Chapter 42 is about bribery.
Jiang Ye, who knew the inside story best, stepped to the side, blocking him behind him and separating him between Han Yuyan and Bai Chenzhu.
“Sorry,” he said with a wicked smile, seizing the initiative, “he injured his head and suffered memory loss. We can’t confirm that you are his aunt. Do you have any evidence?”
Bai Chenzhu, whose memory was damaged, watched the situation unfold and tacitly accepted Jiang Ye as his spokesperson. He didn't want to acknowledge this aunt; the differences between him and the original owner were too great, both in personality and physical condition.
"And what about you? Who are you to him?" Han Yuyan narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing the unfamiliar man in front of her, and questioned him with displeasure in the tone of an elder, "On what grounds are you speaking to me?"
"Because I'm the closest person to him right now." Jiang Ye slightly raised his chin, smiling casually and smugly, as if to say: Who do you think you are?
Beneath this wary aggression towards strangers lies an obvious protectiveness. Han Yuyan frowned, believing a fraction of what he said.
There was a hint of confrontation between the two, but Zhou Zhuohua stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, there might be some misunderstanding. Let's sit down and talk about it again?"
Seeing the two facing off, the middle-aged man with the buzz cut stepped forward, fearing that Han Yuyan might get hurt. He addressed her as "Doctor," and the others below also tried to dissuade her.
After a conversation, Jiang Ye took the others to a gas station to refuel, while at the woman's request, Bai Chenzhu spent a short time alone with her by the roadside.
"Xiaozhu, do you really not recognize your aunt??" After the strangers left, Han Yuyan's attitude softened considerably, her eyes filled with worry.
Bai Chenzhu could clearly sense that this woman exuded a friendly aura, making her extremely approachable and instantly endearing to everyone who saw her, especially those who heard her voice.
It was as if a voice kept repeating in my mind: She is a good person, she is not a threat.
What a wondrous ability. Bai Chenzhu finally understood the woman's power. He lowered his eyes, as if to say a lot, but in reality, he said nothing at all, "I'm sorry."
"They are your friends, right? How long have you known each other?" Han Yuyan turned to look at Jiang Ye in the distance, her brows furrowed with worry. She looked at Bai Chenzhu as if he were her own child who had been kidnapped by Huang Mao.
Bai Chenzhu remained expressionless and chose a vague statement, saying, "I've known you since I can remember."
Han Yuyan sighed heavily, "Xiaozhu, you've always been a naive child. Don't trust others so easily. The person who just stood in front of you didn't seem like a good person to me."
"Hmm." Bai Chenzhu brushed it off. Han Yuyan had no choice but to use her memory-recalling technique, hoping that Bai Chenzhu could recover his memories.
Through the explanation, Bai Chenzhu roughly understood what was going on with Han Yuyan, who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Han Yuyan was adopted by the original owner's maternal grandmother. She worked hard from a young age and used most of her earnings to pay for her mother's and sister's medical expenses.
After she was admitted to university, she was reunited with her biological parents.
When the original owner's maternal grandmother passed away, she came back and asked Bai Chenzhu if he wanted to come with her after the funeral. However, the original owner obviously refused, preferring to live alone in the house and eke out a living rather than become a "burden" with this aunt.
In addition, Han Yuyan was going to the capital for further studies, so the two temporarily lost contact.
Han Yuyan asked, "Are you feeling better? Why didn't you use the card your aunt gave you? Come with me, I have a professional doctor there. How can you stay with those people, not eating or sleeping well? You'll have serious problems."
Bai Chenzhu's eyelids twitched upon hearing this, and he regretted not having checked the original owner's bank card at the time. He had initially assumed that the original owner had no relatives or friends because he saw that the house was bare and the original owner had to work.
As for his health... he's in great shape now. Ever since Jiang Ye helped him regain his spiritual power, he can run and jump now, and he rarely experiences headaches or fainting anymore.
Should he deny it outright? But this aunt seemed like someone important; they might need her later. Bai Chenzhu made a swift decision in just a few seconds.
It's okay if we didn't know each other before, it's good that we do now.
Bai Chenzhu feigned ignorance: "So I have a hereditary disease? But I'm perfectly healthy."
Han Yuyan exclaimed in shock, "What!"
There were no doctors here, so Bai Chenzhu started spouting nonsense as soon as he opened and closed his eyes, "It's said that people with superpowers are all in good health, maybe I'm about to awaken my powers too."
Han Yuyan was both surprised and delighted, and immediately believed it, "That's wonderful!"
After observing her for a while, Bai Chenzhu realized that she was genuinely happy for him.
He confirmed that she hadn't recognized him as a psychic, and seemed unaware that she herself possessed superpowers.
Come to think of it, even Bai Tao seems to have difficulty recognizing people with superpowers. So isn't that his unique ability? Just like detecting zombies. Bai Chenzhu's thoughts raced, and a genuine smile appeared on his face.
The two groups were like parallel lines that briefly intersected, and soon went their separate ways.
——
Bai Chenzhu and his group went ahead.
This time, Jiang Ye was driving. As soon as they were out of the vicinity of the gas station, he asked Bai Chenzhu in a cheeky tone, "How's it going?"
Bai Chenzhu really wanted to punch him, but after rubbing her fists together for a long time, she didn't dare to lay a hand on the driver, as that would be tantamount to mutual destruction. "Jiang Ye, why did you acknowledge this aunt for me?"
At first, he could have completely denied being the original owner of this body; after all, in this day and age, who would bother investigating his past? And as long as his past couldn't be found, he could fabricate his own identity.
"You're wronging me." Jiang Ye felt aggrieved. "I only said you had amnesia, I didn't admit it for you. There's a lot of room for maneuver here, you can admit it or not."
Bai Chenzhu sneered twice, "To be honest, do you know her, or is that why you're so eager to get in touch with her?"
Jiang Ye glanced at the people behind him who were listening intently. "Yes, I know her. She's a very famous expert in biology."
As for anything else, he couldn't say more because of the other people present.
Coincidentally, Bai Chenzhu now shares the same idea and also wants to get in touch with this lady.
“Alright.” Bai Chenzhu nodded. “We will meet again. She was invited by the master of Luozhou to treat his son’s illness.”
Jiang Ye immediately understood the meaning behind his words.
Bai Tao is an only child, so the powerful figure in Luo Zhou who has a son is most likely not Bai Tao's father.
Unable to understand the encrypted conversation between the two, Bai Tao pricked up her ears, her gossip-loving spirit ignited. "You two have so many secrets. Is she really your aunt?"
Jiang Ye clicked his tongue in surprise, "I already told you, he has amnesia."
"Amnesia is real? The TV series is real! That's so cool!" Tang Zhao exclaimed in surprise. "Wait a minute, bro, how do you still remember me?"
As the saying goes, if you're going to put on an act, you have to go all the way. Bai Chenzhu rubbed his temples and started to fill in the gaps in his persona. "I had amnesia before I met you at the hospital. If you hadn't called me back then, I wouldn't have recognized you."
"So early! No wonder your superpowers are so amazing, you were infected a long time ago!" Tang Zhao exclaimed admiringly. "I was wondering why Teacher Bai was acting so differently. He's become more energetic and vibrant. He used to be so lifeless..."
There were two of them to begin with. Bai Chenzhu had no intention of listening to people belittle the original owner of the body, so she quickly stopped them, saying, "Alright, go to sleep. We still have a long drive ahead of us."
——
They stopped at shops along the way and bought some supplies. Unfortunately, most of the shops were already empty, while the supermarkets with warehouses were located in the city center.
Inside the car, Tang Zhao and Bai Tao were debating whether to go to the city again. Although there were more supplies there, there were obviously more mutants, and they might encounter the same kind of mutant as last time.
Defeating the mutated bull "Zombie King" gave Tang Zhao confidence, and he believed that his team would hardly encounter enemies stronger than them. So he encouraged Bai Chenzhu to go to the supermarket and get some biscuits, instant noodles and the like.
Bai Tao felt that since there were enough supplies to eat, there was no need to make the trip.
"Where is there enough to eat?" Tang Zhao counted on his fingers as if reciting a familiar story. He was always most sensitive to supplies. "There are five of us, and even if we eat sparingly, it won't be enough for a week. For example, it's almost noon now, what are we going to eat for lunch?"
At this moment, Zhou Zhuohua, who had been staring blankly at the great river formed by the sea flowing into the land, turned her head and said, "We can fish and eat."
Jiang Ye became interested and glanced at the three of them in the rearview mirror. "A-Zhu, wake up, do you want to eat fish?"
He mischievously shook the sleeping person awake.
Bai Chenzhu yawned, showing some interest in lunch, and nodded.
The car exited the elevated road and stopped by the river. A running track encircled the river, forming a riverside park.
The river water was murky, a mixture of green and yellow. Tang Zhao excitedly got out of the car, took off his shoes, and was about to go down when Bai Tao grabbed him tightly, saying, "Are you crazy?! Even a child knows you can't just go into the river!"
"The water looks shallow to me," Tang Zhao muttered, after which Bai Tao pulled him aside to give him a lecture. Zhou Zhuohua leaned against the car, watching them fool around gently, like watching two children playing.
"How do you plan to fish?" Zhou Zhuohua turned her head to look at the very calm Jiang Ye.
Jiang Ye didn't speak, but Bai Chenzhu said knowingly, "He must have seen it a long time ago."
He pointed to the area under the overpass, "Look, it's right there."
The group looked over and saw several closed shops, one of which had a sign that read: River Fishing Gear.
“Using local materials is someone’s specialty,” Bai Chenzhu said.
Jiang Ye crossed his arms, tilted his head, and looked him up and down. "You seem to know me quite well."
Bai Tao and Tang Zhao rushed over excitedly, then ran out screaming. It turned out that a homeless zombie had appeared out of nowhere.
But once the two realized their abilities, they roared and charged forward again.
Finally, the zombie was thrown into the river, struggled for a moment, and quickly sank.
Bai Tao exclaimed, "Look! Those fish biting the zombies aren't ordinary fish!" She clearly saw a group of large fish viciously dismembering the zombies. Would normal fish do that?
Bai Tao thought that lunch was probably not going to be served this time.
Bai Chenzhu found a shady spot to lie down, covered himself with his coat, and wanted to continue his lazy nap. "Whether it's a fish or a corpse, we'll talk about it after we catch it. Good luck."
Jiang Ye sat next to him, watching the three of them compete in fishing, acting as the referee.
——
The sun was high in the sky, and the temperature was gradually rising. Jiang Ye looked at the three buckets one by one and finally announced: "Zhuohua wins."
"Why should I! I caught the most!" Tang Zhao shouted, raising his hand in protest.
Jiang Ye glanced at him and poured out his bucket of fish. Some of the fish were just skeletons, and others had moldy scales. They were all kinds of strange fish, with only one or two mixed in that were normal.
"You caught a lot of fish, but they're all mutated. Would you dare eat them?"
Jiang Ye then poured out all of Zhou Zhuohua's fish. It was obvious that she had picked through all of them, leaving only the ones that looked perfectly normal.
Finally, Jiang Ye poured out all of Bai Tao's bucket of fish, which was similar to Tang Zhao's, with the mutated and normal fish mixed together, without sifting.
Upon seeing this stark contrast, Tang Zhao immediately fell silent and repeatedly raised his hands in surrender.
Bai Chenzhu woke up to a fragrance. He twitched his nose and immediately sat up straight.
He groggily lifted his clothes and saw four people grilling fish on the side. Bai Tao was even deliberately waving a fish over his head, trying to wake him up with the aroma.
"Lazy people get nothing!" Bai Tao boasted about her prize, happily taking two bites.
"Whatever." Bai Chenzhu stretched and teased her, "I'll eat what Jiang Ye caught."
"Huh?" Jiang Ye looked at him strangely. "Weren't you sleeping the whole time? How did you know I went fishing?"
Jiang Ye caught two big fish after the three of them had used up their fishing rods.
Bai Chenzhu stood up, patted the dust off his clothes, and then curled his lips, staring into Bai Chenzhu's eyes with his dark eyes, and said mysteriously, "Just guess."
He walked over to Jiang Ye and saw that everyone was eating a grilled fish, except for Zhou Zhuohua who was eating bread.
"What, are you isolating her? Not even giving Sister Zhuohua a piece?" Bai Chenzhu had just woken up, and her mouth was faster than her brain; she blurted out whatever came to mind.
His words caused everyone to fall silent.
Zhou Zhuohua proactively explained, "I'm not isolated. You guys can eat these fish. It might not be good for me to eat them."
Bai Chenzhu then remembered that the mutants were essentially the same, all carrying viruses. Earlier, when they were sharing the roast chicken, they had carelessly eaten it because the chicken they had caught looked normal.
But these seemingly normal fish and the mutated fish were caught from the same river, so they couldn't tell whether the mutated fish were infected or not.
Tang Zhao had already started calling Bai Chenzhu "sister," and at this moment he said carelessly, "It would be great if Sister Zhuohua was also a superhuman."
"What are you saying!" Bai Tao elbowed him, hitting Tang Zhao squarely in the chest with such force that he almost vomited. Tang Zhao clutched his throat, looking like he was choking, and Bai Tao quickly patted his back in alarm.
"It's okay, being an ordinary person is fine too." Zhou Zhuohua's smile was somewhat forced.
Jiang Ye nodded, "Don't think too much. Whether you have superpowers or not is not important. As long as you can stay safe and healthy, that's the best outcome."
For him, it was good enough that Zhou Zhuohua was alive.
“That’s right.” Zhou Zhuohua smiled, chewing the bread in her hand slowly.
For a moment, everyone fell silent, and the atmosphere became a little awkward. She blinked and said, "Seeing you all eating meat makes me so hungry. I'll go get some meat from the car too."
Bai Tao got up to follow her, but Bai Chenzhu stopped her, saying, "Don't go."
Bai Chenzhu noticed the disappointment and helplessness in Zhou Zhuohua's eyes. "Let her be alone for a while."
Bai Tao puffed out her cheeks and sat back down.
Bai Chenzhu sat down next to Jiang Ye and rolled up his sleeves. Jiang Ye had just finished grilling a fish and waved it in front of him, tempting him, "Smells good, doesn't it? Hmm? Call me 'brother,' and I'll give it to you."
"A true man will not bow down for a fish." Bai Chenzhu's eyes were firm.
“Okay, then watch me eat.” Jiang Ye was overjoyed. He turned around and sat facing Bai Chenzhu, holding the fish and about to take a big bite.
Bai Chenzhu suddenly raised her hand to block him, "I didn't say I didn't want it. We can barter."
"What do you have to trade with me?" Jiang Ye looked at him with interest, deliberately sizing him up and down to make sure the man didn't have anything rare on him.
Bai Chenzhu rummaged in his pocket and, under the gaze of the three, pulled out a brightly colored fruit candy.
It's obvious that this was found when we went to the supermarket together to look for supplies.
At the time, everyone was busy looking for biscuits, bread, instant noodles, and drinking water, and no one expected that Bai Chenzhu would also pay attention to looking for sweets.
Tang Zhao almost jumped up, "No, bro, why do you carry candy with you all the time?! That's cheating!"
Bai Chenzhu stared at Jiang Ye, his eyes reflecting the other's stunned expression. He shook the object in his hand and said matter-of-factly, "Because it's for bribing people, isn't this what I'm using?"
Bai Tao vaguely remembered what the two looked like when she first met them. At that time, she thought the two liked to eat candy, so she specially bribed them with candy to take her to find her mother.
Now it seems her actions were ridiculously childish; sugar wasn't anything important to begin with. She sat back down, munching on her fish, simply watching the show without saying a word.
Only Tang Zhao said incredulously, "A piece of candy for a fish? Only a fool would agree to that!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Ye glanced at him with a knife, and he immediately covered his mouth with both hands in shock.
Bai Chenzhu smiled slightly, "There will always be someone willing."
Jiang Ye took the fruit candy from his palm, pressed the wooden skewer with the grilled fish into his hand, and said irritably, "Eat yours."
It seemed to be addressed to both Tang Zhao and Bai Chenzhu.
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