Qin Luo watched his distant cousin Du Chunjiang wail in frustration with a mischievous glint in his eyes. He even helpfully suggested, "You could always skip the cafeteria."

Du Chunjiang gritted her teeth. "My monthly points aren't enough for me to eat well every day! And why shouldn't I eat at the cafeteria when they provide meals for employees?!"

She was genuinely heartbroken.

Behind Qin Luo, the little zombie, Xu Duoduo, observed the scene and thought this staff member seemed quite pitiful.

When Du Chunjiang caught sight of Xu Duoduo, her eyes lit up. "Hello, little darling! We meet again. Honestly, you shouldn't hang around someone like Captain Qin. Working at the base is so much better—three meals a day, a stable salary, and no need to risk your life out there."

Qin Luo immediately knocked on the table. "Hey, hey, hey, are you trying to poach my teammate right in front of me?"

Why did everyone seem so obsessed with the little zombie? He found it baffling. However, when he lowered his gaze and met Xu Duoduo's snow-white, stunningly beautiful face, he thought to himself, well, whose adorable little zombie is this?

Oh.

His little zombie.

Qin Luo sighed and spread his hands. "Ah, what can I do? I'm such a handsome captain that even my teammates are all incredibly good-looking. The charming ones are charming, the cool ones are cool, and the cute ones are just too adorable. Having such attractive teammates is honestly a burden~"

Du Chunjiang scoffed, "Ugh, shameless. Little darling, you should stay far away from him, lest you catch his 'idiot virus.'"

After finishing her sentence, she tossed the emptied storage bracelet back to Qin Luo and rolled her eyes.

She had reached her limit.

Qin Luo didn't get angry. He casually fastened the bracelet on his wrist with a flourish, his movements smooth and dashing. "Tsk tsk tsk, you're just jealous. Do you have a little zombie at home? No, right? And do you have such an adorable zombie? Nope, didn't think so."

Du Chunjiang was so exasperated she laughed.

Satisfied with his cheeky remark, Qin Luo left with the little zombie in tow.

Xu Duoduo turned back to glance at the staff member, feeling a little sorry for her. She ran back and stuffed a handful of White Rabbit milk candies into her hands before dashing off again.

Du Chunjiang was stunned. She looked at the dozen or so White Rabbit candies in her palm, then at the little zombie happily trotting after Qin Luo. Tears welled up in her eyes as she whimpered, "What kind of zombie is this, so sweet and thoughtful?!"

She popped five candies into her mouth at once, lamenting her inability to care for a little zombie of her own.

Sob sob sob.

She couldn't work another day like this.

---

After passing through the base gates, Qin Luo spotted the siblings Cheng Cheng and Cheng Ai standing uncertainly by the entrance.

"What's wrong? Didn't any staff members take you to the nursery yet?" Qin Luo asked.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Cheng Cheng, recognizing a familiar face, nodded quickly. "Hello, big brother. The staff lady told us to wait here for a bit until someone else could take us."

Before Qin Luo could respond, a staff member rushed over. "I'm so sorry. We don't currently have anyone heading to the nursery. Could I trouble you, Captain Qin, to take these two kids there? A truckload of survivors just arrived, and half of them are infected. We're completely short-staffed here."

Working at the base gates was indeed no easy task, with all sorts of emergencies cropping up.

Seeing the siblings' slightly lost expressions, Qin Luo agreed readily. "Alright, you take care of your work. I'll get the kids to the nursery."

The staff member breathed a sigh of relief and smiled gratefully. "You're a lifesaver!"

She turned to the siblings and said, "Be good and listen to this big brother, okay? Auntie can't leave her post, so he'll take you there. Don't be scared of anything you see on the way."

This staff member, a woman in her forties surnamed Zhang, quickly rummaged through her pocket and pulled out three fruit candies. She gave one to each of the siblings and then handed the third to Xu Duoduo.

"Alright, off you go. No lingering at the base gates," Auntie Zhang said before hurrying off to another passageway. With half the truck's passengers infected, the remaining survivors would need to be quarantined for a long time. There were also over ten children to deal with—it was a real headache.

Xu Duoduo opened her mouth as if to say something but stayed silent. She lowered her gaze to the fruit candy in her hand, wanting to explain that she really didn't need candy.

She had plenty in her storage space.

Qin Luo noticed her dazed expression and couldn't help but chuckle. "Well, looks like someone mistook you for a kid."

Xu Duoduo wasn't particularly short—at 163 cm, she didn't look like a child. But her pale face, blank expression, and large, pitiful eyes made her irresistibly endearing.

She was just so lovable.

Qin Luo was teasing her, of course. She didn't look like a child; she was just a little zombie.

Xu Duoduo puffed up her cheeks indignantly. She was not a child. She promptly handed the candy to Cheng Ai, who sweetly said, "Thank you, big sister," in her babyish voice.

Xu Duoduo nodded coolly, successfully reclaiming some dignity as a zombie in front of the three-year-old.

Qin Luo almost died laughing.

"Ahem, alright, everyone follow me. Let's get you two to the nursery first."

One adult, two kids, and one little zombie successfully boarded a bus.

After triple-checking that there was no blood on their clothes that might scare other passengers, they were good to go.

The bus drove at a brisk pace.

In the base, aside from the high-speed underground metro, buses were always packed to capacity.

Cheng Cheng stared wide-eyed at the weapons everyone carried, clutching his little sister tightly. Before the apocalypse, he'd only ever seen toy guns. Seeing so many real weapons on a bus was both shocking and fascinating.

Qin Luo noticed his curiosity. "Cool, huh? Everyone in our team knows how to use guns. Even the sister next to you does. If you want, you can learn too when you're older."

Cheng Cheng looked at the various weapons with admiration but hesitated. "But I don't have magic powers, and my sister's a girl. Isn't it bad for girls to use guns?"

Qin Luo raised an eyebrow at that and launched into an impromptu lesson. "Before the apocalypse, there were plenty of ordinary people who worked with weapons every day, protecting their homes and families. It has nothing to do with having abilities."

"And who says girls can't wield weapons? Everyone needs to learn how to protect themselves, especially in times like these. People who can protect themselves are cool, and those who can protect others are even cooler. Take your sister Duoduo, for example. Her weapon is a chainsaw. Do you know what a chainsaw is? It roars to life with a pull of the cord and can take down a whole group of zombies in one swing. It's insanely cool! Honestly, I never expected her to pick a chainsaw—it's just too awesome."

Qin Luo grew more animated as he spoke, showering Xu Duoduo with praise. He was genuinely impressed. Back when she was a quiet and studious class monitor, who could've guessed she'd be wielding a chainsaw in the apocalypse?

He kept praising and praising.

Cheng Cheng went from surprise to understanding, then admiration, and finally, numbness.

Unable to hold back, he asked, "Big brother, do you like Sister Duoduo? Is that why you're praising her so much?"

It had been thirty minutes.

And Qin Luo was still going.

Qin Luo choked on his words, and the nearby passengers stifled their laughter. His face turned visibly red, almost as if it were about to catch fire.

Can’t people just ride the bus in peace?!

Why were they still so nosy, even in the apocalypse?!

Just then, the bus's announcement played: *"Arriving at Liuwan District. Liuwan District, please exit through the rear doors. Next stop, Huaming District. Next stop, Huaming District."*

Qin Luo grabbed the dazed little zombie with one hand and scooped up the siblings with the other, making a swift exit.

Any later, and his face might’ve actually combusted!