Han Bo has used his ultimate move.
I left the canteen with a long face and searched the whole hospital for Han Bo. I finally found him in a small pavilion next to the artificial lake.
He sat on the steps of the pavilion with a woman whose face he couldn't see, shoulder to shoulder and arm to arm, whispering to each other under the moonless and starless night sky. A candle was lit beside them, and because of the low temperature, the flame was as thin as a firefly, or perhaps as thin as a will-o'-the-wisp; in any case, it looked quite eerie from a distance.
"Han Bo!" I recognized him at a glance, shouted, and ran towards him. The woman jumped up in surprise and quickly hid behind a pavilion pillar.
"Who is it? What are you two doing sneaking around like that?" I ran over excitedly and peeked behind the pillar, but Han Bo grabbed me.
"What's up?"
"You won't let me see?" I was already unhappy, and now I was even angrier. I snapped, "What's it to me! You're so enthusiastic about going on dates, aren't you afraid of getting sick in this freezing weather? What time is it now, and you're still in the mood to flirt with girls? Have you even gotten the water purifier yet? What if the zombie virus mutates? I haven't even found the vegetable seeds my mom wanted. I can't even get anything fresh. You know those pickled vegetable and luncheon meat dumplings aren't tasty at all?"
Han Bo dragged me back without a word. I twisted my neck forcefully and said, "Who is that? Do you even respect me as the acting person in charge? Huh? I rescued you and fed you well just so you could hook up with rich guys? Don't you have any backbone? Don't you have any self-respect? If you have any shame, come out here and let me see how big your face is. No one can persuade you! I'm going to kick you out!"
"Shut up!" Han Bo roared at me angrily, startling me.
The figure behind the pavilion pillar slowly stepped out: "Sister Feng, it's me. You don't need to chase me away, I can walk by myself."
She had long hair, long legs, and a slender waist; her beautiful face was frighteningly pale in the dim candlelight.
After thinking it over and over, I never imagined that the person Han Bo was dating was Ma Li. I was speechless and all my anger vanished. Han Bo could flirt with anyone, but not her, and she wouldn't fall for it. I knew that much.
"Uh, no, I meant... Ma Li, don't misunderstand, I didn't know it was you. Please don't mind if I said the wrong thing." I admitted my mistake very quickly because she kept her word. She had already left the pavilion, walked past me with her head held high, and was heading towards the courtyard gate.
She didn't turn her head. I tugged at Han Bo, and even though the light was poor, I could still see the look in Han Bo's eyes that seemed to want to devour me.
"I was wrong, I was wrong."
“You admit your mistakes but refuse to change.” Han Bo took two quick steps, grabbed Ma Li’s arm, and whispered, “She didn’t mean it, don’t take it to heart.”
Ma Li remained silent and struggled.
I quickly went to Ma Li and stopped her: "Ma Li, Sister Li, it was my fault. I had some troubles today, and I took it out on you two for chatting here. It wasn't directed at you. I know what kind of person you are. You're definitely not the kind of person I'm talking nonsense about. I apologize to you. I'll even make a self-criticism in front of everyone at a meeting. You can't leave. If you walk out of this door, I, Qi Aifeng, will never be able to face anyone again."
Han Bo also said, "It's my fault. I shouldn't have called you out so late at night and caused misunderstandings. But I've said everything I needed to say. If you still want to stick to your guns and insist on leaving now, I'll go with you."
I said, "Then I'll come with you, and I'll bring my parents too."
Ma Li stood frozen for a long, long time, took a deep breath, and finally released the force of her arms, saying with a wry smile, "If you two hadn't come to pull me up, I wouldn't know how I would have gotten off the stage."
She's a very perceptive person, I thought with a sigh of relief. "I've never really known Sister Li before, but I only realized today how magnanimous you are. It's fate that the three of us met. How about we go for a drink together?"
Han Bo glared at me and said, "What's the point of running into each other all the time? Just say you want to drink, why don't you just say so? What's bothering you?"
My face immediately turned ugly: "I want to beat someone up, the kind that gets stuffed in a sack."
Han Bo, Ma Li, and I carried two cases of canned beer and squatted in the outpatient pharmacy, drinking and talking for half the night by candlelight. Ma Li couldn't hold her liquor; after four cans, she started crying loudly, and then fell asleep on top of the cans. Before she fell asleep, I still couldn't bring myself to talk about my troubles, so Han Bo and I chatted about this and that, taking turns drinking cans. After she fell asleep, I got tipsy and wanted to speak, but Han Bo was drunk.
He pounded his chest loudly with his red face and thick tongue: "You always come to me when you have something to say, you always come to me. Why? Because your brother is kind and honest! I think what people think, I'm anxious about what people are anxious about, I can handle things and resolve them. If this were ancient times, I would be like Song Jiang, the timely rain, you know? Speak! What's wrong? I'll back you up!"
I downed half a can of liquor in silence: "I want to beat up Yu Zhongjian."
"Yu... Zhongjian, oh, Xiao Yu, Xiao Yu is a good person, not talkative, can hold his own, I admire him!"
“He flirted with me, no, he had a seizure today and harassed me. I want to hit him, but I'm afraid I can't beat him. Let's go together and trick him into a dark room and put a sack on him!”
"Teasing you?" Han Bo chuckled. "Who's so desperate? Why tease you of all people!"
I lightly slapped his drunken face: "Are you even listening to me? You're just a crazy guy surnamed Yu, talking nonsense to me."
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
I lost all restraint under the influence of alcohol. "He talked about those kinds of things with a lewd look on his face, like he was in the throes of puberty."
Han Bo put on a worried expression: "Da Feng, have you been celibate for too long? You can even fantasize about Xiao Yu, he looks like someone who doesn't care about women and is focused on his career!"
"No, you'll understand once I explain things to you clearly." I rambled on and on, starting with rescuing the child and continuing to Yu Zhongjian. I talked about his feigned respect for me before, and about his strange question tonight, rambling on for half an hour.
"Tell me, what does he mean by that? Is it because I've been too nice to him lately, and now he dares to have an episode in front of me?"
After I finished speaking, Han Bo's eyes were practically closed. He stopped patting his chest and started patting Ma Li's thigh instead: "Heaven and earth are heartless! All things are like straw dogs! Good women have such bad luck! I'm so sorry!"
Later he fell asleep, and I drank can after can by myself. As I drank, I thought to myself, "Screw it, what kind of nonsense is worth me drinking myself into a stupor until midnight? What kind of dirty talk haven't I heard? This kind of thing is so easy to forget!"
If it were any other man, I could have immediately retorted, "Fine, I'll teach you!" Unfortunately, this guy surnamed Yu is mentally ill, and that's where my anger lies. If I curse him, people say I'm arguing with a lunatic; if I flirt with him, people say I'm not picky. Wouldn't it be better to have someone else? Wouldn't it be better to have someone else? Why are you, a sick person, not getting treatment? What are you thinking?
I don't know what Yu Zhongjian is thinking, but I soon found out what Zhou Yi is thinking. The next morning, he and Han Bo got into a fight in front of everyone. The two of them took off running and got into a fighting stance, cursing each other as they fought. They fought all the way from the clinic to the courtyard, and then rolled around happily on the grass where the frost had not yet melted.
"Fuck your grandpa!"
"Fuck your grandpa!"
After a few rounds of insults between the two old men, Han Bo's hangover became apparent. Zhou Yi, who was skilled in martial arts, grabbed him and pinned him down, then proceeded to beat him mercilessly until he was completely defenseless.
Han Bo snapped, "That's enough! Don't force me to use my ultimate move!"
Zhou Yi was furious and wouldn't listen to anything. He straddled Han Bo, wildly swinging his fists and yelling, "You bastard, you bastard, you bastard Han Bo, you're disloyal and cheating on me! I'll beat you to death!"
I stood sleepily in the middle of a group of onlookers, and when I heard this, I quickly moved the people around me back: "Make way, everyone, Han Bo is about to use his ultimate move, don't let it affect you!"
The onlookers had no idea what kind of trump card Han Bo would use. Upon hearing my words, they quickly took several steps back, their eyes filled with anticipation. Some even prepared to clap, ready to cheer for Han Bo as soon as he unleashed a stunning and earth-shattering move that would turn the tide of battle.
Then Han Bo bent his elbows to block Zhou Yi's attack, tilted his head to one side, cleared his throat, and let out a long "ho!"
When the word "Retreat!" was uttered, Zhou Yi froze on the spot as if he had been struck by a pressure point. Everyone was dumbfounded for three seconds before turning to look at me.
I shrugged: "He can't always vomit so accurately. If you don't move aside, he might vomit on you. I've been burned by that before. Really, I meant well."
After Han Bo applied the medicine and Zhou Yi washed his face, I led the two of them to sit down in the living room, and finally understood the reason for the fight.
This morning, my mom noticed that Han Bo and I hadn't gone to breakfast, so she asked Zhou Yi to look for us. He found us both unconscious in the outpatient pharmacy, and in his own words, "It's nothing." The key point is that there was also an unconscious Ma Li lying next to Han Bo.
It's unacceptable that Sister-in-law Zhou slept with someone? You, Han Bo, clearly swore to the heavens that you had no more romantic feelings for Ma Li and encouraged her to pursue you boldly. Now you're sleeping together again. What kind of nonsense is this?
Zhou Yi was furious, and so a fight broke out.
I frowned, looking bewildered: "What do you mean 'it's nothing'? Am I not a person or what? I was right there, wasn't I? The three of us were drinking together last night, and neither of them was hurt. I can vouch for that."
Zhou Yi looked at me with a dark expression: "You've had too much to drink. How do you know what those two will do?"
I wasn't going to listen to that: "I'm drunk? You've never drunk with your sister Dafeng before, have you? Do you know what it means to not fall over until the bottle is knocked over? Last night, those two were drunk, and I was asleep, understand?" I drank them both out of the water!
Zhou Yi's complexion improved slightly.
Han Bo rubbed his injured face: "I get annoyed just looking at you, all jealous and silly. You keep saying you like Ma Li, but how do you like her? Is it just about running up to her and giving her snacks or a bottle of water? Ma Li and I aren't dating anymore, but we're still friends. She's upset, and she's practically depressed. What's wrong with me talking to her and trying to comfort her? Even if you hadn't won her over yet, as her friend, I would still care about her! Do you even know her? Have you paid attention to what she's going through? Do you know what she's thinking?"
Zhou Yi blinked his small eyes. "What's she thinking? Why is she unhappy? And why didn't you guys invite me to drink?"
Later, I left, leaving the reception room to the two guys. I don't know what they talked about, but for the next few days, they resumed their old ways of walking in and out together, arms around each other. From my observation, Zhou Yi's attitude towards Han Bo even carried a hint of ingratiation, probably because Han Bo had told him a lot about Ma Li again.
But I don't think highly of Zhou Yi. He had no chance when Ma Li was famous and high and mighty. Now that he's been hurt and has a deep aversion to men, he's lost even the window of opportunity.
Since that day when Yu Zhongjian chatted with me, he's organized several team outings, actually bringing along the skinny young man, Old Wang from next door, and the three men we'd rescued earlier. I participated as usual, speaking up, asking questions, and never holding back my smiles. When he gave a good command and the corpse-eliminating efforts were successful, I'd pat him on the shoulder and say, "Well done!"
I was a little angry at the time, but after thinking about it a few days later, I was more surprised than angry. For someone who consistently projects a belligerent, aloof, and pretentious image to say such things is unacceptable to anyone. It's like a dignified master of traditional Chinese studies suddenly starting to belly dance—could you accept that? Wouldn't the viewer feel absurd, unable to bear watching, or even insulted?
That's how I feel about him.
Fortunately, Yu Zhongjian only acted strangely for a brief moment. Afterward, he remained as belligerent, aloof, and pretentious as ever. The words he uttered in the cafeteria vanished like a fart in the wind. The two of us led a group of people around the city, not exchanging much, but our teamwork grew increasingly seamless. Sometimes, watching him mercilessly kick newcomers into hordes of zombies, or wielding two large machetes to lead the charge against them with ruthless ferocity, I became more and more inclined to believe that he was simply experiencing a minor mental breakdown that day.
I pulled the knife from the zombie's head, which was dressed in a dark blue jumpsuit. I was drenched in sweat, thinking how increasingly abnormal the weather was. The days were scorching hot, but the nights could drop to below -10 degrees Celsius. Before, I could see a few stray cats and dogs on the streets, but now, almost no living thing other than zombies was visible. The last time I saw rain or snow was just before we moved house in May. More than a month has passed, and not a single drop of rain has fallen; even the water level in the artificial lake has dropped. The virus gave humanity a glimmer of hope, but what about the environment? Will the environment be wiped out and return to its doom?
I sat on the steps next to another corpse, rested for a while, and smoked a cigarette, watching Old Wang (Wang Lianshan) and the skinny young man Guo Yang team up to fight off the last remaining uniformed zombie in the yard. I thought optimistically, who cares? We ordinary folks aren't cut out to save the world. We live one day at a time, one day at a time, and living to see the world reborn or perish is such a thrilling thing.
The zombie fell, and I gave them both a thumbs up. These two went from closing their eyes at the sight of a zombie, to being terrified by Yu Zhongjian pushing them right in front of zombies several times, to now being able to handle zombies with a knife without trembling or weak legs—it hasn't been that long, they've grown so quickly, and I'm very pleased. But when we're working in groups, they always choose to be with me without hesitation, not even wanting to glance at Yu Zhongjian. This makes me wonder if I'm showing them too much sympathy and helping them too much, making them think that dragging me down will lessen the blame they'll face?
Gunshots rang out intermittently inside the building. After a short while, Zhang Yanhuang poked his head out of a second-floor window: "Reporting to Captain Qi, the interior has been cleared. Please give instructions."
How's the situation with the supplies?
"Except for firearms and ammunition, all other security equipment is complete. Company Commander Gao is taking inventory. Report complete."
I stubbed out my cigarette, walked into the yard, and looked up at him: "Can you stop talking so aggressively? I'm not a regular soldier, I don't follow those rules. What's with all the reporting and instructions? It makes me uncomfortable."
Zhang Yanhuang chuckled: "Come on up and unload, there's a lot of good stuff, including several boxes of tear gas sprayers."
As Wang Lianshan and Guo Yang were about to go upstairs, the walkie-talkie on his waist suddenly started crackling.
"Dongdong 1, Dongdong 1, I am Dongdong 2, please respond if you hear me, over."
Look how fancy you are, still calling it over. I rolled my eyes, took the walkie-talkie and pressed it: "Dongdong, did you hear that? Just say what you have to say, that's all."
After a few crackling sounds, it rang again: "Hoo hoo hoo hoo, Captain Yu has found clues about Qian Shiqi near the ammunition depot. Please come over, please come over, over."
Qian Shiqi? My spirits immediately lifted. This lone commander, a stray dog, even with a limp, had been nowhere to be found. I'd thought he'd escaped Huaicheng, or returned to Luyang County, or fled somewhere else. I never expected to find a clue to him in the city bureau's special operations compound. That bastard's still got his hands on him, and he knows how to pick his spots!
The ammunition depot was located in the northwest corner of the special operations compound, in a separate courtyard. Outside the depot was an open space where several zombies lay scattered about. Li Tonggu was gazing at the sky, Yu Zhongjian was smoking, and three new male recruits were carrying things out of the depot. One of them, a young man in his thirties, had a walkie-talkie on his waist; he was probably the one who had been killed.
"What did you find?"
Through the heavy door, Yu Zhongjian led me into the warehouse, where a cool, damp atmosphere greeted me. The main warehouse was over a hundred square meters, with bare concrete walls and floors. Rows of gun cabinets were neatly arranged, labeled with numbers according to their models, indicating a very rich stock.
There are auxiliary warehouses on the left and right, but the steel security doors are locked and cannot be opened. Since the place is a hotbed of conflict, we cannot forcefully break it down, so we have to leave it here for now.
On the floor behind the two rows of cabinets in the main warehouse, there were obvious signs of habitation: a sleeping bag, a pile of dry food wrappers, two cases of bottled water, and several blood-stained bandages.
"How can you be so sure it's Qian Shiqi?"
“I can’t be sure, I just suspect,” Yu Zhongjian said frankly. “The zombies outside weren’t killed by us; they were already dead when we arrived. I checked them, and all of these zombies were shot in the head. The bullet holes were in the same locations as the corpses I saw in Baolong Ace before. Judging from the diameter of the bullet holes, they were probably fired from the same type of gun. We didn’t find the bullets, but based on the method, we can basically conclude that it was done by one person.”
"Bullet hole diameter?" I glanced at him sideways. "Sometimes you should tone it down a bit. Don't be too cocky, or you'll make us look like trash."
Yu Zhongjian remained expressionless for a moment before replying, "Okay."
"Go on."
"The person hiding here must have his eye on the things in this warehouse. He may not be able to move everything because his injuries haven't healed, or he may be planning to use this place as his base. Regardless of whether he is Qian Shiqi or not, his behavior is very alarming. He has left now, but I believe he will definitely come back. Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free. I have decided to wait and see."
He paused, then said, "Of course, you're the captain, so I still need to ask you for instructions."
Me: ...The fake respect has suddenly gone up another level. Isn't this forcing me to get arrogant?
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