Surviving the Apocalypse with the Young Miss - Chapter 81

Chapter 81: Mutation

Song Ge watched Tong Xiangyu smile before turning her gaze to survey their surroundings. It was a strange, desolate wilderness, illuminated by light so bright it was blinding, under a sun that felt toxic and murderous.

Song Ge asked Tong Xiangyu, “How long was I out?”

Tong Xiangyu opened a can of lychees and fed them to Song Ge spoonful by spoonful. “Four days.”

“That long?” Song Ge was shocked. She looked down at her abdomen. There was a sanitary pad stuck to it.

Song Ge: “…”

“There wasn’t anything clean to plug the wound and stop the bleeding,” Tong Xiangyu recalled with lingering fear, though her voice remained calm. “Luckily I was on my period, so I had plenty of pads in my bag.”

As Song Ge listened, she noticed that what was tied around the pad to secure it was strands of hair. She froze and looked up at Tong Xiangyu. A large fisherman’s hat covered everything. But there were only two of them here; Song Ge had short hair, so it was obvious where the long hair had come from.

Song Ge asked hoarsely, “You cut your hair?”

Tong Xiangyu flinched and unnaturally lowered the brim of her hat. Her eyes darted around as she muttered, “It was too hot. It’s more comfortable short.”

Liar. Song Ge remembered how much this young lady loved her appearance. Before, she had cried about how “ugly” it was when just a small clump was cut; she had refused to dress properly, covering it with a jacket and then a hat.

Song Ge told Tong Xiangyu to take off her hat so she could see the haircut. Tong Xiangyu refused.

Song Ge: “Are you bullying me because I have no strength right now?”

Tong Xiangyu pouted. She had accidentally seen her reflection in the car’s rearview mirror yesterday; her hair looked like it had been gnawed on by a dog—uneven and jagged. It was too ugly to show anyone. She would absolutely not let Song Ge see her like that.

Tong Xiangyu said, “Even if you had strength, I wouldn’t show you. There’s nothing to see. Haven’t you heard the saying? If a person is beautiful, they can pull off any hairstyle.”

Song Ge: “Then since you’re so beautiful, why won’t you let me see?”

Tong Xiangyu: “Just look at my beautiful face.”

Song Ge looked at her. Tong Xiangyu had visibly thinned. Her beautiful eyes were red from crying, and the dark circles underneath were prominent. Tong Xiangyu let Song Ge look, but then became self-conscious. She hadn’t washed her face in days; the weather was so abnormal and Song Ge hadn’t woken up, so she hadn’t dared to waste water, relying on sweat to wipe her face.

“Let me check your wound first,” Tong Xiangyu said, putting down the can. “I haven’t looked today.”

She expertly unwrapped the bandage. Song Ge looked down and was stunned. Four days? She clearly remembered being impaled. There were no stitches, no anti-inflammatory drugs, and no antibiotics—just a simple pressure bandage to stop the bleeding. How could it have healed this fast? It was already scabbed over.

Seeing Song Ge staring blankly, Tong Xiangyu whispered, “Does it still hurt?”

Song Ge snapped out of it, pressed her hand against the wound, and tried to sit up. Tong Xiangyu immediately supported her. Once seated, Song Ge panted lightly before saying, “It doesn’t hurt. But why did it heal so fast?”

“You call this fast? It’s been four days!” Tong Xiangyu noticed Song Ge’s expression was a bit strained and refused to let go, continuing to support her. “My injury healed in one day. Don’t strain yourself yet, or the wound might rip open.”

Song Ge looked up at her. “One day?”

“Yeah.” Tong Xiangyu held out her left arm. “See? Right here. It was a huge gash.”

Song Ge looked at the arm. It was slender and fair, glowing white in the sunlight. Not only was there no wound, but she couldn’t even see a pore. To be safe, Song Ge checked the arm up and down, confirming there wasn’t even a minor scratch.

Song Ge asked, “Where was it?”

“It’s already gone,” Tong Xiangyu said, putting her arm down.

Song Ge: “…”

“I’m not lying.” Seeing Song Ge’s disbelief, Tong Xiangyu shook her rolled-up sleeve down. The sleeve was covered in old blood and had a jagged tear. The skin directly beneath the tear, however, was smooth and white.

Tong Xiangyu said, “On the first day it stopped bleeding, on the second day it scabbed, and on the third day the scab fell off. It’s completely healed.”

Song Ge frowned at the bizarre news. “So, your body really is mutating?”

“Probably,” Tong Xiangyu said. “Human bodies adapt to environments very quickly. Just like how pupils react to light or pores react to heat and cold—it’s extremely fast.”

Song Ge: “Are there side effects? Do you feel unwell anywhere?”

Tong Xiangyu shook her head. But Song Ge couldn’t relax. Seeing her worry, Tong Xiangyu smiled. “I think it’s great! I’m usually so afraid of pain. Now that I heal this fast, I’m nothing but happy. Song Ge, you need to get better quickly too!”

“I can’t be ‘quick’ at all,” Song Ge said. “Compared to you, I’m certain I haven’t mutated. Maybe it’s because I didn’t pay for the premium upgrade.”

Hearing Song Ge say such a thing with a straight face, Tong Xiangyu couldn’t help but laugh. She rested her chin on her hand and looked at Song Ge, feeling a sense of peace she had never known. She loved this—Song Ge talking to her and being witty.

Tong Xiangyu theorized: “Maybe your mutation isn’t in healing. Your physical fitness was already strong enough. To increase your survival in this environment, think about it—what are you worst at?”

Song Ge paused for a moment, then suddenly said, “Am I very good at coaxing people lately?”

Tong Xiangyu: “?”

Song Ge laughed to herself, picked up the can, and started eating. Tong Xiangyu tried to feed her, but Song Ge said, “I can do it myself.”

Seeing that Song Ge wasn’t as weak as when she first woke up—her color was better and her voice was stronger—Tong Xiangyu felt relieved. She then began a “medical check-up,” leaning against Song Ge’s chest to hear if the heartbeat was steady, lifting her eyelids to see if the pupils were turning white, and testing her hearing and vision.

Song Ge cooperated, letting her fuss. But when Tong Xiangyu wasn’t bothering her, Song Ge would look toward the overturned car nearby.

Song Ge listened silently to Tong Xiangyu’s optimistic chatter. The more cheerful she was, the harder it was for Song Ge to imagine the state Tong Xiangyu must have been in during the days she was unconscious. How had she moved Song Ge out of the car? How had someone so physically weak and timid found the courage to pull out that steel rod, find sanitary pads, and cut her own hair for a bandage?

She was a crybaby by nature; she must have been terrified out of her mind. Song Ge felt a dull ache in her chest thinking about it. How much courage and how much fear did it take to accomplish all that?

Her “Little Milk Tea” had saved her once again.

After waking up, Song Ge’s recovery speed increased visibly. On the first day she could sit, on the second she could stand, and by the third day, she was moving freely. She even grabbed Baibai by the neck, insisting on killing it to “eliminate future trouble.”

Tong Xiangyu watched Baibai’s four short legs flailing in the air. She knew it was dead and couldn’t feel pain, but she was still anxious. “Baibai really won’t bite! If it wanted to bite us, it would have eaten us the day we were unconscious.”

Song Ge looked at her.

Tong Xiangyu: “Really!”

Song Ge finally dropped the scorched little dog. As soon as it hit the ground, Baibai barked rudely at Song Ge. But when Song Ge’s gaze sharpened, it immediately tucked its tail and scurried behind Tong Xiangyu, rubbing against her feet and then baring its teeth at Song Ge again.

Tong Xiangyu thought it was lucky Baibai had been smart enough to hide the first two days. If it had appeared the day Song Ge woke up, Song Ge would have risked ripping her wounds open just to exterminate it.

Tong Xiangyu vouched for it: “Baibai is very clever. Several times mutant rats tried to steal things, and he found them and chased them off.”

Song Ge: “The rats mutated too?”

“Yes, but they just seem to ‘resurrect.’ I can’t see any other differences yet.”

“Being able to resurrect is a huge difference, Young Lady.”

“I know.” Tong Xiangyu was organizing the things they would take on the road. She wasn’t bringing snacks, so she opened a bag of dried durian and handed one to Song Ge.

Song Ge refused. Tong Xiangyu ate one herself, liked the taste, and held another to Song Ge’s lips. Song Ge looked at her in silence, but seeing that she wouldn’t back down, she opened her mouth and ate it.

Tong Xiangyu continued, “Song Ge, I want to discuss something with you. Since I’ve mutated, if there’s any danger in the future, let me stand in front, okay?”

Song Ge: “What kind of bullshit is that?”

Tong Xiangyu: “?” She was shocked. “Song Ge, you’re swearing in front of me again?”

Song Ge paused. “Healing fast doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt when you get injured. You’re a high-born young lady; let’s not.”

“No, Song Ge.” Tong Xiangyu looked at her seriously. “Regardless of whether I’m a ‘young lady’ or not, I want you to stay with me forever.”

“So you can take advantage of me?”

Tong Xiangyu’s face turned bright red, and she stomped her foot. “Song Ge, I’m being serious!!”

Song Ge said, “Speaking of which, I had a dream last night.”

Though the topic change was abrupt, Tong Xiangyu cooperated. “What dream?”

“I dreamed I pinned you against the car and kissed you.”

Tong Xiangyu froze. Song Ge looked at her and pointed behind her own ear. “It’s still red right here. Did you forget?”

Tong Xiangyu’s eyes widened. “Song Ge! You didn’t black out!”

“I did.”

“You definitely didn’t!!” Tong Xiangyu was furious that she was being teased. Her cheeks flushed as she covered the back of her ear.

“So it was real, not a dream?” Song Ge raised an eyebrow. “Then we’re even. I took advantage of you while drunk, and you took advantage of me while I was unconscious.”

Tong Xiangyu: “I told you, I was feeding you water! Not taking advantage!”

Song Ge: “Fine. Then I owe you one. When do you plan to take your ‘advantage’ back?”

Tong Xiangyu was red-faced and huffing with anger. Song Ge laughed, stopped teasing her, and began organizing the supplies from the car.

Song Ge wasn’t sure if her body had mutated, but her injuries were indeed healing rapidly. The impalement wound had reduced to two coin-sized scars. The weather was too abnormal for them to stay; with limited supplies, they had to move soon.

Tong Xiangyu insisted on bringing the dog, so Song Ge had to agree. The mutant dog was eerie—it actually seemed to understand human speech. When Tong Xiangyu told it to stay ten meters away, it followed from exactly that distance.

“I’ll carry the bags.” Song Ge reached for the two backpacks Tong Xiangyu was about to put on.

Tong Xiangyu dodged. “No! You’re still an injured patient!”

Song Ge’s wound was healed, but she wasn’t sure of her physical limits. Seeing Tong Xiangyu treating her like a fragile patient, she decided to test her strength—she simply hoisted Tong Xiangyu onto her shoulder.

The abdominal wound didn’t hurt at all. Tong Xiangyu, however, was nearly scared to tears. “Put me down, Song Ge! Fine, fine! You carry the bags! You carry them!”

Support