The first part of the file introduced the background of the person who had built Haiyin Charity Hospital. Just as Academician Jiang had said, the founder had studied abroad and built the hospital with funding from foreign friends.
At first, Fu Qinian read smoothly, but as he continued, his voice grew quieter and quieter until he simply stopped.
Qin Zhen urged him on, and Fu Qi said, “Wait until I finish reading this section.”
A moment later, he summarized, “It says that after Haiyin Charity Hospital was completed, it helped many people and became quite well-known. But there were occasional medical disputes. Forty-three years ago, a family from out of town came there seeking treatment, but one of them died despite the doctors’ efforts, and the family caused a commotion… One of their relatives was a police officer who had just handled a medical-related case. When he saw the patient’s examination report, he felt something was wrong, so he looked into it further on a whim and unexpectedly discovered that the hospital might have been conducting illegal…”
Fu Qi paused, then said in a grave voice, “Illegal human experiments.”
“No wonder it was investigated and sealed!” Qin Zhen sat up in shock and shook Fu Qi’s bent knee. “What happened next? Hurry up and tell me!”
Fu Qi’s eyes moved down several lines. “The police officer conducted a covert investigation for more than a year but found no evidence. However, he discovered that the hospital’s emblem, DF, was connected to a prominent family in Country B. Further investigation revealed that, during the wars of aggression in the past, this family had committed some… some extremely cruel acts.”
Fu Qi simplified the records in the file and finished speaking in a low voice before turning to the next page.
“After the matter was reported, the authorities conducted a thorough investigation into Lin Dongchang’s past, relationships, assets, and other aspects of his life. Police officers were sent undercover into Haiyin Charity Hospital. A year later, they obtained enough evidence to seal the hospital. Lin Dongchang and the other people involved were arrested and confessed to their crimes. The following year, they were executed by firing squad.”
“They were awful!” Qin Zhen said indignantly. “Using charity as a pretext to do evil things—people like that de- deserve to be shot!”
Fu Qi had already turned to the next page, his gaze fixed on the file. He merely hummed in acknowledgment without looking up.
“Once the bad guys were ar- arrested, was that the end of it?” She leaned over to look at the documents in Fu Qi’s hands. “There’s still so much more.”
“I’m reading. Don’t rush me,” Fu Qi said.
He flipped through three or four more pages. After reading about the trial, he continued in a low voice, “Lin Dongchang was executed, and all the experimental samples and equipment were destroyed. But the people from the DF family had received the news ahead of time…”
Forty years ago, the country was not as powerful as it was now, and many laws and procedures were still incomplete. After sensing that something was wrong, the people from DF sent others to transport the experimental samples in batches, intending to smuggle them out of the country.
“…The authorities dispatched police forces to pursue them. Ten people were shot and killed along the way, and two aircraft were shot down, one over the southwestern islands and the other over…”
Fu Qi suddenly stopped. When Qin Zhen was about to look up in confusion, he quickly continued, “…over the East China Sea. Three of them… escaped with the aid of parachutes and were eventually shot and killed near the border…”
“Thank goodness they didn’t es- escape!” Qin Zhen let out a huge sigh of relief. Then, curiosity got the better of her. “Since they didn’t get away, and all the experimental samples were de- destroyed, what does any of this have to do with the zombie virus?”
Fu Qi did not answer.
He flipped through the file—swish, swish, swish—so quickly that Qin Zhen could not make out a single word.
At last, the file stopped on a certain page.
Fu Qi stared fixedly at it. He seemed to have lost his senses, and for a long while, he did not react.
When Qin Zhen leaned over to see, Fu Qi startled as though frightened. With a sharp snap, he swiftly closed the file.
“What is it?” Qin Zhen turned to look at him.
Fu Qi’s face was hidden in the dim light, making his expression impossible to read. Only the hand gripping the file was exposed beneath the harsh fluorescent lamp. His knuckles were tense with force, and he had nearly crushed the yellowed cover of the case file.
He was in terrible pain.
Qin Zhen realized this.
It was only natural for him to be upset. After all, it had been his fellow countrymen who had been subjected to such atrocities.
Qin Zhen sighed inwardly, then slowly placed her hand over the back of Fu Qi’s. She comforted him, “It’s all right. It’s all over now. The bad guys have all been br- brought to justice…”
Fu Qi remained silent. Qin Zhen felt his hand trembling. With her back pressed against his chest, she could clearly feel how tightly wound his entire body was. His heart was pounding violently, as if it might burst at any moment.
She turned around and wrapped her arms around Fu Qi, gently stroking his back. “It’s all right now. Relax, just relax…”
At last, Fu Qi slowly lowered his head and returned her embrace. He buried his face in Qin Zhen’s shoulder. After a long while, he said in a hoarse, trembling voice, “…They never found it…”
“Found what?”
Fu Qi fell silent again. He held Qin Zhen tightly, as though he were trying to draw strength from her.
All she could do was continue stroking his back and comforting him.
After a while, Fu Qi finally said hoarsely beside her ear, “Those three people were shot and killed, but the… the samples they were carrying…”
The rest seemed almost impossible for him to say. Several seconds passed before he finally spoke in a strained voice.
“…The samples… were never recovered.”
“They weren’t recovered? Then they must have been de- destroyed when the plane crashed,” Qin Zhen declared with complete confidence. “Even if they weren’t de- destroyed, it’s been forty years. They must have gone bad by now and lost their effect.”
There was nothing wrong with what she had said, yet Fu Qi’s body, draped over her, suddenly trembled.
Qin Zhen felt uneasy. She called out cautiously, “Sweetie… are you all right?”
“I’m fine…” Fu Qi’s voice came from the hollow of her neck, muffled and hoarse, filled with a heavy emotion that seemed impossible to dispel. “Just let me hold you for a while.”
“Oh, all right.” Qin Zhen obediently let him hold her, her hand moving up and down Fu Qi’s back.
After a few strokes, he caught her hand, pulled it back to his chest, and pressed it against his heart.
Fu Qi’s heartbeat went thump, thump, thump, like rolling thunder—only far more violent than thunder, revealing the intensity of his emotions.
Qin Zhen had never seen Fu Qi like this before. She was terrified that his heart might explode. She wanted to comfort him but did not know what to say, so she could only remain still and let him hold her.
This went on for a very, very long time—so long that Qin Zhen felt her body would stiffen again if she did not move. She shifted slightly, and only then did Fu Qi seem to come back to himself. He loosened his hold a little.
“…Sorry. Am I making you uncomfortable?” he asked hoarsely.
“A little,” Qin Zhen answered honestly. Then she raised her voice. “It’s okay, I can en- endure it! You can keep hugging me!”
Fu Qi had just lifted himself slightly from her shoulder, but when he heard that, he unceremoniously pressed himself back down.
He was so heavy that he nearly flattened Qin Zhen. His breathing was hot and rough, brushing against her neck and making it tickle.
She resisted the urge to squirm and whispered, “But, Sweetie… after you’re done hugging me, will you feel a little be- better?”
“You want me to feel better?”
“Mm.” Qin Zhen nodded and said softly, “I want you to feel be- better. I want you to tease me like you used to. I like it that way.”
Fu Qi seemed unable to stop himself from laughing. Even his laughter was restrained, and it made her heart ache to hear it.
He rubbed Qin Zhen’s head, this time with extraordinary gentleness, as though he were handling a precious treasure.
“Baby,” Fu Qi called softly beside Qin Zhen’s ear.
The tender endearment made Qin Zhen draw her neck in, suddenly wanting to hide.
Fu Qi noticed the movement. “What are you hiding from?”
Qin Zhen stammered, “W-why are you acting like this?”
“Like what?”
“…I can’t explain it.”
Qin Zhen couldn’t put it into words. She only felt that Fu Qi’s manner made her heart tingle, as though it had been injured again—numb and itchy at the same time, leaving her deeply uncomfortable.
She seemed to like it, yet also seemed to dislike it. If she had a choice, she would rather Fu Qi go back to always making her angry, just like before.
Fu Qi seemed to smile again. He rubbed her head and said softly, “You… you really are a little fool.”
The hand Qin Zhen had pressed against his chest was caught and held. She warned him, “S-since you’re in a bad m-mood, I’ll let you off this time.”
Fu Qi answered by rubbing her head again. After a while, he finally let Qin Zhen go completely and turned away from her gaze to gather up the thick file.
“We h-haven’t read the rest!” Qin Zhen called after him.
“There’s no need.” Fu Qi lowered his voice. “The rest… the rest is all information about the victims.”
It had been more than forty years since the case. The victims had either died as experimental subjects or been rescued by the police and gone on to live peaceful lives for four decades. Whether they were still alive or not, they presumably would not want to remember that period of their lives. There really was no need to read further.
“Oh.” Qin Zhen did not insist on examining the rest. Instead, she asked in confusion, “Then what does this have to do with the people from A C-Country? Why would they go to so much trouble to look for you?”
“Because of that missing…” Fu Qi lowered his head as he organized the files and spoke slowly. “…specimen. They think it’s in my hands.”
This long-sealed file had allowed Fu Qi to understand the whole story.
More than forty years ago, Haiyin Hospital had used charity as a front while secretly conducting illegal experiments. During the government’s investigation and pursuit, everything related to the experiments had been destroyed except for one missing specimen. The DF family, the masterminds behind it all, had also suffered a devastating blow and fallen into ruin. Still, it could not be ruled out that Country B had preserved some of the research materials.
The zombie virus might have been created by them.
They had brought disaster upon themselves. With their country and family destroyed, they had been forced to seek refuge in Country A.
But seeking refuge with someone else required bargaining chips. The research related to the zombie virus had become their offering.
That was why Country A had been able to rapidly develop a highly effective zombie inhibitor, and why they had ignored the rampaging zombies while expending vast amounts of manpower and resources to search the mountains and rivers within their country.
That was also why, after learning that he had found a clue bearing the “DF” mark, they had changed their previous practice of indiscriminately killing civilians and turned back to look for him.
“So you really d-did find that missing sp-specimen?” Qin Zhen asked.
Fu Qi turned his face away in the shadows. “No… The specimen was a drug. I didn’t find any… anything related to the drug.”
“They must be f-furious!” Qin Zhen cheered, stammering happily. “They’ve been chasing you around and r-running for nothing all this time!”
“Mm,” Fu Qi answered quietly.
Qin Zhen was happy for a while, but then worry returned to her face. “You d-didn’t find the specimen either. What are we going to do about the z-zombie virus?”
“Leave it alone.” Fu Qi’s voice sounded strange. He repeated, “Leave it alone for now.”
“Leave it alone?”
“Yes.” Fu Qi said, “Let’s clean this place up first. Then we’ll go somewhere.”
“Somewhere that might c-contain the missing specimen?”
“No. Just an ordinary little home. I…” Fu Qi’s voice grew strange again, heavy with gloom and repression. “I’m tired. I want to go somewhere and rest.”
Qin Zhen stared blankly at him for a while before asking cautiously, “Sweetie, have you been s-slacking off so much that you’ve gone c-crazy?”
He was the captain of the number-one team in the apocalypse, the former Major Fu. Although Qin Zhen had never said so aloud, she had always felt that Fu Qi was a deeply emotional man with a powerful sense of responsibility. How could he possibly put aside his work after discovering hope for solving the zombie virus, just to go and rest?
And not just anywhere, but somewhere specific?
“I’m not crazy.”
Fu Qi closed his eyes. The information in the file surfaced in his mind, along with the family address recorded there.
He had spent five years in the apocalypse and witnessed countless tragic lives. He had thought he was already capable of facing every tragedy in the world with calm, but today, his heart was still being torn apart, and there was nothing he could do.
“We’re going to the home of the friend Academician Jiang mentioned…” Fu Qi swallowed the bitterness rising into his throat and asked, “Do you still remember where it is?”
“Unit One, Apartment 203,” Qin Zhen replied.
She remembered clearly. The friend Academician Jiang had known when she was young—who had once been treated at Haiyin Charity Hospital—had parents who were both teachers at No. 1 High School. They lived in the school’s faculty housing.
Academician Jiang no longer remembered her friend’s name, but she remembered the address because “123” was easy to remember.
“Right. We’re going there, to see if we can… help Academician Jiang take a look.”
“All right.”
Seeing how upset Fu Qi was, Qin Zhen was willing to accompany him and waste some time, even though this place was only one street away from Haiyin Hospital and might be very dangerous.
“After we go there, you have to f-feel a little better, okay?”
Fu Qi said, “Okay.”
Having received his promise, Qin Zhen helped Fu Qi clean up the air-raid shelter. She reluctantly shut down the computer, and just as they were about to leave, a flash of white crossed her mind. She suddenly thought of a crucial question.
“Sweetie, Sweetie!” Qin Zhen said hurriedly. “Where did you f-find that… that DF mark?”
He had found the mark, so the crucial specimen had to be somewhere nearby. If they searched the surrounding area more thoroughly, they might be able to find it!
Fu Qi said, “You know.”
“How would I k-know?” Qin Zhen asked, puzzled. “When did you ever t-tell me?”
“Think for yourself,” Fu Qi said.
He repeated the words he often said to Qin Zhen. Then he turned around, cupped her face in his hands, and looked straight into her with his inscrutable gaze.
“You need to use your brain. You need to think. You need to become smarter. Then, in the future… in the future, you won’t be bullied anymore.”
