LIGHTNOVELWORLD chapter 5 - Suburbs.
Yu Qing put on a flattering smile: “Special circumstances require special treatment.”
His face had an inherently pure and kind attribute. The smile didn’t seem fake but rather a bit mischievous.
However, Song Xinqi was clearly not planning to let him off that easily: “You seem to be enjoying calling me.”
“I was wrong.”
Song Xinqi smiled sinisterly: “No, you weren’t wrong. How could you be wrong? Come on, continue. Since you like calling me so much, keep doing it until I’m satisfied.”
No one knows what it feels like to call someone “daddy” for half an hour straight, but Yu Qing had the unfortunate privilege of finding out. This is the epitome of saying the wrong thing.
His voice, which had just recovered, began to grow hoarse again, and he drooped his head: “I can’t shout anymore.”
A bottle of water appeared in front of him, and it was even kindly opened for him. “Drink some water and you’ll be able to shout again.”
Song Xinqi was a devil.
He dejectedly took the bottle with both hands, drank while sneaking glances at Song Xinqi, who was studying a map, seemingly not planning to deal with him for the moment.
He slowed his drinking pace and then noticed his water bottle getting smaller, and the pants tied around his waist getting tighter.
He looked down and saw a pair of white, naked legs—he had turned back.
Song Xinqi glanced over, seeing Yu Qing sneakily putting on his pants. His smooth, jade-like legs were half exposed, looking nice but unsuitable for the apocalypse. In fact, Yu Qing as a whole was unsuitable for the apocalypse.
Putting away the map, he chose a direction, and the two of them continued along the road. As night fell, there were no vehicles on the road, as if the entire world consisted only of them.
They found a spot by the road barrier to rest. Yu Qing touched his flat stomach and said to Song Xinqi, who was collecting firewood, “I’m hungry.”
Song Xinqi tossed over a bag of instant noodles, which he caught clumsily. He had always had his meals delivered by nurses, and even here, he bought his food from outside. He had never cooked for himself before. Looking at the instructions on the back, he said, “This needs to be boiled, right?”
Song Xinqi set up the collected firewood, took out an aluminum lunch box from his backpack, which could be used for boiling water and cooking, and even for drinking water in a pinch.
Bread and compressed biscuits were emergency supplies, reserved for when there was no other food. While resources were still plentiful, it was best to ensure nutrition.
He threw the pot near Yu Qing, handed him two bottles of water, and said, “Didn’t you say you could cook and do laundry? Come on, make a fire and cook.”
Still holding a grudge.
Yu Qing feebly replied, “That was a skill of five-year-old me. Eighteen-year-old Yu Qing can’t do it.”
Song Xinqi said, “Less nonsense. Just do it.”
Yu Qing had no choice but to take the pot over to the firewood and figure out how to make a fire.
He had seen people start fires by rubbing sticks together on wilderness survival shows, but seeing and doing are two different things.
Forget starting a fire; he didn’t even know how to rub the sticks together properly.
He looked up at Song Xinqi, who was fiddling with a brick-like communicator, extending the antenna to find a signal.
Yu Qing picked a pointed stick and continued to rub, but after a while, the wood beneath was barely marked, while his hands were close to being skinned.
He cried out tearfully: “Song Xinqi, I really can’t start a fire.”
Song Xinqi glanced over, speechless: “Are you building blocks?”
The firewood, which he had just arranged, was stacked tightly like bricks by Yu Qing. No wonder it wouldn’t light.
He walked over, rearranged the sticks, took a lighter out of his pocket, and with a click, a flame was ignited in no time.
He raised an eyebrow at Yu Qing: “Difficult?”
How was he supposed to know there was a lighter!
Yu Qing asked, “What do I do next?”
Song Xinqi briefly replied: “Set up the pot, cook the noodles.”
“Oh.” Yu Qing placed the aluminum lunch box on the fire, poured in a bottle and a half of mineral water, then tore open the noodle packet and was about to dump the entire thing in, but Song Xinqi stopped him just in time.
He asked incredulously: “Are you trying to waste food, or do you think you can eat three or four bowls at once?”
“How much should I add then?” Yu Qing took out a handful, “Is this enough?”
He warned himself not to lose his temper and controlled his emotions: “How have you survived until now?”
He couldn’t make a fire, and even cooking noodles was this troublesome. What exactly was this little waste good for?
He decided to do it himself.
Having not eaten all day, Yu Qing’s stomach growled as the noodles cooked, and he looked eagerly at the pot: “Is it ready yet?”
Song Xinqi pushed him away: “Stay away from me.”
In Tian Luo Town, Yu Qing would always stay far away from him, but these past few days, he seemed to be getting less afraid of him.
After eating, it was already dark. Their experience in Tian Luo Town taught them that zombies were more active at night than during the day.
Unsure of the extent of the zombie spread, to avoid being bitten while asleep, they found a thick tree to spend the night in.
Yu Qing looked up at the tree, which was wider than two of him, and shouted from below: “Song Xinqi, I can’t climb trees.”
Song Xinqi, hanging his backpack, paused and snapped: “What can you do besides eat?”
“I can breathe.”
He cursed, climbed down a few steps, and reached out to him. With his help, Yu Qing managed to climb the tree.
Finally able to rest after so much running around, he leaned against the trunk, hooked his legs on the branches, and secured himself so he wouldn’t fall asleep and tumble down.
Despite his exhausted body, Yu Qing was mentally alert, finding it exciting to sleep in a tree for the first time.
He swung his legs happily, seemingly forgetting they had just escaped from zombies. He looked up at the night sky, with scattered stars falling into his eyes, and exclaimed: “What a beautiful starry sky.”
His previous city was very prosperous, brighter at night than during the day, and he rarely saw so many stars or experienced such dark nights.
He stretched out his hand, spread his fingers, then slowly retracted them. When he could see his fingers again, he stretched out again, trying to find the line between visible and invisible, playing gleefully.
Song Xinqi, on a lower branch, was trying to cut off the mental link. From what Yu Qing said, it seemed the problem lay with him, but he couldn’t get a handle on it.
After using his powers for so long, his barely stabilized mental power was starting to stir again. Turning to see Yu Qing’s carefree demeanor made him more annoyed: “What are you so happy about? We’re fleeing, not on vacation.”
Yu Qing replied, “Because you’re here.”
Song Xinqi retorted, “Don’t think you can act smug just because of the mental link.”
He stopped swinging his legs, not understanding why Song Xinqi suddenly picked a fight with him: “Why can’t I be in a good mood while fleeing?”
“I’m not getting complacent or taking your protection for granted. Can’t I feel better just because the stars are pretty?
Do I have to be in pain, crying about why I encountered this, to be considered having the right mindset?”
He looked at the darkness: “I just feel it’s nice to be alive, have food, and a place to sleep.”
Song Xinqi sneered at his naïve words. A youth who hadn’t faced death directly wouldn’t understand how cruel the world was. He stared at the dark ground below, wondering if he threw this little waste down, would he cry in fear?
Yu Qing shivered, feeling a cold wind at his back.
Sleeping in a tree was novel, but after a while, it became uncomfortable. Song Xinqi, always alert to external sounds, found no danger but was instead annoyed by his constant rustling.
He growled quietly: “Be quiet.”
Yu Qing stilled for a moment, then complained: “I’m uncomfortable.”
“Stop being so delicate.” Song Xinqi sneered, warning him that if he moved again, he’d throw him down.
Under Song Xinqi’s threat, Yu Qing had to stay still. Gradually, Song Xinqi also felt something was wrong. He’d slept in trees before, but today, everything hurt more, his stabilized mental power was restless, and he felt irritated.
“Yu Qing.”
Yu Qing snapped back: “I didn’t move!”
Just then, a black object covered his head. He pulled it off and found it was Song Xinqi’s jacket: “What does this mean?”
Song Xinqi’s voice was cold. The jacket had a fluffy lining, which felt quite comfortable against his back. He felt much better and started to think that Song Xinqi wasn’t as unapproachable as he seemed.
“Song Xinqi, what was it like the first time you killed a zombie?”
“Didn’t feel anything.”
“Really?” Yu Qing asked, “Weren’t you disgusted or scared?”
Song Xinqi sneered, “Do you think everyone is like you, only knowing how to scream for help when encountering a zombie?”
He was taken aback but retorted, “I call it knowing when to be smart. If you can’t win, of course, you should run.”
Song Xinqi curled his lips, “You are indeed quite good at running away.”
“Hehe, that’s right.”
Song Xinq said, “I wasn’t complimenting you.”
Yu Qing looked down at Song Xinqi, who was standing on a branch below him. He wasn’t wearing a jacket, just a black short-sleeve shirt. “Song Xinqi, aren’t you cold?”
“Not cold.”
Since his abilities awakened, his senses had become more acute. When others talked for too long, he would get a headache, so he especially liked peace and quiet.
However, listening to Yu Qing’s endless chatter for so long, he not only didn’t feel annoyed but felt a strange sense of calm. His mental state was unusually serene.
Could this be because of the mental link? He pondered. But since it could soothe his mental strength, he supposed he could tolerate this little weakling’s babbling.