Ch108 - Provincial Stadium

Translator: transcendentwings

Editor: xiaobian

The closer they got to the city, the harder it became to navigate. Whether on the main streets or the smaller dirt roads; abandoned vehicles, wandering zombies, body parts, and bloodstains were everywhere.

The Wusheng class continued on their way, occasionally switching between the smaller and larger roads, but their main focus was still to head straight north.

Thanks to the ancient city’s grid-like layout, the main roads ran across the city from true south to north and true east to west, dividing the metropolis into neat, square grids, alluding to the ancient saying that the sky was round and the earth was square.

In the new era, with economic development, subways have opened, overpasses have been built, andring roadscircled the city in loops. From above, these emerging transportation routes seemed to connect every corner of the city. Yet as you walk through the city, you’ll inadvertently notice that there are more straight roads than winding ones, more main paths than side streets. This was ingrained in the city’s DNA over thousands of years, weathering the storms of advancement and urbanization, while remaining resilient and profound.

The Wusheng class chose the main thoroughfare that ran south to north as it pierced through the center of the city. This route offered the shortest distance, the widest road, and the most comprehensive view for those seeking to penetrate the city. Even if they encountered obstacles, they could escape in all directions. No matter where they desired to go in the city, they could reach the corresponding parallel point on this road, then turn and dive right in.

More importantly, the Wusheng class’s first choice, the provincial stadium, lay directly beside this main south-north thoroughfare. If Qiao Siqi’s “mansion” was located in a densely populated area nestled deep in the mountains and forests, then the provincial stadium sat at the foot of that mountain. As long as they could reach the base of the mountain, they could abandon the car and leave without venturing into the forest.

“Still no signal. . .”

Song Fei shoved his phone back in his pocket in disappointment, sighing against Qi Yan’s chest.

In the BMW, Qi Yan cuddled Song Fei in the shotgun seat. Wu Zhou, Fu Xiyuan, Feng Qibai, and Zhao He were crammed tightly together in the back seat, slightly staggered in a zigzag manner while Kuang Ye lay in their arms.

Originally, the relatively slender Feng Qibai should’ve been lying sideways, but unfortunately, the three students from sports education along with the swimming champion Kuang-tongxue, all had a tough and masculine vibe thus when squeezed shoulder to shoulder in the back row, they either had one of their butts hovering off the seat, or were too widely staggered front and back. Instead, in this way, although they were able to stay fully seated, utilizing the space as efficiently as they could, it made it impossible for Feng Qibai to slide across sideways and he would have been forced to squeeze in between the front and back rows. Thus, with no other options, Feng Qibai and Kuang Ye were compelled to swap places. The former slipped in side by side with the three students from the sports education department, while the latter, pretended to be adonkey-skin shadow puppetand inserted himself sideways, legs slightly bent, so the door could be shut and they could proceed on their way.

“Just try more excessively.” Kuang Ye suggested, feeling packed like a sardine from head to toe with only his mouth able to retain movement.

“That’s not certain,” Fu Xiyuan disagreed, “The water and electricity haven’t been cut off, so it’s not impossible that the signal is bad.”

“The water and electricity are the only things that haven’t gone out.” Qi Yan sighed softly, a rare display of visual dejection.

Song Fei tilted his head back, puzzled, to look at him: “What do you mean?”

Qi Yan couldn’t help but touch the other’s face before countering: “How long has it been since you last spotted any smog?”

Song Fei was taken aback.

When they had initially exited the university grounds, he’d been thinking that while such a blue sky was beautiful, he still strangely missed thePM2.5. Now, after Qi Yan’s question, he realized that it wasn’t the actual air pollution that he missed, but the underlying cause—industrial activity. But now, the industrial production that had persisted at the beginning of the zombie outbreak had vanished, along with the smog.

Seeing Song Fei’s hesitation but evident understanding, Qi Yan shifted to hug him more tightly: “Stop thinking about it.”

Song Fei shook his head slowly but firmly: “No, I need to think. I need to analyze whether we’ve reached the worst-case scenario.”

Qi Yan was helpless: “Even if we have, what would you even be able to do about it?”

“Then are we just supposed to do nothing and just wait until we dieah!” Song Fei struggled out of his embrace, straightening his back. He turned around, sitting upright to face hisBF. The glow of the omniscient school’s forum lingered on the matter-of-fact expression on his face, “As Taoist philosophy illustrates, when things hit rock bottom, they rebound. Anything that progresses and reaches its most extreme low will inevitably rise stronger and usher in a brand new tomorrow. This is an irrefutable and objective law!”

Qi Yan: “. . .”

Song Fei: “Handsome, why are you sporting such a speechless expression?”

Sighing deeply with frustration, Qi Yan asked with rare patience: “Who told you thatbottoming out and reboundingis a Taoist philosophy?”

Song Fei froze, blinking exaggeratedly: “Isn’t it?”

“It’sat an extreme, things can only move in the opposite direction!”

“Same ideama.”

“. . .”

TheBFafter their reunion had addressed many of his shortcomings and highlighted many of his skills, but his zero tolerance for academic ambiguity remained unchanged.

After staring at each other for two seconds, Song Fei was defeated by Qi-xueba’s awe-inspiring righteousness. He shrank his neck and peeked over hisBF’s shoulder at the back row of friends and family for help: “So where did bouncing back after hitting rock bottom come from?”

The three musketeers from sports education started to admire the sunroof, the car windows, and one of them even started hummingLoituma Girl.

Comrade Feng from the art department simply hid behind his other comrades-in-arms, not even exposing his head.

Finally, with difficulty, Kuang-tongxue, whose jade-like body was sprawled out, lifted his upper body and poked his head out from behind the seat. With the air of a potential Fortune Global 500 employee, he gave the class leader the long-sought answer: “That’s a finance term. . .”

As they chattered, the vehicle had already entered the city limits.

There were no more dirt roads to drive on and as early as ten minutes earlier, the Wusheng class had returned to the main thoroughfare.

The buildings on both sides were noticeably more numerous, but perhaps because the streets were deserted, they also seemed completely silent. Many of the shops along the street had been vandalized, their windows shattered and the ground marred by a state of devastation.

Hearing the sound of a car, many zombies poured out of the various buildings. They were scattered in small groups of three to five, and before they could even come close to the moving vehicle, they were already left in the dust by the Wusheng class.

The students wondered if this was a good thing or a bad thing. Did the lack of zombies mean that the majority of people were still safely stowed away in the buildings?

“Where are we now?” Li Jingyu asked the driver as he leaned forward to grasp the driver’s seat.

As a well-behaved student who rarely ventured into the city, Little Whale now found everything unfamiliar.

Qiao Siqi, wary of the buildings on either side of the road while also keeping an eye on the road ahead, was momentarily taken aback: “Ah?”

“We’re about to enter the third ring road now.” Ma Weisen, comfortably seated on He Zhiwen’s voluptuous lap, answered for Qiao-tongxue.

Li Jingyu: “I remember you said that the stadium was next to the second ring?”

Ma Weisen: “That’s right, if we maintain the current speed, it’ll only take twenty minutes.”

He Zhiwen: “I don’t know if Qiao Siqi can keep up this pace, but I really can’t. Wilson-ge, everyone’s legs are made of flesh. . .”

Ma Weisen patted He-tongxue’s head soothingly, coaxing him halfheartedly: “Just bear with it, it’ll pass if you grit your teeth.”

He Zhiwen frowned: “Then dare we switch seats? You’ll grit your teeth for me once too.”

Ma Weisen: “You have to face reality. I’m thinner than youah. . .”

He Zhiwen: “Then I’m shorter than youne!”

Ma Weisen: “How could that be, you just don’t look like you’re tall, it’s a matter of proportion. . .”

He Zhiwen: “Get lost, I’m only1.69 meterstall with shoes on!”

Ma Weisen: “. . .”

Li Jingyu, Lin Dilei, Huang Mo, Wang Qingyuan: “. . .”

“Xiao-He, you didn’t have to try that hardba. . .” Luo Geng turned around from his spot in the trunk, clinging to the back seat as he revealed his head, “How about we switch? It’s so intense here, it’s like a miniatureHappy Valley!”

He Zhiwen: “. . . That, Wilson-ge, I think if I clench my teeth and hold on for another twenty minutes, I should be okay.”

—No comparison, no harm.

While they bantered, the two vehicles, one in front and the other following, reached the third ring road.

However after only two intersections, Qiao Siqi had to slam on the brakes.

Him braking wasn’t such a big deal, but as luck would have it, Zhou Yilu, who was following closely behind, had his cashmere scarf blown off his head by the windowless vehicle, thus blinding him at that moment such that when Qiao Siqi’s stomped on the brakes, by the time Zhou Yilu managed to pull the scarf away from his eyes, the bright red jeep was already right in front of him.

Fortunately, the car wasn’t going very fast and with an abrupt turn of the steering wheel, he swerved, dodging the jeep, and then also braked hard!

Song Fei, caught off guard, slammed his head against the windshield.

The five people in the back row also finally got to experience the benefits of a tight squeeze, like a buckle, completely motionless.

“What the hell?!” Zhou Yilu yelled into the walkie-talkie, keeping a sharp eye out through the window for zombies that might burst out at any moment.

“I can’t get through up ahead! There’s a pile up, and it’s completely blocked!” Qiao Siqi anxiously informed from the other side of the walkie-talkie.

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Yet Zhou Yilu was accustomed to questioning him. Let alone Captain America, even if it were theMonkey King, it still wouldn’t fly: “Are you sure?”

Qiao Siqi: “Ha? I’m telling you, there’s not a single side street in this city that I don’t know. Even the traffic police don’t know the roads better than I do!”

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—What does it mean for areckless driverlike Qiao Siqi to go through a whole semester without receiving a single ticket? It means he’s mastered the streets and alleys, perfectly dodging every camera. . . The very capillary blood vessels of this city were held in the palm of his hand!

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However, this road was clearly not meant for cars. Bicycles were parked between the buildings on either side, and occasionally one or two would be knocked over by Qiao Siqi’s jeep causing Zhou Yilu to slam on the brakes and drive over them like he was going over a speed bump with agedenggedeng.

After all of these twists and turns, Zhou Yilu had lost his bearings and could only mindlessly follow Qiao Siqi’s lead. He could vaguely sense that they were still heading north, just that they were taking a winding route instead of a straight one.

After about half an hour, the car seemed to have entered the second ring road as the number of office buildings had noticeably increased and the residential areas they passed were all newly built.

Along with the modern atmosphere, came the accompaniment of zombies.

One time, when they were driving onto the pedestrian sidewalk, two zombies clambered directly onto Zhou Yilu’s window frame and if Zhou Yilu hadn’t reacted quickly and steered away, his arm would’ve been chomped on.

“Song Fei—” Qiao Siqi’s urgent call suddenly came from the walkie-talkie.

Already disoriented, Song-tongxuewas stunned for a moment before reacting and swiftly picked up the walkie-talkie: “I’m here!”

Qiao Siqi: “The provincial stadium is just ahead on this lane, but that side is all just highways, so it’s bound to be packed with traffic. We won’t be able to get through, what should we do?”

Song Fei: “How close can we get?”

As they spoke, the Wrangler had already pulled out of the lane and the windshield suddenly opened up, revealing a view of the stadium in the distance, decorated with a dense swarm of vehicles nearby, some stuck, others overturned, or in a collision with bicycles and electric bikes.

“We can’t get close. It’s at least another three hundred meters!”

Just as Qiao Siqi finished speaking, Zhou Yilu’s car reached the end of the path. Turning right, the red jeep and the scene in front of it became clear. Zhou Yilu didn’t stop, but he slowed down.

“What if we abandon the cars and charge through it?” Song Fei pressed the walkie-talkie, but his eyes were fixed on Qi Yan.

Before Qiao Siqi could say anything, Qi Yan shook his head, caution his instinct: “We don’t know the situation at the stadium. What if we break through and the people inside won’t open the door or there’s no one alive inside, then what would we do?”

Song Fei was conflicted, keeping his silence.

“Sh*t, we can’t see clearly from hereah—” Anxiously, Zhao He cranked the car window down to help his comrade get a better look, but as Qiao Siqi had said, at a distance of several hundred meters, it was impossible to see clearly.

However, an even closer distance also didn’t necessarily guarantee visibility. After all, except for the open-air dome, the stadium itself was completely enclosed and from the outside, all that could be seen was an impenetrable wall.

“The Chinese nation is facing its most severe test in history, but I believe that with the unity of the people of this country, we will overcome this difficult time and usher in a bright new tomorrow. . .”

Under the warm winter sun, a familiar voice drifted over.

“Following is the international news. After the United States, Canada, and Mexico have also declared a state of emergency. As of now, an unknown virus has broken out in 28 countries worldwide. . .”

The jeep team heard it first and the BMW team a few seconds later, but it didn’t change the fact that the comrades in both vehicles were shocked.

Ultimately it was still Qiao Siqi who reacted first, his voice trembling as he asked into the walkie-talkie: “You, did you guys hear that. . .”

Song Fei, with his spirit returning to his senses, suppressed his excitement and pressed the talk button: “What are you waiting for, runah—”

The doors of the two cars opened simultaneously, and more than a dozen people bolted towards the stadium!

The zombies on either side of the road that were attracted by the sound of the engines, were slowly closing in. Seeing the living people rush out, they went into a frenzy and also ambled over, chasing them hot on their heels!

Qi Yan was the slowest to react of the entire convoy. In fact, he had even tried to hold Song Fei back as the other charged forward, but it couldn’t be helped that although hisBFseemed as quiet as a virgin, he was as agile as a mad dog, making him impossible to pull back after simply dashing forth!

Qi Yan had no choice but to get moving to keep up.

After a while, he was at the very end of the sixteen-man squad. Wang Qingyuan was second to last, a mere body length ahead of him.

The hordes of zombies surrounding them from both sides of the road converged and formed a pursuing force that was only a mere dozen meters away from the rear of the Wusheng class!

Song Fei and Qiao Siqi, the fastest runners from the Wusheng class, had already reached the nearest exit of the stadium!

What was even more exciting was that not only were there no zombies near the exit, but there were also two men in police uniforms guarding it. Despite only seeing their silhouettes, it was enough to reassure them and smooth over the anxiety that had been hanging onto them for a month!

“Help—” Qiao Siqi’s voice reached them before they even arrived.

Song Fei was about to give his teammate a thumbs-up when he saw the two “police officers” stagger unnaturally after hearing the shouts.

Song Fei instinctively wanted to stop, but inertia kept him going, albeit not as fast as before.

Qiao Siqi had no sense of danger, just as Song Fei slowed down, he had already reached the backs of the “policemen”, who had also just turned around—

One had no right cheek.

The other had no chin.

Qiao Siqi crashed directly into the chinless one’s arms, completely wooden.

Song Fei gritted his teeth and rushed forward, attempting to pull them apart, but it was too late. The zombie was about to raise its arm to grab Qiao Siqi.

Song Fei accelerated, no longer pulling away, and rammed straight into the zombie and Qiao Siqi together.

The exit door was open and the moment he pitched forward, Song Fei caught a glimpse of the scenery inside.

Hell.

It was not a hell on earth, just hell.

Under the blindingly bright sunlight, an entire track and field was filled with zombies. They stood stiffly, huddled together, dazed, and empty. Compared to the zombies outside, they seemed even less driven to eat. They simply stared at a single point in the void, as if that point occupied their entire mental faculties.

A sharp pain shot through his wrist.

Song Fei shuddered, regaining consciousness just as a flash of white light passed by.

Qiao Siqi was sent flying by his blow, thus the one ultimately falling into the zombie’s arms became himself.

Zhao He, who had rushed over, used metal chopsticks to help him finish off the zombie beneath him, but upon closer inspection, he saw that his wrist had already been gnawed on by zombie.

Even with the chopsticks lodged in the zombie’s forehead, the motionless corpse refused to let go.

Song Fei stared down at his wrist in a daze, mind blank for a moment.

The police-uniform clad zombie over there was being taken down by Wang Qingyuan and Luo Geng. While Qi Yan, on this side, had already arrived and practically ripped Song Fei’s arm out of the zombie’s mouth then without a second’s glance, he hauled the other up and ran off to the side!

Song Fei, still stupefied by the thought of having “gotten bitten”, was completely lost in the moment, unable to keep up with the following sequence of events.

However his friends had already figured out the direction they should aim for—The bus that was blocking the exit!

Song Fei had no recollection of how he’d made it onto the roof of the bus until Qi Yan roughly rolled up his sleeve and inspected him thoroughly. Then finally, with a sigh of relief, he hugged the other tightly, as if to strangle him.

“Fortunately, thank god. . .”

Qi Yan repeated this single phrase countless times.

The pursuing zombies surrounded the bus, attempting to climb up while the fourteen companions circled the roof, guarding it fiercely.

Song Fei finally recovered from the chaos, his first action being to break free from Qi Yan’s hold and raise his arm to take a look himself.

Qi Yan was furious as he berated the other: “Do you know how to feel scared now? What were you doing before!”

Song Fei ignored hisBF, after all, he was bound to get mad at him sooner or later, so he had to get down to business first—For example, launch himself at Ma Weisen with a quick, fierce hug!

Ma Weisen was currently crouching, jabbing at the zombies below, when the pounce nearly sent him careening over the edge.

“Are you crazyah—”

After turning around with difficulty, he roared at Song Fei. With life and death at stake, anyone would be enraged.

Song Fei met Ma-tongxue’s fuming face with yet another huge glomp: “My savior, please accept my kiss!” After declaring so, he was about to smooch the other on the forehead.

Ma Weisen immediately used his hands and feet to push the other away, pointedlyexposing the nature of such behavior with one needle prick: “Are you seeking gratitude or revengeah—”

The others watched on for a long time before realizing that while the zombie had indeed bitten Song Fei’s wrist, Song Fei was still wearing the wrist guard Ma Weisen had given him earlier. While the bite had hurt, it hadn’t actually broken any skin, and for Song Fei, it was a narrow escape.

Qi Yan didn’t know how else to rebuke the other and simply decided not to. He grabbed the man and was about to confront him about his impulsiveness and rashness when the bus suddenly jolted violently.

All the comrades lost their footing and He Zhiwen couldn’t even keep his balance, landing squarely on the roof.

“They’re pushing the bus.” Wang Qingyuan’s voice was low, but filled with unprecedented severity.

The comrades looked over and saw that the zombies that had been surrounding the bus had all congregated on one side, pushing against the body of the bus with a concerted effort, seemingly about to tip the bus over in the next second!

Without a single command necessary, the sixteen comrades tacitly gathered on the side being pushed, arm in arm, shoulder to shoulder, like a flood dam, and used their combined weight to resist the pushing pressure down below!

But as the zombies piled up in ever-increasing numbers, a capsize catastrophe was inevitable!

To make matters worse, the zombies in the track and field inside finally remembered their mission and also came stumbling out from every entrance. . .

“Heaven wants to end usah—” Ma Weisen couldn’t think of any other way to break the deadlock.

“Shut up!” Kuang Ye’s “Negative Energy Carrier’s Guide to Getting Along” had long since eliminated the two words “with courtesy”.

“We have to find a way to get back into the cars.” Although every fiber of his being clamored to severely lash out at Song Fei for his previous impulsivity, Qi Yan still had a clear understanding of the current situation and which element he should prioritize first.

Ma Weisen: “Easier said than done, how should we return, fly?!”

Qi Yan: “. . .” Someone even more irritating than Song Fei appeared.

The bus lurched again, even more dramatically than before!

Song Fei quickly came up with a plan: “Got it, find someone to lure them away!”

Ma Weisen: “How can we ensnare them from the roof, would it be that we’d have to hop down and race against the zombies!!!”

Lin Dilei: “Song Fei, I’m not taking sides, but I also think the situation here is different from in the university. None of us can predict when or where zombies will appear. It’s too dangerous to manually evade them. . .”

Song Fei: “No, listen to me, when I ran over here, I saw a motorcycle with its key still in the ignition. It looked like it had just fallen over and the engine was still runningne. . .”

Lin Dilei: “Wilson, we believe in you!”

Ma Weisen: “. . . What do you mean by putting your faith in me, I can’t even trust myself!!!”

Song Fei: “No one else here can do this except you. This is a mission from heaven, it’s destined!”

Ma Weisen: “F*ck your fate, as a materialistic warrior, I only believe in science!”

Qiao Siqi: “Song Fei—”

Song Fei: “We’re busy at the moment, what do you want!”

Qiao Siqi: “Don’t waste your breath talking to him, just ask him to do whatever you want. If you try and talk him into it, he’ll definitely say no!”

Song Fei: “What kind of strange habit is that!”

Qiao Siqi: “Haven’t you ever met someone who gets increasingly fussy, wailing, and ignoring you the more you try to persuade them until the task is completely tossed aside and forgotten? This guy is precisely one of those people, to put it bluntly, begging for a beating!”

Ma Weisen: “Qiao, Si, Qi!”

Song Fei: “You have to do it whether you want to or not, Ma Weisen, get the hell down there now!!!”

Ma Weisen: “. . . Sh*t!”

Dong—

The final syllables of the expletive he let out lingered in the clamoring dust as Ma Weisen abruptly jumped off the side not being rammed by the zombies and sprinted towards the motorcycle without looking back!

This time, it was a trueunlicensed motorcycle taxi. The wheels were several times smaller than Ma Weisen’s heavy motorcycle, but the seats were spacious enough to carry two adults.

As soon as Ma Weisen lifted the motorcycle upright, the zombies closed in after detecting movement.

Just as the encirclement was about to close, Ma Weisen stepped on the throttle and took off with his motorcycle, precisely passing through the only remaining gap, as cool as can be!

In the billowing clouds of dust, only the stunned zombies were left.

Mounted on the motorcycle, Ma Weisen was like the armored up Iron Man. He first circled the bus a few times, then while he occupied all of the zombies’ attentions, he whipped the motorcycle around and sped off.

How could the zombies stand this enticement and as a result they immediately followed.

Even without Song Fei’s further instructions, Ma Weisen knew where to go—His motorcycle steered steadily towards where the jeep and car were parked and abandoned!

In the blink of an eye, he reached their battle vehicles, but didn’t pause at all as he continued on ahead!

Just as their prey didn’t stop, the zombies naturally didn’t either. The jeep and passenger car was nothing to them, they simply passed by and continued chasing after the motorcycle.

A few scattered zombies remained enticed by the bus, but zombies continued to pour out of the stadium in droves.

The opportunity must be seized, Qi Yan decisively ordered: “Jump—”

Without further ado, everyone knew to leap down to the base of the bus where the zombies weren’t huddled. Some hopped off the front, some jumped from the rear, while others followed Ma Weisen’s path and sprung down from the other side.

However, no matter where they landed, they all ended up the same—Back to their battle cars!

If they ran at full speed, three hundred meters would only take a moment, especially since Ma Weisen had already taken away most of the zombies. The fifteen comrades made it back to their respective vehicles without a hitch.

At this point, whether the driver would take their lives was irrelevant, everyone just instinctively returned to their original positions, minimizing any potential disruptions that might hinder their efficiency!

Qiao Siqi clambered into the car without a word and floored the accelerator in pursuit of Ma Weisen.

Song Fei’s side was in a bit of trouble, having to help Zhou Yilu swipe away the zombies plastered outside the windows, causing a two-minute delay before they also finally hit the road.

Ma Weisen, worthy of being the outer college’s little tyrant, wasn’t just taking the zombies for a little walkah, he was using the motorcycle in order to bully them. Not to mention the ones stumbling after him, but any he encountered that appeared in front of him, he’d knock them away one by one, and when encountering two, he’d send both of them flying. He was likeLi Kui, wielding two axes, coincidentally the motorcycle was also black, a true Black Whirlwind.

Later on, even the zombies heading his way avoided him, as if they’d rather dodge and get out of his way first before running alongside their companions, seeking safety in a joint pursuit.

“Slow down—” Qiao Siqi, still unable to catch up despite trying his hardest, became infuriated as he roared with rage after lowering the window.

Ma Weisen had just recovered from his high and swiftly steered the head of the bike, shifting from a straight line into a wide arc!

The zombies, unsure of what was happening, were also strung along in an arc and soon, Ma Weisen’s motorcycle had completely circled back around with nothing standing in the way between John and Wilson any longer.

One slammed on the brakes.

One alighted from the motorcycle.

He Zhiwen, with great foresight, popped open the passenger door and dragged his comrade back into his lap.

After following Qiao Siqi out of the encirclement and wandering down a secluded road, the eight companions nestled in the car finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Song Fei interrogated over the walkie-talkie: “Where should we go now?”

Qiao Siqi’s reply was: “Our home.”

Merely two words, but it warmed the hearts of all the companions upon hearing it.

Qi Yan was also quite touched, but he had more important things to do right now. Thus, after Song Fei finished talking, he naturally removed the walkie-talkie and handed it to someone in the back seat nonchalantly. Then, he straightened hisBFon his lap so they were face to face and lectured: “Qiao Siqi acts without thinking, and you’re just going to follow him, rushing in without a care as well?”

Qi Yan’s attitude wasn’t awful, but it certainly wasn’t gentle either. It seemed soft, yet shone with harshness. It was the kind of confrontational prelude Song Fei was intimately familiar with, only that it was draped in a veil of hypocrisy that stated “I’m not angry, I’m very level-headed, I just want to have a proper discussion with you”.

Song Fei was a bit annoyed, but more importantly, he felt that he was in the rightah: “The stadium loudspeakers were broadcasting the enews. Who could have imagined that the entire crowd inside would be wiped out? Anyone would think that it was a safe zoneba? And there were police officers standing outside such that people would definitely assume that they were on guardah!”

“Didn’t you carefully listen to the broadcast? Did you listen carefully to the international news? The virus had broken out in 28 countries, think about it, by the time we found the radio, the news confirmed that it had already spread to 32 countries! That wasn’t the news, it was just a recording playing on a loop!”

“. . .”

Song Fei felt a bit embarrassed by the reprimand. After all, they were surrounded by friends in the car, it wasn’t just the two of them. No, even if it were only the two of them, being ridiculed like that would still make him feel depressedah!

28, 32, who the heck would be able to tell the differenceah!!!

Song Fei glanced at his companions in the back row for confirmation. Although the five friends sympathized with his plight, they were inexplicably cowed by Qi Yan, whose intimidating presence only made him seem even more domineering, thus they all looked away, pretending to just be innocent bystanders.

Yet, in a dark corner, unseen by anyone else, a hand quietly pressed the walkie-talkie’s speak key.

In the red jeep, an electric staticky sound suddenly emanated from the walkie-talkie placed against the windshield.

Qiao Siqi, thinking his companions had something to say, was about to reach for it when he heard Qi Yan’s subdued voice from inside—

“When will you stop being impulsive?”

Qiao Siqi paused, then continued to hold the steering wheel, minding his own business driving his car, only perking his ears up.

“Why do you never say anything when I do something right, but always pick at my faults when I make a mistake? Besides, I didn’t do anything wrong, who would memorize the number of infected countries in the international news like a psychopath like youah!”

The jeep team glanced at each other, their spirits standing at attention, reading the same excitement reflecting in each other’s eyes—Yo ah, they’re quarrelinghei!

“No one’s forcing you to memorize the number of countries, I just wanted you to think before you do anything, I’ve repeated myself eight hundred times!”

“I’ve also told you eight thousand times, I’m just like that. I can’t change it. If you can bear with it then just hold it in, if you can’t. . .wu—”

“Pei! What’s the point of using this routine ofblocking my mouththe moment we get into a disagreement!”

“Do you dare to try and say those two words again?”

“. . . I’m about to be driven crazy by you. If you don’t like me, then wake up and stop flirting with me, okay!”

“If I didn’t like you, why would I keep pestering you just to stay together with you?”

“But you’ve never said you liked meah, all you do is tell me off, lecture me, criticize me. . .”

“I like you.”

“D*mn it, what I mean is. . .”

“I love you.”

“Just let me finish speaking . .”

“I can’t live without you, don’t not want me.”

“. . .”

The conversation ended as such.

The sneaky little hand, having taken ten thousand points of damage, could no longer press the key down.

The interior of the jeep was also shrouded in absolute silence.

The three chain attacks of sweet nothings struck in a flurry, heartbreaking and devastating in its effects.

Suddenly, a delicate hand reached out from the back seat to snatch up the walkie-talkie.

The next second, the entire BMW was filled with Little Landmine’s earnest cries—

“Are you locked in an embrace? Exchanging a kiss? Did you guys make up? Song Fei, if you really can’t get over it, stop forcing yourself. Those whose values and principles don’t match can’t be together, give it up and let me have a go!”

The eight comrades of the sedan: “. . .”

The six comrades in the jeep: “. . .”

In the trunk, Luo Geng peered warily at the vast expanse of space, loving a person, is so difficult.

They clearly wanted to watch the fun, but instead, they were met with a slew of dog food slapping their faces coldly. The Wusheng class lost all hope and decided to temporarily block out all external signals, including pornography, gambling, and drugs.

Yet the two shameless class leaders, who had a rare opportunity to open the door to their hearts and pour out their emotions to have a tête-à-tête were completely oblivious. They remained lovey-dovey, leaning against each other, whispering in each other’s ears.

In the past, Qi Yan would never have said those words. He believed that whether one liked someone or not would be reflected in his actions, one could say a thousand things but not take action upon a single one, so why bother with all of that flowery talkma.

However after getting back together, he slowly began to understand and just now, he finally was completely enlightened—Even if two people were close, there was still a layer of flesh between their heartsne. Some words can’t be hidden, just as some feelings can’t be silenced. Concealing and stifling them might initially make the other person believe that these things exist, but after hiding it for too long, the other would begin to lose their confidence.

The reason he was able to remain so much more stable than Song Fei in their relationship was because Song Fei never hesitated to express himself, never equivocating. Looking back on it now, Song Fei had already changed during their time together before they broke up. He no longer wore his emotions on his face, sometimes he seemed about to say something, but then he’d just smile instead and say that everything was fine.

When Song Fei said that it was okay, he truly believed that all was well until one day they had an argument and this person brought up breaking up.

Thankfully, the straightforward bumbling Song Fei had returned.

It was still incredibly tiring, but he found it incredibly satisfying, and he could tell that he was becoming addicted to it.

Analyzing previous experiences, learning from them, and never repeating them was a positive tradition of Qi Yan’s. Thus, taking advantage of the good mood, under the gentle jolting motions, he nipped Song Fei’s ear and earnestly promised: “If you like hearing it, I’ll confess to you every day.”

“You don’t have to reaffirm it every dayla. . .” Song Fei rubbed his itchy ear with mild embarrassment, “But it should be done at least once every now and thenba. If you only slap me and don’t give me any sweet treats, then how pathetic would I be. . .”

“En, less reprimands and more sweets.” The corner of Qi Yan’s lips curled up, “The same goes for you. If you have something to say, just say it, don’t keep it to yourself, I’m a bit obtuse. . .”

Song Fei: “Then I’m really going to go for it?”

Qi Yan: “En?”

Song Fei: “Remember last semester there was a female underclassman who was chasing you, but then gave up and spread rumors about you beinggay, do you still remember?”

Qi Yan: “I’ll never forget it, what’s wrong?”

Song Fei: “Un, I helped you come out to her. . .”

Qi Yan: “. . .”

Song Fei: “. . .”

Qi Yan: “Later when we get to Qiao Siqi’s house, find an empty room and come over, I promise I won’t hit you in the face.”

Song Fei: “. . . Who would accept a 10% discounted guarantee like thatah!!!”

Author’s Chapter Summary: the safe zone is just a dream, the Wusheng class switches routes to go home!

The translator has something to say: I know it most likely have happened, but I had a brief moment of panic that the author-dadawas cruel and created a very obtuse tragedy right before the end, also leave it to QY to turn even a romantic moment into an academic moment and for SF to shatter it instantly with his bluntness (which ironically had been still charging forth without thinking about the consequence). The rest of the comrade’s gossiping souls also immediately backfired, they should know by now that they’ll never win against our main duo

I know I said I make no promises, but I’ll try to post every 7-10 days. Thanks for all the kind words, but let’s face it, I have bad work-life balance ahahaha, sorry about that