Chapter 144.1 - Raising a Big Cat in the Apocalypse (23.1)
Chapter 144.1 – Raising a Big Cat in the Apocalypse (23.1)
In the evening before everyone went to rest, they followed their usual practice and set up one obvious sentry and two secret sentries, with shifts changing every three hours.
Chi Xiaochi spoke up before Sun Yan could arrange his shift, “The 11PM to 2AM shift, Lanlan will be the sentry in the open, while Vice-captain Gu and I will be the hidden sentries.”
Gu Xinzhi, who was in the midst of putting away the barbecue rack, sped up his actions. He hugged all kinds of utensils to his chest and rushed out.
AD
The team members all looked at each other.
They were unable to get a clear read on Gu Xinzhi.
They’d been getting along together for so long, but Gu Xinzhi always seemed to drift along apart from them. His eyes and heart only had enough space to perfectly fit a Ding Qiuyun inside.
Over time, although the members of the team had gotten used to it, they couldn’t help but feel a chill go down their backs when they heard him talk about killing off new humans with such an indifferent attitude.
On the other hand, Gu Xinzhi was unable to understand the team members’ moods.
To be more precise, he had a lack of empathy that meant that he simply couldn’t sense the way the atmosphere had frozen at that moment.
In his opinion, he’d put forward a feasible proposal for Ding Qiuyun to look over. Since Ding Qiuyun was unhappy with it, then he would just treat it like he’d never said it at all.
The supermarket was only two stories high. Ding Qiuyun and Gu Xinzhi crouched together from the commanding height of the roof.
It was very cold that night. Ding Qiuyun wore a long scarf, while Boss lay at his feet to keep them warm. The soft fur brushed lightly against his ankles, just like a natural heater.
He was holding a baked sweet potato that he shared with Boss.
He ate the smaller half, while Boss ate the bigger half.
The black leopard rubbed against his ankles like a big cat and called out softly, “Ao.”
Chi Xiaochi communicated with it in a gentle tone, acting as though he could really understand its words, “It’s good, isn’t it? Sweet?”
The sweet potato really was sweet. Most of the flesh inside had been roasted until the sugar inside had melted, and one had to be careful when biting into it to not only avoid scalding the tongue, but also to avoid the juices overflowing out. So, Chi Xiaochi was eating it very delicately.
Boss didn’t have any such concerns. It swallowed the sweet potato down in one bite after it cooled down, then spent the rest of the time watching Chi Xiaochi eat while helping him clean the sweet potato bits that overflowed onto his fingers.
Chi Xiaochi shifted his ankles and showed off to 061. “Look, Liu-laoshi. My automatic hot water bottle.”
He reached his hand out again and let Boss lick the area between his thumb and forefinger. “… Automatic hand sanitizer.”
Then, he inserted his fingers into the leopard’s fur. “Automatic dryer.”
… His words were filled with pride for his multifunctional Boss.
Because he couldn’t afford even the slightest risk of losing Ding Qiuyun again.
Since Ding Qiuyun doted on it so much, he could only try to learn to appreciate it in order to make his own life better.
After a long period of self-convincing, Gu Xinzhi had reluctantly started to like this leopard.
At least, it could protect Qiuyun and become a shield for him.
But he was different. He was Qiuyun’s gun, a unique and unparalleled one.
Everyone went to sleep.
The open sentry was at the main entrance to the supermarket. The branches in the fire were burning, and there were the sounds of movement. Yan Lanlan sat beside the fire, using a thick branch to press down and gather together the stones all around. The silver bell on her wrist rang as she moved.
Gu Xinzhi asked Ding Qiuyun in a low voice, “Did you call me up here for something?”
Ding Qiuyun had specifically called him out by name to be hidden sentries together. He guessed that Ding Qiuyun must have something he wanted to tell him.
Sure enough, Ding Qiuyun spoke from his position with his back to him as he held Boss’ two front paws and patted them together in a clapping game. “Yes. It’s about the state-level weapons we discussed just now.”
Gu Xinzhi didn’t speak any more, and his expression didn’t change, but his fingers tightened around the corner of his clothing.
He waited in silence for Ding Qiuyun to rebuke him.
Ding Qiuyun’s tone still held the coldness and indifference that he was used to, “At the time, I asked you not to continue because I knew what you would say next. You hate the new humans so much?”
Gu Xinzhi frowned in incomprehension. “The new humans are different from us. They’re another species.”
Chi Xiaochi asked him directly, “What if I also got cancer one day?”
Gu Xinzhi was stunned for a few seconds, and then his eyebrows twisted in a deep frown, his voice turning cold and hard, “You won’t.”
“’What if’.”
“There is no such what if.”
Ding Qiuyun turned a deaf ear to his stubborn rebuttal and continued to himself, “In that case, I’ll also become a new human, and turn into what you call ‘another species’.”
Since Gu Xinzhi didn’t understand empathy, then he had to use Ding Qiuyun, the only one with whom he could establish an emotional connection with, as an example in order to facilitate his understanding.
Sure enough, Gu Xinzhi stopped talking.
He was thinking about what Ding Qiuyun would be like after he became a new human. Unexpectedly, he discovered that as long as that person was Ding Qiuyun, it wasn’t so difficult a thing to accept.
This discovery surprised Gu Xinzhi slightly.
Ding Qiuyun seemed able to grasp the moment his heart wavered. “When that time comes, would you kill me because I’m a new human?”
This was the one sentence that Gu Xinzhi couldn’t bear to hear the most. “No!”
… One blow hit the crux of the matter.
Ding Qiuyun changed his tone again easily, and while his voice was much softer this time, every word was full of oppression, “Old humans like us may one day become new humans. If you fire that missile, I may be one of those people who are blasted to death.”
Gu Xinzhi’s heart tensed up.
“However.” Ding Qiuyun said, “Your proposal isn’t that bad.”
In his last life, in addition to meeting a godly-level traitor like Gu Xinzhi, he had also suffered from the shortage of weapons and backward equipment.
Chi Xiaochi was too clear on the regrets he held in his heart, so he always put effort into making up for these things in his stead.
Chi Xiaochi first robbed the arsenal, and then gradually entered many military stations one after another. He took away a lot of weapons, and laid out an indestructible ring of firepower around his town.
But he wasn’t satisfied with just that.
Regardless of whether it was Ding Qiuyun or Chi Xiaochi, they both knew that if they wanted to survive in the apocalypse, short-term peace that came in exchange for consumables could never be considered real peace.
As a result, Chi Xiaochi had been eyeing the state-level arsenals for a long time.
When the disaster happened, those working in the relevant departments had immediately realized that the situation wasn’t right. Without having to discuss it, they’d simultaneously destroyed all the connections on the physical level between the weapons and the network, including the internal military network.
It had to be said that this had been a wise move. Once the connections were destroyed, all high-tech weapons became akin to rusty shovels left in a parking garage.
But they were still extremely important and precious weapons that must be obtained.
Most of the old humans were still focused on running for their lives and finding enough food and water for survival. They also had to be on guard against evolved animals and plants, and were barely struggling for survival. Most of the new humans also had their families to take care of, and a portion of them were unwilling to trust AI, choosing to flee; the others chose to work for the AI in order to protect their families.
The AI naturally wanted to snatch these weapons and really have a chokehold over human destiny, but they were often beaten back by the humans who were responsible for guarding the arsenals.
On one hand, these soldiers were shouldering a responsibility, and on the other hand, they also wanted to keep guard beside the weapons so that they had something to rely on. These two reasons naturally meant that they were dedicated to the task.
Chi Xiaochi had already made contact with the people who guarded the arsenal before meeting Gu Xinzhi.
They were all old humans who needed to maintain the most basic necessities for living. Therefore, they had organized special supply collection teams to go collect food.
The AI wanted to cut off their supply sources and force them to starve to death without having to fight. Therefore, their supply vehicles were often the AI’s new human faction’s main target, and every trip was a tough battle.
Once, Chi Xiaochi had taken several strong team members with him and made a long journey that lasted nearly half a month before arriving at the nearest military base.
He’d stalked the roadside, like a yellow finch waiting to catch the cicada after it had gotten the mantis. He waited at ease for the fatigued, helped the soldiers beat back the new humans, collecting the new humans’ weapons for himself and providing the soldiers with some supplies for free.
Chi Xiaochi had followed this model and done the same thing at least three times. His reason was always ‘just passing by’, and he’d also gotten rich harvests from the new humans.
061 once made fun of him, saying that he wasn’t just sending them charcoal in the snow, he was also removing two pieces from the basket.
That was true, but sending charcoal in the snow always left a bigger impression than simply adding icing onto a cake.
The commander dared to guarantee that after offering timely help three times, he’d already established his presence in the base commander’s heart. His impression of him was certainly a positive and trustworthy one.
After so long, these guards had already been seriously affected by hunger, cold, disease, and injuries from fighting. It was about time for them to start seeking ways to cooperate with others.
And Chi Xiaochi had been waiting for precisely such an opportunity.
The establishment and consolidation of the town had really taken up a lot of his time and effort. He also hadn’t wanted to reveal his intentions too early, so he had always kept them hidden. Unexpectedly, Gu Xinzhi had thought of the same thing.
However, this wasn’t surprising.
When Ding Qiuyun first fell in love with Gu Xinzhi, how could it not be because they were both of the same mind and got along well together?
It was just that Ding Qiuyun had believed Gu Xinzhi too much, and he hadn’t discovered that there was a gap between him and Gu Xinzhi that couldn’t be bridged.
Gu Xinzhi was stunned for a long time before understanding what the man in front of him meant. “You… think that I was right?”
“The first half of your words were acceptable.” Ding Qiuyun shrugged his shoulders. “As for the second half, I know you wouldn’t be able to spit out ivory even if I think with my heel.”
Gu Xinzhi pursed his lips and smiled.
There was a cold and deadly youthfulness about him, and there was even a trace of heart-throbbing innocence when he smiled, but Ding Qiuyun didn’t place his gaze on his body. He pulled out a flask of alcohol from his chest, unscrewed the lid, and drank a mouthful to warm himself up.
Ding Qiuyun spoke plainly, “I have important people to protect, and I can’t expose them to danger. But I know the real way to protect peace isn’t kindness, and it isn’t human feelings, but through fear. So, I want weapons and overwhelming power, and I want everything. We won’t take the initiative to kill, but we must be the strongest.”
Gu Xinzhi gazed at Ding Qiuyun without saying a word, his eyes filled with infatuation.
Although he couldn’t understand what kind of grand ambition this was, it must be very important since it was Ding Qiuyun’s wish.
He naturally took the initiative to volunteer, “Can I be entrusted with this matter?”
Ding Qiuyun glanced at him. “We’ll talk about it again later. I’ll think about it.”