Chapter 151: It Is Meant to Be Unrestrained
Black Sesame gulped down more than half a bottle of water and ravenously devoured a whole can of food. It looked much better but was still a bit unsteady on its feet.
Shi Zijin simply scooped it up and placed it on his shoulder, letting it lie there.
Su Tao looked at the wounds on Black Sesame and asked worriedly:
“Why hasn’t it shared its vision with me all this time? Could it be that Xiong Tai threw it and broke something?”
Shi Zijin chuckled, half amused and half exasperated. “You’re just overthinking because you care too much. These past few days, it was either unconscious, starving, or dehydrated—there was no extra energy left to use its ability.”
As he spoke, he patted Black Sesame on the head and back. “It’s just some minor injuries. A few days of rest, and it’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
Hearing this, Su Tao finally relaxed. She then turned to thank the mother and daughter who had taken Black Sesame in.
The mother looked at the food and water in front of her, feeling uneasy. It was too valuable, and she hesitated to accept it, but at the same time, her family was on the brink of starvation…
Noticing her hesitation, Su Tao smiled and reassured her:
“It’s alright, please take it. After we leave, find a safe place to hide everything so no one sees it. That way, you and your daughter won’t be troubled.”
The Old Station was too chaotic, with food and water in short supply. It was inevitable that bad-intentioned people would be lurking around.
The mother was beyond grateful and pulled her daughter along to thank Su Tao.
The little girl went around expressing her thanks one by one. “Thank you, big sister. Thank you, big brother. Thank you, eldest brother…”
But when she looked at Gu Mingchi, whose face was obscured by his low hat, she hesitated for a long time before timidly saying:
“Thank you… uncle…”
Gu Mingchi’s expression darkened. He couldn’t let this slide.
“Why did you call him ‘eldest brother’ but call me ‘uncle’?”
He was referring to Shi Zijin.
Shi Zijin raised an eyebrow.
The little girl trembled in fear, her voice shaking as she quickly corrected herself. “Th-Thank you, big brother—waaah!”
She burst into tears and buried herself in her mother’s arms.
Su Tao rolled her eyes and scolded, “How old are you? Do you really have to scare a child to tears? Let’s go, let’s go, out!”
Gu Mingchi was promptly kicked out.
Shi Zijin smoothly shut the door behind him, even giving him a perfectly polite smile.
Standing outside, Gu Mingchi clenched his fists in frustration.
Su Tao gave the mother and daughter a few more instructions before finally saying goodbye.
The moment she stepped out, she heard Gu Mingchi scoff and turn away, heading for his business car.
The “Retrospect” ability user, ever the bootlicker, hurried to open the car door for him.
Su Tao was speechless but still called out, “Next month, I’ll send you an extra 50 tons of water.”
To Gu Mingchi, that was the same as hearing a simple “thank you.” He rolled down the car window and replied, “You’re welcome.”
His response was met with an enthusiastic bark from Xuedao.
Seeing the way Xuedao was reacting, filled with hostility and excitement, Shi Zijin immediately understood. His expression darkened, and in one swift motion, he pulled Su Tao into the back seat of his car.
Su Tao steadied herself by gripping the seat and scrambled to explain:
“I really didn’t know Gu Mingchi would show up. You saw how confused I was too—I had no idea it was him. I only figured it out later.”
Shi Zijin’s tone remained calm. “How did you figure it out?”
“Last night, he called me and said he could lend me an ability user—the one with the ‘Retrospect’ ability. I didn’t agree. But then today, the moment I arrived at Xiong Tai’s house, I ran into him. After exchanging a few words, I started suspecting it.”
Looking at her open and honest expression, Shi Zijin realized he needed to ask Gu Mingchi directly.
Their relationship was supposedly just a business arrangement—they had never even met before. So why would Gu Mingchi go out of his way to lend someone to Su Tao?
Especially after she had refused, he still deliberately waited at Xiong Tai’s doorstep.
What was his motive?
Shi Zijin was good at hiding his emotions. He quickly regained his usual composed and polite demeanor and didn’t ask further. Instead, he said:
“My men found out that Xiong Tai was taken by Tan Yong’s people. I’ve already sent my deputy to retrieve him. He will be brought to Panliu Mountain, and you can decide what to do with him.”
Su Tao initially wanted to say it wasn’t necessary—Black Sesame had already avenged itself by blinding him in one eye.
But then she realized Shi Zijin had gone out of his way to do this for her, wanting to help her get justice. So she nodded and simply replied, “Alright.”
After a brief pause, Shi Zijin added:
“I have a suggestion.”
Su Tao looked up. “Go ahead.”
“Let me take care of Black Sesame. Its ability is destined to be unrestrained.”
Su Tao’s heart trembled, and she instinctively tightened her hold on the little cat.
Even Shen Wencheng, who had been quiet in the backseat, suddenly spoke up:
“Miss Su, Major Shi is right. Oh, I should introduce myself first—I’m Shen Wencheng, a researcher from He Kang Base. We mainly study the evolution and patterns of human abilities.”
“I’ve observed Black Sesame’s ability a little. It falls under the category of mental abilities. And mental abilities have a specific characteristic—they influence behavior, motivation, and habits.”
“Simply put, if it got lost once, it will get lost again. It will never be able to resist the urge to explore new areas. You can think of it as a side effect of its ability.”
Shi Zijin provided a clear example:
“Remember the ‘Instigator Sisters’ who caused chaos in Taoyang? They probably had a natural tendency toward manipulation even before awakening their abilities. But after awakening, their urge to manipulate others became uncontrollable.”
Su Tao opened her mouth but froze, unable to respond.
Shi Zijin knew she couldn’t bear to part with Black Sesame. He sighed and gently advised:
“Right now, you might be thinking, ‘I’ll just put a tracker on it. If it gets lost, I can find it.’ But, Tao Tao, you need to understand—once it’s done exploring the nearby areas, it will only venture farther and farther away. You can find it once, twice… but can you find it for a lifetime?”
“If you give it to me, I go on missions all the time, and my routes are always different. That way, it will constantly be in a new environment, and it won’t feel the need to run away. Otherwise, every time it gets lost, you’ll be exhausted—both physically and mentally. I promise you, I’ll take good care of it.”
Su Tao pressed her lips together and didn’t respond.
The weak little Black Sesame lifted its head from her arms, licked her chin, and purred contentedly.
Shi Zijin reached out and ruffled Su Tao’s hair. “I won’t force you. Think about it and let me know when you’ve made your decision.”
After saying that, he signaled the driver to start the car, preparing to leave.
But suddenly, Black Sesame let out a “meow,” jumped out of Su Tao’s arms, and frantically clawed at the car door, as if trying to get out.
Su Tao was stunned for a moment. What was it trying to do? She turned to Shi Zijin and asked,
“If I open the door, will it run off and get lost again?”
She was honestly a bit traumatized at this point—practically having PTSD over it.
Shi Zijin gave her a reassuring look. “Go ahead, don’t worry. I’m here.”
With that, Su Tao felt at ease and opened the car door.
Black Sesame hopped out, took a few steps forward, then suddenly stopped and meowed at Su Tao.
Seeing that its owner remained seated in the car, it became anxious, quickly running back, jumping onto the car, and rubbing against Su Tao’s feet multiple times. Then, it meowed toward the outside again.
It seemed like it wanted her to follow it somewhere.
