RIACMET chapter 83

 

She was tall and beautiful with fair skin and a perfectly proportioned figure. She wore a cream-colored, Chanel-style suit paired with high-quality white shoes. Her chestnut curls were tied up in a high ponytail.

Admittedly, Xia Weiwei was stunning. The idea that a person’s face reflects their heart clearly didn’t apply to her. After all, who would have imagined that someone so pretty could have such a rotten core?

The Chen Yue family was cold-blooded and full of hatred, and Xia Weiwei had taken the lead in proposing and launching those private experiments.

Upon closer inspection, Xia Weiwei and Jiang Wenwen weren’t actually that similar. However, there was something about her features and demeanor that made people connect the two at first glance.

Suppressing all emotion, Jiang Nian cast her an impassive glance and turned away.

Had Xia Weiwei not seen the photo, she might have thought she’d mistaken him for someone else. She stared blankly for a moment, then quickly followed. When they reached a quiet corner of the street, she jogged to catch up, blocking his way and smiling politely.

“You’re Jiang Nian, right? I’m Xia Weiwei—Chen Yue’s girlfriend.”

Jiang Nian lifted the brim of his straw hat and looked at her coldly.

“I’m an only child. I don’t have any brothers or sisters.”

“…”

Xia Weiwei’s smile froze on her face. She bit her red lip in irritation, and a hint of impatience flashed in her eyes. Then, she boldly stepped forward and grabbed his arm.

“Jiang Nian, let’s talk.”

Jiang Nian clenched his jaw.

“Let go.”

He tried to shake her off with all his might, but he couldn’t budge her—not even a little.

Right—he’d forgotten that Xia Weiwei was a strength-type psychic. She was basically a Barbie doll with terrifying physical strength.

Sure, he could have broken free by using force, but by the time they had scuffled a few times in the middle of the street, they had already drawn plenty of curious and gossiping stares.

After all, she was still a woman. Uncomfortable with the growing attention, she glanced around and said,

“Come with me.”

She quietly activated her power and dragged him into a back alley behind the plaza’s dormitories. No one else was there.

“Let go!”

Seeing his chance, Jiang Nian tore free of her grip and aimed a kick straight at her face.

He didn’t usually hit women, but he wasn’t about to be polite to an enemy.

He’d held back his resentment for two lifetimes—she deserved a “welcome gift.” Even if he couldn’t win, Xia Weiwei wouldn’t dare fight him seriously right now. That alone was enough to vent some of his anger.

“…”

Xia Weiwei froze when he shoved her and hastily raised her arms to block. Even though she quietly activated her power, she staggered two steps back from the force.

“Are you insane?”

This man was crazy! He started throwing punches at her the moment they disagreed!

But before she could finish shouting, a flurry of blows and kicks came crashing toward her. She had no choice but to set aside her graceful facade and defend herself.

Jiang Nian wasn’t a psychic, but he was an excellent fighter, and definitely not a delicate gentleman.

He landed two sharp kicks to her lower abdomen and hip, then thrust a folding knife straight at her face. He narrowly avoided slashing her cheek; his killing intent was unmistakable.

She had no idea how he had drawn a blade so quickly.

“Jiang Nian, you’re misunderstanding! I pulled you over because I have something important to say—”

Fists and feet kept colliding. Xia Weiwei dodged and blocked, carefully controlling her strength.

First, using her full strength would bulk up her muscles and ruin her figure. Second, she was worried about injuring him.

However, if she didn’t use at least some of her power, she wouldn’t be able to defeat him. After all, Chen Yue had mentioned that his brother used to get into fights all the time at school.

Bang!

“Cough—”

Jiang Nian ignored her completely. He didn’t hold back at all and landed another vicious kick, sending her staggering backward. She stopped, panting hard.

“I don’t really know you. There’s nothing for us to talk about.”

She knew of him, of course—she probably only knew the family background of her boyfriend. He knew her because Chen Shanmin had once bragged that Chen Yue was dating a rich girl.

“I really am Chen Yue’s girlfriend. I don’t have any ill intentions.”

Struggling to maintain her composure, Xia Weiwei tried again to explain. If circumstances were different, she would have tackled this man and beaten him half to death by now. What an ungrateful bastard.

“Heh.”

Jiang Nian caught the murderous glint in her eye. He let out a mocking snort, picked up his straw hat, and put it back on. He looked her straight in the eye, calm and cold.

“Not my problem.”

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving her stunned and unable to think of a rebuttal.

It was hard to win a close-quarters fight against a strength-type mutant. But that was fine—he’d vented his anger and felt much better.

Their noisy scuffle had attracted the security team. A few tenants in the dormitory poked their heads out to see what was going on.

“Jiang Nian!”

Xia Weiwei ground her teeth, swallowing her curses and feeling a burst of stifled rage.

As she watched Jiang Nian walk off, she realized she had nothing to say to the security guards either. She could only stomp her feet a few times in frustration and head off in the other direction.

When Jiang Nian looked back, he saw her stomping her feet like an indignant child. The corner of his mouth lifted in a scornful smile.

After picking up the car from the shop, he sent Cheng Jing a message explaining what had happened. Then, he headed back to the dormitory in a good mood.

He knew a little about Miss Xia’s personality. She’d clearly lost her temper after being provoked, and she would definitely dwell on this.

Whether or not he agreed to go to S Base, she would find a way to retaliate. That was just how people who thought they were better than everyone else behaved.

But as long as he struck first, no one could blame him for the consequences.

…

Meanwhile, when Cheng Jing received Jiang Nian’s message, he and his teammates were in the main command office chatting and laughing with Liang Yunhao.

Liang Yunhao was about the same age as Cheng Jing and had similar values and ways of doing things. He was tall and long-legged with a handsome face.

Compared to Cheng Jing’s wild, rough aura, Liang Yunhao gave people a sense of steadiness and good humor. His words and manner were casual and cheerful. He wasn’t nearly as cold or difficult to read as Cheng Jing.

For Huang Qian and the others, Cheng Jing and Liang Yunhao were both bosses. However, they had worked with Brother Cheng for so long that the line between employer and teammate had blurred. They were always a bit more reserved around Liang Yunhao.

Now, of course, they no longer saw Liang Yunhao as their boss, and the company no longer existed after the apocalypse.

If they had to choose a patron, they all recognized Jiang Nian as the “dad who feeds and clothes them.”

Even now, they were still loyal to Brother Nian.

Cheng Jing and the team made their position clear: they wouldn’t be going to S Base with him and Xia Weiwei.

Liang Yunhao didn’t pressure them or try to persuade them.

He’d only come because he was worried Cheng Jing might not be doing well and wanted to help an old friend. Now that he saw they were living comfortably, however, there was no need to insist on going to S Base.

The main reason he came with Xia Weiwei this time was to handle paperwork regarding their roles at S Base and to explore Nancheng Base.

He wasn’t interested in playing political games. If he could no longer stay at S Base, he would just come here and join Cheng Jing.

Cheng Jing felt the same way.

That was why neither of them tried to force the other. This left them both with an open path should anything happen in the future.

As long as they remained friendly, they were comrades and partners who had each other’s backs.

All morning, Liang Yunhao generously shared information about S Base with Cheng Jing. He even gave Cheng Jing a copy of the relevant data and internal maps for emergencies.

This was a sign of trust and genuine brotherhood.

Only at lunchtime did Liang Yunhao finally leave the office after receiving a message from Xia Weiwei asking to meet at a restaurant.