Chapter 0001: The Purple Little Bug

Sitting at the entrance of the small building with a frown, the pine wood door behind Li and Du was pushed open, and a blonde, blue-eyed girl peeked out: "Hi, Li, are you here?"

Li Du interrupted her, exclaiming: "I understand what you mean, you think I am crazy! But I am not crazy, Hannah! I just cannot go to school, it does not mean I am going to lose my mind..."

Just as he was shouting hoarsely, a small insect slowly burrowed out of his skin and jumped to the ground, propping itself up with its two legs and began to walk on the ground like a person.

Now that the school has been shut down, he will definitely be unable to continue his graduate studies. How could he possibly have the face to ask his elderly parents for money? As for seeking help from classmates and friends, he, being proud, does not wish to do that either

This young woman is his landlord, named Hannah Fox. The house is an inheritance left by her parents who passed away in a car accident, belonging to her and her brother Hans Fox

Hannah looked bewildered: "The bug in your palm? Where is there a bug in your palm?"

At that time, their textbook included a text titled "Amber". When the language teacher conducted the class, he brought along a piece of amber

Flagstaff American College is a branch of American College, belonging to a reputable private university, offering undergraduate, associate, and preparatory education

He had not yet reacted when the little insect jumped into his palm, its head drooping downwards, slowly and gradually burrowing into the center of his hand

However, Hannah's methods of comforting him were limited; she either gifted him an inspirational book or offered him beer

Hearing the call, Li Du stood up and said, "Oh, yes, Hannah, is there something you need?"

The young woman shrugged and smiled, a dimple appearing on her lovely face: "I just saw a few cans of beer while cleaning the refrigerator, they must have been left by that guy Hans. I remember you like malt beer, why not drink it?"

Not only are there insects, but these insects are also moving. After burrowing into the palms of Li and Du, they seem unwilling to remain still, and now one is starting to burrow back out, with half of its body emerging.

Li Du opened his hand to show her: "This is it, this bug in the palm of my hand!"

The United States, Arizona, the Grand Canyon, and Las Vegas are names that many Chinese people have heard of, but the city of Flagstaff, which is nestled in between these four regions, is likely known to fewer people.

At that moment, a strange occurrence took place: the little insect's claw suddenly moved, then quickly regained its vitality, wriggling its body to break free from between his fingers

According to his speculation, this beer was bought by Hannah to comfort him. After learning that their school had been shut down, Hannah had consoled him multiple times, which deeply moved him

Unfortunately, at this moment, he has run out of money

However, his situation is not much better than that of his classmates. It is now the end of January, and his rent has already expired. If he does not pay the rent in time, he may end up on the streets

Seeing these beers, Li Du also smiled. There is only a small refrigerator in the apartment, and he opens and closes it every day, but there are no beers inside

Li and Du are considered fortunate, as the school accommodations are quite chaotic. In order to focus on his studies, he chose not to stay in the dormitory, but instead rented an apartment room, so at least he has a place to stay. Meanwhile, his classmates who paid for dormitory accommodation are now wandering the streets.

The small insect resembles a grasshopper, measuring approximately 2 centimeters in length. Its appearance is peculiar, featuring compound eyes similar to those of a grasshopper, but it has only two legs beneath its abdomen, which are adorned with strange patterns. It lacks wings on its back, giving it a rather clumsy appearance

In social interactions in the United States, there are certain gifts that cannot be declined, as doing so may be misunderstood as a rejection of friendship. He values his friendship with Hannah greatly

Speaking of Hans's temperament, if there were really beer, he would definitely not stay behind; this guy is addicted to alcohol.

Unfortunately, this one has already cracked, which makes him very regretful; otherwise, selling it could have potentially covered two months' living expenses

Li and Du were so scared that they nearly wet themselves, they really need to urinate

Li and Du pointed at the worm that was burrowing out, and exclaimed in terror: "This one, the purple locust, can't you see it?"

However, Hans claims that he "has big business to attend to" and will only stay for a few days throughout the year, leaving the vacant bedroom to be rented out by Hannah for income generation

Of course, he can borrow money from his parents and friends or classmates in his home country, but there is a prerequisite: he is studying abroad

Flagstaff, also known as the City of the Flagpole, is a small town in the western United States

However, as he just opened the wooden box, a piece of crystal that resembled amber suddenly fell out with a "crack" and landed on the ground

Flagstaff is not well-known domestically or in the United States, but it does have several good universities, such as Northern Arizona University and the American College of Flagstaff

The reason for speculating that this is amber is that its color is light yellow, and it contains a small insect, resembling a piece of amber he had seen in the sixth grade of elementary school

Six months ago, Li Du was also one of the "few" until he came to Qigang City to study abroad

"Xue Te, this bug has come out again!"

After repeating this American slang a few times, Li and Du opened the package to take out a can of beer

Geographically, it is located in the northern part of Arizona, on the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau, adjacent to the gambling city of Las Vegas to the west, and to the east, one can see the famous Grand Canyon.

She is carrying a half dozen bottles of beer in her hand, packaged in a common wooden box, prominently featuring the Budweiser logo

The insect in amber coming back to life is already quite terrifying, but then this thing, like an alien, forcibly burrowed into the palm of his hand, transforming into something akin to a tattoo

What about Flagstaff National College? It is a diploma mill, and Li and Du were completely misled into pursuing graduate studies there

Suddenly, Hannah's expression was even more terrified than his, and then the girl slowly retreated while saying: "Li, I know that the news of the school being shut down is hard for you to accept, but I believe you are a warrior, a tough guy..."

However, an unbelievable scene occurred!

Upon seeing this, Li and Du were greatly pleased and said, "This is wonderful, the bug has fallen into the drain."

Li and Du accepted Hannah's kindness, considering it as a favor owed to the young lady

The school that Li and Du studied at is called Flagstaff National College, which differs from Flagstaff American College by just one word, yet the difference between these two words is as vast as heaven and earth

Unconsciously, a thought arose in his mind: what is in the drain? Could there be sewage that would drown this insect?

With a cry of anguish, he stumbled into the house, shouting: "Hannah, call 911 quickly! Help, there are bugs crawling into my hand!"

This American girl once sought to understand Chinese culture from him and learned the saying "A drink can relieve a thousand sorrows"

As a result, after only half a year of paying his tuition and research funding, the school was shut down. The members of the school's board and the admissions department received advance notice and fled, leaving a group of international students bewildered as they were driven away from the campus by the police

Just then, next to where it landed was a drainage outlet, and the little bug, not paying attention, walked over and fell right in.

Li and Du had never seen such a bug, and they curiously lifted it up to get a better look.

He took the wooden box, and Hannah smiled as she left, saying before departing: "There are many problems in life, yet it is still beautiful"

It is estimated that his screams were too piercing, and when Hannah came out, her expression was one of panic: "What? What kind of bug?"

This crystal reminded him of some beautiful moments from his childhood; he recalled that the teacher had once said that amber containing small insects is very precious

This crystal is approximately the size of his thumb pad. It fell heavily onto the cement floor, resulting in several cracks appearing on its surface

She believed that, according to the character of Chinese people, drinking to the point of drunkenness and then sleeping it off could alleviate sorrow, so she offered him beer several times.

The crystal was severely shattered; after he picked it up, it was already broken, and the small purple insect wrapped inside was exposed