During the long silence, all the girls ultimately chose to work for Xingluo Qibu.
Despite the continued crying, the result was satisfactory to the old woman.
"Wisdom in knowing the times is a virtue. You may go back and rest today. Report tomorrow morning at eight-thirty. You will have an hour's break for lunch and another for dinner, and you will study until nine in the evening."
After reaching an agreement with the girls, the old woman opened the locked password door and let them leave.
"You will be glad you made the right decision. If you had not agreed, you would not have been included in the reserve crew. Without power or anyone to rely on, how long could you survive?"
The old woman's parting words were filled with meaning.
As soon as Lu Mingming stepped out, she immediately separated from the group of girls and hurried towards the underground quarters.
She was eager to tell Hong Yu about this!
When she had free time, they could then discuss how to find a way to escape.
Lu Mingming believed Hong Yu would understand her.
On the way back, the slaves who had been recruited yesterday were milling about on the deck. Hong Yu, who should have been among them, was nowhere to be seen.
Lu Mingming felt relieved for a moment.
Seeing her younger brother meticulously following her instructions and not running off.
Lu Mingming gave a wry smile, thinking that Hong Yu truly couldn't leave her side.
"Hong Yu, I'm back."
In the empty underground room, Lu Mingming deliberately called out in a high-pitched voice.
Strangely, Hong Yu, who would usually scurry over, did not greet her today. Instead, he sat alone in a corner, not even in their usual sleeping spot.
Lu Mingming instinctively sensed something was wrong. She softened her voice and approached Hong Yu, "What's wrong? Did someone bully you?"
Lu Mingming knew that because she was a pure human, Hong Yu had been looked down upon by many of his peers who were beast-kin since he was young. Therefore, as an older sister, she had always protected Hong Yu from the insults of those people.
Hong Yu buried his round little head in the crook of his knees, his dark curly hair covering every other part of him, not daring to reveal an inch of anything else.
Lu Mingming's sense of unease grew stronger. She softened her voice to coax him, "Don't be afraid, your sister is here. I've just found a powerful backer, and no one will bully us anymore."
As she comforted him, she gently reached out to Hong Yu's ear, stroking him softly, a wave of tenderness and heartache washing over her.
After protecting this treasure so carefully for so long, who dared to treat him like this?
Hearing her words, Hong Yu finally deigned to slowly lift his head.
"...Who did this to you?"
Lu Mingming's hand trembled as her fingertips traced inch by inch across Hong Yu's cheeks.
His once round and plump little face had several scrapes, and the corner of his lips was bruised with a dark purple color, as if he had been violently beaten.
An invisible fire burned in her heart, igniting layer upon layer of unease and anger.
These scumbags wouldn't even spare a cub.
Lu Mingming gritted her teeth, and even the hand touching Hong Yu inadvertently tightened its grip.
Hong Yu parted his lips slightly, but said nothing, continuing to endure in silence.
However, his eyes, touched a little too roughly by Lu Mingming, began to well up with tears.
"It's my fault."
Lu Mingming quickly released her hand, her expression clouded with guilt.
"It hurts, it hurts~ Don't be scared, with your sister here, you'll be alright."
The little cub nodded, looking up at Lu Mingming with admiration.
It was as if, with Lu Mingming present, everything was safe.
"Who did this... I will find out everything."
Lu Mingming embraced Hong Yu, as if protecting a treasure, ensuring no one could disturb them.
Hong Yu did not resist, behaving like an obedient younger brother, nestling into his sister's embrace. His chubby cheeks rested against Lu Mingming's shoulder, quietly enjoying the moment of tenderness.
His face, usually devoid of expression, displayed a strange smile.
Lu Mingming, holding Hong Yu, was lost in her thoughts and did not notice. Inadvertently, her impression of Xingluo Qibu grew even more negative.
She was determined to escape this pirate team with Hong Yu.
Absolutely!
The monitoring was being listened to in the noble suite.
"Bring up the surveillance footage from ten minutes ago. I want to see what exactly happened."
The man had been keeping a close eye on Lu Mingming's situation.
There was not a single corner of the entire Xingluo Qibu fleet that was not equipped with surveillance. It was incredibly easy to monitor Lu Mingming's every move.
"Yes, sir."
The bald man connected his spiritual sea to the central control. The screen flashed, replaying the images from ten minutes prior.
In the footage, the slaves in the underground quarters surged onto the deck like live fish, each finding their suitable posts.
Lu Hongyu remained unmoved, sitting firmly in his seat.
Someone, seeing that he was a child, tried to help him, but faltered upon encountering Lu Hongyu's indifferent face.
Ultimately, everyone left, leaving Lu Hongyu sitting alone in his place.
No one had disturbed him, let alone engaged in any violent behavior.
"Then how did those injuries get on his face? Are you trying to tell me that a cub beat himself up like this?"
Lu Yan retorted.
Although his tone did not betray anger, it implicitly accused the other party of incompetence.
The bald man frowned, "Boss, it's truly my fault. When I was reviewing the surveillance, I discovered that the footage from that point until Lu Mingming's arrival was all black screen, with no other information. It's likely it was affected by psychic interference, and it's impossible to know who did it."
"It couldn't possibly be this child, right?"
The bald man said with a chuckle, making a lighthearted joke.
As everyone knew, cubs who awakened their psychic powers started from C-rank. No matter how talented, they wouldn't be able to bypass him, an A+.
"Let's hope so."
The man said nothing more. He turned off the screen and closed his eyes to rest.
For the next week, Lu Mingming not only had to study basic knowledge with the old woman every day but also had to constantly ensure that no one would bully little Hong Yu.
With the double burden of mental strain, Lu Mingming lived her days in a state of near exhaustion.
Just a little longer, tomorrow would be the last day of study, and they would soon successfully leave this hell.
Lu Mingming bit her tongue, forcing herself to muster her spirits, and continued to listen to the old woman's科普.
After six days of training, she had achieved some minor success in marksmanship and basic breathing techniques. While not particularly proficient, it was more than enough for basic missions.
Lu Mingming had also dabbled in the other three aspects.
Especially when she learned that the old woman was skilled in cooking and was a senior chef, she resolved to learn diligently to prepare delicious meals for Hong Yu.
However, during the first round, when making the simplest vegetable salad with the old woman, Lu Mingming made such a mess that she had to abandon the idea.
She truly had no talent for cooking.
Lu Mingming's hand paused on the page as she recalled the disastrous situation that day, drawing the old woman's attention.
"Mingming, do you have something you want to ask?"
"No!"
Lu Mingming snapped back to attention and offered a fabricated reason.
"It seems we'll be undergoing Boss Lu's test tomorrow, right? I don't know who he is... I'm a bit worried."
Lu Mingming's dimples seemed to hold wine, sweet and intoxicating.
The old woman was immediately pleased. "Don't worry, Boss Lu is a very good person. Just go and take your test tomorrow. Even if it doesn't go well, with your current level, I can intercede to ensure you stay as a crew member."
With the old woman's words as a fallback, Lu Mingming repeatedly thanked her gratefully.
If that was the case... then she would perform poorly tomorrow, absolutely refusing to be selected!
Remaining as a formal crew member on the fleet was far better than becoming a spy on a path to certain death!
"Remember that tomorrow there will be a final evaluation to decide whether you can leave Xingluo Qibu. Those who successfully become spies will receive a reward of one million New Credits from Xingluo Qibu. If you perform exceptionally well, you can bring your family or loved ones with you when you leave Xingluo Qibu."
Wait.
One million.
The girls, hearing the enormous reward of one million Star Credits, all covered their mouths to suppress their overwhelming surprise.
All the suffering and hardship they had endured previously transformed into motivation and anticipation at this moment.
Lu Mingming's desire to slack off began to waver.
One million Star Credits... If she successfully completed the mission, she could take Hong Yu away from the pirate fleet and live a life free from worry about food or drink.
She could even buy her parents' old house and achieve the "return with glory" she had spoken of, striking a heavy blow to the slave trader.
The two outcomes were placed on opposite ends of a scale, the pointer of choice swaying and uncertain.