Chapter 47.2

The rich aroma filled the air, and Wen Jiuze sat cross-legged beside the pot, the wind blowing through his hair.

Xue Ling couldn’t sit still, so she wandered around. After a while, she returned with a handful of green grass and tossed it into the pot.

Wen Jiuze watched but didn’t stop her. He casually asked, “What’s that?”

“Wild vegetables!” Xue Ling wrote.

Seeing her busy and happy, Wen Jiuze couldn’t resist teasing her in a mysterious tone: “I don’t think so. Are you sure about that?”

Xue Ling suddenly doubted herself after his questioning.

She had seen pictures of these plants online and believed they were wild vegetables, but now she wasn’t so sure.

Watching the green bubbling in the pot, Xue Ling lost some confidence.

“Do you know about wild vegetables?” she asked.

“I don’t know them,” Wen Jiuze replied frankly.

You don’t know, and yet you’re asking if it looks right! 

Xue Ling threw the spoon into the pot, telling him to just shut up and eat.

She got up again, picking several handfuls of wild vegetables and adding them to the pot.

Wen Jiuze had already eaten his fill of wild vegetables before he could even get a bite of the goose.

As the sky gradually darkened, the goose was finally ready. Wen Jiuze sat by the pot, eating the meat with chopsticks.

Xue Ling sat next to him, pointing out which pieces tasted best, making sure he felt involved.

At dusk, the sky glowed with brilliant golden, orange, and red hues, as though it were about to ignite.

The sky was burning, ushering in the night.

Wen Jiuze had told Xue Ling to keep watch, but when night fell, he didn’t leave her alone. Instead, he sat beside her and stayed with her for a long time.

Xue Ling urged him to go to bed, but he said, “I ate too much and feel too full to sleep.”

He waited until midnight before going to bed to let the food digest.

The next day, the sun was shining. A car drove out of the base and gradually approached their vehicle.

The captain of the convoy had dealt with Wen Jiuze several times before. The two weren’t very familiar with each other, but the captain had come specifically to inform Wen Jiuze that Beizheng Base was recruiting a special operations team.

He explained the difficulty of the test and the benefits of passing it, and finally said, “If you’re planning to join, head to the base and sign up.”

The captain had thought about it all night and decided to go out and deliver the message to Wen Jiuze.

First, Wen Jiuze had come here to treat his loved one’s illness, so they were in a similar situation.

Second, they both came from the same place, and if they registered together, they might be able to look after each other.

However, Wen Jiuze directly refused when he heard it.

The captain was puzzled. “Don’t you want to get that vaccine? Don’t you want to treat your loved one’s illness?”

Wen Jiuze responded, “Thank you for coming to tell me, but I have my own plans.”

After seeing off the captain, Wen Jiuze asked Xue Ling, “They’re planning to head to the Beizheng Base in a couple of days. So, any instructions?”

“Do you want to go with them to check out the area around Beizheng Base, or should we part ways here and find a place to live on our own?”

Xue Ling, of course, still wanted to go and take a look at Beizheng Base. As long as she didn’t enter the base, it would be fine.

The captain returned to the base and found several team members talking to the Sheng siblings.

“Captain, what do you think? Is Wen Jiuze going to sign up with you?” asked one of the team members.

The captain shook his head. “He won’t sign up.”

The Sheng siblings had also heard from their grandfather about the special team recruiting people. They had learned that the captain had gone out to invite Wen Jiuze, so they came to inquire. They were surprised to hear that he refused.

After leaving the captain’s small courtyard, the younger sister was still wondering, “Wen Jiuze is so powerful, why isn’t he going to participate? Doesn’t he want to get the qualification to live in Beizheng Base?”

Her brother said, “Have you noticed which bases he’s stopped at along the way? Last time, we hadn’t even gotten close before he drove us off. I’m guessing there’s something strange about his girlfriend—maybe she can’t be seen by others, which is why he’s keeping his distance from everyone.”

“Wen Jiuze was probably delayed because of his girlfriend. Otherwise, if he were alone…” As the younger sister spoke, she noticed several gazes on them, and her voice involuntarily dropped.

When she saw the lion-head tattoos on the men’s arms, she instinctively moved closer to her brother, feeling a little afraid.

These men had escaped from Yishi Base over half a month ago.

Their skills were better than ordinary people, especially their leader, the fourth brother. He had been spotted by the base leader responsible for recruitment and was preparing to take part in the assessment.

There were many rules at this base. When they first arrived, they were much more restrained. They knew what they couldn’t do, and they were nearly bored to death.

Seeing a young, beautiful girl walking outside the yard, two or three men couldn’t control their eyes and followed her with strange, lingering gazes.

Only one man, who looked steady and honest, frowned because of the name they mentioned.

“Wen Jiu?”

He stood up and walked over to ask the Sheng siblings, “Did you just mention Wen Jiu?”

The younger sister whispered fearfully, “No.”

Her brother didn’t want to provoke them, so he quickly explained, “No, we were talking about Wen Jiuze, a man in our team.”

“I just heard you mention him. Is he very powerful? Where is he? Call him out so we can take a look,” the honest-looking man said. His sharp eyes flashed with suspicion.

A young man who had been eyeing the woman chimed in, “What powerful person? Call him out and let us see if he’s stronger than our fourth brother.”

The honest man shot him a warning look, then turned back to the Sheng siblings.

“I heard the name and thought he sounded a bit like an old acquaintance of ours, so I asked.”

“The person we know is called Wen Jiuze. He’s very skilled, can use a gun, and is good with a short knife. He’s tall and good-looking.”

The Sheng family’s older brother said, “That’s quite a coincidence. Wen Jiu also uses a short knife. He might be someone you know.”

The man who was asking turned to look at the fourth brother, who was sitting on a stool smoking. Then he put his arm around the Sheng family’s older brother and said, “Come on, tell us more in detail.”

The Sheng siblings shared what little they knew and ran off.

Though they didn’t know much, their descriptions were exactly the same as the Wen Jiu they knew.

The fourth brother pressed the cigarette butt in his hand onto the chair’s armrest with a dark expression.

“It’s him.”

“I’ve been looking for him for so long, and I didn’t expect to find him here.”

After the incident at Yishi Base, Old Four had lost his three sworn brothers one by one. He blamed it all on Wen Jiu and had issued a wanted notice for him in several nearby bases, but there had been no news.

He failed in his attempt to seize power and no longer cared about causing trouble for others. Like a stray dog, he left Yishi Base and fled north with the few remaining men who followed him.

Still, he never forgot his enemies.

He vowed to make a comeback in the northern base and one day take revenge on all those who wronged him.

One of his enemies was right in front of him, and the fourth brother couldn’t wait any longer.

“Let’s go see if it’s our old acquaintance.”

The fourth brother stood up, gathered a few men, and they left the base in their car.

Today, Wen Jiuze drove a little farther away from the base.

In the wilderness, where zombies could appear at any time, it was best not to stay in one place for too long.

So, they left their original spot and followed the road that led to Beizheng Base, stopping at an open, flat area.

When the car carrying the fourth brother and his companions approached, Wen Jiuze was packing his belongings by the car.

At first, he thought it was just someone from the convoy.

But then the car sped directly toward them without slowing down. It continued to accelerate, and someone leaned out of the window.

Wen Jiuze, with better eyesight than most, quickly saw the situation and dropped what he was holding.

Xue Ling, who was carrying a clean pot, was about to approach, but Wen Jiuze grabbed her with one hand and threw both her and the pot into the car.

He jumped in, started the engine, and quickly sped toward the road ahead.

The car crashed into an obstacle with a jolt, sending Xue Ling, who was holding the pot on the passenger seat, flying forward.

Wen Jiuze gripped the steering wheel with one hand, his eyes focused on the rearview mirror, watching the car behind them close in. With his other hand, he reached out to steady Xue Ling and prevented her from hitting the windshield.

The pot fell to the floor at her feet. Xue Ling sat up straight, holding onto the handrail and Wen Jiuze’s arm, and made a sound of confusion.

Wen Jiuze spoke calmly, “An enemy has come to seek revenge.”

Xue Ling: “…”

Enemies suddenly appeared in the wilderness to seek revenge? Do you have a lot of enemies?