Chapter 256: Mind Attack
After paying with crystal cores, the car started again. Zhuang Ai Yi happily ate bite after bite, occasionally commenting with Li Zhuang about the street scenes. Though they didn’t go far, he was very satisfied.
Li Zhuang followed Lu Weiyi’s directions, weaving through streets and alleys. The entire base’s layout eventually appeared on paper in a new form.
Near noon, after crossing half the base and discussing plans, Lu Weiyi decided to eat outside before continuing the mapping in the afternoon, aiming to finish the base’s layout in a day for easier evacuation if needed.
Finally, having a chance to get out of the car, Zhuang Ai Yi jumped and stretched his legs on the ground. Li Zhuang stood beside him, matching his childish moves. The big and small figures made similar playful motions, looking less like security personnel and more like a pair of friends.
Compared to the leisurely crowds on the wide streets earlier, this place had a much more desperate atmosphere. The area was bustling with people, street vendors shouted out their wares, and those in patched-up clothes wore expressions full of hardship. From time to time, beggars in tattered garments, reeking of sourness, shuffled past unsteadily.
The three people standing to the side stood out sharply in this scene, especially the fair and pampered-looking Zhuang Ai Yi. Li Zhuang kept his attention entirely on the two in front of him and stayed alert to any threats around them, so he didn’t notice someone stealthily snapping photos of them from a dark corner.
“This place is too chaotic. Let’s eat somewhere else,” Lu Weiyi scanned the surroundings. Though he was used to being stared at like a piece of juicy meat, it still made him uncomfortable.
Zhuang Ai Yi, drawn in by the enticing aroma in the air, didn’t dare to ask the usually stern Lu Weiyi. Instead, he looked pleadingly at Li Zhuang and even discreetly tugged on his sleeve, hoping he would speak up.
Li Zhuang was amused by the little guy. Glancing at Lu Weiyi, who had also noticed the silent plea but seemed unwilling to squeeze into the crowd, he said, “The food in restaurants is the same old stuff. There’s nothing special. These street snacks, on the other hand—we can buy some here and eat elsewhere.”
Lu Weiyi glanced at the swarming crowd. The strong mix of sweat and body odor hit him even from a distance, and he pressed his lips together in silence.
He wasn’t unfamiliar with hardship. When out hunting zombies, he could go for days without a bath, surrounded by the stench of rotting corpses, and still endure it with a straight face.
But now that conditions allowed for better choices, there was no need to push himself.
“Come on, young master. Consider this a chance to connect with the common people,” Li Zhuang said cheerfully as he picked Zhuang Ai Yi up and placed him on his shoulders. “Hold on tight.”
Zhuang Ai Yi’s little hands instinctively grabbed onto Li Zhuang’s head—clearly, this wasn’t the first time. With his elevated view above the crowd, he looked around in excitement, though he still kept sneaking cautious glances at Lu Weiyi.
“Who knows if we’ll ever see such a complete street food market again. Let’s indulge our little Ai Yi a bit,” Li Zhuang said as he nodded toward the crowd.
Before the apocalypse, every city had several places like this. But now, with bases scattered and some suffering from poor security, such large-scale snack streets had become rare. Lu Weiyi had barely seen any during his travels.
Even if he himself had never explored these places, he was at least aware of them. But for Zhuang Ai Yi…
In this chaotic world, the child’s knowledge and experiences were limited. Opportunities to broaden his horizons were few, and Lu Weiyi couldn’t bear to refuse. He compromised with a nod.
Zhuang Ai Yi visibly brightened and even bounced excitedly a couple of times.
Li Zhuang gave him a light pat on the butt. “You rascal, jumping like that on your uncle’s shoulders.”
“Hehe, Uncle’s the best!” Zhuang Ai Yi giggled and pointed. “Uncle, over there smells amazing. Ai Yi wants to go there!”
“Let’s go buy it!” Li Zhuang declared with flair.
Lu Weiyi hadn’t expected Li Zhuang to act like this around the child.
Raising an eyebrow, he took a few steps forward, then turned and called out, “Little guy, keep up. Don’t get lost.”
Lu Weiyi rolled his eyes at him but still stayed close behind.
As they wove through the tightly packed crowd, accidental bumps and brushes were inevitable. The slender Lu Weiyi staggered after one such bump, and Li Zhuang casually reached out to steady him.
Neither of them thought anything of it and kept moving forward—unaware that a pair of eyes in the crowd had seen the exchange and curved into a sly smile, like a serpent narrowing its gaze.
*
At 3 PM, after a short nap, Zhuang Mingxu resumed his rehabilitation exercises in the courtyard.
When Zhuang Mo Bai’s voice came from outside, he was slightly surprised. “Great-Uncle, what brings you here?”
Seeing he was alone, Zhuang Mingxu hesitated but eventually opened the gate. However, he didn’t invite him into the villa and simply said he needed to focus on his training.
Zhuang Mobai didn’t insist either. He sat down on the steps under the eaves, stretching out his long legs leisurely. “I was out handling some business. Just got back and thought I’d come check on you.”
“Did you have someone draw up a rehab plan? This kind of thing can’t be rushed.”
“I did. Consulted a doctor, too.” Zhuang Mingxu’s forehead was beaded with sweat, but his mood was good—he didn’t mind training under the hot sun at all.
“So, you all plan to leave already?” Zhuang Mobai asked.
Zhuang Mingxu shook his head. “No. Before we came, they took down a list of their family members. They said they’d search for five days. If no one’s found in five days, they’ll be considered dead.”
“When you make a promise, you should keep it. In case someone later uses their families as leverage against the team, we’ll have a legitimate reason to cut ties.” They hadn’t expected the situation to develop like this. Since the list had already been submitted, if someone tried to use it for coercion, it could get tricky.
Zhuang Mingxu was blunt.
“Won’t abandoning them outright cause resentment?” Zhuang Mobai seemed taken aback.
Zhuang Mingxu paused and looked at him, his gaze suddenly icy and indifferent—something he’d never shown in front of Lu Weiyi. He spoke with calm arrogance, “The anger of small people is meaningless.”
Zhuang Mobai fell silent for a moment, studying the man before him. The warmth on his face faded, replaced by a similar look of lofty detachment. It was as if a long-worn mask had cracked open for just a moment—revealing something undeniable: they were family.
Zhuang Mingxu’s eyes narrowed, and when he looked again, Zhuang Mobai had already returned to his usual amiable self. It was as though the moment just now had been an illusion.
Wiping the sweat from the corner of his eye, Zhuang Mingxu looked at this once-familiar great-uncle and, for the first time, found him a bit unfamiliar.
“The establishment of a base does require sacrifice,” Zhuang Mobai offered, as if to smooth over his earlier comment. Then he changed the subject, “Speaking of which… you and Weiyi…”
He looked at Zhuang Mingxu with concern. “Is there something going on between you two?”
“Why do you ask?” Zhuang Mingxu didn’t feel like anything in their previous meetings within the Zhuang family would suggest discord between them.
Zhuang Mobai hesitated, as if unsure whether he should speak. After a long pause, he seemed to make up his mind and handed a phone to Zhuang Mingxu. “I was out buying something just now and saw them…”
Zhuang Mingxu took it, confused, and opened the photo album. There were quite a few pictures, mostly shots of books and documents, but the first few were clearly of people.
It was as if a voice in his head urged him to click, and when he did, the figures of Lu Weiyi and the others immediately appeared.
Li Zhuang and Zhuang Ai Yi were sharing a childish moment, smiling at each other. Lu Weiyi stood beside them, looking at the pair. Sunlight filtered through the roof and cast a hazy glow over his face, softening his usual aloof expression with a hint of warmth.
Zhuang Ai Yi sat on Li Zhuang’s shoulders, holding a skewer of candied hawthorn in one hand and gripping Li Zhuang’s head with the other. He turned to smile at Lu Weiyi, who was also holding a skewer.
And Lu Weiyi’s other arm…
Was being held by Li Zhuang!
Zhuang Mingxu felt a surge of possessiveness, as if something that belonged to him had been taken. The veins in his hands bulged as he gripped the phone tightly, and his tapping finger trembled involuntarily.
“It could just be a misunderstanding. But considering how things have been for you this past year… well, if Weiyi is with someone else, it wouldn’t be entirely unreasonable,” Zhuang Mobai said at just the right moment.
“I wasn’t really on board when you said you’d be leaving with them yesterday, but with Weiyi there, I couldn’t speak up.”
“You’re not the same as before. Back then, Weiyi had no one else to rely on. You had power and status. Even if he wanted to leave you, he couldn’t. But now it’s different.”
“Now, he’s surrounded by powerful ability users. Even if your legs heal, you’re still at a disadvantage. If he wanted to leave you—just hypothetically—there’s nothing you could do.”
Zhuang Mobai noticed Zhuang Mingxu’s simmering rage, and a fleeting smile crossed his eyes. As he continued speaking, an invisible force subtly surrounded Zhuang Mingxu, like a net closing in on him.
“In the end, it all comes down to abilities,” Zhuang Mobai sighed.
At that moment, Zhuang Mingxu swiped to the last photo. In it, Li Zhuang and Lu Weiyi each held one of Zhuang Ai Yi’s hands, lifting him high into the air and then gently swinging him down.
It was Zhuang Ai Yi’s favorite game.
Before the apocalypse, he never had the chance. After the apocalypse, he wasn’t able.
Zhuang Mingxu could already hear the child’s joyful laughter in his mind.
The gleeful giggles seemed to ring in his ears, stabbing at his brain like needles.
He pressed his fingers to his brow to contain the rising anger, handed the phone back to Zhuang Mobai, and tried to sound calm. “They just went out to buy a few things. It’s just a misunderstanding.”
As if to convince Zhuang Mobai, he continued, “Weiyi and I have always had a good relationship. After the apocalypse, when I was injured, he took care of me. On the way back to the capital, he even carried me almost the entire journey.”
Zhuang Mobai’s eyes showed a trace of pity. “Is it possible… that he was just trying to repay you for what you did for him before?”
“So he’d have the right to walk away, with a clear conscience.”
Zhuang Mingxu froze at those words. After a tense pause, he finally responded, “Impossible.”
“You’re mistaken, Granduncle,” he said, emphasizing his tone.
“Alright, maybe I’m just overthinking it,” Zhuang Mobai said, dropping the subject.
He leaned back, looked up at the sky, and the two of them sat in silence for a while.
