Chapter 293 - 237: Rendezvous and Sweep

Chapter 293: Chapter 237: Rendezvous and Sweep

"So you guys really did meet up."

Lin Fan crossed his arms, as if he’d appeared out of thin air, leaning against a roadside tree. A smile played on his lips as he watched the group before him.

"Big Bro—"

A low shriek filled with surprise instantly shattered the dead silence of the street. Chu Zhaozhao’s eyes lit up, and completely ignoring everyone else around, she kicked off the ground and launched herself at him like a cannonball.

"Oof..." Lin Fan reached out an arm and caught her securely.

Chu Zhaozhao clung tightly to Lin Fan’s neck, burying her face in the crook of his neck and nuzzling him forcefully, as if to confirm he was really there.

"Alright, alright, it’s like we’ve been apart for ages..." Lin Fan chuckled and ruffled her messy short hair, but his gaze went over her shoulder to greet the slightly slower figure behind her. "Sister Qing."

Su Qing stood a few steps away, her usually gentle and soft face now filled with unconcealable emotion. She looked at Lin Fan, who had Chu Zhaozhao clinging to him, her eyes slightly red. Then, she strode forward.

She didn’t say a word, simply opening her arms and pulling Lin Fan into a tight embrace, Chu Zhaozhao and all.

Sandwiched between them, Lin Fan’s nose was filled with the faint smell of gunpowder and blood from both women. Thick bandages were wrapped around both of their arms, with faint bloodstains seeping through. It seemed that even after a night of rest, their injuries hadn’t healed so quickly.

He glanced at the [226] and the extra-long blue bar above Chu Zhaozhao’s head, then at the single [265] above Su Qing’s.

Although he had heard from Cheng Qi that Su Qing’s injuries were much more severe than Chu Zhaozhao’s, which meant she should have been very weak, it now seemed Su Qing’s health was actually quite a bit higher than Chu Zhaozhao’s.

Lin Fan couldn’t help but marvel inwardly. ’Is this part of her talent, too? Her recovery speed feels even faster than mine.’

With the two women in his arms, their body heat transferred through their clothes. Although they had been apart for less than 24 hours, in this precarious world, every "goodbye" could be the last.

At this thought, Lin Fan sighed silently. He set aside his joking mood and tightened his arms slightly, holding the two in his embrace a little closer. He whispered in their ears, "As long as you’re both alive, that’s all that matters."

After a moment of warmth, Lin Fan gently patted both of their backs.

"We can catch up later," he said, lowering his voice and pointing toward the factory area behind him. "There’s a big guy in the factory’s front yard, and it’s sleeping. Let it sleep a little longer. Don’t be loud."

Hearing the words "big guy," the expressions of the others tensed up.

"Hmph..."

A very soft huff came from the side.

Ye Qingniao was standing not far away, fiddling with the hem of her clothes. She was still wearing Lin Fan’s oversized T-shirt underneath, but had thrown on a tactical vest over it—obviously a new one from Ye Qingzhou. The combination looked a bit out of place.

Her lips were pursed in a deep pout, but one of her hands was being held by her sister, so she could only make an exaggerated, ugly face at Lin Fan.

Lin Fan pretended not to see and turned his gaze to the woman holding her hand.

"Colonel Ye, what brings you here?"

"Colonel Lin."

Ye Qingzhou let go of her sister’s hand and gave Lin Fan a polite, slight bow. "I’ve heard about what happened on the road from both Cheng Qi and Cyan Bird. Thank you for saving them."

She looked up, her gaze wise and calm. "Two heads are better than one. I heard from Cyan Bird that the people in this factory were researching ’evolution,’ ’mutation,’ and the like. Since we’ve met up, I thought I’d come along to see if there’s any way I can help..."

Lin Fan raised an eyebrow at her words. The situation in the factory was mostly settled, but it was a bit overwhelming for him to process so much information and figure out how to deal with that pig all by himself.

"Well, that’s perfect. We’re short a strategist," Lin Fan smiled, then changed the subject. "But before that, there’s actually one more thing..."

As he spoke, Lin Fan turned and waved at the window of the tall factory building behind them.

The others followed his gaze and saw two figures, one large and one small, standing inside a window in the upper-right corner of the factory’s gray wall. Seeing Lin Fan’s gesture, the woman, holding the child, cautiously waved back.

"Huh?" Chu Zhaozhao’s radar went off instantly. Her eyes widened, and she exclaimed, "How come there’s another woman? And a child...?"

"SMACK!" "SMACK!"

Two crisp smacks rang out almost simultaneously.

With perfect synchronicity, Lin Fan and Su Qing both reached out, one from the left and one from the right, and gave Chu Zhaozhao a light tap on the head.

"What nonsense are you spouting," Lin Fan said, pulling his hand back and shooting her an exasperated look. "Think before you speak," Su Qing added, also retracting her hand. Though her tone was helpless, it was laced with affection.

"Oof..." Chu Zhaozhao clutched her head, meekly enduring the "pincer attack" without another peep.

"Let’s talk as we walk."

Lin Fan led the group toward the factory’s perimeter wall, quickly summarizing the situation with the survivors inside the Fresh Meat plant as they walked.

"And that’s the gist of it." Lin Fan looked at Cheng Qi and Ye Qingniao. "Cheng Qi, Cyan Bird, in a bit, you two will be responsible for escorting these people back to the main group and getting them settled."

"I want to..." The moment Ye Qingniao heard she was being sent away again, she anxiously started to protest, but was silenced by a simultaneous glare from both Lin Fan and Ye Qingzhou.

"Suppressed" by their twin gazes, Ye Qingniao’s defiance instantly fizzled out. She could only shrink back awkwardly and mumble, "Fine... I’ll go back then."

It would be a hassle if so many people went inside and caused a commotion, and besides, Lin Fan wasn’t comfortable leaving Cheng Qi to watch the vehicles by himself. Seeing that Ye Qingniao was armed with both a gun and a sword, he decided to have her stay behind as well. At the very least, she could handle a few zombies.