Jiang Yuntan stared at the strawberry patch. Her intuition told her those strawberries must be something good. After the storms of the past few days, they still grew so well—if not something good, then what? This should be one of the mutated plants of the apocalypse. She just didn't know what effect these strawberries had, which trait had been amplified.
Jiang Yuntan found the solar-powered cooling umbrella heavy, so she set it aside. It was great in hot weather, but with its cooling function, it weighed several times more than a regular umbrella. Holding it up could double as arm exercise.
Lin Xuan and Lin Tingxue got out of their car and saw Yu Ke and Qi Ruoshui holding umbrellas. They were about to mock them for being fussy, but then they noticed the cold air coming from under the umbrellas. Wait—those were high-tech umbrellas? But they hadn't seen them use them before. The siblings suddenly remembered that last night Shen Hegui had said they were going to find someone, but when they returned, there was no new person in their group. So they had secretly gone looking for good stuff last night, and these umbrellas must be what they found?
Lin Xuan felt he had caught them red-handed. He walked up to Shen Hegui and asked, "You never used these umbrellas before. Did you find them last night?" As soon as he got close to Yu Ke, he felt the cool air, and his dissatisfaction grew. "You lied to us last night, said you were rescuing someone, but you went behind our backs to snatch good stuff. We're all heading back together—isn't this too selfish? Tingxue and I saw bottled gasoline last time and thought to warn you about it."
Shen Hegui found it ridiculous. "Haven't we always been two separate teams? Don't act like we've wronged you. Last night, weren't you the ones who refused to come out with us because of the danger? I think it's better we go our separate ways completely, so you don't feel isolated by everything we do. But we're not a single group—how can there be isolation?" His words were blunt and sharp. "If you're capable, go find these things yourself."
Lin Tingxue lowered her eyes, thinking. Lin Xuan was furious but couldn't find the words to retort. Could he beg Shen Hegui to take them along? He couldn't say that. And he didn't think Shen Hegui would agree anyway—he might even mock him.
Jiang Yuntan overheard and couldn't stand the way Lin Xuan looked at Shen Hegui like a jilted lover. That not only targeted Shen Hegui but their whole team. She was about to speak when Lin Tingxue asked, "Is it because Yuntan said she doesn't like me that you don't want to bring us along? But this is the apocalypse, and we're all heading back to Jing City together. Shouldn't we cooperate?"
Lin Tingxue had struggled before saying that. She wanted to make one last attempt. If Shen Hegui was still blind and biased toward Jiang Yuntan, she would seriously consider splitting off. After all, she had memories of her past life; she knew where the good stuff was. She'd see if Shen Hegui regretted not staying with them when they returned to Jing City and saw all her gains.
Jiang Yuntan sneered. "You're really something. If we don't want to bring you along, have you considered the possibility that the problem is you? Why do you think it's only because I don't like you? You haven't helped us much, but you never miss out on your share of the spoils. Or do you think Shen Hegui is blind to not use a capable person? It's obvious you're useless but still want a cut. Who do you take us for, suckers?"
Lin Tingxue's face stiffened. "You're saying we reap without sowing and haven't helped?"
Jiang Yuntan spread her hands helplessly. "Your words, not mine." Then she added sarcastically, "Seems like you know you've been free-riding. We got back safely last night without you, didn't we? So why should we bring outsiders to share the spoils?"
Her calling them "outsiders" delighted Shen Hegui and Yu Ke, but Lin Tingxue and Lin Xuan's faces turned ugly. They knew deep down that they hadn't contributed much on this journey—aside from Lin Tingxue's initial warning, they couldn't think of anything else. Jiang Yuntan's words also made Shen Hegui realize that even without Lin Tingxue's group, it wouldn't have made much difference. Lin Tingxue and Lin Xuan grew silent; she seemed right.
Jiang Yuntan glanced at the strawberry patch, then at the others approaching, and called out, "There's a strawberry patch here, all fruited." She announced it first, in case Lin Tingxue's group tried to claim they discovered it. Although that wouldn't completely stop them from sharing the patch—after all, it was ownerless—but by her saying it first, it was a bit different.
The others looked over, and Shen Hegui's group hurried to see the vibrant red strawberries. It felt like the apocalypse hadn't completely erased hope. Yes, there were zombies, but at least some crops could still grow. Traveling along the highway, they had seen many dead plants—withered vegetables in fields, rotten fruit trees. If planting was impossible in the apocalypse, even if people survived, food would be a huge problem. The state might have solutions, but returning to pre-apocalypse scale farming would be very difficult.
When Lin Tingxue's group arrived, Jiang Yuntan couldn't resist a dig. "Oh, see? You shamelessly follow us to scavenge for spoils again."