Landlord in the Arctic-Chapter 61: Leaving

The three of them arrived at the Walmart Supermarket.

At 10:00 AM, the supermarket didn’t have many customers, making it seem unusually quiet.

The duty manager, of course, recognized his customer, Feng Shan. His last big shopping trip had brought in over a hundred thousand US Dollars in sales for the store, earning the manager a hefty bonus.

When he learned that Feng Shan was the hero who had braved the blizzard to rescue people yesterday, and that he was here at Walmart today for an interview, the manager became even more enthusiastic and found a quiet spot for them.

As Feng Shan passed through the clothing section, he saw face coverings hanging on a rack—the kind that could cover both the face and neck. He casually picked one up.

"Is it okay if I wear this? I’d rather not have people see my face."

"Of course, no problem," Julie quickly nodded.

The subject of the interview just needed to be the person involved; what they wore didn’t matter.

Spider-Man wears his Spider Suit, and Batman is always in his Batman Suit. As long as the audience was willing to buy it, who would care what the person under the suit looked like?

’This makes things easier.’

Feng Shan chose a face covering from the rack with a black background and a print of an Indian Chief. After putting it on, it concealed the lower half of his face. Paired with his muscular build and wilderness-style leather coat, his entire aura instantly became wild and untamed.

Julie’s eyes immediately lit up, and her heart began to beat faster on its own.

Compared to Frank’s incredible endurance, the man before her was a completely different style of person.

Ahem!

Standing to the side, Frank coughed deliberately. "Julie, we have limited time. Can we get a move on?"

Julie shot him a look and walked over to the break area the manager had prepared. At the same time, the cameraman arrived with his equipment, along with a few other colleagues.

After the on-site interview yesterday, Julie and the cameraman had edited the news footage in the shortest time possible and sent it back to headquarters along with the relevant materials.

After receiving the story, headquarters ran a limited test broadcast. Unexpectedly, the feedback was excellent, boosted by traction on Facebook and Twitter.

The name "Carnation Knight" had already spread across Facebook, and many netizens saw Feng as a hero.

This coincided with Hurricane Irma sweeping through Florida and several other states, causing widespread disaster. Coupled with an ineffective government rescue effort, it had led to a storm of criticism across the United States.

The story of a hero who, fearing neither life nor death, flew a plane into a blizzard to save the injured, inspired countless people, boosting their confidence in the face of natural disasters.

NBC headquarters immediately promoted Julie and assigned her to conduct the follow-up interview. They even promised to nominate her as a candidate for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize.

「Before the official interview.」

To help Feng Shan relax, Julie provided him with a list of the interview questions and explained the Q&A format.

The cameras were in position. On the cameraman’s cue, Julie composed herself, trying to calm the storm in her heart. She flashed her signature professional smile for the camera. "Hello, thank you for agreeing to this interview..."

...

During the interview, customers who came to shop and recognized Feng Shan as the Carnation Knight who had saved people yesterday flocked into the camera’s view to express their support, causing the interview to be frequently interrupted.

In the end, it took over an hour to complete the interview.

「After the interview.」

Feng Shan was sweating profusely from exhaustion. Facing the camera felt even more nerve-wracking than flying a plane into a blizzard.

"Buddy, Julie needs the surveillance footage from the Carnation next. Can you provide it?" Frank asked, casually sitting nearby, sipping a Coca-Cola and eating fries.

"I can," Feng Shan said. He just wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible and return to his quiet life.

Next up was his own business.

Buying vegetable seeds.

He had lit the tribe’s Fire Seed on the Glacial River Beach by the snow mountain, and the soil was improving. It was time to try planting some vegetables.

He found the rack where the seeds were sold. The dazzling array of vegetable varieties gave Feng Shan pause. There were many he had never seen before, while the common vegetable seeds from back in China were nowhere to be found.

Operating on the principle of ’better to choose wrong than to miss out,’ Feng Shan bought one packet of every kind of vegetable seed on the rack.

They weren’t expensive, anyway.

A single packet cost between 2.99 and 6.99 US Dollars.

Seeing Feng Shan buy so many vegetable seeds, Frank offered a kind reminder.

"Buddy, I know you Chinese have this obsession with growing vegetables that’s practically in your bones, but you can’t grow them in the Far North Tundra. As soon as winter hits, they’ll all freeze to death."

"I know, but I just want to give it a try."

Feng Shan’s stubbornness was on par with Nash’s, if not greater.

They left the Walmart Supermarket.

Arriving at Dawn Airport, they saw the Carnation parked on the runway. Its fuselage had been serviced and looked brand new, as if it had just rolled out of the factory.

"What a beautiful girl!" Frank clucked in admiration.

Meanwhile, Julie found an airport staff member and, with Feng Shan’s permission, used their equipment to connect to the Carnation’s surveillance system and copy the entire footage.

"Mr. Feng, thank you so much for sharing your experience so candidly and in such detail."

Feng Shan nodded slightly, said a quick goodbye to Frank, and turned to climb into the cockpit.

The propeller began to spin rapidly, letting out a deafening roar.

Amidst the roar, the Carnation slowly taxied forward, gaining speed until it soared into the sky like a powerful eagle.

Under everyone’s watchful gaze, it gradually shrank to a tiny dot and disappeared into the vast blue sky.

"Why would a hero resist the adoration of the public?" Julie wondered aloud, gazing at the sky.

"That’s just the kind of person he is. Baby, I have all day. I can tell you Feng’s story."

Frank walked up to Julie’s side and naturally wrapped his arm around her slim waist, but a moment later, she pushed him away.

"Mr. Frank, please have some self-respect." Julie’s face took on an icy-cold demeanor that kept people at a distance. She glanced at Frank before walking over to the cameraman.

’Last night, she was calling me her "little wild wolf," and now it’s "Mister."’

’This woman changes her tune faster than you can flip a bedsheet.’

’Interesting.’

A corner of Frank’s mouth lifted into a smile.

...

Flying the Carnation freely through the sky, Feng Shan felt an inexplicable sense of relief.

Just as he was about to leave Fairbanks airspace, an indicator light on the radio flashed. After connecting, a well-wishing message from Fairbanks International Airport came through.

"Carnation, we wish you a safe journey. PAFA sends its highest respects!"

Feng Shan replied with his thanks and pulled back on the control stick.

The Carnation shot straight up into the clouds.

He sped northward.

He flew over vast plains, crossed the Brooks Range, and entered the desolate Tundra.

Compared to civilized society, Feng Shan preferred this silence and desolation. The hustle and bustle of the city was just a passing cloud of smoke, full of hypocrisy and restlessness.

But this barren Tundra before him, with no skyscrapers and no bustling traffic, possessed the purest and most authentic existence.

As the avionics system announced his approach to the destination...

The three snowy peaks of the Crown Territory, like pearls hidden in the wasteland, gradually came into view.

’I’m finally back.’

After flying over the snow-capped mountains, Feng Shan abruptly pushed the control stick forward. The Carnation went into a steep, cliff-like dive, closing in on the Glacial River Beach amidst the howling wind.

At an altitude of one hundred meters above the ground...

Feng Shan was shocked to discover that within the radius of the fire pit, the ground that should have been barren gravel had turned into a circular patch of green grass.

’What’s going on?’

...