Ling Cage: Twelve Talismans? I have everything I need.

Chapter 81 Concealment (4K)

As soon as Hongkou uttered her mischievous "As expected," the atmosphere at the dinner table instantly became subtle.

Honglu's cheeks flushed even more. She coughed lightly, glared at her smiling sister, but was unusually at a loss for words.

"Hongkou! What nonsense are you spouting, you little kid!"

Honglu tried to use her sister's authority to cover up the panic of having her thoughts exposed.

Hongkou retorted, "I'm already an adult! What do you mean, 'little kid'?"

Drake, on the other hand, was much calmer. He pushed up his thin-rimmed glasses and then served food to Honglu.

He neither admitted nor denied it directly, but just smiled slightly: "Captain Honglu usually works very hard for Village No. 2, so eat more to replenish your strength."

"You all eat too. Most of the food here is freshly made, so come and eat."

His natural actions and considerate words confirmed Hongkou's guess.

Red Hair looked at her sister and Drake with sparkling eyes.

Not only is my sister still alive, but she can also live freely on the ground with the people she loves.

The blush on Honglu's face faded slightly, and she glanced at Hongkou, who was still staring at them: "Eat your food! Stop talking so much!"

"Hehe, my sister is shy," Hongkou whispered to Poxiao.

The meal ended in a relaxed and warm atmosphere.

After the meal, Drake suggested taking Red and Dawn for a walk around Village Two to familiarize them with the environment.

The red egrets naturally accompanied them.

Village No. 2 is larger and more regularly laid out than Longgu Village, which is obviously the result of later planning and construction.

The residential area consists mostly of sturdy and durable composite material houses, with complete public facilities.

They walked across a small square and saw children chasing and playing; they passed a simple workshop and heard the sound of metal being hammered; there was also a neatly cultivated vegetable garden where several elderly people were tending to it.

“This place…is really nice,” Hongkou exclaimed sincerely.

She suddenly remembered that when she and Qianli came to collect supplies before, Qianli had mentioned in a casual conversation that "...the people in Village No. 2 were basically recruited and gathered from various places later, and their backgrounds are more diverse than those in the main village."

Thinking of this, Hongkou couldn't help but ask, "Sister, Brother Drake, I've heard people say that the people here come from different places, and everyone has different habits and ideas. Doesn't... they ever argue with each other? After all, in the Lighthouse, there are already conflicts between the upper class and the commoners..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but her meaning was clear: the Lighthouse system had left a deep impression on her.

Hearing Hongkou ask this question, even though the two of them had already died before the three laws were promulgated, one could still imagine what the scene would be like afterward.

Before Red Heron could answer, Drake smiled gently and adjusted his glasses.

"Where there are people, there will inevitably be friction."

"However, the disputes here mostly stem from things like how to cultivate better seeds or whose tools are better."

His tone carried a calmness that comes after weathering storms. "Having struggled to survive on the ground, and then been rescued by Boss Yang and Longgu Village and given a place to settle down, people understand how difficult it is to 'live' and 'live well'."

“The pressure to survive in the past made everyone understand the importance of sticking together for warmth. Those pointless internal conflicts have no place here, and besides,” he glanced at Honglu.

“Honglu and I are quite adept at handling these matters.”

Honglu nodded and added, "Drake is right. Survival on the ground is not easy. Although resources are already abundant enough, we still need to work together to acquire and maintain them."

“A stable rear is crucial for everyone. The rules here are simple: you reap what you sow. Those who disrupt the order and harm everyone’s interests will be isolated or even expelled. With this consensus, there will be no major conflicts.”

Hongkou and Poxiao were deeply moved as they listened.

This kind of cohesion, based on shared survival needs, is far more solid than the false order maintained by hierarchy on a lighthouse.

They continued walking, Hongkou's gaze sweeping over the neat, sturdy, and clearly planned new composite material houses.

I also thought of the old wooden and stone houses in Longgu Village, which were cozy but clearly more "primitive" and bore the marks of time, as well as the winding, lively but not very orderly alleys.

A question resurfaced in my mind.

“Sister,” Hongkou tugged at Honglu’s sleeve, her voice filled with curiosity and confusion.

"Since Village No. 2 is built so well, and its environmental planning looks even more orderly and comfortable than the main village, why doesn't the main village also get renovated? Surely the village has the capability to do so?"

In her view, given Yang Chen's demonstrated abilities and the existing equipment, transforming a village should not be difficult.

Upon hearing this, Honglu smiled slightly and explained, "To put it simply, they are nostalgic."

Drake nodded, picked up the conversation, and spoke with a touch of emotion.

"The main village was the first shelter that the boss and his team built. It was built too early, shortly after the disaster, when everything was still in the groping and struggling stage of survival."

He pointed to the neat streets and houses of Village No. 2 in the distance.

"Look here, the layout is neat, the houses are uniform, and the functional areas are clearly defined. This was built after we had a stable output from the No. 2 Ecological Base, accumulated enough experience and resources, and had a clearer plan for the future. It is more like a... carefully designed new home."

“The main village is different. Every brick, every tile, every house, and every road there was built and expanded little by little by the original survivors during the most difficult time. Every old house there may carry the memories of someone or a family.”

Hongkou nodded thoughtfully, her doubts resolved.

Honglu patted her sister on the shoulder, "Come on, let me show you where we live, so you can get to know the place."

Drake laughed and said, "That's right. If you get tired of staying in the main village, you can come anytime. There are still empty rooms in this village. We'll save one for you."

The group soon arrived at a small building located in a relatively quiet part of the residential area.

The house isn't particularly large, but it has a reasonable structure.

Honglu took out her key, opened the door, and stepped aside to let Hongkou and Poxiao go in first: "Come in, it's not a big place, please make yourself at home."

The interior is simply and warmly furnished, with several landscape paintings hanging on the wall. Judging from the brushstrokes, they look like doodles by children in the village, and they have been carefully framed.

The most eye-catching thing is a bookshelf against the wall, neatly stacked with many books and document bags, which is obviously Drake's workplace.

On the small tea table next to it was a ceramic pot with a few unidentified wildflowers in it.

"Please make yourself at home. I'll go boil some water," Honglu said, walking towards a small partitioned room connected to the living room, which contained simple kitchen facilities.

Hongkou looked around curiously at the house that belonged to her older sister.

She saw two sets of clean, different styles of work clothes stacked together on a shelf in the corner.

I saw several pairs of shoes of different sizes drying on the windowsill, and besides documents, several popular novels from the old world scattered on the bookshelf.

Drake put down a workbook clipboard he was carrying and said to Red Hair and Dawn, "Sit down for a while, have some water and rest."

"I'll go to the communications room and contact the settlement next door to see what kind of travelers they've taken in." Drake was quick to act.

“Okay, Brother Drake,” Red Hair replied quickly.

“Of course.” Drake waved his hand, then glanced in the direction of the kitchen. “Red Heron, I’m going out for a bit, I’ll be right back.”

"Okay," Honglu's voice came from the kitchen.

After Drake left, Red Heron came out with two steaming cups of tea and placed them in front of Red Bloom and Dawn.

"Have some water. This is made with dried mint and lemongrass grown at the base. It's good for cooling down and relieving fatigue." Hongkou picked up her cup and watched her sister sit down opposite her.

“Sister…” Hongkou’s voice was very soft, and she tentatively probed.

"You and Brother Drake... when did you two..." She didn't finish her question, but the meaning was clear.

Red Heron picked up her glass of water and gently blew on it.

She didn't answer immediately; her gaze seemed to fall on the leaves floating in the cup, lost in a brief recollection.

"...I can't say the exact time." Honglu's voice softened considerably.

"After the resurrection, we rebuilt our home together in Village No. 2 and faced various issues on the ground together. He was in charge of planning and internal affairs, while I led the field operations and defense, and handled conflicts. We often discussed work matters, and in life... we took care of each other."

She paused for a moment: "It's just that... we came together very naturally, like family."

Hongkou listened to her sister's calm description and nodded: "Yes! Brother Drake seems like a reliable person!"

She was genuinely happy for her sister.

Po Xiao also sincerely said, "Sister Honglu, congratulations to you."

"Leaving me aside, what about you? When?"

At this moment, footsteps were heard outside the door.

Drake returned and came in.

"You've already made the arrangements?" Honglu asked, putting down her water glass.

"Yes, it's all arranged. They're going to the main village in a couple of days, so they can bring those travelers along."

Drake walked over and sat down next to Red Heron, picked up Red Heron's glass of water and took a sip.

"I see, that saves us some trouble." Honglu nodded.

Since the person is being delivered directly, there's no need to exchange messages. Once the person arrives, we can simply send a car to pick them up and take them to the village.

The living room fell silent for a moment. Honglu looked at Hongkou and Poxiao and said, "After you rest for a while, I'll take you out for a walk so you can get familiar with the surroundings."

Hongkou immediately put down her cup, stood up, and looked very energetic.

"Let's go now, sis! We just finished eating, a walk is a good way to digest."

She turned to Drake, asking with a hint of inquiry, "Brother Drake, do you have anything else to take care of? Shall we go together?"

Drake smiled and stood up as well: "That's all. Everything has been explained in the communications room. Let's go, I'll go with you."

The four of them finished the remaining warm water in their cups and walked out of the hut together.

The afternoon sun was shining brightly as Hongkou and Poxiao walked ahead, taking in everything in Village No. 2 with a sense of novelty as they arrived.

Honglu and Drake lagged a few steps behind, walking side by side.

There were quite a few pedestrians on the street, and occasionally someone would nod to Honglu and Drake.

While the two people in front of him were distracted by a shooting game, Drake turned his head slightly and moved closer to Red Heron.

He lowered his voice and asked in a volume that only the two of them could hear.

"Red Heron, you...didn't tell her the specific details of what happened at the lighthouse back then?"

The red egret paused almost imperceptibly.

She looked straight ahead, her expression still calm, but a complex emotion flashed in her eyes.

She didn't answer immediately, but simply shook her head slightly.

He knew the Red Heron too well; this subtle movement had already given him the answer.

Sure enough, she didn't say anything.

He walked silently beside her, and after a few seconds, Honglu spoke in the same low voice.

"I only told her that I was executed because I tried to stop the Three Laws."

Drake understood Red Heron's concerns.

If Hongkou knew that her beloved sister was killed by Elon, one of Hongkou's brothers who was the commander of the Hunters, I really don't know if she could accept it.

"Are we just going to keep this from her like this? I mean..." Drake's voice was even lower, filled with worry.

“The village will definitely not abandon those who have traveled from the lighthouse in the future. Elon is an instructor now, right? He will probably travel far away in the future too.”

Red Egret's gaze followed the lively figure of Red Bean in front of her.

Her gaze softened.

"I don't know," Red Heron answered frankly.

“Telling her now won’t do any good; it will only make her feel bad.” She paused and took a deep breath.

Honglu chuckled as she said this: "But as expected, Hongkou, like me, opposes those cold laws."

She watched her sister and Dawn playing games side by side, and then Hongkou turned around and waved, wanting Honglu to come over too.

Honglu gently shook her head at her, indicating that the two of them could play by themselves.

She continued speaking to Drake.

“As for Elon…” Red Heron’s voice trailed off.
“He was carrying out Morgan’s orders. In that position, at that moment, he made his choice. Resenting him won’t change the past, and it’s pointless.”

She paused for a moment: "I also learned from Hongkou that he did keep his promise, protected Hongkou, and let her grow up safely until she chose to leave on her own."

Drake stood quietly beside the red egret, listening intently.

"I understand."

After listening to what Honglu said, Drake nodded in understanding: "Whether you decide when to tell her or choose never to tell her is up to you."

He reached out and gently grasped the wrist of the red egret hanging by its side.

Honglu let the warmth linger on her wrist, and her taut shoulder line quietly relaxed a little.

Just then, Hongkou, who was in front, turned around with a smile on her face.

She pointed to the shooting game booth in front of her and said, "Sis, come and play this, I want to have a shooting contest with you."

"I taught you how to hold a gun for the first time, and now you dare to compete with your sister in marksmanship?"

Red Heron raised an eyebrow and walked toward the shooting booth.

The gloom from the heavy conversation with Drake was dispelled by Red Cocoon's challenge.

Drake followed with a smile.

Seeing this, Po Xiao naturally stepped aside, giving his place to the two of them.

(End of this chapter)