Chapter 139 - 137: Sense of Superiority

Chapter 139: Chapter 137: Sense of Superiority

She had only wanted to use Su Yuqing as a shield, but never expected to end up "homeless" herself.

For a moment, Feng Ling completely lost control of her expression.

Su Yuqing chuckled. "The people living above and below you in the apartment building are all ordinary citizens. How are you supposed to manage, bringing two Pollution Beasts in and out all the time? That’s why I came to discuss this with you—I was wondering if we needed to find you a bigger place."

"A bigger place, huh..." Feng Ling mused.

It wasn’t that the thought hadn’t crossed her mind. It was just that she had only just left the Maze and was planning to take her time looking for a place once she got back. She never expected Su Yuqing to have already thought of it for her.

She glanced sideways at Su Yuqing. "Even if I don’t become an Inspector, you can still help me with housing?"

Su Yuqing said, "We can’t offer you five-star hotel accommodations for free, but there are quite a few stalled construction sites in Qingjiang City lately that we could lease to you."

"Living on a construction site, huh..." Feng Ling thought for a moment. While it sounded a bit pathetic, the more she considered it, the more sensible it seemed.

For one thing, construction sites were huge. Even if the Cat Spider and Cat Owl raised hell inside, they wouldn’t disturb any neighbors.

For another, construction sites were usually fenced off, offering excellent privacy and preventing any disturbance from outsiders.

Su Yuqing said with a smile, "Feng Ling, this is special treatment just for you. You’re the first Hunter to clear a Maze. I certainly don’t worry about where other Hunters are living."

Upon hearing this, Feng Ling was touched for all of two seconds.

After those two seconds, she thought to herself, ’That’s Su Yuqing for you. He almost had me feeling eternally grateful for letting me live on a construction site.’

When it came to conversational skills, Feng Ling felt that Pei Xianjue could stand to take a few lessons from Su Yuqing.

The two of them chatted as they walked, soon arriving at Feng Ling’s room.

The room was a deluxe suite with a living room, located on the 9th floor of the Supervision Building.

Upon entering, Su Yuqing first scanned the room, then nodded and remarked, "The room they’ve arranged for you is quite nice. It’s on par with the inspector apartments at our Qingjiang Branch."

The implication being: anything Yuquan City has, Qingjiang City has too.

The Cat Spider and the Cat Owl were sprawled out in the living room, fast asleep.

Hearing someone enter, the Cat Owl cracked open an eye to take a look, then lazily went back to sleep.

"Are they always this vigilant?" Su Yuqing asked.

"Not at all. Normally, they’d chase a fly across the room," Feng Ling immediately said in defense of her ’cubs’. "They’re getting smarter. They saw you come in with me, which means you’re a friendly, so there’s no need to make a fuss."

"Can I pet them?" Su Yuqing asked.

The question caught Feng Ling a little off guard; it didn’t seem like something he would ask.

"...You can." Feng Ling glanced at the Cat Spider and the Cat Owl. "Er, pet the black one. The white one has a bad temper."

Sure enough, Su Yuqing didn’t hesitate, reaching out to the Cat Spider’s forehead. His palm sank into the dense fur—impossible to tell if it was cat fur or spider hair—and gave it a rub.

The Cat Spider didn’t make a sound as he petted it.

"A bit prickly," he commented calmly, withdrawing his hand and rubbing his fingers together. "But it doesn’t shed, so it shouldn’t have any environmental impact."

Feng Ling: "..."

The sound of their conversation woke up Huangfu Miaomiao, who had been sleeping in her room.

Huangfu Miaomiao groggily stumbled out of her room, her eyes still heavy with sleep. "You’re back..."

She was startled to suddenly see Su Yuqing was there too. Her brain seemed to short-circuit, and she stammered, "...Hello, Uncle."

Su Yuqing gave a faint nod. "No need to be so formal. Just call me Captain Su."

’As an Inspector, being called ’Uncle’ by an Alien Species... If word of this got out, he wouldn’t be able to clear his name even if he jumped into the Daqing River.’

"Go on back to sleep," Feng Ling said, waving a hand at Huangfu Miaomiao.

Huangfu Miaomiao quickly returned to her room, carefully shutting the door behind her.

"Where is the Maze Administrator?" Su Yuqing asked Feng Ling.

Feng Ling replied, "In the room next door. Do you want to see them?"

"It’s too late. Let’s arrange a meeting for tomorrow." Su Yuqing sat down on the sofa and took out his phone. "For now, let’s sort out your housing situation. The sooner we decide, the sooner I can start making arrangements when I get back."

He tapped on his phone a few times, then handed it to Feng Ling.

Feng Ling took the phone and saw that the screen displayed a complete map of Qingjiang City. A dozen or so locations were marked, and she could zoom in to see the details.

Su Yuqing said, "Quite a few projects in Qingjiang City have been halted in the past six months, leaving many factory buildings on the outskirts vacant. There’s also that villa district you’ve been to, which you could consider. However, the villas are in the West Suburb, which is too far from the city center. I’d prefer you live in a more densely populated urban area. That way, if something comes up, it’ll be easier to contact you."

Feng Ling swiped across the screen, looking at the potential locations Su Yuqing had marked one by one. She muttered, "So you’re afraid I’ll disturb people, but you also want me to live in the city..."

Su Yuqing smiled. "You heard it in the meeting, didn’t you? The Hunter Alliance is the pilot program for making the Hunter profession mainstream. The system will eventually be merged with the Inspection Bureau’s network. When a case occurs, if you’re close to the scene, the dispatcher will contact you on your phone. That’s why living in the city center is the most suitable option for you; you’ll be able to respond in any direction."

Feng Ling grew thoughtful. As she slowly studied the map, she asked, "You seem very keen on this plan. How come I didn’t see you speak up during the meeting?"

"Whether I speak up or not is irrelevant. It’s already a done deal," Su Yuqing replied.

Feng Ling paused, looking up at Su Yuqing. "Didn’t Captain Shen say they were going to discuss it again next month?"

"That’s just a formality," Su Yuqing said, his tone flat. "The fact that this proposal was even raised means the higher-ups are determined to push it through. If people object, they’ll just bring it up a few more times. After a while, everyone gets used to the idea, and the timing becomes ’ripe’."

"So that’s how it is..." Feng Ling said with sudden understanding. "No wonder everyone’s attitude felt so... subtle during the meeting. You guys are so complicated. Why not just be more forceful and implement it directly!"

Su Yuqing laughed. "You have to consider the people who don’t have Cards. They need time to process and accept it."

Feng Ling paused at his words, feeling that something was off.

She glanced at Su Yuqing’s face. He had the same familiar features and the same eloquent way of speaking, but his tone just now had revealed an almost imperceptible hint of superiority.

The superiority of a Card Holder.

In truth, this wasn’t rare. Every Card Holder—also known as an Extraordinary Ability User—that Feng Ling had ever met carried this same sense of superiority.

There was Zhou Diao, who thought he was special, the god of Qingjiang and the savior of humankind.

There was Pei Xianjue, already a young lady from a prestigious family, yet unsatisfied with her lot and wanting to use her ability to become a national idol.

There was Liang Zhou, whose sense of superiority had gone to his head, making him look down on everyone and want to use his power to crush anyone who wouldn’t submit.

But Feng Ling’s impression of Su Yuqing had always been that of a modest, polite, and compassionate gentleman, one who was extremely cautious in his work and seemed almost completely devoid of selfish desires.

’Ah... I never thought that even a "good person" like Su Yuqing would feel a sense of superiority when faced with his own kind who didn’t possess Cards.’

Feng Ling was a little surprised.

Well, just a tiny bit.