Chapter 52: The Mysterious Woman

Fortunately, these were all level-one zombies, much slower than normal humans. Without needing to worry about Yue Tingting and her sprained ankle, they only needed to break away from the zombies' entanglement and run swiftly to shake them off.

After a brief struggle, the four of them finally returned safely to where the vehicles were parked.

At this point, Old Nine and the other four were still lingering in place. Aunt Zhang, Yue Xuanxuan, and Yue Tingting were also sitting safely inside the vehicle without moving. Everything was just as she had seen when she returned earlier, yet Lin Qingqing still felt that the atmosphere was somehow slightly off.

Before she could dwell on it, Old Nine and his companions burst into another wave of enthusiastic and warm inquiries.

This time, however, Chen Gang did not exchange pleasantries with them; instead, he hurriedly got into the car to bid them farewell.

"Brother, I'll keep it brief. Since you and your brothers are safe now, you should hurry and leave this place. That horde of zombies will be catching up shortly."

With that, he prepared to drive away.

At this moment, Old Nine grabbed his steering wheel and made an earnest request, pleading with Chen Gang to take him and his men along.

"Elder Brother, since you're helping us, you might as well help us all the way. Give us a ride!"

"Don't you have a car?" Chen Gang asked, looking puzzled.

"The zombies are about to catch up from behind, how would we have time to go looking for a car?" Old Nine looked anxious, yet his hand on the steering wheel remained as firm as ever.

The others also chimed in with their pleas.

"No, our vehicle is already full," Aunt Zhang said, unwilling to let strangers hitch a ride, and promptly refused.

"There's still room for two more people in here, and the others can ride in that car behind!" Old Nine replied smoothly, as if he had simply been waiting for Aunt Zhang to say those very words.

"That's Miss Lin's car, we can't make that decision," Aunt Zhang hastily waved her hands.

"I'm a single woman, it wouldn't be convenient for you to ride in my car. At most, I can give that older sister a ride."

Lin Qingqing was no fool; before Old Nine and his group could attempt to pester her, she had already made her stance clear.

The heavily made-up woman referred to as the "older sister" got into Lin Qingqing's car without a second word, leaving the remaining four men staring at each other in dismay.

Seeing that the zombies were about to arrive, Old Nine gritted his teeth and said to Chen Gang, "Then please, brother, give this comrade of ours a ride. His legs and feet aren't nimble, and the rest of us brothers will just follow behind on foot." With that, he pushed the scarred-faced man forward.

Lin Qingqing had already noticed that this scarred man walked with a limp. She had originally thought he was injured, but it turned out to be an "old ailment."

This time, Chen Gang didn't refuse. He let the scarred man into the vehicle, and the group quickly departed from the area.

Lin Qingqing followed behind as usual. She had no idea what the scarred man had said to Chen Gang, but this time, he didn't follow the original route, instead driving toward a gas station.

She parked her car along with them, then turned her head and curiously sized up the heavily made-up woman wearing a dress sitting beside her.

What kind of person was this woman? She looked completely unrelated to Old Nine and his crew, so why would she bother dressing up like this in the apocalypse?

"Are you friends with those people?" Lin Qingqing asked probingly.

"Met them drinking at a bar, wouldn't call us friends," the woman replied, her voice somewhat husky and her attitude entirely casual.

Just as Lin Qingqing was about to ask more, Chen Tao walked over. He knocked on the window and informed Lin Qingqing that they planned to rest here for the day.

"Since it's noon, we can take the opportunity to help Old Nine and the others find a car."

Ah, no wonder they came to the gas station. Finding a vehicle here would be convenient, and there was also fuel to spare.

Lin Qingqing nodded and got out of the car alongside the heavily made-up woman. After a little while, once they had cleared out all the zombies in the gas station, Old Nine and his trio finally arrived.

They were all panting heavily. The moment they arrived, they headed straight for the gas station's convenience store, grabbed some water, and chugged it down recklessly before finally catching their breath.

Along the way, Chen Gang and his son had already grown quite familiar with them. Even the usually picky Aunt Zhang and the introverted Yue Xuanxuan were infected by the group's enthusiasm, calling them "brother" and "Uncle Nine" left and right.

In contrast, Lin Qingqing and the heavily made-up woman quietly sat off to the side, looking entirely detached from the group.

Zhao Na and Yue Tingting helped Aunt Zhang cook by the roadside, while Chen Gang and his son were dragged by Old Nine and his men into the gas station to search for usable vehicles.

Looking at the lively and harmonious scene among the crowd, Lin Qingqing inevitably thought of Lei Meng and Wen Ling, whom she had left behind at the residential compound.

She hadn't felt it before, but now, seeing Chen Gang's group, a pang of regret stirred in her heart.

"There weren't many decent people among Department Head Liu's crowd. I really should have been more cautious back then and chosen a good team for them, like Chen Gang and his son—they're quite good."

"I wonder how they're doing now? Department Head Liu is so cunning and shameless, can Lei Meng's impulsive temper handle it?"

The more Lin Qingqing thought about it, the more regretful she felt. She believed her decision back then had been far too hasty; if she had properly discussed it with them, perhaps there would have been a better choice.

Once this thought arose, it took root deep in her heart, refusing to be shaken off no matter how hard she tried.

"You're not part of their group?" the heavily made-up woman suddenly asked from beside her.

"No, met them halfway, just traveling together for a stretch," Lin Qingqing said, somewhat surprised that this woman would suddenly initiate a conversation with her.

"How is life for you, being all alone in this apocalypse? Is it quite liberating?"

"..."

What? Lin Qingqing looked at her strangely. This heavily made-up woman was currently watching Aunt Zhang and the others cook, her thick false eyelashes half-covering her eyes, her gaze somewhat distant, as if the previous remark hadn't been a question directed at her, but rather a murmur to herself.

This woman was deeply mysterious. Although her original features were obscured, from head to toe she exuded a slightly decadent elegance, bearing no resemblance to an ordinary woman drowning her sorrows in a local bar.

Her lavish gown and heavy cosmetics acted like a mask and shackles, wrapping her in layers. It wasn't until she spoke just now that the mask seemed to crack slightly, revealing a hint of her true colors beneath.

"It really is quite liberating!"

Lin Qingqing recovered her wits and answered the question she had been asked earlier.

"Mm, I think so too."

The heavily made-up woman turned her head and scrutinized Lin Qingqing from head to toe before continuing, "My name is Yu Man, everyone calls me Sister Man."

"I'm Lin Qingqing."

Since the other party had introduced herself voluntarily, Lin Qingqing gracefully exchanged names.

"I really like you, but unfortunately, a pretty and innocent girl like you isn't suited for someone like me."

Lin Qingqing: "..."

She would accept being called pretty, but calling her innocent was going a bit too far. In the apocalypse, could anyone who dared to roam around alone truly be innocent? That word would fit Zhao Na and Yue Tingting much better.

Seeing her dissenting expression, Yu Man smiled and dropped the subject, turning instead to something else.

"If you're looking for partners in the future, you'd better find someone smart yet innocent, like that young man over there," she said, gesturing toward Chen Tao.

"Why?" Lin Qingqing raised an eyebrow, somewhat baffled.

"This is an older sister's hard-earned advice!"

"What about the others?" Lin Qingqing felt that this Sister Man was quite different from her outward appearance.

"Those two girls are innocent but not smart, that young man's father is neither innocent nor smart, and the other two aren't even worth mentioning!"

With just a few sentences, Yu Man had evaluated Chen Gang's entire party. Although it was only a fleeting first encounter, Lin Qingqing had to admit that the woman's judgment was piercingly sharp.

Innocent? Smart? Thinking about it carefully, it actually made a lot of sense.

"Then why did Sister Man ask me if I felt free living alone, only to advise me to form a team later on?"

Yu Man glanced at her without answering the question, instead pointing at Old Nine and his companions. "See those four? I don't get along with them, but if they weren't around, no matter how smart I am, I wouldn't have survived until now!"

Hearing this, Lin Qingqing couldn't help but recall the hundreds of zombies back at the bar. She wondered how on earth they had managed to survive an encirclement of that magnitude.

She voiced the question in her mind.

Meeting her puzzled look, Yu Man smiled. "You really don't want to know!"

With that, she stood up and waved at Lin Qingqing. "I'm leaving. Thank you for saving me, may our paths cross again!"

Lin Qingqing snapped her head up, and only when she watched that graceful figure vanish around the street corner did she realize that Yu Man had just said her farewells.