She said, "You haven't helped much with gathering supplies these past few days, and now you have the nerve to say you won't eat with us? On your own, can you even get a meal?"
The next second, she heard Jiang Yuntan say, "I'm afraid that if I eat with you again, you'll poison me."
Everyone present fell silent. They suddenly understood why Shen Hegui found this sister so headache-inducing.
Poison was a bit of an exaggeration.
But they didn't know that Jiang Yuntan was speaking from the heart. In this novel's apocalyptic setting, besides zombies, there were also a large number of mutated plants and animals. Some mutated plants could kill a person with just a single drop of their sap.
And Lin Tingxue had awakened the Wood Element Ability, making her more perceptive to mutated plants. If they still ate together, Jiang Yuntan was genuinely afraid that Lin Tingxue would poison her.
Lin Xuan also felt that Jiang Yuntan was being somewhat willful. He looked at Shen Hegui. "President Shen, people say she's your sister. Aren't you going to control her?"
Shen Hegui seemed used to it, his expression unchanged. "Separate meals it is, then. It saves us from having to argue and prevents us from imposing on you to keep cooking."
He also didn't like having his food in the hands of people he didn't fully trust. If it weren't for Jiang Yuntan being scratched by a zombie, he would still have some trust in the Lin siblings.
But this was the apocalypse. If someone put zombie blood or flesh into the food, they'd all be done for.
Then, he looked at Jiang Yuntan beside him and said in a low voice, "You got what you wanted. Now behave yourself."
For now, he just wanted to safely deliver her back to Jing City and report to the old man. As long as she didn't cause trouble and didn't slow down their journey, he didn't mind granting some seemingly willful requests.
Jiang Yuntan obediently nodded again.
From Shen Hegui's attitude these past few times, she had understood her current situation. Fortunately, Shen Hegui wasn't the type to be blinded by a single leaf. Even if there were feelings between the male and female leads, they were still in their infancy stage.
In the original book, it was said that they fought their way back to Jing City together, forming a bond of comradeship in battle. But that bond didn't exist now. As the "little sister" who had grown up under Shen Hegui's watch, she carried more weight in his heart.
So, no matter how willful she was, as long as she didn't harm her teammates, there would be no problem. As the current situation showed, even if she provoked Lin Tingxue, nothing would happen.
She had originally just wanted to test the waters, but she hadn't expected to actually get separate meals.
Since the original owner's identity brought her so many benefits, she might as well avenge her.
Across the table, Lin Tingxue saw them whispering intimately and couldn't help but dig her nails into her palm, the tips pressing into the soft flesh.
Lin Xuan suddenly asked, "By the way, we haven't asked Miss Jiang what ability she awakened."
Jiang Yuntan quickly replied, "I don't like Lin Tingxue, so I'm not telling you."
Lin Xuan: ...
Shen Hegui glanced at her, somewhat surprised that she didn't show off her ability. But it was good that she kept it to herself. They didn't plan to expose her space ability, not for now at least.
So he said, "She doesn't want to say, so forget it."
"Exactly," Jiang Yuntan responded in a coquettish tone.
Shen Hegui was helpless, while Yu Ke pursed his lips nearby, barely holding back a smile.
At that moment, Jiang Yuntan reached out to pick up a rib, and the ruby bracelet on her hand caught Lin Tingxue's eye.
Lin Tingxue's eyes widened, her heart pounding violently, and alarm bells rang in her mind.
She swallowed and finally couldn't help asking, "Yuntan, why aren't you wearing your bracelet?"
Jiang Yuntan frowned. "Why are you so concerned about my bracelet? You really are coveting it. Uncle Shen gave it to me, so don't even think about it."
"No, it's all a misunderstanding." Lin Tingxue's mind raced as she explained, "I just wanted to tell you not to stop wearing it because of our thoughtless words."
"Hmph, easy for you to say. I'm afraid you'll see me wearing it, fail to get it, and then deliberately break it out of spite," Jiang Yuntan said bluntly.
There was no way she would speak softly to Lin Tingxue and her group—that would be too much of a contrast from before. And when dealing with a white lotus like Lin Tingxue, if you act too normal, it's hard to win an argument.
Lin Tingxue's face paled as she explained, "We would never do that. If you're bothered, we won't mention it again."
Then she observed Jiang Yuntan for a long time, finally relaxing only when she saw that Jiang Yuntan's ten fingers were clean and smooth, with no wounds.
Fortunately, Jiang Yuntan hadn't yet performed blood recognition to claim ownership. It was good that Jiang Yuntan had put the bracelet away, avoiding the possibility of accidentally claiming it while wearing it.
But she wasn't at ease; she still had to find a way to get the Blood Jade Bracelet.
Shen Hegui had become immune to their quarrels, finding them harmless. Jiang Yuntan's behavior couldn't be blamed on others—his father had said it wasn't a bad thing for a girl to be willful, as at least she wouldn't suffer losses.
Just as they finished eating and were sitting in the living room discussing their return to Jing City, a chaotic clatter of footsteps suddenly came from outside, accompanied by desperate screams for help.
Shen Hegui and the others immediately stood up.
Yu Ke frowned. "Didn't we block the passage up here? Did someone come up?"
"Go check it out," Shen Hegui said decisively.
If they didn't deal with the situation outside today, they might be surrounded by zombies at the entrance tomorrow. After all, zombies were creatures that would follow the scent of humans.
Before they could open the door, a loud banging came from it.
The moment Shen Hegui opened the door, he kicked the bespectacled man at the entrance flying.
The people in the corridor trembled as they looked at him.
Lin Xuan stepped forward and said, "Didn't we agree to keep our distance? We told you not to come up."
"We didn't want to either! A zombie with immense strength showed up. It can break down doors with one punch and send people flying with one kick. None of us could handle it, so we had no choice but to come to you."
"Don't you have ability users? Save us!" the bespectacled man said as if it were his due.
As soon as he finished speaking, a zombie emerged from the corner, grabbed the nearest person, and tore off their arm in one motion. The person screamed in agony.
The next second, the zombie snapped their neck.
Jiang Yuntan's eyes flew wide open at the sight.
No way, no way. It was only the fifth day of the apocalypse. If she lit three incense sticks and made a wish now, could she still go back?
Shen Hegui acted immediately, pulling a handgun from his pocket and aiming at the strong zombie's forehead. The zombie tilted its head, and the bullet hit its eye but had no effect.
"Yu Ke," Shen Hegui called out, using his ability to condense a large blade.
Yu Ke understood, grabbing a steel pipe from beside the door.
Xue Zhao and Jiang Yufeng also moved in tacit coordination, taking weapons to help deal with the other zombies. Lin Xuan gritted his teeth and followed.