Chapter 91

Chapter 91

After seeing off the representatives from the major bases, Cheng Zhiyu instructed his own base personnel to inventory, document, and then store the newly acquired supplies.

"Deliver the daily necessities to the small store," Cheng Zhiyu directed.

Small River Base now boasted its own small store, managed by the base itself.

Currently, the store primarily offered food for exchange, along with a limited selection of other items, all sourced by Superhumans from outside the base.

The store's main purpose was to acquire goods. Individuals could collect raw materials, craft them into finished products, and return them to the store to earn contribution points.

Naturally, these finished goods would also be displayed in the store, available for exchange by those in need.

With the arrival of daily necessities, these items too became available for trade.

Upon stocking the daily necessities, a sign was placed at the small store's entrance, listing the newly available exchange items.

Medical resources, on the other hand, were dispatched to the base hospital.

Zhou Min now headed the base hospital. Remarkably, during the recent recruitment drive, they had managed to enlist a Healer.

It was widely known that major bases fiercely competed for Healers; any who emerged were quickly snatched up.

Zhou Min himself had only managed to leave Chaoyang Base with ease by concealing his Healing Power.

Had his ability been exposed, his departure would have been far more difficult.

He had been fortunate to leave at a time when detecting abilities was still challenging, unlike the present, where bases had mastered reliable detection methods.

Now, one's ability could be instantly identified, making concealment impossible.

Consequently, the chances of discovering hidden talents, as in the past, had significantly diminished.

To their surprise, they had indeed stumbled upon one.

The Healer had originally belonged to a smaller base, but its leader had been killed by zombies. Given the base's small size, the leader had managed everything personally.

Thus, with the leader's demise, the base fragmented. This small base splintered into several factions, each vying for control.

Amidst their power struggles, they realized the base had descended into chaos and were ultimately forced to disband.

It was during this tumultuous period that the Healer, Chen Juan, seized the opportunity to escape.

When Chen Juan first discovered her healing abilities, she was unaware of their true value and was promptly recruited by this small base.

Subsequently, she lost her freedom. As the sole Healer in the small base, she was worked relentlessly, exhausted daily, her powers completely depleted, leaving her with constant, splitting headaches.

However, the base members understood this to be a normal consequence of overusing her ability—it wouldn't be fatal, and a night's rest would suffice for recovery.

Chen Juan, though somewhat naive, was not foolish. She recognized that the base viewed her not as a person, but as a mere tool.

Unfortunately, she was kept under strict surveillance and had no means of escape.

Fortunately, when the base descended into chaos and the various factions began to fight over her, she finally found an opportunity to flee while they were distracted.

Afterward, she disguised herself as a refugee and dared not use her healing ability. Sores developed on her hands and feet, and in this state, she bore no resemblance to a Healer, appearing indistinguishable from other refugees. Thus, her identity remained undiscovered.

Later, when various bases began recruiting, Chen Juan knew she would eventually need to join one. Having learned a harsh lesson from her previous small base experience, she resolved to seek out a larger one.

Unexpectedly, she encountered Small River Base.

Small River Base displayed an eager desire to recruit skilled ordinary people, and they genuinely provided resources, unlike others who merely offered empty promises.

Chen Juan was deeply conflicted, primarily because her past negative experience had made her cautious.

Hiding in a corner, she secretly observed Small River Base and found it to be entirely different from her previous base, and unlike other bases she had encountered.

Other bases prioritized powerful Superhumans, valuing strength above all else—a logical approach in the apocalypse where power was paramount.

However, Small River Base seemed to operate differently. They had rejected several powerful Superhumans due to their questionable character.

Chen Juan recalled her previous base, where the manager would agree to anything to attract powerful Superhumans, even providing them with attractive young women...

The memory made Chen Juan feel sick to her stomach.

This was also why her previous base had so easily descended into chaos. The manager's death was merely a catalyst; underlying tensions had long been simmering.

Indeed, the manager's death might not have been an accident at all.

Chen Juan ultimately joined Small River Base when only a few spots remained.

She still harbored some anxiety, fearing she might be leaping from one difficult situation into another.

However, upon arriving at Small River Base, she was astonished by the positive mental state of the ordinary people. Furthermore, because she was not in good health, she was simply told to rest and was not immediately assigned work.

She knew that in her previous base, she would have been forced to work as long as she drew breath.

After resting for most of the day, Chen Juan still made her way to Small River Base’s medical room.

The majority of the staff there were ordinary doctors. For common ailments like colds or fevers, Superhumans were not called upon; treatment was handled conventionally.

Someone noticed her arrival and, surprised, asked, "Director Zhou said you should rest for a week before coming. Why are you here already?"

Chen Juan blinked. "I came to take a look."

She inquired, "Where is Director Zhou?"

The person replied, "Oh, Director Zhou isn’t here. Our base rarely has emergencies; most cases are minor illnesses. Another Healer is on duty, which is sufficient. Once you start working, the two of you can take shifts."

They could take shifts? In the past, unless her ability was completely depleted, she couldn't even dream of resting.

Chen Juan immediately felt a sense of calm. Before, she had never seen ordinary people; the only ones she treated were powerful Superhumans. Weaker Superhumans weren't even allocated treatment slots by the base.

But here, both ordinary people and Superhumans received care.

An elderly man approached, complaining of eye pain. After hearing his symptoms, the doctor prescribed eye drops. "This batch of eye drops just arrived at the base. Perfect timing."

The old man nodded with a smile, thanked the doctor, and prepared to leave.

Chen Juan asked, "Sir, is the treatment expensive here?"

"Not too bad. My wife and I both have jobs. We don't get sick every day, so coming here for treatment doesn't cost many contribution points," the old man replied.

Chen Juan's appreciation for Small River Base deepened. This old man was clearly an ordinary person, and elderly at that. In her previous base, not only would he not have received treatment, but simply surviving would have been considered lucky.

Watching the old man depart, Chen Juan's eyes sparkled. She felt her decision was correct; Small River Base was precisely the kind of base she sought.

As a Healer, she was willing to contribute to humanity, but only if she wasn't treated as a tool to be exploited.

She also didn't want to lose her freedom, constantly under surveillance, feeling as if she were in prison.

This place perfectly met all her requirements. Chen Juan smiled and said, "I feel very good now. I'll wait for Director Zhou to arrive and let him know I can start working the day after tomorrow."

"Oh, why the rush?" the doctor said. "Don't worry, the base will ensure your daily needs are met until you're fully rested. Uh... although you'll have to owe some contribution points for now, they'll definitely be repaid quickly."

In truth, whether it was newly joined ordinary residents or Chen Juan, Small River Base could certainly support them for a few days without immediate work. However, as the saying goes, "give them an inch, they'll take a mile." Simply providing free resources wasn't always the best approach.

Chen Juan smiled. "It's not because of that. I'm just eager to start working, and I really will recover soon."

As a Healer, she had no reason to worry about minor injuries like these. Her primary concern stemmed from the emotional trauma inflicted by her previous base, which was why she hadn't used her ability to heal herself despite her injuries.

She feared exploitation, feared being treated as less than human. But now, having witnessed firsthand the lives of the people at Small River Base, she saw that it was completely different from her previous base. This time, she was willing to trust her judgment again.

The doctor who had advised her no longer pressed the issue. "It's your decision. Just make sure you're well-rested."

Chen Juan nodded and quietly observed for a while longer. Several ordinary people came in for treatment, mostly for minor ailments. The most serious case was a sprained ankle.

Apparently, on the night it snowed, he had run too fast while going to collect winter clothes and bedding and had taken a fall.

When Small River Base reported the disaster to the authorities, he was the only injured person mentioned. He felt quite embarrassed, saying he had been teased relentlessly.

A Superhuman also arrived with a large gash on his arm. The Healer on duty treated him.

The Superhuman explained his injury: "I thought, don't we need more cattle for our farm? I love beef, and I happened to run into a few cows, so I tried to catch them. But one of them was too aggressive and charged at me. I wanted to catch them alive without injuring them, but I ended up getting hurt instead."

"Did you manage to catch the cow?" someone nearby asked.

The Superhuman grinned proudly. "Of course I did! I sent it to the farm."

"That's great! If we raise them, we could have beef someday."

"Honestly, I've been craving it. Before the apocalypse, beef was my favorite."

"I wonder when we'll get to taste some."

"Once you have one, more will follow. We'll definitely get to eat it sooner or later."

"True."

Listening nearby, Chen Juan was surprised to find that the Superhumans at Small River Base interacted with ordinary people quite normally, unlike many Superhumans in the post-apocalyptic world who acted superior.

Moreover, when that Superhuman caught the cow, his first thought wasn't to hide it from the base and secretly eat it himself. Instead, he risked injury to capture it alive and deliver it to the farm.

It seemed like they all genuinely wished for the prosperity of Small River Base.

Chen Juan pursed her lips. She was beginning to quite like Small River Base.

——

"What's so interesting about cows?" Cheng Mo muttered, trailing behind Cheng Zhiyu.

Cheng Mo had originally intended to go home, but upon hearing that a Superhuman had captured a few cows, he insisted on coming to see them.

Cheng Zhiyu glanced at Cheng Mo and, seemingly reminded of something, smiled. "Cows aren't just interesting—they're also delicious."

Cheng Mo: "..."

"Haha, I still remember how far you went for a bite of beef... Mmm—" Cheng Mo reached out and covered Cheng Zhiyu’s mouth, his face flushing. "Stop talking."

He defended himself earnestly: "I was too young back then, and my judgment was a bit off. Besides, goat milk powder really doesn't taste good."

"Haha." Cheng Zhiyu couldn't stop laughing. He regretted not having captured that moment on camera; he would have loved to relive it.

Cheng Mo: "..." Stop laughing.

When the two arrived at the farm, Han Tingting was busy checking on the condition of the cows.

The cows, newly placed in the pen, were initially quite agitated and tried to escape. However, upon realizing the warmth of their enclosure, they gradually calmed down.

When the keeper fed them, they cautiously began to eat, finding the feed quite palatable.

Consequently, they likely concluded that with warmth and good food, there was no reason to leave. They settled down and became docile.

Seeing that they were no longer as agitated, Han Tingting began her examination. "They must have been cold and hungry outside, but overall, they’re in decent condition. They just need some rest and proper care."

The cows were quite pitiful—starving and freezing outside, each one was skin and bones.

After finishing, she moved on to the next cow.

This one seemed unwilling to let her touch it. Han Tingting pulled out some alfalfa and fed it to the cow, which then stopped struggling.

Han Tingting conducted the examination, and her eyes lit up. "This one's pregnant! She needs extra care."

Everyone was delighted to hear this. "Let's see if we can separate her from the other cows later. If they're together, she could get hurt by accident."

After finishing the examination, Han Tingting stepped out of the pen and noticed Cheng Zhiyu and Cheng Mo were also there. Smiling, she put away her stethoscope. "Here to see the cows?"

Cheng Zhiyu nodded. "Just stopped by to take a look. It seems you’ve adapted well—you really look the part of a veterinarian now."

"To be honest, I was just winging it at first," Han Tingting said in a low voice.

But what else could she do? In the apocalypse, she was lucky to have a skill that was actually useful. No matter what, she had to step up.

Otherwise, without any survival skills, she wouldn't be able to keep up with manual labor, and she couldn't rely on her brother to support her forever, right?

Speaking of which, when she first started working at the farm, her brother seemed worried about her and would drop by several times a day.

Han Tingting found it a bit annoying, but lately, her brother hadn't been coming at all.

He'd been away on missions, and even when he returned to the base, he didn't come to see her. When she went home, he wasn't there either. Later, she realized—wow, was her brother getting a little too close to Zhou Min?

They were practically inseparable, and her brother was always staring at him. Tsk tsk, something was definitely up.

Han Tingting felt like she might be getting a sister-in-law soon, even if it was a guy.

No wonder her brother had been unmoved when so many pretty girls confessed to him before—apparently, it was the wrong gender.

Though she complained inwardly, she was happy her brother had found someone he liked.

Cheng Zhiyu had no idea what Han Tingting was thinking. He smiled and said, "But you’re doing a great job. Once the farm expands, if it gets too much, we can bring in another vet or find you an assistant to train slowly."

Han Tingting agreed. "Sounds good. I’ll talk to the department head about getting someone trained up so we're not scrambling later."

Cheng Zhiyu nodded.

The pregnant cow had already been moved to a specially prepared warm room. It was expected to give birth in a few days, so preparations were made early.

Han Tingting had recently moved into the farming department’s dormitory to stay overnight, so she could get there fast if needed.

This was the first cow to give birth at the farm, and everyone was quite nervous.

Cheng Zhiyu went to take a look; from a distance, he saw the cow’s belly was very large.

He thought, hopefully, everything goes smoothly.

——

Back home, Cheng Zhiyu noticed Cheng Mo was in the kitchen again. Lately, he seemed particularly fond of trying his hand at cooking.

Seeing Cheng Zhiyu follow him in, Cheng Mo asked, "What would you like to eat?"

Cheng Zhiyu was speechless. As if anything I asked for, he could make.

He gave a light cough. "I’m not very hungry."

Cheng Mo replied, "...Then I’ll make less."

Cheng Zhiyu said helplessly, "Just make me a bowl of rice porridge, then."

Rice porridge was simple and would stop Cheng Mo from going overboard. If he started experimenting with ingredients, he could easily be at it till tomorrow.

"Okay!" Cheng Mo let out a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Good, he knew how to make rice porridge.

If it were anything more complicated, he’d probably have to ask Cheng Mama for guidance.

As he rinsed the rice, Cheng Mo asked, "What type of porridge?"

Not daring to give him any room to experiment, Cheng Zhiyu immediately replied, "Something light for the evening—just plain rice porridge."

Cheng Mo worried, "Won’t it be kind of bland?"

Cheng Zhiyu quickly pulled out some home-pickled vegetables. "We have pickles to go with it."

Cheng Mo nodded, poured the rice into the pot, glanced at Cheng Zhiyu, then added water. "What do you think—how’s the water level?"

Cheng Zhiyu replied, "Seems a little too much."

Cheng Mo took some water out and, seeing Cheng Zhiyu nod, decided it was just right.

"Making food seems pretty easy," Cheng Mo said triumphantly after successfully preparing a bowl of plain rice porridge.

Cheng Zhiyu praised with his eyes closed, "Absolutely, it’s mainly because you’re so talented—you get the hang of things instantly."

Cheng Mo’s smile spread wide across his face, though he tried to sound modest. "It’s really nothing. These are simple tasks. I think I can challenge myself with something more difficult next time."

Cheng Zhiyu thought, "...Are you sure?"

Cheng Mo pressed further, "What would you like to eat?"

Not daring to make any requests, Cheng Zhiyu replied, "No hurry, we can decide later. I don’t want you to push yourself too hard."

Cheng Mo, who had only made plain rice porridge, responded, "...It’s fine, I’m not tired."

Cheng Zhiyu, by now well-versed in handling such situations, said directly, "But I’d worry about you."

Cheng Mo’s smile widened even more. "...Oh."

He leaned in, kissed Cheng Zhiyu gently, then, feeling it wasn’t enough, gave his lips another quick kiss.

Cheng Zhiyu blushed. "Stop fooling around, we’re in the kitchen."

If his parents or his sister happened to come out and see them, he would die of embarrassment right there.

Cheng Mo’s ears popped out. "Okay."

Cheng Zhiyu sighed. "Ugh, it’s always like this."

What’s more, Cheng Mo was wearing an apron at that moment, which made the whole scene feel... kinky.

Annoyed, Cheng Zhiyu roughed up Cheng Mo’s ears and bit his lip. "I told you, we’re in public!"

Cheng Mo played innocent. "I didn’t do anything, though?"

Cheng Zhiyu warned, "...Hurry and check the porridge—it might burn."

Cheng Mo immediately grew anxious and rushed to stir the porridge. Relieved to see it hadn’t burned, he let out a sigh. "Good, it’s still okay to eat. If it had burned, we wouldn’t be able to eat it."

Just as Cheng Zhiyu was about to say something, he heard footsteps at the kitchen door. Instinctively, he glanced at Cheng Mo’s ears. "!!!"

"Bro, what are you making?" Cheng Zhiyan, feeling hungry late at night, had come to see if there was any food. She noticed the kitchen light was on.

Cheng Zhiyu quickly moved to shield Cheng Mo. "Uh... just making some plain rice porridge."

"Plain rice porridge..." Cheng Zhiyan was less than thrilled. She was about to say more when Cheng Mo, who had been bent over to look at the porridge, straightened up. She caught sight of the pair of ears on his head.

Cheng Zhiyan sucked in a breath. "...Whoa."

Cheng Zhiyu fell silent.

Cheng Mo naturally had animal ears, but whether they were real or just a hair accessory, Cheng Zhiyu wasn’t sure which explanation would be more shocking.

Fortunately, Cheng Zhiyan was quick to catch on. She said with a giggle, "Oh, bro, I suddenly don’t feel hungry anymore. I’ll skip eating tonight."

With that, she quickly slipped away. Whew, at least she didn’t walk in on anything worse. Who knew her brother had such tastes!

Cheng Zhiyu watched his sister’s fleeing figure, then turned to give him a look at Cheng Mo.

Cheng Mo put on an innocent face. "What’s wrong?"

Cheng Zhiyu glanced at Cheng Mo’s fluffy ears, reached out, and roughly mussed them up.

Cheng Mo secretly enjoyed it but complained aloud, "Hey, hey, Cheng Zhiyu, you’re making a mess of my hair."

Cheng Zhiyu ruffled even more fiercely. After venting his frustration, he pulled back his hand and took a look at Cheng Mo’s new hairstyle—a complete messy mop.

Still, Cheng Mo’s perfectly sculpted face was truly striking. Even with messy hair, it didn’t detract from his looks—instead, it gave him a different kind of handsome.

Cheng Mo, who cared deeply about his appearance, frowned and fixed his hair. Not one to let it slide, he reached out and mussed up Cheng Zhiyu’s hair in retaliation.

Cheng Zhiyu snapped, "Big Black!"

Cheng Mo immediately straightened up, replying earnestly, "Zhi Yu, you look good like this."

Cheng Zhiyu retorted, "...Hmph."

Cheng Mo added, "I’ll make it up to you later."

Cheng Zhiyu raised an eyebrow: "How will you compensate me?"

Cheng Mo whispered something in his ear, and Cheng Zhiyu’s ears immediately turned red. He looked at him suspiciously: "Where did you learn that?"

Cheng Mo said proudly: "From a comic."

A "Little Yellow comic," Cheng Zhiyu muttered: "Day after day, not learning any good."

Cheng Mo chuckled: "So, do you want it or not?"

Cheng Zhiyu was verbally honest: "Yes, tsk, my compensation—how could I not want it? Otherwise, my social death would’ve been pointless."

Cheng Mo felt proud. See, Cheng Zhiyu is head over heels for me.

The plain porridge was ready. Cheng Mo scooped it out, served some pickles in a small dish, and took it outside to eat.

Cheng Zhiyu glanced at the top of his head: "Retract your ears."

Cheng Mo dutifully retracted his ears. He just enjoyed tempting Cheng Zhiyu this way but had no interest in letting others see.

It’s pretty hard to mess up plain porridge. Cheng Zhiyu took a bite with some pickles and thought it was pretty good.

After a big mouthful, Cheng Zhiyu asked: "Do you want some?"

Cheng Mo: "No, I need to watch my weight."

Cheng Zhiyu: "...Then what about me? You just talked me into eating!"

"You don’t need to. I'll like Zhi Yu no matter what." Cheng Mo said: "But it’s different for me. Zhi Yu clearly likes people who are fit."

Cheng Zhiyu: "..."

He said fiercely: "Fine, you got me. Keep up your figure, or I won’t like you anymore."

Cheng Mo slumped onto the table: "Cheng Zhiyu, how could you be like this?"

Cheng Zhiyu happily drank his porridge, finding it even more delicious, and asked: "How am I?"

Cheng Mo gave a deadpan look: "Can’t you just coax me and say you’ll like me no matter what?"

Cheng Zhiyu raised an eyebrow: "Oh? So what you said earlier was just sweet-talking me?"

Cheng Mo immediately grabbed his hand and pledged his loyalty: "Of course not, everything I said was true."

Cheng Zhiyu was in a good mood: "Oh, I’ll reluctantly believe you then."

Cheng Mo nodded, then felt puzzled, as if he’d been tricked.

He looked at Cheng Zhiyu, who was eating the simple plain porridge with pickles seriously, finishing every last drop.

Cheng Mo immediately pushed his doubts aside and said with a smile: "I’ll keep making it for you in the future. Should I try something more complicated? These are too simple."

Cheng Zhiyu: ? Are you sure? Big Black, you’re getting a bit cocky.