Living with My Aloof Ex-Wife After the Apocalypse - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Do You… Know the Virus Was Going to Break Out?

“I had some urgent business and had to leave back then. I really didn’t have time to say goodbye…”

Xing He uncharacteristically lowered her head, her tone carrying a hint of conciliation.

Qing Meng could naturally tell that wasn’t the whole story, but her anger had long since dissipated. She simply let out a soft hum from her nose, acknowledging the explanation.

“Mhm.”

Seeing that Qing Meng didn’t plan to hold a grudge, Xing He breathed a sigh of relief and quickly changed the subject.

“Is there anything else in the hotel you need to take? We can stop by on the way back.”

Her laptop and clothes were indeed still at the hotel. Qing Meng hesitated for a moment before saying, “It’s too dangerous. Forget it.”

Xing He knew that Qing Meng definitely couldn’t bear to lose her laptop; it contained a vast amount of her research data and results.

“It’s fine. We’ll go take a look. If it’s dangerous, we won’t take it. If we can, we’ll bring it along.”

As it approached four o’clock, the support force from headquarters finally arrived. Large trucks, one after another, transported all the survivors from the hospital away.

Once they confirmed the survivors were out of danger, the two of them started the car and headed for the hotel.

Since it wasn’t a densely populated area, the number of zombies in this sector was noticeably lower compared to the hospital. However, once focused on the fixed location of the hotel, they couldn’t afford to be careless.

Xing He intended to use the engine noise to lure nearby zombies over. By dealing with them first, there would be less danger for Qing Meng when she stepped out.

Sure enough, as soon as they reached the hotel entrance, several zombies rushed forward. They were dressed in tattered pencil skirts or greeting uniforms—likely the hotel staff and doormen.

Xing He didn’t hit the brakes. Several zombies were knocked flying. Before the nearest one could scramble back up, she decisively hopped out of the car.

Every swing of Xing He’s blade was clean and efficient. With every strike, a head hit the ground. She didn’t repeat her previous mistake of only cutting halfway through.

After clearing the zombies in the lobby, Xing He grabbed a baton from a security guard’s body and handed it to Qing Meng for self-defense.

Worried about people who might have mutated while failing to escape via the stairs, Xing He chose to take the elevator. It ran without interruption directly to the 23rd floor.

Xing He gripped her kitchen knife tightly, shielding Qing Meng behind her. When the doors opened, there were indeed a few zombies waiting, but Xing He dispatched them in two strokes. After entering the room and packing their things, they headed back down. The entire process went without incident.

On the way back to the small courtyard, they passed a specific place: the West City Market, where she had previously bought her seasonings.

Since saying goodbye to Auntie Chen that day, Xing He had frequently recalled the woman’s honest smile, which would plunge her into a state of guilt and unease.

By the time she snapped back to reality, the car was already parked at the side of the road. Qing Meng looked at her in confusion.

“Did you forget something?”

Xing He shook her head. “No, I just got distracted.”

Qing Meng was worried that Xing He might be too tired. “Let me drive. You rest for a bit.”

Xing He smiled. “You don’t know the way yet.”

“I’ll drive, you point the way.” Seeing that Xing He’s smile was forced, Qing Meng’s tone took on a note that allowed no refusal.

Xing He couldn’t win the argument and prepared to get out to swap seats. As Qing Meng stepped out of the car, she suddenly noticed something in the middle of the street.

“Look over there.”

Xing He looked in the direction Qing Meng was pointing. In the middle of the road, a person was pinned under an electric scooter.

Was it a human or… a zombie?

Xing He told Qing Meng to get back in the car while she went to check. If the person wasn’t infected, she wanted to help if she could.

When she approached the person with her knife ready, Xing He recognized that the person lying on the ground was actually Auntie Chen, whom she had met two days ago. Auntie Chen’s face still looked like a normal human’s, though she was quite pale and her glasses were shattered.

Zombie infection is rapid, usually taking five minutes at most to fully mutate. To be safe, Xing He used the baton as a tool to inspect Auntie Chen’s body. Confirming there were no wounds, she immediately checked her breath.

She was still breathing!

Xing He didn’t know if finding Auntie Chen alive here was some sort of divine providence.

After carrying Auntie Chen into the car, Xing He sat silently in the passenger seat. Qing Meng could tell they probably knew each other, but she didn’t ask anything.

By the time they returned to the small courtyard, the sky had gradually darkened.

Xing He settled Auntie Chen in a side room on the first floor to make it easier to look after her. Qing Meng immediately checked Auntie Chen’s physical condition.

Auntie Chen was currently comatose with a head injury, but it didn’t look man-made. Given where she was found, she had likely hit her head when she fell off the scooter. Without professional equipment, Qing Meng could only determine that there was no immediate life-threatening danger, though she wasn’t sure when the woman would wake up.

Xing He finally sighed in relief. As long as she was alive.

When they had arrived, Xing He observed the area around the courtyard. There were almost no traces of zombies on the road, and the neighbors had all bolted their doors shut with no lights on inside. It seemed everyone had followed the SMS instructions to go to the assembly points.

For now, they were safe.

To the side, as Qing Meng was packing, her stomach suddenly let out a loud growl. She didn’t stop her movements, but the tips of her ears turned a deep crimson.

Realizing they hadn’t eaten all day, Xing He hurried to cook two bowls of instant noodles.

Qing Meng was a very principled person who did everything according to a plan, so she usually ate in a slow, steady manner. Today, she was clearly starving. While she didn’t quite match Xing He’s wolfish devouring, her pace was far less composed than usual.

After eating, Xing He gave Qing Meng a tour of the house.

The small courtyard had three bedrooms. One was on the first floor (where her grandmother used to sleep), and two were on the second floor—one of which was Xing He’s room. The other room was empty; her grandmother had used it as a storage room, and Xing He had continued that. Now, it was packed with a thousand buckets of purified water and other supplies.

Since Auntie Chen was now on the first floor, there was only one bedroom left. Moving everything out of the storage room was too much trouble, and they had nowhere else to put the supplies, so Xing He planned to just squeeze in with Qing Meng.

She just didn’t know if Qing Meng would be willing.

“There’s only one room left upstairs. Is it okay if we share a room?”

Qing Meng hesitated. If the physical distance was too close, it might be an ordeal for someone whose heart wasn’t entirely “honest.” However, she didn’t want to miss the chance. Sharing a room…

“That’s fine.”

It was only nine o’clock.

Usually, at this time, Xing He would go out for a run to train her stamina. Now that there were zombies outside, she certainly couldn’t run at night. With the loss of maintenance personnel, most digital systems were riddled with bugs, so Qing Meng had no work to process. The house had electricity, but the signal was unstable, only allowing her to browse the news sporadically.

But at a time like this, the world was full of nothing but bad news. Reading it only increased Qing Meng’s anxiety.

Xing He was about to suggest they just go to sleep.

But Qing Meng spoke first: “I don’t feel very sleepy. Is there anything to pass the time?”

It wasn’t a matter of whether she was sleepy; it was that she hadn’t yet prepared herself mentally to lie on the same bed with Xing He again.

So, ten minutes later, Xing He found herself sitting in the small courtyard for no apparent reason.

On the cement ground sat two small stools, and on a small table next to them were two glasses of alcohol. Xing He never knew Qing Meng drank, but today, she had uncharacteristically suggested having a few drinks.

Perhaps it was because so much had happened today. Anyone facing the sudden onset of the apocalypse would feel fear in their heart, even someone as seemingly calm and self-possessed as Qing Meng. Since she had stocked up on alcohol, Xing He brought some out.

They sat quietly on the small stools. Through the unpolluted sky, the stars—usually hidden by skyscrapers—were fully visible. The stools and table were a “Xing He exclusive set” made by her grandmother; for two adults over 1.7 meters tall, the seating was a bit cramped.

However, Xing He felt quite good. She remembered when she was little, her grandmother would take her into the yard just like this to look at the stars. The twinkling stars in the deep, boundless night sky were far more dazzling than the diamonds promoted by modern commercialism.

Her mood relaxed significantly. Xing He was the first to break the silence.

“How have you been these past few years?”

“I’ve been okay. Aside from being buried in the lab, I was traveling for work. Nothing special.”

This was indeed the reality of Qing Meng’s life—unchanging and somewhat dull. At 24, Qing Meng would have been proud of her research achievements and the praise of those around her. At 28, she still loved research and was busy with various projects, but awards and titles had lost their value to her, both physically and emotionally.

Perhaps because of this slight emotional void, Qing Meng had begun to repeatedly think of that woman in the crisp military uniform during her late-night dreams.

Qing Meng took a small sip of the alcohol. “And you? Have you been well these years?”

She actually wanted to ask if Xing He had found someone new. Her fists clenched and relaxed, her palms sweating. When she finally worked up the courage to speak, the words that came out were merely “And you?”

“I’ve been the same. Staying in the military, aside from training it was just missions. Nothing special.”

In Qing Meng’s view, they had only been divorced for four years, so “these years” naturally referred to those four. But for Xing He, the last time she had seen Qing Meng was fourteen years ago. In her previous life, she had eventually become the Zombie King, and Qing Meng was at the Dawn Settlement—almost certainly destined to be eaten by zombies. The ending had not been beautiful.

In this life, so far, she hadn’t changed anything. Their fates were unknown.

Xing He’s tone had no ups and downs, summarizing her years apart in just a few words, but Qing Meng keenly sensed her poor mood. Her fingers tapped rhythmically on the small table—a small habit of hers that meant she was deep in thought.

“Do you know Auntie Chen?”

Xing He nodded. “I met her a few days ago at the market when I was buying seasonings. She’s a good person; she even helped me pick them out.”

She seemed very casual, mentioning Auntie Chen like ordinary small talk, but in that instant, a certain thought solidified in Qing Meng’s mind.

“You… did you know the virus was going to break out?”

The small stool was ultimately a bit hard on the rear. Xing He was adjusting her posture and didn’t hear Qing Meng clearly, answering subconsciously.

“Huh? what did you say?”

“I said… you knew the virus would break out.”

The stool flipped over, and Xing He’s backside made intimate contact with the cement ground.

This time, Xing He heard her clearly.

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