We brought Fang Yuan back to the research institute.

On the way back from the gas station, we kept a close eye on what was happening behind us, afraid of being followed. To be honest, I didn't expect to run into Fang Yuan at the gas station. Ever since we inexplicably met last time, I didn't want to see him again.

But now this guy has suddenly appeared, which makes me a little helpless. And judging from his condition, it seems that he has been chased. If he hadn't met me, I guess this guy would have died soon.

I wonder who is chasing him. Could it be the raiders he mentioned before?

After we returned to the research institute, I treated his wounds. While I was treating him, he fell into a coma, which really worried me.

Fortunately, he didn't have any fatal wounds, just some cuts and slashes. As for whether there was any zombie blood on these wounds, I don't know. I can only wait and see how he goes.

So for safety's sake, I decisively locked him in a closed room in the medical ward on the third floor. If he was really infected by the zombie virus, it would show up overnight. If he was really infected, the only solution was to kill him.

"Is it really okay to keep him locked up like this?" Sister Jing asked, staring at Fang Yuan lying on the operating table in the closed room.

"This is the only way for now. We don't know his condition yet, so keeping him inside is the best option. If he's alright, he'll wake up naturally, and we don't need to worry about anything," I said.

Jingjie turned to look at me: "Xiaonan, you said someone came over at the gas station earlier, what happened? Did you see other people come over?"

I shook my head and said, "Actually, I don't know if anyone is coming. Fang Yuan told me that someone was coming, and judging from his expression, I didn't think he was lying, so I notified you."

"Are they the raiders?" Sister Jing asked.

I shook my head and said, "I don't know either, maybe. But since we didn't see them when we came back, we don't need to worry too much. We can ask Fang Yuan when he wakes up."

Sister Jing frowned, "I'm just worried that the other party will follow us to our home. We finally found a place to live, and I don't want anyone to ruin it."

“I don’t want to either,” I said.

Jingjie looked at me and said, "Xiaonan, how about I go out for a walk with Lao Fei later and see if we can find any clues?"

I thought about it for a moment, weighed the pros and cons, and said, "Okay, but be careful and don't let them find out."

Sister Jing said, "Don't worry, with Lao Fei here, nothing will happen."

Indeed, although Fei Lichao has lost an arm, his abilities and experience remain, and he can handle any problems well without panicking.

Shortly before 4 p.m., Sister Jing and Fei Lichao set off from the research institute to search for traces of the raiders at the gas station they had visited earlier.

Whether we can find it or not is unknown; it depends on the situation. However, with Fei Lichao around, I think there shouldn't be any major problems.

It doesn't matter if we can't find them, as long as they come back safely.

...

Around 6 p.m., we had dinner, and then I went to the closed operating room on the third floor. Looking at Fang Yuan, who was still unconscious inside, I wasn't worried that he would turn into a zombie. It had been three or four hours since he arrived. If he were going to turn into a zombie, he probably would have already done so, instead of waiting until now without any movement.

I hadn't been here long when Wen Guochao came to find me and told me something that surprised me a bit.

"I think I've found the basement."

That's what he told me.

I found the basement, which left me a little confused.

We knew beforehand that the research institute had a basement, but because the entrance to the basement was so well hidden, we had never been able to find it. In the following days, we didn't care about it anymore. After all, we were just living here, not doing research, so it didn't matter whether the basement existed or not.

However, Wen Guochao now tells me that he has found the location of the basement, which is truly surprising.

"Where?" I asked curiously.

"It was in a corner of the warehouse on the first floor, but it was covered by a carpet, so we didn't notice it," Wen Guochao said.

"Okay, have you gone inside to take a look?"

Wen Guochao shook his head and said, "I don't know what's going on inside, how dare I go in and see?"

I gave a wry smile. "So you're planning to send me to my death first?"

Wen Guochao was taken aback, then shook his head and said, "That's not what I meant."

I patted him on the shoulder and said, "Let's go see what's going on in that basement."

When we got downstairs, I saw everyone waiting for us in the warehouse on the first floor.

Lu Yun stood by the entrance to the basement and said when she saw me coming, "You've finally arrived. I'll open it now."

"Wait a minute," I called out, "Are you sure there aren't any zombies inside?"

Lu Yun said, "I just knocked on it with a stick, and there was no sound at all. There are definitely no zombies inside. Even if there were, I wouldn't be afraid. Why are you in such a hurry?"

I looked at Lu Yun, unsure of what to say, and could only say, "Okay, be careful."

Lu Yun waved her hand dismissively and said, "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

As she spoke, she opened the door on the floor, and immediately, a stench wafted out from the basement, making all of us turn pale.

"Mommy, it smells awful!" little Wen Yue said, covering her nose.

Honestly, it really stinks. It's not just the smell of a corpse; it also smells like feces.

Lu Yun covered her nose and ran to the side, saying, "I don't want to go in, Lu Xiaonan, you go!"

I glared at Lu Yun, covered my nose, and stared at her, speechless.

"Why are you looking at me like that? You can't possibly let a girl like me go into such a smelly place! What if it's full of poop?"

Lu Yun walked to the door, clearly unwilling to go in.

I sighed, rummaged through a box and pulled out a few masks and gloves. After I put them on, Wen Guochao handed me a flashlight.

After I got the flashlight, I went to the entrance of the basement, which was filled with a foul stench, and used the flashlight to illuminate the situation below.

I didn't see anything; it looked very dry inside.

I carefully went down, and soon I stepped onto the ground. It was pitch black all around, and the light from the flashlight was very limited.

I wandered around here and discovered the source of the stench.

In the corner to my left, there was a rotting corpse curled up. It was disgusting, and the stench was probably coming from the body.

(End of this chapter)