Chapter 17 The Apocalypse 16
Gentle, soft breathing was close to their ears, and a certain silent atmosphere enveloped the two of them, isolating them from the hunting party in the distance.
When the captain was discussing with his teammates, his eyes involuntarily swept over their side, revealing an undisguised concern.
Luo Mingchuan chuckled, tilting his head slightly, his nose brushing against Lu Xuejin's earlobe, his gaze sweeping over the supple neck peeking out from her black hair. In this position, the two were almost neck to neck.
His voice came from deep within his chest, the vibrations of which were clearly felt. Luo Mingchuan whispered in a similarly dangerous tone, "Strangers seem to be easily drawn to you and deceived by you. But I'm different. Brother, I will watch you, always watch you."
After speaking, Luo Mingchuan resumed his seated posture, and at the moment he turned around, he and the shepherd boy faced each other across the distance.
The hunting team leader's eyes held indifference, rejection, and disgust, as well as a trace of jealousy hidden deep within him without his knowledge.
Luo Mingchuan glanced back at him indifferently, nodded politely, and smiled slightly.
He patted the hand of the person next to him, as if to offer silent comfort to Lu Xuejin, who was afraid that she would be frightened by the shepherd boy's cold gaze.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Lu Xuejin not only did not show any fear, but instead smiled good-naturedly. The light glided across his smooth, flawless skin, and he lingered in his shallow dimples, making the smile particularly captivating.
To outsiders, the scene of the two talking intimately and clapping to comfort each other must have looked very heartwarming.
"Captain, look away." Yun Hongli blocked the shepherd boy's staring gaze with her hand and waved it a few times. "He's too perverted. His eyeballs are practically popping out of Xiao Lu's body."
The hunting team's meeting was swift and efficient, without any unnecessary delays. All matters were discussed in just a few minutes, after which they moved on to casual conversation and entertainment.
The other team members had already noticed that the shepherd boy's feelings for Lu Xuejin were unusual, but they didn't dare to say anything. Only after Yun Hongli pointed it out did they all speak up in agreement:
"Yeah yeah."
"Captain, show some restraint!"
"Brother Lu and Brother Luo are comforting each other! Captain, look—they treat you like an enemy!"
The team members looked at each other, then burst into laughter.
Such an opportunity to openly tease the captain is rare.
In the past, the shepherd boy would have told them to shut up long ago. Now, he just stared at them coldly without saying a word, clearly indicating that his teammates' jokes had really touched a nerve.
After the laughter subsided, the team members, drawing on their decades of "experience" observing others' romantic relationships, offered a flurry of advice to the shepherd. Their rambling, disjointed responses amounted to nothing more than the most common tactics before the apocalypse: giving gifts, inviting him to meals, and asking him out—that's how they pursued him.
"Old Zhang, that's so outdated!" a fat man mocked without any politeness.
"Then what do you suggest we do? Given what the captain did before, his reputation among the young people is probably negative. What else can we do but take it slow?"
The fat man crossed his arms, his tone as confident as his posture: "Apologize properly first, then get straight to the point, and all problems will be solved. This is the first time in all these years that I've seen you fall for me, Brother Mu. It's not easy."
The shepherd boy lowered his head and casually ground the pebbles on the ground with the tip of his boot, listening absentmindedly, but unusually, he did not turn around and leave.
Yun Hongli walked to his side and said, "Don't listen to their nonsense. They're all single, what experience could they possibly have? What Liu Gao said in the end is worth considering."
Among the hunting team, she was the only one who had had several romantic relationships.
"If you really like someone, go for it seriously. In this chaotic era, it's not easy to find someone you truly like." Yun Hongli sighed, thinking of her ex-boyfriend who had been shot in the head.
"Captain, you're so smart, you can't be blind to your own feelings. Talk to Xiao Lu properly, or you'll regret it sooner or later if you keep acting so awkward."
The apocalypse has changed everything beyond recognition, including family, friendship, and love. In a short period of time, Yun Hongli has witnessed too much betrayal and hypocrisy, so she cherishes this potential for genuine affection all the more.
The two people in the distance looked like pitiful little animals huddling together for warmth. Yun Hongli knew that the shepherd boy was not a bad person at heart, but his words and actions were too cold and strange, like a hedgehog covered in iron quills, not allowing anyone to get close.
His attitude towards Lu Xuejin was less like teasing and more like he didn't know how to treat her—he had never met anyone like her before and was naturally inexperienced.
But no one is willing to tolerate being toyed with and bullied, and no one wants to be trampled on for long. If the shepherd continues like this, sooner or later he will suffer a terrible fall and learn a harsh lesson.
However, Yun Hongli's earnest advice seemed to have no effect, as the shepherd boy retorted coldly, "Who said I like him?"
The team members looked at him with pity, "Captain, just keep pretending!"
The bolder ones even shouted, "When your wife runs away, let's see where you'll cry then!"
Yun Hongli shook her head helplessly.
Their discussions and experiences went in one ear and out the other; the shepherd barely listened. His attention remained fixed on the two figures in the distance.
Are we really that close, just brothers?
Both their intimate, neck-entwined posture and Luo Mingchuan's gentle pat on Lu Xuejin's hand were incredibly irritating. The shepherd boy had a cold relationship with his brothers, and projecting his own experience onto them, he assumed their interactions must also be cold and devoid of warmth.
"Lu Xuejin." He raised his voice, and the person whose name was called looked over. When she saw it was him, the soft light in her eyes dimmed slightly. This discovery made him even more irritated. "Come here."
The temperature around me disappeared.
Luo Mingchuan remained seated, head bowed, rubbing his fingertips, savoring the last vestiges of warmth from the gentle patting of his hand. Until everything vanished, returning to cold.
A sense of loss lingered in Luo Mingchuan's heart, making him extremely irritable.
He was overly attached to Lu Xuejin's warmth. And it seemed that he had been infected by Lu Xuejin, which caused a series of aftereffects—as long as he got close to Lu Xuejin and smelled the faint fragrance hidden between her skin and flesh, his mouth would automatically secrete saliva and his teeth would chatter restlessly.
Like a dog.
He sometimes kept quiet to hide his embarrassing reaction.
From that day on, on the way back to the base, the shepherd boy took Lu Xuejin with him everywhere he went, almost never leaving her side, euphemistically calling it "keeping watch over the suspect," while still speaking in a harsh and impolite manner.
Dongyao disliked him and used the searched words to hurl insults at him.
【&*%￥！】
It seemed to contain some internal system jargon, which Lu Xuejin couldn't understand.
"Honey, once we get to the base, stay far away from him. What a jerk, that stinky man!"
Lu Xuejin laughed, "Is he really that annoying? I think he's quite cute."
[Question mark] Dong Yao, thinking Lu Xuejin was being manipulated, quickly said, [Baby, don't believe this guy's nonsense. He's been trying to hurt you; he has no good intentions!]
It cited several examples to illustrate the harm of PUA, fearing that Lu Xuejin might be deceived.
Lu Xuejin smiled and said, "He clearly likes me a lot. Xiao Yao, would you prepare fresh food for someone you hate, set aside your water quota for them, or even make their bed and keep watch over them at night?"
Dong Yao was taken aback, and after thinking about it carefully, it seemed to be true.
Aside from his sharp tongue, the shepherd boy was actually very kind to Lu Xuejin. He lived a rough and carefree life, but he never let Lu Xuejin suffer at all. Apart from the constant travel, Lu Xuejin's life in the carriage was almost no different from before the apocalypse.
[But his words were so harsh.] Dongyao still held a grudge.
"Because he is insecure, scared, and at a loss," Lu Xuejin said lazily, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.
But there was no smile in his eyes; all that remained was a condescending, utterly indifferent understanding.
Dongyao didn't understand how the host had arrived at that conclusion. After thinking for a long time without success, he asked curiously, "Na Bao, do you like him?"
Lu Xuejin just smiled and didn't answer.
night.
As usual, the shepherd boy was in the same carriage as Lu Xuejin. As night fell, the temperature dropped sharply. He threw a thick blanket over her and was about to keep watch when, out of boredom, he rolled down the window on Lu Xuejin's side. As soon as a crack appeared, the cold night wind rushed in, and he started to tease her in a cheeky manner.
“Lu Xuejin, we all know that zombies evolve like animals. The ones you encountered before couldn’t even bend their knees and were completely harmless. But as you saw, the zombies in the city center, and the zombies on our way back to the base, were not like that.”
"They became more agile and ferocious, and developed special abilities similar to human superpowers. Some could run on walls, some could spray out putrid liquid, and some even developed intelligence."
"Do you think they might evolve rapidly in a short period of time and crawl in through this opening in the dead of night?"
The city was dark and deserted at midnight, which was already unsettling. The shepherd boy lowered his voice and spoke in a sinister tone, making it even more eerie.
Lu Xuejin was looking at the moon. He was usually very timid during the day, but he remained completely unmoved. He simply turned his head, his gaze sweeping over the shepherd boy with indifferent indifference.
Even when he wasn't smiling, the upturned corners of his lips naturally conveyed a touch of gentleness. But at this moment, perhaps the moonlight was too cold, gently enveloping him and sharpening his facial features, giving him an aloofness that was impossible to look directly at.
The shepherd boy's heart stirred slightly, and he suddenly fell silent, his gaze involuntarily shifting to the window beside him.
The clouds are heavy, and only a corner of the moon is visible. What's so interesting about that?
But his fingers pressed the window shutter uncontrollably, closing the window tightly so that not a single gust of cold wind could get in.
In the latter half of the night, Lu Xuejin curled up in the soft blanket, sleeping peacefully. The shepherd boy stood silently by her side, his gaze lingering on her fair profile for a moment before looking away, his eyes unfathomable.
...
"Dinner's ready." The shepherd boy tossed over a few warm rice balls, which had been specially heated up.
Lu Xuejin slowly tore open the outer packaging, took a small bite, and the aroma of glutinous rice burst between her lips and teeth.
The shepherd boy suddenly explained, "We've run out of the food we brought with us, so we can only eat what's readily available in the mall. There's nothing fresher than that."
Lu Xuejin paused for a moment, then continued eating in small bites without responding.
The shepherd boy stood for a while, then went to prepare hot water for Lu Xuejin.
"..." The team members exchanged glances and whispered among themselves upon seeing this, "Is this... a breakthrough?"
"He didn't complain about Lu's fussiness? He was actually willing to explain? Lu didn't reply, and he wasn't angry?"
"That brat has finally figured it out!"
Although his behavior was still stiff, at least he had started to control his mouth, which was a huge change for the shepherd boy. No wonder the hunting team was so excited, and they all imagined the happy life after the captain won the beauty's heart.
With his wife keeping an eye on him, this brat's temper shouldn't be so strange anymore.
Luo Mingchuan scoffed, thinking disdainfully, "A bunch of fools. Only he noticed that Lu Xuejin's smile didn't reach her eyes at all."
It seems the little devil is not happy at all about being softened in his approach to the shepherd.
Indeed, once the prey is easily obtained, the interest in chasing it diminishes.
When the shepherd boy brought back the hot water, Lu Xuejin suddenly looked up and stuffed the rice ball she had specially saved into his hand, "Thank you, shepherd boy... You haven't eaten yet, have some to tide you over."
The onlookers were thrilled and thought with relief: That's right, that's how it is. If the brat can control his temper, Xiao Lu won't be afraid. If they get along well, happy days are not far away!
The small rice ball looked like a candy in his large palm. The shepherd boy raised an eyebrow, about to say that people with superpowers eat less frequently, but the words wouldn't come out. In the end, he silently ate the rice ball. He was completely unaware of his surroundings, but the constantly upturned corners of his mouth were clearly visible to others.
"Tsk tsk tsk, the captain's smile is harder to suppress than AK's."
"Xiao Lu finally gave him a smile, look how happy he is."
Luo Mingchuan stood at the back of the crowd, his gaze meeting Lu Xuejin's across the distance.
He was smiling.
But all I could see was boredom and indifference.
This was a completely different Lu Xuejin; he was always full of enthusiasm in front of Luo Mingchuan. But Luo Mingchuan could guess a thing or two—the manipulative devil was already tired of him.
A surge of joy welled up in his heart. Although he didn't like shepherds, seeing his prey escape danger, even if it was someone he utterly loathed, made Luo Mingchuan feel genuinely fortunate for him.
Lu Xuejin wants to go to the base and get some special medicine, so let him go. They'll leave eventually once he's had his fun. Just make sure he has as little contact with people as possible during this time…
Just then, Lu Xuejin's smile deepened, and her glassy eyes lit up. Luo Mingchuan immediately sensed something was wrong, and his spine straightened abruptly as if he had been electrocuted.
"Mingchuan." Lu Xuejin ran towards him through the crowd and gave him a hug openly and without any hesitation. "We're almost at the base."
He came all this way, seemingly just to share this joy with his younger brother.
Her gentle gaze lingered on Luo Mingchuan's brows, carefully observing her younger brother's condition.
"Thank you for your hard work these past few days. Once we get to the base, we'll..."
The sound was carried away by the cool breeze.
The gaze from the shepherd boy not far away was incredibly cold; Luo Mingchuan's body stiffened, and his heart felt heavy.
Oops.
He considered countless possibilities and countless coping strategies, but he never expected that the little devil's target would return to him.
Author's Note:
A man surnamed Mu (pointing to a photo of a miner and a beautiful young woman with her neck intertwined): Do you family members watching this on screen think they are just brothers?
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