The Wu family had an ancestral residence in the city, but after the apocalypse, their family moved into the military courtyard. Seeing that the route seemed different from the original host’s memories, he asked, “Where are we going?”
Wu Yue explained, “The original house was taken over and shared, and our family is now living in the compound.”
After that, he exhorted, “Also, most of the leaders of the base are living in the courtyard, so be good and don’t cause trouble. Such nonsense words like ‘My dad is Wu Ming Qi’ and ‘why do I need to be quarantined’, I don’t want to hear about anything like that.”
Xiang Han, “Uh…” Too contemptuous. Is he that stupid?
The compound was very tightly guarded. There were card checks at the entrance and level-by-level inspections, with many soldiers patrolling the compound.
Because Xiang Han was new, the inspector refused to allow him in and it was useless even when Wu Yue showed his identification card.
While stuck in a stalemate, another car came from the rear. The soldier who was driving recognised Wu Yue and quickly poked his head out and asked, “Colonel Wu, why are you stuck here?”
After Wu Yue recognized the car, he hurriedly signaled Xiang Han to get off, then walked over and asked in a low voice, “Is General Zhang in the car?”
The soldier nodded slightly, then turned around and said something.
The rear-seat window was quickly lowered and a soldier, who looked about 50 years old, turned his head slightly to ask Wu Yue, “What’s the matter?”
Xiang Han recognized him instantly. This was the second commander of the military district, Wu Yue’s immediate boss and the proud protégé of Elder Wu. Back then, Zhang and Wu both joined forces to push General Zhang to the second-in-command of Shuguang base.
Today, the relationship between the two was very close and Wu Yue was a powerful subordinate of General Zhang. Unfortunately, this General Zhang was later infected. The Wu family lost a big helping hand and their status rapidly deteriorated. Finally, under the leadership of the female protagonist, she cooperated with a rising star in the military before they had a stable foothold again.
The more Xiang Han thought about it, the more he felt something was strange. The general was tightly guarded and never left the base. How could he be infected? Furthermore, given how highly he regarded Wu Yue, even if something really happened, he would quickly arrange everything such that Wu Yue would be in power. How could he suddenly die and catch the Zhang and Wu families by surprise?
While his thoughts were running wild, Wu Yue suddenly dragged him away and introduced him with a smile, “This is Xiao Han.” After that, he signaled to Xiang Han: “Greet Uncle Zhang.”
Xiang Han regained his senses and hurriedly showed a bright smile: “Uncle Zhang.”
General Zhang was in a good mood and nodded in response. He then smiled and gestured, “You’re already so tall. When you were this tall, I even carried you.”
He turned to Wu Yue, “Get into my car first and find another time to go through the formalities. I haven’t visited my teacher for a long time. Since I’m free today, I’ll stop by.”
With him, the guard quickly let them go.
When they got home, as soon as Wu Yue walked in, Mother Wu greeted him and looked behind. “Where’s your brother?”
Wu Yue turned sideways and said helplessly, “Behind, stay calm, don’t cry, don’t cry… Hey, Xiao Er, come and comfort your mother.”
Influenced by the memory of the original host, Xiang Han instinctively leaned forward at this time and used his sleeves to wipe the tears off Mother Wu while comforting her, “Mom, I’m back. It’s all good, don’t cry…if you keep crying dad will beat me up.”
Seeing that his son had returned safely, Wu Ming Qi was extremely agitated despite maintaining a calm expression. He first kicked Wu Yue and said sternly, “What are you saying?”
Then, he turned to look at his youngest son after the moisture in his eyes subsided. He patted Xiang Han’s shoulders with a nod. “It’s good that you’re back. All good…”
Glancing at Xiang Han’s sleeves, he said with disdain, “So dirty. How could you help your mom wipe her face like this? Move aside, move aside…”
Saying so, he pulled his wife into his arms and carefully wiped her tears for her.
Xiang Han and Wu Yue exchanged a look and the latter gave a low cough in reminder. “Dad, Uncle Zhang is here.”
Wu Ming Qi made a sound and stood up, looking meaningfully at his sons. “You two stay and accompany your mother.”
Wu Yue could only laugh helplessly as Xiang Han went to comfort Mother Wu. “Mom, let’s go in. Where’s grandpa? I really missed you all…”
These words weren’t fake. The original host truly missed his family and he was also influenced by these feelings.
“Alright, let’s go in.” Mother Wu forced herself to remain calm and patted the back of Xiang Han’s hand with a smile. “Your grandfather also missed you. When he answered the phone today, he nearly fell over…”
His grandpa was currently sitting on the sofa, holding a newspaper and he scoffed upon hearing this. “Miss him? A heartless brat, why would I miss him?”
Wu Yue raised his eyebrows. “Grandpa, your newspaper is upside-down.”
Once he heard that, his grandfather hurriedly turned it over, only to realise that it hadn’t been the wrong way in the first place.
“Brat, you even dare to fool me? All of you, get here now.” He simply disregarded the newspaper and fumed.
Wu Yue pushed Xiang Han over with a grin. “Xiao Er, quick go over.”
He turned to his grandfather and said, “Uncle Zhang is here. I’ll go see if there’s anything that requires my presence.”
Sure enough, his grandfather didn’t pay him any heed and grabbed Xiang Han, pulling him forward before rebuking him. “…Causing such a huge mess and not staying in school, why did you recklessly run off? Your brother sent many teams to go find you but never succeeded. Did you know…over the last two years…our family had thought…”
The more he spoke, the more choked up he became.
After consoling his mother, it was his turn to console his grandfather.
Luckily, Father Wu and General Zhang came in together at this time. His grandfather quickly wiped his eyes and put his spectacles back on. “Xiao Zhang, you’re here. Come sit…”
Xiang Han was finally saved when his mother pulled him aside and said with a hint of heartache in her voice, “How long have you not washed? Sigh, you must have had a hard time, you…”
Seeing that she was about to break into tears once more, Xiang Han quickly stopped her. “Mom, is there water at home? I want to bathe.”
“There is, it’s been long prepared for you. But, are you hungry? You look thinner, you definitely haven’t been eating well. I just cooked some braised pork and green vegetables… your Uncle Zhang is here to freeload again. Later, there’ll definitely not be enough. Mom will help you take some out and put it aside…”
“It…won’t be too late to speak of this later. I better go wash up first.” Xiang Han was somewhat stifled.
After washing, Xiang Han no longer stunk. His mother took out a rather shrivelled apple from god knows where and secretly snuck it to Xiang Han. “Your dad gave it to me a few days ago, don’t let your brother see it. He’s already eaten one.”
Xiang Han’s heart tinged when lowered his head and saw a wrinkled apple.
His mother was a typical gentle and graceful Jiangnan lady1 who led an exquisite life. Before the apocalypse, when had she ever needed to count every single stalk of vegetable or fruit?
Xiang Han hesitated for a moment. He very much wanted to tell her that he had the plant ability and didn’t have to worry about food. In any case, every large base had a few plant-ability users. Though rare, they weren’t extremely rare.
But before he could speak, Wu Yue called out. “Mom, come eat. Dad is asking if there’s any alcohol at home?”
“There is, I’ll go get it.” Mother Wu pushed him into the room and left the other way.
Before long, Wu Yue walked over and sized Xiang Han up. “Did mom give you an apple?”
Xiang Han’s eyes widened and Wu Yue sneered. “Don’t worry, no one is fighting you for it. But you better not let dad find out, that’s something he left for mom. After I ate one the last time, he found out and nearly beat me to death.”
Xiang Han: “…”
At the table. Due to General Zhang’s presence, everyone didn’t interrogate Xiang Han too deeply on the details of his experience during the last two years. Wu Yue laughed and gave a rough summary before mocking Xiang Han for his bad eyesight. He never talked about the matter of him falling for a man.
“It’s good that you’ve broken up. In a few days, mom will introduce you to another person.” Mother Wu comforted him.
Xiang Han nearly choked as he hurriedly refused her. Meanwhile, Wu Yue sat on the sidelines, watching the show.
General Zhang said, “So Xiao Han was at Pingshan. Speaking of which, the base received many refugees from Pingshan last month. Brother Wu, you’re overlooking the welfare of these people and the farmland…”
Wu Ming Qi was putting food into Mother Wu’s bowl when he heard this and paused with a frown. “Originally, there already wasn’t enough, but it’s even more difficult now. Two days ago, the Eastern Prefecture suffered a deficiency and nearly caused a riot. You probably don’t know this. I already told you not to accept so many, but you refused to listen…”
The old lord gave a low cough. “You can’t say it like this. If not for Xiao Zhang insisting on accepting the refugees, Xiao Er would still be stuck outside.”
“Exactly.” General Zhang nodded and picked up a large piece of vegetable.
Wu Ming Qi’s brows instantly furrowed. He waited until he had sent away General Zhang before telling Wu Yue, “Why did you bring him over? We managed to obtain a little more food today, but it all went into his stomach.”
“Uh…” Wu Yue choked. “Wasn’t it just a coincidence? If not for Uncle Zhang, Xiao Er wouldn’t have been able to come in.” His superior wanted to come, how could he stop him?
Wu Ming Qi scoffed, “He’s doing it on purpose. He knew that Xiao Er had returned and guessed that we’ll cook more.”
“Enough, can you be more civilised? Isn’t it just a little more food?” The old lord scolded him unhappily before turning to Wu Yue, “But, in the future, don’t bring Xiao Zhang over during mealtimes. Xiao Er didn’t eat much today, look at how skinny he is.”
Xiang Han was embarrassed and finally asked, “Dad, aren’t there any plant ability users in the base? Why is there a lack of food?”
“Which base isn’t lacking food? Shuguang base has three but they can’t provide for so many mouths.” Once he mentioned this, Wu Ming Qi felt a headache.
Xiang Han glanced at them and took a deep breath before saying, “Dad, Mom, actually… I’ve awakened the plant ability.”
T/n: The Er in Xiao Er refers to ‘second’. Because Xiang Han is the second son.
1江南女子: Jiangnan ladies are commonly referred to as Jiangnan beauties and are often used to describe these women as beautiful/the apple of one’s eyes.
The Wu family had an ancestral residence in the city, but after the apocalypse, their family moved into the military courtyard. Seeing that the route seemed different from the original host’s memories, he asked, “Where are we going?”
Wu Yue explained, “The original house was taken over and shared, and our family is now living in the compound.”
After that, he exhorted, “Also, most of the leaders of the base are living in the courtyard, so be good and don’t cause trouble. Such nonsense words like ‘My dad is Wu Ming Qi’ and ‘why do I need to be quarantined’, I don’t want to hear about anything like that.”
Xiang Han, “Uh…” Too contemptuous. Is he that stupid?
The compound was very tightly guarded. There were card checks at the entrance and level-by-level inspections, with many soldiers patrolling the compound.
Because Xiang Han was new, the inspector refused to allow him in and it was useless even when Wu Yue showed his identification card.
While stuck in a stalemate, another car came from the rear. The soldier who was driving recognised Wu Yue and quickly poked his head out and asked, “Colonel Wu, why are you stuck here?”
After Wu Yue recognized the car, he hurriedly signaled Xiang Han to get off, then walked over and asked in a low voice, “Is General Zhang in the car?”
The soldier nodded slightly, then turned around and said something.
The rear-seat window was quickly lowered and a soldier, who looked about 50 years old, turned his head slightly to ask Wu Yue, “What’s the matter?”
Xiang Han recognized him instantly. This was the second commander of the military district, Wu Yue’s immediate boss and the proud protégé of Elder Wu. Back then, Zhang and Wu both joined forces to push General Zhang to the second-in-command of Shuguang base.
Today, the relationship between the two was very close and Wu Yue was a powerful subordinate of General Zhang. Unfortunately, this General Zhang was later infected. The Wu family lost a big helping hand and their status rapidly deteriorated. Finally, under the leadership of the female protagonist, she cooperated with a rising star in the military before they had a stable foothold again.
The more Xiang Han thought about it, the more he felt something was strange. The general was tightly guarded and never left the base. How could he be infected? Furthermore, given how highly he regarded Wu Yue, even if something really happened, he would quickly arrange everything such that Wu Yue would be in power. How could he suddenly die and catch the Zhang and Wu families by surprise?
While his thoughts were running wild, Wu Yue suddenly dragged him away and introduced him with a smile, “This is Xiao Han.” After that, he signaled to Xiang Han: “Greet Uncle Zhang.”
Xiang Han regained his senses and hurriedly showed a bright smile: “Uncle Zhang.”
General Zhang was in a good mood and nodded in response. He then smiled and gestured, “You’re already so tall. When you were this tall, I even carried you.”
He turned to Wu Yue, “Get into my car first and find another time to go through the formalities. I haven’t visited my teacher for a long time. Since I’m free today, I’ll stop by.”
With him, the guard quickly let them go.
When they got home, as soon as Wu Yue walked in, Mother Wu greeted him and looked behind. “Where’s your brother?”
Wu Yue turned sideways and said helplessly, “Behind, stay calm, don’t cry, don’t cry… Hey, Xiao Er, come and comfort your mother.”
Influenced by the memory of the original host, Xiang Han instinctively leaned forward at this time and used his sleeves to wipe the tears off Mother Wu while comforting her, “Mom, I’m back. It’s all good, don’t cry…if you keep crying dad will beat me up.”
Seeing that his son had returned safely, Wu Ming Qi was extremely agitated despite maintaining a calm expression. He first kicked Wu Yue and said sternly, “What are you saying?”
Then, he turned to look at his youngest son after the moisture in his eyes subsided. He patted Xiang Han’s shoulders with a nod. “It’s good that you’re back. All good…”
Glancing at Xiang Han’s sleeves, he said with disdain, “So dirty. How could you help your mom wipe her face like this? Move aside, move aside…”
Saying so, he pulled his wife into his arms and carefully wiped her tears for her.
Xiang Han and Wu Yue exchanged a look and the latter gave a low cough in reminder. “Dad, Uncle Zhang is here.”
Wu Ming Qi made a sound and stood up, looking meaningfully at his sons. “You two stay and accompany your mother.”
Wu Yue could only laugh helplessly as Xiang Han went to comfort Mother Wu. “Mom, let’s go in. Where’s grandpa? I really missed you all…”
These words weren’t fake. The original host truly missed his family and he was also influenced by these feelings.
“Alright, let’s go in.” Mother Wu forced herself to remain calm and patted the back of Xiang Han’s hand with a smile. “Your grandfather also missed you. When he answered the phone today, he nearly fell over…”
His grandpa was currently sitting on the sofa, holding a newspaper and he scoffed upon hearing this. “Miss him? A heartless brat, why would I miss him?”
Wu Yue raised his eyebrows. “Grandpa, your newspaper is upside-down.”
Once he heard that, his grandfather hurriedly turned it over, only to realise that it hadn’t been the wrong way in the first place.
“Brat, you even dare to fool me? All of you, get here now.” He simply disregarded the newspaper and fumed.
Wu Yue pushed Xiang Han over with a grin. “Xiao Er, quick go over.”
He turned to his grandfather and said, “Uncle Zhang is here. I’ll go see if there’s anything that requires my presence.”
Sure enough, his grandfather didn’t pay him any heed and grabbed Xiang Han, pulling him forward before rebuking him. “…Causing such a huge mess and not staying in school, why did you recklessly run off? Your brother sent many teams to go find you but never succeeded. Did you know…over the last two years…our family had thought…”
The more he spoke, the more choked up he became.
After consoling his mother, it was his turn to console his grandfather.
Luckily, Father Wu and General Zhang came in together at this time. His grandfather quickly wiped his eyes and put his spectacles back on. “Xiao Zhang, you’re here. Come sit…”
Xiang Han was finally saved when his mother pulled him aside and said with a hint of heartache in her voice, “How long have you not washed? Sigh, you must have had a hard time, you…”
Seeing that she was about to break into tears once more, Xiang Han quickly stopped her. “Mom, is there water at home? I want to bathe.”
“There is, it’s been long prepared for you. But, are you hungry? You look thinner, you definitely haven’t been eating well. I just cooked some braised pork and green vegetables… your Uncle Zhang is here to freeload again. Later, there’ll definitely not be enough. Mom will help you take some out and put it aside…”
“It…won’t be too late to speak of this later. I better go wash up first.” Xiang Han was somewhat stifled.
After washing, Xiang Han no longer stunk. His mother took out a rather shrivelled apple from god knows where and secretly snuck it to Xiang Han. “Your dad gave it to me a few days ago, don’t let your brother see it. He’s already eaten one.”
Xiang Han’s heart tinged when lowered his head and saw a wrinkled apple.
His mother was a typical gentle and graceful Jiangnan lady1 who led an exquisite life. Before the apocalypse, when had she ever needed to count every single stalk of vegetable or fruit?
Xiang Han hesitated for a moment. He very much wanted to tell her that he had the plant ability and didn’t have to worry about food. In any case, every large base had a few plant-ability users. Though rare, they weren’t extremely rare.
But before he could speak, Wu Yue called out. “Mom, come eat. Dad is asking if there’s any alcohol at home?”
“There is, I’ll go get it.” Mother Wu pushed him into the room and left the other way.
Before long, Wu Yue walked over and sized Xiang Han up. “Did mom give you an apple?”
Xiang Han’s eyes widened and Wu Yue sneered. “Don’t worry, no one is fighting you for it. But you better not let dad find out, that’s something he left for mom. After I ate one the last time, he found out and nearly beat me to death.”
Xiang Han: “…”
At the table. Due to General Zhang’s presence, everyone didn’t interrogate Xiang Han too deeply on the details of his experience during the last two years. Wu Yue laughed and gave a rough summary before mocking Xiang Han for his bad eyesight. He never talked about the matter of him falling for a man.
“It’s good that you’ve broken up. In a few days, mom will introduce you to another person.” Mother Wu comforted him.
Xiang Han nearly choked as he hurriedly refused her. Meanwhile, Wu Yue sat on the sidelines, watching the show.
General Zhang said, “So Xiao Han was at Pingshan. Speaking of which, the base received many refugees from Pingshan last month. Brother Wu, you’re overlooking the welfare of these people and the farmland…”
Wu Ming Qi was putting food into Mother Wu’s bowl when he heard this and paused with a frown. “Originally, there already wasn’t enough, but it’s even more difficult now. Two days ago, the Eastern Prefecture suffered a deficiency and nearly caused a riot. You probably don’t know this. I already told you not to accept so many, but you refused to listen…”
The old lord gave a low cough. “You can’t say it like this. If not for Xiao Zhang insisting on accepting the refugees, Xiao Er would still be stuck outside.”
“Exactly.” General Zhang nodded and picked up a large piece of vegetable.
Wu Ming Qi’s brows instantly furrowed. He waited until he had sent away General Zhang before telling Wu Yue, “Why did you bring him over? We managed to obtain a little more food today, but it all went into his stomach.”
“Uh…” Wu Yue choked. “Wasn’t it just a coincidence? If not for Uncle Zhang, Xiao Er wouldn’t have been able to come in.” His superior wanted to come, how could he stop him?
Wu Ming Qi scoffed, “He’s doing it on purpose. He knew that Xiao Er had returned and guessed that we’ll cook more.”
“Enough, can you be more civilised? Isn’t it just a little more food?” The old lord scolded him unhappily before turning to Wu Yue, “But, in the future, don’t bring Xiao Zhang over during mealtimes. Xiao Er didn’t eat much today, look at how skinny he is.”
Xiang Han was embarrassed and finally asked, “Dad, aren’t there any plant ability users in the base? Why is there a lack of food?”
“Which base isn’t lacking food? Shuguang base has three but they can’t provide for so many mouths.” Once he mentioned this, Wu Ming Qi felt a headache.
Xiang Han glanced at them and took a deep breath before saying, “Dad, Mom, actually… I’ve awakened the plant ability.”
T/n: The Er in Xiao Er refers to ‘second’. Because Xiang Han is the second son.
1江南女子: Jiangnan ladies are commonly referred to as Jiangnan beauties and are often used to describe these women as beautiful/the apple of one’s eyes.
