Shi Sheng put the diary away. There wasn’t anything that would help her with this side quest in the main plotline, so she could only look for hints on her own. ‘The corpse mentioned in Cheng Su’s diary ought to be the cause of the apocalypse.
It seems like Cheng Su managed to escape and gave birth to the child before sending her to Papa Gu. If it was like what Papa Gu said, then Cheng Su’s family background ought to be quite good…
After all, she managed to take out quite a sum to convince Mama Gu. A large sum back then wouldn’t be a small amount. But just who was Gu Nan’s father? And Cheng Su was from the capital so why would she be here, in a tiny county capital’s research facility?’
Shi Sheng lifted her hand to look at it. The dim lighting didn’t manage to light up her hand, so she couldn’t see anything special about it.
‘Perhaps… there are more secrets on this body. After all, it would be typical for a story’s plot.’
……
Qi Mingxue stood in a corner staring at Shi Sheng with an unsightly expression. She was currently having an impulse… to kill Gu Nan. She had thought that after snatching away her cheat, she would live very miserably—like the original Qi Mingxue.
But she didn’t. Instead, she seemed to be doing rather well for herself. Every time she saw Gu Nan, Qi Mingxue felt like a joke; there was no way to compare their auras.
“Mingxue, what are you thinking about?” Song Shi had called out to her a few times already, but Qi Mingxue hadn’t reacted at all, so he could only raise his voice as doubts rose in his heart.
“Ah? Oh, nothing…” Qi Mingxue shook her head in panic. Song Shi frowned, his thin lips pressed into a line. His gaze turned deep and dark.
Qi Mingxue let out a slight, somewhat forced, smile. “It’s nothing… I’m just… I’m just a bit upset that Cousin is so hostile to me.”
“Don’t think too much about it. She just doesn’t know how to appreciate you.” Seeing that Song Shi had no interest in Gu Nan, Qi Mingxue’s smile became more genuine.
“Mingxue, come and eat something.”
“Ah Shi, do you want to go and eat too?” Qi Mingxue smiled at the person who had invited her before asking Song Shi.
“You go first. I’m not feeling hungry.”
Qi Mingxue seemed to want to speak as her gaze moved back and forth between him and Gu Nan. In the end, she didn’t say anything. She was afraid of getting the opposite effect from what she intended, i.e.bringing his attention to that matter if she raised it. Even after Qi Mingxue left, Song Shi didn’t move from his spot.
“Boss, look at what that Gu Nan is doing.” Su Jiye had appeared by his side at some point and was looking over at Gu Nan. Song Shi followed his gaze. Gu Nan was standing on the tips of her toes, she seemed to be trying to take a painting off the wall.
It was a very strange painting. It looked like a child’s random graffiti scrawl, reds and greens were all mixed together. It looked quite out of place in such an otherwise serious environment.
Someone called out to Song Shi. By the time he looked back, Gu Nan was gone. Shi Sheng had taken the painting back to where the Qing Yu trio were standing and tossed it to Qing Yu.
“Boss, what’s this? A national treasure?” Lin Feng shuffled forward. His lips twitched when he saw it. “Boss, where did you get this graffiti painting that looks like a kid did it?”
Shi Sheng rolled her eyes at Lin Feng before turning to ask Qing Yu, “Where did you find that diary?”
“Oh, in that storeroom over there… There’s a lot of stuff there. They look quite old too. Dunno if it’s ‘coz people were too lazy to clear it out.”
Shi Sheng looked to where Qing Yu was pointing. There was a small door there, half open. Light wasn’t able to shine into that room though, so it was very dark inside.
‘According to Cheng Su’s diary, the people here weren’t allowed to bring anything out. So that must be the place where all their stuff was stored.’
There was a lot of stuff in there. But they were all small things like teacups, pillows and candy boxes…
Basically, there was all sorts of shit in there.
Shi Sheng didn’t manage to find anything of use inside. By the time she left the storeroom, Chang Xin and co. seemed to have finished their drama. Somehow, he had managed to calm them down.
Chang Xin looked as if he was about to cause trouble for her again but was stopped by someone. That person said something to him, which caused Chang Xin’s expression to turn sour. He looked over at Song Shi’s gang, who had occupied one end of the lab. Shi Sheng looked over before she smiled gloatingly.
“Boss, what are you smiling for?” Little Fatty was pretty dull when it didn’t involve food, so he asked Shi Sheng this question in a wooden manner when he saw her smiling.
“See over there? Those people must’ve been bitten and are turning—”
Shi Sheng hadn’t finished her sentence when Little Fatty cried out, “Then aren’t we dead? Boss, I haven’t eaten Jin Ji’s braised pig’s trotters yet! I don’t wanna die!!!”
Shi Sheng, “…” ‘I really feel like killing this fatso… I haven’t fucking finished, what are you yelling for?!’
“Don’t worry, even if we’re going to be bitten, you’ll be the last one.”
“Why?” Little Fatty didn’t understand.
Shi Sheng smiled evilly. “Because you’re the meatiest, so you’ll be saved for last.”
Little Fatty, “…” ‘This isn’t the time to be making jokes, Boss! People are going to die!’
“Boss isn’t worried so what are you worried about? Didn’t you notice they have a healing ability user on their side?” Lin Feng liked to bully Little Fatty, so of course he took this opportunity to ridicule him.
“Ah…” Little Fatty scratched his head before smiling awkwardly. “Actually, I just felt like eating something.”
Lin Feng was speechless. ‘I was too serious… forgot I was talking to a glutton.’
……
Chang Xin requested Qi Mingxue to save the three who had been bitten. Those three were just normal people, so the only fate they had after being bitten was to turn into a zombie.
Qi Mingxue was feeling depressed. ‘What healing ability? It’s all the work of the spirit spring water… And I only treated people in a private space before but now, there are so many people, how do I take the water out?’
The news—that she had the ability to heal others—spreading out was something she couldn’t help. Back then she had been participating in a mission with others. Had she not saved them, everyone would be dead. And since there were some people who belonged to the government in that mission… this matter couldn’t be hidden.
In the original transmigration storyline, without Shi Sheng’s chuuni mercenary band messing things up, Qi Mingxue hadn’t taken part in that mission – nor this mission in fact; naturally, it wouldn’t have been revealed.
“Ms Qi, I shall have to trouble you to save them.”
Qi Mingxue spoke in a troubled tone, “Captain Chang, I… I used up my ability just now and it hasn’t recovered yet so I’m afraid…”
Due to Gu Nan’s words from just before, Qi Mingxue had no desire at all to reveal her spirit spring’s water.
Though the water could advance one’s ability, only the first usage had any significant effect. Any subsequent uses wouldn’t have such a big effect. And she had always given it out sparingly, so the only evident effect of the water was to get rid of the zombie virus in their bodies.
But people were greedy. She didn’t know how many people would covet it if she revealed it openly…
“Ms Qi, please save my brother. I’ll give you anything.” An ability user looked pleadingly at Qi Mingxue.
“Yeah, Ms Qi, you’re kind, aren’t you? There’s no one else who can save them…”
The more they spoke, the paler Qi Mingxue’s face became. She looked desperately at Song Shi.
“Mingxue needs a private space when saving people. She can’t be disturbed. This place isn’t suitable…”
“I saw a storeroom over there that could be used!”
The no-disturbance rule had always been present and they hadn’t met any other healing ability users, so they weren’t too clear on how these ability users actually healed people who had been bitten. Hence, no one found it strange that Qi Mingxue wanted a private area to treat people.