Chapter 15
“What’s a little suffering? If we hadn’t suffered a bit, we wouldn’t even have been able to see you, you brat.” Father Ye waved his hand dismissively.
“Don’t just stand at the door. This must be your friend, right?” Mother Ye smiled and wanted to pat Xia Chenxi’s shoulder, but when she realized she could not reach it, she patted his arm instead. “So tall.”
“He’s my roommate, and also my benefactor. Without him, your son wouldn’t have made it here to see you.”
Hearing that he was their son’s benefactor, Father Ye politely welcomed Xia Chenxi inside. “Young man, thank you for taking care of our brat. May I ask your surname?”
Standing to the side, Ye Xuan imitated Father Ye. “May I ask your surname? But when it comes to your son, it’s just brat, brat.”
“No proper manners at all.” Father Ye kicked at Ye Xuan. Ye Xuan was already so tired he had no strength left. His legs went weak, and he almost dropped to his knees. Fortunately, Xia Chenxi was beside him and supported him.
Judging from the atmosphere of their family, Ye Xuan had grown up in a very happy household. Xia Chenxi’s definition of happiness had once been simply being able to eat his fill. But now, seeing the genuine smile on Ye Xuan’s face, the definition of happiness seemed to have changed. He could not help feeling envious. This was something he did not have, and would never have in the future.
“Uncle, Ye Xuan is exaggerating. My name is Xia Chenxi. He trained for the whole day today, so his body can’t quite take it.”
The moment Father Ye saw that Ye Xuan was about to fall, he had already reached out, but Xia Chenxi had been a step faster. His hand remained suspended in midair, and a trace of regret appeared on his face.
After Ye Xuan steadied himself, he thought that the old couple had already worried enough about him. He did not want them to worry too much, so he chuckled and said, “Old man, it’s normal to be tired on the first day of training. But you, on the other hand, how come your kick has no strength at all?”
“Alright, alright. Go sit on the sofa with your friend for a while. Your dad and mom will show off our skills for you.” Mother Ye pushed Ye Xuan and Xia Chenxi inside, then pulled Father Ye toward the kitchen.
“Look at you. Ruining the mood.”
“Wife, it was my fault.”
“You’d better cook a proper meal to reward our son and that young man.”
“Yes.”
The two people over fifty years old entered the kitchen like guilty thieves.
“My parents are just like that,” Ye Xuan explained to Xia Chenxi.
Xia Chenxi nodded. “They’re nice.”
For a couple past fifty to still be this harmonious was rare even among ordinary married couples. Most couples, after getting past the seven-year itch, lived as plainly as water, with no passion left. The man’s male chauvinism would gradually show itself, making an already indifferent life even worse. Yet Ye Xuan’s father was actually the rare kind of man who was henpecked.
“Aiya, that’s because my dad was the one who threw himself at her. When he was young, he shamelessly chased my mom for years. Top-tier simp level.”
The kitchen door was pulled open with a swish. Father Ye held a spatula with a dark expression on his face. “You brat, your dad is old, not deaf. I think your skin is itching for a beating.”
“Why are you arguing with a child? Did he say anything wrong? If you did it, you should admit it.” Mother Ye pulled Father Ye back into the kitchen. “You two keep chatting.”
The kitchen door closed again.
“Wife, that brat doesn’t give me any face at all.”
“What use is that old face of yours?”
The corners of Xia Chenxi’s mouth lifted. He turned to look at Ye Xuan. “Your parents are very interesting.”
“If you want, you can come over as a guest every week. My parents’ cooking is amazing.”
“Mm, alright.”
Father Ye and Mother Ye prepared a sumptuous dinner for Ye Xuan and Xia Chenxi. The few of them exchanged small talk at the table, just like they were at home.
After dinner, Ye Xuan and Xia Chenxi did not plan to stay long. After all, Ye Xuan still had to get up early for training tomorrow.
“Dad, Mom, the family quarters are too far away. From now on, I’ll come once a week, okay?”
“What? You brat.”
Mother Ye held Father Ye back. “Your dad just can’t bear to part with you. Forget once a week—even once a month would be fine. Now that you’re in the base, you can’t grow slowly under our wings anymore. Xuan, from now on, you need to follow your own pace and live well in the base.”
Then she bowed to Xia Chenxi. “Young man, I’ll leave our Ye Xuan in your care. You’re steady and reliable. I feel very reassured with Ye Xuan following you.”
Xia Chenxi helped Mother Ye up. “Auntie, what are you doing? Roommates should support each other.”
Mother Ye waved kindly at them. “Go back early and rest well.”
The moment the door closed, Ye Xuan heard his father crying like a child.
“Wife, our Xuan… I still can’t stop worrying about him.”
The door shut completely, cutting off the sounds inside.
“If only my parents had communication wristbands too. Unfortunately…”
The base’s combat readiness resources were limited. Only team members and important personnel had communication wristbands. Ordinary people had no right to have them at all. With the network signal paralyzed, phones had turned into bricks. From now on, if he wanted to talk to his parents, he could only come to the family quarters and speak face to face.
“You can’t have both fish and bear’s paw.” Xia Chenxi pressed the elevator button to go down.
Xia Chenxi was right. People could not be too greedy.
After going downstairs, Xia Chenxi started the scooter, and Ye Xuan naturally sat on the back seat.
On the way back, they rarely ran into anyone. It was probably because the family quarters were farther away, or maybe because the people living in the family quarters were not actually their families. The white light from the watchtower swept back and forth across the empty land.
The late-summer night wind blew across Ye Xuan’s face, bringing a damp, sticky feeling, just like the way his clothes had clung to his body after he sweated during the day. It made him uncomfortable.
Compared with Ye Xuan, Xia Chenxi was fresh and clean all over. There was even a faint scent of laundry detergent on him.
“Xia Chenxi, how long do you train every day?”
“Five hours. Nine to eleven in the morning, then two to five in the afternoon.”
It would be impossible for Ye Xuan to say he was not envious. Right now, he had to wake up at six every day, only had half an hour for lunch at noon, then had to train until seven in the evening.
What made him angry but powerless was that his reserve team leader was a useless freeloader. After physical training, the training that followed was called “free training” in name, but he did not teach them any techniques at all. They could only fumble around recklessly by themselves.
Even now, Ye Xuan still did not know what kind of existence ability users were, how they used their abilities, or how to awaken abilities.
Everything was a complete mess.
But Xia Chenxi lived easily and freely, and his life was well organized. Confused, Ye Xuan turned his head to look at the boundless darkness beside them, darkness that connected with the vast sky. There was not even a single flickering star.
“There’s no need to envy me. Everyone has a transition period. The day after tomorrow, I’ll truly participate in a mission. Whether I can survive that mission is still unknown. People like you, who undergo a second ability awakening, are extremely rare. Even if you don’t awaken an ability in the end, being able to stay alive and conscious is already very lucky.”
But in this apocalypse, was living on as an ordinary person really something lucky?
The two of them returned to the dormitory. After Ye Xuan washed up, he took the painkillers Xia Chenxi had specially brought him, then tried on the combat uniform.
In the mirror, Ye Xuan stood sideways in the combat uniform, looking heroic as he clenched his fist.
This uniform actually fit him very well. How had Xia Chenxi known his size?
