Chapter 173: Dependent on Each Other
“This is really served to us on a platter,” Lu Weiyi said with some excitement, “Why not, I’ll go out tonight too, we’ll definitely get more this way.”
“No,” Zhuang Mingxu’s mood, which had been lifted by Lu Weiyi’s bright eyes, immediately darkened. After a moment, he calmly advised, “Tonight, we won’t see anything. It’s not safe.”
“I won’t go into the water, just stay on the boat…”
“I disagree,” Zhuang Mingxu said firmly.
Before the apocalypse, Lu Weiyi rarely had conflicts with Zhuang Mingxu. Back then, there was nothing he particularly cared about, so there were no real disputes.
After the apocalypse, Zhuang Mingxu’s legs started having issues. Although Lu Weiyi didn’t say anything, he still considered his feelings. To avoid causing him distress, the team base’s matters were entrusted to him, never treating him like a disabled person in need of care.
Zhuang Mingxu had always been gentle with him, and their communication was mostly calm and collected. Compared to lovers, it was a bit more formal, but they had never had any conflicts. This was the first time Zhuang Mingxu had been so forceful, and Lu Weiyi was momentarily stunned.
“…Sorry,” Zhuang Mingxu softened first. The flood had limited most people’s movements, and Yun Lu had been almost constantly nearby, reminding Zhuang Mingxu that there was a ticking time bomb between him and Lu Weiyi.
Originally, Zhuang Mingxu had planned to have an open conversation with Lu Weiyi, but with the flood happening, and Lu Weiyi saying he wanted to return to the Capital—it was all for his sake. Zhuang Mingxu didn’t know how to address it and kept delaying it.
“Being able to gather this many crystal cores in one day proves that zombies are definitely more concentrated than we thought. We need to be cautious when going out during the day, and it’s even more dangerous at night. Xiao Yi, you can’t afford to get hurt. You know that,” Zhuang Mingxu said, trying to suppress his frustration and calmly reasoning with Lu Weiyi.
Lu Weiyi nodded and reluctantly put the crystal cores away. “Then we won’t go.”
Zhuang Mingxu sighed in relief.
“I was thinking, if we save up more crystal cores, it’ll be easier when we get to the Capital. We won’t be as restricted,” Lu Weiyi explained plainly, as if landing a punch to Zhuang Mingxu’s heart.
The young man he had been protecting now began to consider these things—he had grown up, but Zhuang Mingxu only felt heartache.
“If I were not like this now, if I were stronger, able to support everything, you’d still be the carefree boy you once were…”
“When we left the Capital, I promised to protect you. Now… I’ve broken my promise,” Zhuang Mingxu said, gripping Lu Weiyi’s hand, lowering his gaze. His eyes were red, his voice hoarse. “I… have dragged you down.”
Lu Weiyi leaned in slightly, resting his head on Zhuang Mingxu’s shoulder, recalling the time they left the Capital.
At that time, Old Master Zhuang had secretly sent two groups of people to kidnap him, but they were stopped by Lin Yimu before they could return. Soon after, Zhuang Mingxu had been beaten half to death, his body wrapped in bandages, burning with fever on a rainy night, as he left the Capital in a rush, taking him along.
As they passed through the the Capital toll station, Lu Weiyi looked back at the place he grew up, while Zhuang Mingxu, covered in blood, had an unsettlingly bright gaze. He had said to Lu Weiyi, “Xiao Yi, from now on, we will rely on each other. I will protect you for the rest of our lives.”
He had said it and had done it. Even in the past life when he died, Lu Weiyi remained the precious person he had always cherished. Even if Zhuang Mingxu was no longer as strong this life, Lu Weiyi never regretted the sacrifices, for compared to what he gained in the past life, the little he had given was worth so much more.
“Did you forget? We rely on each other. There’s no such thing as a burden,” Lu Weiyi softly said, reaching out to touch his leg. “Don’t be sad. It will be okay.”
The two who relied on each other only had one another—there was no such thing as burden.
The knot in his heart was undone by that simple phrase. It had always been like this—whenever Lu Weiyi made a move, Zhuang Mingxu would willingly walk all the way with him.
Not to mention, now that he had truly gone so far, Zhuang Mingxu felt that he might be able to face Yun Lu calmly. He sighed deeply, but he didn’t know what to do about Lu Weiyi.
*
Zombies were everywhere, and it was even heard that many zombies were climbing up buildings and attacking humans. Some places, especially those without guards at night, had been attacked, and the number of injured people was countless.
Lu Weiyi was immediately relieved that he hadn’t gone out at night. Fortunately, after the flood, they had been assigning people to guard every night. No attacks had happened at their place.
With several times the usual gains, Lu Weiyi redistributed the team, even offering a “high salary” of thirty crystal cores. The people going out were split into two teams, and they resumed their busy days from morning to night.
The group, bold and skilled, took advantage of the fact that others dared not venture out, and managed to sneak into a few warehouses. After looting them, they wickedly destroyed some of the storage places to make it look like they had been destroyed by the flood.
Although they needed to avoid people just in case, any warehouse they could get would yield plenty of supplies. In a few days, they had made significant progress.
After three or four days, under the constant care of two doctors, Zhuang Ai Yi’s health finally improved, and he looked much thinner.
The weather had completely cleared, the flood had receded significantly, and now the water only reached their calves. It felt like in a few more days, it would be gone entirely.
With the water level lower, the zombies hidden below began to show, and everyone realized that the area had turned into a zombie haven.
People from each building gathered to discuss whether to expel the zombies together or choose a new base.
One early morning, just as the sky was lightening and everyone hadn’t eaten yet, Li Qing, along with Lei Jun and several others, arrived, wading through the water while being chased by zombies. They looked as miserable as could be.
The second floor had been flooded, and everywhere had marks. Everyone was still sleeping on the third floor, and seeing them wet and muddy, the group expressed their deep sympathy.
“You guys stay soaked every day. Aren’t you worried about problems?” Xu Sa’s joking gaze shifted to the two’s lower halves.
“Go away, go away. Stop cursing me. I’m fine,” Li Qing retorted with a laugh, noticing the others were eating, and immediately called out to Xi Shi, “Xi Shi, Xi Shi, my dear brother, give me a bowl. I haven’t had hot food for days.”
Since they were about to leave, Lu Weiyi had asked Xi Shi to prepare food for the journey. Xi Shi had recovered and quickly resumed his chef role. With more helpers, he wasn’t as busy.
In the morning, he made tomato soup with green vegetables, dried black fungus, and a large pot of colorful stew, alongside a big plate of stir-fried shredded potatoes and steamed buns.
“You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you? Trying to catch us during mealtime?” Lin Yimu smiled as he spoke, handing his own bowl to Li Qing for him to drink, then grabbing a bag of flour and washing some vegetables, preparing to cook another pot of soup to serve everyone something warm.
“Heh, Captain really knows me well.” Li Qing took the bowl without feeling any shame, then directly expressed his deep gratitude and sincere thanks to his “food and clothing benefactor,” Lu Weiyi.
“Speak up, what brings you here so early?” Zhuang Mingxu peeled two boiled eggs, his exclusive ones for Zhuang Ai Yi, and put them in his bowl.
“There is something,” Li Qing said, slurping half a bowl of soup and letting out a satisfied sigh before continuing, “The families who survived in the base are discussing the reconstruction of the base. They’ve scheduled a meeting for this afternoon, so I came to inform you.”
“A new base? Where is it?” Zhuang Mingxu asked.
“It’s not confirmed yet. We’re going there to discuss it. We might stay here and drive out the zombies together, or we might go to the small mountain in front and rebuild there,” Li Qing shrugged and looked around, finally turning his gaze to Lu Weiyi. “Are you really planning to leave?”
“Mm,” Lu Weiyi nodded, “After the water goes down.”
“The water has submerged most of the vehicles. We can only leave on foot. There are zombies everywhere due to the flood. Some people want to leave, but I heard they haven’t, and they didn’t come back… You all should…” Li Qing shared what he had learned, knowing the reason for their departure was to treat Zhuang Mingxu’s leg, and while he couldn’t persuade them to stay, he added, “Wait until the road isn’t so muddy before leaving?”
Lu Weiyi shook his head. “We’ll leave in a day or two. The weather’s been changing, and no one knows if another heavy rain or flood will come. You’d better not rebuild here.”
In today’s world, everyone is focused on their own fate, and no one can say anything. During the brief silence, Lin Yimu had finished cooking the soup and told them to help themselves.
“Alright,” Li Qing finished his soup, then refilled his bowl and, while doing so, silently stared at Lin Yimu for a moment. But when Lin Yimu turned around, he quickly looked away and said, “I’ll send you off then.”
*
The farewell they expected never came. That same day, they were visited by the Ji family.
Lu Weiyi led a group to hunt zombies near the base, and aside from a few ordinary people in the villa, some supernatural beings had been assigned to keep watch for zombie attacks.
When their group was near, they were informed about Zhuang Mingxu. Zhuang Mingxu stood by the second-floor window, looking around nervously like a startled bird, on high alert.
The leader of the group was Ji Heng, who looked much older after the flood. His back was hunched, his clothes were stained with mud, and beside him, Jiang Fu no longer looked like a wealthy lady. Her once-pristine hairstyle was filthy, clearly having gone a long time without washing. Holding her hand was Ji Li, who no longer looked like the young master, but more like a monkey covered in dirt.
Ji Lin wore clothes covered in mud spots, making her appear no different from the women in refugee areas, and the usually proud Ji Jin had bruises on her face, likely from being punched.
