Chapter 3: Please Protect Xiao Zhi Well
The little zombie had not eaten in a very long time. Taking the chopsticks Lin Feng handed him, he tried clumsily to pick up the noodles.
After several failed attempts, he simply tossed the chopsticks aside and used his bare hands, grabbing clumps of noodles and stuffing them straight into his mouth.
Pei Zhi had dished up a bowl for himself and sat down under a large tree. Just as he lifted his chopsticks to eat, the little zombie trotted over with his own bowl, plopped down beside him, and kept shoveling food into his mouth with both hands.
As he ate, bits of noodles kept dropping everywhere, smearing his chin and sticking all over his shirt.
Pei Zhi glanced sideways at him, paused, and then lowered his head to eat his own meal in silence.
Hiding in the bushes nearby, Cheng Yu watched this scene and ground his teeth in pure jealousy. Since being rescued by Pei Zhi, he had tried talking to the man countless times, only to be completely ignored. Whenever Cheng Yu attempted to sit and share a meal with him, Pei Zhi would coldly walk away. He never imagined that a filthy zombie would get to sit right next to him instead.
Cheng Yu frowned. He hadn’t eaten anything in a long time either, and watching everyone eat so eagerly made his stomach ache with hunger. Unable to hold out any longer, he crawled out of the bushes and timidly asked Mother Chen for a bowl so he could dish up some noodles.
He kept a wary eye on the zombie the whole time, making sure to stay far away.
Seeing that Shen Qing was having a hard time serving himself, Mother Chen took the ladle and used her chopsticks to fish out full bowls for both Shen Qing and Lin Feng. “Captain Pei is really something,” she muttered. “How could he strike someone else’s child with lightning? Isn’t that just bullying the weak?”
Lin Feng chewed on the wild greens in his noodles, glanced back at the little zombie, and remarked, “It is a bit much.”
Mother Chen quickly chimed in, “See? Xiao Feng thinks so too! Just because Captain Pei has dual abilities doesn’t mean he can pick on the vulnerable!”
As she spoke, Mother Chen ladled another helping into the shy girl’s bowl. “Don’t you agree, young lady?”
The timid girl looked over at the filthy little boy and nodded softly.
The small group continued to whisper among themselves, casting disapproving glances in Pei Zhi’s direction.
Pei Zhi was not deaf. He heard every single word.
Beside him, the little zombie was busily picking dropped noodles off his dirty clothes and stuffing them back into his mouth.
Pei Zhi truly could not bear to watch this any longer. He set his own bowl down, picked the stray noodles off the little zombie’s chest, and popped them directly into the boy’s mouth. Then, picking up the little zombie’s bowl, he used his own chopsticks to feed him bite by bite.
With help, the little zombie could finally eat with ease. His cheeks puffed out like a little hamster’s as he chewed contentedly, staring up at Pei Zhi with wide, curious eyes.
The whispering by the car came to a sudden halt. Everyone stared across the clearing in utter disbelief.
None of them had ever seen Captain Pei feed another living soul.
Once the bowl was empty, Pei Zhi stood up, pulled the little zombie to his feet, and led him toward the riverbank.
He had to get this creature cleaned up. Otherwise, covered in soot from head to toe, he looked like a walking reminder of the lightning strike, making Pei Zhi seem like an absolute bully.
By the water’s edge, Pei Zhi gently pressed down on the little zombie’s back, crouching beside him. “Wash your face,” he commanded in a low voice.
The little zombie splashed a couple of handfuls of water onto his cheeks, going through the motions. But all he managed to do was smear the soot around, making his face look twice as dirty.
Pei Zhi clicked his tongue softly in annoyance. Placing a firm hand on the back of the little zombie’s neck to hold him still, he scooped up handfuls of water and thoroughly washed the grime from the boy’s face himself.
Once the face was clean, Pei Zhi peeled off the boy’s scorched jacket, leaving only a dingy white undershirt. The pants had to go as well. As Pei Zhi unbuckled the belt and pulled them down, a brown envelope slipped out of the pocket and landed on the grass.
Pei Zhi picked it up and opened it. Inside were an ID card and a folded letter.
He pulled out the card first, his gaze falling onto the photo.
The young man in the picture had fair, clean skin, delicate features, and long, slender eyelashes. His dark, bright eyes were clear, lively, and undeniably sweet.
The text on the card read: Jiang Xiaozhi, Male, Han ethnicity, Born in 2188. Address: No. 7 Jinfu Mindi.
Pei Zhi murmured the name aloud: “Jiang Xiaozhi…”
The little zombie no longer remembered who he was. Hearing his name called brought zero reaction; he simply squatted by the bank, happily splashing at the ripples on the water.
Doing the math, Pei Zhi realized the boy had just turned eighteen.
Slipping the card into his own pocket, he unfolded the letter inside the envelope:
“Hello. If you find our Xiao Zhi one day, we beg you to take care of him for us.
Three years ago, Xiao Zhi was bitten and turned into a zombie. But he does not bite, and he still keeps a small part of his human consciousness.
His father and I trained him to eat normal human food. We believe that before long, Xiao Zhi will be able to speak and turn back into a normal human being. But now, both of us have been bitten, and we will turn into zombies very soon.
We can no longer protect our boy…
If you meet him, please do not kill him. Xiao Zhi carries a healing ability that can treat wounds and cleanse the zombie virus. You can keep him by your side; he is very sweet and well-behaved…
From one mother to another soul, please protect Xiao Zhi well.
While you protect him, he will protect you too…”
Pei Zhi’s brow twitched. He turned to look at the little zombie playing innocently in the water. “A healing ability?”
In the apocalyptic wasteland, healing abilities were priceless. Pei Zhi had only ever heard rumors about them, and many survivors dismissed them as nothing more than a bedtime fairy tale.
He scanned the letter once more, but it didn’t explain how the healing ability worked.
Still, he had already decided to keep the little zombie around. Finding out about this rare power was an unexpected treasure.
This little zombie really was full of surprises.
Tucking the envelope safely into his pocket, Pei Zhi finished pulling off the boy’s pants.
The little zombie was shockingly thin—scrawny and frail, with barely an ounce of meat on his bones. His collarbones stuck out sharply, his pale wrists looked as though they might snap under the slightest pressure, and his small hips were pitifully bony.
“Did your parents never feed you enough?” Pei Zhi muttered with a frown, splashing water over the boy’s hands and arms. “Didn’t I just feed you a whole bowl of noodles?”
The little zombie mimicked Pei Zhi’s movements, splashing water onto his own arms. As the soot washed away, the skin underneath was surprisingly fair and smooth.
His skin was delicate, yet pale and bloodless, carrying the faint, grayish-green tint typical of a zombie.
He looked quite different from the rosy, healthy young man on the ID card, whose bright eyes had been as clear as mountain spring water.
Pei Zhi found himself wondering what this boy must have been like before the world fell apart. With such gentle features, his voice had probably been soft and sweet. A boy like that would have made anyone’s heart soften.
“Awoo!”
A sudden splash broke Pei Zhi’s train of thought. The little zombie had plunged headfirst into the shallow river. His undershirt and shorts were completely soaked, and he sat in the gentle current, gleefully slapping the water.
Seeing this, Pei Zhi simply stripped off the rest of the wet clothes, washed them thoroughly in the stream, hung them over a sturdy branch, and started a small bonfire to dry them out.
Next, he set to work on the boy’s messy hair. They had no soap or shampoo out here.
Fortunately, while the boy had looked filthy, the soot rinsed out easily enough with plain water, leaving him fresh and clean in no time.
Once his hair was rinsed, it was no longer a frizzy afro. Instead, soft, damp curls rested naturally against his forehead, revealing a remarkably pretty, delicate face.
Satisfied that the little zombie was clean, Pei Zhi caught him by the armpits, hoisted him out of the water, and set him down close to the warm bonfire to dry off along with the clothes.
After the front was warm, Pei Zhi placed a hand on his shoulders and turned him around to dry his back.
Standing there completely naked, the little zombie looked even skinnier—nothing more than a small bundle of bones, to the point where even his little bird looked shrunken into a tiny dot from malnutrition.
Pei Zhi calmly looked away.
There was certainly nothing impressive to look at on a shriveled little zombie anyway.
The Food-hoarding Zombie Was Kidnapped by the Apocalyptic Boss
