Chapter 116: Past and Present

Chapter 116: Past and Present

As expected, various bases soon sent vehicles to escort residents who wanted to move to Guixu City. Similar to Central Base, most of the arrivals were families, especially those with many elderly and children who had struggled in their original bases and thus considered coming here for basic welfare guarantees.

Guixu Base accepted them all, as long as they had no criminal record from their previous base.

Even Ren Yuefei called: "Are you really able to handle this? Our city hall has received applications from people wanting to move to Guixu City. Since it's nearby, they hope we can arrange official transportation."

Guan Yuanfeng replied, "Sure, send them all over here."

Ren Yuefei said, "You're just like Old Tan back in the day. I heard Central Base also accepted refugees and survivors unconditionally under pressure. It sounds simple, but it's really tough to pull off. Think about it—food, energy, sanitation, public security, and public opinion management are all major issues. If there's an epidemic, it would be even worse. Clearly, your management manpower is insufficient."

"I know you have the capability to fight zombies and mutated beasts, and I know Dr. Zhou can ensure food supply, but management isn't that simple. People are the most complicated beings on earth. I've seen all the praise online, but trust me, one misstep and it can all turn against you. It's a double-edged sword."

"All bases control internet access and strictly manage public opinion for various reasons."

"Look at Ye Yuqing's side. The entire Lin Dong Base is under military management, like a large military camp with strict rules. Although he's annoying, he's good at management."

Guan Yuanfeng nodded, "Thanks for the heads-up. We’ve got an experienced police officer."

"They're currently working on resident self-governance. The residential area is divided into several groups, with respected elders and those with management experience handling daily affairs. The military is responsible for patrols and public security. The population is still small, so it's manageable. Those causing trouble or stealing have been sent for compulsory labor."

Ren Yuefei said, "Good, as long as you’ve got a plan. Encouraging resident self-governance is another approach. Slowly screen for those with management experience."

Guan Yuanfeng agreed and hung up.

He stepped out and saw Zhou Yun packing his bag. He asked, "Are you going to the headquarters today?"

Zhou Yun replied, "No, to the hospital. Medical staff are gradually checking in there, and Dr. Qi is swamped. I'm going to help."

Guan Yuanfeng asked, "Is the medical staff sufficient?"

Zhou Yun said, "We’re managing. The military doctors who came with the team are the main force. Director Yuan from Beiming City’s medical team has also sent some medical personnel for support. Some of the new residents are also medical professionals. We’re planning to vet them."

"Additionally, we'll select a group of people willing to work in healthcare for a crash course. They can handle basic tasks like wound care, IVs, monitoring vitals, giving meds, and catheterization."

Zhou Yun remained optimistic: "For emergency trauma, we have Zhang Guangming, Hua Rou, and two light-based psychic abilities from the Tianlang team, with wood psychic abilities as the main support. Most cases now are chronic illnesses, so it’s not a big deal. For difficult and severe cases, we have Yao Lao keeping an eye on things."

Guan Yuanfeng nodded, knowing that Zhou Yun's medical skills were also exceptional, whether in emergency trauma or traditional medicine. By mentioning Yao Lao, Zhou Yun was being modest. But precisely because of this, Guan Yuanfeng worried that Zhou Yun was overworking.

Seeing Guan Yuanfeng frown slightly, Zhou Yun comforted him: "It's tough at the beginning, but once everything is on track, talent will naturally come."

Guan Yuanfeng moved closer, noticing Zhou Yun's spirited demeanor and smiling eyes. These days, residents from various bases were voluntarily joining Guixu City in batches. According to the original plan, everyone was supposed to undergo a health check, but manpower was insufficient.

He was busy, but he shouldn’t be this swamped.

He should be relaxing by the lake, fishing with Comet, planning what to cook for the day, picking a book from the shelf, writing his favorite poems, and then watching a movie or listening to music.

Although Zhou Yun never said it, and his days were filled with work, he seemed content and happy, as if completely satisfied.

But somehow, Guan Yuanfeng knew that Zhou Yun didn't enjoy this constant interaction with people. He was more introspective, enjoying a solitary life. Others were a distraction to him, and most worldly matters were indeed meaningless.

He had grown so strong that he could easily live a life of solitude, doing what he loved.

Zhou Yun didn't notice Guan Yuanfeng's sudden melancholy. He finished packing his bag and checked the time: "I'll head out first. Are you going out of the city today? Take Comet with you. It's inconvenient for me to bring him to the hospital."

Guan Yuanfeng was indeed planning to inspect the military camps outside the city. He simply nodded, watching Zhou Yun leave as swiftly as the wind.

Guan Yuanfeng fell into an inexplicable reverie until he got into the car and drove out of Yunding Mountain Villa. Dong Kexin, in the car ahead, turned to ask him, "General Luo from Sanchu Base is arriving tomorrow. He asked in advance if he could visit Dongjun. How should I respond?"

Guan Yuanfeng casually said, "Just make up an excuse to turn them down."

Dong Kexin replied, "Alright."

But Guan Yuanfeng suddenly snapped out of it, "Wait... maybe you should ask Zhou Yun for his opinion."

Dong Kexin smiled, "If it's not your idea, why would he even consider meeting these people?"

Guan Yuanfeng was taken aback. Dong Kexin turned to see his serious expression and was also taken aback, "I'm not trying to disrespect Dr. Zhou's opinion. What I mean is, Dr. Zhou is clearly putting up with these meetings for your sake, Team Guan. Now that you say it's unnecessary, how could he still meet them? Even if you ask him, he would definitely say it's up to you."

Guan Yuanfeng was silent for a while, "All for me..."

Dong Kexin smiled, "Of course. Even Yao Lao is the same way, not fond of dealing with outsiders, only a few they approve can get close. They have that academic, research-focused mindset and get impatient with socializing. Socializing is a waste of time, their work requires a lot of focus."

"And," Dong Kexin continued, "Dr. Zhou is clearly very intelligent, talking to us is like lowering his standards. You can tell he's making an effort to meet us halfway, but you can also see his impatience."

"When he loses patience, he starts to drift off. I've heard from Qin Mu and Zhu Zhuan that when discussing matters with Dr. Zhou, you need to be concise and get to the point quickly. He only stays fully focused when he's talking to you, Team Guan. So meeting a stranger, unless you say to meet, he definitely won't waste time."

Guan Yuanfeng said, "He's not drifting off, he's just processing things faster and thinking ahead more than most people, so you're not keeping up with his thoughts."

Dong Kexin said, "Is that so?"

Guan Yuanfeng replied, "Exactly, his mind works faster and more sharply than most. He's very curious about unknown fields and quickly explores them, so he comes across as someone with wide-ranging interests and a lot of knowledge."

Dong Kexin thought about it, "That does make sense, you know Dr. Zhou better, Team Guan." She smiled again, "We all feel like if it weren't for you, Team Guan, we wouldn't even get a chance to talk to Dr. Zhou."

Guan Yuanfeng, though, seemed lost in thought.

Dong Kexin noticed that Guan Yuanfeng looked like he was preoccupied or considering something important, and didn't dare to disturb him further.

After checking out the military camp outside the city, which was near the Nanshan Herb Garden, Jiang Rongqian had already gotten there early to set things up, bringing several officers to report on the site selection.

Jiang Rongqian led Guan Yuanfeng up a nearby hillside and pointed out, "Considering the needs for training exercises, this big area works better, with mountains and water for daily exercises and a plain for setting up a shooting range."

"In terms of transportation, it can quickly respond to and support Guixu City, while also guarding the Nanshan Herb Garden here."

"The farm can share some stuff with the Nanshan Herb Garden."

"We can take our time building the barracks and defenses. Zhu Zhuan mentioned that the former prison farm tea plantation's workshop can be allocated to us for temporary use as barracks. With the extreme weather, most outdoor tea plants have died, and it's now abandoned."

"We'll put up a comms tower on this mountain to stay connected."

"We can stash the supplies and weapons at the Nanshan Herb Garden for now, as there's an existing dedicated armory."

"So the main tasks for the winter can be building garages, barracks, and training grounds. As for the city walls, Dr. Zhou said he can arrange for a cactus wall."

Jiang Rongqian, seeing Guan Yuanfeng remain silent, felt uneasy and continued, "What we didn't mention is that Dr. Zhou himself offered to help. After hearing from Zhu Zhuan about our need to build a camp, he suggested we quickly decide on the wall line so he could arrange the cactus wall."

Guan Yuanfeng seemed to snap back to reality, "It's fine, I understand. Go with what he suggests."

Jiang Rongqian was puzzled, what did Dr. Zhou say? He only mentioned quickly deciding on the wall line... what about all the other plans I mentioned earlier?

Dong Kexin smiled and added for him, "Team Guan means he agrees with all the plans mentioned earlier, right?"

Guan Yuanfeng said, "Yes."

He walked a bit further before asking Dong Kexin and Jiang Rongqian, "Earlier, I placed the city lord's decree under Dong Jun's name, and you said you thought Zhou Yun might not like being in the spotlight."

Dong Kexin smiled, "It was just a hunch, we don't really know Dr. Zhou all that well."

Guan Yuanfeng said, "I wasn't finished."

Dong Kexin quickly fell silent, listening attentively. Guan Yuanfeng continued, "But he was very happy that day when he received the City Lord's decree—extremely happy. I had never seen him so happy before."

It was pure, unadulterated joy; his eyes lit up as if he had received the most precious gift.

He was sure it was genuine happiness.

He looked at Jiang Rongqian and Dong Kexin, both of whom were looking at him, seemingly waiting for him to continue.

Guan Yuanfeng paused. Suddenly, he didn't want to continue—they didn't understand Zhou Yun.

He turned and headed for the car, saying, "Let's go back."

===

Guixu City Medical Center.

Zhou Yun strode back to his clinic and bumped into Qi Shuhong, who smiled and said, "Dr. Zhou, you're here. Yao Lao wants to see you."

Zhou Yun was surprised: "What's the matter?"

Qi Shuhong said, "It seems a former student of Yao Lao has come with his family. Knowing Yao Lao comes once a week for consultations, he brought his son, hoping Yao Lao would take him on as a student. It's said he was studying medicine before the apocalypse but didn't finish because of it."

Zhou Yun said, "Oh, I'll go and see."

Qi Shuhong smiled, "I think Yao Lao is just being polite; he probably doesn't even remember who this person is. With so many students, he might not remember those who weren't exceptional."

Zhou Yun didn't think much of it: "Yao Lao does have many students. He didn't refuse outright, probably thinking we're short on medical staff and didn't want to put us in a tough spot. I'll take care of it for him."

Zhou Yun entered the clinic and saw Yao Lao sitting on one side, with a middle-aged man and a young man across from him, smiling eagerly.

Zhou Yun walked in and immediately noticed the young man, feeling a bit surprised. It was him? How could it be him? Shouldn't he be at Central Base, with no further ties to me? Suddenly, it hit him how much he had altered the fate trajectories of so many people.

Seeing his former star student standing there smiling, as before—gentle, obedient, diligent, responsible, quick and efficient with data—yet the one who had betrayed him most deeply. He felt a sense of disorientation, as if he were in a dream.

Yao Huan, noticing Zhou Yun staring at the young man, coughed lightly: "Zhou Yun, this is Yi Jinchao, your fellow alumnus. I taught him for a semester when he was an undergrad. Now his son, Yi Qian, is also studying medicine—just nineteen—and coincidentally ended up at Guixu Base. I just asked around; he's quite clever, good at handling things, and his basics are solid."

Zhou Yun nodded to Yi Jinchao and Yi Qian. Noticing the tea on Yao Huan's desk had gone cold, he picked up the thermos and added some hot water.

Yi Jinchao smiled broadly: "So it's junior brother. I thought the teacher couldn't be without someone to attend to him—turns out it's you. Tonight, I'll treat the teacher and junior brother to dinner."

Yao Huan waved his hand: "I'm old, and you're new here, probably strapped for cash—no need to trouble yourself."

Yi Jinchao smiled: "A teacher recognition banquet must be held, to acknowledge the mentorship..."

Yao Huan shook his head: "No need. I'm too old, and it's the apocalypse now. I don't have the energy to take on students. Young Yi is still so young, and he's not studying traditional medicine—no need to come to my cold stove. Zhou Yun has surpassed me; he's much better than me. I specifically called Zhou Yun here to let him guide you."

Yi Jinchao looked somewhat disappointed, forcing a smile: "Teacher, you're too modest. In the medical field now, who doesn't know that Green Bird Pharmaceuticals has hired you as a consultant at a high salary, and even City Lord Gong's cancer was cured by you? The world has changed; mutated herbs are rising, and traditional medicine is also a hot topic. If young Yi could learn a few tricks from you, even just acupuncture, he could make a living in the future. Teacher, considering the student's sincerity..."

Yao Huan said, "Just to make a living?"

Yi Qian quickly added: "As parents, we naturally hope our children can live safely in the apocalypse, with a place to settle. From my side, of course, I hope to research in the emerging field of mutated herbs. This is a new era for humanity, a new development. As researchers, being able to grow in this era, expanding the boundaries of human knowledge, discovering new scientific principles based on existing knowledge systems, exploring new topics in human psychic abilities, advancing the fate of humanity, and realizing personal value—it's thrilling just to think about it. Please, Teacher Yao, give this junior a chance to learn."

Yao Huan smiled and nodded at Zhou Yun: "I was saying, if you just want to make a living, you don't even need Zhou Yun. You can settle down as medical staff at the base hospital; making a living isn't hard."

He pointed at Zhou Yun: "Zhou Yun is now better than me. Young Yi, if you can learn a few tricks from him, it's enough. Not to mention for all humanity—start with Guixu City. And he hasn't taken any disciples yet; you should strive. I can't decide; his standards are probably higher than mine."

Zhou Yun smiled: "Teacher, don't tease me. Taking a disciple requires mutual willingness. Since the teacher has commanded, I'll guide him. We are indeed short of hands." He looked at Yi Qian: "But Central Base also values medical staff and researchers highly, and they have the Psychic Research Institute there, with better benefits than our remote place. Why come to Guixu instead?"

Yi Jinchao's expression changed slightly: "It's because young Yi's mentor got into trouble, implicated... Central Base is too complicated and chaotic; we just want to live our own lives."

Zhou Yun looked at Yi Qian, who had a trace of embarrassment and discomfort on his face: "There aren't many people in the Central Plains who focus on research; most are busy fighting for power and profit. I heard from my father that he had studied under Yao Lao before, and I also heard that Guixu City is close to Beiming, with military escorts. So I thought it would be a good opportunity to come here and seek refuge with Yao Lao, to focus on research in peace."

"Previously, in the Central Plains, we actually went to visit Yao Lao, but at that time, Professor Dou said that Yao Lao was unwell and needed to rest, so he wasn't seeing outsiders."

This statement pleased Yao Lao, who nodded with a smile: "I like hearing that! What kind of research can the Psychic Research Institute in the Central Plains produce? It's all just a facade! Speaking of which, I wonder how Dou Zhijun is doing now. Is he still using my name? He stole my research materials and gave them to the Psychic Research Institute, so I expelled him from my circle."

Yi Qian looked surprised: "We haven't heard any news about Professor Dou for a long time. We thought he had followed Yao Lao to the south for recuperation. That's why we came here today and inquired, only to find out that Yao Lao has actually opened a clinic here. We were very pleasantly surprised."

Yao Lao said: "Enough of that. Once bitten, twice shy. I don't want to take on any more disciples. Yi Qian, you should just follow Zhou Yun and learn well. Whatever you can learn will be your own ability. Zhou Yun is soft-hearted and not one to hide things."

Zhou Yun just smiled but didn't forget to ask: "Who was Yi Qian's mentor?"

Yi Qian hesitated: "I studied at a university in the capital before the apocalypse. After the apocalypse, I followed my mentor to the Central Plains, where he joined the Psychic Research Institute. I worked on projects with him, but the institute was full of infighting and exclusion. Now my mentor is overwhelmed, and the institute is in chaos. I realized it was impossible to focus on research there, so I decided to seek another path."

Zhou Yun thought for a moment: "If something happened... it seems that the Psychic Research Institute recently dealt with a few researchers over the fake psychic ability activation vaccine incident. Was your mentor caught up in that? Was your mentor Wu Yuru?"

Yao Lao sneered: "That fake vaccine? Many scholars I know from the Central Plains thought I wrote the paper exposing the fake vaccine and called to ask me about it."

Yi Qian looked embarrassed: "Yes. I worked on a project with her during university. I was only a freshman, so I wasn't deeply involved in the vaccine project."

Zhou Yun nodded: "I heard she was actually scapegoated. She wasn't in charge of the vaccine project. Are you planning to seek justice for her here?"

Yi Qian shook his head: "The academic disputes there are too complicated. Teacher Wu has her own disciples, who are also psychics, working hard for her, but it hasn't helped. I'm too insignificant..."

Seeing Zhou Yun's half-smiling expression and Yao Lao's indifferent face, Yi Qian's heart skipped a beat. He suddenly realized his response was inappropriate and quickly added: "I was thinking that I need to establish myself in academic research first, gain more influence, and then I can seek justice for Teacher Wu and restore her reputation."

Yao Lao's expression softened a bit: "A teacher for a day is still a teacher. I don't know Wu Yuru, but how could the Psychic Research Institute shirk responsibility for something as big as the psychic ability activation vaccine? Didn't they review it?"

Yi Qian said: "That's how it is. Several of my senior brothers have been running around, raising their voices, but the Alliance government just wants to suppress the matter. It's caused infighting among Teacher Wu's disciples, and it's all a mess. Those of us at the bottom can't focus on research, so I made the tough decision to convince my father to come south and seek refuge with you."

Zhou Yun didn't say anything, but Yao Lao said: "You're young, but you're clever and have some insight. You're indeed a smart kid." He looked at Zhou Yun and smiled: "Unlike Zhou Yun, who's a bit naive and doesn't know how to handle things."

Zhou Yun just smiled: "Teacher, Director Yuan Xuegang called. He wants to discuss some treatment plans for City Lord Gong with you and asked if you could spare some time to go over."

Yao Lao stood up: "Alright, Guixu City still relies heavily on Director Yuan's support. I'll go take a look. You handle things here."

Yi Jinchao and Yi Qian quickly stood up with smiles to see Yao Lao off. Zhou Yun said: "Brother Yi and Yi Qian, you can go help Dean Qi for now. The base's medical center has just been established, and there's a lot to do. I'm wrapping up a research project here, and once I form a research team later, I'll call you."

Yi Jinchao and Yi Qian quickly agreed with smiles.

After watching Zhou Yun escort Yao Lao out, the father and son finally walked out. Yi Jinchao looked regretful: "Ah, Zhou Yun beat us to it again. I don't know where he came from. Back in the Central Plains, it was that Dou Zhijun who always stuck close to the teacher."

Yi Qian said: "It's inevitable. Yao Lao is now a golden brand, with disciples everywhere. Whoever can stick close will. I'll focus on building a good relationship with Dean Qi first. As for Zhou Yun, I haven't heard of him in academic circles before. How did he suddenly appear? Yao Lao seems to rely on him quite a bit. Dad, can you ask some old classmates about him?"

Yi Jinchao said: "Sure, I'll ask some old teachers. I graduated too long ago, and now, in the apocalypse, there aren't many old classmates left. Some of them stayed at the university back then. I'll ask around."