Chapter 5

"Hey, young man, have you had dinner? I'll take you to the cafeteria."

The old man held a toolbox in one hand and a bottle of liquor in the other, looking very relaxed and natural, as if he had long been accustomed to the astonished looks of people like Chen Fei.

After all, the Neanderthal army of the Third Epoch civilization almost beat the humans of Blue Star to death.

"No need, I have bread!"

Chen Fei pointed to the plastic bag hanging on his suitcase.

It was filled with handmade bread given to him by Shen Fei, enough for two meals. If he didn't eat it fresh, he would miss the best texture and it would be a waste.

Handmade bread has no preservatives and can easily go bad if not stored properly.

"Young man, just eating bread won't do. Let's order a couple of small dishes, and I'll treat you to a drink. I'll take you to your dormitory afterward. How about that? It won't delay anything, right!"

The old Neanderthal man proudly showed the bottle of liquor in his hand, a short, cylindrical, milky white glass bottle that Chen Fei was very familiar with.

The old man was not short of money; this bottle alone was worth Chen Fei's entire month of probationary wages.

Chen Fei hesitated for a moment and finally nodded.

He was a newcomer and couldn't afford to offend anyone by easily refusing. Having a drink with the old Neanderthal man wouldn't be a loss and might even help him learn more about the airbase, making it easier for him to integrate.

"Good, you're a teachable young man!"

The old Neanderthal man nodded and led Chen Fei to the airbase cafeteria, swaying as he walked.

The cafeteria was open 24 hours a day, and people could eat whenever they arrived. The spacious dining hall was not very crowded.

He asked the chef on duty for some pig's ear, beef tongue, and pickled fish as appetizers. Chen Fei followed the old Neanderthal man to a table and sat down.

Just as they sat down, they heard a loud roar from outside.

Through the cafeteria's glass wall, they saw two propeller planes flying in from a distance, one after the other, landing on the brightly lit runway. The landing gear touched down lightly, and they slid for a while before turning and heading toward the hangar.

Following Chen Fei's curious gaze, the old Neanderthal man skillfully picked up a piece of pig's ear with his chopsticks, took a sip of liquor, and mumbled, "Nothing to see, A-39B, a cheap toy, just a big fly buzzing in the sky, annoying."

Chen Fei said, "Oh," and withdrew his gaze, picking up his wine glass. "Grandpa Balut, where is your family?"

On the way to the cafeteria, he learned the old Neanderthal man's name, Balut, who claimed to be the younger brother of the Neanderthal hero Baluraka.

His brother Baluraka died in the first battle of the "Three Realms Fusion War" on Socotra Island.

Balut survived the final battle where the Blue Star and Sky realms' allied forces destroyed the highest council, the Krensha Hall, and became a prisoner. He lived for thirty years, eventually ending up at the 911 airbase in the Hindu Kush mountains.

Like Chen Fei, he was a worker for a private military contractor, and he would be buried wherever he died, with no worries.

"Family? What family do Neanderthals have now? Young people today are either enjoying life or working, and they've long forgotten the glory of the Neanderthals."

The old Neanderthal man Balut tapped the battle scars on his forehead with his chopsticks. The blood-red tattoo glowed silver for a moment and then faded, as if nothing had happened. He continued, "The descendants of Neanderthals have almost forgotten their battle scars and secret techniques. Come, come, eat, eat."

He refilled Chen Fei's glass, saying, "Drinking alone is lonely, but drinking with someone else is fun."

Balut was no longer the elite Neanderthal warrior who guarded the Krensha Hall. Now he was just a lonely old man who, on his way home from work, saw Chen Fei and impulsively invited him for a drink.

"Hey? The cold dishes taste pretty authentic."

After a few bites of pig's ear and beef tongue, Chen Fei was surprised to find that these three appetizers had not been ruined by curry.

"Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha, do you want to laugh me to death so you can inherit this bottle of liquor?" The old Neanderthal man Balut laughed, slapping the table and pointing at the chef still busy in the kitchen, saying sarcastically, "Don't believe that lazybones, he only knows how to open vacuum packages!"

So that was the truth!

Chen Fei was somewhat stunned. Anyone could do that, and he could open packages too.

Suppressing his laughter, Balut raised his hand to cover his mouth and said, "He's the relative of the personnel manager, Takal. Stay away from Takal, he's not a good person."

It seemed that the personnel manager's preferences were well-known.

"I heard that, Balut!"

Bang! The chef Singh in the kitchen angrily threw the cloth on the counter.

He admitted he was the relative of the airbase personnel manager, Takal, but he did put effort into cooking for everyone.

The 911 airbase appointed Singh as one of the two head chefs mainly because Takal's fellow countrymen were cheap to hire. In a world dominated by tools, cheapness was the key.

The other head chef could make high-end meals, and his skills were decent. If he were as bad as the package-opening chef, the entire base might revolt.

"Don't be afraid of him, he's just making a fuss. Chen, have you been assigned a position yet?"

The old Neanderthal man Balut completely ignored the package-opening chef's anger, saying, "Come on, if you're angry, come over. It'll be good exercise after the meal. I'll pin you down and sing, 'On the way home, I couldn't help but rub, rub... my skateboard!'"

"The manager Takal said that someone will take me for an orientation tomorrow and then assign me a position."

Chen Fei had only completed the registration process and didn't know his position yet. He estimated that he would find out after the orientation.

Balut took a bread from the plastic bag on the table, took a bite, and nodded, saying, "Not bad, this bread is made by Teacher Shen, right?"

"Hey, Grandpa Balut, you know Shen Fei?"

Chen Fei was very surprised that the old Neanderthal man could identify the bread's maker.

"Everyone in the 911 base knows that girl. She's a good girl. The other chef can make bread, but it's not as soft. He uses eggs from feed chickens, which don't have the egg flavor. This is different. I'm old, and my teeth aren't good, so I like soft things. Not bad, not bad, young man, bring me more in the future."

The old Neanderthal man Balut took another bite, clearly enjoying the bread. He finished one and took another.

The bread made by the other chef, Abel, could knock a person out, while the bread made by Teacher Shen Fei at the nearby Patan school was completely different.

Chen Fei followed suit, took a piece of bread, and enjoyed it with the pig's ear, beef tongue, and pickled fish, taking a sip of liquor. The taste was not bad.

...

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Ding ding ding! Ding ding ding! Ding ding ding!

Chen Fei was woken by the alarm on his phone. He opened his eyes and saw the light coming through the slats of the blinds, with floating dust particles dancing in the light.

The modular-designed dormitory B13 was a single room, square and small, with an area of only twelve square meters. It could only fit a wardrobe, a single bed, a desk with a bookshelf, and a small shower bathroom.

Despite the simple conditions and limited personal space, the dormitory was fully equipped, and Chen Fei was quite satisfied.

As a newcomer, having a place with stable electricity and 24-hour hot water was already quite good.

After a quick wash, he hung the towel and heard someone knocking on the door, quite forcefully.

There was a doorbell, but the person outside didn't like to use it.

Bang bang bang... even harder.

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