SAZW CH 03

Chapter – 03

A Place of Trouble, A Three-Way Standoff

The stairwell lighting was dim and shadowy.

After clearly seeing that the person in front of him was Wen Huai, Lian Feng lowered the baseball bat.

However, he still maintained a safe distance from him.

Lian Feng had already thoroughly investigated Wen Huai before.

An orphan.

Withdrawn personality.

No ambition.

Almost no friends.

The only person he interacted with regularly was a childhood friend he had grown up alongside.

Recently graduated this year.

Aimless and lazy, yet constantly dreaming of getting rich overnight.

And unfortunately, his younger brother Lian Yi had become that “windfall from heaven.”

The two of them had immediately hit it off and caused that entire incident together.

Although Lian Feng still did not know exactly what had happened later in the basement that night, at this point he no longer cared about that matter at all.

After taking several breaths to steady himself, he realized his stamina was already wearing thin.

Earlier, he had exhausted himself trying to lure zombies away.

Right now, the most important thing was finding Lian Yi.

After leading the zombies away and returning to the original location tonight, he had discovered Lian Yi missing.

The realization that his brother might be in danger had nearly driven the severely overprotective Lian Feng insane.

And now that he had finally run into someone familiar, he hurriedly lowered his voice and asked anxiously:

“Have you seen Lian Yi?”

Wen Huai: “……”

As expected, Lian Feng had not noticed that there were still two living people hidden behind the display cabinet.

Wen Huai desperately wanted to signal to him that someone was behind them.

But his body simply was not cooperating.

And judging from Lian Feng’s current condition, he did not look capable of calmly thinking things through anyway.

So Wen Huai could only silently light a metaphorical candle for himself in his heart.

At the same time, a voice sounded from behind the display shelf.

Low and unhurried.

“It’s quite lively tonight.”

The moment he heard that impossibly familiar voice, Lian Feng suddenly froze.

A displeased frown appeared on his face.

His gaze shifted repeatedly between Wen Huai and the display cabinet before he finally stepped cautiously out into the corridor.

Standing in the middle of the hallway gave him a much clearer view.

And there, not far ahead, stood the two men.

Relations between the Jiang family and the Lian family had never been particularly good.

Unfortunately, business ties forced them to maintain superficial politeness.

But after the apocalypse began, there was no longer any need to uphold those fake relationships.

The two sides frequently fought over supplies now anyway.

As a result, Lian Feng made no effort whatsoever to hide his hostility toward Jiang Yu.

Yet Jiang Yu did not seem bothered at all.

With a faint smile in his eyes, he said leisurely:

“President Lian, who are you talking to? Why not invite the other person out as well?”

In the apocalypse, everyone remained highly cautious.

No one tolerated unknown factors that might threaten their safety.

With Jiang Yu directly calling him out while Lian Feng stared at him from the side, Wen Huai knew there was no way to keep hiding.

He could only sigh silently in his heart before forcing himself to step out and stand beside the display cabinet.

The three parties’ positions formed a subtle triangle, and Wen Huai was stuck awkwardly between the two sides. The atmosphere was strange enough already, but what worried him more was whether, during the days he had been unconscious, Jiang Zhiyе had learned anything about him from Lian Yi—his name, what he looked like…

The original novel had never mentioned any of that. It only said that Jiang Yu caught the original owner and later chained him up as bait for zombies.

As expected, he really shouldn’t have hoped for a plot-heavy structure in a smut novel.

But as Wen Huai thought back on it, he suddenly realized something.

That’s right—the original owner had been bitten by zombies while being used as bait. That meant the original owner had not turned into a zombie at the time, otherwise the zombies wouldn’t have attacked him.

But Wen Huai clearly remembered that the original owner had also been injected with the virus.

So why hadn’t the original owner transformed, while he had?

Could it be because he was an outsider who had transmigrated into the book?

Before Wen Huai could sort out the question, he looked up and met a pair of smiling eyes. His mind instantly tensed, and the problem was thrown straight out of his head.

This was the first male lead to appear in the novel.

A classic refined scumbag.

The CEO of the Jiang Corporation, Jiang Zhiyе’s cousin—Jiang Yu.

Even though he and Jiang Zhiyе hadn’t gone all the way that night, they had done enough. That was an undeniable fact.

Which made Wen Huai feel even guiltier and more nervous now that he was facing Jiang Zhiyе’s boyfriend.

Especially since Jiang Zhiyе himself was standing right there beside him.

Why did this feel weirdly like getting caught cheating?

Pretending not to notice, Wen Huai shifted his gaze toward Jiang Zhiyе beside Jiang Yu.

But the other man seemed to sense his stare and looked back at him with those blue-gray peach blossom eyes. His expression was calm, yet the corners of his eyes curved slightly into a beautiful smile, like flower petals drifting onto water and stirring ripples in one’s heart.

Wen Huai had to admit it.

Jiang Zhiyе was ridiculously good-looking.

Clean-cut short hair, exquisite features with sharp contours—beautiful without looking feminine at all. When he wasn’t smiling, he carried an aloof, noble air; when he smiled, he resembled peach blossoms in spring, impossible not to look at.

Especially those blue-gray eyes—clear and crystalline, glimmering beneath the lights like priceless gemstones.

Wen Huai suddenly remembered a line from the novel:

“Wherever Jiang Zhiyе went, a battlefield of jealousy followed.”

No wonder so many people in the story went crazy for him. This was truly god-tier beauty.

Only when Jiang Yu stepped in front of him and blocked his line of sight did Wen Huai snap back to reality. Seeing the displeased look in Jiang Yu’s eyes, he inwardly groaned.

He had actually been staring at Jiang Zhiyе right in front of Jiang Yu.

Not to mention that just a few days ago he had nearly slept with Jiang Zhiyе. And now he was openly staring at the man himself.

Wen Huai felt his face burning hot, though luckily his facial muscles were stiff from zombification, so it probably didn’t show much expression.

For the first time, Wen Huai felt grateful that he was becoming a zombie.

In the end, he blamed his strange reaction on the protagonist’s overwhelmingly powerful “everyone falls in love with him” halo.

And he summarized one important conclusion in his heart:

Stay far away from the protagonist group. Especially Jiang Zhiyе.

The one silver lining was that Jiang Zhiyе clearly hadn’t recognized him.

That let Wen Huai breathe a sigh of relief.

The original novel said that after being violated by the cannon fodder character, Jiang Zhiyе had been depressed for a while. But right now, he didn’t seem affected at all.

Though Wen Huai had no idea what Jiang Zhiyе thought about what happened that night in the basement. Besides, the drug’s effects had clearly hit Jiang Zhiyе harder than they had him. His consciousness had been fuzzy—maybe he didn’t even remember it.

Still, no matter what, Wen Huai planned to avoid the issue entirely and pretend it had never happened.

And since the protagonists spent the entire novel slaughtering zombies, he especially needed to stay away from them. If they discovered his identity, the consequences would be unimaginable.

So Wen Huai firmly decided that he needed to leave this dangerous place as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yu had no idea what Wen Huai was thinking. His teasing gaze swept over Wen Huai before turning toward Lian Feng.

“I didn’t expect President Lian to still be bringing around such a cute little thing during the apocalypse. So carefree that you’ve even stopped caring about your own brother.”

He deliberately slowed down his speech at the end.

Sure enough, Lian Feng immediately lost control at those words.

“Where’s my brother?” he demanded through gritted teeth.

Jiang Yu let out a soft laugh.

“You can’t even keep your wild-dog little brother under control. Why would I know where he is?”

Lian Feng said nothing more, but his sharp phoenix eyes reddened as he stared viciously at Jiang Yu.

Jiang Yu’s narrow fox-like eyes curved slightly, his voice still leisurely.

“Guess what I found while investigating what your brother did that day?”

At those words, Wen Huai swallowed nervously. He had no idea how thoroughly Lian Yi had hidden his involvement—or whether Jiang Yu had traced things back to him.

“I discovered your dear brother received a secret experimental serum.” Jiang Yu smiled faintly. “So where is that serum now? Since your brother won’t tell me, perhaps you can.”

The moment those words fell, the atmosphere between both sides instantly became tense.

Standing beside the display shelf, Wen Huai quietly shifted one foot backward, preparing to bolt for his life if necessary.

Although Jiang Yu hadn’t mentioned him directly—only the serum—he was still terrified Lian Feng might immediately shove him out as a scapegoat.

After all, the serum had been used on him.

Fortunately, this obsessive little-brother fanatic only cared about his brother. Upon hearing Jiang Yu’s words, he completely lost his composure, his voice rising uncontrollably.

“Jiang Yu, what did you do to my brother?!”

Jiang Yu curled his lips into a mocking smile.

“Try to behave like a civilized person. No need to shout.” He paused leisurely. “I merely sent him where he belonged.”

As he spoke, he stepped aside, revealing the corpse that had previously been hidden behind him.

The moment Lian Feng saw the body, his pupils contracted sharply. Forgetting everything else, he rushed toward it in panic.

Jiang Yu and Jiang Zhiyе both calmly stepped back to give him room.

Wen Huai took advantage of the chaos and awkwardly hurried backward toward the staircase behind him.

He swore that, for the sake of making this body more agile as soon as possible, he would absolutely start jogging every morning.

Meanwhile, Lian Feng clutched Lian Yi’s corpse tightly, his eyes bloodshot as he glared at Jiang Yu through gritted teeth.

“If you had a problem, you could’ve come directly at me!”

Jiang Yu gave a soft laugh.

“I didn’t kill him. Your brother almost got me captured, then suffered the consequences and turned into a zombie himself. He attacked me first, so naturally I had to defend myself.”

Knowing Lian Feng wouldn’t believe him, Jiang Yu continued leisurely:

“If you don’t believe me, look at his ankle.”

Lian Feng looked over and indeed saw claw marks on Lian Yi’s ankle. His grip on his brother’s sleeve slowly tightened.

“You’re lying! You wanted revenge, so you deliberately harmed Xiao Yi like this!”

His face twisted from rage, his eyes viciously fixed on Jiang Yu and Jiang Zhiyе.

“I’ll make you pay for this sooner or later.”

Jiang Yu merely chuckled dismissively.

“That is, if you survive tonight.”

Beside him, Jiang Zhiyе—who had remained silent the entire time—lowered his gaze toward the zombies gathering at the staircase on the first floor below, then toward the figure quietly slipping away through another exit.

His peach blossom eyes curved ever so slightly as he calmly withdrew his gaze.

“So noisy,” he said lazily. “Let’s go.”

Jiang Yu understood immediately. Their commotion had attracted plenty of zombies, so he decided he might as well leave those “gifts” behind for the Lian brothers.

“Oh dear, this is terrible. You brought them all over.” Jiang Yu sighed dramatically, amusement dancing in his fox-like eyes. “I told you to keep your voice down.”

Then he shot Jiang Zhiyе a look before grabbing an iron rod from the corner and approaching Lian Feng.

A muffled groan rang out.

The iron rod smashed viciously into Lian Feng’s shin.

Watching the man’s twisted expression of pain, Jiang Yu adjusted his glasses slightly, crouched down to eye level with him, and spoke in a low, unhurried tone.

“Let me tell you a secret.”

“The person who literally angered your father to death… was your precious little brother, Lian Yi.”

“Because he was nothing but a bastard child—the filthy product of my father sleeping with your mother.”

At that, Jiang Yu stopped paying attention to the stunned Lian Feng. He casually brushed the wrinkles from his coat and curled his lips into a mocking smile.

“If you still want revenge, feel free to come find me—provided you stay alive.”

The zombies’ growls drew closer and closer.

Jiang Yu and Jiang Zhiyе retreated toward the exit they had already chosen. With the two Lian brothers left behind, they could easily divert the zombie horde away from themselves.

Clouds drifted across the sky, gradually covering the bright moon.

“I’ll count those two as my apology gift to you, so stop being angry already.”

“Come on, little Zhiyе, smile for me.”

“Jiang Zhiyе, I’m still helping you investigate what you asked about. I’ve already uncovered some clues about Dr. D. Even though I haven’t found the real name yet, it’s enough to show my sincerity.” Jiang Yu spoke leisurely, deliberately emphasizing the last few words. “So don’t forget the promise you made me either. I’m in quite a hurry.”

At that moment, Jiang Zhiyе stopped walking.

He turned his head toward the smiling, impeccably dressed man beside him and curled his lips into a careless smile.

“If you were really that desperate, you wouldn’t have killed Lian Yi so quickly. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re scheming, Jiang Yu.”

“I’ll keep my promise to you. But don’t pretend you’re helping me while secretly settling personal grudges.”

Hearing that assurance, the tension Jiang Yu had been carrying finally eased. He instantly looked much more relaxed.

“Tsk, you saw right through me.” He laughed lightly. “You really were cuter as a child.”

“No, wait—you were already good at pretending back then. Cute my ass. You were basically a little devil. I wasted all that affection on you.”

“Tsk. We leave tomorrow.”

Satisfied with the answer, Jiang Yu decisively shut up. The reflection from the overhead lights gleamed across his glasses, completely hiding the gloom in his eyes.

Wen Huai practically speed-walked all the way back home.

Thankfully, this body was already moving better than it had at first.

Leaning against the door after locking it, he took several shaky breaths, sincerely hoping he would never run into the protagonist group again.

Being around them was way too terrifying.

Still, judging from tonight, Jiang Zhiyе clearly hadn’t been searching for him. Maybe the drugs really had left him delirious that night after all.

Otherwise Jiang Yu wouldn’t have acted so calm today and only asked about the serum.

For some reason, that realization made Wen Huai feel relieved.

But after looking down at his filthy clothes, he shoved those worries aside and headed straight for the bathroom to take a cold shower.

Thankfully the water still worked.

Who knew whether he’d still enjoy that luxury later on?

Looks like he really needed to expand his portable storage space and stockpile more water.

No matter what, even if he became a zombie, he wanted to be a clean and dignified one.