Chapter 204 Fitness Competition
Lin Xi visited the hot spring resort five times in a row but did not find anyone with marks on their neck that looked like heavy lead aprons. However, Lu Wei made contact with two informants.
She passed this characteristic on to Xiang Xin, so that she could also secretly pay attention to people with this trait.
After three weeks, Xiang Xin and Lu Wei had not made any progress in this regard. Most of the people they came into contact with were well-trained soldiers, who generally did not have features such as hunchbacks or dowager's hump, and it was difficult to see wounds and calluses under their neat clothes.
Lin Xi could only observe people during her commute and "dates," and she screened out some suspects in the research institute.
The fact that the suspect's posture was different before and after get off work indicates that the hunchback and forward head posture were caused by work fatigue and could be recovered after rest.
However, the target group was too large, and Xiang Xin did not find anything wrong after observing the movement of these people.
Conducting high-risk research in a secret laboratory would take a considerable amount of time, and disappearing for such a long period would surely lead to discovery.
If researchers in research institutes work at the institute during the day and then go to the secret base after get off work or on vacation, not only is the time limited and the efficiency low, but even the most capable oxen and horses wouldn't have the energy for that!
When Lin Xi is anxious, she will do a handstand or plank to calm herself down.
This was a regular activity for her at the Dawn Base. Xiang Xin would accompany her whenever he was there, and Liang Hui would sometimes join in after she moved to the Major General's house.
But now that Lin Xi is calling out to Xiang Xin, her eyes light up: "Great! I've been practicing a lot lately, I'm sure I can win..."
Then her expectant gaze turned into resentment: "I feel so embarrassed to go to your place."
Finally, she sighed sourly, "Sigh, it's clearly a movie for three people..."
"..."
The shift in emotion was so natural that Lin Xi shook her head helplessly.
It's human nature to have a possessive streak towards friends.
She was thinking about when to tell Xiang Xin that her relationship with Lu Wei was an act, but she was afraid that Xiang Xin was too naive to keep things a secret, so she held back and didn't say anything.
-
Before Lu opened the door, he saw Lin Xi standing upside down against the wall.
Hearing voices, Lin Xi opened her eyes and saw Lu Wei lying on the ground.
He walked over to me and lay down on the open ground.
"How many minutes has it been?"
“2”
"Hmm." Lu Wei did 20 push-ups, then stood up and did a handstand next to Lin Xi.
"..."
Her eyes slowly turned to Lu Wei beside her. This was the first time she had seen Lu Wei upside down, but she couldn't make out his exact appearance.
He never used to play these boring games with the other three.
Lu Wei silently adjusted his breathing.
Those 20 push-ups were to make up for the time Lin Xi had already endured; it's unclear whether they included the difference in endurance.
This was a tough competition. Lu Wei's endurance was obviously much better than Xiang Xin and Liang Hui's. Not to mention winning, Lin Xi gritted his teeth and persevered until his vision went black before collapsing.
"I was trying to calm myself down... Why did you have to come and challenge me to a duel..." Lin Xi said while relaxing her arms.
"You're the one who thinks I'm here to compete."
That's just habitual thinking.
Lu Wei then asked, "According to your custom, shouldn't you treat me to hot pot?"
"..." Lin Xi thought to herself, "So he said he wasn't here to compete?"
The two sat quietly for a while to relax their hand muscles.
Lu Wei: "You know..."
Lin Xi: "I don't know..."
Open at the same time.
"..." Lu Wei: "You go first."
Lin Xi: "We've been to the hot spring resort so many times, but we haven't found anyone with suspicious characteristics."
Although Lin Xi had anticipated that the chances of running into him at the hot spring resort were slim, she was still somewhat disheartened after so long without any clues.
The multispecific antibody research project is progressing smoothly, and they don't have much time left.
Lu Wei: "Maybe your work hours don't coincide with that person's, so you never run into them."
Lin Xi: "You mean you want me to take leave?"
Her tone carried a hint of resentment: "Song Heng is already dissatisfied with my attitude of often not working overtime, and now I'm asking for leave at this crucial moment..."
Song Heng is that kind of person; in his heart, scientific research is always the most important thing.
He once valued her highly, once used her, and once feared her, but once he was involved in scientific research, everyone was the same in his eyes.
Therefore, there is a certain degree of fairness in Song Heng's team. He is not biased, and only those who are capable can be given important positions.
Lu Wei asked seriously, "How confident are you in your lab's chances?"
Lin Xi shook his head: "I'm not sure, but according to calculations, the antibodies synthesized this time should be able to provide full immunity to the virus."
"White Shield Base won't let us leave easily. Once they've made progress in their research, we'll be useless to them."
Lin Xi was well aware of this. The White Shield Base's independent actions had already attracted the attention of relevant departments. In addition, given the suspicion that the other party was researching chemical weapons, the base's desire for independence was very obvious.
But Lin Xi knew how terrifying zombies were. Even though the White Shield Base wanted to use zombies to make weapons, their fear of zombies still existed.
Otherwise, more than half of the laboratories in research institutes wouldn't be researching antibodies.
Once an effective antibody is synthesized, they will have no more worries and are very likely to launch their final plan.
As for Lin Xilu and others who are being guarded against, their safety will be compromised.
Lin Xi had no choice but to secretly create some errors in the laboratory to delay the process.
-
White Shield Base High-Level Laboratory
"I asked you to track the people from Dawn Base. Any progress?" Yue Mingyuan asked expressionlessly.
Fan Yuchao smiled and said, "Teacher, these people really aren't very capable."
He took out a tablet and showed pictures: "Look at Lu Wei, besides clocking in and out of get off work, all he knows is shopping, eating, and going to massage parlors with his girlfriend."
Yue Mingyuan glanced at the tablet indifferently. He was older and had seen many disguised spies, so he never let his guard down. He knew that Lu Wei's status and position were given to him by the relevant departments, and Lu Wei must be loyal to the relevant departments.
Since that's the case, we're on completely different paths.
Yue Mingyuan took a sip of tea: "What about the others? His girlfriend?"
Fan Yuchao played several surveillance videos and pointed out Lin Xi in one of them, saying, "Zhou Yiheng is right, she's just a pretty face. She doesn't have any real talent or ability, and she's been frequently criticized by her mentor, Song Heng, lately. Her position as the dean of the Dawn Base was probably arranged by Lu Wei."
The scene shifts to the next segment, where Lin Xi and Xiang Xin are shopping in a commercial district, and Lin Xi is borrowing a points card from Xiang Xin to buy chocolate.
We are currently in a special wartime phase, and items such as chocolate and compressed biscuits are considered emergency war preparedness supplies. Although some shops in the commercial area sell them, they are all subject to registration and quota restrictions.
Lin Xi's reason was to give her boyfriend chocolates.
When Lin Xi and her group entered the White Shield base, they only brought their personal belongings and had little food reserves. Since they were on a special mission, it was inconvenient for them to carry a large amount of supplies with them, so chocolate was the best choice.
Fan Yuchao explained, "Look, this woman only knows how to buy things for men. This one named Xiang Xin is very close to them, but all she knows how to do is go shopping and talk to young people about cartoons."
As Zhou Yiheng's various evaluations of Lin Xi and Lin Xi's actions at the Dawn Research Institute echoed in Yue Mingyuan's mind, he said with a mix of doubt and a light laugh, "Is that so?"
-
The end of the year is fast approaching.
The successful development of multispecific antibodies marks a new milestone in human research on zombie viruses.
Upon hearing the news, the top management of the White Shield Base not only rewarded the team with improved benefits, but also arranged a celebration banquet for everyone in the research institute.
The celebration banquet was mainly for Song Heng's team.
After working overtime for more than half a month straight, everyone spent almost all their time in the lab except for sleeping. Now they just want to catch their breath, and Lin Xi is no exception.
Song Heng had no interest in attending the gathering. To him, the White Shield Base was merely a research institute that provided better conditions and facilities; he didn't care about the others.
Now that a major breakthrough has finally been achieved, he can't wait to move on to the next stage of vaccine research.
Lin Xi admired Song Heng's perseverance. Song Heng always maintained enthusiasm and a spirit of inquiry for scientific research, and never slacked off even when he was old and his physical strength could no longer keep up.
However, given the White Shield Base's warm invitation, even the most tactless Song Heng had no choice but to attend the gathering.
Also invited were people who had come from the Dawn Base together, including Guo Yanlin's team and the people Lu Wei brought.
Lin Xi, who had taken a nap, was woken up to attend the banquet. She went straight from home and entered the venue with Lu Wei.
Looking at the spacious but not extravagant auditorium, Lin Xi realized she had overthought things. She whispered, "I thought it would be a very high-class banquet, the kind where you have to wear formal dresses."
The overall layout and arrangement of the hall were appropriate and dignified, but not extravagant.
Lu Wei responded to her in a low voice: "Yue Mingyuan is not a pleasure-seeking person."
Lin Xi thought for a moment and said, "That's true. We've been to the club so many times but we've never seen him."
"..."
A person who does not outwardly or inwardly crave pleasure and indulgence may need power to satisfy their inner desires.
The White Shield Base was originally an important military base, containing a large number of weapons and equipment. Relevant departments have repeatedly issued orders calling on the White Shield Base to assist in the extermination of zombies, but the White Shield Base has ignored them all.
Later, multiple pieces of evidence showed that the appearance of hardened zombies and certain dangerous zombie species came from the White Shield Base, and much evidence indicated that the White Shield Base did not want to end the apocalypse.
Having experienced multiple apocalypses and seen the true nature of people, Lin Xi understands this concept.
The apocalypse reshuffled the existing rights and status, and the rules changed.
Chaos destroys the lives of ordinary people, but it also creates heroes in times of turmoil.
However, all of these come with certain conditions.
Take Lu Weihe for example. He made great achievements at the Dawn Base and gradually obtained the rank of "Major General". In peacetime, it would be almost impossible for Lu Weihe to achieve this at his age.
However, these are all limited to a specific area, namely, Dawn Base.
His status and rights are only recognized at Dawn Base, which allows him to provide Lin Xi with all the help and resources she needs.
After leaving Dawn Base and arriving at White Shield Base, he held only a nominal position with no real power. Even the base points he had accumulated were left behind at Dawn Base and could not be brought with him.
It's like a celebrity who's known to everyone in their own country coming to a country where nobody knows them.
To put it bluntly, the various bases after establishing the internal network are like small countries. Some bases still obey the relevant departments, while others have already amassed their own armies and want to become completely independent regimes.
Like the Powerful Factory, White Shield Base was unwilling to let the apocalypse end, so it artificially increased the difficulty of the apocalypse and researched zombies to turn them into its own weapons.
The situation of independent separatism will not remain stable for long, and war will break out soon.
-
Lin Xi can't compete with handstands, so she now uses planks to calm her mind and maintain her muscle condition.
Two figures stood upright on the ground.
“Other laboratories at White Shield Base have also joined the vaccine research,” Lin Xi said, trying to keep her breathing steady.
When they first came here with their antibodies, they explained that their multispecific antibody research could only be conducted by Song Hengyuan's team. The White Shield Base agreed at the time and even generously provided the equipment and their antibody samples.
Now that antibody research has been completed, vaccine research requires more manpower and testing time.
There is no reason not to allow people from White Shield Base to participate in the research.
“Unlike antibody research, which requires original samples, vaccine research targeting multispecific antibodies can be conducted by any team. The White Shield Base even has more outstanding professors and teams.”
Lin Xi spoke a long string of words, took a deep breath, and almost lost her rhythm.
Although Lu Wei beside him had a serious look in his eyes, his body remained as steady as a mountain.
What Lin Xi just said implied that their team no longer had any irreplaceable special value to the White Shield Base.
Although White Shield Base currently harbors no ill will or isolates them, and even treats them better, this is all on the premise that Lin Xi and Lu Wei have not been exposed and have not engaged in any dangerous behavior towards White Shield Base.
Lu Wei said, "Yue Mingyuan even has long-term plans to keep us here."
"How...did you find out?" Lin Xi asked.
She roughly knew that Yue Mingyuan had taken care of Lu Wei for a period of time before the apocalypse, and had a high opinion of him, intending to win him over.
“…” Lu Wei remained silent for a while.
"Hmm?" Lin Xi sensed that something was amiss.
Unexpectedly, Lu Wei said, "Yue Mingyuan's subordinates said that the powder you brought back is probably almost gone."
When Lin Xi entered the White Shield base, four strips of "birth control pills" were found during the security check. These were pills that were taken daily for a long time, and each strip was taken once a month. They should have been finished by now, and Lu Wei hadn't been grinding pills for a long time.
"What does that have to do with us staying?"
Lin Xi thought to herself, "Could it be that I've discovered the secret of the pills?"
Lu Wei sighed. Lin Xi thought he was going to give up the plank position, but Lu Wei steadily raised one hand and took out a small jar from his pocket and placed it on the ground.
The pills inside were suddenly jolted, making a rustling sound.
Lin Xi looked up and saw a bottle of "Sildenafil".
"..."
Lu Wei said coldly, "Yue Mingyuan said that scientific research and fighting are the same everywhere, and he hopes that we can stay at the White Shield Base to work and live normally. Since the outbreak of the zombies, the population has decreased a lot. Young people like us should have a child and settle down."
Lin Xi raised an eyebrow.
—Even in the apocalypse, the villainous uncle is pressuring us to have a baby.
"So he only secretly gave you the 'blue tablet' and not the 'pink tablet'?" Lin Xi's voice trembled slightly at the end.
She held her breath so hard her stomach hurt, afraid that laughing out loud would mean losing the game.
"..." Lu Wei didn't speak, but simply maintained his position steadily.
Lin Xi tried to distract herself to avoid bursting into laughter.
She thought of a very serious topic: "Ever since we met Peng Xinghong at the club, I have observed his walking posture. He always walks with his neck tilted forward and his back slightly hunched, both in the morning and evening. This condition worsens after get off work, and his walking posture becomes somewhat strange."
Lin Xi took three deep breaths and said again, "But I focused on observing his team. It seems that they are only conducting some vaccine research in the laboratory, nothing special."
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