065 Establishing Authority and the New Home - Part 2

By evening, the settling-in work at the peninsula base finally came to a pause. Sitting atop the highest hill of the base, Wang Chen surveyed his surroundings. The base was surrounded by water on three sides, with a full view in sight. Apart from the two narrow and steep river channels near the stone bridge and the hydroelectric station—both nearly impossible to climb—the rest of the peninsula’s east and west sides were reinforced reservoir embankments. Even where the drop was slight, it still measured over two meters, with steep angles fortified by safety railings. Only the northwest section, where the land dipped into the reservoir, retained a more natural riverside appearance. About a hundred sturdy, soil-stabilizing trees grew in neat clusters between the riverbank and the high ground, with thickets scattered among them. A gravel path wound from the houses to a small dock by the riverside. As the sun set in the west, the orange light gradually gave way to the darkening sky. The evening breeze stirred the wild grass, and as darkness fully enveloped the area, the tall trees and shrubs rustled ominously in the wind, lending the riverside an eerie atmosphere.

Above the not-so-tall bushes by the riverside hung a round, bulky hydrogen balloon, incongruous with the natural scenery. It was a makeshift surveillance device that Dai Jian had assembled using wedding hydrogen balloons, car batteries, a wireless Wi-Fi camera, and a Wi-Fi router with an antenna. Because the balloon often swayed wildly in the wind, the images transmitted to the houses were blurry at best, barely enough to discern whether any “living thing” had come ashore. The only advantage was the signal’s relative stability, which didn’t cut out randomly. Dai Jian promised that once they found suitable materials to erect poles along the shore, they could replace it with a professional-grade monitoring system. Then, whether day or night, anyone approaching within fifty meters of the shoreline would be clearly visible in detail.

As darkness deepened, a dozen or so houses lit up with small points of light. From this distance, no laughter or chatter could be heard from inside, yet just the flickering lights brought Wang Chen an unexplainable sense of satisfaction.

It had been half a month since the pandemic fully erupted. Reflecting on the past two weeks and recalling the desperate struggle in Harbin, it felt like ages ago. He had transformed from a fledgling university student barely acquainted with society into the de facto leader of a special operations team. The leap was immense. Fear? Certainly there was some, but in the face of life and death, such fear was nothing but fleeting smoke. Wang Chen couldn’t help but remember Tu Hongye’s words that he had at most ten years left to live. At the time, it had been deeply disheartening, but now seemed overly impulsive. Still, if given the choice again, Wang Chen would join the experiment without hesitation. Without the physical enhancements and the subsequent deployment opportunities, he would likely still be trapped inside some research facility, with only limited freedom, living a shambling existence, hoping for the day when the pandemic vanished and medicine advanced enough to cure the active pathogens within him, restoring him to a normal life.

Such a life, worse than death, might be chosen by those in their forties or fifties with ample experience, but certainly not by a young man like Wang Chen. Now, the fact that so many people could live relatively stable lives through his efforts was a source of psychological comfort and fulfillment.

Footsteps approached from behind. Wang Chen turned and, in the dim light, saw Sheng Qingru and Shen Dongyun. The two came closer, Sheng Qingru holding a jacket, Shen Dongyun carrying an emergency lamp to serve as a flashlight.

Without a word, Sheng Qingru spread the jacket for Wang Chen to wear, carefully smoothing out its wrinkles before softly saying, “It’s cold and damp. Don’t spend too much time admiring the scenery.”

A warm feeling spread through Wang Chen’s heart. Turning to Shen Dongyun, he asked, “Is there something you need?”

“Oh, no. Uncle Fang told me to bring a flashlight and come along. There’s hardly any lighting here, and if you return even later, walking at night could be inconvenient.”

“Cut the roundabout talk. They’re waiting for you to eat,” Sheng Qingru said directly, true to her straightforward nature.

Waiting for him to eat? Wang Chen suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. Taking the flashlight from Sheng Qingru, he nodded, “It wouldn’t be right to keep them waiting. Let’s go.”

Not far down the hill, they reached the cluster of houses, just in time to meet Hu Qianqian and Hua Jiangting stepping out one after the other. It seemed they had finished dinner and were heading back to their rooms to rest. Seeing Wang Chen approach, Hu Qianqian rushed forward with a playful tackle and laughed, “Brother, why are you out here catching a breeze? Uncle Fang and the others have been waiting for ages, drinking tea but refusing to start eating.”

“Ah, I was just caught up in the scenery and forgot. Is your Uncle Fang really waiting too?”

“Yes, they said this is the first formal dinner since the move, so they made a lot of good food.”

“So did you eat already?”

“We had a separate meal... Hey, brother, don’t talk to me like a kid. I’m not little anymore!” Hu Qianqian protested with a mix of teenage coyness.

“All right, all right, since you said Uncle Fang and the others are waiting, stop holding your brother up,” Sheng Qingru laughed, stepping in to smooth things over.

On serious matters, Hu Qianqian knew her limits. She released Wang Chen’s arm, pouted, and walked a few steps before suddenly turning to Sheng Qingru and saying, “Sister Sheng, you have to keep an eye on my brother! In a few years when I grow up, I might just steal your boyfriend! Youth is my capital! And I’ve got more of it than you!”

“Qianqian! I won’t let you steal my boyfriend!”

“What did you say?!”

“I mean…”

“Ah, I heard that—you’re just my sidekick, my sidekick, got it? Jiang Hua Ting, little buddy!”

“No, I’m not your sidekick. I want to be your boyfriend!”

“Yeah, right. When you’re taller than me, then we’ll talk!”

“You said that! When I’m taller than you…”

“I never said that! Don’t get the wrong idea!”

Listening to the quarrel between the two young teenagers fade behind him, Wang Chen shook his head with a smile. What mischievous little devils! But Sheng Qingru, linking arms with Wang Chen, murmured thoughtfully, “Looks like I need to keep an even closer watch on you. How do you want to juice tonight?”

Shen Dongyun had no desire to hear such explosive and private talk. Fortunately, by then, the three had arrived at the house where the meal was being held. He strode ahead, opened the door, and announced, “Captain Wang is here.”

Unconsciously, there was a hint of respect in Shen Dongyun’s tone when mentioning Wang Chen. It wasn’t just him—among the civilians who had arrived later at the base, the story of Wang Chen cutting down zombies like chopping vegetables had already spread. Even if some doubted the truth of it, dozens of completely subdued corpses lay waiting to be cleared away, and over ten eyewitnesses who had seen Wang Chen’s prowess wouldn’t boast lightly. Whether out of admiration or fear, Cui Yongzhi and the others had spent the entire afternoon subtly promoting his feats.

Apart from the original members of the Zero Eight team, not only Shen Dongyun but even Ren Wanrong, upon seeing Wang Chen step into the room, harbored doubts. That young, pale, harmless-looking face didn’t mesh with the image of someone who, without guns, could cleave through zombies by the dozens using only an axe. This was either a bloodthirsty berserker unleashed or a genuine violent maniac! No wonder he couldn’t even get close to the special forces back then. No wonder these people were so unmoved when they saw his shooting skills at the museum. Turns out, these guys were all wolves in sheep’s clothing!