Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Even though he had already guessed what happened, Ji Yanqing couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy when he saw Ji Le's aggrieved expression.

The others, who were resting nearby while keeping an eye on them, all looked away.

"You've been very good," Ji Yanqing tried to say something, but these three words came out instead.

Ji Le sniffled and looked at Ji Yanqing with teary eyes, as if asking if it was true.

Ji Yanqing didn't dare to meet his gaze; he took the cloth and continued wiping.

The two little ones had been dirty before, but now that they were clean, they looked pristine and obedient.

Their faces lacked the plumpness typical of their age, which made their eyes appear even larger.

Their large eyes were clear and distinct, and along with their wet, fluttering eyelashes like small fans, Ji Yanqing felt like he was looking at two little kittens whenever he met their gaze.

They were covered in fluffy fur, mewing in fear yet cautiously approaching him with trembling steps.

"Alright." Ji Yanqing put down the damp cloth and, after glancing at the children's clothes on the ground, asked Xia Shenshu and the others for two T-shirts.

In the post-virus world, clothing and shoes were probably the cheapest resources. Those once exquisite and luxurious clothing stores were now piles of garbage that no one bothered to look at even when passing by.

When he changed the two little ones into new clothes, Ji Yanqing couldn't resist taking another look at Ji Le's back.

He had seen a lot of blood and cuts on the back of Ji Le's shirt earlier, and when he wiped his body just now, he saw dried blood on his back, but there were no wounds on Ji Le's body.

Casually, Ji Yanqing glanced at the wound on Ji'an's left chin, which Sun Haifeng had inflicted when he took the biscuits and injured Ji'an when Ji Yanqing had asked him to watch over them.

As he looked, Ji Yanqing paused while helping to dress them; there was no sign of a wound on Ji'an's chin.

Thinking he might have been mistaken, he lowered his head slightly while pulling the clothes down to take another look, but Ji'an's chin was smooth and unblemished.

Ji Yanqing raised his eyes to look at Ji'an, who was obediently holding up his hands, his eyes clean and clear.

After changing their clothes, Ji Yanqing examined the two little ones again.

The T-shirts were creamy yellow, complementing their skin tone well. They were quite large, making the already thin children look even smaller, and combined with their red-rimmed eyes, they were quite endearing.

Ji Yanqing couldn't understand why anyone would harm two such children. He could understand indifference due to inability to care for them, given that this was the apocalypse, but malicious harm was another matter entirely.

"Mmm..." A low groan of pain echoed.

Everyone looked over, and the bald man, who had been unconscious the whole time, had awakened.

"Wake up?" Zhang Guxian approached.

Meanwhile, Lan Zi emptied the remaining water from the pot, refilled it with fresh water, and started boiling it again.

Regarding the bald man, they had prepared themselves for the possibility of his death at any moment, since he hadn't received any medication. Now that he had woken up, it seemed his condition was improving.

The water boiled quickly, and after cooling it slightly, Lan Zi fed it to him and briefly explained the current situation.

At this mention, everyone looked at Ji Yanqing.

They had found and drunk water, so what should they do next?

"Should we chase after the Survival Team ahead?" Lan Zi asked.

They were originally three days behind the Survival Team, and now that they had been delayed further, if the other team had been moving quickly during that time, catching up within ten days would be considered lucky.

Hearing about chasing the Survival Team ahead, Ji'an and Ji Le turned pale.

Ji Yanqing patted the heads of the two little ones. "Don't be afraid, I'm here."

Since he had already saved them, he wouldn't abandon them.

Looking at the others, without hesitation, Ji Yanqing said, "Fill up the water bottles, let's continue chasing."

With zombies everywhere and scarce resources, more people meant a greater advantage in the current environment, even though the Survival Team might not be as ideal as they imagined.

"I remember there's a village ahead. We can go through there and see if we can find some food," Xia Shenshu suggested.

"A village?" Zhang Guxian was taken aback.

Xia Shenshu roughly indicated a direction. "The village is at the foot of the mountain outside the city. If we hurry, we might arrive before nightfall."

"We can't go there," Zhang Guxian immediately rejected.

Everyone looked at him.

Trying to remain calm, Zhang Guxian's pale face betrayed his unease. "What I mean is, if we're looking for food, we have a better chance in the city. What could a small village possibly have? How about we return to the city first?"

Ji Yanqing and Xia Shenshu exchanged a glance—there was something off about Zhang Guxian.

"No going into the city," Ji Yanqing said. "We can't afford any more delays."

Even with the hot weather, they couldn't carry dozens of pounds of water each. If they returned to the city and then continued forward, they would consume much of their water, potentially leaving them without enough for their next refill.

Zhang Guxian's lips moved as if he were highly resistant to the idea of going to the village, but he didn't say anything else.

Exchanging glances, everyone sprang into action. Lan Zi went back to the lake to fetch water, while the others started a fire to boil and bottle the water.

This process took over an hour, and by the time they filled all the bottles, it was almost noon. The group rested in the forest for another half hour, avoiding the hottest part of the day, before setting off again.

Before leaving, Xia Shenshu suggested checking out the minivan they had encountered earlier.

"If that minivan really belongs to another Survival Team, there might be supplies left inside," Xia Shenshu's reasoning was compelling, leaving no room for refusal.

They were originally going to retrace their steps for a while; only when they returned to the mountain near the city could they continue along the foot of the mountain. Having made up their minds, the group quickly headed in that direction. They had moved slowly on their way here because they were unsure about the situation ahead, but now they doubled their speed. Before two o'clock, they saw the vehicles in the forest. The zombies still aimlessly wandered around the vehicles, not in large numbers, but enough to surround the cars. Ji Yanqing and the others, as well as Xia Shenshu and Zhang Guxian, split into two groups. Xia Shenshu led Zhang Guxian to make a commotion in the woods, while Ji Yanqing and the others took the opportunity to retrieve the luggage from the vehicles. The operation went very smoothly. The zombies lacked reason and could not think, so they were easily lured away. A few minutes later, having escaped danger, the group stopped on a road away from the vehicles to inspect the luggage. Their harvest was greater than expected. Not only did they find a pack of compressed biscuits, but they also discovered a bag of bullets. Firearms and such weapons were extremely rare and valuable, out of reach for ordinary people. Unfortunately, there were no guns in the bag, and the bullets were not compatible with the handgun Xia Shenshu had previously found, so they couldn't be used for the time being. After putting away the bullets, everyone focused on the compressed biscuits, which they had long been craving. After walking further, they found a spot to set up a stove and boiled a pot of porridge with the compressed biscuits and water. There were too few compressed biscuits, so the porridge was quite thin. However, no one complained as they nearly drooled at the aroma wafting through the air. Once cooked, they evenly distributed the porridge using disposable cups, and the group eagerly drank it. Ji Yanqing watched as the others gobbled down their food, keeping watch around them while gently blowing on his porridge. As he moved, he glanced beside him. Ji Le had already finished his portion, while Ji'an had cooled the small amount of porridge in his cup but hadn't drunk it. "What's wrong?" Ji Yanqing asked. Ji'an shook his head and hastily gulped down the little porridge in his cup. As he swallowed, his shallow brows involuntarily furrowed together. He was clearly starving, feeling weak in his limbs, yet he suddenly didn't want to drink this porridge, as if it wasn't meant for him... He wanted to eat something else. After drinking his porridge in several sips, Ji Yanqing got up. "Let's go. Try to get to the village before dark." Ji'an hurriedly threw away his empty cup and stood up, following behind. It was relatively safe in the woods, and he and Ji Le could keep up by themselves. As he moved, Ji'an caught a whiff of a sweet scent. His stomach growled, and his eyes couldn't help but look in the direction of the aroma. "What are you looking at?" The bald man weakly got up. The cloth on his face, used as a bandage, was soaked in blood, making him look rather frightening at first glance. Ji'an swallowed and without much thought, quickly jogged to catch up with Ji Yanqing. After walking for a while, Ji Yanqing habitually looked back. Ji'an and Ji Le, like two little tails, followed about a meter behind him. With their short legs, they had to jog every now and then. "Are you tired?" Ji Yanqing asked. Ji Le shook his head. Ji'an also quickly said in a soft voice, "Not tired." Ji Yanqing's tone softened. "Stay close." The two youngsters immediately nodded, their wet eyes full of seriousness. They were capable and would definitely stay close to Ji Yanqing so as not to worry him. "Haha..." Lan Zi couldn't help laughing. Ji'an and Ji Le, dressed in light yellow T-shirts, only followed Ji Yanqing, toddling along like two newly hatched ducklings mistaking Ji Yanqing for their mother. Feng Yimo, who was walking in the city, suddenly stopped and sharply turned to look at the mountains outside the city. "Aaah?" The giant black beast looked in the direction he was looking. "What's over there?" Feng Yimo asked. "Aaah..." The black beast had never been there; it had followed the Survival Team into the city. "Survival Team?" Feng Yimo pondered. He had just vaguely sensed the presence of one of the children. The aura was too weak for him to pinpoint their exact location, but the direction was correct. "Aaah..." The giant beast's eyes turned towards the mountains. They had almost searched the entire downtown area over the past two days but still hadn't found anyone. Now it seemed that those two brats might have been taken away by the Survival Team. Humans always liked to gather together. In the past two days, it had indeed found traces of human activity in the city. "Chase." Feng Yimo shot forward like an arrow released from a bow. The beast quickly followed. Upon entering the cluster of buildings, it was delighted, thinking it had finally found someone and could end everything. But then, Feng Yimo suddenly turned and ran in the opposite direction. Everything happened too quickly. Before it could react, Feng Yimo had already become a tiny dot. Facing the tiny figure disappearing in a cloud of dust, the beast's large eyes instantly lost their focus. Its heart filled with despair, and it suddenly felt that they might never find those two brats in their lifetime.