Chapter 69

Chapter 69

The research base hadn't changed much since over a year ago. It remained heavily guarded, with people bustling about.

The rooms were still poorly soundproofed. Xue Ling managed to keep Wen Jiuzhe outside and hid in Wen Yi's well-soundproofed lab, hoping to uncover some information Wen Jiuzhe wouldn't reveal.

"Sister Yi, what secrets has Wen Jiuzhe kept over the past year? What has he been up to? Tell me."

Wen Yi wouldn't keep Wen Jiuzhe's secrets, so when Xue Ling asked, she didn't hide anything and revealed everything about him.

"He keeps showing up at my lab every few days, asking if there are any new potions to restore your sanity... He promised not to cause trouble, but his promises are empty." Wen Yi cursed, her face cold.

"Later, he even volunteered himself for experiments. I initially refused, as I was busy with other projects."

"After that, he went mad and threatened to force me to extract the ginseng-like potion from him. I warned him he might die, but he wouldn’t listen... I think he’s already lost his mind."

Xue Ling was silent.

It was no surprise.

After the apocalypse, she truly understood what kind of person Wen Jiuzhe was.

He was the type who, if he missed someone, would dig up their grave to see them, even if they were dead and buried.

There were very few things he cared about, so he was particularly persistent about the things he truly valued.

"Actually, I have no confidence in the new potion I used. It’s surprising that you woke up, Xue Ling. It was sheer luck," Wen Yi said. "But this kind of luck can’t be replicated. You need to be prepared."

Xue Ling understood. "I’ll try to prepare Wen Jiuzhe."

After talking for a bit longer, she ended her brief chat with Wen Yi and opened the door to leave, only to find Wen Jiuzhe outside talking with General Hao.

No wonder he didn’t bang on the door while she was talking. He was being detained.

"The situation in Jizhou City is worsening. The mutated zombies there are generally more aggressive than elsewhere. Animal infections were detected at the end of last year, and the situation has worsened this year..."

Xue Ling walked over and caught a few words, which seemed to be about a difficult mission.

The serious General Hao, upon seeing Xue Ling, stopped and briefly concluded, "In short, I hope you'll reconsider this mission."

Then he gave Xue Ling a gratified expression. "Xue Ling, I'm glad to see you've recovered."

After asking about her condition and offering some encouragement, the old leader was proficient in the process.

Finally, he said, "This past year, we've built a monument, engraving many glorious deeds and the merits of the warriors. You two are also included. Feel free to take a look when you have time."

The monument stood at the rear of the secret base, next to the martyrs' graves and memorial.

It contained the warriors who sacrificed themselves for the future of humanity after the apocalypse. However, a large portion of the graves were only memorial tombs because many bodies could never be retrieved.

Xue Ling walked along the clean and tidy brick path and saw her name on the tall, independent monument.

"Xue Ling and Wen Jiuzhe completed the important rescue mission in Huaxing City in August 3037..."

"Xue Ling and Wen Jiuzhe completed the mission in July 3037..."

"Xue Ling and Wen Jiuzhe..."

Xue Ling saw several entries and looked up at Wen Jiuzhe next to her with a puzzled expression.

She’s not supposed to have lost her mind, so why are her missions still being credited, and even her name is placed first?

Looking at other missions, usually the one with the greatest contribution, the captain, is placed first.

Wen Jiuzhe: "Is there a problem? You did go on the missions with me."

They mentioned months ago that this monument would be built. They specifically asked me about it back then. Wen Jiuzhe has never been interested in such honors.

He replied to Captain Shen Zhang, who had inquired about it: "Don't engrave my name, engrave only Xue Ling's name."

Besides, she enjoys these things.

After that, Shen Zhang never approached him about this again, and Wen Jiuzhe only now discovered that the base had engraved both Xue Ling's and his name.

Xue Ling felt she had received undeserved glory. Her eyes shifted, revealing a hesitant look. Wen Jiuzhe knew what she was thinking.

"You made the greatest contribution to these missions," Wen Jiuzhe told her.

He undertook these missions for her sake.

Only with sufficient contributions would General Hao, Dean Rong, and others at the base overlook his bothering Wen Yi, and agree to use Wen Yi's valuable new drugs on Xue Ling.

He viewed this as a fair trade. But he knew Xue Ling would be touched by it, just as she would be pleased to see her name on the monument.

Xue Ling, who had been embraced by her surroundings since childhood, had a sense of belonging and responsibility, unlike himself.

Wen Jiuzhe understood the meaning behind General Hao showing them this monument. It was a subtle and gentle form of persuasion.

Wen Jiuzhe believed Xue Ling had also heard about the challenging mission General Hao mentioned earlier.

He was also waiting for Xue Ling to mention it.

Surprisingly, Xue Ling never mentioned it, as if she hadn’t heard about it.

"Why haven’t you asked about the Jizhou City mission?" Wen Jiuzhe asked.

Xue Ling was rummaging through the wardrobe for a belt. Since she no longer needed to lose weight, she had to fasten her belts tightly, as even at the tightest notch, the original soldier belts were too large.

Buried in those ugly clothes she had no impression of, she searched for a suitable belt and took a moment to reply to Wen Jiuzhe: "If you don’t want to do it, you don’t have to."

"You’ve done enough missions already."

When General Hao mentioned it, Wen Jiuzhe didn’t react, implying he had refused this mission before.

The mission to Jizhou City, in fact, Wen Yi had also hinted at it to her, suggesting she try to persuade Wen Jiuzhe. But looking at Wen Jiuzhe's sunken cheeks and the dark red scars exposed outside his clothes, she didn’t want to persuade him.

It wasn’t Wen Jiuzhe's responsibility. Just because he got injured and didn’t die, it was wrong to subconsciously and naturally assign all the most difficult missions to him.

He should be able to refuse.

"They said the situation in Jizhou City is very severe. I thought you'd start worrying about it right away," Wen Jiuzhe was somewhat surprised by Xue Ling's sudden disappearance of a sense of responsibility.

Facing the wardrobe, Xue Ling seemed very busy searching, and after a moment, her tablet sent a message: "Right now, I'm most worried about you."

If it were said in her original voice, it would sound sullen, but the voice from the tablet made it sound somewhat cold.

Xue Ling added another sentence, "You should rest first."

Whenever she made decisions for Wen Jiuzhe, the results were never good.

Initially, she hoped he could have a more relaxed life in the base, be accepted by others, and not just interact with her.

But he ended up living like this.

But upon reflection, it wasn’t surprising. Even during the three years of the apocalypse when he was still human, he lived the same way.

"Are you making a nest in the wardrobe?" Wen Jiuzhe asked.

"Come over and chat." He patted the table.

Xue Ling simply sat on the pile of ugly clothes, crossing her arms as she faced Wen Jiuzhe.

Sit and talk? What a bossy tone!

Wen Jiuzhe looked at her. She wouldn’t come over? Fine, he would sit and talk.

He dragged a chair in front of the wardrobe, placed his foot on the door, and faced Xue Ling closely.

With his foot on the wardrobe, Xue Ling placed her foot on his.

"I’m not incapable of taking on the Jizhou City mission; I refused for other reasons." Wen Jiuzhe guessed that she might still hope he would help.

He had refused because the zombies in Jizhou City had mutated, and infected animals attacked both humans and zombies indiscriminately.

Xue Ling could lose control and be unable to protect herself, making it very dangerous, which is why he had refused multiple times.

Moreover, the base there wasn’t officially controlled like Northern Righteousness Base; it was run by wealthy individuals who had seized resources and power, carving out their own territories.

They wouldn’t manage things as strictly as Northern Righteousness Base. No one understood the chaos of a place without rules better than Wen Jiuzhe, who had traveled alone through over a hundred bases of various sizes in the apocalypse.

He didn’t want to take Xue Ling to such a dangerous place and wouldn’t let her leave his side.

Regardless of what General Hao and Wen Yi thought, Wen Jiuzhe didn’t care, but he couldn’t ignore Xue Ling’s thoughts.

If she really wanted him to go… he would go.

She knew how to threaten and pester him until he agreed. But this time, she didn’t throw a fit.

Wen Jiuzhe brought up the Jizhou City matter, but she didn’t continue the conversation.

Wen Jiuzhe wondered if Wen Yi’s inferior drugs had damaged Xue Ling’s brain, causing her to lose certain functions.

He had wanted to say it for a long time: Wen Yi, what outstanding young scientist? The zombie virus medication had taken so long without complete success, and Xue Ling couldn’t be cured, yet she still won an award at the annual conference.

As he privately criticized Wen Yi, Xue Ling took his hand.

Wen Jiuzhe leaned forward, watching her bury her face in his hand—her face was truly the size of a palm, small enough for him to cup it entirely.

Her thin cheeks made her eyes appear especially large, almost frighteningly so.

It was a bit like a certain internet personality Xue Ling had seen who had overused the slimming filter. At the time, Wen Jiuzhe commented, "Do all these fans follow him just to see him pretend to be an alien?"

Back then, he had said those large eyes were ugly, but now, reflecting on it, he realized he had been too certain of himself at twenty.

Xue Ling looked quite appealing this way.

"Alright, I'll agree to go on this mission," Wen Jiuzhe interpreted her burying her face as an act of coquettish behavior.

Xue Ling lifted her big, round eyes, sparkling with doubt.

"Why do you sound so resigned?" she asked. "Did I even ask you to come along?"

"I’m not going! Who asked you to come along?" Xue Ling shook off his hand and used the tablet to defend herself.

"A moment ago, you were holding my hand so pitifully—didn’t you want me to agree?"

"..." Don’t make me feel like my concern for you is pointless, okay?

Wen Jiuzhe realized, "You really don’t want me to go? Oh, I understand, you’re starting to care about me again?"

"..."

Xue Ling took a deep breath, pretending not to hear the dog barking, and wrote: "In the limited time we have, I want to be with you and not think about anything else."

Wen Jiuzhe stopped talking like a dog and looked at Xue Ling for a moment before typing: "Really? Then we can leave here?"