Ch 118: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Shen Qing’s illness was not from an injury, and more than half of it stemmed from emotional distress. Even with a healing-type ability user present, the effects were minimal, and his fever refused to subside. In the end, it was Qi Zhan, who had experience working in a hospital, who helped Song Kaiji pull some strings and plead for half a strip of fever-reducing medicine. Shen Qing was left to rest in a refugee camp tent for most of the day before his fever finally broke. Only then did they return to the base villa.

However, fevers often returned. By nighttime, Shen Qing’s forehead was warm again.

He lay nestled in the soft down quilt, feeling for the first time that being sick could actually be… comfortable. In the past, when he was sick at the Shen family home, he had no choice but to endure it. They never bought medicine for him, and he would even be scolded by Old Lady Shen for being “too delicate” and wasting time that could be spent working.

But now, back at Red City Base, Mother Tang was making all kinds of nourishing meals for him, Song Kaiji was constantly at his side tending to him, and even Qi Zhan was forcibly kept from going to work at the hospital, assigned solely to take care of him.

“I already said—he’s sick. My ability won’t do much,” Qi Zhan said helplessly. But he also found it odd. While healing abilities were indeed less effective for illnesses than for injuries, the lack of impact on Shen Qing was almost strange. Still, for the sake of the money, Qi Zhan used his ability on Shen Qing twice more.

Nothing changed.

Qi Zhan glanced at his hands, then at Shen Qing.

“This won’t do. I’ll go find more medicine.” The half strip of pills they had would only last until morning. Song Kaiji placed a fresh towel on Shen Qing’s forehead, instructed Yu Le to take care of him, and then hurriedly left under the cover of night.

Shen Qing felt awful all over, but after sleeping for two days, it was difficult to fall asleep again. He forced himself to stay awake and chat with Qi Zhan and Yu Le. There wasn’t much to talk about with Yu Le—she was still timid and hesitant, clearly afraid that Shen Qing would think she was going back on her word and leeching off their team. Shen Qing comforted her a little but was careful not to touch on painful topics, so the conversation quickly fizzled out. He turned to Qi Zhan instead. “You and Xiao Tang—what’s going on with you two? Also, are you considering joining our team? The treatment here is pretty good, but you’d have to come along on missions when needed.”

Qi Zhan was still frowning, lost in thought about his healing ability’s ineffectiveness. He blinked in surprise at the question before laughing. “You actually think…” He furrowed his brows in thought, then relaxed them again and smirked. “Me and him… it’s just whatever. As for joining, not a chance. Not at all. I’m doing just fine at the hospital—less stress, less danger, better pay. But if you guys ever need me for missions, I’m available… for the right price.”

“You don’t like Xiao Tang?” Shen Qing was puzzled. “He’s part of our team. Don’t you want to be with him?”

Who didn’t love gossip? Even Yu Le, who had been keeping her head down, pricked up her ears.

“Aiyo, what century is this? Still talking about that ‘husband follows wife’ nonsense?” Qi Zhan laughed. “Even before the apocalypse, workplace relationships weren’t encouraged. Ever heard of ‘distance makes the heart grow fonder’? If you’re together all the time, seeing each other at work, seeing each other at home, having no personal space—it’s easy to get on each other’s nerves and ruin the relationship. I think it’s fine the way it is now.”

Qi Zhan stealthily took the half-eaten apple Song Kaiji had peeled for Shen Qing and took a bite. “Besides, I just like him. Why would I sell myself to your team just because of that?” When he said “I like him,” he seemed a little awkward. “Can’t liking someone be pure? I like him as a person. What job he does doesn’t matter, and whether his mom likes me or not doesn’t matter either.”

In truth, his relationship with Tang Wenjie wasn’t what everyone thought. But it was a bit complicated to explain, and he did have feelings for Tang Wenjie, so he chatted with Shen Qing a bit longer about it.

Shen Qing, however, was surprised. “Being together all the time would hurt the relationship? His mom not liking you isn’t important?” In Shen Qing’s world, that was a huge deal! After all, marriage was all about parental approval and arranged matchmaking. Even though he was considered progressive by Lantang Village’s standards and had absorbed some modern concepts from the apocalypse, he still made sure to inform Miao Shi as soon as he decided to be with Song Kaiji. He had wanted Song Kaiji to meet Miao Shi and gain her approval.

He had seen how Mother Tang treated Qi Zhan with an awful attitude. If he were in Qi Zhan’s place, he wouldn’t be able to bear it.

He also wanted Song Kaiji to move to Lantang Village and live with him, seeing each other every day. How could that not be important?

But Qi Zhan remained unconcerned. “I’m just dating him, not marrying him. Marriage is when two families get involved—when you have to think about whether the mother-in-law approves, whether the relationship will affect family harmony. But dating is just between two people. He likes me, I like him, and that’s enough. Who cares about all that extra stuff? His mom can dislike me all she wants—I don’t even like her.”

Shen Qing: “…”

He opened his mouth but found himself at a loss for words. Qi Zhan’s whole perspective was completely foreign to him. Wasn’t dating supposed to lead to marriage? When he fell for Song Kaiji, his first thought was marriage. In all the TV dramas he had seen, the protagonists who loved each other deeply always ended up getting married in the end.

But there were actually people who dated without the goal of marriage? This… this…

Shen Qing didn’t know the saying “Dating without the intent of marriage is just fooling around,” but he still felt deeply shocked!

However, Qi Zhan’s words made him think. The mental effort of processing this new perspective actually perked him up a bit, easing his fatigue and dizziness.

Song Kaiji didn’t return until late into the night. He had scoured the flea market and even ventured into the black market. It was so late that most people had already packed up for the night. After much searching, he finally found someone’s home and managed to trade for an entire box of medicine.

Seeing him return, Qi Zhan and Yu Le tactfully made themselves scarce, leaving space for the couple. Qi Zhan walked out of Shen Qing’s room and turned toward Tang Wenjie’s room, planning to crash there for some sleep. But he found that Tang Wenjie wasn’t inside.

Looking around, he spotted Mother Tang standing by the stairway landing, talking to Tang Wenjie. Qi Zhan yawned and slouched against the stair railing, eavesdropping without a hint of shame.

“Mom, I swear, we’re not that kind of relationship…” Tang Wenjie knew his words lacked conviction. Even he could sense that his statement had an expiration date. Give it a little more time, and maybe it wouldn’t even be true anymore…

Tang Wenjie had always considered himself straight. But now, he thought—so what if it’s a guy? Didn’t Old Third and Boss have a perfectly good life together?

Seeing Mother Tang’s darkened expression, Tang Wenjie had no choice but to bite the bullet and explain, “When my ability first awakened, he helped me smooth it out. Because of that, my ability is different from other metal-type ability users—it’s much stronger. I don’t know if all healing-type abilities have this effect, but now that he’s helping me again, my ability is still growing rapidly.”

Mother Tang’s expression didn’t soften at all. “Ability refinement—does that require sleeping in the same room every night? He’s a healing-type ability user, and his services aren’t cheap. Back when you first awakened, Boss Shen paid a hefty amount in crystal cores. Why is he helping you for free now?”

Tang Wenjie hesitated, unable to answer. The way they conducted this so-called “ability refinement” was, admittedly, a bit unconventional… He hadn’t been able to accept it at first either, but his desire to grow stronger had overridden everything else. Old Third had found his mother, but his father had died along the way. If he ever found out what had happened to his own father, he didn’t want the outcome to be the same.

“You just go ahead and fool around with him!” Mother Tang was completely disapproving. “That Qi kid isn’t anything like Boss Shen or Xiao Song. Those two? You can tell at a glance they’re serious about being together and building a life. But that Qi kid? He’s just stringing you along! If you could find someone like Boss Shen or Xiao Song—someone who’d stay by your side wholeheartedly, for better or worse—I’d accept it even if it’s a man!”

Tang Wenjie still kept his head down, saying nothing.

Leaning against the railing, Qi Zhan thought back to his conversation with Shen Qing earlier and guiltily rubbed his nose.

But this was just how he was—always had been. Tang Wenjie was great—tall, strong, with solid muscles that weren’t just for show. His physique was better than some professional athletes. That feeling… Qi Zhan discreetly wiped at the corner of his mouth. Otherwise, why would he keep sticking around, sleeping in Tang Wenjie’s room every night?

The idea of “settling down” had never been in his vocabulary.

Qi Zhan sighed. He had to stay true to himself, not waver. And continue not liking Mother Tang.

Meanwhile, Song Kaiji returned with a chill clinging to him, even his hair damp with dew. Shen Qing’s heart ached a little. “It was only really bad at the beginning. I feel much better now. I think if I just drink more spring water, I’ll be fine.”

“If you’d gotten better sooner, you wouldn’t have had to suffer so much,” Song Kaiji said, brushing off the cold from his clothes before approaching Shen Qing and pressing their foreheads together.

Maybe it was because he had just come in from outside, but his forehead was ice-cold, making Shen Qing’s feel even hotter by contrast. “Actually, I know this illness is more in your heart than in your body. If you don’t take medicine and just try to endure it, who knows how long it’ll take to recover.”

Shen Qing lowered his eyes.

“There’s no need to be like this,” Song Kaiji continued. While Shen Qing had been unconscious for two days in Lantang Village, he had thought about a lot of things. At first, of course, he had been incredibly sad and disappointed, but once he had thought it through, he let go of those feelings. “When I first fell for you and wanted to be with you, I had no idea you weren’t from this world. I didn’t know there was another place without zombies—a paradise. I love you, simply because you are you.”

His words seemed to echo what Qi Zhan had said earlier: Why couldn’t love just be pure? Why couldn’t love be just about loving a person?

“So whether I can go over there or not, I still love you. That doesn’t change. Isn’t that enough?” He leaned in, gently kissing Shen Qing’s forehead, his eyelashes, the corners of his lips. “Would your love for me change just because I can’t go with you?” Song Kaiji lifted his gaze, looking at Shen Qing with wide, misty eyes, full of grievance. “Would you dislike me for not being able to live with you, and find another man over there to marry instead?”

“…No.” Shen Qing didn’t even need to think about his answer.

“Then that settles it.” Song Kaiji tucked Shen Qing’s blanket in more securely. “Not being able to go there is a regret, sure. But the fact that you accepted me, that you returned my love—that’s already more than enough. It was only because of the mountain cave’s secret that I raised my expectations so high in the first place. That’s why I was disappointed. But how many people in this world even get to love someone truly? Most people just marry whoever is suitable and get by.”

Finding someone you genuinely love and who loves you back—that was already a rare and precious fortune.

Shen Qing’s eyes burned again, something warm sliding down his temples and into his hair, his ears—only to be kissed away by Song Kaiji, bit by bit.

Shen Qing wrapped his arms around Song Kaiji’s broad shoulders and back, nodding lightly.

He had done everything he could. The rest—he would take it one step at a time and face whatever came next.

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