Supplies were being consumed faster and faster lately, and the frequency of ability users going out to scavenge had also increased.
Some of the zombies on the ground were not completely dead yet. Their severed limbs kept scraping against the ground, which was covered in red blood and black slime.
Everyone in the team was locked in a bitter struggle. He Qiuyun's nerves were stretched to the absolute limit, and his stamina was rapidly failing. Just then, a zombie suddenly lunged at him from the side.
He Qiuyun's pupils shrank, and his entire body froze in place.
Just a few steps away from He Qiuyun, Pei Yufeng stood with faint arcs of electricity lingering around his body. He watched the scene with a lazy, unfocused gaze, not moving a single muscle.
Right at the moment the zombie was about to grab He Qiuyun's neck, Yan Jiasui managed to split her attention and blocked the zombie in front of him with a wall of vines.
"Pei Yufeng, you're just going to fucking stand there?!" Da Laocu rushed over, veins popping on his forehead as he roared at him.
Pei Yufeng spoke lazily, "He isn't dead yet, is he?"
The terror of his near-death experience left He Qiuyun trembling all over. He glared viciously at Pei Yufeng, so angry his lungs were about to explode.
On the team's way back, He Qiuyun kept a dark expression and did not say a word. The atmosphere in the car was incredibly heavy.
As soon as they returned to the house.
Ignoring the curious looks of the others, He Qiuyun angrily smashed his things onto the floor.
"Fuck! I must have had eight lifetimes of bad luck to get such a disgusting teammate!"
The others were drawn over by the commotion.
"What's wrong, He Qiuyun? What happened?"
"Which teammate? Weren't you guys out looking for supplies?"
He Qiuyun sneered, "Who else could it be? Watching a teammate about to die and doing absolutely nothing to help, who else could it be but him?"
The people around them began to whisper among themselves.
"It couldn't be Pei Yufeng, could it?"
"It's definitely him. It couldn't be anyone else."
Yan Jiasui walked in right at that moment. Ji Zhaoxi almost tripped over the things He Qiuyun had thrown on the floor, but Pei Yufeng frowned and grabbed her arm to steady her.
Seeing them return, He Qiuyun's voice grew even louder.
"Sister Jiasui, you love pulling me aside for talks so much, you have to talk about what happened today."
"He was just a few steps away from me. I was about to die, and he didn't even lift a finger!"
Ji Zhaoxi beat him to the small sofa and sat down. Pei Yufeng raised an eyebrow, leaned against the wall, and brazenly squeezed onto the armrest of the sofa to sit down.
Frustrated, Ji Zhaoxi tried to push him away, but Pei Yufeng just leaned there lazily, letting her push without budging an inch.
Tired from pushing and not wanting to be pressed against him, Ji Zhaoxi angrily shuffled to the side. However, this only made it more convenient for Pei Yufeng, who settled in even more comfortably.
Ji Zhaoxi: ...
Yan Jiasui looked at Pei Yufeng with some difficulty; he really was in the wrong on this one.
In a team, helping each other was a given, no matter what conflicts existed between two people.
Da Laocu furrowed his brows tightly. "Jiasui, the nature of this incident is pretty severe. You have to give us an explanation."
Yan Jiasui sighed and looked at Pei Yufeng helplessly. "Yufeng, why didn't you save Qiuyun then? You were so close to him."
Pei Yufeng played with an empty tin lid in his hand out of boredom and drawled, "Don't know."
His gaze rested on Ji Zhaoxi beside him, who was looking down and loading bullets. Against the pitch-black firearm, her hands looked even smaller. She usually could not even twist open a can, yet right now, her fingers were incredibly nimble.
Her fingertips pressed against the bullet, pushing it down into the magazine with a crisp click.
"Yufeng, we are a team, and everyone needs help sometimes. If you help Qiuyun this time, Qiuyun will help you next time."
After Ji Zhaoxi finished loading the first gun, she lowered her head to prepare the second one. Pei Yufeng held the first gun for her, and Ji Zhaoxi looked up at him.
Seeing that Pei Yufeng wasn't listening at all, Yan Jiasui felt extremely helpless.
He Qiuyun sneered, "Since you don't want to stay in the team so badly, then get lost. This place is too small for a big shot like you."
Pei Yufeng toyed with Ji Zhaoxi's gun, his eyes devoid of any emotion. His gaze swept over He Qiuyun's face as he let out a very soft scoff.
"You!" He Qiuyun fumed.
Pei Yufeng's tone was light and breezy. "Did you expect me to be your daddy, guarding you all day long?"
Beside him, Ji Zhaoxi burst into a giggle. She was actually quite happy to see Pei Yufeng bullying He Qiuyun.
He Qiuyun fell silent for a moment before looking at Yan Jiasui. "Jiasui, you tell me what we should do about this. I wouldn't dare go on a mission with someone like him. Who knows if he'll stab me in the back next time."
"You didn't save me last time either," Ji Zhaoxi muttered.
The atmosphere instantly went dead silent. He Qiuyun's face stiffened, suddenly at a loss for words.
Da Laocu hadn't expected Ji Zhaoxi to suddenly bring this up in such a setting. "Zhaoxi, that's in the past. Right now, let's just..."
Ji Zhaoxi's eyes instantly turned red. "How is it in the past? I still have nightmares about it every night."
The smile on Pei Yufeng's face immediately faded, his brows knitting tightly. "Which time?"
Ji Zhaoxi choked on a sob, wiping her tears. "The time your ability leveled up. Why am I so pitiful?"
He Qiuyun's face flushed bright red, and he tried to explain, "Zhaoxi, last time was because..."
Ji Zhaoxi let Pei Yufeng wipe her tears beside her, her voice thick with crying. "He Qiuyun, now you understand how I felt back then, right? When it happens to you, you want to kick people out. I didn't even try to kick you out back then."
Da Laocu rubbed the back of his head. It was over, it was totally over. There was no way they could kick Pei Yufeng out now.
Yan Jiasui had been watching the scene unfold. She looked at He Qiuyun beside her. "Qiuyun, let's just let this matter go, alright? Everyone probably has moments like this to some extent."
He Qiuyun kept his head down and didn't say a word, which was considered a tacit agreement.
Yan Jiasui had a massive headache when it came to He Qiuyun. She didn't know why he was causing so much trouble lately; he had never been like this before.
Even though this incident had seemingly passed, Yan Jiasui still felt an ominous premonition in her heart.
As night fell, the occasional sound of snoring echoed through the room.
He Qiuyun and Da Laocu hid in a corner, both with their brows tightly furrowed.
"Why do you think Jiasui always takes Pei Yufeng's side? He hasn't even done anything for the group."
Da Laocu took a swig of his drink and joked, "Maybe she likes him."
He Qiuyun sneered, "Maybe."
Da Laocu smacked his lips. "I feel like women just aren't suited for leadership. They can't keep people in line, and their methods aren't tough enough. If a man had been making the call today, Pei Yufeng would be long gone."
He Qiuyun hummed in agreement, frowning as he stared at the ground.
"Why did we just let her be the captain in the first place? We should have kept looking."
Da Laocu let out a drunken hiccup. "Why don't you just be the captain instead? I think you've got pretty good leadership skills anyway. As for Jia Sui, just let her handle logistics."
He Qiuyun frowned. "But from the very beginning, it was..."
"Who cares about her?" Da Laocu said gruffly. "She can't just hog that position forever."
He Qiuyun remained silent, but he actually thought the exact same thing.
In the apocalypse, having a woman as a captain made a lot of things inconvenient to deal with.
