Gao Lang and Luo Xinxin watched in surprise as Qin Yueming stood up and walked straight toward Lin Mingmei.
Luo Xinxin nearly twisted her nose in anger.
“What is Yueming doing? Why is he going over there to discuss things with Lin Mingmei?”
Gao Lang did not understand either, but seeing her upset, he hurried to comfort her first.
“Xinxin, what’s there to be angry about? He probably just thinks Lin Mingmei is useful since she managed to fight her way in alone. He likely wants her help to escort us out safely.”
“Kill, kill, kill, all she ever does is fight and kill. It’s so annoying!” Luo Xinxin stomped her foot unhappily. “How can a girl behave like that?”
She was extremely displeased that Qin Yueming, her protector, would actually go consult Lin Mingmei.
What right did that woman have?
“She’s just rough and crude,” Gao Lang coaxed gently. “Unlike you, our cute little princess.”
Luo Xinxin shot him a coquettish look.
“Then tell me, do you prefer a little princess or Cinderella?”
“Our universally adored little princess, of course,” Gao Lang replied with a smile.
Only then did Luo Xinxin finally smile in satisfaction.
Hearing the noise behind him, Qin Yueming sighed helplessly. He crouched down in front of Lin Mingmei, blocking her line of sight.
“Miss Lin, how much strength have you recovered?”
Lin Mingmei lazily lifted her eyelids.
“Not bad.”
“If we leave now,” Qin Yueming asked seriously, “what do you think our chances are of successfully breaking through?”
Lin Mingmei looked genuinely surprised.
“You’re asking me?”
“Yes.” Qin Yueming nodded earnestly. “We fought side by side. We’re comrades now. At a time like this, your opinion matters. If we leave, then we leave together.”
Comrades who fought side by side…
Lin Mingmei’s eyelashes trembled faintly.
Once before, someone had said almost the exact same thing to her.
And what happened afterward?
When danger came, that so-called comrade had pushed her out as a human shield.
Gao Lang had once told her she was his true love too, someone irreplaceable in his life.
In the end, she truly did become irreplaceable.
An irreplaceable meat shield whenever he needed to escape danger.
How laughable.
When she raised her head again, her emotions were already hidden away.
“I don’t care,” she said flatly. “You decide.”
Qin Yueming frowned slightly in confusion.
What just happened?
Why had her entire demeanor suddenly become so distant?
Under his gaze, Lin Mingmei stood up. She casually glanced at Gao Lang and Luo Xinxin, who were still whispering together, before loosening her shoulders and stretching her legs.
“I’ve mostly recovered,” she said expressionlessly. “If everyone’s ready, let’s move.”
If she stayed any longer watching Luo Xinxin act like an idiot, she was afraid she might lose control and start hitting people.
Qin Yueming nodded immediately.
“Alright. We move now.”
The four of them quietly returned to the warehouse doors and carefully began removing the barricades blocking the entrance.
Just as the final cabinet was pushed aside, a rotten zombie claw suddenly smashed through the door panel and reached inside.
Luo Xinxin instantly screamed.
“Ahhh!”
Idiot!
Lin Mingmei’s face darkened immediately.
Without hesitation, she kicked the warehouse door wide open and charged outside first with her hammer raised.
“Lin Mingmei, are you insane?!” Gao Lang shouted in shock.
“Both of you shut up and follow closely if you want to live!” Qin Yueming barked furiously. “Stop screaming unless you want to attract even more zombies!”
That was all he had time to say before he rushed out after Lin Mingmei.
He knew she was strong, but no matter what, she was still just a slender girl. He could not allow her to face the zombie horde alone.
The moment Qin Yueming stepped outside, he saw several zombies surrounding Lin Mingmei at once.
He immediately rushed forward and swiftly killed one of them.
Right then, Luo Xinxin’s terrified scream rang out behind them again.
Qin Yueming’s brows tightened sharply.
Turning around, he discovered Gao Lang and Luo Xinxin being chased by a single zombie.
A single zombie.
Two people.
And yet they were still screaming in panic.
Qin Yueming silently cursed them as useless fools.
If they had even the slightest courage to fight back, this would not have happened.
“Go help them!” Lin Mingmei shouted.
She could still handle several zombies by herself, but Gao Lang absolutely could not die yet.
Helpless, Qin Yueming could only turn back to rescue the pair.
By the time he killed the zombie chasing them, Luo Xinxin was already clinging tightly to Gao Lang while crying uncontrollably.
“This is terrifying! I don’t want to stay here anymore! Yueming, hurry and get me out!”
“Gao Lang,” Qin Yueming ordered coldly, “protect her properly and stay behind me. Neither of you is allowed to make another sound. Understood?”
Luo Xinxin nodded frantically in fear.
Meanwhile, Gao Lang stared blankly behind Qin Yueming.
Was the woman skillfully weaving through the zombies while swinging a hammer really Lin Mingmei?
“Gao Lang!” Qin Yueming barked sharply.
Only then did Gao Lang snap back to his senses.
“I understand. I’ll protect Xinxin.”
Qin Yueming immediately turned to return to Lin Mingmei’s side.
But at that exact moment, Luo Xinxin suddenly grabbed his sleeve tightly.
“Yueming, don’t go! While Lin Mingmei is drawing the zombies away, let’s run now!”
Gao Lang froze slightly, his eyes brightening.
She was right.
Almost all the zombies were currently focused on Lin Mingmei. This was the perfect opportunity for them to escape directly.
But…
“Nonsense!”
Anger instantly flashed through Qin Yueming’s eyes.
“She’s risking her life to protect all of you, and you want me to abandon her now?”
“But you said yourself she’s fighting to save us!” Luo Xinxin argued anxiously. “If that’s the case, then we should escape successfully so her efforts won’t be wasted! If we go over there now, we might all die together. Wouldn’t that make everything meaningless?”
Qin Yueming’s lips twitched violently.
Years of military discipline and his superior’s orders barely restrained him from cursing outright.
“One should not be this selfish,” he said through clenched teeth.
Luo Xinxin’s expression turned ugly.
“Yueming, don’t forget your mission is to rescue me! As long as I survive, your mission is complete!”
Qin Yueming gritted his teeth and refused to waste another second arguing with her.
He simply looked at Gao Lang.
“Do as I said.”
Then he turned around and rushed back toward Lin Mingmei without hesitation.
Seeing him completely ignore her orders, Luo Xinxin’s face flushed pale with fury.
“Xinxin, let’s just listen to Yueming for now,” Gao Lang persuaded hurriedly. “At times like this, we need everyone working together…”
“You just can’t wait for him to save your precious Little Sister Lin, can you?!” Luo Xinxin snapped furiously.
Gao Lang frowned faintly.
Normally, he could tolerate Luo Xinxin’s spoiled temper. But now, when their lives were hanging by a thread, her unreasonable tantrums genuinely irritated him.
Still, no matter how resentful he felt internally, Gao Lang continued maintaining his gentle facade. While dragging Luo Xinxin forward, he patiently coaxed her the entire way.
With Lin Mingmei and Qin Yueming intentionally protecting them from the front, Gao Lang and Luo Xinxin barely needed to confront a zombie directly.
For Lin Mingmei and Qin Yueming, however, this was a brutal and exhausting massacre.
Every second demanded every ounce of their strength just to keep themselves, and the two burdens behind them, alive.
But in Gao Lang and Luo Xinxin’s eyes, the zombies suddenly did not seem so frightening anymore.
After all, even someone like Lin Mingmei could kill so many of them.
Finally, just as Lin Mingmei felt her stamina reaching its absolute limit, she smashed the final zombie’s skull apart with her hammer.
The corpse collapsed heavily onto the ground.
Her body swayed immediately afterward.
Qin Yueming reacted quickly and caught her before she could fall.
“How are you?” he asked urgently.
Lin Mingmei nodded weakly.
“I’m fine.”
But Qin Yueming did not believe her at all.
Both her arms and legs were trembling violently from exhaustion.
Without hesitation, he made a decision.
“I’ll carry you.”