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墨書 Inktalez
Huihui, usually quiet and reserved, suddenly spoke up today, surprising everyone present. Amidst their astonishment, there was also a sense of relief.
The group shifted their gaze towards Chef Jia, the only one alongside Pockmarked Girl and Fang Fei who had yet to express her thoughts.
"Wherever we go, we still need to eat," Chef Jia said lightly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I've gotten used to cooking for you all."
"I'll join too," Fang Fei quickly followed, waving her hand before Song Jiu could speak. "I know what you want to say, and I'm serious. With Jin Bo and Little Leaf gone, there's no point in me staying. Watching this just adds to my frustration."
As soon as Fang Fei finished speaking, Pockmarked Girl grew anxious and exclaimed, "Why are you all looking at me? I don't want to be left here alone!"
"Guli, this isn't a joke," Chef Jia gently stroked the young girl's hair and said softly, "You're still young."
"I'm the same age as Song Jiu," Pockmarked Girl muttered stubbornly. "I promise I won't hold anyone back."
Wu Wentao chuckled helplessly and shook his head. "So this is your final stance?"
Everyone nodded in agreement and turned their attention to Wu Wentao.
"Then there's nothing more to discuss," Wu Wentao shrugged, tacitly accepting their choice. After a pause, he looked at Song Jiu and said, "There's another matter, Song Jiu."
"Yes?" Song Jiu replied, taken aback.
"What about that Blonde Woman? What's her background?" Wu Wentao asked seriously. "I heard from Xiao Meng that if it weren't for her, you both might not have made it out alive."
Everyone became interested; this was something Yang Xiaomeng had shared with Wu Wentao. Surviving such a situation was worth discussing in detail, especially given the circumstances at the time. Barbie Doll had been an outsider since Song Jiu brought her back; she had only interacted with Song Jiu and was often viewed as merely a bed partner. Who would have guessed she was actually a hidden player?
"I really don't know," Song Jiu recalled the chaotic moment when she lost her composure. Yang Xiaomeng couldn't pull her away, and with a gunman approaching them, if it hadn't been for Barbie Doll's timely intervention, they would have been done for long ago.
"Later, Fang Fei will go with me; you should talk to her," Song Jiu thought curiously. Gun skills aren't abstract; either someone has them or they don't. Song Yao and Luci had learned early on how to handle guns through life-and-death experiences. Even so, luck played a significant role—at least half of the success depended on it. As for herself, she was merely an amateur; in her hands, a gun was less intimidating than a knife unless it was pressed against someone's head—otherwise, it would just be wasted.
Given that context, Barbie Doll's shooting skills stood out even more.
First at Stilt House, when two armed thugs were close by, Song Jiu had approached with the determination of facing death while trying to grab the gun—her chances were slim. Suddenly, Barbie Doll transformed into an expert marksman; her movements were fluid and seamless as if filming a movie. Before Song Jiu could react, both foreigners fell dead with bullets in their foreheads—no ambiguity whatsoever.
As for repelling E, that was even more unfathomable. Fixed targets and moving targets were completely different; shooting while running at high speed was largely just a scare tactic. Who could guarantee that they could accurately hit a target while running and shooting? Wu Wentao certainly didn't have that confidence. According to Yang Xiaomeng, Barbie Doll fired several shots, with at least three bullets hitting E, all in the upper body. It was only thanks to Zombie's robust physique that she managed to escape with her life.
Speaking of this, Yang Xiaomeng felt a bit regretful. At that time, they were simply outnumbered. If Wu Wentao had arrived a few minutes earlier, or if Dai Wei and Cao Zheng had managed to regroup, perhaps Barbie Doll could have really taken down Blonde Woman on the spot. Blonde Woman had many blood debts to pay; previously, Yang Xiaomeng and the others had only heard of her name without ever seeing her. Then, disaster struck out of nowhere, leaving them with an incredibly painful memory after just one encounter.
"I'll give it a try, but I don't have much hope. Before we set sail, I asked her, but she wouldn’t say anything," Fang Fei sighed as he rubbed his forehead. Forcing himself to suppress his sorrow was also a form of torment. He gazed at the long knife on the wall, feeling an uncontainable sadness spreading within him.
"You brought back this woman; she's not simple," Wu Wentao said without pressing the issue further. Everyone had their secrets; if she didn't want to share, there was nothing they could do about it. In a way, it was fortunate that Barbie Doll's gun was aimed at E; having one more ally was certainly better than having another enemy.
"Could she also be one of your Field Duty?" Song Jiu suddenly came up with a strange idea and frowned as he spoke. "Most of your people are Foreigners; is it possible that she was once under your boss?"
Wu Wentao paused for a moment, realizing it wasn't impossible. However, he quickly dismissed the thought and shook his head. "Our team members basically all speak Chinese; if they don't speak Chinese, they can at least communicate in English. Moreover, female Field Duties are rare; E is already quite special."
"Then what about The Establishment?" Song Jiu didn't have any better guesses. Initially, he thought Barbie Doll was just an international student or a tourist who happened to encounter the Zombie disaster. Now it seemed clearly not to be the case. Although gun ownership conditions were looser abroad, the idea of everyone being a sharpshooter was somewhat unrealistic.
"Who should I ask if you ask me?" Wu Wentao rolled his eyes and left this matter to Song Jiu and Fang Fei. After thinking for a moment, he added, "Then there's our plans for going out to sea. Lao Cao, can the yacht still be operated?"
Cao Zheng seemed somewhat out of it and looked dazed until Wu Wentao called him twice before he responded. He frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "Barely; mainly because we're low on fuel."
"I remember Jin Bo mentioning that you knew of a Trade Port," Song Jiu suddenly recalled.
"Yes, but it's uncertain whether there’s any fuel left in the storage tanks," Fang Fei said with little confidence.
"What about the Sea Chart for The Establishment? Is it still around?" Wu Wentao's main concern remained this; as long as they had coordinates, even rowing would offer some hope.
"Yes," Fang Fei replied with a somber expression. The Sea Chart had all been drawn by Little Leaf; seeing it brought back memories that couldn't be avoided.
"What should we do with these guns?" Luci looked toward the open basement and hesitated before asking, "We can't take so many with us."
"Take as many as we can carry; leave the rest for those outside," Song Jiu sighed silently. That day when Jin Bo brought him and Wu Wentao here, the three of them had even discussed how to organize another group after the wedding. However, now everything had turned into nothingness. The remaining Islanders had no thoughts beyond basic survival; as long as Armed Thugs didn’t come back for revenge, they would consider themselves lucky. There was no way to expect them to pick up arms and actively seek trouble.
Huihui glanced around and noticed everyone had stopped talking. She timidly asked, "I... I want to ask a question."
"Mm," Song Jiu turned to look at her and nodded, "You speak."
"What about Yuan An?" Huihui lightly bit her lip, hesitating as she asked, "Are we just going to ignore her?"
Song Jiu glanced at Wu Wentao, who turned away and pretended not to see, tossing the pot back.
Wu Wentao didn't respond, so Song Jiu had no choice but to brace himself. After a moment of contemplation, he said apologetically, "There's nothing we can do."
Huihui's eyes were slightly red. Deep down, she understood that before leaving the ancient city, the girl named Yinuo had gone missing, reportedly taken by the Blonde Woman. The situation then was similar to now; everyone had basically prepared for the worst. Perhaps it was wiser not to mention it at all.
"Huihui, I don't want to offer useless comfort, but Yuan An might be okay," Song Jiu frowned in thought and said seriously, "From what we can guess, e took Yuan An for a reason. What we can do is find The Establishment as soon as possible; that's the only thing we can do."
"I understand," Huihui swallowed her tears and nodded gently.
"Yuan An and Yinuo—if we succeed, the chances of rescuing them will be greater," Song Jiu leaned back in his chair and sighed as he looked at the long knife. The Stilt House was filled with twelve people yet still felt empty.
After the meeting ended, the exhausted group returned to their rooms. Fang Fei followed Song Jiu to their residence. As they passed by the now non-existent wedding house, Song Jiu stopped in his tracks.
"Let's go," Fang Fei nudged him. She herself was struggling to control her emotions, trying not to think or look at this place that had been completely cleared out. The spot where the Stilt House once stood was now just a blank space; if it were daylight, one could still see the crimson stain on the ground.
Song Jiu silently nodded and withdrew his gaze as he walked down the path.
The wind rustled through the forest, and a dim light shone from within the Stilt House.
Natalia was still awake, her calves wrapped in bandages as she stared blankly at the headboard. Song Jiu had grown accustomed to seeing her like this; after the wedding, she returned to her harmless demeanor, rarely leaving home—half recovering from her injuries and half enjoying retirement. Upon seeing Song Jiu enter, Barbie Doll's face lit up with a smile as she propped herself up, seemingly wanting to get out of bed.
Song Jiu felt quite helpless; every day she would bounce over to give him a hug. He didn't quite understand the meaning behind this gesture and gestured for her not to do so. She just smiled and continued her routine the next day.
Fang Fei followed behind, helping Song Jiu assist her back to Bed Rest. Skipping pleasantries, she pulled up a chair beside the bed and got straight to the point. Song Jiu poured them both a glass of water and sat down beside them, listening intently. He could manage some English through context clues but had never encountered Russian before; it sounded like his tongue was about to cramp from trying to comprehend it.
At first, the conversation between the two seemed to be going poorly. As Fang Fei had said earlier, she babbled on for a while, while Barbie Doll kept her eyelids drooping, leaning against Song Jiu in silence.
Fang Fei, feeling helpless, switched to another language and exchanged a few words with Song Jiu. After pondering for a moment, Song Jiu furrowed her brows and asked Fang Fei to help translate a few sentences, mainly encouraging communication between them.
Natalia remained silent for a while but eventually decided to give Song Jiu some face. Reluctantly and shyly, she spoke a few words to Fang Fei in her soft voice.
Fang Fei suddenly froze, blinking as she looked at Song Jiu and then at Barbie Doll, her expression one of shock. Then she launched into another string of chatter.
Song Jiu was nearly dozing off from listening, so she got up, grabbed a smoking pot, and stepped out of the room to catch her breath while the two engaged in their diplomatic exchange.
About half an hour later, footsteps approached from behind. Fang Fei emerged holding a cup of water.
"Finished chatting?" Song Jiu asked.
"Yeah." Fang Fei shrugged, still wearing that astonished expression.
"What did you talk about?" Song Jiu grew increasingly curious and asked, "What’s her background?"
"Let me ask you first—how old are you?" Fang Fei suddenly posed an unrelated question.
"Uh..." Song Jiu was taken aback and somewhat confused, mumbling, "I should be twenty-four this year."
"Do you know how old she is?" Fang Fei's expression suddenly became more animated, tinged with a hint of mischief.
Song Jiu felt a bit nervous. She had been curious before but had no way to ask. Cautiously, she probed, "She can’t be underage, right?"
"She's four years older than you." Fang Fei took a sip of warm water and sighed with a wry smile. "You didn’t see that coming, did you?"
"I thought she was in her early twenties; I really misjudged." Fang Fei continued to reflect on age and appearance. Seeing Song Jiu looking anxious, she added, "As for her identity, she has always been reluctant to say much."
"What have you two been chatting about for so long?" Song Jiu asked, looking puzzled. "And why did you just look like you saw a ghost?"
"She just doesn't want to say much; it's not like she said nothing at all," Fang Fei shot him a glare and replied irritably. "Communication takes time, okay? It's not an interrogation."
"Alright, alright. So what did you two actually communicate?"
"At first, she expressed that she wouldn't harm anyone, so I shouldn't have any suspicions about her," Fang Fei said with a helpless shrug. "Then after some coaxing, she agreed to share half of it, but the other half is off-limits."
"What kind of logic is that?" Song Jiu wondered aloud. "Unless she's the president's daughter, what's the point?"
"I don't know."
"What was the half you were told?" Song Jiu asked.
"She said her previous identity was that of a prosecutor."
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