Qi Yue was angry but didn’t dare get mad at them, took a big breath and turned to leave the room. Reached the doorway, only after a while did the angry heart calm down, wanting to stay alive really is harder than dying, also much more grievous.
From the little kitchen in the space, he took out the noodles made before the apocalypse. Qi Yue sat on the outer doorstep and started eating.
Han Fei saw Qi Yue throw down the chopsticks and leave, arms crossed over chest. A smile on his face, this little guy, is he angry? Recalling Qi Yue’s appearance just now, eyes opened wide staring round, mouth corners turned downward unhappily, the tender little face bright red because of anger, very cute, and also looked very edible.
Han Fei reached into the space, took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled one out and put it to his mouth, clamped it, index finger releasing the fire ability to light it. Fiercely inhaling a big mouthful, he blew out smoke rings. After the apocalypse, he had never found anyone to vent with, a bit uncomfortable.
The other two who ate together just now were more understanding, they took the plates and bowls that only had some leftover soup, cleaned them up and carried them outside. After all, having been worked busy for half the day, but in the end not eating anything, earlier was indeed their fault. Now after eating, calling Qi Yue to clean up was a bit too much. They thought about it and took out the walkie-talkie to call the water-ability gangster A over.
In the courtyard, Han Fei’s other subordinates were scattered in the other rooms on both sides. From time to time, someone would come out walking around. Those people coming in and out, whenever they saw Qi Yue eating noodles, would more or less cast a measuring glance. Qi Yue didn’t know what the h*ll to do.
From one of the rooms came out a person, gangster A who helped wash vegetables earlier. That time Qi Yue was busy cooking and didn’t have time, now looking carefully, Gangster A was at least above 190 tall, body burly, tiger-back bear-waist, and looked like an enforcer.
Gangster A had a very good impression of Qi Yue. Brother Fei was good at reading people extremely accurately. Being kept, Qi Yue must have some skills. This person looked better than most girls, and the food he made was extremely delicious. Gangster A wanted to leave a good impression on Qi Yue, seeing Qi Yue look at him, he softened his expression and squeezed out a smile.
Actually, you really couldn’t blame him. Qi Yue’s guess wasn’t wrong. Normally, in the underworld, he was Han Fei’s personal bodyguard. Calling them a gang was not inaccurate; they were basically enforcers. They were usually cold-faced and silent. For someone like him to smile at Qi Yue as a gesture of friendliness, Qi Yue didn’t know that! His heart practically leapt out of his chest. D*mn it, it was terrifying. When he saw Gangster A walking over with that bloodthirsty-looking grin, and the unbuttoned shirt exposing a huge tattoo on his chest, Qi Yue’s breathing went a little uneven.
What were they going to do? What did they want? He had just been a little upset earlier, was that not allowed either? Was Boss Han Fei angry? Did he think Qi Yue had been disrespectful? But he wasn’t angry anymore! Were they planning to silence him? He didn’t have any offensive abilities. And although he had survived years in the apocalypse and could fight decently, he wasn’t confident he could beat someone like Gangster A, someone who was clearly trained, and even had powers. And even if he somehow won by luck, there were so many of them…
Qi Yue truly lived up to being someone who used to hole up at home writing stories, combined with experiencing so many hardships in the apocalypse, he now analyzed every little detail, his logic extremely thorough, constructing entire storylines in his head. This time, he was obviously overthinking it.
Gangster A simply walked past him and into the room, Chu Yi had called him over for something.
Seeing that, Qi Yue’s thoughts twisted even more. He realized he was completely imagining things and cursed inwardly. These d*mn gangsters, so annoying! They weren’t even familiar with him, so why smile like that for no reason?! Qi Yue silently scolded himself. After living so long, he still hadn’t learned? Before he had any real ability, he should cling tightly to the big tree next to him.
Qi Yue wandered around the courtyard for a while. When it got quite late, he reluctantly went back inside. Han Fei was meditating, with Glasses sitting nearby. Chu Yi was off doing something. Qi Yue looked toward the corner where the food Han Fei had taken out was stored and felt troubled. What should he do? His ability only created a kitchen space, he couldn’t store much. Should he cook some ahead of time? That way, he could raise his ability at the same time. But why was it that only the food Han Fei provided gave him a boost in spiritual power? The effect was small, but noticeable. Before the apocalypse, his cooking never had that effect. Could it be that food given by someone else was what triggered his upgrade?
Head lowered meekly, Qi Yue dragged out two bags of flour. Then he went in and out several times gathering vegetables and meat. Gangster A had already cleaned the outdoor cooking area, and the plates and bowls from Qi Yue’s kitchen had been washed and neatly arranged. The water tank was filled with clean water. Well… at least they have some conscience.
He mixed the dough and prepared the filling, then went outside to start making dumplings to level up. Increasing his ability was the most important thing, recovering spiritual power right now was already amazing. Who knew what would happen once he advanced? It was probably something very useful. Ah… if only he had an offensive power too. When God gives you something, he always takes something else away. As expected, he had only gotten half.
Night grew deep. When Han Fei finished meditating, Glasses and Chu Yi came over to report.
The house was currently safe. Everything around them was normal, and their men were rotating night watch. They also reported tomorrow’s planned route. They would pass through Yangcheng and stop to gather supplies. Yes, ever since the apocalypse started, they had traveled a long way toward L Base, taking advantage of the fear people had of zombies in the early chaos to gather supplies for their gang along the way. The people following Han Fei were all carefully selected, most ability users, well-trained and experienced.
“Tomorrow we go to the processing plant first. We’ll decide the rest as we go.” Han Fei summarized, then asked Glasses: “Did you notice anything different tonight?”
Glasses and Chu Yi, Han Fei’s most trusted men, looked at each other.
“Brother Fei, that kid’s cooking seems a little off,” Glasses began.
“I noticed too. Eating his food felt kind of like… meditating,” Chu Yi added.
Han Fei nodded. “His cooking restores spiritual power.” He looked at them both.
Chu Yi: “Then why didn’t he tell us?”
Glasses: “Maybe he’s hiding it?”
Chu Yi: “But if he wanted to hide it, why admit he could cook back when he first boarded the truck?”
Glasses: “Maybe he really doesn’t know his cooking has that effect.”
After expressing their views, both looked to Han Fei. Even Han Fei wasn’t sure whether Qi Yue was aware of this or not.
“Where is he?” Han Fei asked.
“Outside making dumplings!” Chu Yi replied, jerking his chin toward the door.
Qi Yue sat under a kerosene lamp making dumplings. He had borrowed the lamp from Chu Yi, no idea where they found such an old-fashioned thing. They used these at night as well, just bright enough to see, but not bright enough to attract zombies.
Dumplings were lined up everywhere. He had two portable gas burners going, one pot boiling dumplings, one steaming them.
His spiritual power was rising very slowly, and Qi Yue happily discovered that cooking different kinds of food boosted his “experience bar” more. Repeating the same dish slowed it down. So as long as he kept cooking a variety of dishes, he had a real chance at leveling up.
He stored the freshly boiled dumplings, enough for breakfast, and kept another pot going. When the steamed dumplings were done, he plated them into two dishes. One he delivered to the men standing night watch. It was perfect: he used someone else’s ingredients to strengthen relationships; he only used some seasonings from his own kitchen, and cooking increased his spiritual power. Free goodwill, why not?
One of the guards outside was Gangster A. Qi Yue told him to return the plate tomorrow morning after eating. Then he brought the other plate into the house. The lights were on and they were talking, clearly still awake.
Glasses and Chu Yi were deep in discussion about the layout of the warehouses inside the processing plant. Han Fei lounged lazily on the sofa, not participating much but adding key comments when needed.
Qi Yue entered, set the dumplings down, and quickly retreated. He was afraid Han Fei would question him, and even more afraid he’d say something wrong. The way Han Fei looked at him earlier had made him nervous, better to leave quickly and keep making dumplings.
Han Fei narrowed his eyes. He had been watching Qi Yue from the moment he stepped inside. In the dim light, the kid looked surprisingly good-looking. Long eyelashes fluttered rapidly, he was clearly nervous. Han Fei chuckled silently. His gaze slid downward, slender waist… cough, and that backside was surprisingly round and full. Seeing he was being stared at, Qi Yue practically bolted back out.
Han Fei was beginning to understand him. The kid was cunning. He must have realized his cooking restored spiritual power. Yes, Han Fei was certain now. He couldn’t sense Qi Yue’s spiritual power, but the boy indeed had a space ability.
Han Fei touched his own face. With looks like his, countless women threw themselves at him. And yet Qi Yue had reacted like he saw a ghost, almost running for his life. Interesting. It seemed that with Qi Yue around on this journey… he wouldn’t be bored.
