Martin shot him a look that urged patience.
’This is no time to be making a scene.’
’Once we get to Chaoyang Base, hand over the people, and get our hands on the supplies, we can deal with this woman however we want.’
Xie Ning, for her part, was also forcing herself to be patient.
’She also wanted to wait until she saw Zuo Li at Chaoyang Base before making a move.’
’At worst, it would just come down to a fight. These people were all going to die sooner or later anyway, so what did it matter if she let them feel good about themselves for a few more hours?’
But... patience was a sharp blade, and it was painful to endure.
Xie Ning lowered her gaze, deciding to rest for a while.
Aside from the CHUG CHUG CHUG of the tractor, all other sounds seemed to fade from her mind.
Ke Li instinctively glanced at the young man and woman across from him, pressing his blue-tinged lips together without a word.
The blanket was thin, but it was much warmer than a light sweatshirt. Ke Li felt as if the blood in his frozen veins was slowly starting to thaw.
’It was so cold, a bone-chilling cold.’
’If he weren’t in such good shape, he doubted he could have survived this long.’
Zhao Yanhan, meanwhile, wrung her hands, her face etched with worry and her brows knitted tightly.
’She knew they were heading to Chaoyang Base this time, but what good would that do? Chaoyang Base wouldn’t get involved in her and her uncle’s affairs. They certainly wouldn’t risk clashing with Martin’s group for two insignificant people like them.’
’As long as they couldn’t escape this group of monsters, she and her uncle would never know peace.’
CHUG CHUG CHUG CHUG CHUG.
The hail was still falling on and off, but the pellets were noticeably smaller than they had been in previous days.
Xie Ning slowly lifted her head and looked forward, only to realize a tarp had been stretched out above her.
Beichen was stretching the tarp over her head. Seeing her stir, he couldn’t help but tease, "You can fall asleep even with the north wind howling?"
’You’re really something else!’
"I wasn’t asleep," Xie Ning said, her face impassive.
Beichen rolled his eyes. "Right, right, ’not asleep.’ Anyway, are you hungry?"
Xie Ning glanced at the time—it was already past noon. She turned to Beichen. "Are you hungry?"
She pulled two compressed biscuits from her backpack and handed one to Beichen. "Here, eat."
Beichen took it silently, tore open the wrapper, and popped a piece of the biscuit into his mouth.
’Ugh, it was dry and tasteless. He started to miss the good life back in the farmhouse Space.’
’It was true what they said: you can’t get too comfortable. Once you’re used to the good life, hard times feel even harder.’
Beichen glanced sideways and saw Zhao Yanhan, who was sitting across from them, swallow hard, her eyes involuntarily drawn to the other biscuit in his hand.
Beichen turned to Martin. "Ma, aren’t you guys going to eat?"
’Martin had figured that since he’d been "hosting" Xie Ning and her companion for days, they would at least toss him a few biscuits to tide him over.’
’But who would’ve thought this Miss Huang was so stingy? She only took out two small packets of biscuits, giving them just a couple of small pieces each, with absolutely no intention of sharing with his group.’
’Of course, even if she had offered, two small pieces of biscuit would hardly be enough to fill a gap in his teeth.’
"We were actually planning to stop for lunch, maybe make some meat broth to warm up. But with the road conditions like this... well, you’ve seen them, Miss Huang. If we delay any longer, it’ll be dark, and the roads will only get worse, right?"
Xie Ning hugged her bulging backpack tighter. "Ma, you have so many men. This little bit of food I have wouldn’t even be a few bites for everyone. A big-hearted man like you wouldn’t covet what little your ’little sister’ has, right?"
Martin gritted his teeth but forced a chuckle. "Of course not. Don’t be nervous, sis. We won’t take your things."
Xie Ning seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Sipping hot water from her thermos, she gave Martin a shy smile. "Ma, why don’t you give some food to your Water Ability User?"
"She looks exhausted and terribly thin. It would be such a shame if she starved to death on the way."
Gong Pingfan scoffed. "There’s unmelted ice and snow everywhere. How hard is it to get water? It’s not like the team needs her to survive."
"Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that," Xie Ning said, her expression turning mysterious. "You all remember that acid rain not too long ago, right? The virus contaminated all the groundwater."
Gong Pingfan frowned. "What are you trying to say?"
"What do you think the odds are that this ice and snow is carrying that same virus?"
At her words, both Gong Pingfan and Martin froze.
Gong Pingfan couldn’t stop himself from yelling, "Impossible! That’s bullshit!"
"How could that be possible?"
"We’ve been using the melted water to wash our faces and hands, even to bathe! So how could it be?"
Martin’s pupils contracted, and his expression slowly turned grim.
’Is this woman just trying to scare us?’
’Why else would she wait until now to "warn" us?’
’Ever since the first day of the hailstorm, they had been melting the ice for daily use—washing their faces, bathing...’
’If the ice was really contaminated, wouldn’t they have mutated by now?’
’No way, impossible. This damn woman must be bluffing.’
"Well, washing your face and bathing is all external use, isn’t it? Perhaps you’ve only escaped disaster because you haven’t actually melted it to drink."
"Ma, I’m only reminding you because we’ve gotten to know each other. You can’t be too optimistic about things, especially after the apocalypse with all these new and strange things popping up."
"Maybe the ice was safe for external use at first, but who’s to say the concentration of the virus in it hasn’t increased over time?"
"Just think about it, Ma. What if, down the line, some scientist discovers another harmful substance in that ice? And by then, the Water Ability User in your team is dead."
"What would you do then?"
"It’ll be too late for regrets!"
Martin shuddered back to his senses. As much as he didn’t want to believe Miss Huang’s alarmist claims, a part of him felt she had a point.
’You couldn’t be too reckless with these things.’
Gong Pingfan shot Xie Ning a furious glare. "Stop spouting nonsense to scare us! You think Ma is going to believe any of that?"
Martin pulled two small packets of biscuits from his bag. Though it clearly pained him, he handed them to Zhao Yanhan.
The truck followed the tractor for several long hours, the constant jolting leaving everyone in a daze.
Around dusk, a dozing Xie Ning was jolted awake to see a tourist scenic area looming before them.
In the fading light of the setting sun, the area looked desolate and barren. The plants near the entrance had long since withered away.
Next to an armored vehicle, a dozen uniformed mercenaries stood guard, rifles at the ready, pacing back and forth with vigilant expressions.
"This is Chaoyang Base?"
Xie Ning put on her most innocent and naive expression, her eyes wide with a curiosity she couldn’t seem to contain as she looked around.
Gong Pingfan snorted. "Stop asking stupid questions and just follow."
"Pingfan," Martin chided him for show, then gestured for Xie Ning to proceed. "Miss Huang, let’s go. We’ll rest here for the night. After we meet with the leader of Chaoyang Base, we’ll set off again tomorrow."
"You’re not setting me up, are you?" Xie Ning gave Martin a distrustful look.
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