Chapter 255

Chapter 255

One month after moving into the new home.

Near a remote special reserve warehouse.

The distribution of reserve supplies was nearing its end, and Chu Yi led his team in cleanup:

Taking away the last of the supplies, cleaning up the warehouse, and sealing it.

It sounded simple enough, but it was troublesome—ensuring the warehouse would be ready for immediate use upon reopening, and fixing up, moving, or reworking certain entrances required the assistance of Superpowered individuals.

Thus, every time they finished handling a warehouse site, they'd be stuck outside longer.

Now, whenever Chu Yi took the team out, Tang Ji and Xiao Ya would usually accompany him, along with a female caretaker assigned to look after Xiao Ya. As a result, their living arrangements during missions had also improved:

They brought along a fully equipped prefab house—two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom, about 40 square meters—for the women to use.

This idea was proposed by Jiang Nian, and Chu Yi found it reasonable. Since his storage space could fit it, he made the arrangements.

This way, even if they had to stay in the wild for an extended period, there was no need to worry about inconvenience.

The others, including Chu Yi himself, still stayed in tents at the temporary campsite.

However, during mealtimes, they would moose off Xiao Ya's home cooking, as Jiang Nian always secretly gave her lots of goodies before each mission.

At exactly 12 noon, they broke for lunch.

Chu Yi was in the field office, reviewing the supply tally with a stern expression, weariness plain on his face.

Soon enough, Tang Ji walked in from outside:

"Chu-ge, knock off for now. It’s time to eat."

"Yeah, just about wrapped up. You go ahead first," Chu Yi said.

Without looking up, Chu Yi continued swiftly checking the list.

"Keep working. I’ll wait," Tang Ji said.

Tang Ji didn’t leave. He neither lectured nor disturbed, just stood by him and waited.

Seeing this, Chu Yi had to close the folder.

"Let’s go. We’ll eat first," he said.

Tang Ji handed him a damp towel:

"Wipe your face. You're wiped out."

Chu Yi pressed the towel against his face and said:

"We finished nearly a month’s workload in half the time. It’s worth being beat if it means we can return to the base and rest longer."

After wiping his face, he noticed Tang Ji looked kinda put out and added:

"This time, when we go back, I’ll have more time to hang with you."

Tang Ji’s ears went pink as he mumbled unconvincingly:

"I don’t mind how busy you are, as long as we can be together every day."

"I mind. I want more alone time as a couple."

Chu Yi replied with a smile, leaning down to give Tang Ji's lips a quick peck before turning to hang up the towel.

He wasn’t a saint—now that they were in a relationship, acting like mere coworkers was unacceptable.

Because he was so busy, Tang Ji had taken the initiative to sleep in separate rooms. Sometimes, when Chu Yi wanted to get closer, the moment the thought arose, his phone would ring.

With more time, their vacation wouldn’t have been interrupted.

"Mhm."

The displeasure on Tang Ji’s face faded, replaced by a giddy happiness as he left the tent with Chu Yi.

"..."

The mess hall had already started serving lunch, and the aroma of food filled the entire encampment.

When Chu Yi and Tang Ji arrived outside the barracks, a charred, pungent aroma wafted out, making Tang Ji’s mouth water.

"Pepper-fried cured pork!"

Even with the same ingredients, dishes cooked in a small pot always tasted better.

After knocking for a while, Xiao Ya opened the door, and the mouthwatering smell hit them.

"Mr. Chu, Brother Tang Ji, come eat quickly!"

Four dishes were laid out on the table: clear radish soup, stir-fried cabbage, chilled cucumber salad, and green pepper with cured pork—all generously portioned, especially the meat.

The vegetables were grown on Jiang Nian’s farm using Huang Qian’s superpower, supplied to their corps for a fee, tasting just like the real thing.

As for the cured pork, it was a gift from Jiang Nian, ensuring they ate to their satisfaction every time.

Their unit’s chow wasn’t bad—military provisions included staple foods and meat dishes—but they still couldn’t compare.

The four of them sat around the simple square table and began eating, each with a pre-packaged self-heating rice portion.

Xiao Ya ate little, while her supervisor, Chu Yi, and Tang Ji, all being soldiers, wolfed down their food.

At first, Chu Yi worried the girl was too nervous to eat and made a point to save food for her, only to find she always had leftovers. As they grew familiar, they stopped holding back.

Besides, Xiao Ya had candies and snacks, so there was no worry she’d starve.

They had been out for half a month, with plans to return to base tomorrow. This trip had kept everyone busy, especially Chu Yi, who pulled all-nighters to finish the mission early.

During the meal, Chu Yi’s walkie-talkie and phone rang multiple times, so they wordlessly sped up.

After the meal, Chu Yi laid out the afternoon’s plan:

"The warehouse entrance has been modified. Xiao Ya and I will move the two classified storage units according to the new blueprint, then lock down and conceal the warehouse. You two take a squad and rally the survivors in the neighboring village."

This was a remote mountain village with just over a dozen households—fewer than a hundred people—including one Earth Superpowered and one enhanced-strength Superpowered, neither particularly strong in combat.

Since the apocalypse began, the villagers had been under the protection of the corps stationed here, way luckier than most outsiders.

Now that the warehouse was emptied and temporarily sealed, and the corps was preparing to withdraw, the villagers were reluctant to leave, insisting on supplies to stay behind.

"What if they really refuse to come with us?"

Thinking of the villagers' 'pigheaded' attitude, Tang Ji felt a headache coming on, and Xiao Ya's handler also showed a helpless expression.

"Spell out the consequences. If they refuse to enter the base, the authorities will no longer provide humanitarian aid. Without the army here, even if there are no zombies, there will still be raiders. They’ll be robbed sooner or later."

"If they still refuse after that, then leave them half a year's worth of food supplies according to regulations, along with some crop seeds and land-purification agents. After that, we’re done with them."

After speaking, Chu Yi went out. They had been warning and persuading the villagers since arriving half a month ago. If they wouldn’t listen, there was nothing more to be done—they’d get what’s coming to them.

If these people changed their minds after they returned to the base, the Southern City Base wouldn’t intervene again.

Xiao Ya was wearing a pre-Collapse school uniform today, following closely behind Chu Yi.

Passing through the military camp and heading straight for the underground warehouse, Chu Yi slowed his pace and explained some details of the upcoming work to her.

Two years had passed, and Xiao Ya was now 14, having grown much taller and more mature. She no longer needed to wear the collar that suppressed her Superpower—ditching that restraint marked progress.

Through frequent field training, whether rescuing people or salvaging critical supplies, Xiao Ya had become sharp and steady in both her work and her use of her Superpower.

Most children in similar situations, after undergoing rehabilitation in the supervision schools, had begun assisting in post-apocalyptic rescue efforts, just like her.

As for those who remained rebellious, their Superpower Cores had been removed, turning them into ordinary people. Depending on their age, they were placed under supervised education and forced labor within the base.