Chapter 163 Something for nothing
"CC1000 Express? I've never heard of it... maybe it's some branch line train? But the number you mentioned isn't quite right... The new version of the train timetable contains all the information about the train, let's check it out... The ticket seems to be real, but I really didn't know there was such a train."

At the Chicago train station, the staff handed Lu Mingfei's ticket back and pointed to the timetable on the side.

Lu Mingfei was a little crazy. He came to ask because this train was not on the timetable, but the staff gave him a big blow, which made him a little desperate.

He only had 20 dollars left in his pocket. Perhaps because Kassel College really made his aunt certain that Lu Mingfei would become rich in the future, his aunt gave him 500 dollars for travel expenses for the first time.

But when passing through Chicago Customs, the fat security officer counted the dozens of pirated PS2 discs that Lu Mingfei had smuggled, and wrote down a frightening number on the receipt.

Out of appreciation for his taste, the fat man left twenty dollars for Lu Mingfei. Now Lu Mingfei stood at the door of Subway, tightly grasping the only twenty-dollar bill, wondering whether he should bite his teeth and starve or buy a sandwich and Coke combo.

No matter how good the $36000 scholarship was, he only had $96 now, and after spending $, he still had $ left. How many days could he last? Maybe he should save the food rations to buy a phone card to call the college? He didn't have a cell phone, and the N was treasured by his uncle as a parting gift.

In fact, the clothes and watch that Gu Ye gave him were worth quite a bit of money, but Lu Mingfei dismissed the idea as soon as it occurred to him. This was a gift from Brother Gu, how could he just sell it off? Wasn't it just twenty dollars that was enough to support him? How could it be impossible?
"If you can't fight, just go ask others for some money. Anyway, Mr. Buddha gave them a lot of money in the past, it's only natural for them to get it back now." Lu Mingfei comforted himself in a low voice.

A sudden pulling feeling from behind made Lu Mingfei turn his head subconsciously, and he saw a tall and burly young man standing behind him. His dark green plaid shirt and loose-fitting trousers had not been washed for a long time. It was not easy to meet such a beggar in the United States, as other beggars were dressed better than him.

"No way? Did I meet a real beggar? But I don't have any money... How about I join him... Oh! I forgot, we have to speak English in America!" Lu Mingfei muttered to himself, and then he remembered that this was Chicago, America. But just when he was about to switch to English, the young man spoke in pure and fluent Chinese.

"Brother? Are you Lu Mingfei?"

"Yes, are you the senior from Kassel College who came to pick me up?" Lu Mingfei's eyes lit up.

Gu Ye had already gone back after picking up Lu Mingfei by helicopter that time, saying that he was going back to the academy to prepare something. However, even though Gu Ye had left, he still reminded Lu Mingfei on QQ that he would ask someone to pick him up. It was just that he waited for a long time today but no one showed up, so he went to ask the staff.

Lu Mingfei originally thought that he had been completely abandoned, but he didn't expect that there would be a turn of events now, but...

"Were you robbed on the way here? Why do you look like this..." Lu Mingfei spoke carefully, fearing that he would hurt the self-esteem of the classmate in front of him.

"What's wrong with this look? Does it affect my handsomeness?" The man shook his hair unconvinced. The messy hair made Lu Mingfei subconsciously dodge, fearing that something would fly out of his head.

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Gu Ye's good friend Finkel, and I'm responsible for taking you to Kassel College."

"Oh, hello... Senior Finkel, are you in the same grade as Brother Gu?" Lu Mingfei stretched out his hand, trying to show friendliness.

"I am considered his senior, and of course... your senior as well." Finkel scratched his head and wiped his hands on his clothes before handing them over.

"What grade are you in? Senior?" Lu Mingfei asked.

"Eighth grade..." Finkel said embarrassedly.

“Pfft! Eight…eighth grade?” Lu Mingfei was a little surprised.

"It's just that you failed a grade for four years, why is your reaction more exaggerated than Gu Ye's..." Finkel muttered and sat on a bench nearby.

"I won't explain this. You'll find out when you get to school. The train doesn't come until the evening. Do you want to go for a drink with me in the meantime?"

"Excuse me for asking, were you delayed because of drinking?" Lu Mingfei looked at Finkel thoughtfully.

"Hahaha...how could that be? I'm Gu Ye's good friend and I would never delay his business. Don't slander me! I just suddenly took on a task from the school." Finkel gave a dry laugh, which made Lu Mingfei even more suspicious.

But it was indeed the case. In the past two years, Finkel had saved up a small amount of money and had finally gotten rid of his former poor life, so he resumed his lavish habits. The day before Lu Mingfei came, he had been partying all night in the largest bar near the train station.

It was not until I woke up at noon today that I realized I had missed the time, so I rushed to the train station without even changing my clothes. Fortunately, Lu Mingfei, a Chinese, was very recognizable, and he saw him at first sight.

"Really? Then I'll call Brother Gu." Lu Mingfei pretended to take out his cell phone, but Finkel quickly grabbed his hand.

"Please let me go, junior! If Gu Ye finds out, he will skin me alive!" Finkel looked at Lu Mingfei pitifully.

"As long as you don't call, anything is fine!"

"Huh? That's what you said..." Lu Mingfei finally felt proud for once. He didn't expect that this senior brother could be so easily fooled.

Ten minutes later, Lu Mingfei was sitting on a bench, eating hamburgers and fried chicken, and occasionally drinking a sip of Coke. No matter what, at least someone was taking care of the food, which made him very satisfied. "You scared me to death, I thought you had some other ideas." Finkel looked at Lu Mingfei who was eating and complained in a low voice.

"What's your idea?" Lu Mingfei raised his head and swallowed the fried chicken in his mouth.

"Don't you think the way you spoke just now is very similar to the plot in some movies?" Finkel smiled obscenely at Lu Mingfei.

"At least I won't have any strange thoughts about a big bearded man." Lu Mingfei rolled his eyes at Finkel. He knew that the senior brother in front of him was extremely shameless.

"After we finish eating, shall I take you out for some fun? I know some interesting places where we can at least kill time before the train arrives." Finkel blinked.

Gu Ye specifically instructed Finkel to take Lu Mingfei to visit some famous attractions in Chicago. Although it would take half a day, maybe he could still coax this kid into having a drink.

"Forget it, I'll just wait here." Lu Mingfei shook his head and rejected Finkel. Judging from his appearance, he was not going to a good place, and Lu Mingfei would not be fooled.

"Okay...you really don't know how to enjoy yourself." Finkel shrugged helplessly.

In the evening, Lu Mingfei was curled up on a wooden bench, covering himself with the blanket that Finkel had bought for him, and taking a drowsy nap. At this moment, a faint bell rang and woke him up.

Dong, dong, dong! The sound of the bells echoed, as if coming from a church far away. Lu Mingfei closed his eyes and thought about the wasteland under the moon and the dark shadow of the church in the distance. He thought about the people running on the wasteland with torches, whose faces were hidden in the shadows but could not be illuminated by the fire. They ran towards the full moon, which was incredibly large, half of it sinking below the horizon.

Those people jumped from the mountaintop toward the moon. Lu Mingfei was surprised. He didn't know how he could think of such a thing. It was crazy, magnificent, and real. It seemed that he had witnessed the magnificent scene with his own eyes. Why was there such a monotonous bell sound?

Lu Mingfei realized something was wrong. He was in Chicago, outside was a busy road, noisy and bustling. Why could he only hear that monotonous and lonely bell? There should be no church nearby.

He sat up from the bench. A huge moon rose slowly outside the French window, and the moonlight poured in like the tide approaching the coast. The entire waiting hall was shrouded in the cold moonlight. The shadow of the window pane was projected on the back of the bench. A boy sat silently, looking up at the moonlight.

"You again?" Lu Mingfei came to the boy in a familiar manner. He hadn't seen this guy in the illusion for such a long time and he missed him a little.

"You've changed a lot, brother." The boy said softly.

“Of course, I’m no longer the same person I used to be.” Lu Mingfei didn’t know why he felt secretly happy inside, as if he had been recognized by a very important person. This feeling was very subtle.

"But, this alone is not enough, okay?" The boy tilted his head, a hint of regret flowing in his golden pupils.

"Then what is considered enough?" Lu Mingfei asked.

"At least... you must have the determination to rule the world. Time is running out, brother... you have to grow up faster." The boy stood up from the bench and raised his hand to stroke Lu Mingfei's cheek.

"I say... could you be the embodiment of my superpowers?" Looking at the boy's golden eyes, Lu Mingfei suddenly had an idea.

Gu Ye and Chu Zihang both have the same pupils, which should be a symbol of a person with super powers. If this boy is part of his illusion, does it mean that his super powers are about to awaken?
“Ha…” The boy chuckled and did not answer, but just stared at Lu Mingfei.

"Want to swap this time?"

"What exactly does exchange mean? What do I need to pay?" Lu Mingfei did not refuse rashly this time. If it really was the manifestation of his superpowers, then what if he didn't come out after he refused?
Lu Mingfei didn't want to lose this opportunity. Even if it was just a guess, he wanted to get closer to Gu Ye.

"Brother, the reason you changed your mind... is it because of that man named Gu Ye?" The boy spoke as if he knew what he was thinking.

"It's okay... Since you want to exchange, then... I'll give you a trial pack. If you find it useful, we can talk about the next step."

With a mischievous smile, the boy pounced towards Lu Mingfei. Lu Mingfei felt a ball of fire appear in front of his eyes. All his consciousness was swallowed up by the flames in an instant. He and the boy seemed to have merged into one. His whole body trembled violently, as if on the verge of despair. A huge power emerged in his body, and he suddenly flashed back.

"Something for nothing. Remember it...you'll need it."

"Hu...Hu!" Lu Mingfei was breathing heavily, like a man who was rescued from drowning, and Finkel was beside him, pushing his shoulders.

"Wake up! Mingfei! The train is here!"

Following Finkel's gaze, Lu Mingfei saw a ticket inspector in a dark green uniform waving at him and Finkel.

(End of this chapter)