After that, the two chatted for a little longer before Zhang Heng asked Xu Qian if he could join the fan chatroom. She gladly agreed, even letting Zhang Heng become an administrator. It was midnight, and Xu Qian finally felt the exhaustion hit her. She ended the free-of-charge chat with Zhang Heng, got up, took a bath, and went to sleep.

  On the second day, Zhang Heng stayed with Xu Qian for the whole day without going anywhere. What surprised her was that Zhang Heng actually fulfilled his duty as an administrator, warning those who broke the chatroom’s rules. He also resolved the conflicts between her fans. He seemed to be having fun with it. This time, it was Xu Qian’s turn to feel embarrassed to ask Zhang Heng about the investigation’s progress. She even started to consider if she should pay Zhang Heng an extra salary.

  On the third night, when Xu Qian was livestreaming, Zhang Heng finally went out alone. She had also added another physical lock to the studio room’s door.

  Before leaving, Zhang Heng reminded Xu Qian again. Considering that the stalker might be a hacker, there was a possibility that he was now using another’s ID. Thus, Zhang Heng told Xu Qian that even if she received a message from him, it was best to ignore it since he would only return to her apartment right after she ended her stream.

  Once Zhang Heng left the apartment, he called for a rental car and headed to the House of Old Things. Old Man Geng contacted him yesterday and asked him to pay for the shellac record, and he also promised to give him another after completing the task.

  So Zhang Heng had to put the stalker case aside now and accompany Old Man Geng to the bottom level of this city.

  “Leave your blade and bow with me first,” Old man Geng said. “We are doing business, not fighting.”


  “Didn’t you say you wanted me to be your bodyguard?” Zhang Heng frowned.

  “Yes, but that’s just in case. We should show our peaceful side first. Don’t worry. I will place your blade and bow in my secret basement. All the goodies are hidden there. I will never lose it.”


  Left with no other option, Zhang Heng passed his Shrouded Sheath and Pestilence Bone Bow to Old Man Geng.

  Old Man Geng then took a good look at Zhang Heng, and he was happy with him. “Let’s go. Don’t you have to come back here before midnight? By the way, are you a female high school student? Why do you have to go home on time every day? ”


  “.……”


  “Forget it; I have no interest in your other jobs. If everything goes well, I will be able to get my job done very soon,” Old Man Geng said.

  The two then took a shuttle in the center of the city.

  From here, one could take a shuttle back and forth between the different levels of this city. And, this was also the only way for one to travel around. However, the people who lived in the city’s lowest level had to register themselves if they wanted to ascend to a higher level. Usually, the application could be approved quickly if the person had no criminal record. However, there were only allowed to travel to a maximum of two levels above them. So, if they wanted to go to a higher level than that, they would need someone at that level to invite them.

  However, if the person’s workplace and residence were on different levels, they could apply for a long-term pass at their workplace. All they needed to do was to renew them every six months, after all. By doing that, they were allowed to travel freely among different levels, avoiding the trouble of making an application every time.

  Other than that, moving homes was also very simple. Each level had an asset threshold. If one passed the threshold, the person could move to a higher floor, live there, and enjoy the benefits that came with it.

  Alternatively, the individual could provide corresponding validation to prove that they would have a substantial and constant cash flow. Upon reaching the required amount, even if the person’s assets did not meet the moving requirement, they could still proceed with the move.

  This was how Xu Qian moved to a higher level. She lived there for almost two years before applying to move to the third level. After the application was approved, she took the central shuttle to the second level.

  It was almost time to get off work now, and the central shuttle was crowded with people who had just finished work and were waiting to go home. Fortunately, the shuttle had quite an impressive capacity. There were four tracks in total. During peak hours, the shuttle would depart every three minutes on average, and it could accommodate up to 10,000 people at a time.

  The people were lining up in their respective waiting rooms, waiting for the group of people in front of them to get into the shuttle. Once the group in front of them left, they would need to enter the corresponding waiting room immediately, find a seat, fasten their seat belts, and wait for the next shuttle to arrive.

  Each waiting room had about fifty seats. All of which were passengers that wanted to go to the same level of the city. And all those waiting rooms were small units that could be detached and connected again.

  When the shuttle arrived at the corresponding spot, there would be a total of two hundred waiting rooms assembled during extreme cases in just seven minutes. And these waiting rooms that were meant for people that just got off the train would be transferred to the arrival hall. After that, the waiting room modules would assemble at a different position according to the number of levels reached.

  Although many people were waiting to go home, everything seemed to be in order.

  Zhang Heng and Old Man Geng waited less than a quarter of an hour before boarding a shuttle. After another ten minutes, they arrived at the destination of their trip.

  It was the first level of New Shanghai 0297.

  Unlike the modern and technologically advanced third floor, the first floor appeared far more dilapidated. Whether it was the buildings or the streets, it was said that this level was the first to be built in the entire space station city. It was also the place where the construction workers lived before. After that, it became the place to earn more money for the young people and the low-income earners who had just moved to New Shanghai 0297.

  This level had the largest population in 0297 in New Shanghai. However, the municipal council appeared to have invested little in this level, including the sky above them. All they got was the simple day and night, and they did not get to look at the stars at night. Zhang Heng raised his head and looked at the sky. All he could see was the moon. The facilities here could never be compared with what others had on the third level of this city, let alone the change of temperature and the four seasons.

  To put it in simple terms, public facilities here were simply adequate to meet the most basic survival needs of the residents. If one wanted a better life, the person had to move to another level. At the same time, public security on the first level was the worst in the entire New Shanghai-0297.

  This was also the reason why Old Man Geng took Zhang Heng with him. After he got off the central shuttle, he looked a little nervous. He was holding a very old-school briefcase and constantly looked around.

  Zhang Heng, beside him, had to remind him, “If you do this, you are showing that you are holding something valuable. Basically, you are asking to be robbed.”


  “Then what should I do?” Old Man Geng asked.

  “Just act normal, like an ordinary person,” Zhang Heng said. “Where is the person you are looking for?”


  I don’t know.” Old Man Geng accepted Zhang Heng’s suggestion, put down the briefcase as he tried to prevent attracting unnecessary attention.

  “What do you mean?” Zhang Heng raised his eyebrows.

  “He only asked me to come to the first level, and he will come to me when the time comes.” Old Man Geng replied.

  Finally, Zhang Heng had the opportunity to avenge himself.

  “What are you? Are you a female high school student waiting for your boyfriend to take you to the nightclub?”


  “.……”


  This time it was Old Man Geng’s turn to take a hit.