“You’re so annoying.”
Mu Qingruan turned her face away, refusing to let him touch her.
“Hahaha! Mochen, a woman has finally appeared who’s not falling for your charm.”
The man with the thunderous voice burst into laughter.
“Cut the nonsense.”
The first man smacked him on the back of the head.
“Little sister, my name is Jun Ruoli. These are my companions, Chu Mochen, Long Potian, Xiao Yunzhou, and Ye Yifan. Where’s your family?”
The man who had given her the bread, Jun Ruoli, asked gently.
“My family?”
Mu Qingruan thought for a moment before shaking her head.
“I don’t remember.”
“You don’t remember? Did you lose your memory?”
Chu Mochen asked in surprise.
“Who said I lost my memory? I remember things. My name is Mu Qingruan. When I was little, I think I lived in a big courtyard with a group of other children.”
Mu Qingruan pouted unhappily at Chu Mochen’s words.
The others immediately understood.
She was probably an orphan.
“Then why are you here?”
Jun Ruoli asked again.
Although the girl appeared innocent and harmless, this was the Apocalypse World.
He couldn’t believe that such a seemingly defenseless girl could have survived from the beginning of the apocalypse until now.
“Why?”
Mu Qingruan frowned, her willow-like brows knitting together.
Her troubled expression made her look even more pitiful, like a cute little kitten that made people want to comfort her.
“Why was it again…”
She rested one hand against her cheek while absentmindedly fiddling with the hem of her clothes with the other, muttering to herself as she pondered for quite some time.
“I remember now! I let love cloud my judgment. I got scratched by a zombie while trying to save a man. Then that man was afraid I’d slow them down, so he abandoned me here.”
Mu Qingruan clapped her hands as she answered.
“Which bastard was that heartless? He repaid kindness with betrayal. Tell your big brother who he is and I’ll avenge you.”
Long Potian asked angrily.
“I only remember what he looked like. His face is blurry in my memories, but I just can’t remember his name.”
Mu Qingruan shook her head.
“How old are you? You’re dating already, and you even got tricked by a scumbag.”
Chu Mochen looked at Mu Qingruan in confusion.
Judging by her appearance and height, she looked no older than fifteen or sixteen.
“Don’t underestimate me. I’m already twenty years old, okay?”
Mu Qingruan rolled her eyes at him.
“What? Twenty?”
Everyone stared at her tiny frame in astonishment.
“That’s right. I’m already twenty. I even had an ID card, but I think I lost it while running away.”
Mu Qingruan nodded.
“Heh. Twenty? Were you malnourished or something? Your growth stopped at about fifteen or sixteen.”
Chu Mochen sized up Mu Qingruan’s height of around one and a half meters.
“Who says so? I don’t know why I became like this either. I remember I wasn’t this short before.”
Mu Qingruan looked down at her rather flat chest with a troubled expression.
“And my figure wasn’t this bad either.”
“Yunzhou is a doctor. Would you like him to examine you?”
Seeing her distressed expression, Jun Ruoli couldn’t help asking gently.
“Okay!”
Mu Qingruan nodded obediently.
The man who had been sitting silently on the sofa all this time, radiating a cold aura, walked over and took her pulse.
“You awakened an ability?”
Xiao Yunzhou asked calmly.
“Mhm.”
Mu Qingruan nodded obediently.
“She has awakened abilities, and more than one. Her body couldn’t withstand them, so it activated a self-preservation mechanism. That’s why she became like this. It also affected her memories.”
Xiao Yunzhou released her wrist, stood up, and looked at Jun Ruoli.
“Boss, what should we do?”
Chu Mochen turned toward Jun Ruoli.
From what they could tell, this girl named Mu Qingruan had not only lost part of her memories, but her mentality was also as innocent as a child’s.
Even if she possessed abilities, she probably didn’t know how to use them, much less dare to kill anyone.
If she were left alone, her fate would likely be either death or being captured and turned into someone’s plaything.
After all, she really was quite adorable.
“Let’s rest first and discuss it later.”
Jun Ruoli looked at Mu Qingruan, who was staring at him with complete innocence.
If it were only his decision, he wouldn’t mind taking her along.
However, he was responsible for an entire team.
Making such a decision on his own would be unfair to his companions.
“Little sister, come eat.”
After everyone finished preparing the meal, Long Potian called out to Mu Qingruan, who was happily playing with White Tiger.
“No thanks. Tiger and I already ate the bread Big Brother gave us. We can’t eat any more.”
Mu Qingruan shook her head.
The truth was that the meal cooked by a group of grown men looked almost impossible to eat.
They had simply thrown noodles into boiling water, tossed in a handful of vegetables, and added a spoonful of salt.
Just looking at it made her feel it would be unbearably salty.
“It’s alright. Have a little more. There’s plenty.”
Long Potian filled a large bowl and held it out to her.
Hugging White Tiger, Mu Qingruan immediately shrank back.
It wasn’t that she was picky.
The smell really was indescribable.
“If she doesn’t want to eat, then forget it.”
Jun Ruoli clearly noticed the disgust in Mu Qingruan’s eyes.
He frowned slightly.
Someone this picky would have a hard time surviving in the Apocalypse World.
“Alright then. If you get hungry later, just tell me. I’ll cook some more.”
Long Potian withdrew the bowl.
“Okay. Thank you, Brother Long.”
Mu Qingruan smiled sweetly at him.
Although the food wasn’t good, in the Apocalypse World, someone willing to share a meal with a girl they had just met had a kind heart.
Unfortunately, that kind of kindness also made people easy to take advantage of.
“Boss, are we really going to leave her here by herself?”
Chu Mochen looked at Mu Qingruan, who was happily playing with the cat of indeterminate color in her arms.
He had once had a younger sister who was cheerful and adorable.
Sadly, she hadn’t survived the arrival of the apocalypse.
“If you like her, then let’s bring her along. One extra mouth to feed isn’t a big deal, and surely a group of us can protect one little girl.”
Ye Yifan, who had remained silent until now, understood the knot in Chu Mochen’s heart.
“Have you all thought this through? This is the Apocalypse World. With our skills, we can protect ourselves just fine. But if we bring along a girl who can’t do anything and whose mind isn’t fully mature, there will be plenty of trouble and inconvenience.”
Jun Ruoli looked at them calmly.
“I don’t want you to bring her away on impulse, only to find her troublesome someday and abandon her. She’s already been hurt once. I don’t want her to be hurt a second time.”
“I may not be a good person, but once I choose someone as a companion, I’ll never abandon them.”
Long Potian spoke firmly.
For some reason, he felt a natural affinity toward the little girl.
The others also nodded seriously.
“Alright. Later I’ll ask her. If she’s willing to come with us, we’ll take her along.”
Jun Ruoli nodded in understanding.
After everyone had finished eating, he thought for a moment before taking a sausage and a loaf of bread from his backpack and walking over to Mu Qingruan.
“You can’t skip meals. At least eat a little.”
Jun Ruoli held the sausage and bread out to her.
“Thank you, Big Brother.”
Mu Qingruan happily accepted them.
After tearing open the packaging, she shared the food with the White Tiger in her arms.
“We’re leaving tomorrow. Are you willing to come with us?”
Jun Ruoli asked gently.