Night.
You Rong closed his eyes. Beside him, Lin Qinghe’s breathing was shallow and steady. He suddenly opened his eyes, his well-defined face etched with struggle.
You Rong turned his head to gaze at Lin Qinghe’s peaceful sleeping face, his throat bobbing as he swallowed.
Hungry!
So hungry!
Looking at Lin Qinghe’s fair neck, he desperately wanted to bite it. Just one bite, and the frenzy and craving in his body would be satisfied!
If You Rong wasn’t wearing colored contact lenses, his eyeballs would have been blood-red by now.
You Rong forced himself to look away, pushed himself up with effort, and dragged his heavy body out of the tent. He walked out of the warehouse towards the parked car outside.
The moment You Rong left, Lin Qinghe’s eyes snapped open, clear and alert, showing no signs of just waking up.
She knew You Rong hadn’t eaten today. According to his usual pattern, he must have been suppressing himself, so she had paid extra attention.
Lin Qinghe lifted the quilt and glanced at the tent where Jiang Wanwan and Jiang Xun were staying. Seeing they were not awake, she moved quietly and followed You Rong out.
A distance from the car, Lin Qinghe stopped, waiting quietly.
You Rong disliked being seen while eating. It was better to wait here than to go closer.
After about half an hour, Lin Qinghe traced countless circles on the ground with her toes. Bored, she finally heard You Rong’s footsteps. She quickly looked up and indeed, You Rong had already gotten out of the car and was heading back.
You Rong visibly startled when he saw Lin Qinghe. He lowered his gaze, walked over, and asked in a low voice, "Why are you here?"
Lin Qinghe smiled faintly, "I was a little worried, so I came to keep watch for you."
You Rong grunted and said softly, "Let’s go back."
After You Rong spoke, he walked towards the warehouse. Lin Qinghe watched his retreating figure. Without thinking, she suddenly strode to catch up and made a bold move.
She grasped You Rong’s hand, her slender fingers weaving through his, holding on tightly.
You Rong frowned and was about to shake off Lin Qinghe’s hand, when Lin Qinghe smiled at him and said, "I'll be by your side, I'll protect you, guard you, don't be afraid. Also… even if you can only maintain this state forever, I will always be with you!"
After saying that, Lin Qinghe felt it wasn't quite right, and immediately added, "Of course, you won't be like this forever. I believe you will recover soon!"
You Rong, who had intended to pull away, found he couldn't at that moment.
Perhaps because his body temperature had dropped after the injection, Lin Qinghe’s hand was very warm, comfortable to hold, warm… it made him slightly greedy for this warmth.
You Rong’s gaze fell on Lin Qinghe with an unreadable intensity. Lin Qinghe, full of anticipation, thought You Rong would say something. But You Rong said nothing in the end. He withdrew his gaze, didn’t pull away her hand, and led her inside. He lay down in the tent without a word.
Lin Qinghe also lay down, feeling a bit disappointed.
She had thought her words would move You Rong somewhat, but they seemed to have had no effect on him.
Lin Qinghe closed her eyes, preparing to sleep, when the system's prompt suddenly sounded: "Progress bar increased by 5%, total progress bar at 32%."
Lin Qinghe's eyes snapped open, and she looked at You Rong with surprise and delight.
Alright, she couldn’t see through this person. He was like a block of wood all day, showing no emotional change, but he was actually quite reserved inside.
He must have appreciated her words just now, at least he was touched in his heart.
Perhaps because Lin Qinghe's gaze was too intense, You Rong’s brow twitched, and he opened his eyes. Their gazes met. You Rong asked, "...Something wrong?"
Lin Qinghe smiled, "Nothing, nothing… Go to sleep quickly. We'll wake up early tomorrow and look for nearby supermarkets to see if there's any meat left in the freezers. If there is, we'll bring it back for you as rations."
You Rong: "..."
After a pause, he closed his eyes and said indifferently, "Sleep."
Lin Qinghe smiled and replied with an "Mm," closing her eyes. Soon, she fell asleep and unconsciously snuggled closer to You Rong, hugging him with both legs.
You Rong opened his eyes, a hint of helplessness flashing in their depths. He pulled the blanket higher to cover Lin Qinghe, not pushing her away as he usually did.
The next morning.
Lin Qinghe ate a simple breakfast after waking up and was preparing to go out with You Rong when Jiang Wanwan and Jiang Xun immediately came over.
Jiang Wanwan stammered, "Um… are you two going out? Could you take us with you? We promise we won't be a bother! We won't snatch food from you either! We just want to see if we can find any news about my father… Is that okay?"
Lin Qinghe sighed inwardly and said with slight helplessness, "Alright, you can come along, but we agreed, you can't ask us to go according to your wishes."
Jiang Wanwan's face lit up, "We won't! We absolutely won't!"
Jiang Wanwan eagerly nudged Jiang Xun's shoulder, "Quick… hurry up and get your backpack. Let's go with them!"
"Sis, I know."
Exiting the warehouse, they saw at least a hundred zombies gathered outside the electric fence. Lin Qinghe’s brow furrowed. She wasn’t stupid; she was completely certain these zombies were after You Rong.
Lin Qinghe secretly felt fortunate. It was good that the electric fence was blocking these zombies. Otherwise, if they followed them everywhere, they would have to be vigilant day and night, which would be truly exhausting.
Jiang Wanwan and Jiang Xun were stunned by the scene before them. Jiang Xun swallowed nervously and asked, "Um… do you still have grenades? If we're going out, should we throw a grenade to clear the way?"
You Rong's gaze sharpened, "No need! We'll drive straight through!"
There weren't many grenades left; they couldn't be wasted.
Jiang Xun's eyes widened in disbelief, "Drive through? How can we drive through that?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Lin Qinghe walk to the guardhouse and press the switch for the automatic opening of the electric gate. Some zombies eagerly tried to rush in. You Rong waited for Lin Qinghe to get in the car, then stepped on the accelerator, flooring it. The car lunged forward, directly smashing into the zombie horde.
As expected of a professionally modified car, the zombies were sent flying, and their vehicle remained undamaged.
The car had traveled a considerable distance, and the zombies behind couldn't catch up. Jiang Wanwan and Jiang Xun finally relaxed.
Jiang Xun patted his chest, his voice filled with lingering fear, and looked at You Rong and Lin Qinghe with admiration, "You're too amazing! You dared to charge into so many zombies!"
They had been timid before, and their sudden braking had caused their car to break down, trapping them and leading to the zombie attack.
Lin Qinghe said, "...Because I knew my car was modified and could withstand impacts, I had the confidence to charge."
Jiang Xun looked at Lin Qinghe with even greater admiration, his address unconsciously becoming more intimate, "Your car is modified? Did you modify it yourself, sis?"
"No, it was… a friend who helped me modify it."
As Lin Qinghe said this, she thought of the limping young man, Gu Zilin, at base R.
She wondered how he was doing now?
You Rong saw Lin Qinghe lost in thought and subtly frowned.
A friend from base R?
Someone who could modify cars was likely male. It seemed they had a good relationship for her to be so concerned about him…