Chapter Twenty-Two: A Knock at Midnight

Hearing the knock at the door, I instinctively sprang from the bed, treading lightly as I went over to open it. Some habits are hard to break.

“Mr. Cao, the president arranged for these daily necessities to be brought to you. He said you might need them, so please accept them.” As I opened the door, I saw a woman in her thirties, dressed in a sheer black gown that shimmered with a snowy brilliance beneath the dim light, her beauty possessing a certain seductive allure.

I took the small box from her hands and glanced inside; it contained just the things I needed at the moment.

As I was about to close the door, the woman suddenly caught my wrist. I frowned, puzzled, and looked at her.

“Mr. Cao… the president also said… I can stay today… stay in your room.” She lowered her head in a feigned shyness, her voice trembling. If not for my experience, I might have believed her to be an innocent girl.

Stay? What was this about? For a woman to offer herself without reason—either wicked intent or hidden motives.

While I didn’t doubt that she was sent by Huo Tian to keep me company, I was puzzled by Huo Tian’s motives. Was he truly sending a woman to sleep with me just because I saved his daughter’s life?

I let my gaze run over her with unconcealed scrutiny, lingering especially on her swaying curves.

She played along, as if by accident swaying more, a display that was, admittedly, pleasing to the eye.

The woman tried to push the door open and come in, apparently believing my demeanor signaled consent.

“I don’t think I need such services. Please leave, and tell your president that I appreciate the gesture.” Smiling, I shook off her delicate hand and was about to shut the door.

The mature woman suddenly looked as if she were about to kneel, but I caught her just in time—having someone kneel before you for no reason is said to shorten your life.

In these wasted times, I still hoped to live a few years more.

I was growing irritable. Hadn’t I made myself clear? Was this really an age where people begged to be forced upon?

“Mr. Cao… please, don’t make me leave…! If I don’t complete my task, I’ll lose my value. Without contribution points, I can’t survive.” Tears welled in her eyes, her desperate plea moving me not in the slightest.

I could soften to Fourth Master, but with people, one must be cautious.

“Tell me directly: if I send you away today, what will happen to you? Don’t talk to me about value or contribution points—I just arrived and don’t understand any of it.” I blocked the doorway, impatient, allowing her no entry.

“I… I’ll starve, and then they’ll throw me out. But what happens to me doesn’t matter—what matters is, I have a daughter!” The woman bit her lip, tears running to her mouth.

“Woof… woof…” Even Fourth Master was done dozing, running to my side and nuzzling my trouser leg affectionately.

I studied the woman for a long moment, then finally opened the door.

After shutting it behind her, I fixed my gaze on the somewhat apprehensive woman. “I’ll ask, you answer. Unless I ask, don’t speak. If you understand, nod.”

From her nod, I saw a complex look in her eyes. I couldn’t tell what she thought of me—perhaps she’d never met anyone like me before.

After all, in these wasted times, if a woman offered herself, most men wouldn’t turn her away. They’d indulge themselves twenty times in a night, then worry about the rest.

Unfortunately, excessive indulgence weakens the body, and over time, one is left enfeebled. Such things might offer a bit of pleasure, but shouldn’t be overdone.

I took out a razor and began shaving in front of the room’s mirror. I hadn’t shaved in two or three months, and the beard was getting rather wild—if I let it grow a few more years, I’d look like one of those famed bearded heroes.

“First question: your name.”

“Han Shuqing.”

“Good, keep that pace. Second question: explain this value and contribution point system you mentioned.”

“In the settlement, everyone has a purpose—some clean, some do laundry for the upper levels, some cook or watch the storerooms. By working, you earn contribution points, which can be exchanged for daily necessities.”

“Oh? And your task is to seduce me?” I glanced at her reflection in the mirror and spoke slowly.

Han Shuqing bit her lip, her voice choked, my words clearly wounding her fragile spirit. “That wasn’t the original plan! But… my husband died scavenging outside. We were getting by, but after he died, my daughter and I lost our value.”

“If I don’t obey the president’s orders, I won’t receive supplies… My daughter and I will starve! The settlement looks prosperous from the outside, but that’s only for those in the upper levels. For those living below, without work, you’ll starve.”

After finishing my shave, I rinsed my face and turned to her with a teasing smile. “You could have done something else—some kind of labor. Why this? Has Huo Tian sent you around to a lot of people already?”

Her eyes reddened. “No! My husband died on this scavenging mission. You… you’re the first I’ve been assigned to!”

“So, if I understand correctly, there isn’t enough work for everyone in the settlement, or at least not enough for all. It’s a small place. If you don’t obey orders, you’re abandoned. And you are attractive enough—Huo Tian probably feels it’s a waste not to make use of you.” I stepped closer, my gaze intense.

It seemed she had prepared thoroughly for her task, her earlier display of allure no doubt rehearsed. If she truly was a respectable woman, this must have been hard on her.

Han Shuqing clutched her skirt tightly, raising her head to meet my gaze, stubborn yet with no trace of indignation or defiance in her eyes—clearly someone used to submitting to fate.

Had she been more spirited, she might have fought her orders to the death. The apocalypse had worn away her will.

Truth be told, I did find mature women like her intriguing—especially those with her kind of full, voluptuous figure. Under other circumstances, I wouldn’t have minded taking things further.

But for now, I was still puzzled by the whole affair, and whether or not I satisfied my desires seemed inconsequential—it wouldn’t kill me either way.

What I feared most was that some nameless impulse would cloud my judgment.

Unless I saw proof, unless I knew this woman spoke the truth.