Neither Hao Jian nor Lian Ru Ning made a move. Finally understanding the situation, Xin Ting said, "Shi Gong Dui, I believe Hao Jian and Lian Ru Ning are people of their word."
It wasn’t just that Hao Jian and Lian Ru Ning were reluctant to risk their lives to escort Shi Gongdui to his destination, Xin Ting herself wasn’t exactly thrilled about it either. After all, Shi Gong Dui wasn’t someone they had a protect-and-be-protected relationship with.
However, throughout the journey, Xin Ting felt that she had already faced many crises and developed the ability to handle them. Since they didn’t have a clear objective at the moment, she figured sticking with the larger group would be fine. It wasn’t until Hao Jian raised the issue that she realized there was a very real possibility they might die once they reached the shore.
Now that the reality had been placed squarely before them, Xin Ting understood that she, too, was being selfish. Shi Gong Dui wasn't worth risking her life for.
Peng Mao felt that the atmosphere had become even more tense than when they first met Shi Gong Dui. The team seemed to be on the verge of breaking up.
Seeing the silence, Shi Gongdui couldn't help but feel frustrated yet amused. He said, “Lian Ruoji last accessed the internet on July 27, 2018, around 10 a.m. from the South Campus Library of Nanfang City University.”
July 27, 2018, was the last time Hao Jian had accessed the internet. That day, internet service was cut nationwide, likely to prevent the spread of information about zombies and the ensuing chaos.
Lian Ru Ning wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved or continue worrying. Lian Ruoji had evidently gone to Nanfang City University’s South Campus with their mother, Gao Ruosu. It was possible that Gao Ruosu was attending a seminar or had some other task, leaving Lian Ruoji at the library. Based on the timing, it seemed likely that he had gone to meet her for lunch afterward. This meant that he was with someone capable of protecting him.
As for Lian Ru Meng, Lian Ru Ning’s twin sister, her personality was quite different. Lian Ru Meng was mischievous but preferred quiet places for sketching, often slipping away to draw. Since she was friendly with strangers, Lian Ru Ning wasn’t too worried about her.
There was also a strange sense of twin intuition at play, Lian Ru Ning felt confident that her sister was safe.
Lastly, there was their father, Lian Qingmiao. Her choice of the Geological Engineering program had been influenced by him. He had always been busy when she was younger, attending meetings or conducting academic research. From being promoted to associate professor to full professor, Lian Qingmiao's research papers had always piqued her interest, fostering her love for the land.
However, Lian Qingmiao wasn’t just a university professor, he also had ties to the Environmental Protection Bureau and the Geological Survey Bureau. In the wake of the zombie outbreak, he would likely be involved in investigating environmental pollution issues. It seemed likely that he would be considered a priority for protection.
After analyzing all this, the ones Lian Ru Ning was worried about the most were her mother, Gao Ruosu, and her younger brother, Lian Ruoji. However, for now, there was no way for them to reach the center of Nanfang City.
**"Congratulations, Host. You've unlocked Side Quest 1 of Main Quest 1: Obtain information about the Lian family,"** the system suddenly chimed in, announcing a new mission as soon as Shi Gong Dui mentioned Lian Ruoji’s situation.
Hao Jian was momentarily stunned. “Are you sure you’re not mistaken?”
**"The quest was issued by the central system and has been confirmed. There is no mistake!"** the system responded.
“I’ve already received information about the Lian family. Do you mean Shi Gong Dui has to repeat it?”
The system replied, **"The quest has not yet been completed, Host. Please keep trying!"**
Hao Jian stopped asking questions and thought for a moment. “I guess the task of 'obtaining information about the Lian family' isn’t as simple as just hearing about their internet activity. I probably need to get specific information about their fate, whether they’re alive or dead, and their current location or status. If that’s the case, then I understand what the quest wants."
She paused briefly. “What’s interesting is that after completing Main Quest 1, instead of Main Quest 2 appearing, it’s a side quest. And this side quest branched off from Main Quest 1. So, could it be that all the side quests branching from Main Quest 1 are related to the same character— Junior Sister?”
**"The host may interpret it as such."**
The system still hadn’t issued Main Quest 2, but Hao Jian wasn’t in a hurry. She figured that perhaps the trigger for Main Quest 2 hadn’t yet appeared.
But she couldn’t help wondering: if Main Quest 1 and its side quests were all related to Lian Ru Ning, what would Main Quest 2 be about?
As she mused, she absentmindedly used the tip of her machete to sketch a tree diagram on the bamboo raft. The thick branches represented the main quests, and the thin ones were side quests. All of the branches eventually converged on the “trunk.”
After a moment of contemplation, she murmured, “If I manage to survive and complete all these quests, will I finally uncover the truth behind your existence, where you come from, what powers your communication with me, and how the zombie virus is connected to you?"
Naturally, the system didn’t answer. By the time she brought her thoughts back, they had already entered a narrow waterway.
With her concerns temporarily put to rest, Lian Ru Ning restarted the raft’s engine. The bamboo raft slowly drifted from the northern tributary into a branch of the river.
The river was narrower here, only about six or seven meters wide at its narrowest. However, since it was the rainy season, the water levels were high, so there was no fear of running aground or zombies getting close.
Surrounding them were densely packed residential buildings that resembled an urban village. Garbage littered the area, and the pollution from nearby restaurants made the water murky. Even though the apocalypse had shut down the restaurants, the river remained filthy.
“This river’s so dirty, I bet any zombie that comes near will get a second infection,” Peng Mao joked, trying to lighten the tense atmosphere.
Xin Ting chuckled, but the other three didn’t react, making the pair feel awkward and fall silent again.
After some thought, Peng Mao turned to Shi Gong Dui and said, “Shi Gong Dui, to be honest, I don’t know how many masks you wear, and I don’t know your true intentions for coming here. If you're really just trying to get home, then you shouldn’t be trying to guilt-trip us.”
Shi Gong Dui opened his mouth but remained silent for a moment before finally saying, “I never intended to guilt-trip you. I had planned to figure things out myself once we reached the shore.”
“You should’ve said that earlier. We’re not mind readers. We’ve built up camaraderie, but without trust and openness, how can we expect to understand each other?” Xin Ting added.
“Whether you're an official errand runner or some important technical staff, if you don’t tell us, it’s because you don’t trust us. So you can’t blame us for being a bit cold-hearted,” she concluded.
Shi Gong Dui sighed heavily. “Some of us, including myself, who run errands for the government, have confidential identities. We were initially on standby, ready to be deployed in case of emergencies. That’s why we can’t openly disclose everything.”
Shi Gong exhaled heavily: "The identities of some of us who run errands for the officials, including myself, are classified. At first, we were told that we were backups, personnel to be temporarily deployed in case of emergencies. Therefore, we can't openly appear in government buildings. If we’re spotted by spies, it would be easy to become targets for snipers. As it happens, I’ve stocked up a lot of supplies at my home, so my place was designated as the contact point with the higher-ups. There’s some equipment there that was hidden by my contact. When necessary, I use that equipment to communicate with the officials and run errands for him..."
Peng Mao, after thinking for a moment, commented, "Kind of like *Infernal Affairs*?"
"Our department's structure is also quite complex," Shi Gong Dui continued. "Later on, many other teams operated under our name. I seem to belong to the communications security group, while Hao Jian is probably part of the mobile team temporarily set up by the security forces."
The formation of the "Special Response Unit" was even more extensive than what Hao Jian initially knew, but Hu Dan had informed her that it was established after the higher-ups detected a traitor in the security forces. Essentially, the unit borrowed the name of the "Special Response Unit" and became a small branch of this special department.
However, Hu Dan didn’t need to go into such details with Hao Jian, as she was merely a temporary auxiliary member of the security forces, without the clearance to know more about the department Shi Gong Dui belonged to.
As Shi Gong Dui finished speaking, both Peng Mao and Xin Ting widened their eyes, looking at Hao Jian. She had just finished her conversation with the system and, snapping back to reality, glanced at Shi Gong Dui.
"Trust, right~~" Shi Gong Dui shrugged. He was still upset, so he wanted to annoy Hao Jian a bit.
"Your heart is even smaller than a mosquito's," Hao Jian gestured with her fingers.
"At least it’s not as dark as this river," Shi Gong Dui retorted.
"Heh..." Hao Jian smirked slightly.
"You should’ve said something sooner. Maybe things wouldn’t have gotten so unpleasant," Peng Mao sighed. "We’ve already come this far, we’ll try our best to help you."
Seeing zombies appearing on both shores, Xin Ting hesitated but said nothing. The slightly optimistic part was that in big cities like these, there were still plenty of people who refused to sit idly by. So, even though Hao Jian's group didn’t dock, they occasionally saw residents banding together to go out and clear zombies.
The area they were passing through was essentially a village, surrounded by rivers on all sides, creating an isolated island. The people in the village had united to block off bridges connecting to the mainland and focused on clearing the zombies on their "island."
Hao Jian and her companions could obtain this information, but they weren’t allowed to come ashore. No one could be sure whether any of them were carrying the virus.
These villagers also shared some news, saying that the government was still active, occasionally restoring radio broadcasts to teach the public how to survive. Once an area was deemed safe, the government would soon send teams to deliver food supplies to the area. The occasional presence of the government helped ensure that there wouldn’t be a total breakdown of order, while also encouraging the public to take up arms and deal with the zombie threat for the sake of securing resources.
The southern district headquarters of the security forces was in the neighboring city, so the more secure regions had fewer signs of "Wujie", as they operated more covertly in these areas.
However, upon hearing about the government's food deliveries, Hao Jian was reminded of the existence of the granaries. Xiang City had also sent security forces to transport food from the granaries, but the team had lost contact halfway. Would "Wujie" really pass up such a big temptation?
Lian Ru Ning nudged Hao Jian’s hand, bringing her back from her thoughts: "Forget it, these matters aren’t for me to worry about."
"What is it, Junior Sister?" Hao Jian asked.
"Since the security forces here seem to have large numbers, could we request their assistance?" Lian Runing asked. It wasn’t out of fear but rather a smart way to reduce the risks.
"I’ve thought about it, but I can't let the security forces know my identity," Shi Gong Dui said.
Hao Jian rubbed her chin and calmly replied, "You can’t, but I can!"
Everyone looked at her, suddenly recalling Shi Gong Dui mentioning that she was part of the mobile team formed by the security forces.
Lian Ru Ning, however, grabbed Hao Jian’s hand, whispering, "Is there no way to do this without revealing your identity?"
Her earlier suggestion wasn’t meant for Hao Jian to expose herself. If Hao Jian’s connection to the security forces was discovered by the "Wujie", it would become a ticking time bomb for her.
Hao Jian smiled, "It's okay, it’s just a short stretch of road."
"Then I’ll walk with you," Lian Ru Ning said, holding her hand. Even if they had to face the threat of "Wujie," she would stand by Hao Jian.
"...Can you two keep it down? Filming *Titanic 2* over here? It's getting a bit mushy," Shi Gong Dui commented.
"Stop ogling us, and it won’t gross you out," Hao Jian replied expressionlessly.
Peng Mao and Xin Ting couldn’t quite tell if Hao Jian and Shi Gong Dui were on the verge of a full-blown conflict or if their usual bickering was a way to ease tension.
Before they could figure it out, the raft had already passed through the river and reached the southern tributary, where Shi Gong Dui was supposed to disembark near a wetland park.
The wetland park stretched along the riverbank, and across from it was a small island, also part of the wetland. At the riverbank's recess, there was a small pier usually used for tourist boats. If they spotted a refugee camp and security forces on the island, they could ask for assistance in contacting the security forces on the mainland to escort them. If not, they could still disembark at the pier.
Fortunately, their luck held out as they found a refugee camp on the island. Though not as large as the one on Jiangxin Island in Jiangshi City, this island, originally covered in over 90% greenery, had many trees that provided good shelter for refugees.
As their raft approached, the security forces on the island immediately became alert. When they were still about 200 meters away, someone with a loudspeaker shouted, "This is Xiang City Longwan Island Refuge. You have entered our perimeter. Please cooperate with our inspection, or we will open fire."
Naturally, the group complied. As they docked, a group of security forces came rushing out. Seeing the formidable display, Peng Mao whispered to Hao Jian, "If only Jiangshi had this many security forces."
He still remembered Liu Feng and A Tao, the two guards who liked to chat with him. If the security forces back there had had more people, would they have survived?
After a preliminary interrogation, the leading officer said, "We are already at full capacity here. If you're seeking refuge, you can head to Changping Island, Mayong Island... those larger islands surrounded by water. They have self-organized teams clearing out zombies, and the government will soon send supplies there. I’ll help you get in touch with the security forces on those islands. They’ll check you and handle all the paperwork. If you're short on fuel to get there, we can provide some."
Hao Jian asked, "Are you the highest-ranking officer here?"
The officer raised his eyebrows and replied, "Of course."
Hao Jian glanced at his chest and shook her head. "No, you're not. I request to speak with your commanding officer."
The officer was about to retort when Hao Jian recited a string of numbers, making him suddenly more serious. "Come with me," he said.
Naturally, only Hao Jian was allowed inside, while the others stayed on the island but were kept away from the residential areas to prevent any potential problems.
When they found a gun on Hao Jian, their expressions became wary. However, after Hao Jian met with their commander, these concerns disappeared. Not only was she allowed to disembark, but five security officers were assigned to escort her group to a point near Shi Gong Dui’s home.
Although they couldn’t take them all the way to Shi Gong Dui's neighborhood, this was the furthest the local security forces could go, as the area where Shi Gong Dui lived was a residential complex teeming with zombies. They couldn’t risk going in too deep.
After securing the promise of an escort, the group rested on the island for a while. Then, the team leader in charge of their escort said, "The sun’s about to set. Let’s get moving!"
Peng Mao asked, "Why are we leaving at this time?"
"Because it’s only a few streets away from here, and we’ll be back just in time for dinner."
"..." The group hadn’t expected the security forces to be so efficient with their time management.