Chapter Seventy-Five: The Waste Engineer

After all the items had been introduced, Xu Yuqing left the room.

“Senior brother, looks like neither of us made any money.”

Because Xu Yuqing hadn't revealed her true identity, Peng Dongli still suggested keeping the bet, thinking that perhaps they'd have the chance next time.

Glancing around the room, Zhang Mingyang sat on the bed and tested its firmness.

“Come on, this bed is way too hard!”

Peng Dongli pulled out his toiletries from under the bed and said to Zhang Mingyang, “I’m going to take a shower first. I feel awful.”

“Alright.”

Peng Dongli went into the bathroom, while Zhang Mingyang lay on the bed and sent a brief message to his teacher via his communicator, simply informing him of his location to put his mind at ease.

After sending the message, he got up and walked to the window to observe the outside world.

People and heavy vehicles moved in and out of the camp area from time to time, but what caught his attention was that many people wore different colored spacesuits. Curious about the reason, he opened the meeting system to investigate.

“So that's why!”

It turned out the base used different colored spacesuits to distinguish posts: white for technical staff, blue for engineering, red for command, yellow for special tasks, and his own green—logistics and support.

Having figured out the color code, Zhang Mingyang continued browsing for interesting information until Peng Dongli emerged from his shower.

“Junior brother, it's your turn.”

Zhang Mingyang quickly grabbed his toiletries from under the bed and dashed in. Inside, he closed the door, studied the washing instructions on the wall, and followed each step before turning on the hot water.

The water flow was weak, so he had to wash a bit longer.

After showering, he changed into the green cotton suit, but something still felt odd—though he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was.

Once both had finished washing, they lay on their beds and shared their impressions of the journey.

...

A “ding...” sounded from the meeting system. Zhang Mingyang hurried over to check.

“Senior brother, it looks like we’re being called to the cafeteria for dinner?”

“Oh?”

Peng Dongli looked as well—it was true.

“Junior brother, do you know the way to the cafeteria?”

Zhang Mingyang shook his head. “But didn’t Xu Yuqing say there’s a map in the system? Let’s check.”

He opened the computer and searched for the base’s floor plan.

“Ah, here it is!”

They saw that the entire base was laid out in a grid, their room in the lower left corner, and the nearest dining hall upward.

Having found the location, the two left their room and headed up.

Along the way, people in various colored suits stared at them, as if they were two rare exotic beasts.

“Senior brother, why do I feel so strange? Look at the way people are staring.”

Peng Dongli glanced around and replied, “You don’t just feel it—we really are odd. Haven’t you noticed we’re the only ones wearing green?”

They pressed on, asking directions until they finally reached the cafeteria.

As soon as they entered, every gaze in the room turned toward them.

“What...?”

Frozen in the doorway, they found themselves locked in a stare-off with everyone inside.

At that moment, a young man came over and asked, “You two don’t look like staff from the base?”

Peng Dongli nodded, “We’re mineral surveyors from the Ministry of Land and Resources, here to inspect the ‘Lunar Gold Mine.’”

Hearing they weren’t base staff, the young man looked even more puzzled. “If you’re not from the base, why are you wearing those suits?”

Zhang Mingyang, realizing the topic was their clothing, glanced down at himself and turned to Peng Dongli, “Senior brother, I told you our clothes looked odd!”

Peng Dongli smiled and asked, “Is there something wrong with our clothes?”

The young man replied, “The green suits you’re wearing are for our waste management engineers.”

“Waste management engineers?”

It was the first time Zhang Mingyang had heard of such a job. He quickly asked, “What exactly do waste management engineers do?”

The young man explained, “They’re the technicians responsible for cleaning sewers and handling human waste—like back on Earth.”

The two were stupefied. They exchanged glances, suddenly feeling they’d been played for fools.

Zhang Mingyang hurried to ask, “But is that job so shameful? Why does everyone look at us like that?”

At this, the entire cafeteria burst into laughter, and the young man explained with a smile, “Don’t misunderstand—the reason isn’t the job itself, but because here, there’s a rule: after handling waste, waste management engineers must not enter the cafeteria or public areas in their green uniforms.”

“Why?” Zhang Mingyang asked, confused.

The young man explained, “Because when you work in that uniform, the smell inevitably clings to it. If you wander around wearing it, the odor spreads everywhere you go, polluting the air and reducing oxygen levels in the room.”

Once they understood, Zhang Mingyang asked, “But these clothes were given to us by base staff.”

“Impossible!” the young man exclaimed. “Everyone here knows better than to make such a basic mistake.”

Now the two were even more confused. If not base staff, then who?

“Oh, right!” Peng Dongli recalled the name. He asked, “Is Xu Yuqing from your base?”

“Yes, she’s one of our biological researchers.”

“That’s her,” Zhang Mingyang confirmed. “She’s the one who gave us the clothes.”

The young man, hearing it was Xu Yuqing, was even more incredulous. “That can’t be—Xu Yuqing is the most well-liked girl here, honest and kind. She’d never do such a thing.”

Upon hearing she was a woman, Zhang Mingyang’s eyes lit up. He nudged his senior brother, “Senior brother, I win. When we get back to Earth, you owe me a meal.”

Peng Dongli nodded through gritted teeth, “Fine... I’ll treat you.”

“Oh, then maybe we mistook her for someone else. Sorry about that,” Zhang Mingyang quickly distanced himself from the issue.

“No problem.”

The young man then asked, “Were you here to eat?”

They nodded, “Yes, it took us a while to find this place.”

“Then let me show you to the buffet.”

The young man led them to the kitchen’s self-service counter, handed them trays and utensils, and told them to help themselves.

“Thank you, thank you.”

As the young man walked away, Zhang Mingyang gazed at the food on the counter and swallowed hard. After days of compressed food on the rocket, they hadn’t eaten well, and now, with chicken, beef, and fruit before him, he could hardly wait to dig in.