Rebirth: Leading Families to Survive in the Apocalypse - Chapter 870 Picked Up

Chapter 870: Chapter 870 Picked Up

The family returning to the H province base once again discovered that the base had indeed changed significantly, with the surrounding walls split into two layers.

The first wall remained the same as when they first arrived, unchanged in height and thickness, but within ten meters, there was a new towering and sturdy wall. There were guards stationed at intervals between the two walls, presumably for defending against zombies.

After passing the main venue to Liang Wei and Wei Junhao, the family declined Guan Shouzhong’s offer to escort them and decided to walk back to their residence alone, as everyone was already quite familiar with the place they had stayed for a month before.

Along the way, they also noticed that apart from the changes to the base walls, many of the formerly quaint sightseeing courtyards had also been transformed into dormitory buildings, including the central lake, which had long since dried up and was now filled in as housing.

“They’ve significantly reduced the size of the base, but the efficiency of usage has increased.”

Su Xiangzhe nodded continually as he spoke.

“There were originally quite few survivors within the base. By reducing the scope and managing it centrally, it is indeed safer this way.”

Lu Hao felt that Guan Shouzhong and the others had not chosen wrong in doing so. A double city wall was rare but indeed necessary given the many dead cities in the H province and the current need for enhanced defense.

“Aah waa~”

In the stroller, Lu Wang restlessly twisted his body, looking like he wanted to cry with a frown.

“Wangwang is hungry.”

Su Jin had long been able to discern their children’s state from their cries; this was the sound of hunger.

“Good Wangwang, we’re almost there.”

Lu Guanhai hurriedly bent down to coax him.

“Ah woo woo~”

Lu Wang, seeing someone finally paying attention to him, put his white tender little hand into his mouth to suck, and stopped crying.

“Pfft, he’s soothing himself.”

Lin Xiuyuan chuckled, could a hand really serve as food?

The baby’s cries attracted the gazes of many passers-by; it was indeed extraordinary to see such young children these days.

“Excuse me… is the child inside really yours?”

A short-haired woman with a somewhat unkempt appearance walked over and asked.

“This girl, the one beside us is certainly our child, could it be that someone would carry someone else’s child these days?”

Lu Guanhai muttered, after all, this was his precious grandson and granddaughter.

“Some do.”

The woman’s face remained unchanged as she removed her backpack and opened it, revealing a child inside akin in size to Lu Xi and Lu Wang but much thinner, and continued saying:

“This is not my child.”

“…”

Feeling Lu Guanhai had been contradicted, Nie Qing laughed while clutching his stomach, although he was more curious about the child nestled in the backpack.

The woman’s name was Tong Nian, and she explained that the baby in the backpack was one she picked up from outside the base two days ago.

“Picked up?”

Su Jin found it somewhat odd, though Tong Nian appeared forthright, not like she was lying. Besides, in the apocalypse, carrying a child was truly not a good thing.

“Yes, whenever I go out to kill zombies, he cries, but he stops when I return to the base. I don’t know why.”

Tong Nian said with distress.

“The baby is a Special Ability User.”

Mao Qiqi said beside the family.

“So you called us because you want?”

Could it be she wanted to buy some milk powder or something? Huang Yunxiang curiously asked.

“You’re mistaken; I want to give the child to someone capable of raising him. I am a Special Ability User, I can’t take him out every day, and besides, he seems unwilling to go outside.”

Tong Nian’s words left the family exchanging glances; so she wanted to give the child to them?

Just walking around with a child, and someone wants to give you a child?

“We are a bounty hunting team, currently outside on a mission, so we are not suitable for taking in a child. We suggest you look elsewhere.”

Lu Hao declined, a child who cried as soon as they went outside? How could they take him in? If it were at the S City base, it might be considered, but it isn’t the time to be charitable now.

“Understood.”

Tong Nian zipped up her backpack and walked away without looking back.

Su Jin felt a bit empathetic, probably because of her motherly instincts after becoming a mother, seeing the child reminded her of her own. So, she took out a can of baby formula from a bag and gave it to Tong Nian.

“He’s a Special Ability User, we may just be passing by, but this is a token of kindness.”

Su Jin said.

“Thank you.”

Tong Nian looked slightly surprised but accepted the formula and thanked Su Jin before leaving.

This incident was just an episode in itself, but before everyone went to rest that night, they heard the cries of a baby.

“It’s not right, Wangwang and Xixi are both asleep.”

Lin Cheng looked around in confusion; where was the crying coming from?

“Outside.”

Mao Qiqi pointed in the direction outside the door.

When Su Jin, Lu Hao, and the others went out and saw the situation outside the door, they were speechless.

Familiar backpack, familiar milk powder, familiar child…

Did that woman really leave the child at the door?

To be precise, it should be abandonment.

“What’s going on, is the child hungry?”

Guan Shouzhong and the other two also rushed out from inside in a hurry. The Heart Talk Team still lived together in the previously joined courtyard, and upon hearing the commotion outside, the three thought maybe it was Lu Xi and Lu Wang crying.

The trio, unaware of what had happened to the family earlier during the day, were instantly stunned upon seeing an inexplicable extra child at the door.

“I think… I gave the milk powder to the wrong person…”

By the light of a flashlight, Su Jin saw a line of crooked scribbles on a note:

To someone who gifts milk powder for a child, you must be a good person; I’ll leave him to you ^_^!

“…”

The family, upon seeing the note, all felt complex emotions. That woman was smart, she knew they wouldn’t leave a child unattended. But what to do with the child?

“Bring him inside first; this is something our base should handle too.”

Guan Shouzhong said after understanding the situation.

The child in the backpack had already been picked up by Su Jin. He was a baby boy, seemingly about six months old, simply wrapped in a white cloth, not at all dirty, but with a very conspicuous red handprint on his bottom, as if just struck by someone.

“She deliberately led us out.”

Lu Hao speculated, thinking the woman might still care for the child and was afraid of leaving him outside for too long, so she used the cries to draw attention.

“Someone can still pick up a child these days, amazing.”

Guan Shouzhong couldn’t help but take the baby from Su Jin’s hands, but strangely, as soon as the baby was cradled in Guan Shouzhong’s big palm, his crying immediately stopped.

“This child seems to like you.”

Huang Yunxiang felt perhaps the child had fate with Guan Shouzhong, who initially didn’t believe it, but upon passing the child to Xiang Sanjin, the cries started up again immediately.

Even Lu Hao couldn’t help but speculate, “Could he be a Mental Element?”

“What? Mental Element? The Mental Element you’re talking about? Captain Lu, how did you figure it out?”

Guan Shouzhong asked excitedly. It was a known fact how much they wanted a Mental Element Ability User, but unfortunately, looking across the entire base, not a single Mental Element Ability User was found.