HLLY Chapter 53

As Jiang Huan touched Shen Shanwu’s teeth, he inevitably brushed against his mouth, which was still familiarly cool with a lack of warmth, but the sensation of the tongue was surprisingly soft.

The tingling sensation left by the touch of the tongue against his fingertip sent electric shocks through his nerves, reaching deep into his soul.

Inevitably, Jiang Huan’s mind started to wander, and a multitude of indescribable images flashed through his thoughts… like if Shen Shanwu were willing to indulge him… the action would undoubtedly be incredibly cautious, with an ever-changing arrangement of postures, as he carefully managed his sharp teeth. This would make the process quite complex, perhaps due to excitement and nervousness, even causing Shen Shanwu’s forehead and eyelashes to become disheveled.

At this moment, his older brother would certainly not scold him, but he would definitely play some mischievous tricks, like indulgently smiling and approaching, making him shoulder the responsibility of cleaning up those things that had gotten on the curtain.

Seeing Jiang Huan’s gaze growing increasingly heated, Shen Shanwu helplessly curled his fingers and tapped his forehead, saying, “Little pervert, what are you thinking again?”

Jiang Huan’s earlobes turned red and burning, yet he candidly replied, seemingly shameless, “…Since you already called me a pervert, don’t you already know what I’m thinking?”

“…” Shen Shanwu sincerely felt that if he didn’t rein in this guy a bit, he would become more and more unruly. Seizing the opportunity while the Marshal and Lu Jingzhi were occupied with the dog and the antelope respectively, Shen Shanwu leaned closer to Jiang Huan’s ear and whispered, “Do you know, the world of mutants is a bit different from humans…”

Jiang Huan blushed and pretended to be clueless, “…Which side?”

Shen Shanwu didn’t foolishly explain it to Jiang Huan, he continued on his own, slowly saying, “As long as we want, there are no constraints. And what we secrete is just clear water.”

“…”

“So,” Shen Shanwu’s finger traced along Jiang Huan’s earlobe, then lightly flicked the soft flesh, “remember to include these two points in your imagination next time.”

Without needing Shen Shanwu’s reminder, Jiang Huan’s thoughts had already drifted from their initial topic to the subsequent clean-up process. Though clear water might lack some visual impact, it was convenient and easy to manage. Moreover, the instant effect seemed to be quite comparable to that of humans.

Well, as long as it was Brother Shen’s idea, everything was good and delightful.

The dinner at Marshal’s house was a harmonious affair. After years of absence, Jiang Huan took the initiative to step inside, called out “grandma,” and sat down to eat, indicating a softening of his attitude.

Because Shen Shanwu was still alive, and because the misunderstanding between the two had been cleared, Jiang Huan was willing to choose forgiveness.

The old lady had no further expectations, this was enough. Throughout the entire dinner, she didn’t utter a word, just silently watching her grandson and that special man.

Mirroring her behavior in a similar manner was that man, though Shen Shanwu wasn’t being silent, he barely touched his chopsticks, not out of rudeness or restraint… just sheer pickiness.

Silky gourds, eggplants, winter melons, glossy red braised pork, rich bone broth as thick as milk, fragrant garlic-smeared pork, complemented by Aunt Gong’s special sauce – it was truly a feast.

The Marshal spared no expense; any of these dishes could astound him with their extravagance elsewhere — if only they weren’t all dishes that Shen Shanwu didn’t enjoy.

So, this finicky mutant came up with a random excuse to skip dinner: mutants like him didn’t possess functioning organs for digestion, stomach acids, or various beneficial bacterial communities, so he couldn’t eat without encountering severe digestion problems – whatever goes in would come right back out.

Jiang Huan knew Shen Shanwu was just talking nonsense as soon as he heard it. It was clear that when he was still Jiang Tong, he ate heartily. However, he wasn’t going to expose the lie. But later, out of curiosity about how Shen Shanwu’s zombie-like teeth could consume food, Jiang Huan forcibly handed him a large bone used for making soup, inviting his dear “Brother Shanwu” to demonstrate his iron teeth by shattering the bone.

Shen Shanwu gave him a cold smile, and with a crisp sound, he bit through the tough bone that could crush a small walnut, shattering Jiang Huan’s fantasy about a certain aspect for a long time.

Maybe… should he take care of that matter instead?

*

After returning, the Shanhai Unit began preparations for the upcoming Representative Assembly of Wuyou City, which was scheduled for a month later. Jiang Huan found himself attending more meetings daily than before. He had to grasp the guiding principles of leadership, understand the needs of various levels below him, and also find time to write speeches for the meetings.

Meanwhile, on Shen Shanwu’s side, the school had resumed, and to avoid arousing suspicions among the other members of the team, he had to attend classes diligently.

Their homeroom teacher, Tao Han, seemed completely oblivious to any issues. He continued to teach with his usual gentle demeanor, casually catching students who were trying to sneak out through the back door window.

Tao Yi’s face had mostly recovered by now, and the seer was planning for the two of them to meet soon. So, in order to prepare Tao Han mentally for the encounter, Shen Shanwu casually asked after a class, “Teacher Tao, are you married?”

“I’m not married,” Tao Han set aside the red pen used for grading assignments, “Why do you ask?”

“Just pure curiosity… How about children, Teacher?” Shen Shanwu inquired.

Tao Han smiled faintly, “Jiang Tong, your teacher doesn’t even have a wife, how could I have children?”

“But you seem to have a really good temperament, and you’re patient and caring. I thought maybe you had children,” Shen Shanwu blurted out with his eyes closed, making up stories on the spot. After all, he hadn’t felt any of these traits from Tao Han, except for the ever-present ‘death gaze from the homeroom teacher’.

“Hahaha, is that so? My patience was developed from looking after my nephew during his training,” Tao Han chuckled, his smile unwavering. “My little nephew could be quite a troublemaker. He was mischievous from a young age.”

“Ah, Teacher’s nephew? Is it my older brother or younger brother?”

Tao Han didn’t immediately respond to Shen Shanwu’s question. He seemed lost in thought, and after a moment, he sighed and said with a wry smile, “Well, that’s not an easy question to answer, even for me. If he had survived until now, he would be your older brother.”

Shen Shanwu immediately showed an apologetic expression, “I’m sorry…”

“No need to apologize, Teacher has long moved on,” Tao Han sincerely felt that Jiang Tong, when he was well-behaved and understanding, was truly endearing and lovable. And when he was mischievous, he was often playful. The key was that he was intelligent, quickly learning anything he was taught, making it hard to get angry at him.

After Shen Shanwu left, Tao Han, who had previously confidently claimed to have moved on from his nephew’s death, suddenly lost interest in grading assignments and preparing lesson plans. His thoughts were in disarray as he stared at the marked lines with a red pen. He couldn’t help but run his hand through his hair in frustration before emptying his water cup in a single gulp.

Moved on? If it were so easy for him to move on, he wouldn’t have insisted on taking the already bitten Tao Yi and hiding in the refuge zone back then.

The reasoning was understood by everyone, but when disaster struck, no one could escape its grasp.

The time it takes for different individuals to fully mutate after being bitten or scratched by zombies varies greatly. Some succumb within minutes, while the longest recorded instance was a person who held on for a full six days. However, during those six days, the person’s mind was gradually corroded by the zombie virus, and the signs of mutation became increasingly evident. Their blood vessels protruded, veins stood out, they rambled incoherently, and their high fever persisted. They were quarantined early on.

Tao Yi was also among the latter group. After being bitten, he didn’t immediately mutate. Trembling with fear, he asked Tao Han if he was going to die. Faced with his young nephew, Tao Han couldn’t possibly allow him to venture into the refuge zone alone.

The wound behind Tao Han’s ear was very subtle, a small white line with just a single streak of red blood. A rub was enough to make the wound nearly invisible. Both of them clung to a sense of luck, managing to slip into the refuge zone.

Back then, during the early days of the apocalypse, the coastal base wasn’t even referred to as such. Instead, there were many small refuge zones scattered around. Internal management was quite chaotic, far from the strict organization seen today. Tao Han was not the only one taking such measures; incidents of zombies harming people within the safe zones were common.

Coincidentally, the place where Tao Han and Tao Yi were temporarily residing at that time is the same classroom dormitory where Tao Han now lives. There’s an underground basement within the room, complete with chains and handcuffs readily available. Tao Yi blushed and mentioned that the previous occupant of the room must have had some secretive hobbies, earning a scolding from Tao Han for randomly looking at inappropriate things.

On the first day after being bitten, Tao Yi behaved as usual, curiously exploring their new living space. He discovered the basement and excitedly called his uncle to take a look, as normal as can be. However, the very next morning, he was burning up and quickly lost consciousness.

High fever is the first sign of mutation, and Tao Han was completely at a loss at that moment. His nephew was his last remaining family in this world. Tao Yi had been attached to him since childhood, often preferring to stick with him rather than pay attention to his parents.

When Tao Han’s older brother got bitten, he sacrificed himself to block the entrance, leaving Tao Yi in his care. Tao Han had already made up his mind that he would rather die than let anything happen to Tao Yi.

He stayed by Tao Yi’s bedside without sleep, holding onto his burning and weak hand, praying that his nephew could pull through. Tao Han was a professional educator and a staunch atheist, never believing in intangible things. However, in this moment of complete helplessness, he could only hope for a miracle and humbly pray for divine mercy.

During one night, Tao Yi briefly regained consciousness. He took out a self-defense knife and handed it to Tao Han.

“Uncle,” his pupils were filled with bloodshot veins, and a faint haze had crept into his irises, “I’m sorry, Uncle… I won’t be here anymore, you’ll live more easily without me.”

“No, no, you have to keep going, you’re my little sun.” Tao Han cried, pressing Tao Yi’s hand against his cheek. A grown man was crying like a child, “You can’t be so cruel to Uncle, you’re the only family I have left…”

Tao Yi surprisingly smiled faintly, “Uncle, I want to go see Mom and Dad.”

“No, you can’t go, listen to Uncle, you’re not allowed to go!”

“I’m sorry…”

No matter how many times Tao Han said not to go, even to the point of losing his voice, three hours later, when Tao Yi opened his eyes once again, the black-red pupils were devoid of any emotion. His sharp teeth moved meaninglessly, and from his mouth came only unintelligible sounds, no longer the familiar ‘Uncle.’

Tao Han couldn’t bring himself to do it, no matter how much mental preparation he underwent, he couldn’t bring himself to kill ‘Tao Yi’. He locked Tao Yi in the basement, and every time he opened the door, he would fantasize, what if? Perhaps? Maybe?

But deep within Tao Han’s heart, he knew rationally that nothing would change.

This kind of life continued for many years. Tao Han grew increasingly afraid of that door, afraid of encountering his hysterical nephew. He blocked the door with a bookshelf and gradually reduced the number of visits.

Finally, due to an increase in the population, the school decided to convert every classroom dorm into double rooms. Tao Han’s dorm would inevitably be assigned a new teacher roommate, and Tao Han found himself at a crossroads.

He took a day off and sat in front of the basement door for a whole day and night. Then, the next day, he brought a bucket of cement and sealed the door completely.

He wasn’t as strong as Tao Yi thought he was, not as invincible. He wanted his nephew’s “life” to forever stay by his side…

Today’s classes were already over, and Tao Han had lost interest in sitting in the office any longer. He tidied up his things early and prepared to go back to his dormitory to sleep.

Before opening the door, Tao Han heard voices and footsteps inside the room. He thought it was his roommate bringing someone over as a guest, so he walked in without much attention, saying as he lowered his head to change his shoes, “Old Zhang, you don’t have classes today either? Isn’t it your turn to be on duty in the 7th-grade dormitory building?”

The room was silent, without any response, not even the sound of breathing.

“Old Zhang?” Tao Han turned back in puzzlement, only to see a young man with his face covered by a hood standing beside the bookshelf. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, and he was only about 1.6 meters tall.

Tao Han’s first thought was that this was a student from one of the classes, but as he noticed the slight trembling of the person’s body, an unthinkable and terrifying idea rushed into his mind. This idea came abruptly and made Tao Han shudder involuntarily.

Impossible. Tao Han tried to call back his rationality. It’s absolutely impossible. Maybe it was because Jiang Tong had mentioned Xiao Yi earlier, which led him to make such an association?

“Which class are you from?” Tao Han’s voice was hoarse, like a rusty saw. “How did you get in here? Did Teacher Zhang let you in? Take… take off the hood.”

The young man remained silent, without making any movement.

Tao Han felt increasingly impatient due to the young man’s slow response. He heightened his tone and reiterated, “Take off the hood!”

The young man finally responded to Tao Han’s words. He pulled his hands out of his pockets, and the sharp black nails made Tao Han gasp in astonishment. However, just a second before Tao Han could exclaim, Xiao Yi took off the hood, and a surge of warmth welled up in Tao Han’s throat:

“Uncle.”

Along with this familiar address, there fell two lines of tears, emanating from the inhuman black-red eyes…

 

 

 

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