Chapter 40
After Xia Chenxi paid, he returned to the kitchen and saw Ye Xuan still staring longingly at that lump of unidentified matter in the pot.
“You’re not still thinking of eating it, are you? If you get poisoned, I’m not taking responsibility.”
Ye Xuan asked Xia Chenxi regretfully, “Can it really not be saved?”
Right in front of Ye Xuan, Xia Chenxi poured that lump into the trash can, then pushed Ye Xuan out of the kitchen. After that, he went back to his room and fiddled around for a while before bringing out a piece of paper and sticking it on the kitchen door.
Ye Xuan Is Not Allowed Inside.
“Xia Chenxi, don’t be like this. I’ll definitely do better next time.” Ye Xuan still refused to give up.
“Ye Xuan, some things can’t be done through hard work alone. They also require exclusive talent. This is to protect both your and my food safety.”
Xia Chenxi spoke decisively, cutting off Ye Xuan’s hopes.
Just like that, Ye Xuan was stripped of his right to enter the kitchen.
In the end, their dinner was two bowls of instant noodles. But even instant noodles were a hundred times better than Ye Xuan’s lump of something comparable to excrement.
Because he had a mission, Ye Xuan woke up early.
After tossing and turning in bed until it was almost time, he went into the bathroom to wash up.
After washing and putting on his combat uniform, he came out and saw Xia Chenxi also preparing to leave.
“So early today?”
“My vacation is over. I have to start training too.”
Ah, Xia Chenxi’s vacation was over. It gave Ye Xuan the illusion that he had never taken a vacation at all. Either he had accompanied him to the hospital, or he had trained in the training venue. Wasn’t that basically the same as usual?
Xia Chenxi walked to the door and asked Ye Xuan, “When are you planning to go see your parents?”
Ye Xuan looked puzzled. “Originally, I should go on the weekend, but I’m busy this weekend because of the team challenge, so the day after tomorrow. Wednesday night.”
He walked to Xia Chenxi’s side. “Why? Do you want to go?”
Xia Chenxi nodded, then looked at Ye Xuan’s smiling eyes and explained, “Don’t misunderstand. The first time I went, I didn’t prepare any gifts for Uncle and Auntie. This time, I’m planning to make up for the etiquette.”
“Oh.” Ye Xuan held the wall while putting on his combat boots.
Xia Chenxi’s words were so unnatural. Even he could tell Xia Chenxi was lying, okay?
Ye Xuan did not expose Xia Chenxi. Instead, he said, “Go if you want to. Even if I don’t go, you can go. My parents welcome you very much.”
Xia Chenxi looked at Ye Xuan and curved the corners of his mouth.
The two walked to Training Field No. 2 and parted in front of Venue A. Ye Xuan walked to Venue B alone.
At the entrance stood Luo Feng, four team members, and three modified heavy transport trucks.
Ye Xuan jogged over and called out, “Brother Feng.”
Then he greeted the other four team members.
Luo Feng answered Ye Xuan while occasionally opening his wristband to check the time. “That brat Tong Wei didn’t oversleep, did he? It’s almost time, and he still isn’t here.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a figure waved from far away and ran over. “Brother Feng, I’m here!”
He ran to everyone, panting, and took a deep breath. “I’m exhausted. I almost arrived late.”
Luo Feng looked at him with a stern face. “If you’re afraid of being late, set more alarms. If you’re really late, I’ll handle it by the book and punish you with a ten-thousand-word self-criticism.”
“Ten thousand words!” Ye Xuan had never in his life heard a man make a dolphin-like sound. Now he heard it from Tong Wei’s mouth. “Brother Feng, don’t worry. I’ll definitely be on time.”
Luo Feng coughed heavily twice and shouted, “Next, roll call.”
“Tong Wei.”
“Here.”
“Ye Xuan.”
“Here.”
“…”
After roll call ended, Luo Feng gave the order. “Everyone, put on your explosion-proof helmets. Turn left.”
Ye Xuan put on the helmet tucked under his arm and turned left, quietly letting out a breath.
He was truly about to go out on a mission. He had never imagined that one day, the responsibility of protecting people would fall on his shoulders.
This feeling was very strange. A surging sense of pride mixed with nervousness made him tremble slightly.
“This is your first mission. Ye Xuan, you’ll be in a team with me.”
Ye Xuan saluted to show that he understood. Being with Brother Feng made him feel far too reassured.
“The rest of you, pair up in twos. Stay alert. If you encounter danger, protect yourselves and the transport workers immediately.”
“Yes.”
Everything was ready.
The four team members got into the two vehicles behind them in pairs, while Ye Xuan and Luo Feng got into the lead vehicle.
Once everything was prepared, the transport trucks started.
Ye Xuan looked at the scenery continuously retreating outside the window, unable to stop his excitement. He was leaving the base and heading toward the outside world again.
But very soon, he could no longer smile.
The outside world had undergone earth-shaking changes. There was no trace of human life, only silence. Weeds and moss grew wildly out of every crack.
He saw Baihe’s landmark building—the Neon Twin Towers. At night, the neon lights of the twin towers changed and shifted, making them look like two people dancing, embracing, and parting.
From the connecting corridor between the twin towers, one could gaze into the distance and see the entire scenery of Baihe. That shimmering river split the land in two, coming from the north and flowing toward the south.
The education Ye Xuan had received since childhood had taught him a piece of common knowledge: a river whose course had not changed would not flow backward.
But that common knowledge no longer applied now.
The long river of human civilization was flowing backward.
Human civilization was regressing.
How many people were still left in this world? Were their efforts really worth it? When would this war without gunpowder finally end?
Many questions had no answers.
Ye Xuan’s head throbbed dully.
“If you can’t figure it out, close your eyes. The vehicle radar will automatically detect danger. Don’t worry,” Luo Feng said to Ye Xuan. “Many newcomers are like you. They get into the vehicle full of excitement, then feel disappointed and lost after seeing the outside.”
“You’ll feel powerless. That’s normal. It happens when ability and ideals don’t match. Don’t think about what the future will become. Just do what’s in front of you well. When you’ve done many things in the present, you’ll discover that you’ve arrived at a future you never dared imagine.”
Ye Xuan turned and saw Luo Feng under his helmet with his eyes closed. Then he turned back and closed his own eyes.
Then he would live in the present.
Step by step, he would move forward.
The vehicle jolted violently. Ye Xuan, who had just closed his eyes, was so startled that he opened them again. He gripped his short blade and asked nervously, “What happened? Is it a zombie ambush?”
The transport worker in the front row spoke. “To avoid zombies, we usually choose smaller roads, so the route is a bit bumpy.”
A false alarm.
“Sorry. It’s my first mission, so I don’t know much.”
The transport worker smiled and looked at Ye Xuan through the rearview mirror inside the vehicle. “It’s fine. Which one of us didn’t start as a newcomer? You’ll get used to it.”
Luo Feng patted Ye Xuan’s shoulder and said to him, “You’re too nervous. Relax.”
“Yes.”
Ye Xuan leaned back into the seat.
It was hard for him not to be nervous. He had fought his way out of a pile of zombies. He knew very well how terrifying and disgusting those things were. That thick, foul stench seemed to still linger at the tip of his nose even now.
Now that he had to face them again—and they were not virtual zombies—he would still feel nervous.
Luo Feng glanced at Ye Xuan but said nothing. He closed his eyes in his seat.
After driving the whole way, the transport truck arrived safely at the mining site. The heart that Ye Xuan had kept suspended gradually settled down.
