“Looks good, really!” Jiang Xinghuai hopped on one foot, happily following behind Fu Yan up the stairs. “Look how that bow suits you!”
Fu Yan kept his face taut, saying nothing.
“We should really try more styles, don’t you think? If you don’t try, how would you know you won’t like this kind of look?” Jiang Xinghuai was no longer hungry or tired now, and even sneezed cheerfully, “Ah-choo—”
“You’ve caught a cold.” Fu Yan turned around, frowned at him, and reached out to feel his clothes. “Too thin. Put on another layer.”
As he spoke, Fu Yan swiftly picked up a piece of clothing from the floor and held it up. “This one’s good. Wear it.”
Jiang Xinghuai: “…………”
He stared at the floral pullover sweatshirt with rabbit ears in Fu Yan’s hands, and suddenly recalled what Zhu Gaofei had once told him.
“I’m telling you, someone like him looks gentle, but deep down he’s sly and bad…”
Fu Yan pushed the clothes toward him again: “Picked it up from the package on the floor. It’s not dirty.”
“You did that on purpose.” Jiang Xinghuai wrinkled his nose, resisting with all his might. “I’m not wearing it.”
“I’m not that childish.” Fu Yan’s face was serious. “Staying warm is the most important thing now.”
Jiang Xinghuai: “…………”
“If you’re not cold, then don’t wear it.” Fu Yan withdrew his hand, turned back, and glanced at the glass with a small corner broken off, shifting half a step to the left.
The cold wind, mixed with fine rain, blew right onto Jiang Xinghuai’s face.
Jiang Xinghuai shivered, then resentfully looked around at the ground. Most of the scattered luggage had already been stained with blood.
“Are you putting it on or not?” Fu Yan asked again.
Jiang Xinghuai gave a snort, took the clothes, and still pulled them over his head to wear.
Both of them were dressed in women’s clothing at this point, but the difference was still obvious. Jiang Xinghuai didn’t look as stiff as Fu Yan when he wore it. The girls’ sweatshirt fit him just right, even a bit loose.
“Too skinny.” Fu Yan tugged out the hood that had been tucked inside his clothes, frowning. “Do you even weigh a hundred jin?”
“I do, 109.” Jiang Xinghuai tugged at the rabbit ears on the hood. “How many layers is this now?”
“Twenty-four layers.” Fu Yan also pinched the rabbit ears, “Let’s go.”
Just then, a faint crack—
Fu Yan’s back was to the window in the loft behind them, so he didn’t notice.
But the window was facing Jiang Xinghuai. He squinted warily, but outside was just hazy, heavy rain. Nothing could be seen clearly.
Before he could look closer, a shadow suddenly pressed up against the glass.
That skull head was climbing up the window!
The thought had only just flashed in Jiang Xinghuai’s mind when the sound of shattering glass exploded instantly!
Jiang Xinghuai’s reflexes were usually sharp. He just managed to shove Fu Yan out of the way.
But he had no time to look after himself. Along with the shower of splintering glass shards came a pair of dry, skinny hands.
Jiang Xinghuai only had time to shield his head and face when his neck tightened. Then his whole body was yanked up, almost scraping against the wall as the skull head hauled him upward by the hood.
The speed was too fast. By the time Fu Yan scrambled up from the ground, half of Jiang Xinghuai’s body had already been dragged out the window.
He rushed forward, barely brushed against Jiang Xinghuai’s leg. Fu Yan grabbed hard, only to clutch at empty air.
Fu Yan’s pupils shrank, his heart nearly stopped.
Wind howled past his ears, his eyelashes clumped with rain. Jiang Xinghuai plummeted more than ten meters in an instant, with no time to latch onto anything for leverage.
What’s more, the outer wall was smooth, the only footholds being the window ledges of the stairwell’s small windows at each floor.
That was exactly where the skull head landed each time it jumped down, but its speed was so great that Fu Yan couldn’t see clearly at all.
Jiang Xinghuai’s back was soaked in sweat. But at this moment, his mind was razor sharp.
He had to be.
Anyone else, dragged down floor by floor in such leaps, would be instantly overwhelmed by the crushing weightlessness and terror, their mind blank.
But not Jiang Xinghuai. This was his game.
“When I was playing at jumping off buildings, you were still screwing around on trampolines!” Jiang Xinghuai gritted his teeth, forcing courage into himself.
Timing it precisely when the skull head paused and sprang again, Jiang Xinghuai twisted midair, snatching at a window ledge. His fingernails split and broke in half.
The skull head was clearly thrown off by this sudden resistance. Its grip on Jiang Xinghuai slipped open, and it nearly fell. But its unnatural speed and monstrous strength let it instantly seize Jiang Xinghuai’s foot.
“Ah!” Jiang Xinghuai couldn’t possibly hold up the weight of two people. His face flushed scarlet, his fingers shifted from blue to white, blood quickly seeping from his fingertips—only to be washed away by the rain as fast as it appeared.
After the initial moment of reaction, the skull head began clawing its way up Jiang Xinghuai’s calf.
Jiang Xinghuai kicked at it with all his strength. He knew if the skull head climbed up, he was as good as dead.
Fu Yan leaned half his body out the window, gun in hand. Rain streamed down his pale face as he fired several shots, all hitting the skull head’s legs.
It was too close. There was no way to aim at the skull’s head without risking Jiang Xinghuai getting hit.
“Fu Yan!” Jiang Xinghuai heard the gunfire above, lifted his head, and shouted.
He was almost at his limit, his grip slipping. Fear consumed him. He wanted Fu Yan to run.
“Captain, gunfire coming from Building 2, outside the 20th floor,” Lei Pengtao lowered the binoculars, his expression grim. “A man is hanging off the side with a mutated infected. Situation critical.”
Kang Cheng took the binoculars, glanced through, and quickly issued a sniper order.
“No, they’re too close. If the bullet pierces through, they’ll both fall.” Lei Pengtao frowned, clutching his rifle.
“Shoot the torso. Draw the infected’s attention,” Kang Cheng said calmly. “There’s another man on the 24th floor. He’s armed.”
Lei Pengtao rolled onto the car roof, set up the rifle, lowered himself, and whispered: “Seize the chance…”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three gunshots.
Bullets from an unknown direction enraged the skull head. It forgot climbing upward and instead stuck its head out, mouth wide, letting out a howl toward the building below.
Now was the moment!
Fu Yan pulled the trigger. Several shots rang out in quick succession, each one striking squarely between its brows.
The skull instantly went rigid. In less than half a second, half its head suddenly blew open. The hand that had been gripping Jiang Xinghuai’s calf slowly lost its strength.
The next moment, the skull, eyes wide, face up, plummeted down the side of the building.
The torrential rain stopped abruptly. The spray cleared, the sun broke through, and for that instant, time seemed to freeze.
Jiang Xinghuai looked up. With the rain gone, he finally saw Fu Yan.
He saw Fu Yan’s hands trembling uncontrollably and his eyes bright red.
“Hold on, don’t move!” Fu Yan shouted until his voice cracked. Then he spun and ran down the stairs as if his life depended on it.
Jiang Xinghuai felt his body lighten, but still didn’t dare relax. Right now, he was hanging by both hands hooked over the window ledge, veins bulging on his neck, feet pressed against the wall, but too afraid to push hard. The building’s exterior offered no footholds, the rain had soaked everything outside, and he feared a slip would send him falling.
In less than a minute, almost the instant he heard footsteps approaching, a pair of cool, steady hands grabbed his wrists tightly.
“Don’t be afraid.” Fu Yan’s voice sounded above his head.
“Are you cold?” Fu Yan knelt, holding Jiang Xinghuai, who was shaking all over, ice-cold and unable to stand. His eyes were full of pain.
Jiang Xinghuai looped his arms around Fu Yan’s neck, burying his head in the hollow of his shoulder. He didn’t speak, only shook his head.
He was truly terrified. He had thought he was going to fall and die.
Fall from the twentieth floor.
“It’s okay, it’s okay, don’t be afraid.” Fu Yan kept stroking down his back with one hand while the other rubbed his cramped calf without stopping.
It wasn’t until the sound of hurried footsteps came up the stairwell that Jiang Xinghuai finally snapped back to himself and pulled away from Fu Yan’s arms, though he still knelt on the ground, unable to stand.
“Just temporary weakness. It’ll pass soon.” Fu Yan lowered his head, pressing on Jiang Xinghuai’s leg. “Don’t be afraid.”
“I’m hungry.” Jiang Xinghuai leaned his head against Fu Yan’s shoulder.
Just then, five soldiers in camouflage uniforms ran up the stairs and quickly surrounded them. Their captain, Kang Cheng, greeted them warmly: “Comrades, are you alright?”
“What do you want to eat?” Fu Yan asked.
“The steak you cook.” Jiang Xinghuai said.
“Comrade, comrade—” Captain Kang Cheng called out a few more times.
Only then did Jiang Xinghuai notice him, startled: “Uncle Policeman, do you need something?”
“Ah—” Kang Cheng froze, too. “I’m not a policeman.”
“Thank you for just now.” Fu Yan stood up, still holding Jiang Xinghuai.
“No need for thanks. It’s our duty.” Kang Cheng waved with a smile, then asked curiously, “But why are you here? We already searched this area.”
“We came from Suzhou to Beijing to find a friend,” Fu Yan replied.
“Find a friend?” Kang Cheng’s eyes showed surprise.
In times like these, with so much danger, to travel from one city to another just to find a friend…
Jiang Xinghuai shifted his leg, realized he could move, then jumped down from Fu Yan’s arms and explained: “The person we’re looking for is at the top floor of this building.”
“Top floor—wait… the friend you’re looking for wouldn’t happen to be Dr. Zheng, right?” Kang Cheng froze, thinking, It can’t be such a coincidence.
“Doctor?” Jiang Xinghuai muttered, straightening up.
“You know Zheng Yi?” Fu Yan frowned, asking.
Kang Cheng nodded, then quickly reacted: “You must be Mr. Fu, right?”
Before Fu Yan could respond, he continued: “Two days ago, several of our squads received orders from above to come to this building and rescue a Dr. Zheng. They said he’s an elite in the field of domestic genetic biology. After arriving at the shelter, Dr. Zheng strongly requested to find the boss of Fu Lin Pharmaceuticals. But at the moment, the military can only conduct nearby searches, rescues, and stabilize temporary shelters, so Dr. Zheng’s request to find you had to be set aside.”
“But who would’ve thought you’d come on your own, Mr. Fu. Today, we were just lucky. We were on our way back from a mission when we happened to hear gunfire here, so we drove over and ran into you.”
“Talking so much, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Kang Cheng. I’m currently the captain of the Fourth Squad of the Special Search and Rescue Unit.” Kang Cheng extended his hand.
“Fu Yan.” Fu Yan also reached out his hand.
The two shook once, then quickly let go.
“This isn’t the place to talk. We were just about to return to the shelter.” Kang Cheng smiled. “Come with us. Dr. Zheng will be thrilled to see you.”
They went smoothly down the stairs and back to the vehicles. In just this short while, the sun had already come out.
Kang Cheng and another squad member, Lei Pengtao, who had dimples when he smiled, got into their car.
“Those shots just now were fired by Taozi.” Kang Cheng took the driver’s seat, while Lei Pengtao, in the passenger seat, turned around, smiling, and waved.
“Thank you.” Jiang Xinghuai looked at Lei Pengtao’s dimples with interest.
“You’ve got quite a stockpile of weapons in your car.” Kang Cheng started the engine, then gave them a discreet glance in the rearview mirror. “I wanted to ask earlier upstairs. Where did you get your weapons?”
“The guns are my godfather’s. He runs a security company, and he used to be in the military.” Jiang Xinghuai answered.
“No wonder you’ve got some skills, kid.” The wariness in Kang Cheng’s eyes faded, and he praised generously, “Your composure is far beyond that of ordinary people!”
“Average, average.” Jiang Xinghuai raised his brows smugly, completely forgetting how he had just been so weak in the legs he couldn’t even stand.
“But, what’s your relationship with Mr. Fu?” Kang Cheng asked again.
“Guess.” Jiang Xinghuai grinned. “There’s a prize if you get it right.”
Kang Cheng glanced at them a couple of times but couldn’t figure it out. Say father and son? Fu Yan didn’t look that old. Say brothers? Jiang Xinghuai looked too young.
“Taozi, you guess.” Kang Cheng tossed the burden to Lei Pengtao.
“Uh, me? Guessing?” Lei Pengtao, with his square, honest-looking face, scratched his head. When he smiled with his dimples, he looked a little silly.
He looked at Fu Yan’s pink women’s cardigan sweater, then at Jiang Xinghuai’s floral sweatshirt with rabbit ears. After a moment of hesitation, he ventured nervously: “…sisters?”
