Still not satisfied, Su Mo stepped outside the door and her compelling gaze made Xiaoqiao retreat two steps, "Do you think, without Zhao Changsheng’s protection, you and your family could survive in the Outer Ring?"
Her implication was merely pointing out that Xiaoqiao was overstepping her bounds. She trembled, her voice hoarse, "I understand now."
No longer begging Su Mo, she turned and ran away.
Indeed, she wasn’t wrong. Without Zhao Changsheng, she was really nothing, aside from the free apartment unit, she had nothing.
Su Mo closed the door, her eyebrows relaxing. After stretching her muscles, she scooted next to Lu Chen, who was sitting on the couch, and switched to a cheery face, "When you come back tomorrow, we’ll make more food and tea, help me, will you?"
Chirping merrily, Su Mo began to unpack the several large bags on the table in front of them, reorganizing the items again. She poked the man’s arm, "Make sure to put these things away properly."
Lu Chen did as told and stored the items. Su Mo then laid her head on his lap and looked up at his chin, murmuring softly, "If it’s really a problem with the medicine, do you have any confidence of stopping it?"
"No," Lu Chen answered bluntly. He looked down and said softly, "If it’s a severe medicinal incident, it’s impossible for the lab not to detect it."
"Are you suspecting there might be an insider in the lab?"
"Perhaps," Lu Chen replied ambiguously.
Everything would have to wait until tomorrow to be revealed.
"I’ve discovered my husband is not only handsome but also smart," Su Mo changed the subject, propping herself up on his leg and planting a kiss on his chin, her face brightening with a smile.
He always enjoyed her deliberate flattery. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulled her up from the couch, and said in a deep, pleasant voice, "Time for bed."
"Going to sleep right after eating?"
"Exercise aids digestion."
The next day, she was hauled out of bed by Lu Chen. After a yawn, they stood in the bathroom brushing their teeth. Su Mo leaned on him, dark circles under her eyes, the toothpaste foam still in her mouth. As she brushed and complained,
"Don’t you worry I might suddenly drop dead doing this every day?"
Lu Chen’s hand tightened around her waist, his gaze turned displeased, "What nonsense are you saying?"
He cared a lot when she spoke of such unlucky things. After Su Mo finished brushing her teeth, she pointed at her swollen lips and muttered, "It’s all because of you."
Lu Chen couldn’t help but chuckle, then he personally tied up her hair, "My fault."
Enjoying his attentions, Su Mo looked at her sleep-deprived reflection in the mirror and sighed. However, days like these were likely numbered, and following along wasn’t so bad; apart from the lack of sleep, everything else was enjoyable.
After breakfast, they went downstairs and met up with Li Qian.
Early in the morning, Ling Ye was sent to Su Niang’s place. Knowing they had important tasks at hand, Su Niang decided without hesitation to take him in for a few days.
The group rushed to the Outer Ring. Jin Han had already driven some people to wait at the entrance, including a soldier to guide them.
Jian Qing was also there early, eager not to miss them.
"Good morning, whoa, Miss Su, why such heavy dark circles?" Jin Han waved at them, smiling as he saw the military vehicle approaching and teasing with a wide grin.
Su Mo, sitting in the vehicle, yawned again. Leaning by the window, she lazily said, "Overexertion."
Jin Han licked his gold tooth, smiling lewdly, "Tough work."
Su Mo stretched her hand out and tapped on the iron mesh of the window, "Jian Qing, get in the car, let’s set off."
Li Qian opened the door from inside, scooted closer to Zhao Changsheng’s side as Jian Qing boarded the vehicle, smiling friendly at him.
The two cars drove out of the base, one after the other.
On one side, throngs of refugees awaited their turn to enter the base.
Lu Chen was driving past these people, with Jin Han’s car leading the way in front. Suddenly, a mishap occurred ahead, filled with intense gunfire and chaotic crowds, causing both vehicles to forcefully come to a stop.
Su Mo leaned against the window and looked outside, where five or six zombies had infiltrated the refugee crowd, and soldiers were dealing with them.
She curiously looked at the bodies riddled with bullets and remarked, "Aren’t soldiers supposed to regularly clear out zombies around here? How come so many have popped up?"
"Must have missed some," Zhao Changsheng said nonchalantly.
The road ahead was cleared, and the vehicles restarted.
The dairy farm they were heading to was located on the edge of City B and was an artificially developed ecological ranch.
The cars sped through buildings in ruins, heading straight for the border.
After the nth time of running over a zombie, everyone in the car felt that something was amiss.
Su Mo sat up straight, turned her head towards Lu Chen, who was driving, and asked, "Has their number indeed increased?"
"Yes," Lu Chen’s lips formed a straight line, and a chill enveloped him.
Jian Qing was also on edge; this was his first time out on a mission. He swallowed hard and asked, "Is there something different?"
Li Qian softly replied, "The zombies around the base had been almost completely cleared, the sudden appearance of so many seems more like they’ve migrated here."
Zhao Changsheng crossed his legs and looked at the black bloodstains splattered on the window, "Migration? That exaggerated?"
"That’s behavior typical of animals," Su Mo turned her upper body and said.
Li Qian adjusted his glasses and chuckled, "They can’t exactly be called human anymore."
The atmosphere inside the car suddenly turned cold.
Su Mo moved her lips and finally said, "Right."
Atop a distant mountain, a skinny figure stood with pupils missing from its eyes, which lifelessly roamed around before mumbling, "I’ve come to find you, sister."
Behind it laid an endless sea of corpses.
Upon reaching their destination, the vehicles were covered in bloodstains, with various human organs emitting a foul smell strung on the sharp points at the front of the cars.
Half of a female zombie’s head was entirely embedded in the sharp point.
At that sight, Su Mo frowned. She took out a knife and scraped off the various organs and tissues from the sharp points.
"We’ve arrived," said a soldier stepping down from Jin Han’s car in front, after fiddling with his tablet, he stretched out his arm and pointed towards a circular iron frame overhead, which held a sign.
[B City Ecological Farm]
In view was a vast artificial lawn, bordered by several wooden stakes that enclosed the area.
Due to lack of maintenance and species mutations, the weeds had grown waist-high on Su Mo.
Lu Chen walked beside her, pulling her slightly behind him and using his body to shield her, "Be careful of cuts."
Jin Han summoned Wind Blade and took the lead, cutting the grass as he walked at the front.
Not far ahead, right at the center of the farm, stood a three-story detached house.
The group, fully on guard, traversed the dense dead grass and arrived in front of this detached house.
The wooden staircase creaked underfoot; the main door was tightly shut, but the intact glass window on the right provided a clear view into the interior.