After I Stopped Being a Simp, My Husband Fell for Me on His Own - Chapter 30

“I… holy—” Even though he had never seen one in person, Yu Yi recognized a hand grenade when he saw it.

Meng Zhao glanced over and said calmly, “Pick it up.”

“Is this… is it going to explode?” Yu Yi was flustered, his voice trembling slightly. “Are we supposed to stay perfectly still right now?”

“You did not step on a landmine,” Meng Zhao said, sounding exasperated. “The safety pin is still in. It will not explode.”

“Oh, right. Okay, okay.” Yu Yi realized he was overreacting. He silently picked up the grenade. “Um… where should I put it?”

“In the back.”

It was only then that Yu Yi noticed the cramped rear seat area was piled high with various weapons and explosives. They looked like they were meant for dealing with contaminated creatures, though they seemed a bit primitive.

Finally, a sense of crisis about being in the Contaminated Zone began to sink in.

Yu Yi carefully placed the grenade on top of a roll of explosives messily bound together with electrical tape. “I am putting it here, okay?”

“Mm,” Meng Zhao grunted in response.

Neither of them spoke much during the drive.

The road ahead was pitch black. The headlights of this tractor—no, this small mecha—could only illuminate about two meters in front of them. It felt as if they were moving through a thick wall of black fog.

Yu Yi did not dare to strike up a conversation with Meng Zhao, fearing he might distract him or, worse, that some mutated pollutant might suddenly leap out of the darkness. This was a real Contaminated Zone, not an online simulation. They only had one life.

Yu Yi remained on high alert for about half an hour. However, because the journey was so quiet and nothing happened, he gradually let his guard down.

He could not help but ask Meng Zhao, “Are we in any danger?”

“No.” Meng Zhao did not even turn his head. His voice sounded muffled inside his transparent helmet.

“Wow?” Yu Yi was shocked. So confident?

“The contaminated creatures in this area have already been cleared,” Meng Zhao explained succinctly. “Only the contaminated pheromones have not been fully neutralized.”

Yu Yi felt relieved. He asked, “Why?”

“What do you mean ‘why’? Did you not study basic theory?” Meng Zhao countered.

The Upper District’s clearance of a Contaminated Zone was divided into three stages. The first stage was the purification of all contaminated creatures along the route. The second was pathfinding and road construction. The final stage was the removal of contaminated pheromones, followed by the expansion of the Upper and Lower Districts’ territory.

Currently, half of the Lower District consisted of former Contaminated Zones, which was why those areas felt more dilapidated and ancient.

“No,” Yu Yi shook his head. “I meant, why do you have such a grudge against me?”

Meng Zhao’s hands on the control levers stiffened slightly, but he still did not speak.

Yu Yi found it puzzling. “I do not think I have done anything to offend you. From the start, I felt like you were hostile toward me. I think if we are going to be teammates, it is better to clear the air.”

Surprisingly, despite appearing timid, Yu Yi was quite direct when he spoke.

Meng Zhao turned his head to glance at Yu Yi, then looked back at the road. He said calmly, “It is not about a grudge. Chen Cheng says you are useful; I think you are useless. It is as simple as that.”

“Well… I did just get here,” Yu Yi muttered.

“One more person means one less share of the money. Everyone who comes here is desperate for cash. Do you understand?” Meng Zhao said.

So, he was annoyed about splitting the pay.

Given that Chen Cheng had transferred 50,000 star coins without batting an eye, Yu Yi figured a single mission must pay at least 200,000. Just how desperate for money was this Meng Zhao?

“Are you… in debt?”

Meng Zhao said coolly, “My reasons for needing money are the same as yours. Tuition, mecha consumables, everything.”

“But surely one trip pays at least 200,000…” Yu Yi tentatively prodded about their compensation.

“Who told you it was 200,000 per trip?” Hearing that number, Meng Zhao actually turned his head. His eyes were full of surprise. His brow piercing flashed in the darkness, and Yu Yi noticed for the first time that it was set with a tiny white diamond.

“Brother Chen… he transferred 50,000 to me as a deposit.”

“Oh, then you have your work cut out for you.” Meng Zhao turned back to the road. “He is always unreliable like that. Did he not tell you that our pay is a percentage based on how much the goods we bring back sell for?”

“What? No, he did not mention that. What goods?” Yu Yi had thought he would get paid just for going to the Contaminated Zone. Is this not a scam?

Meng Zhao did not bother to explain further, only saying, “Regretting it? If you are, go back early.”

Hearing Meng Zhao try to drive him away actually made Yu Yi calm down. Meng Zhao was even more desperate for money than he was; if this was truly such a trap, would he still be here? There really was no other place as profitable as this.

“No, I do not regret it,” Yu Yi shook his head, terrified that Meng Zhao might report him to Chen Cheng.

The two fell silent again.

After sitting for a while and staring into the darkness ahead, Yu Yi asked again, “Um… I wanted to ask…”

Meng Zhao glanced at him.

Yu Yi continued, “Is this helmet always like this? I feel like there is a draft coming in.” He pointed at his face shield with a confused expression.

Meng Zhao replied, “It is just a motorcycle helmet.”

Yu Yi: …?!

Dammit! Why did you not say so earlier! No wonder Chen Cheng looked so dismissive!

In a fit of pique, Yu Yi ripped the helmet off. What difference does wearing this even make?

However, Chen Cheng had been right. To Yu Yi, being out here felt no different than being in a purified district. He felt no ill effects at all.

Sensing Meng Zhao’s annoyance, Yu Yi stopped trying to make small talk. He leaned back in his seat and checked his communicator. Unfortunately, there was no signal in the Contaminated Zone, so he could only watch his cached simulation battle records.

After driving for over an hour, Meng Zhao suddenly pulled the control lever. The mecha jolted and came to a halt.

Yu Yi quickly closed his screen, afraid Meng Zhao might see his sub-40% win rate.

“Are we here?” Yu Yi asked.

Meng Zhao efficiently unbuckled his safety belt, switched on the mecha’s searchlights, and reached under the seat to pull out a shovel. He tossed it to Yu Yi. “We are here. Let us go.”

Yu Yi scrambled to catch the shovel and followed him out of the cockpit.

Before them lay a wide expanse of open land, free of any grotesque trees. By the light of the mecha, he could just barely see that the ground ahead was not solid, but a basin filled with a black, viscous substance.

The searchlights were nothing compared to those on the advanced combat mechas used by Ji Xingxiao’s squad. Yu Yi could not tell what was in the pit; it just looked lifeless and incredibly eerie.

Meng Zhao was carrying bags. Holding his shovel, he stepped forward and began working without a word, shoveling the black substance out of the pit and into the black bags as if it were mere mud. His movements were practiced and efficient, as if he had done this countless times.

Meng Zhao had not assigned him a task, and Chen Cheng had not specified what he should do either, other than to stay for four hours. However, Yu Yi knew he could not just stand by and watch. He stepped forward, but before he could even sink his shovel in, the stench from the pit nearly knocked him over.

A powerful smell of rot emanated from the basin, like something that had been festering for a very long time. It was a sickly sweet scent that made him want to gag.

Yu Yi managed to take one shovelful, fighting the urge to vomit as he dumped it into a bag, before he finally had to run to the side and dry heave.

He could not bring anything up, but he felt nauseated. Frowning, he asked, “What… what is this stuff?”

“The goods,” Meng Zhao replied without looking up. He continued shoveling, seemingly immune to the smell.

Of course, Yu Yi thought. Meng Zhao was still wearing his helmet; it probably had a filtration system, so he definitely was not smelling it as clearly as Yu Yi was.

Yu Yi looked around, unable to handle the stench. It was as if there was a barrier; if he did not get close, it was fine, but the moment he approached and Meng Zhao’s shovel hit the substance, the smell hit him so hard his eyes began to water. Left with no choice, he crawled back into the mecha to put the motorcycle helmet back on. It provided just enough of a barrier for him to continue digging.

Meng Zhao paused for a moment when he saw Yu Yi return with the helmet on, but he said nothing.

Remembering what Meng Zhao said about the “goods,” Yu Yi focused on digging as much as possible. Since they both needed the money, he did not want to be a burden.

The two of them worked hard, filling several large bags. Yu Yi gradually became numb to the smell. He told himself it was just physical labor; if this labor could earn him tens of thousands of star coins, it was worth it. With that thought, he felt a surge of motivation.

He still did not know what the substance in the pit was. It was heavy, slippery, and slimy, like chunks of black meat.

After an unknown amount of time, just as Yu Yi was laboriously dragging a full bag of the black meat back to the mecha, he noticed Meng Zhao’s movements had slowed significantly. His breathing had become heavy and ragged, and sweat was dripping down his forehead onto his visor.

“Brother Meng?” Yu Yi realized something was wrong and called out tentatively. “Are you okay?”

Meng Zhao did not respond. He took a massive, shuddering breath and slammed his shovel into the ground to steady himself. He hunched over as if he were enduring intense pain.

Yu Yi understood immediately. Meng Zhao was different from him; he was an Omega. Even though he had taken a pheromone inhibitor before leaving, their crude protection was insufficient. Meng Zhao’s tolerance for the contaminated pheromones had reached its limit.

“Brother Meng, go back and rest. I can handle things here.” Yu Yi quickly loaded the meat into the mecha’s rear cargo box and hurried over to grab Meng Zhao’s arm.

Yu Yi suddenly realized the advantage of his immunity to pheromones. After all this time, he only felt tired.

Meng Zhao was not appreciative. He shook off Yu Yi’s hand and stumbled forward a few steps, nearly falling headfirst into the pit of black meat. Fortunately, Yu Yi caught him.

“Careful,” Yu Yi warned.

Meng Zhao’s consciousness was fading. When Yu Yi pulled him back, his whole body went limp. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Yu Yi half-dragged and half-carried him back to the co-pilot’s seat.

In this condition, they could not stay in the Contaminated Zone any longer.

Yu Yi did not know the way back, but he was not entirely inexperienced. He had practiced in the simulation pod for a long time and knew how to call up a map. Luckily, all mechas used the same basic operating system, including this tractor-like one.

This was Yu Yi’s first time actually driving a mecha, and in a Contaminated Zone no less. His heart hammered against his ribs. He took a deep breath, buckled his seatbelt, gripped the control levers, and started the mecha to turn it around.

His handling was a bit off, and the mecha stumbled a few times before smoothing out. Yu Yi pulled the levers and sped off in the direction they had come from.

He focused intensely on driving. Every minute felt like an hour, and his clothes were soaked with cold sweat from the tension. A draft of wind blew in, helping him stay sharp. Looking at the optimal route projected on the virtual screen, he glanced at the pale Meng Zhao beside him.

Meng Zhao’s color had returned slightly. He sat in the co-pilot’s seat, his voice weak. “Not bad. You picked that up quickly.”

“Brother Meng, you are awake.” Yu Yi did not dare to look away from the road. “Are you all right?”

“I am fine. I just got dizzy for a second.” Meng Zhao sat up. Noticing Yu Yi’s obviously amateurish handling, he asked, “Did you just learn this?”

“Yeah,” Yu Yi nodded. “Fortunately, I spent some time in the simulation pod before coming here, or we would be in trouble.”

“We would not have died,” Meng Zhao said.

“…” Yu Yi was speechless.

Perhaps realizing that Yu Yi was not completely useless, Meng Zhao looked as if he wanted to say something. “You…”

Yu Yi heard him, but Meng Zhao did not finish the thought. Yu Yi knew his skills were not good enough to drive and chat at the same time, so when Meng Zhao fell silent, he went back to focusing on the road.

In less than an hour, the energy barrier of the Upper District and the tunnel appeared. Yu Yi breathed a massive sigh of relief.

The moment the mecha crossed the threshold, Yu Yi’s tensed nerves suddenly snapped. In the next second, his head felt incredibly heavy, and a violent headache washed over him like a tidal wave.

The pain was so intense that his vision doubled. He felt Meng Zhao reach out to take the controls for him. Losing all his strength, Yu Yi collapsed onto the console.

Everything sank into darkness.

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