Chapter 262: Airport Pickup
Although Xu Youyou couldn’t directly see the system’s expression, she could clearly sense the disdain in its tone.
[Didn’t you just rest for a month? How much longer do you want to rest?]
Xu Youyou shamelessly replied, “Half a year?”
[Go out and take a look. Which worker out there can earn this much money and take a month-long vacation? Search your heart — have you really worked hard enough?]
Xu Youyou felt a bit guilty under the system’s scolding and almost lowered her head. But then she realized the words sounded oddly familiar: “Wait… are you gaslighting me?”
The system fell silent, simply flashing the new mission notification aggressively.
Xu Youyou didn’t immediately click to accept it. Instead, she made a phone call to Qing Yatou.
“Qingqing, have you had any recent premonitions about me?” Xu Youyou asked tentatively.
Qing Yatou answered openly, “Sister Youyou, I dreamed about you last night. I saw you surrounded by a dark, ominous mist and a group of malicious children closing in around you.”
Just listening to Qing Yatou’s description made Xu Youyou feel a chill run down her spine.
“Does that mean I shouldn’t leave the house?” Xu Youyou asked.
She was already considering using the penalty exemption she’d just earned to skip this scavenger mission.
But Qing Yatou said over the phone, “This is not a time to avoid things. You should face destiny head-on — only then can you see the clear road ahead.”
Xu Youyou understood. After hanging up, even though she still didn’t want to go out, she expressionlessly accepted the mission.
Once she accepted it, the system’s golden pointer immediately began spinning. Xu Youyou thought that since she had already thrown away the globe in her study, the mission should stay domestic this time.
But unexpectedly, the golden pointer finally pointed to a book in her study.
Xu Youyou picked up the book and glanced at the title — her heart instantly sank.
The title was “Next Stop: Thailand.”
The golden pointer was pointing straight at “Thailand.”
She couldn’t help but regret — if she had known, she would have thrown out all the books in her study, not just the globe!
“Bangkok?” Xu Youyou asked.
As she opened the book, the system pointed specifically to Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok.
Xu Youyou knew there was no escaping it. Still, she couldn’t help but fear boarding someone else’s plane.
Fortunately, her flight application was approved relatively smoothly. Since it wasn’t peak travel season, she could depart the next morning.
Xu Youyou felt that her eight bodyguards wouldn’t be enough, so instead of borrowing from Lu Jingyao, she hired twelve more from a domestic security company, putting together a twenty-person bodyguard team.
Guai Guai, her dog, hadn’t gone with her to Europe last time and was now throwing a fit: “Woof woof! Take me, take me! I want to go have fun too! I can help a lot!”
Xu Youyou asked, “What big help could you possibly be?”
Guai Guai couldn’t exactly say what he could do but stretched out his neck and declared, “Don’t you humans have a saying — I am born for greatness! I know I can be super useful!”
At first, Xu Youyou didn’t take it seriously. But then she noticed something on the system interface and realized — Guai Guai was a target of a previous scavenger mission.
Every scavenger target had unique value, and Guai Guai had indeed helped her several times before.
Guai Guai was proudly listing his achievements: “Woof woof! I helped you fetch newspapers! I helped you get Dream of the Red Chamber! I’m the King of Dogs — super awesome!”
Xu Youyou chuckled and patted his little head. “Yes, yes, you’re the King of Dogs. I’ll take you with me!”
Guai Guai immediately relaxed once he heard that.
To take a pet abroad, you need a serum test report from the past year. Luckily, Guai Guai had just gotten a check-up recently, and since they were taking a private plane, the process went pretty quickly.
Lu Jingyao, however, was both reluctant and worried: “You just got back — and now you’re leaving again?”
Xu Youyou knew how busy he was. Being able to work a normal nine-to-five job was already a blessing, and he had used up a lot of his vacation time these past few months to accompany her.
Xu Youyou didn’t know how to explain, so she just mumbled, “There’s something urgent I have to handle.”
Lu Jingyao still looked worried. After what happened last month — watching her walk through a literal hail of bullets — he couldn’t help but worry. He said helplessly, “Sometimes I really wish I could just tie you down and keep you in the country. It’s getting too dangerous out there.”
It was the first time he felt genuinely curious about Xu Youyou’s secrets, but he knew she was an independent person. Even if he didn’t like it, he had to respect her.
Not wanting to dwell on it, Xu Youyou quickly changed the subject: “Still haven’t found a professional manager yet?”
Lu Jingyao sighed, “There are too many scammers and frauds.”
Which was true — if someone really had the ability to run a whole business empire, they wouldn’t be job hunting; they’d be building their own.
“If you want, I can loan you Mr. Xie,” he said.
Xu Youyou shook her head quickly. Not because she was stingy, but because Xie Ran was already overwhelmed with her own stuff. Giving him more would probably crush him.
Plus, Xie Ran wasn’t just a regular employee anymore — he was her business partner. After a few profitable ventures together, he now held 12% of the company’s shares.
As their partnership deepened, Xu Youyou had promised that if he kept delivering results, she would gradually increase his shares, with a cap at 49%.
Xie Ran had been both a boss and an employee before, so he knew this deal was incredibly generous. With Xu Youyou’s full support for his personal vendettas, he had no plans of jumping ship and was determined to make money for her.
“How about I ask Xie Ran to recommend a few people for you?” Xu Youyou suggested.
Lu Jingyao thought about it. Xie Ran had sharp eyes for talent, so anyone he recommended would probably be better than some random headhunter’s pick.
Even though Lu Jingyao was reluctant, Xu Youyou’s plane eventually took off.
Sitting on the plane, Xu Youyou didn’t rush to rest. Instead, she took out the travel book about Thailand and studied it carefully.
After landing, a pickup convoy was already waiting outside the airport.
Xu Youyou’s group of more than twenty people split into several cars. She had read too many horror stories online about tourists going missing after taking taxis.
As soon as she saw the local drivers at the pickup area, Xu Youyou felt uneasy: “Wait, don’t leave the airport yet.”
