“… ”
With his back pressed against the warmth of that heater-like chest, Jiang Nian blinked in the darkness and spoke wisely.
“Brother Jing, it’s really late. I’m a little tired.”
But everyone had moved the same amount today, and they’d been busy nonstop. Wasn’t this guy going to be tired, too?
“That’s still not enough?”
Cheng Jing chuckled under his breath and rubbed his nose against Jiang Nian’s cheek.
“I…”
Jiang Nian fell silent for a moment. He couldn’t just say he couldn’t do it. He could—he was just exhausted!
“It’s okay to admit you’re not up to it sometimes. I won’t laugh at you.”
Cheng Jing teased him endlessly but didn’t make any further moves. He simply clung to him from the side.
Jiang Nian clenched his teeth and snapped back,
“It’s not about whether I can or can’t. I’m worried you’re the one who can’t! I’m not even the one doing most of the work!”
He was so pissed! His role in the relationship had clearly been flipped upside down.
“Hehe…”
Cheng Jing chuckled again, his chest vibrating.
Just as Jiang Nian was about to pinch him, Cheng Jing suddenly spoke out of nowhere:
“If it were me, I’d probably do the same thing…”
“What?”
Jiang Nian was caught off guard by the sudden change in tone, but he was secretly relieved that Cheng Jing wasn’t planning to push further. Honestly, even passive pleasure could be exhausting sometimes.
Cheng Jing didn’t answer. He just tightened his embrace and spoke in a flat tone.
“Maybe I’d do something even more extreme than she did…”
“…?”
“Huh?”
As the memory resurfaced, Jiang Nian finally understood what he meant. He reached up and patted his head.
“Calm down, Brother Jing. It’s better to raise a dog than to become a zombie. If that ever happens to me, I’d rather die quickly. Don’t get in the way of my reincarnation.”
If you’re going to die, then just die. A corpse that’s forced to keep going doesn’t smell good or look nice—it attacks people. It’s better to go peacefully and end it cleanly.
“Jiang Nian!”
Cheng Jing gritted his teeth in frustration, clearly displeased.
Jiang Nian turned to face him.
“Brother Jing, no matter how many reasons or hardships Xiaoya’s mother had, it doesn’t change the fact that she hurt others and herself. Honestly, death was mercy for her. I’m telling you—if she hadn’t been infected, I would’ve killed her!”
There was no excuse for such an act, no matter who committed it. Brother Jing’s line of thinking was dangerous.
“…”
Cheng Jing looked stunned. He stared at him through the dark. After a pause, he asked,
“Then why did you spare Xiaoya?”
“To be honest, if Sister Qian hadn’t been there at that moment, Xiaoya might have already died.”
Jiang Nian spoke calmly. After recounting what had happened between him and Huang Qian in Room 1805’s living room, he added,
“I wanted to strangle her and burn her to ash. The whole family of three should atone for the innocent lives they’d taken. That would’ve been the cleanest way.”
He wasn’t sure if Huang Qian had sensed his intentions back then, but he knew that none of his teammates had wanted to kill Xiaoya as much as he did. That’s why he hesitated.
“You shouldn’t do things like that.”
Cheng Jing said in a flat voice.
Jiang Nian took the chance to ask back,
“Brother Jing, would you burn a child alive just because I said so? Would you throw her out like a stray dog and watch her die a miserable death? If she cried and begged you, would you still turn a blind eye?”
My boyfriend and teammates are highly trained security professionals. For that reason alone, they would never kill a child.
“…”
Cheng Jing stayed quiet. If Xiaoya had harmed Jiang Nian, he wouldn’t have hesitated to burn her to ash. But she hadn’t. In fact, she had shown kindness toward Jiang Nian.
Even if Xiaoya was guilty, it wasn’t their place to judge her. Otherwise, there would be too many people to kill. It wasn’t the victims’ families’ place either.
Of course, if Jiang Nian truly couldn’t get past this, he would have done it himself. After thinking for a while, he asked,
“What do you think now?”
Jiang Nian let out a breath.
“The authorities have spoken, and we’ve accepted the commission. I’ll just watch over her for now, as Zhou Li suggested.”
Maybe being cruel and coldhearted fit his personality better after he died and was reborn to witness humanity’s worst.
But his teammates weren’t like him; they saw things differently. Otherwise, when Sister Huang Qian attacked, she wouldn’t have just knocked people out; she would have killed them on the spot.
During a mission, his teammates’ actions reflected Cheng Jing’s intent. As his partner, he never once considered killing Xiaoya from beginning to end.
Had he faced the apocalypse alone after being reborn, he might’ve gone to extremes. Now that he’d been saved, though, he didn’t need to lose his mind.
“Oh…”
With so many thoughts swirling in his head, Jiang Nian couldn’t help but laugh softly and mutter to himself.
“If I had really killed her back then, I probably would’ve regretted it. What could a desperate child do to save her father when her mother was pleading with and deceiving her? How much power did she really have to resist?”
Cheng Jing patted his shoulder.
“Then let’s just keep an eye on her for now and escort her to the base for proper processing. With our strength, we can handle anything that comes up. Of course, if she runs off on her own, that has nothing to do with us.”
A mother’s selfishness had led to tragedy. Xiaoya wasn’t completely innocent, but she was powerless to resist.
Some things about people are just hard to define.
“Yeah.”
Jiang Nian nodded and hugged him tightly. He squinted his eyes in satisfaction, then remembered the earlier topic and spoke firmly again.
“But Brother Jing, I meant what I said earlier. If I get bitten and there’s no serum, you should kill me as soon as possible. I love you too much. I don’t want to drag you down.”
After a moment’s thought, he changed his words.
“Actually, forget it. You wouldn’t be able to do it anyway. I’ll use my abilities to stay sane just long enough to settle things, and then I’ll end myself before I completely lose it.”
He didn’t want to watch himself turn from human to beast, claws bared toward the person he loved most.
Cheng Jing’s breathing grew heavier. He buried his head in Jiang Nian’s neck and bit him.
“Stop spouting nonsense! We’re going to survive until the end of the world, get married, and raise a dog together!”
He sighed over how affected he was by Xiaoya’s mother’s actions. And now this guy was talking about preparing for his own funeral?
“Ugh, you’re being unreasonable. You’re the one who brought it up first…”
Jiang Nian muttered in protest but still rubbed his arm gently to comfort him.
“Okay, okay. You can have a dog after we’re married and raise as many as you want.”
The problem with having a boyfriend who’s like a dad is that you never know when he’s going to have a moody outburst.
The worst part? If he ever said, “Big Boss Jing Ge is weird, gloomy, and clingy when he’s in a bad mood,” no one would believe him. They’d say he was spreading rumors.
…
Although the Jiaheyuan incident had come to an end, another shadow still loomed over everyone’s hearts.
Many people had family, friends, and lovers. The world was in chaos, and order was collapsing. Who could say who would be next to do something like that?
Who could promise that they wouldn’t end up like the woman in Room 1805?
Jiang Nian nodded and hugged him tightly. He squinted his eyes in satisfaction, then remembered the earlier topic and spoke firmly again.
“But Brother Jing, I meant what I said earlier. If I get bitten and there’s no serum, you should kill me as soon as possible. I love you too much. I don’t want to drag you down.”
After a moment’s thought, he changed his words.
“Actually, forget it. You wouldn’t be able to do it anyway. I’ll use my abilities to stay sane just long enough to settle things, and then I’ll end myself before I completely lose it.”
He didn’t want to watch himself turn from human to beast, claws bared toward the person he loved most.
Cheng Jing’s breathing grew heavier. He buried his head in Jiang Nian’s neck and bit him.
“Stop spouting nonsense! We’re going to survive until the end of the world, get married, and raise a dog together!”
He sighed over how affected he was by Xiaoya’s mother’s actions. And now this guy was talking about preparing for his own funeral?
“Ugh, you’re being unreasonable. You’re the one who brought it up first…”
Jiang Nian muttered in protest but still rubbed his arm gently to comfort him.
“Okay, okay. You can have a dog after we’re married and raise as many as you want.”
The problem with having a boyfriend who’s like a dad is that you never know when he’s going to have a moody outburst.
The worst part? If he ever said, “Big Boss Jing Ge is weird, gloomy, and clingy when he’s in a bad mood,” no one would believe him. They’d say he was spreading rumors.
…
Although the Jiaheyuan incident had come to an end, another shadow still loomed over everyone’s hearts.
Many people had family, friends, and lovers. The world was in chaos, and order was collapsing. Who could say who would be next to do something like that?
Who could promise that they wouldn’t end up like the woman in Room 1805?
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