The Male Leads Who Are Becoming Stranger and Stranger [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Nearly a year has passed since the beginning of the apocalypse. The initial chaos has gradually settled, and S City has become the largest and most fortified survivor base in the country.

Currently, S City is divided among six major powers. There are the three great families: the Li, the Zhang, and the Bai; and the three major factions: the Bright Guild, the Freedom Alliance, and the “Redemption Base,” which was taken over mid-way by the protagonist.

S City welcomes survivors from all over the country. As long as your inspection proves you are not infected by zombies and you pay a certain amount of food or zombie nuclei, you can enter S City and seek protection.

After the initial panic subsided and all zombies within the city were cleared, S City underwent a total overhaul. Up until now, at least on the surface, it has faintly regained the tranquility of the pre-apocalyptic era. The newly established order operates normally.

Jian Yan’s ambition is immense, in both his past and present lives. However, unlike his past life, where he explored the apocalypse step-by-step and slowly gathered people’s hearts, the miracle of heaven allowed him to return to ten-plus years ago. At the very start of the apocalypse, he fixed his gaze on the “big piece of fat” that was S City.

The regrets of his previous life this time, he will absolutely seize it!

His deep, quiet black eyes suddenly erupted with a brilliant light that could not be ignored.

As for why Jian Yan cares so much about S City, it is partly due to its value: it possesses the country’s most fortified military base and its terrain is easy to defend but hard to attack. Even if a zombie tide broke out, it could hold its ground.

Having survived the apocalypse for over a decade in his past life, how could he not know the immense benefits of S City? Unfortunately, by the time he realized it back then, S City already had its owner Bai Mu.

At that time, five years had passed since the advent of the apocalypse, and the survivor base he established with Bai Mu stood alongside S City as the most powerful bases in the world.

To say Bai Mu was his arch-rival was no exaggeration. For the ten years following that, they competed constantly; he wanted to swallow the other’s forces, and Bai Mu felt the same. Regarding ambition, neither fell short of the other.

On the other hand, as mentioned before, if he could snatch away what originally belonged to Bai Mu from the very beginning, wouldn’t that be quite interesting?

During this period, even though Jian Yan returned on time for meals every day, She Yi could still tell that he was constantly busy.

This wasn’t hard to guess. As the leader of the Redemption Base, one of the six powers in S City, he couldn’t possibly be idle. Using a mix of carrots and sticks to suppress those below who were defiant, he had completely cleared out the faction of the former leader, Shen Kuan.

Of course, such things couldn’t be done openly. However, if one “accidentally” died in the mouth of a zombie during a supply-gathering mission, no one could be blamed.

In one month, all dissenting voices vanished completely.

…

Sunlight spilled into the bedroom through the half-open floor-to-ceiling curtains. On the large, soft bed, the duvet was slightly bunched up, with a figure curled inside. A messy, pure white nightrobe was slightly rubbed open, revealing a snowy, delicate chest and a flickering waistline.

Slender beams of light bypassed the bedding, casting layers of deep shadows on the other side. In the places the sunlight couldn’t reach, it was dim, yet one could vaguely discern the room’s decor—simple and clean.

The person on the bed turned over. Silky black long hair scattered near the pillow, revealing a face of striking beauty. The soft sunlight couldn’t wait to pour over it, wanting to kiss that masterpiece of God.

Long, thick eyelashes trembled slightly, and eyelids lifted a fraction. The stinging sunlight forced She Yi to raise an arm and place it across his forehead, the cast shadow blocking out the passionate light.

Drowsiness lingered in his downcast eyes, but She Yi sat up in bed. His gaze swept over the clock nearby; the hand pointed exactly to nine o’clock.

He yawned, wiped away the physiological tears at the corners of his eyes, and pulled back the covers to get out of bed. Walking out of the room, he saw a middle-aged woman in her forties standing at the door, clearly having waited for some time.

“Wu Ma, didn’t I say you don’t have to do this anymore?”

She Yi somewhat helplessly took the clothes from her; they felt warm and comfortable, smelling of sunlight.

“This is the Eldest Young Master’s order.”

Hearing Wu Ma’s calm reply, She Yi felt even more helpless.

“If the Second Young Master has nothing else, I will go down and prepare breakfast for you.”

This title… he really wasn’t used to it. But She Yi didn’t ask her to change it again; he had tried countless times before to no avail. They only listened to Jian Yan.

“Mhm.”

After spending a few minutes tidying up, She Yi walked downstairs and indeed saw breakfast set out on the dining table. A glass of milk, a fried egg, and a plate of soup dumplings. This was a very common breakfast before the apocalypse, but now, it was a luxury for most people.

She Yi sat down naturally and gracefully, picking up the milk for a sip.

Ever since Jian Yan became the head of the Redemption Base, this ordinary life that most people could hardly reach had continued, as if he had returned to the pre-apocalyptic days.

However, this kind of wealthy life living in a mansion with servants to command—was something he and Xiao Yan might not have enjoyed even before the apocalypse. After all, they were just orphans without prominent backgrounds; just ordinary members of the human race.

Perhaps for some, the apocalypse might actually be a heaven. A heaven that satisfies inner “desires.”

“Has Xiao Yan gone out again?”

The “out” referred to here was leaving S City for supply-gathering missions. As the leader of a power, Jian Yan acted differently from other leaders who hid in their nests; he often went to the front lines personally, leading his brothers to snatch food from the mouths of zombies.

This behavior quickly won him the support of many; perhaps this was also one of his methods for winning people’s hearts.

One thing felt a bit strange to She Yi.

In all the missions, Jian Yan did not allow him to participate. Was he wary of the “betrayal” from the previous life?

Reasonably, the protagonist’s favorability toward him had already risen to 95, reaching the realm of “deep love.” He shouldn’t be venting resentment on him because of a “past life betrayal.”

She Yi couldn’t quite gauge his thoughts, but this didn’t conflict with what he planned to do next. Or rather, it was for the best.

This way, he could begin his plan of “betrayal.”

There are two main missions: first, to obtain the artifact Jade Ring; second, to “攻略” (capture/romance) the male lead, Jian Yan.

Obtaining the Jade Ring wasn’t difficult; the main task was the romance part. She Yi had studied the scripts of both lives not the plot points, but the emotional aspects.

He reached a final conclusion: Jian Yan loved no one.

Most of the women with him were linked to interests, and those beautiful women who threw themselves at him were limited to satisfying physical desires. Compared to those women being deathly devoted to him, he was terrifyingly calm, maneuvering between each woman, giving them fake love and status. Perhaps he liked those women, but he valued power and authority more.

She Yi saw through the protagonist’s underlying psyche, which is why he concluded that favorability would not reach 100. The fact that the favorability had stayed at 95 for several months, neither increasing nor decreasing, confirmed his suspicion.

The decision to “betray” was not a spur-of-the-moment plan. From the moment he received this script, She Yi had been preparing everything.

At the very end, he wanted to leave a heavy stroke!

“In the morning, the Eldest Young Master left with the Miss of the Zhang family,” Wu Ma answered.

The Miss of the Zhang family?

She Yi paused, and relevant data surfaced in his mind:

Zhang Rourou, the darling of the Zhang family patriarch. Her personality was just like her name delicate and weak, a girl seemingly made of water, easily inciting a desire in others to protect her.

A thought flickered through his mind. She Yi bit into a meat bun, tasting the juices sliding over his taste buds.

His move was about to begin

…

Jian Yan looked at his watch and said with a slight note of apology to the girl beside him:

“I’m sorry, I need to head back. How about we go to the Red Leaf Forest in the West District this afternoon?”

He gazed at the girl. His eyes, which should have been sharp, were now overflowing with tenderness. When he focused on you, it felt as if the entire world only contained you, making any woman fall for him. The girl was no exception.

Zhang Rourou blushed and lowered her head slightly, not daring to look directly into those eyes.

“Mhm… is it because of that brother of yours at home?”

Jian Yan smiled, a deep meaning flickering in his eyes.

“Yes. If I’m not there, he probably won’t eat properly again.”

“…I really envy him for having you care so much… By the way, what is his name?”

There was a moment of silence in the air. Just as Zhang Rourou thought he hadn’t heard her clearly, Jian Yan spoke slowly. His tone was as gentle as usual, but she wasn’t sure if it was her imagination—she felt a trace of… killing intent?

It must be a mistake…

“His name is She Yi. We grew up together as childhood friends.”

“Good friends” who grew up in the same orphanage.

Jian Yan looked at his watch again. Without waiting for Zhang Rourou to speak, he looked at her and said tenderly:

“Let me take you back first.”

There was a slight hint of forceful insistence that allowed no refusal.

Zhang Rourou’s lips parted slightly. She felt a vague, inexplicable strangeness in her heart, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. She could only silently comply with Jian Yan’s wish and return to the Zhang family residence.

After walking several meters inside the gate, she couldn’t help but stop and look back. She saw him still standing outside the gate, giving her a gentle smile. Her heart felt as if it had been lightly struck by something. Zhang Rourou turned her head away abruptly; for a moment, her heart was thumping like a drum.

She touched her cheek; it was much warmer than usual.

Biting her lower lip, Zhang Rourou quickened her pace as if fleeing.

She thought she might have fallen for him…

…

Only after Zhang Rourou was out of sight did Jian Yan turn to leave, the curve of his lips carrying a trace of mocking irony.

Thinking of the person waiting for him to return home, that smile regained a flavor of sincerity.