Chapter 26

Xue Ling sat in the driver’s seat, staring straight ahead and driving with utmost seriousness.

Wen Jiuze dozed off in the passenger seat, hugging his arms. There was a pile of books under his feet, leaving little room for his long legs, forcing him to sleep with his legs apart.

He was sleeping so soundly that even the bumpy road didn’t wake him.

A zombie appeared on the road ahead. Xue Ling couldn’t avoid it, so she ran it over, causing the car to shake again.

Wen Jiuze remained asleep, clearly more comfortable in the car than on the bunk bed at night.

After driving for a while, a zombie suddenly lunged at them from the roadside, crashing into the driver’s side window and startling Xue Ling.

But it was quickly thrown off the car. Xue Ling noticed the gray handprints on the window and let out a frustrated growl.

Her voice was soft, but it abruptly woke Wen Jiuze. He sat up straight, looking at Xue Ling, then grabbed the back of his neck and squeezed it.

“What’s wrong?”

Realizing something was off, he glanced out the window and asked, “Did you take a wrong turn?”

Xue Ling was busy driving and had no time to answer him. Wen Jiuze didn’t press further, closing his eyes again when he saw she was focused.

When they finally arrived, Xue Ling punched his arm to wake him up. Wen Jiuze noticed a prominent city landmark in the distance.

Xue Ling drove to the once-prosperous Xin City. Compared to Xin City, Anxi City felt more like a small town.

Xue Ling removed her gloves and hat and informed him: I’m going to the city to buy things for free, you wait for me here.

There was no need to ask her what she was searching for in the city, it was obviously for him.

Wen Jiuze pulled her back into the car. “It’s still a long way to the city. It’ll take you half a day to walk there, and then you’ll need to drive a bit further.”

Xue Ling had stopped the car here because she was worried about too many zombies ahead. But Wen Jiuze was skilled and brave, and the way he drove seemed to lead straight into a crowd of zombies.

As more and more zombies appeared outside, banging on the car windows, Xue Ling began to feel restless.

She feared that if they stopped the car, Wen Jiuze would be surrounded.

In a place swarming with zombies, Xue Ling worried about the possibility of getting stuck, just like the many people she had seen commit suicide in their cars.

“You’re a zombie now, so be brave!” Wen Jiuze encouraged.

Xue Ling suspected he was still half asleep.

After a thrilling display of driving skills, Wen Jiuze luckily found an area with fewer zombies and parked the car.

Xue Ling told him to wait there while she got out, but Wen Jiuze exited the vehicle too.

Xue Ling: “?”

Wen Jiuze replied, “Aren’t there fewer zombies here? Let’s move forward together.”

Did he forget the last time they were chased by zombies?

It was dangerous, yet she felt compelled to follow him. She would soon be surrounded, and the zombies were so large that she could only block their heads, not their feet.

Despite her concerns, Wen Jiuze insisted on following her. She couldn’t force him back to the car, so she quickened her pace, walking ahead to scout the road conditions and locate a path with fewer zombies.

Wen Jiuze brandished a dagger and dispatched several zombies that were running along the roadside. He noticed Xue Ling comparing the number of zombies on two streets ahead, and when she waved to him, he followed.

They soon reached a point where the number of zombies was too overwhelming to pass. Wen Jiuze stopped and said, “I’ll wait for you here.”

If he hadn’t halted, Xue Ling would have wanted to turn around and go back.

After a moment, Wen Jiuze entered the adjacent residential building. He stepped over old black bloodstains in the corridor, climbed to the roof, found a suitable spot, and took out his telescope to look for Xue Ling.

Among the aimless zombies, Xue Ling stood out. She had a clear goal and headed straight for the shopping mall.

Then he watched as she was stopped outside the closed mall doors.

He saw her pacing in front of several large doors, kicking them but unable to open them, and smashing the glass but failing to break it. She then stood on tiptoe, peering inside, clearly reluctant to give up.

Wen Jiuze, watching through the telescope, couldn’t help but smile.

She was adorable.

Even though she couldn’t enter through this door, Xue Ling didn’t get discouraged. She went to search for other entrances, and her figure soon disappeared from view.

Wen Jiuze continued to hold the telescope, scanning for her.

After waiting a long time, Xue Ling reappeared.

She was wearing an oversized coat and had bags in both hands as if she had just come out of the supermarket.

Either she never went to the supermarket, or she bought a lot each time she did. She loved stocking up, often buying a year’s worth of supplies for her family.

When Wen Jiuze lived with her, she would drag him to the supermarket.

The large supermarket near their home had a high foot traffic. People from several surrounding communities enjoyed shopping there, and the store often held promotional activities, drawing in crowds.

Once, there was a dumpling promotion. Xue Ling loved dumplings, and when she saw people rushing to grab them and an auntie exclaiming how delicious they were, she was immediately tempted to join in.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t squeeze through. Seeing her eager face outside the crowd, Wen Jiuze decided to help. He lifted her under the armpits, allowing her to land directly in the inner circle.

Though they managed to grab some delicious dumplings that day, Xue Ling flopped onto the sofa as soon as they got home, burying her face in the pillow and refusing to lift it.

She ignored him for hours until he cooked dumplings for dinner and called her to eat, at which point she finally got up.

As she sat at the table, eating a dumpling, she suddenly sniffled and said, “I’m so embarrassed today.”

“Embarrassed? They don’t even know you,” he replied.

“…But from today on, you know me.”

After Wen Jiuze moved in with her, he became quite famous in the area because of his height and appearance, and the aunts and grandmas nearby talked about him in private.

Some speculated he was a model, others claimed he was a martial arts star from Hong Kong, while some thought he might be a gangster.

Xue Ling wasn’t as famous anymore, but after that incident, more people recognized her.

When people talked about her, they said things like, “The girl who jumped onto the counter to grab dumplings,” or “I heard she climbed onto the shelf and stepped on others’ heads to grab dumplings,” and even “She had a spat with her boyfriend in the supermarket and was thrown into the crowd by him.” The stories became more exaggerated each time.

Because of that incident, Xue Ling became reluctant to let him accompany her to the supermarket. Whenever they went, she would ask him to wait far away while she shopped.

Just like now.

Wen Jiuze used his telescope to watch Xue Ling exit the store. As he was about to go down to meet her, he saw her looking around the street before turning into another one.

Wen Jiuze frowned. He couldn’t see that street from the rooftop.

After waiting a bit longer, the sky began to darken, and he realized he couldn’t wait any longer. He surveyed the surrounding terrain, contemplating the feasibility of crossing between buildings and navigating the street teeming with zombies to reach the other side.

Before he could make a move, Xue Ling appeared again.

She was loaded down with bags and carrying a large object in her hands. Although her expression was a bit stiff, her happiness was evident in her stride.

As she walked, one of the bags slipped from her grip. She turned back to retrieve it, only to drop another.

While she dragged herself past the block with the most zombies, Wen Jiuze hurried to help her. He quickly realized that the item she was struggling with was a large ham.

He could practically see the excitement shining in her eyes. “Look, it’s a big ham!”

After so long, he had forgotten to ask whether the ham was still good. He took all her items, scooped her up, and hurried to the parking lot.

The oversized men’s jacket she wore bulged uncomfortably. Once they reached the car, Wen Jiuze set her down and rubbed her shoulders.

“What’s that you’re wearing?” he asked.

Xue Ling pulled her coat aside, revealing a shiny gold chain around her neck.

Wen Jiuze: “…”

Xue Ling raised her arms again, and the sleeves of her coat slipped down, exposing dozens of gold bracelets on her arms.

Wen Jiuze: “…”

He had mentioned to Xue Ling that gold could still be used as currency in the large base. After all, relying solely on bartering with materials wasn’t very practical.

But when he saw Xue Ling’s unique appearance as a gold shop robber, Wen Jiuze almost laughed.

Xue Ling felt inexplicably excited. After showing off what she wore and what hung on her body, he checked her pockets and found them filled with gold.

As Wen Jiuze took those items off her, he thought to himself that she truly looked like a glittering rich lady.

However, Xue Ling’s excitement about the gold didn’t last long.

She had also brought back some medicines she found at the pharmacy. Knowing they would expire if not used, she took more than she usually would.

But this time, there was not enough time to be selective, so she only picked out some medicines for injuries.

Additionally, she gathered some daily necessities like clothes. Wen Jiuze, who had several holes in his own clothes, finally realized the freedom of dressing without exposing his back in the wilderness.

What Xue Ling cared about most was the large ham.

When Wen Jiuze drove away and found an open roadside to prepare a meal, Xue Ling squatted beside the ham to examine it.

Thanks to her determination, she had managed to drag back such a heavy ham.

Xue Ling poked the ham with a twig and asked Wen Jiuze if it was still edible.

She felt she had seen this kind of ham before. It could be kept for a long time.

Wen Jiuze wasn’t sure if it was still good, but he calmly scraped off the white hair from the ham and said, “It’s edible. Of course, it is. I’ll cut a little and try it later.”

Since she had gone through the trouble of dragging it back, he had to eat it, even if it was not ideal.

Xue Ling was indeed happy and urged him to cook quickly.

Seeing how eager she was, Wen Jiuze wasn’t sure if she wanted to treat him to something delicious or just wanted to know if the ham was still edible.

Wen Jiuze cleared a space for himself to cook while Xue Ling watched from the side. Just before the meal was ready, a large convoy arrived.

Wen Jiuze set down what he was holding, and Xue Ling reacted quickly, moving toward the car. He helped her put on her hat, glasses, gloves and also put a mask on her.

“I’ll be in the car soon. I’m going to check out the situation.”

Wen Jiuze stepped out with his gun raised high.

So far, they had only encountered small convoys on the road. This was the first time they saw a large convoy of more than 20 vehicles, including large trucks.

Typically, such convoys are used for long-distance cargo transport. They are strong and the people in them lead comfortable lives, generally not bothering to rob lone passersby, though there are exceptions.

Some individuals in the convoy have low moral standards and may create trouble just for fun. Wen Jiuze had encountered such people before.

After observing the large convoy and assessing what goods they were transporting and where they were headed, Wen Jiuze formulated a plan and remained calm, leaning against the side of the car as he waited for the convoy to pass.

Occasionally, people in the vehicles glanced at him, but he paid little attention. Just as the convoy was about to pass, a truck suddenly stopped.

A man with a crew cut leaned out of the window and stared at Wen Jiuze.

“Brother Jiu? Is that you? Damn, Brother Jiu, what are you doing here?”

Wen Jiuze recognized him, surprised, and rarely smiled. “Lin Zi?”

As soon as the truck stopped, the vehicles behind it also halted. The crew-cut man, oblivious to everything else, displayed a face full of excitement at seeing an acquaintance, nearly climbing out of the window.

“Damn! Brother Jiu! I haven’t seen you in years. It’s really you. Just looking at you, it seems like you haven’t changed at all. Hahahaha!”

People in the surrounding cars leaned out to see what was happening, and someone shouted, “Lin Guosheng! What are you doing standing there?”

“It’s Brother Jiu, come and take a look!” the crew-cut man called out, prompting seven or eight heads to pop out.

Soon, the entire convoy came to a stop, and several strong men jumped out from the front and back, surrounding Wen Jiuze along with the man with the crew cut.

Xue Ling watched this gathering scene through a gap in the car window and recognized them. They were all from Yu City.

Although they appeared to be gangsters, they were actually instructors at a children’s martial arts training class.

Wen Jiuze used to work there part-time, so Xue Ling also went to find Wen Jiuze.