Living with My Aloof Ex-Wife After the Apocalypse - Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Betrayal and the Burden of the Badge

Xing He wanted to say no, she wasn’t okay she had nearly died. But in the end, she simply softened her voice.

“I’m fine. I’m at the Armed Forces Department right now. It’s safe here. It’s too late to travel, so I’ll head back tomorrow.”

“That’s good.”

There was a long silence. Qing Meng had many things she wanted to say, but now that the call was connected, she found herself unable to speak. “Everything is fine here, don’t worry.”

The call couldn’t last long, but Qing Meng seemed to sense Xing He’s anxiety, settling her worries in just a few sentences.

“Good. Stay inside, don’t go out.”

“Stay safe. I’ll be waiting for you.”

Xing He exhaled in relief and returned the phone to Grandma Wang. “Thank you, Grandma!”

Grandma Wang looked at her with crinkled eyes. “Is the wife waiting for you to come home?”

Xing He’s face flushed instantly. she stammered a denial, “No… no, you’ve misunderstood.”

Grandma Wang gave her an “I understand” look and patted her shoulder. “In times like these, set aside small grudges. No matter what happens, cherish each other. A family has to support one another to keep going.”

Xing He helplessly accepted the lecture. No sooner had Grandma Wang finished than two more gossipy mouths arrived: Fan Hua and Chen Xia.

Fan Hua’s outgoing, chatterbox nature was expected, but Xing He didn’t expect the serious-looking Chen Xia to be so interested in gossip. Like wife, like wife, Xing He thought.

Fan Hua sat down and nudged her. “Calling Sister Qing Meng?”

Chen Xia sat down primly beside Fan Hua, looking ready to listen.

“How do you know her?” Xing He asked.

Fan Hua looked at her like she was an idiot. “Do you even remember meeting at the hotel? I know your name, so of course I know Sister Qing Meng’s.”

True. Xing He had been the one asking about her back then. She gave an embarrassed smile. Seeing she didn’t deny it, Fan Hua’s eyes lit up. “You and Sister Qing Meng are a couple, right?”

Chen Xia didn’t know who Qing Meng was, so Fan Hua quickly filled her in with a background summary right in front of Xing He. Xing He was stunned by their blatant interaction—who discusses gossip right in front of the subject?

In her previous life, she would have suspected them of being spies digging for intel. But after spending time with Fan Hua, she realized it was just her personality.

Once Chen Xia nodded thoughtfully, Xing He spoke the truth: “No.”

Fan Hua looked skeptical. “But you live together?”

Xing He nodded.

“Sleep in the same bed?”

It was true, but the look on Fan Hua’s face made Xing He hesitate. Her reddening ears gave her away.

“You’re doing all that and you haven’t confirmed the relationship? You scumbag!” Fan Hua cried out, demanding justice for Qing Meng. Chen Xia nodded in agreement, her eyes flashing with a hint of condemnation.

Xing He didn’t understand why she was being called a “scumbag.” Had she done something that bad? Oh, right. I kissed her last night. Thinking about it that way, they might have a point.

Xing He sighed. until she figured out what was happening to her body, romance would have to wait.

“Waaaah—my ship has sunk!” Fan Hua lamented that two such beautiful people weren’t a couple. Chen Xia eventually pulled her back to their bed.

As night fell, the room grew dark. They barricaded the door with tables again and lay down. Fan Hua was fast asleep within minutes, her snoring filling the room. Xing He, however, stayed awake to talk to the System.

System, what is the status of my body?

Host, you were bitten by a zombie.

Why haven’t I turned?

Apologies, the System cannot determine the exact reason.

Is there still a possibility of mutation later?

The System cannot give a definitive reply. We can only continue to observe. Statistically, the mutation process usually takes about five minutes.

The wound on my hand is healing fast. Is that the ability?

Yes. ‘Super Regeneration’ can heal most non-fatal injuries in a short time. The limit for fatal injuries requires your own exploration.

Hearing this, Xing He felt a bit more at ease. However, while the long-term threat was shelved, a short-term danger remained. This temporary team was calm on the surface, but undercurrents were swirling. She hadn’t missed Li Xiaoyan’s hateful glare or the calculating man’s gaze.

Sure enough, before the night was half over, rustling sounds came from Li Xiaoyan’s corner. Xing He watched as she crept to the door and began moving the tables. Though she tried to be quiet, the scraping was loud in the silent hall.

Li Xiaoyan paused to see if anyone woke. Finding everyone seemingly asleep, she slipped out. Xing He watched it all without a word. If someone was going to this much trouble, it wasn’t just for a midnight tryst. The main event was coming.

Ten minutes later, footsteps echoed in the hallway. The door creaked open. Someone entered, but it wasn’t Li Xiaoyan. They stood before Fan Hua and Chen Xia’s bed. In the shadows, Xing He caught the movement of a hand being raised.

It was a gun.

In the split second before the trigger was pulled, two things happened at once. Xing He drew the scalpel hidden in her boot and threw it at the man’s face. Simultaneously, Chen Xia, who had been lying on the floor, sprang up with a leg sweep.

The man took a blade to the face and a kick that snapped his lower leg. He collapsed with a howl of pain before he could fire. Footsteps thundered outside as others rushed in, no longer hiding. Someone fired a shot into the room.

Chen Xia used the momentum to disarm the second man and leveled him with an elbow strike to the gut. She handled the rest so quickly Xing He barely had to help. Xing He was impressed; this level of combat skill was elite even by military standards. She had almost forgotten that the “kind-hearted” Chen Xia was a real police officer.

Once they were subdued, Chen Xia turned on a flashlight. It was Peng Peng and his group. Not wanting to attract more zombies with noise, Chen Xia shoved them out into the hall, planning to deal with them at dawn.

But the chaos didn’t end. The commotion had woken everyone. The flashlight beam revealed the truth: there was a large pool of blood on the floor.

The stray bullet fired at the ground had hit Zhao Li. She was still in her bed, but there was now a hole in her chest. Xing He checked for a pulse; she was gone.

Fan Hua was terrified, clinging to Chen Xia. Chen Xia held her, her face pale with guilt. Two lives a mother and her unborn child who had been chatting with them hours ago, were now cold. Chen Xia knew they were up to no good, but her hesitation to act had led to this.

Xing He understood Chen Xia’s self-reproach, but Grandma Wang was the one who spoke first. She covered Zhao Li with a white cloth.

“I usually call you Officer Chen, but I’ll call you Xiao Xia now,” the old woman said softly.

“I don’t mind,” Chen Xia replied.

“Xiao Xia, you’ve been good to us. You fed us and put yourself in danger for us. Part of that is because you’re a good person; part is because you’re a cop. I know you’re afraid of shaming that badge. But in this world, do things with your conscience. That uniform doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Your mission ended the moment you brought us out of that building. My son is a cop too. I haven’t been able to reach him… Xing He comforted me, but I know he’s probably gone. His mother is still here, and he’s already gone. Is that right?”

“If this is what being a cop requires, I’d rather he never became one.”

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