Hearing Jiang Heng’s words, Sasha froze, her hands washing vegetables stiffening in the cold water.
Despair, utter despair. What good was knowing the truth? It wouldn’t change anything.
Just as Jiang Heng had said, the only thing that could defeat the company was the company itself, not someone like her, a powerless hacker.
Thinking this, Sasha felt a deep sadness. Her mother’s death was still fresh in her mind, and now, despite knowing the reason behind it, she was still powerless.
Although she knew the world was cruel, Sasha only now realized how small she was. Compared to the company, she was insignificant.
Overwhelmed by grief, Sasha couldn’t help but cry.
Seeing the light fade from the cat-girl's eyes, Jiang Heng couldn’t help but sigh.
There were too many tragedies in the cyberpunk world, and the most frustrating part was that these tragedies couldn’t be solved by sheer power. Unless you could reboot the entire world.
…
Sasha knew all of this, but she couldn't accept it. She just wasn't ready to give up.
“Alright, Sasha, the past is the past. We may not be able to change the world, but we can try our best to do something. Even if it's just plucking a single hair from the company, it's still better than doing nothing, right?”
Seeing the despairing cat-girl, Jiang Heng patted her shoulder. Without hope or a purpose, she wouldn’t know how to live.
Sasha was a lively girl with a touch of mischief. Like a cat. To find a girl like her in Night City was a rare sight. It would be such a waste to see her fall like this.
“Yeah, you’re right. Even if I can’t completely bring down BioTech and Militech, I’ll do everything I can to make them suffer!” Sasha was re-energized by Jiang Heng's words.
Looking at Sasha, with her fire of vengeance burning brightly, Jiang Heng didn’t know whether to cry or laugh. At least Sasha wasn't going to die pointlessly like in some anime, or fall into despair.
Jiang Heng ruffled Sasha's head and continued preparing the noodles.
Just then, Lucy entered with Rebecca, who was holding freshly cut chives.
“Hey, what are you two doing?” Rebecca held up the chives, her big eyes fixed on the two of them. “Oh, you’re bullying Sasha, you bad guy! Look, her clothes and hair are all dirty!”
Jiang Heng pulled back his hand. He was in the middle of kneading dough, so Sasha's clothes and hair were covered in white flour.
“Pfft, no, Rebecca, Jiang Heng wasn’t bullying me. He was just comforting me.” Sasha noticed this too and quickly explained, smiling as she wiped a tear from her cheek.
“Really? This bad guy really wasn’t bullying you?” Rebecca was skeptical. This bad guy always bullied her, after all.
“Hey, little loli, you’re pushing it!” Jiang Heng said, extending his flour-covered hands toward Rebecca.
“Ah! Don’t come any closer!” Rebecca dropped the chives and ran.
“I’ll go get some fruit from the greenhouse.” Lucy didn't stay long and turned to leave.
Watching Lucy leave quietly, Jiang Heng felt warmth in his heart. Although Lucy wasn't very talkative, she always understood him.
An ordinary woman would probably already be suspicious of his relationship with Sasha, but Lucy wasn’t.
After the little incident, Jiang Heng continued making noodles. After about an hour of effort, a large pot of noodles was finally ready. Jiang Heng prepared a big bowl for each person, then prepared the seasonings and added the noodles.
“Hey, come get your noodles! Those who are slow will get nothing!”
At Jiang Heng's call, everyone rushed to the kitchen. The aroma of the stir-fried meat that Jiang Heng had made earlier had completely whetted their appetites. Now that the noodles were ready, they were eager to eat.
…
“Wow, it’s so delicious!”
“So fragrant!”
“Wow, is this heaven?”
…
Everyone dug in, and soon praises were echoing throughout the room.
Seeing everyone enjoying the meal, Jiang Heng couldn’t help but shake his head. It was just a bowl of noodles, but they acted as if they were eating some kind of delicacy.
To be fair, they had been eating synthetic food all their lives. It wasn’t surprising they’d act this way when they finally tasted real food.
“That guy’s a freak, but I have to admit he makes good food.” Even the little loli Rebecca praised Jiang Heng, something she rarely did.
Hearing this, Jiang Heng rolled his eyes and reached for Rebecca’s bowl. “Can’t you keep your mouth shut while you eat?”
“Don’t touch my noodles. You can grab my pigtails!” Seeing the approaching hand, Rebecca quickly protected her bowl, offering her pigtails to Jiang Heng.
Jiang Heng twitched his mouth. A bowl of noodles had bought Rebecca over, and she was even willing to sacrifice her pigtails.
ps: Thanks to “疯不绝” for the reward, and thanks to everyone for your flowers and votes.