Seriously? This is way over the top.
It was the first time she'd ever seen enough gold bars to be called a "pile"!
Li Xingye, unaware that Chi Wan was stunned by the pile of gold bars, continued, "This stuff is useless to us, so we don't have much in stock. If you like it, I can go gather some more for you later. Over here, they're not even worth as much as a hot meal."
Chi Wan stared at the gold bars in silence. 'Useless? Who said gold bars are useless? These are *so* useful! If I can trade one meal for a gold bar, I could feed you until you go bankrupt!'
Suppressing her excitement, she took a deep breath. "What else do you want to eat? Sunflower seeds, soda, mineral water, hot pot, beer, barbecue skewers… you name it!"
Li Xingye's mouth watered just hearing Chi Wan list off all the food. At the same time, he couldn't help but be amused by her eager tone. "If it's possible… could you get me some non-perishable food? Because of the environment here, even instant noodles won't last half a month."
Chi Wan understood. 'No wonder they were so short on food. A place where even instant noodles go bad… and he's survived for ten years… He must be good at toughing it out.'
She thought for a moment. "You can have all the snacks and water in my space; take whatever you want. As for everything else, I'll go to a supermarket in the city tomorrow and stock up for you. I promise I'll get you all plump and healthy~"
What can you do? College girls are just that enthusiastic.
"Oh, right! You absolutely, positively cannot let any zombies get into the space!"
Chi Wan's voice was crisp and clear, full of a youthful energy unique to girls her age. For Li Xingye, who was long accustomed to being shrouded in death and despair, it inexplicably lightened his mood.
He let out a low chuckle. "Don't worry. I'm very strong. The zombies are no match for me."
Before, Li Xingye's voice had been terribly hoarse from dehydration, starvation, and not speaking for so long.
But now that he was rehydrated and had spoken a little more, his natural tone began to emerge.
It was somewhere between a man's and a boy's voice, slightly magnetic but not a forced, deep vocal fry. It was very pleasant to listen to, and her good impression of him grew.
Chi Wan was thinking how nice his voice sounded, but then a thought occurred to her. She hesitated for a moment before asking, "Um, Li Xingye, how old are you?"
Li Xingye seemed stumped by the question. He thought for a moment, then spoke slowly as if recalling a memory. "The apocalypse seems to have started the year I turned ten."
Ten years old!
Chi Wan's eyes widened. That meant Li Xingye was only twenty now.
'He's only two years older than me, but he's already survived in this cruel, post-apocalyptic world for ten years…'
If Chi Wan had previously felt a sense of novelty and fun about this, now she just felt a pang of sorrow. Her feelings for Li Xingye turned to sympathy.
"By the way, do you like fruit? My family has an orchard with lots of fruit trees. There are pears, loquats, plums, apricots… but mostly oranges. We just took over the orchard, though, so I don't know if they're any good…"
As she spoke, Chi Wan suddenly thought of Liu Dali and his cronies, and her voice trailed off.
Li Xingye didn't notice. Just hearing Chi Wan rattle off the names of fruits like she was reciting a menu was enough to make him swallow hard. "Anything is fine! The last time I had fresh fruit was right when the apocalypse started. I've almost forgotten what it tastes like."
"Right, what's your name? What do you like? Diamonds? Jade? Or gold? I'll go out tomorrow and find some to trade for fruit!"
Being able to help someone while also getting a handsome reward made Chi Wan quite happy.
She smiled. "My name is Chi Wan. These gold bars you gave me are enough to buy tons of stuff! I'll go get you some fruit tomorrow. Hmm, and I'll grab some self-heating hot pots and things."
But speaking of fruit, she couldn't help but think of her family's current predicament, and she let out an almost inaudible sigh.
'It seems Liu Dali has no intention of properly returning the orchard to her family. She didn't dare go see what they were doing in the orchard now, afraid she'd run right into them.'
'But luckily, Chi Wan had recorded their conversations on her phone. If something really happened to the orchard, she would just call the police!'
After chatting with Li Xingye for a while longer, Chi Wan suddenly felt that the time spent hiding in the closet wasn't so unbearable after all.
Perhaps it was because she'd taken his payment, but Li Xingye's voice was gentle, and he answered all her questions. If she hadn't heard the voices of Liu Dali and his men outside the cabin again, Chi Wan might have drifted off to sleep, lost in the sound of his voice.
She glanced at the time. It was five in the morning. More than two hours had passed since they'd gone to the orchard to cause trouble. They were probably back to drop off their tools.
Patiently waiting for the men to leave, Chi Wan waited another ten minutes or so before finally climbing out of the closet—she had no choice, her legs were numb from being cramped up for so long.
Chi Wan quickly said to Li Xingye, "Okay, I'm going to stock up on supplies for you later. Don't you worry, I've got you covered from now on! As long as I have meat to eat, you'll have soup to drink!"
With that, she exited the space, ready to contact her parents and check on the orchard.
On the other side of the space, Li Xingye heard the girl's playful, cheerful voice and couldn't help but smile.
Sitting in the dilapidated, abandoned house, Li Xingye thought of Chi Wan's sweet, clear voice. It was like the memory of the last juicy apple he'd ever eaten.
Ever since then, he had lived in a despair so dark he couldn't see any light, supported only by that single sweet memory to keep himself from collapsing.
But now, he seemed to see a glimmer of hope.
A warmth spread through Li Xingye's once cold and desolate heart. 'Maybe… maybe I can really lead everyone through this apocalypse.'
*
Chi Wan called Chi Yuanshan and briefly explained the situation.
Chi Yuanshan's groggy voice was instantly shocked into clarity. But his first words were, "Sweetheart, you did the right thing. Don't, under any circumstances, get into a conflict with them! Your safety is the most important thing. Just stay hidden in the closet. Don't be scared, Mom and Dad are on our way!"
As he spoke, a chaotic flurry of activity erupted on the other end of the line.
She even heard her mother, Song Yinghe's, sharp cry: "Wanwan!! Hang on, Mommy's coming to save you!!"
Hearing her parents' worried words, the string that had been pulled taut in Chi Wan's mind finally snapped. Her eyes grew hot as a wave of pent-up grievance washed over her.
She sniffled, her voice finally catching with a sob. "Don't worry, I recorded everything they said. How can people be so evil!"
Hearing Chi Wan's words, Chi Yuanshan wished he could sprout wings and fly to his daughter's side that very instant.
He didn't hang up. He comforted Chi Wan while rushing up the mountain, his words interspersed with Song Yinghe complaining that Chi Yuanshan never should have let Chi Wan stay on the mountain alone.
Listening to them bicker, Chi Wan couldn't help but smile at the sight of Chi Yuanshan not daring to talk back, instead using his reassurances to her as a way to dodge Song Yinghe's fire.
She made a resolution in her heart. 'No matter what Liu Dali and his men are planning, I absolutely cannot let them succeed!'