Chapter 80: Bingran's Patient Guidance

“No! I’m staying here with you!” Huo Bingran was the first to jump up in protest, her bright eyes looking earnestly at Cao Fusheng.

Seeing Huo Bingran step forward, Han Shuqing also took a gentle step ahead and softly said, “I feel the same as Miss Huo.”

Shen Dong and Gao Yi stood rather awkwardly to the side, pretending as if they hadn’t heard anything and wandering about.

Cao Fusheng, exasperated, let out a laugh. “Since when have I needed women to charge ahead and risk their lives for me? If you stay, you’ll not only be unable to help, but you’ll also drag me down. On my own, I won’t have to worry about anyone and can make a clean escape.”

Seeing Huo Bingran about to argue, Cao Fusheng cut her off, “That’s enough. My mind is made up. You all need to leave now—time is short, and we can’t waste any more here! Go!”

Once everyone had left, Cao Fusheng stood hands on hips, gazing at the equipment left in the room with a faint smile.

After a while, with only the rocket launchers remaining in the armory, he smiled again.

Blow all of this up?

What a waste that would be. These were the supplies he and Huo Bingran had risked their lives to bring out.

From the start, his plan was to stash the remaining supplies in his spatial storage.

But with so many people present, Cao Fusheng couldn’t do something so outlandish in front of them.

Unless he trusted them completely, with bonds forged in life and death, he would never consider revealing such a secret.

“Brother Cao! I knew it, you’d never just abandon all this gear. We fought so hard for it.” Huo Bingran’s clear voice came from behind him.

Cao Fusheng had already heard the stealthy footsteps—no one else but the lively Huo Bingran would sneak about like that.

“What are you doing sneaking back here?” Cao Fusheng turned, gently cupping her lovely face with a helpless smile.

Huo Bingran stole a quick kiss from his lips and giggled, “I just couldn’t leave you alone. You’re the only family I have left. I have to keep an eye on you.”

Cao Fusheng stroked her silvery hair, murmuring, “When all this is over, let’s take a good look at each other. But first, we’d better find somewhere to wash up, or we’ll both pass out from the smell.”

“All right… Once Cao Fusheng and the others find a place to stay, let’s… bathe together…” Huo Bingran’s voice grew quieter and quieter, and if not for Cao Fusheng’s sharp ears, he might not have caught her words.

Cao Fusheng chuckled. “Let’s do what together?”

“You’re terrible… I’m not telling you!” Huo Bingran protested, her gaze full of tender affection.

Deciding to stop teasing this pitiable yet adorable girl, Cao Fusheng checked the time. Nearly ten minutes had passed.

By now, if nothing had gone wrong, Gao Yi and the others should have escaped.

Cao Fusheng pulled out a timer, just as he had before—cobbled together from parts at the chemical plant. Crude, but serviceable.

“This thing doesn’t give us much time, but if we run flat out, we’ll be clear before it blows. No need to worry about attracting the horde—just keep moving.” Cao Fusheng lit a cigarette, taking two deep drags before it was nearly finished.

A smoke before a big job always helped calm his nerves.

“Brother Cao, do you really trust Gao Yi?” Huo Bingran asked, concern in her voice.

Cao Fusheng’s eyelids twitched. “He’s still useful. For now, he has no reason to betray us. We haven’t clashed directly, and he’s behaved himself so far.”

Huo Bingran sighed. “On the way out, I saw Wu Tian and the other man lying unconscious in the road. Then one of them woke up and started shouting, claiming Gao Yi knocked them out and was going to kill them…”

“That drew the attention of the zombies, and Gao Yi tossed them into the horde like they were nothing but chickens… But because of that, they got through quickly. Afterward, I slipped away and came back to you.”

Upon hearing this, Cao Fusheng smiled. “Don’t worry, I told Gao Yi to do that. I had him knock those two out. Anyone who isn’t truly one of us should be treated as a potential enemy lurking in the shadows. If they’d made it to the parking lot and driven all the cars away, or done something foolish, the ones paying the price would be us.”

Huo Bingran nodded thoughtfully, then looked at him seriously. “Brother Cao, if something like this happens again, you don’t have to keep it from me. No matter what you decide, I know it’s for everyone’s good… for those you care about. I’ll support you unconditionally—even help carry it out.”

“But handing this task to Gao Yi today made me uneasy. What if he had other ideas? What if he colluded with Wu Tian, or warned someone, or worse—decided to kill us all? Just because someone has no reason to do something doesn’t mean they won’t. Sometimes people act on impulse, without rhyme or reason.”

Cao Fusheng was silent for a long moment, astonished—was this still the nineteen-year-old girl he knew?

Seeing his silence, Huo Bingran looked worried. “Brother Cao… did I say something wrong?”

Cao Fusheng squeezed her delicate hand and smiled. “Not at all. I admit, today’s decision was a mistake—I’ll be more careful in the future. But at the time, Shen Dong’s leg was injured, and you and Han Shuqing are both women. I couldn’t leave you behind, so Gao Yi was the only option.”

“And you’re right. It took countless millennia for apes to become humans, but it only takes a single night for humans to become beasts. People are the least rational of all.”

He added playfully, “If you think I’m making a mistake in the future, you can tell me directly—but not in front of everyone. I still have to save a little face.”

At last, Huo Bingran smiled. “Of course! My man must always have the most dignity.”

“All right, it’s time to go. The countdown has started.” Cao Fusheng set the timer beside the explosives. When the hand reached zero, it would detonate the bundle of rocket launchers.

The armory was located in the lower-central section of the isolated shelter, and both the ventilation and water pipes branched off from here.

Cao Fusheng led Huo Bingran quietly along the main corridor. The number of wandering zombies had not decreased; there were over a thousand in the shelter.

That number was terrifying—enough to count as a medium-sized horde.

“The situation doesn’t look good, Brother Cao… There are more zombies on the main road, and they all seem to be heading for the exit,” Huo Bingran whispered.

Cao Fusheng’s expression grew grim. These creatures must have caught the scent of fresh air outside, and, driven by instinct, were surging toward the open world.