It was an old clinic that sat at the corner of the arena, the ghetto known for its dirtiness and chaos.
When Zhao Baodong walked into the ghetto, he clearly sensed the atmosphere was drastically different compared to other parts of the arena.
People were dressed poorly and had old, broken shirts and trousers hanging on drying lines above the alley, which made the sunlight-less alley appear even darker.
Along the way, he put his hand in his right pocket and held onto the pistol.
He could sense the unfriendly and even malicious looks from the refugees nearby. It felt like they were thieves assessing their prey.
Clearly, this was the land of outlaws.
Compared to Sixth Street, this place was sh*t.
Zhao Baodong cursed in his mind while stepping into the clinic.
A robot was taking reservations at the door. While he was interested in the robot’s design, after hesitating for a moment, he resisted the urge to touch it.
“Number 10, please wait in the waiting area.”
A sharp electronic screeching noise came from below the metallic exterior, followed by the sound of paper being ripped. A slip of paper with a number popped out from the robot’s mouth. Zhao Baodong took the paper and scanned the clinic before he walked to the waiting area and sat on a long bench.
There were quite a few people in the waiting area, with the majority of them looking poor. Empire had a lot of people; it also had a lot of poor people. Doctor Sun’s clinic charged low fees, so the clients were mostly poor or stingy lone travelers. Because of this, the clinic had a great reputation in the ghetto of the capital; it didn’t take Zhao Baodong too much effort to find the place.
With this opportunity, he examined the customers in the clinic.
There were humans, mutated humans, and odd people covered in capes refusing to show their faces.
The green-skinned giant in front took up two seats. He crossed his arms while waiting in frustration. His amber-colored eyes resembled a Death Claw, but he wasn’t as visibly vicious as a Death Claw.
The mutated human noticed Zhao Baodong’s gaze and stared back at him.
Zhao Baodong looked away.
In Empire, anyone disrespectful to mutated humans would be at risk of getting punished. They referred to this as “equality,” although everyone, including most of their own, considered it absurd.
There was no need to create a scene here, and the mutated humans wouldn’t be around much longer.
With that thought in his head, his turned his gaze to the clock.
“Number 10.”
Finally, he heard his name from inside the room.
Zhao Baodong stood up and headed to the room.
When he saw Director Sun, he was shocked.
Just as the information described him, the doctor working in this clinic for ten years still looked twenty years old.
“What’s the problem?” Without looking up, Doctor Sun spun his pen and asked.
“Addicted to Jet.”
“Arm.”
Zhao Baodong obediently extended his arm while he scanned the room.
“No need to look; there’s nothing expensive here,” Doctor Sun said without looking up.
Zhao Baodong was shocked that the doctor noticed his gaze without looking up.
“You’re mistaken. I’m not here to steal.” Zhao Baodong laughed awkwardly.
Doctor Sun’s hand holding a detector stopped. His finally lifted his buried head, and his apathetic eyes looked at Zhao Baodong.
“Is that so? I’d hope you’re here to steal and not here with some other purpose.”
Zhao Baodong didn’t respond. He pointed the detector at his pulse before stats came up on the screen.
“Jet addiction is recent?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t have to purposely get high to see me. Medicine is scarce in the wasteland. Even if your employer is rich, it’s shameful to waste.” Doctor Sun tossed his notebook to the side. “Now, explain your intentions.”
Zhao Baodong sighed reluctantly, knowing his cover was blown. “Aren’t you going to prescribe medicine for me first?”
A Jet Stopper was thrown into his lap.
Zhao Baodong flipped over to see the price tag, and his eyebrows twitched.
200 crystals.
This guy prescribed him the most expensive medicine.
“Speak your mind,” the Doctor said expressionlessly.
“With someone’s request, I was hoping you could accompany me to a place.” Zhao Baodong did his best to make his wording sound less suspicious, but in the end, he realized that regardless of how he said it, it was no different from declaring a kidnapping.
“What if I said no?”
Zhao Baodong cautiously scanned the door. Seeing as there was no one eavesdropping, Zhao Baodong said, “This is for your benefit. Believe it or not, this place is about to be gone soon.”
Doctor Sun was silent for a long time before he then asked, “Then tell me why your employer wants to see me.”
“Our leader suspects you’re a digitalized human… of course, this doesn’t mean we’re malicious. We just want to confirm your program-”
Before Zhao Baodong could finish, Doctor Sun burst out laughing.
Zhao Baodong shrugged. He didn’t mind a disrespectful laugh, but he just looked at the Doctor in search of an answer.
Go? Or not go?
“Is that what your leader told you? Haha, not bad, a digitalized human is a good way to disguise-”
“Please don’t continue,” Zhao Baodong immediately said.
“Afraid you’ll find out too much?” Sun Yi glanced at the anxious visitor with a grin. His unaged face had the maturity belonging only to elders.
“That’s right.” Zhao Baodong was honest.
If Jiang Chen hadn’t told him the specifics, that meant Jiang Chen knew his identity. If Zhao Baodong learned about something he shouldn’t have, it might not necessarily be beneficial for a small character like him.
Doctor Sun didn’t make it difficult for him. He only shook his head and paused for a moment before he slowly said, “I could go with you.”
Zhao Baodong was relieved. “Then please.”
“But the time is not now.”
Zhao Baodong’s expression froze, and words came out with difficulty.
“Why?”
It was hard to take a person out of the capital by force.
Although this was the ghetto, the outlaw land of the capital, the district outside the capital was patrolled by guards. Even if he was a great fighter, it wouldn’t be easy to take someone out of the heavily guarded city.
“In the past ten years, I’ve saved a lot of people. Out of everyone, nine of them suffered gun wounds,” Doctor Sun said calmly.
“To be honest, regarding your leader… or the treasure pursued by all people with power, I’ve completed my research.”
“My previous plan was to make the secret public so everyone could share the wealth exchanged by the blood of the minority. The wasteland could quickly regain its population from before the war, and with the efforts of humanity, the wasteland would be more prosperous, more united, and more pleasant than before the war… we’d work together to create a desirable future.”
“But when I woke up and walked out of the abandoned fallout shelter, I suddenly changed my mind. It wasn’t because of the despairing barrenness, but something more depressing.”
Zhao Baodong was curious what his secret was, but his dry throat couldn’t make any sounds.
“You plan to attack this place, right?” Doctor Sun looked at Zhao Baodong expressionlessly. “Then let me see – destroying a city that provides protection for tens of thousands of people, is your leader worthy of the secret in my hands?”
“If not, I’m prepared to take the secret in my grave.”