Ch86 Shen Que, Stay Away from the Teacher
"Alright, let's head back."
After resting, Meng Ci sat up, scooped a handful of snow to wipe the blood from his long knife and axe, then addressed Mao Xinyu and the others. With her leg injured, Mao Xinyu could barely walk back on her own. She couldn't drag the bound wood either, so they had to abandon it.
A wound on her forehead-a blow from the little girl's ice block -made her stumble as she followed the others, one foot sinking deeper than the other.
Meng Ci and the others each hauled a bundle of wood, trudging back with great effort.
As they neared their destination, Yun Jingcen and the others spotted them from afar and hurried down to help.
Seeing the group emerge neat and tidy earlier, now covered in dirt and disheveled, they inquired if they'd encountered danger.
Mao Xinyu, not in the best condition, didn't answer the question.
Cheng Yu explained the reason for the incident, and the group fell silent for a moment.
After all, in the eyes of these teachers, children were pure and innocent-how could they possibly do something deceitful like this?
Meng Ci and Shen Que, unconcerned with the teachers' potential emotional shock, carried the wood they'd brought back in multiple trips to the corridor inside the iron gate.
Since the wood still needed splitting, they didn't bring it into the house.
The two divided their tasks clearly.
Shen Que handled the wood outside, while Meng Ci went inside to cook.
When he'd left that morning, Meng Ci had simmered potatoes and pork ribs in a clay pot. Lifting the lid now, a rich aroma wafted out.
He poked at the stew with chopsticks-the meat fell easily from the bones, the broth thick and savory.
He plucked a sprig of scallions from a flowerpot, washed and chopped them, then sprinkled them over the stew before setting it aside.
He then began steaming rice and stir-fried green vegetables with ham sausage.
Half an hour later, the rice was done. Meng Ci called Shen Que inside.
Exhausted from the day's labor, the two barely spoke.
Midway through the meal, Meng Ci suddenly spoke up.
"Shen Que, from now on, let's go logging alone. We shouldn't accompany Teacher Yun and the others anymore."
Teacher Yun and the others were upright and pure-hearted. Even when they saw Meng Ci's well-stocked pantry and rabbit in his room, indicating a comfortable life, they showed no trace of envy.
But precisely because they were so upright, Meng Ci feared that continuing to travel with them might lead them into danger.
Take today's incident with the little girl, for example. It was only because he had a gun and their group was small that they escaped unscathed.
But what about next time?
"Fine." Shen Que buried his head in his meal, expression unchanged, neither confirming nor denying Meng Ci's words.
Meng Ci remained impassive, though inwardly he wondered if Shen Que might think him too cold-hearted.
After all, they had fought side by side with Yun Jingcen and the others. Now, over a minor incident, he was drawing a line between them.
But if this incident truly created a rift between them, Meng Ci saw no point in forcing the two to endure an uneasy relationship.
"Shen Que, I'll lay it out plainly."
"No one can predict what dangers the apocalypse will bring."
"We might face danger any day-get surrounded and attacked."
"If you get captured and I can't save you, I'll just run."
"Of course, if I get captured, you can run too."
"If you think I'm too heartless, you can leave."
"From now on, even if we meet, we'll pretend we don't know each other."
After saying this, Meng Ci sighed Inwardly.
Goodbye, delicious man who tasted just right.
Goodbye, man I never got to confess to.
After hearing Meng Ci's words, Shen Que gripped his chopsticks, his gaze fixed intently on Meng Ci, lost in thought.
Meng Ci swallowed hard.
Oh my god, this guy probably thinks I'm being heartless and is going to beat me up!
Meng Ci had already located the grenade in his spatial pocket. If Shen Que dared to make a move, he'd crush it.
"Clang!"
Shen Que slammed his chopsticks onto the stove before standing up.
Just as Meng Ci braced for a punch, Shen Que turned and walked out the door.
Sigh!
Meng Ci sighed, staring at Shen Que's chopsticks on the table. Thank goodness this stove top was sturdy.
Otherwise, with Shen Que's strength, it would've been smashed to pieces long ago.
Meng Ci set down his own chopsticks, looking at the dishes on the table without any desire to eat.
Goodbye, my unrequited love I never got to confess.
"Squeak-"
When Shen Que left earlier, he hadn't closed the security door properly. Now, a gust of wind blew it open, making that sound.
Meng Ci couldn't be bothered to get up and close it.
Shen Que wouldn't care about his stuff anyway, and no bad guys could get in.
Sighing again, Meng Ci felt completely drained. All he wanted now was to lie down on the sofa and rest for a bit..
But just as he sat down on the couch, he heard the door opening next door again.
Meng Ci imagined Shen Que storming out, furious enough to move out.
Sigh. Looks like even the thought of secretly spying on the handsome guy in the future was out of the question.
"Bang!"
To his surprise, Meng Ci didn't hear Shen Que leaving. Instead, he saw Shen Que push open his own door and walk right in.
"You..."
Meng Ci's alarm bells were ringing. Was this guy so furious he was going to kill him?
Shen Que strode up to Meng Ci, one hand still tucked in his pocket.
Damn it!
Was that a weapon in his pocket?
Shen Que couldn't be that petty, could he? Killing him just because he said he wouldn't risk his life to save him?
Meng Ci tucked one hand behind his back and pulled out the grenade.
If Shen Que really dared to hit him, this entire building would go down with him.
Yeah, he meant Shen Que, of course.
After all, Meng Ci could enter the space.
"Bang!"
Meng Ci's mind raced through countless ways to fight Shen Que off, but to his surprise, the man suddenly dropped to one knee before him.
As his knee hit the floor, it nearly crushed a small rabbit.
Hey, hey, hey! Careful there! You're not going to kill the rabbit first to intimidate me, are you?
"Shen Que, what are you doing?"
Meng Ci imagined this guy might be demanding that, if he ever got captured, Meng Ci had to rescue him.
Actually, it wasn't impossible, Meng Ci thought to himself.
All Shen Que had to do was give him his body.
Shen Que pulled a red cloth-wrapped object from his pocket and unwrapped it layer by layer.
"Meng Ci, this bracelet was left by my grandmother."
Meng Ci looked down and saw a Jade bracelet in Shen Que's hand.
"Grandma said it was our family heirloom. She gave it to my mother."
"After Mom and Dad died in that car accident, it passed back to Grandma."
"Then Grandma gave it to me, saying that when I met someone I truly loved, I should give this bracelet to him."
Meng Ci's eyes widened as her heartbeat quickened.
Holy crap, what does Shen Que mean by this!
This, this, this...
"So, Meng Ci, I want to give this bracelet to you now. Are you willing?" Shen Que lifted his head, his gaze fixed intently on Meng Ci.