Was the captain acting spoiled? Zhong Yin’s eyes lost focus as she contemplated. Jiang Huan, acting spoiled…? This combination was truly indescribably bizarre.
The revolving automatic glass door of the hotel was covered with old blood stains and radial cracks, indicating that a fierce conflict had likely erupted here at some point in the past.
With a yawn, Executioner forcibly pushed open the sliding door next to the reception desk. The door had been securely locked, but Executioner simply disassembled it with his bare hands. There were two wandering zombies at the reception desk, seemingly unconsciously loitering there for who knows how many years. Feeling the pressure from the mutants, they slowly retreated towards the back door but were swiftly and deftly thrown out by the executioner.
Executioner’s method of dealing with the zombies was no different from taking out the trash, leaving Xu Ye choking on his breath and trembling violently. He instinctively suppressed any noise, afraid to create any unnecessary commotion. Finally, it was the Wolf Dog who couldn’t stand it any longer and rolled his eyes, saying, “If you need to cough, just cough. Why are you struggling like that? Don’t tell me you’re afraid of attracting zombies. It’s hilarious.”
Xu Ye: “…”
Xu Ye: “I’m fine now, thank you.”
There is a tea room on the left side of the hotel’s first floor, decorated in a fresh and elegant style. The floor is covered with tatami mats, and there is a circle of soft cushions around it. The room is enclosed by glass walls, allowing ample natural light. The automatic door is securely locked, and the interior is well cleaned.
Shen Shanwu expressed great satisfaction with this room. The next moment, he entered the room with a little less violence, as he needed to change the filter later and a broken door would be inconvenient.
Zhang Xiaowen was gently placed on the tatami by Milk Tea. Xu Ye immediately came over to check on her injuries, but he didn’t have even a nail clipper with him at the moment. If he wanted to tear the pants, he would have to use his teeth.
Milk Tea knew immediately what Xu Ye wanted to do. She squatted down again, saying, “Bear with it,” and quickly and skillfully used her nails to open Zhang Xiaowen’s pants.
The two filters placed on both sides of the wall emitted a faint green light. Zhang Xiaowen’s mask was put aside as she winced in pain, her face showing a mix of crying and smiling, quite a spectacle.
After laying the injured Xincheng Unit member on the ground, Wolf Dog sat in the corner with his hands in his pockets, crossing his legs, watching as Jiang Huan used the makeshift sterilization equipment salvaged from the car to treat the injured person.
“Her leg injury looks a bit serious,” Milk Tea walked over to Shen Shanwu, “but her life should be safe.”
“Does Jiang Huan know?”
“He knows. The lieutenant told him, and I just saw him sending a message to someone with a bunch of jumbled abbreviations that I couldn’t understand.”
Shen Shanwu smiled, “I told you not to neglect your studies in college and keep eating snail noodles all the time.”
“Ugh!” Milk Tea angrily hit Shen Shanwu’s shoulder with her ‘little powder fist,’ almost denting his shoulder blade. Amidst the banter, Shen Shanwu noticed from the corner of his eye that Jiang Huan was standing not far away, quietly looking at him. He wasn’t sure how long Jiang Huan had been watching, so Shen Shanwu instinctively retracted his smile and turned his gaze away.
Jiang Huan immediately looked away as well and continued to distribute food to the other team members. He spent the most time by Zhang Xiaowen’s side, saying words of comfort with an expressionless face. Then he stood up and joined Xu Ye and Zhong Yun, calmly discussing something together.
This is the usual Jiang Huan, the Jiang Huan that most people see.
Wolf Dog and Milk Tea sat on either side of the Executioner, cheering loudly as they watched him play video games. Shen Shanwu also moved closer, leaning his back against the wall with one leg bent and the other straight, forming a posture that made his 1.2-meter legs appear as if they were 1.9 meters long.
That must be Zhong Yin’s sister, Zhong Yun, Shen Shanwu thought. No matter when, her gaze always subconsciously falls on Jiang Huan, filled with affection and admiration that cannot be concealed.
The three of them seemed to have reached a conclusion in their discussion. Xu Ye nodded and walked back to take care of Zhang Xiaowen. Zhong Yin remained in place, opening her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but Jiang Huan had already shifted his gaze back to Shen Shanwu’s face.
Shen Shanwu was also quietly looking at him.
After a while, Shen Shanwu patted the cushion beside him and beckoned Jiang Huan with his index finger. Jiang Huan, as if finally granted permission, immediately walked over and took a seat. Before sitting down, he carefully took off the dirty cloak from his body, folded it neatly, and placed it at his feet before sitting down next to Shen Shanwu with great caution.
“When will the rescue team arrive?” Shen Shanwu asked, and Jiang Huan whispered in response, “In six hours. There’s a small human shelter about 200 kilometers away, built inside a hospital. But they need to wait until the zombie horde clears out before they can drive over.”
“Alright, we’ll wait until then. During this time, you can rest assured and rest. Don’t worry about safety issues,” Shen Shanwu said. This was entirely meant for Jiang Huan to hear. The others were still tense and anxious, worried about the intentions of the mutants, but that was completely beyond Shen Shanwu’s consideration.
Jiang Huan nodded and fell into silence. Just as Shen Shanwu was about to change the subject, he heard Jiang Huan say, “I thought you were dead.”
Shen Shanwu had prepared for this question multiple times and knew exactly how to respond to it to avoid any mistakes. He smiled in surprise and replied, “Dead? How is that possible? Mutants don’t die that easily, you know.”
“Someone told me, a mutant. He also gave me this nameplate.” Jiang Huan’s hand touched the nameplate he was wearing. “I hadn’t received any news from you for many years. Later, I heard from Lu Jingzhi and others… They said you came to see me once and told me that you were going to a very faraway place and might not come back for a very, very long time.”
“Hahaha.” Shen Shanwu reached out and ruffled Jiang Huan’s hair. It had become a habit for him, and it seemed Jiang Huan had been influenced by it too, as one of the few ways to express tenderness was to ruffle ‘Jiang Tong’s’ hair. “When I said ‘going to a very faraway place,’ I meant it literally. Don’t overthink it. By the way, were you influenced by that Prophet who said, ‘Mutants don’t have long lifespans’? He meant that mutants won’t live to be ninety-nine or a hundred, but we’ll still have a breeze in our sixties and seventies.”
“…” Jiang Huan pursed his lips and lowered his head. “It’s fine, as long as you’re alive.”
For over four years, countless sleepless nights, numerous nightmares, and endless worries were brushed aside by Shen Shanwu’s casual words, as if nothing had really happened.
Jiang Huan had no intention of telling Shen Shanwu anything, just as he said, as long as Shen Shanwu was alive, that was enough.
Shen Shanwu’s heart ached with a pang, and he heard Jiang Huan whisper, “I adopted a child who looks a lot like you.”
“Oh?” Shen Shanwu forced a natural smile and asked casually, “How much does he resemble me?”
“He really looks a lot like you… I named him Shen Jiangtong.” Jiang Huan raised his head again and asked sincerely, “Would you… like to come back with me and meet him?”
Meeting himself.
“Shen Jiangtong, Shen Shanwu, our names do seem to go well together,” Shen Shanwu said. “Let’s not meet for now; I have something to take care of.”
“Something?” Jiang Huan leaned forward anxiously, “Is it urgent? Are you going to a faraway place again?”
“Um.” Shen Shanwu couldn’t help but lean back a bit. “It’s not extremely urgent… but it’s somewhat important. You don’t have to worry too much, it’s just that…”
He was still struggling with how to phrase his words when he saw Jiang Huan suddenly clench his fists, “Shen Shanwu, there’s something I want to tell you, I—”
Shen Shanwu immediately covered his mouth, preventing Jiang Huan from saying what he wanted to. This physical action was quicker than Shen Shanwu’s own thoughts, and for a moment, they both froze, looking at each other in surprise.
The eyes were truly revealing of a person’s thoughts. Those glances that fell on the shoulders or the ends of the hair, seemingly unintentional, spoke volumes of deep emotions, impossible to conceal.
A perceptive person could understand everything with just one look.
The warm breath landed on Shen Shanwu’s palm, bringing a tingling sensation that made him blush. Gradually, it was he who blushed first, the scorching heat spreading from his cheeks to the roots of his ears. Shen Shanwu clenched his teeth and whispered, “Don’t say it, not now…”
Jiang Huan slightly widened his eyes, and his cheeks also flushed, but there was more anticipation and joy in his expression. He removed Shen Shanwu’s hand, and his eyes shone brightly, “Then when can I say it?”
Shen Shanwu: …Do you always have to be so direct?
He remained silent for a moment, then decided to play dead by turning his face away.
Shen Shanwu couldn’t help but be amused by Jiang Huan’s torrent of questions, “Today onwards, when can we meet again? What are your plans after this? Can I help you with anything? Besides the earlier question, I have so much more to say to you. How can I contact you? And what did you send me before? What did you write in those letters? Can you tell me?”
“…Do you usually talk this much?” Shen Shanwu couldn’t help but remark with a teasing tone.
Seeing Wolf Dog and Milk Tea both perking up their ears like antennas, and Jiang Huan not making any effort to lower his voice, Xu Ye and Zhang Xiaowen, who were closer, turned away from them, wishing they could needle the words “I am deaf” onto their backs. Shen Shanwu quickly leaned close to Jiang Huan’s ear and whispered, “When you all return to the base, I will come to find you that night.”
Jiang Huan clenched his lower lip and nodded vigorously.
Seeing him like this made Shen Shanwu annoyed. Not only did he hug and carry Jiang Huan just now, but he even wanted to… in front of everyone…
“Can you please be more cautious?”
“What?” Jiang Huan still pretended to be innocent.
“Can you trust all these people?” Shen Shanwu subtly gestured with his eyes towards the others present and whispered, “Your own team members may be fine, but there are clearly two members from other teams here. Can you be sure they won’t spread rumors? Do you realize the potential risks it might cause you in the future?”
“I don’t care,” Jiang Huan replied quickly, as if it hadn’t even crossed his mind or as if he had pondered it countless times and it had become a reflex. “I don’t care about any of that. I can immediately resign from the position of the leader of the Shanhai Unit and leave the Coastal Base.”
Shen Shanwu’s lips parted in astonishment as he looked at Jiang Huan in disbelief. The latter seemed a bit embarrassed as he nervously pinched his own fingers. “Of course, it would need your permission for me to leave; otherwise, it wouldn’t make any sense…”
“You..” Shen Shanwu stammered in surprise, “You have a love brain, don’t you? What are you always thinking about?”
“Love…brain?” Jiang Huan repeated somewhat incoherently. When he finally grasped the full meaning of these three words, he fell into silence, feeling embarrassed.
But soon after, Jiang Huan actually started to laugh. His smile was just as handsome and charming as before, with familiar features that Shen Shanwu recognized. Jiang Huan hadn’t laughed in such a long time until today, when he found something that could genuinely make him smile from the bottom of his heart.
The clear and gentle male voice was like a breeze carrying sunlight in the afternoon, with a hint of a shallow smile in the lingering notes. It was like a silver hook, not hooking fish but people’s hearts.
With that smile, Xu Ye was stunned, Zhong Yin was astonished, Zhang Xiaowen was dazed, and even Zhong Yun’s eyes were left dry and fixed in place.
Jiang Huan never smiled; it was an unspoken truth in the Shanhai Unit. Although Lu Jingzhi occasionally mentioned that Jiang Huan used to be different, others found it hard to imagine what Jiang Huan’s smile would look like.
The aloof and self-contained captain seemed to have engraved indifference into his genes, harboring a strong aversion to anything ambiguous or affectionate. The words “deep affection” were almost the antonyms of Jiang Han.
In fact, Zhong Yun had already accepted the fact that she might never be able to move this man with a heart as firm as a rock. She thought that Jiang Huan might never fall in love with anyone, but that didn’t stop her from being infatuated with him.
And this way is also good; even though Jiang Huan doesn’t belong to her, he won’t belong to anyone else either.
But she had never thought that Jiang Huan was not incapable of loving someone; he had just loved someone too early, giving his whole heart and soul without reciprocation, nearly ruining his life..
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