Chapter 1496: Chapter 1515: Overnight Stay
From joining this volunteer organization to enduring countless hardships, it took the two of them more than half a month to finally arrive in Kannaya.
“I’m fine.” Nan Fei rubbed her temples and gave Gongxi Yunqi a bitter smile. “It’s just that I’m a little dizzy—perhaps I’m not suited to the climate here.”
Back in their home country, it was the coldest winter season of the year, but here it was a dry desert climate.
Gongxi Yunqi clearly didn’t entirely believe Nan Fei’s explanation. He stood up and went to negotiate with the volunteer organization’s leader, hoping they’d stay in the small town overnight and resume the journey tomorrow.
Gongxi Yunqi was wealthy and generous, and after studying abroad in M country and starting his own business, his personality had become far more worldly than before. When dealing with people, he had a knack for getting what he wanted. Under his negotiation, the volunteer team decided to stay in the town for the night.
“Alright, we’ve made arrangements with the townsfolk. Tonight, we’ll stay with a local family, and tomorrow morning, we’ll set off again toward the Kannaya Peninsula desert,” the volunteer organizer, who was also the team leader, David, came over with a bright smile to inform them.
“Thank you!”
After David left, Gongxi Yunqi’s smile had already faded from his face. The two of them were assigned to live separately with an ordinary local family. The house had the characteristic earthy-yellow brick style of Kannaya, but at least it was well-ventilated. The host was a woman in her thirties raising a five- or six-year-old boy alone.
Her husband had gone off to join the army, and whether he was alive or dead was unknown. The little boy had chocolate-colored skin and a pair of bright, lively eyes. When he saw strangers, he would shyly peek from behind his mother.
Nan Fei first communicated with the mother and son in the local language for a while before returning to the room assigned to her and Gongxi Yunqi.
“You know how to speak the local language?” Gongxi Yunqi seemed quite surprised.
“If you’re going to come here, you need to prepare in advance.” In fact, ever since they began their mission departing from Bei Jiang to Kannaya, Nan Fei had been studying both Arabic and the local dialect.
“You really live up to being a top scorer in the college entrance exam—so smart.” Gongxi Yunqi’s praise was heartfelt. Although he was also intelligent, he felt he couldn’t match Nan Fei in terms of academic talent.
Nan Fei felt embarrassed by his compliment and awkwardly changed the subject. “By the way, I noticed earlier when I came in that you didn’t look too good—what’s wrong?”
“It’s something wrong with our team.” Gongxi Yunqi’s gentle expression disappeared, his face serious. “Have we been isolated from the others?” While the rest of the team was staying in the town’s church—which was spacious and offered a quick escape in case of a midnight attack—Nan Fei and Gongxi Yunqi had been quietly placed in separate accommodations.
If anyone said there was nothing suspicious about this arrangement, it would be impossible to believe.
“Yes!” Nan Fei nodded. Her vision was persistently fuzzy, even a little dizzy, but her strong personality wouldn’t allow her to show it and make Gongxi Yunqi worry unnecessarily. So, she moved ahead a few steps, unnoticed, until she was close enough beside Gongxi Yunqi to sit by the window.
By the way, most Kannaya homes typically featured large windows, but due to limited resources and the constant state of war, the windows were usually covered with wooden planks. The room they were staying in didn’t even have wooden planks—it was completely exposed.
There was absolutely no privacy or sense of security.