, apart from a pile of books, was empty. The other bed was covered with what looked like clean and warm thick blankets.

On the metal walls of the cockpit, above the beds, were rows of metal shelves filled with various books.

"Human anatomy... Principles and Applications of Metallography, History of Mechanical Civilization, Differences and Uses of Main and Auxiliary Engines..." Su Zijing flipped through several books at random, finding no interest. She realized that the books here were very chaotic, with no system at all. Humanities history, geographical metallurgy, physiology, everything was included, making it dizzying to read.

"Did you read all these books?" Su Zijing couldn't believe that one person's reading content would be so extensive. However, she had to believe it, after all, he was just a janitor. There was no need to decorate his identity and status with a large number of books in such a narrow space. Moreover, most of the books had notes and annotations in them, clearly left by one person.

Liu Fei didn't answer Su Zijing, nor did he look up. He stared at the dark wood in his hand.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!"

Su Zijing raised her voice, but unfortunately, the other party still ignored her.

"Can't you hear me... Hey hey..." Liu Fei's indifference angered Su Zijing. She moved closer to him, grabbing Liu Fei's hand and refusing to let go.

"I don't like being disturbed while I work!" Liu Fei lifted his head coldly, staring into Su Zijing's eyes.

"You... I... I... I paid for it, you said I could use anything here, you have an obligation to answer me..." Su Zijing felt a bit guilty under Liu Fei's cold gaze. As she spoke, her voice grew smaller and smaller, almost inaudible to herself.

"It doesn't include me." Liu Fei said each word deliberately.

"But..."

"I have the final say!" Liu Fei lowered his head again, focusing on his work. This wood carving was a bit difficult. It depicted two figures, and besides requiring high carving skills, it also needed to convey a sense of inner emotion. This was Liu Fei's weakness; he wasn't good at carving figures that expressed inner emotions.

"One hundred Zhuo'er coins!" Su Zijing clenched her wet hair fiercely, feeling like she was going crazy.

Liu Fei's body moved slightly; obviously, one hundred Zhuo'er coins tempted him.

"Two hundred Zhuo'er coins!" Seeing Liu Fei's interest, Su Zijing's face showed a hint of satisfaction. As long as the other party wanted money, she had a way.

"Three hundred Zhuo'er coins!" Liu Fei raised his head. This was the price he set for himself, of course, with reference to the price of those courtesans on Fallen Street.

"Deal, three hundred Zhuo'er coins!" Su Zijing was overjoyed. The remarkably low price set by the other party sometimes made her unable to believe it. She had always wondered why it cost five thousand Zhuo'er coins to escort her back to school, but only two hundred to stay here overnight. She didn't know that Liu Fei calculated the level of danger; naturally, the price was much higher.

"Deal. Tonight, I belong to you, but only within these walls."

"Pah... What do you mean, 'I belong to you'? I just wanted you to answer my questions." Su Zijing's face suddenly turned red, even her neck was flushed.

"It's the same thing." Liu Fei looked at Su Zijing's face indifferently. He couldn't understand why women blushed so easily. Momo was like that too; she blushed inexplicably after a few words. It seemed like he needed to study it.

Remembering what Ironhead said, that women who blush easily were mostly good women, was Su Zijing a good woman?

Liu Fei felt that Ironhead's thoughts were somewhat contradictory because Ironhead also said that good women wouldn't appear on Fallen Street.

"Did you read these books?"

"Yes."

"Did you make these notes?"

"Yes."

"Your handwriting is terrible."

"Yes..." Liu Fei felt his face heating up a bit. He had always been the target of Ironhead's ridicule for his handwriting. Ironhead once said that he had never seen a genius with such terrible handwriting. Liu Fei's handwriting had tarnished the face of geniuses.

Liu Fei always ignored Ironhead's words, but when they came from Su Zijing's mouth, it was different. Liu Fei felt ashamed.

It seemed necessary to put in some effort to improve his handwriting; after all, this was a cultural heritage left by the mother planet Earth!

"Did you grow up in the slums?"

"Yes."

"Do you live alone?"

"No."

"Who else? Your father, your mother, or your wife?"

"He... passed away." Liu Fei's face showed a hint of sadness.

"Oh... I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

"Mm."

...

The room suddenly fell into silence...