Ch 160: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Qu Weiwei unceremoniously slapped away the hand reaching toward her, showing no intention of shaking hands. “So? What do you want from me? I have no interest in associating with people from the research institute.”

Feng Hao withdrew his hand without any awkwardness, smiling good-naturedly. He didn’t bring up Shen Qing and the others again, instead addressing Qu Weiwei directly. “We’ll all be colleagues from now on, part of the same system. There’s no harm in getting to know each other, right? The military has quite a few misunderstandings about our research institute. Since Deputy Director Qu will be part of the family now, it’d be great if you could put in a good word for us. But it seems like Deputy Director Qu isn’t very welcoming?”

Qu Weiwei let out a cold snort and sat down at the table. “There’s absolutely no need to get acquainted. I probably won’t be here for long.” She decisively used Shen Qing’s speculation as a shield. “I’m just here as a temporary transition, that’s all. As for whatever grudges exist between me and the research institute, I’m sure your people are well aware of them.” She turned her head slightly and shot a sidelong glance at Chen Jiaxi, who was still standing at the door. “So, certain people don’t need to target me or compete with me over this little bit of authority in the farm. I have no interest in you people at all!”

Chen Jiaxi: “…”

This little brat was really putting on a show with her.

Feng Hao looked at Qu Weiwei helplessly. “Even within the research institute, there are different departments. The decisions before were made by the agricultural division, which has nothing to do with our vaccine research lab…” But seeing that Qu Weiwei seemed neither very bright nor reasonable, and with such a terrible temper, he decided to drop it for now. “Alright then… Today is Deputy Director Qu’s first day reporting in. I’m sure you have a lot to take care of, so I won’t disturb you. We’ll talk another time if there’s an opportunity.”

Qu Weiwei completely ignored him. Feng Hao, feeling like he had hit a wall, sighed helplessly before finally turning and leaving.

As soon as he was gone, Qu Weiwei turned to look at Chen Jiaxi, only to see her give a barely noticeable shake of her head. She then said, “There may be some misunderstandings between Deputy Director Qu and us. We’re all colleagues and should work together sincerely. There’s no such thing as targeting anyone, so please don’t overthink it.”

“Deputy Director Qu should take some time to familiarize herself with the work first. We’ll talk when the field chief returns. For now, we won’t disturb you.” Chen Jiaxi discreetly traced a few strokes in Qu Weiwei’s palm and gave her a meaningful look before leading her husband away.

Sure enough, Feng Hao was waiting outside, leaning against the window, still gazing in the direction Shen Qing and the others had left.

Today, Shen Qing was wrapped up tightly. He wore a black hoodie with the hood pulled up, covering his bun. He also wore a mask that concealed the lower half of his face. His figure had changed significantly from when he first arrived in the post-apocalyptic world. After spending so much time learning to act like a wealthy young master, even his posture had undergone a major transformation.

Yet, Feng Hao recognized him at a glance.

As a psychic ability user specializing in the brain, Feng Hao’s memory was naturally excellent. The scene of the zombies bypassing Shen Qing and charging directly at him had been replayed in his mind countless times, to the point that it had practically been worn smooth.

He had searched for so long for that one person whom zombies wouldn’t attack, and yet that person had been right under his nose all along—the captain of Qu Weiwei’s squad.

There must be some kind of antibody in this person’s body. Feng Hao felt his blood boiling with excitement. His research was just one step away from a breakthrough. If he could obtain Shen Qing, the apocalypse might very well end at his hands. He would become a hero, a savior of all humanity!

Forcing himself to calm down, Feng Hao noticed Chen Jiaxi and her husband also stepping out of Qu Weiwei’s office. Turning back with a smile, he remarked, “This Deputy Director Qu has quite the temper.”

He took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled out two, and handed one to Chen Jiaxi’s husband, Wang Xun. Cigarettes were a rare commodity these days—one was worth more than ten coarse grain biscuits—so for Feng Hao to casually take out a whole pack showed just how privileged his position and treatment at the research institute were.

Wang Xun hesitated, declining a few times before finally accepting it. He sniffed the cigarette under his nose but was reluctant to light it.

Feng Hao observed his behavior with secret amusement, inwardly mocking his pettiness and small-mindedness—truly the mannerisms of someone who had clawed his way up from the bottom. On the surface, however, he maintained a warm smile. “So, what are your plans?” He tapped the cigarette in the direction of Qu Weiwei’s office.

Chen Jiaxi’s expression turned slightly disdainful, and she let out a cold snort. “She’d better be telling the truth about leaving soon. The sooner she gets lost, the better—she’s an eyesore. Otherwise, I won’t be polite.”

Wang Xun rubbed the cigarette between his fingers for a while before finally lighting it and taking a puff. “I don’t think she’s the type to seize power, and she doesn’t seem to have the brains for it either. If she’s just here to get by and collect her salary, I don’t mind coexisting peacefully. We’re all just trying to survive—there’s no need to make things so tense.”

Chen Jiaxi merely let out another cold snort, clearly unsatisfied with how Qu Weiwei had bluntly laid everything out earlier.

Feng Hao gave the couple an interested glance before quickly shifting his gaze back to the window.

Chen Jiaxi, for her part, found today’s events rather strange. Feng Hao belonged to a different department, and he had little to do with the Third Farm aside from the fact that the farm supplied mutated plants for their experiments and vaccine research. The vaccine project had been at a standstill for a long time—the research institute hadn’t shut it down, but it had become somewhat of an afterthought. Even the higher-ups didn’t hold much hope that the lab would actually develop a vaccine. Or rather, they didn’t believe that a small research institute in Red City had the capability to produce such a breakthrough.

If there were to be any real progress, it would come from the capital.

And yet, this person—who had never interacted with her before—had insisted on tagging along with her to see Qu Weiwei today. Who knew what had gotten into him?

Earlier, Chen Jiaxi had keenly sensed that Feng Hao wasn’t actually trying to build rapport with Qu Weiwei—he was probing her. And judging by his behavior, he seemed to have some connection to Shen Qing’s squad. She was curious but didn’t dare act rashly and attempt to peer into Feng Hao’s memory.

After all, he was also a psychic ability user specializing in the brain.

There were only six psychic ability users of this type in the entire Red City base, including herself, and all of them worked at the research institute. However, their powers had evolved in different directions—Chen Jiaxi’s ability allowed her to read people’s memories, while Feng Hao’s talent lay in intelligence enhancement and cognitive development. Ever since awakening his abilities, he had helped various departments overcome major research bottlenecks, including the Agricultural Division’s previous hybrid seed projects.

The only field where he had made no progress was the vaccine research he personally oversaw. But Chen Jiaxi understood—after all, even the most skilled woman couldn’t cook a meal without ingredients. If no substance capable of resisting the zombie virus existed in this world, what could he possibly develop?

However, given that he was also a psychic ability user, Chen Jiaxi wasn’t sure if attempting to read his memory would be detected. So for now, she chose not to take any risks.

Chen Jiaxi had grown much smarter now, and her psychic abilities had improved as well. With just a glance, she could absorb the memories of ordinary people. For ability users, it required more mental energy, but it wasn’t particularly difficult.

However, she never admitted to this in public. Instead, she claimed that her ability required her to stare into someone’s eyes for at least thirty seconds to read their memories. Having such a condition made others significantly less wary of her.

Like now, Feng Hao was deliberately avoiding her gaze, making sure not to meet her eyes.

Suppressing her doubts, Chen Jiaxi turned to Wang Xun and said, “I’m heading back first. Walk me out.”

Wang Xun raised an eyebrow at her before turning to Feng Hao. “We’ll be off, then.”

Feng Hao didn’t turn around, only giving a casual response.

Behind him, Wang Xun held Chen Jiaxi’s hand as they walked forward. Chen Jiaxi kept moving, but her body twisted slightly as she concentrated on probing Feng Hao’s memories.

In just an instant, she withdrew her psychic energy.

Perhaps sensing something, Feng Hao turned back, staring at the couple’s retreating figures.

Now it was his turn to fix his gaze on Chen Jiaxi.

However, just a few steps later, Chen Jiaxi suddenly stopped and swiftly turned her head, locking eyes with him.

Feng Hao immediately averted his gaze.

“Why is Engineer Feng staring at me?” Chen Jiaxi raised an eyebrow.

At this moment, most of Feng Hao’s suspicions faded. If Chen Jiaxi had truly peeked into his memories just now, she wouldn’t be acting so openly. Instead, she would have pretended nothing had happened—even if she realized he was staring at her, she would have forced herself to ignore it and walk away.

This reaction was much more natural. As a psychic ability user himself, how could he not sense when someone was watching him from behind?

…But there was also the possibility that she was deliberately using reverse psychology. After all, they were both psychic ability users—who was really outsmarting whom? That said, there was no conflict of interest or prior grievances between him and Chen Jiaxi. Besides, they hadn’t even made direct eye contact earlier. Feng Hao reasoned that Chen Jiaxi wouldn’t have had either the motivation or the opportunity to pry into his memories.

“It’s nothing. I just thought Miss Chen’s silhouette looked familiar,” he said.

“Oh? Now that’s a rather cliché… excuse.” Chen Jiaxi chuckled but didn’t press further. This time, she and Wang Xun truly left.

Feng Hao, on the other hand, shifted his focus back to Qu Weiwei’s office, deep in thought.

---

After an exhausting day at work, Qu Weiwei finally returned to the villa, completely drained.

“So tired. Having to deal with all kinds of people, including a bunch who have nothing to do with my job but still insist on getting involved. This is the first time I’ve realized that I, too, have a social battery that runs out. I really don’t feel like talking anymore.” She collapsed onto the sofa. “And lunch wasn’t even good.”

The first day of her new position had mostly been about getting acquainted with different departments on the farm. She already knew a few mid-level managers from before, though they hadn’t spoken much back then. As for the higher-ups, they had all been replaced—mostly with military personnel.

The new head of the Third Farm was on equal footing with Shao Nan, and the two seemed to have some past acquaintance. Knowing Qu Weiwei’s circumstances, he hadn’t assigned her too much work, treating her quite well.

All in all, the entire day had just been about putting names to faces.

Mother Tang looked at her with concern. “How come you didn’t eat well? What would you like for dinner? Auntie will cook for you.”

It wasn’t that the food was bad. In fact, the farm’s cafeteria meals were quite generous—two vegetable dishes and unlimited rice, which was considered excellent treatment in the base. But compared to the meals at Shen Qing’s place, where meat and eggs were regularly on the table, it was quite lacking.

After thinking for a moment, she told Mother Tang the names of two dishes she wanted, then ran off to find Shen Qing. “Boss, do you know someone named Feng Hao? He works at the research institute.”

“Feng Hao?” Shen Qing shook his head, though the name felt vaguely familiar. “What about him?”

“I don’t know either. He keeps trying to dig for information about our squad, but I ignored him. Oh, right—Jiaxi told Xiao Song to go see her tonight before she left the office.” This was the message Chen Jiaxi had discreetly written in Qu Weiwei’s palm before departing.

“I can bring Qingqing along,” Song Kaiji said, quite pleased with himself for now being able to teleport others as well. So after dinner, he took Shen Qing and set off.

He also brought along a dish Mother Tang had made—braised pork ribs with potatoes and beans—as a little extra for the kid.

Chen Jiaxi’s youngest son let out a small cheer but, noticing his parents’ expressions, obediently sat back down. Chen Jiaxi smiled. “Go ahead, eat it with your brother.” Then she turned to Wang Xun and gave him a little push. “You should go, too.”

Wang Xun understood that they had something to discuss, so he tactfully took the children into the room.

Nowadays, Chen Jiaxi’s family no longer lived in a tin shack. After being promoted to a mid-level position at the research institute, her salary had increased significantly. Wang Xun had also been working in logistics at the city wall, earning a decent income. Apart from the energy crystals Chen Jiaxi used to enhance her abilities, they had also improved their living conditions, moving into a one-bedroom apartment in the outer city.

The couple shared the bedroom, while the living room had a bunk bed for the children, with a curtain separating it from the dining area.

At the moment, Chen Jiaxi was sitting at the dining table with Shen Qing and Song Kaiji. She fiddled with the cuff of her sleeve for a long time before cautiously glancing at Song Kaiji, then at Shen Qing. “You… you aren’t attacked by zombies, are you?”

Shen Qing and Song Kaiji abruptly lifted their heads to look at her.

Chen Jiaxi immediately raised her hands. “I swear I didn’t peek into your memory! I made an oath!” Then, she recounted everything that had happened at the Third Farm that day. Compared to Qu Weiwei’s version, her account was far more detailed. “I found him really strange, so when I left, I pried into his memory. And in his memories… I saw you.”

In truth, her suspicions ran far deeper.

In Feng Hao’s memories, Shen Qing looked completely different from now. His face showed fear and confusion, he clutched a strangely shaped short knife, and he wore a set of ragged, heavily patched ancient-style clothes while carrying a handwoven bamboo basket on his back. If she hadn’t seen Shen Qing in real life, she might have mistaken this memory as a scene from a historical drama.

Maybe something like a woodcutter randomly stopped by Sun Wukong to ask for directions.

Then the memory showed Feng Hao running faster and faster, overtaking Shen Qing. Shen Qing did not do as expected and kill the newly-turned zombie that was once Xiao Wang. Instead, he ran along with them, almost outpacing Feng Hao.

The Shen Qing that Chen Jiaxi knew would never have feared a newly mutated zombie. But in this memory, Shen Qing’s face was filled with terror and panic.

Then, Feng Hao had kicked Shen Qing’s leg. Shen Qing fell, the zombie ignored him, and continued chasing after Feng Hao.

Beyond the shock of realizing that zombies wouldn’t attack Shen Qing, Chen Jiaxi also developed some secret suspicions. Unlike the simple-minded Song Kaiji, who might just assume Shen Qing was some historical clothing enthusiast, she had seen enough dramas and web novels in her spare time—stories of transmigration, reincarnation, and adventures in other worlds…

She discreetly observed Shen Qing’s expression.

As soon as she mentioned this, combined with the surname Feng, Shen Qing instantly remembered who he was. What terrible luck—this guy hadn’t died and was even working at the research institute!

Now that Chen Jiaxi knew, there was no point in hiding anything—it wouldn’t work anyway. With no choice, Shen Qing admitted, “Yes. I don’t know why, but zombies really don’t attack me.” His only guess was that it had something to do with him coming from another world.

“He’s been looking for Shen Qing? What does he plan to do?” Song Kaiji asked nervously.

Chen Jiaxi hesitated for a moment before saying, “He’s researching a zombie vaccine. Before he encountered Shen Qing, the vaccine lab was focused on developing an injection that could prevent infected individuals—those bitten or scratched by zombies—from turning. Ideally, they wanted to create a vaccine that, if taken in advance, would provide temporary immunity to zombie infections.”

“But after meeting Shen Qing, Feng Hao joined the vaccine lab and proposed a new direction—he wanted to develop a vaccine that would make zombies ignore all humans, just like they ignore Shen Qing.”

After uncovering this memory, Chen Jiaxi had wrestled with indecision. To be honest, after witnessing firsthand that zombies truly ignored Shen Qing, she didn’t think Feng Hao’s idea was a fantasy—it might actually be achievable. Of course, whether the vaccine could be mass-produced was another matter.

As someone living in the apocalypse, she naturally hoped for the development of such a vaccine and the eventual restoration of civilization. But as someone who had received Shen Qing’s kindness…

“He wants to find Shen Qing and use him as an experiment.” Chen Jiaxi chose to tell them the truth.

She immediately noticed the brief look of bewilderment on Shen Qing’s face, while Song Kaiji’s expression changed drastically.

Chen Jiaxi’s suspicions deepened further. Suppressing her swirling thoughts, she suggested to Shen Qing, “In a few days, I’ll investigate everyone in the research lab to see how far they’re planning to go. If they only need a small sample of blood… I’m sorry, but I hope you can provide it. If you don’t want to show yourself, you can donate anonymously, and I’ll deliver it—I swear I won’t betray you. But if they want more, I’ll tell you immediately.” However, based on her understanding of the research institute, she highly doubted Feng Hao would be satisfied with just a little blood.

“It will take about five to ten days. Until I find out what they really intend to do, you should lay low, no matter where you are.”

“Yes, yes!” Song Kaiji nearly jumped up. “You should leave for now, don’t come back for a while. That Feng Hao guy sounds like bad news. Someone who would push his own teammates in front of zombies just to save himself—do you really think he’d be satisfied with just a bit of blood? I don’t believe it! The best way to handle this is to make sure he never finds you. We really underestimated the danger this time…”

His mind was a mess. Their secret was exposed. This was real trouble. What could they do now? Leave Red City and go to another base? But the entrance to Shen Qing’s original world was right next to the Red City base—it wasn’t something that could just be moved to another location.

Still, at least Feng Hao had been exposed too. Now they could take precautions.

Chen Jiaxi keenly caught the words “go back” and “come over.”

Shen Qing’s thoughts were just as chaotic. How had things turned out this way? Just when life was getting easier—when they had military backing, fully developed abilities, and strong combat power—why did Feng Hao have to show up out of nowhere? And now, there was no way the military could help him.

Although he wasn’t from this world, Shen Qing understood just how tempting this was to apocalypse survivors. If they could make all humans immune to zombie attacks, what a miracle that would be! If his secret got out, the military wouldn’t protect him.

Shen Qing wasn’t sure what “experiments” meant, but the mention of blood made him uneasy. The best treatment the military might offer him would be to keep him alive—like livestock—and regularly drain his blood.

As for Feng Hao? He would likely go further. Would he dissect him? Crack open his skull to see if he had some kind of energy crystal inside?

“Thank you, Jiaxi.” Song Kaiji expressed his gratitude first, then hastily pulled out a handful of energy crystals and some food from his storage space, dumping them onto the table. “We need to think this through carefully. Don’t tell anyone about the blood yet… We need to figure this out. We’ll be going now.”

Without waiting for Chen Jiaxi to react, he immediately teleported them back to the villa.

“You should stay away for now, don’t come back,” Song Kaiji said in a panic. Shen Qing didn’t fully understand what “experiments” entailed, but he did! In the apocalypse, where law and morality were crumbling, if Shen Qing were captured for research, who knew if he’d survive? At this moment, Song Kaiji cursed his own weak abilities and poor combat skills a thousand times over.

They didn’t even have anyone to discuss this with! Not even Qu Weiwei or Tang Wenjie knew about Shen Qing’s immunity to zombies. Song Kaiji didn’t dare tell them either. After all, as an apocalypse survivor, who wouldn’t want the pandemic to end? If this were happening to a stranger instead of Shen Qing, wouldn’t even he secretly hope that person would donate some blood?

And if a little wasn’t enough? Would he wish for more?

You could never truly test human nature.

As the night breeze hit him on the way out of the base, Shen Qing gradually calmed down. Leaving—he had to leave. At least until Chen Jiaxi figured out the research institute’s plans.

But it wasn’t completely hopeless. Seeing how tense Song Kaiji was, as if they might never see each other again, Shen Qing made a decision.

As they arrived at the cave entrance that night, Shen Qing grasped Song Kaiji’s wrist and whispered, “If it really comes down to it… can we just kill Feng Hao?”

Song Kaiji was stunned.

That… that was actually a pretty solid plan. And it had a high chance of success.

Right now, the only person who knew that Shen Qing wouldn’t be attacked by zombies was Feng Hao—aside from Chen Jiaxi, but she was on their side. If Feng Hao died, who else would have witnessed Shen Qing’s immunity? Even if Feng Hao had told someone else, without direct evidence, mere words wouldn’t be enough to convince anyone!

All he had to do was use teleportation to silently appear in Feng Hao’s room at night and kill him…

Hearing Shen Qing’s idea, Song Kaiji found himself less panicked and afraid. “Alright. I’ll go back and find out where Feng Hao lives. You… come back in ten days—no, fifteen days.” After all, Feng Hao wasn’t exactly a good person, and his hands weren’t clean either. Since he was the one coming after Shen Qing first, taking him out would just be self-defense.

Fifteen days should be enough. Whether or not he managed to kill Feng Hao, Chen Jiaxi’s investigation would also be complete by then. If things didn’t go their way, they could move to another base or even set up a small outpost nearby and live on their own terms. They weren’t short on supplies, and their combat abilities had significantly improved. Surely, they wouldn’t be cornered so easily.

After setting a date for their reunion, Shen Qing entered the cave. Song Kaiji lingered near the mountain wall for a moment before reluctantly heading back to the villa.

He was extra cautious now—using teleportation before even approaching the cave to ensure that no one could track them. Even if someone followed him, they wouldn’t know where he had ultimately gone.

However, upon returning to the base and approaching the villa, Song Kaiji noticed something unusual. Something was off.

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