RIACMET chapter 84

 

“…”

“Brother, do you still trust Liang Yunhao completely?”

After Liang Yunhao left, the office fell into a brief silence. Huang Qian was the first to break it.

Although they had chatted pleasantly with their former boss and gained useful information, the world had changed, and they still had to be realistic.

Sister Qian had spoken, and everyone turned to look at Cheng Jing.

“Trust goes both ways. He trusts me, and I trust him. No one should ever assume the other person is a fool.”

Cheng Jing’s tone was calm. So far, he still trusted Liang Yunhao.

Zhao Lei scratched the back of his head.

“Brother Cheng, it’s fine as long as you know what’s going on. No matter what, we brothers will follow you and Brother Nian. If you get along well with Brother Hao, we will too. If you don’t, we’ll ignore him.”

Cheng Jing smiled faintly.

“Don’t worry. I know.”

With Jiang Nian acting as his “warning switch,” he would always remain rational and clearheaded, ensuring their safety and advantage.

…

At the same time, in a private room at a restaurant on the commercial street:

Xia Weiwei angrily vented about Jiang Nian being ungrateful. Liang Yunhao could only sigh and tell her that he had also failed to persuade Cheng Jing.

They had agreed to try convincing Cheng Jing and Jiang Nian separately first. As long as they both agreed, they could leverage their connections at S Base to work things out with the Nancheng Base leadership.

Unexpectedly, neither of them was willing.

“I can’t stand losers who act like they’re somebody!”

Xia Weiwei was furious, cursing under her breath. At least Liang Yunhao got to sit down and talk to Cheng Jing. Jiang Nian didn’t even give her a chance to speak. The second she dragged him away in public, he started fighting her. He must be insane.

After learning that they had actually brawled, Liang Yunhao couldn’t help but ask,

“Did you offend Jiang Nian beforehand?”

Usually, simple annoyance doesn’t escalate to violence.

“No, I’ve only seen his photo. I don’t know him well enough to offend him. I tried to be tolerant when he started fighting me, even though he doesn’t have any powers!”

Xia Weiwei snapped back, her tone sour. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She regretted not using her strength to teach him a lesson.

Never mind that he’s her boyfriend’s brother—even if he were a complete stranger or a woman, Jiang Nian’s behavior was out of line.

Sure, he might hate Chen Yue personally, but did that mean he could take it out on an innocent bystander like her?

Liang Yunhao shrugged lightly.

“Sounds like Jiang Nian and Chen Yue don’t get along at all.”

He’d only seen a photo of Jiang Nian from Cheng Jing. He looked like a mild-mannered young man. But after hearing how Jiang Nian had chased after Cheng Jing and rejected him, he realized things were far from simple.

“…”

Xia Weiwei let out a frustrated huff and didn’t answer.

She’d asked Chen Yue before, and Chen Yue said they didn’t have much contact and that their relationship was just so-so—not particularly close or bad.

However, Jiang Nian’s attitude today seemed as if he bore a personal grudge against her.

She would call Chen Yue tonight and ask him what was going on. If winning over Cheng Jing wasn’t important, she wouldn’t bother trying to humor some powerless loser.

So what if he could throw a punch? In front of a superpower, he was nothing. She could snap his neck with one hand.

Liang Yunhao studied her for a moment and asked,

“What about your sister? Is she willing to go back with you?”

The temperature was rising quickly, and experts predicted a blistering summer. People with water-based powers were more valuable than ever.

“Hmph!”

At the mention of her sister, Xia Weiwei’s anger flared up again.

“He said everything was fine here in Nancheng. Still the same ungrateful attitude!””

With a monthly salary of only 1,500 points, he couldn’t afford to rent a home in the inner district. She had no idea why Jiang Wenwen acted so high and mighty.

She should have checked her luck before leaving. So far, she had only encountered lunatics and endured indignities she had never experienced before.

Liang Yunhao ignored her temper and spoke mildly.

“In that case, there’s no point in staying here and wasting your time. Everyone has their own goals. Respect their choices. Forgive me for being blunt, but if your sister hadn’t awakened a water ability, your father probably wouldn’t have let you come begging in the first place.”

After the world collapsed, emotional bonds came with a price tag—even love and family.

“…”

Xia Weiwei didn’t argue. She frowned, staring at him.

“Why do I feel like you failed to convince Cheng Jing, and now you’re lecturing me? Recruiting powered people benefits us both. Don’t you want to stay in Nancheng Base?”

Liang Yunhao spread his hands.

“Wrong. I can’t wait to come back tomorrow. I just want you to look at this matter rationally. Your sister, Cheng Jing, and his team are all half civil servants of Nancheng Base. If they don’t agree, they can’t be taken away, even if S Base intervenes.”

“…”

Xia Weiwei lowered her head, her face dark and sullen. In the end, she said nothing. She understood the logic. She was just angry.

Seeing her reaction, Liang Yunhao watched her for a moment, then changed the subject.

“Do you have another mission here? Did Professor Xia give you extra instructions?”

He’d heard some rumors a while back—rumors that had emerged from nowhere, only to be quickly stamped out and become hidden currents beneath the calm surface.

Xia Weiwei’s father had originally been the son of a military family and a medical professor. After the apocalypse, he awakened a precision-cutting power.

He had the rare professional ability to transform his hands into surgical blades. He was now the vice president of the experimental research institute at S Base.

Many procedures that used to require teams of people and equipment could now be handled by Professor Xia alone.

No matter how difficult the site, he could dissect and harvest with uncanny precision, saving resources and doubling efficiency.

Professor Xia had personally formed an apocalypse bio-lab team to conduct research on zombies, cores, powers, and powered humans, and he had become something of an experimental maniac.

Many people looked up to Professor Xia. After all, awakening such power was a boon to scientific progress.

However, when Liang Yunhao thought about it too carefully, it gave him chills. From certain perspectives, an experimental maniac wasn’t so different from a deviant killer.

“No.”

Xia Weiwei denied it a little too quickly. But when she met his questioning gaze, she calmed down and said evenly,

“I asked Chen Yue and the others to come here and wait. Also, Jiang Nian attacked me over a trivial dispute. We need to settle this. Even if I didn’t care about my boyfriend, Jiang Nian should at least apologize.”

“Oh.”

Liang Yunhao smiled as if he understood everything. Fine. It was none of his business, and he didn’t want to get involved.

“…”

After a while, Xia Weiwei hesitated and asked again.

“Are you really planning to leave?”

“I’ve said everything worth saying. Cheng Jing has no intention of going. Unlike you, I don’t have anything else to take care of here. I’m too lazy to keep wasting time.”

Liang Yunhao sounded listless, as if he couldn’t wait to leave.

In terms of power alone, Cheng Jing far surpassed him. His brothers didn’t need help to survive. He’d rather return to his own turf and live freely.

“Suit yourself.”

Xia Weiwei didn’t try to persuade him any further. She had planned for Liang Yunhao to talk to Cheng Jing. If he succeeded, everyone would be happy and save time. Now that he had failed, however, she couldn’t afford to sour her relationship with Cheng Jing. It would only get awkward if she stayed any longer. It was better to go back first.

Liang Yunhao pretended not to notice the little calculations flickering in her eyes. He nodded with a casual smile.

“I’ll take the plane and crew back first. Once you’ve finished up here, just call the base to pick you up.”

“Mm.”

Xia Weiwei looked a little dazed.

“… ”

Lunch ended with both of them lost in thought.

Because of this, Xia Weiwei quietly scrapped her original plan to meet Cheng Jing that afternoon.