The Frail Guide Who Devoured an Entire Pollution Zone

Chapter 48: Chapter 48: Don’t Bother with a Dog

”You only stepped in at the last second. Weren’t you afraid I’d lose my cool and finish her off?” Xu Qingsui’s cheeks flushed as she recalled what had just happened.

Lu Jingyu shook his head slowly. ”First, let me be clear. I wasn’t stopping you. I was just worried you’d dirty your hands.”

Xu Qingsui froze, a searing heat rising to her cheeks.

”Besides, I trust you to know your limits. More importantly, letting you finish her off so easily would be getting off too lightly. Even you wouldn’t stand for that.”

Lu Jingyu’s eyes were filled with trust. In that moment, it felt as if they hadn’t just met, but had been friends for a decade, or even several.

”Even though we only have two extra people in this instance, the road ahead is bound to be noisy. Don’t let it get to you, and don’t bother arguing with them. The wicked will get what’s coming to them in the end.”

Xu Qingsui nodded. She knew exactly who Lu Jingyu was talking about and understood his point completely. She had no intention of stooping to their level.

After all, as the saying goes, if a dog bites you, you don’t bite it back.

TSK TSK!

’Comparing that trashy couple to dogs is an insult to dogs,’ Xu Qingsui thought.

Noticing the change in Xu Qingsui’s expression, as if she’d thought of something amusing, Lu Jingyu asked, ”What’s on your mind?”

Xu Qingsui subconsciously glanced at Xu Ruming and Shen Ling’an. ”I think I just insulted man’s best friend.”

Lu Jingyu raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued.

As Xu Qingsui glanced over, her eyes met Xu Ruming’s.

Knowing the other woman was eavesdropping, and not wanting to start another fight, she lowered her voice and repeated the saying.

After hearing what Xu Qingsui said, Lu Jingyu froze for a second, then raised a hand to cover his nose as he broke into a laugh.

Xu Qingsui stared, slightly dazed, at Lu Jingyu’s smiling face.

’There’s no denying it, Lu Jingyu is incredibly handsome. Usually, he’s so stern and unsmiling—the cool, aloof type. But when he smiles, he has the vibe of a sweet, warm-hearted pretty boy.’

”You’re right,” he said. ”You definitely insulted the dogs.”

Xu Qingsui stuck out her tongue playfully before tearing her gaze away from him.

”Alright. When we start moving again, stick close to me. You have to stay within my arm’s reach. Don’t stray from the group, or you’ll end up like Tian Teng and Lü Jia.”

She knew Lu Jingyu was just concerned for her, but his words had an intimate undertone that made her ears burn.

”You should go check on the others! Do a final sweep to see if anyone was hurt by those strange birds when we ran.”

As the team captain, Lu Jingyu couldn’t afford to be careless. He nodded and went to check on the other members.

Heat was still radiating from Xu Qingsui’s face. She fanned herself with her hand a few times to little effect, then squatted down, lowering her head so no one would see her odd reaction.

She had only meant to hide from everyone’s stares, but as she squatted down, she noticed something interesting.

”Lu Jingyu!” In her excitement, Xu Qingsui shouted his full name, and every head instantly turned toward her.

Lu Jingyu was confused, but when he saw that Xu Qingsui was still squatting motionless on the ground after shouting his name, he walked over to her.

The others were curious, but they couldn’t figure out what was going on between the two of them, so no one dared to approach and get in the way.

”What’s wrong?” Lu Jingyu asked, looking down at Xu Qingsui, who was still staring intently at the ground.

”Squat down, look at this!” Xu Qingsui said without looking up, waving him over with an urgent tone.

Lu Jingyu grew even more confused but did as she said and squatted down.

His eyes followed her gaze to a spot on the ground.

”Is that...”

”An ant nest!”

Xu Qingsui finally looked up at Lu Jingyu, her eyes sparkling.

”An ant nest?” Lu Jingyu repeated, uncertain.

”Yes, it’s an ant nest! Remember? There was a rule: ’If you see a creature of the land, follow it. It will show you the way.’”

At Xu Qingsui’s reminder, it finally clicked for Lu Jingyu. ’Ants are creatures of the land, aren’t they?’

”We’ve been here so long, basically stuck in one spot. These ants should be able to lead us to a new path.”

Lu Jingyu nodded, but...

He stared at the ant nest but couldn’t see a single ant.

Xu Qingsui glanced at him, seeming to read his mind.

”Ants usually stay in their nest. They only come out to find food or relocate. We don’t have time to wait for them to come out on their own.”

After thinking for a moment, Xu Qingsui suddenly held her hand out to Lu Jingyu. ”Give me something to eat. Something sweet, preferably.”

Lu Jingyu understood what she was planning, but he didn’t like sweets.

”Does anyone have anything sweet?” Lu Jingyu asked, turning to the team members who had been watching them intently.

The others were confused and didn’t quite understand what was happening, but at Lu Jingyu’s question, they all began rummaging through their pockets and bags.

Finally, one of the team members actually produced a bar of chocolate.

The chocolate was handed to Xu Qingsui. She immediately tore open the wrapper, broke the chocolate into small pieces, and sprinkled them around the entrance to the nest.

All they could do now was wait.

While they waited, the team members shared the bits and pieces of the conversation they’d overheard, finally piecing together the full picture.

Xu Ruming, who was standing to the side, also figured out that Xu Qingsui was trying to lure out ants to help them find a way forward.

”What a joke!” Xu Ruming shouted, not holding back in the slightest.

”Just because you say it’s an ant nest, that makes it one? You have no proof! Where’s your evidence?”

”Time in this instance is precious, and now we’re all wasting it waiting around because of something you just said.”

”If it’s true, that’s one thing. But if someone just made it all up, aren’t we all just risking our lives to humor her?”

After everything that had happened, everyone had already formed their own opinions about the ”real” and ”fake” heiresses, Xu Qingsui and Xu Ruming.

But now that their personal safety was on the line, they couldn’t help but worry.

Just as everyone was looking at Xu Qingsui, hesitating to speak, Lu Jingyu stood up and turned to Xu Ruming.

His icy gaze was like a sharp spike, piercing right through her.

A wave of discomfort washed over Xu Ruming. She quickly averted her eyes, but she could still feel his stare like thorns in her back.

”No one is forcing you to believe her. You have your own two feet. If you feel your time is being wasted, you’re free to go find an exit on your own. No one will stop you.”

Xu Ruming looked at Lu Jingyu in shock. ’Is he trying to force me to leave the team?’

She had asked around about Lu Jingyu; she knew he valued teamwork above all else.

If that weren’t the case, Li Yaru wouldn’t have been kicked out of the Alliance.

Yet now, Lu Jingyu was actually telling *her* to leave the team.