Even if Fu Qi was willing to teach, Qin Zhen still couldn’t handle the tablet or phone properly.
The enthusiastic young brother watched as Qin Zhen handed the tablet back to Fu Qi, utterly confused. "Touchscreens don’t work with gloves… But, Sister Ye, why do you insist on wearing gloves all the time?"
"…" Qin Zhen played it cool and didn’t answer.
Fu Qi came to her rescue: "Germaphobe."
The brother nodded understandingly. "Ohhh, that must be tough."
He was a grateful person who respected others’ choices—never commenting on Qin Zhen’s decision to wear makeup in the apocalypse, nor dismissing her germophobia as mere fussiness. Instead, he admired how someone so obsessive about cleanliness had braved the stench of this rundown building last night just to scavenge for books and clothes. Truly heroic.
Fan Xu dug out two pieces of candy from his backpack and solemnly offered them. "This is all I can give in return, Sister Ye. Have some candy!"
Qin Zhen had no sense of taste, but she still accepted the beautifully wrapped sweets.
Fan Xu tried to give one to Fu Qi as well, but he refused, so both ended up in Qin Zhen’s hands.
The zombie couldn’t operate the tablet herself, so she had Fu Qi pull up the stored TV dramas for her. Munching on the candy with a crunch, she curled up on the couch and started watching, barely sparing Fu Qi a glance except when she needed help.
Meanwhile, Fan Xu, the unwitting instigator, was thrilled to finally be of use. Eager to repay Sister Ye’s kindness, he sorted through the pile of phones, picking out the ones that could still stream shows and setting them aside just for her.
He also enthusiastically asked Fu Qi if he wanted to play any games.
Fu Qi wasn’t interested in games—he just wanted to pin down the heartless zombie and give her a good spanking.
He asked, "Do you have Plants vs. Zombies?"
It was just an offhand remark, but the zombie, who usually ignored everything, had a peculiar sensitivity when it came to her own species. Qin Zhen instantly looked up from her show, alert. "Zombies?"
In Fan Xu’s mind, Sister Ye’s presence far outweighed Fu Qi’s, so he answered her first. "Brother Fu and I were just talking about a game—Plants vs. Zombies."
Then he turned back to Fu Qi. "We do have it, but you’d need to log in to play. No luck there."
Fu Qi hadn’t actually wanted to play—it was just a joke. But seeing the zombie’s tense, conflicted expression, he deliberately sighed in mock disappointment. "So no zombie-slaying? What a shame."
Qin Zhen glared at him.
She knew nothing about the game and vaguely suspected Fu Qi was mocking her, but she wasn’t entirely sure. Her glare was more hesitant than fierce, lacking any real bite.
When she saw Fu Qi smirking, she realized she’d been played. Huffing, she turned her back on him and went back to her show.
She found her entertainment and spent hours glued to the screen. If not for the fact that Fan Xu would starve without food, she wouldn’t have budged when Fu Qi finally called her to move out.
The rain had stopped the night before, and after over a dozen hours of drying, the streets were mostly clear except for a few puddles. It was time to leave.
Fu Qi had planned their exit strategy: he’d go downstairs first and try to start one of the cars parked in front of the building. He’d had his eye on them for a while. With luck, at least one out of the four would work. If not, they’d climb out through the sunroof, scale the collapsed building ahead for temporary shelter, and then search another street for transportation.
Qin Zhen had no objections, only a question: "What do I do?"
"Wait for me to pick you up."
Fan Xu chimed in, "What about me?"
"Stick close to Sister Ye."
Since neither of them had any real role in the plan, they had no say in the matter. All they had to do was pack their bags.
Fu Qi was the one doing the work and worrying about the details. Before heading downstairs, he pulled Qin Zhen aside and added, "Keep an eye on your little brother. Make sure he stays with you."
Fan Xu was deeply moved, praising Fu Qi as a saint while promising Qin Zhen he wouldn’t slow her down.
Qin Zhen didn’t have the heart to tell him the truth—Fu Qi’s real concern was that if she and Fan Xu strayed too far apart, it would reveal that zombies had no interest in her.
She couldn’t explain, so she just nodded silently. "Don’t worry."
Fan Xu was even more touched.
As it turned out, Fu Qi’s luck wasn’t great. After trying four or five cars, none would start for various reasons. Fortunately, he was quick on his feet and switched to Plan B without hesitation.
Qin Zhen waited half an hour before finally hearing an engine roar to life. She immediately grabbed Fan Xu and headed downstairs.
The streets were swarming with zombies, all surging excitedly toward the noise. The car plowed through them, sending dark blood splattering everywhere. Watching the scene, Qin Zhen was absolutely certain she was a germaphobe.
There was no way she was letting herself fall into that mess. As soon as Fu Qi pulled up, she yanked Fan Xu with her and leaped from the building—still a decent height—landing squarely on the car’s roof before scrambling inside through the sunroof.
Fan Xu nearly lost his soul from fright. "I thought we were gonna die!"
Qin Zhen reassured him, "Relax, I cushioned your fall."
Remembering she had indeed taken the brunt of the impact, Fan Xu quickly checked on her. Seeing her cool, unbothered expression, he sighed in relief, then launched into a stream of flattery that left the zombie thoroughly pleased.
Fu Qi couldn’t take it anymore. "If you’re so amazing, how about helping me out?"
"Dream on," Qin Zhen replied icily.
Left to fend for himself, Fu Qi drove aggressively, relying on his earlier study of the map and road conditions. They barreled through the city and soon reached the outskirts.
Zombies still roamed outside the city, but they were fewer and far between, posing little threat.
As they sped forward, Fu Qi suddenly braked near an overgrown field where a car lay overturned on the roadside, surrounded by a few zombies.
The abrupt stop jolted Qin Zhen, who had been engrossed in her show. Her tablet nearly slipped from her hands, and she barely caught it before it hit the floor, her heart aching at the close call.
"What’s wrong?"
Fu Qi grabbed his knife and pushed the door open, mimicking her tone. "What’s it to you? You’re not helping me anyway."
"…" Qin Zhen shot him a venomous glare.
Luckily, Fan Xu hadn’t picked up on the tension and helpfully explained, "That car’s flipped over—probably abandoned in a hurry. There might still be gas inside. And those zombies are carrying backpacks. Probably supplies."
Qin Zhen understood.
They were looting.
Fan Xu followed Fu Qi out, and the few zombies were quickly dealt with.
After stripping the undead of their fuel and supplies, Fu Qi resumed driving while Qin Zhen and Fan Xu rummaged through the bags.
The food had spoiled, but they kept the clothes. Three phones were dead and had to be tossed. The rest were mostly daily necessities.
Qin Zhen was happily blowing air on her face with a small fan they’d scavenged when Fan Xu suddenly asked, "Oh, sanitary pads. Sister Ye, do you need these?"
Qin Zhen froze, instinctively glancing at Fu Qi, who answered for her, "She doesn’t."
"Ah, never mind then." Surprisingly, Fan Xu didn’t question it. He sighed and was about to toss them out the window when Qin Zhen stopped him.
"Keep them," she said. "Someone else might need them."
Zombies don’t need to eat or drink, so naturally, they don’t experience the regular physiological cycles that human women do. She had no use for such things. But in an era where even food was scarce, such supplies were far from abundant.
If they encountered other women in the future, they could give these items to them.
"Night Sis, if even someone as capable as you doesn’t need them, others definitely won’t either," Fan Xu said. "Besides, there aren’t many women left alive anyway…"
In the early days of the apocalypse, order collapsed entirely. Laws became meaningless, and panic spread among the masses. Some people, whether from reading too many domineering novels or having their brains fried by the virus, gathered followers and tried to seize power, aiming to establish their own rule.
Women, along with children and the elderly, were the most vulnerable—perfect tools for these would-be tyrants to assert their dominance.
Such ambitions were doomed to fail. Soon enough, these small factions were wiped out, either by zombie hordes or government intervention. But even without them, women—due to their physical strength, greater empathy, and susceptibility to moral coercion—were often treated as prey in the scramble for resources.
As their numbers dwindled, those who managed to survive gradually lost even the most basic indicators of health, like menstruation, due to malnutrition, disease, and poor hygiene.
Items like sanitary pads had become practically useless.
Fu Qi had never explained any of this to Qin Zhen. Though she had witnessed the brutality of the zombies, she hadn’t personally seen anyone suffer misfortune. Fu Qi himself had never been harmed by the undead, and with her limited mental capacity, she’d never considered what life was like for ordinary people.
Now, hearing Fan Xu’s words, even the little fan in her hand seemed to lose its vigor.
The lively atmosphere from their earlier banter had turned heavy and suffocating—until Fu Qi broke the silence with, "Keep them. Collect as many as we can. Once the apocalypse ends and things return to normal, we can make a fortune reselling these."
It was clearly a joke.
Fan Xu burst into laughter. "Then I should hoard phones too! I could open a phone store."
He turned to Qin Zhen. "Night Sis, what about you? What kind of business do you want to start after the apocalypse?"
Qin Zhen had no idea. She was planning to return underground anyway.
Before she could answer, Fu Qi smoothly replied for her, "She’s opening an internet café."
Qin Zhen: "…"
Feeling mocked, Qin Zhen cranked the fan to its highest setting and aimed it straight at the back of Fu Qi’s head, viciously hoping the blast of air would dry out his brain!
Fan Xu, oblivious to their inside joke, scratched his head. Just then, a zombie lunged sideways at their vehicle, jolting it. He lost his balance and knocked over the tablet Qin Zhen had placed beside her.
The tablet had been paused on a drama she’d been watching. When Fan Xu picked it up, the screen accidentally switched to another app.
"Sorry," he apologized, handing it back to her.
Qin Zhen couldn’t operate the touchscreen, which was usually a problem. But this time, when she took it, she saw a beautified version of herself on the screen and let out a surprised "Huh?"
Fan Xu leaned over for a look. "Wow, so many filters to choose from."
Suddenly enthusiastic, he asked, "Night Sis, want me to take your picture? I’m great at photography—used to lug a camera around tourist spots and make money taking photos for people."
The rustic zombie, unfamiliar with beauty filters, nodded eagerly.
The earlier gloom was forgotten as the two of them started snapping pictures in the backseat.
Fan Xu, chatty and upbeat, was a master at hyping people up. "Whoa, so cool!" "Perfect, hold that pose!" "Damn, you look awesome—one more!" His endless stream of compliments nearly shattered Qin Zhen’s aloof, badass persona.
"Hey, anyone care about the driver here?" Fu Qi called out. "Am I being ignored?"
"Of course not!" Fan Xu immediately turned the camera on him, showering him with a rapid-fire barrage of praise, each compliment more creative than the last.
But Fu Qi was a troublemaker. Knowing Qin Zhen couldn’t press the touchscreen buttons, he deliberately provoked her. "Sweetheart, why don’t you take my picture?"
"Take…" Qin Zhen wanted to say, "Take a picture? How about I take this tablet and smack you over the head with it?" But after stuttering on the first word, she stopped herself. Glancing at Fan Xu, she coolly replied, "No!"
Fu Qi: "Rejecting me again? That’s unfair. Fine, I won’t favor you either."
He started ordering her around.
Their vehicle plowed through the streets, smashing aside any zombies in their path. But when abandoned motorcycles or other debris blocked the way, they had no choice but to clear it manually. That’s when Fu Qi would say, "Sweetheart, go clean up the trash."
If zombies swarmed during the process, he’d add, "Zombies are dangerous. Sweetheart, you handle them."
Even during breaks to replenish energy, he couldn’t resist needling her. "Food’s running low. Sweetheart, you can skip eating."
These were all normal tasks, but coming from Fu Qi’s mouth, they never failed to infuriate the zombie.
Later, when they stopped to take care of biological needs, Qin Zhen waited until Fan Xu was gone before pouncing on Fu Qi to beat him up.
Fu Qi said, "I specifically stopped so you could relieve yourself, and this is how you repay me?"
After the sanitary pad incident, to keep Qin Zhen from blowing her cover, she had to mimic human bodily functions.
And here she was, not thanking him but attacking him instead.
"You asked for it. S-serves you right."
Fu Qi retorted, "Then I won’t help you pretend anymore. If you get exposed, s-serves you right too."
Provoking a zombie meant facing her wrath.
So when Fan Xu returned from his own business, he was greeted by the sight of "Humans vs. Zombies" and froze for a second before rushing in to pull the two apart.
"Stop fighting!"
Fan Xu was more worked up than either of the actual parties involved. He turned to Qin Zhen on his left and loudly declared, "Bro Fu was just jealous! He didn’t mean to pick on you, Night Sis. Calm down!"
Then he spun to Fu Qi on his right and yelled, "Bro Fu, don’t be rash! I’m not into Night Sis like that—I’m not some homewrecker!"
"…"
The underling’s IQ was too low. Boss Qin was exhausted and didn’t want to speak.
