It couldn’t really be called compensation; main reason was that the Boss was kind-hearted and couldn’t bear to see the little idiot eating coarse food.
Since she was fussing about wanting to eat meat, everyone might as well eat together.
Looking at the few people in front of her, Li Hongying felt a complex mix of emotions. Having not yet witnessed the evil of human nature, she instead felt that everyone she had encountered was good and kind-hearted.
After breakfast, Han Chao drove the vehicle with Xu Sui in the front passenger seat, while Ning Ran continued to sleep soundly against Pei Huaiye’s chest.
“Did this little idiot not sleep last night?” It wasn’t that Xu Sui wanted to talk, but seeing Ning Ran sleep so soundly, he couldn’t help speaking up.
“Who knows? Most likely played with those two little kids until midnight before going to bed.” With all three having comparable intelligence—though Ning Ran’s couldn’t even match the two young kids’—it was purely a case of the children entertaining her.
From toy train tracks to building block puzzles, Pei Huaiye was forced to watch three children play games for half the night.
Unquestionably, Ning Ran was the dumbest of the three. By the time the two kids had already finished assembling theirs, she was just getting started—and when called out, she refused to accept defeat and threw a noisy tantrum in frustration.
Fortunately, the house was fairly soundproof. Had they been on the open road, they would have certainly been surrounded by zombies.
The vehicle drove along the country road. Following the earthquake, shattered walls and ruined ruins lay everywhere, presenting a desolate sight.
Xu Sui’s gaze shifted from the rearview mirror onto Ning Ran. Wrapped in Pei Huaiye’s jacket, her cheeks were flushed red from sleep, with a trace of an unidentified liquid hanging from the corner of her mouth. Using his Boss as a pillow, she didn’t wake up no matter how bumpy the ride got.
“It’s really thanks to her good luck that she met the Boss, otherwise…”
“Otherwise she’d be dead as a doornail, right?” Han Chao finished his sentence.
“In the past, they called it ‘a fool’s luck’; now it’s called ‘God granting a life.’ Being so foolish and still managing to survive until now is truly not easy.” In the apocalypse, even smart and beautiful women struggled to scrape by, let alone a fool.
Pei Huaiye didn’t speak, quietly gazing outside, lost in unknown thoughts.
“Boss, are we heading back to the villa first, or going straight to the base?” Going to the base required passing by the villa area, where Cheng Lichuan and Xu Wei were still waiting. If they didn’t return for several days, the two would likely be worried sick.
“Head back to the villa area first,” Pei Huaiye spoke.
Hope Base was managed by the government. At the beginning of the apocalypse, besides informing his close brothers about the situation, Pei Huaiye had also contacted the Ministry of National Security.
Despite initial skepticism, the Minister of National Security still reported the matter up the chain. Dozens of safety bases were established across the nation to shelter survivors.
Even with full preparations, when the apocalypse arrived, countless ordinary people at the bottom still had nowhere to run.
The virus swept across the world right on schedule, thoroughly disrupting what was once a peaceful life.
Surviving became the sole thought of every survivor.
Relying on his memories from his past life, Pei Huaiye had established a presence with the Ministry of National Security, effectively making him half an insider with them.
The reason he hadn’t stayed at the base was precisely to see how far his enemies from his past life could survive without him charging on the frontlines for them.
As the vehicle drove toward the villa area, Ji Hengyuan and the others following behind couldn’t help but wear peculiar expressions.
And no wonder—what they saw and heard along the roads was truly nerve-wracking.
There were not only zombies, but also natural disasters; it was clearly a move to reboot the Earth and start a new civilization from scratch.
When the group arrived in front of the villa, the people inside received the signal and opened the gate. Running up from the basement, Xu Wei froze the moment she saw the men and women Pei Huaiye had brought back.
“Huaiye-ge, they…” Xu Wei didn’t even know how to phrase it.
“People the Boss saved along the way. Xu Wei, find a couple of clean sets of clothes for these two kids to change into, as well as for the older sister and her group…” It was Xu Sui who spoke up.
“Where would I get so many clothes for them to wear?” Xu Wei’s facial expression almost went out of control.
“Figure something out. Don’t think I don’t know how much stuff you’ve stored.” Xu Sui threw out a couple of lines and stepped into the house.
Infuriated, Xu Wei cursed repeatedly in her heart.
In the car, Pei Huaiye glanced at the still-sleeping Ning Ran, picked her up in a princess carry, got off the vehicle, and walked upstairs.
“Huaiye-ge,” Xu Wei’s eyes turned red at the sight.
Ignoring her completely, Pei Huaiye carried Ning Ran upstairs, walked into the bedroom, and laid her on the bed.
“Letting you play until midnight was well worth it!” he said, looking at the person sleeping so soundly.
Ning Ran rolled over and grabbed his arm in a tight hug: “Brother, delicious!”
Even in her sleep, she didn’t forget about eating—a true foodie.
Pei Huaiye chuckled, intending to pull his arm free and go downstairs, only to find she was holding on so tightly he couldn’t move it at all.
Left with no choice, he half-lay beside Ning Ran, watching her sleep sweet and sound with her mouth slightly open.
Cheng Lichuan went upstairs to look for him, pushing open the door to witness this exact scene.
“Wild-ge, how should we arrange the people brought back?” he asked.
“Have them make do on the first floor for one night. First thing tomorrow morning, we’ll send the mother and her two children to Hope Base to give them a way to survive.” Ning Ran rolled over again, releasing his arm.
A fleeting sense of loss washed over Pei Huaiye’s heart.
“Alright,” Cheng Lichuan was about to leave when he suddenly turned back and said, “Boss, I feel that Xu Wei is truly sincere toward you…”
Pei Huaiye raised his head: “I am also truly sincere toward you.”
In the apocalypse, managed to scrape by and survive was already good enough—who had time to think about romance and affection? At least for now, he had never harbored such thoughts.
Left speechless, Cheng Lichuan touched his nose and walked downstairs.
Looking at the person coming downstairs, Han Chao asked, “What did the Boss say?”
Cheng Lichuan replied, “Make do for tonight, send them to the base tomorrow.”
Hearing this, the two ten-year-old children couldn’t help but cling closer to Li Hongying: “Mom, what is a base? When are we going home?”
Tears welled up in Li Hongying’s eyes, not knowing how to answer.
In the evening, Ning Ran followed behind Pei Huaiye downstairs. Seeing the two little kids, she was delighted and wanted to continue playing building blocks and puzzles with them. Under her insistence, those toys had been kept by Pei Huaiye with a promise that she could play with them once they returned to the villa.
“Eat dinner first; I’ll let you play after you’ve eaten,” Pei Huaiye coaxed her.
Looking at the dishes laid out on the long table, Ning Ran happily sat beside Pei Huaiye. Lin Yao, Ji Hengyuan, and the others sat far at the other end of the dining table.
Staring at the full table of food, Ji Hengyuan became even more determined in his resolve to stick with Pei Huaiye’s crew.
After dinner, several tents were set up in the main hall. There was no other choice; there weren’t enough bedrooms upstairs, so this was the only way.
Ning Ran lay flat on the carpet playing building block puzzles with Song Jiayan and Song Jiale, getting upset with herself whenever she couldn’t get it right.
The two little children had no choice but to coax her patiently—one comforting her while the other taught her, creating a rather harmonious scene.
Watching this unfold, Lin Yao felt sour jealousy bubbling up inside. Seeing the look in her eyes from the side, Xu Wei walked over quietly: “She really has a great life. Huaiye picked her up and protects her like the apple of his eye; nobody else even dares to provoke her.”
Lin Yao looked up at her—both were seasoned players, so there was no need to pretend: “Yeah, Ning Ran has always had good fortune. Back in school, all the male classmates protected her. Even after going crazy/foolish, she still has someone pampering her. We’re both women, yet our fates are so different.”
“You know her?” Xu Wei asked in surprise.
“Of course, she was my high school classmate. But I hadn’t seen her for two or three years. I don’t know what happened to her—how the once beautiful and proud Ning Ran ended up turning into an idiot…” Lin Yao sighed with emotion as well.