After a while, Si Nan carefully squeezed towards the wall corner and cautiously asked, “Rong-ge, have you been hurt in love?”
Zhou Rong shook his head. “To some extent, I was indeed emotionally deceived, but not quite—it was actually something that happened many years ago.”
Zhou Rong continued, “I had to be cautious. The kidnappers were still out there, and I needed to make sure he was safe. I can’t describe how intense the situation was. Every rustle in the bushes made my heart race.”
Si Nan listened intently, his eyes focused.
“I managed to get us to a clearing and thought we were safe. Suddenly, shots rang out. It was the kidnappers; they had found us. I had to think fast. I could either protect the Omega and try to escape or resist and fight back. I chose the latter.”
Zhou Rong’s voice grew heavier.
“We were outnumbered. I fought hard, but I was worried about the Omega’s safety. I shouted at him to hide behind a nearby tree; I couldn’t let him get hurt. Thankfully, the noise from the fighting covered the sound of his footsteps, and he was hidden from view.”
Si Nan felt his heart race at the tension in Zhou Rong’s narrative.
“I managed to take down a few of the kidnappers, but they were relentless. Eventually, reinforcements arrived and we were able to subdue them, but the experience was harrowing. After that, I made sure the Omega was returned safely to his family.”
Si Nan sighed, “That must have been a truly intense situation.”
Zhou Rong nodded, “It definitely shaped me as a soldier and as a person.”
” Zhou Rong tentatively said, “I feel like your thoughts are a bit impure.”
“No, they’re not. And then?”
Zhou Rong couldn’t find evidence of impure thoughts and had to let it go.
“Then? I was escorting these three hostages through mountains and forests, making sure the child ate first, protecting him from danger, setting up camp and cooking without letting him do any work. He also seemed very attached to me… everyone understands, a delicate Omega, especially a young one.”
Zhou Rong took a drag of his cigarette and casually extinguished it on the ground, his expression turning strange.
“Until the last day, walking to the edge of the jungle, the night before reaching the camp…”
Si Nan: “He confessed to you?”
A moment of silence, then Zhou Rong said glumly, “No.”
“He knocked me unconscious, tied me up, then thanked me, took my guns and equipment, and took my hostages. It wasn’t until the next day when the committee sent people to rescue me that I found out he wasn’t a hostage at all, but a competitor representing Country A…”
“I was originally far ahead, but now I was defeated. To this day, I can’t understand how an Omega could be so cunning and treacherous, so quick to abandon someone!”
Zhou Rong punched his own palm and buried his head in his arm, while Si Nan maintained a steady tone: “Hmm, that’s truly tragic, Rong-ge…”
How did you not realize he was a competitor?”
“Because the first thing he did after entering the jungle was abandon all his equipment, emptying his water bottle, throwing away dry rations, burying his gun, with only one thing he absolutely wouldn’t part with – the positioning device, usually used to identify opponents. Guess where he put it?”
Si Nan shook his head.
“He swallowed it,” Zhou Rong said through gritted teeth. “They only retrieved it through surgery!”
…What a crazy competition, Si Nan thought sincerely.
“What’s worse is that this kid already had a partner. After the competition, someone from Country A came to pick him up, and I saw that Alpha bite his neck gland with my own eyes,” Zhou Rong said angrily. “Tell me, if this isn’t emotional deception, what is?”
Another unproven but widely accepted situation was that a temporary marking could form a temporary contractual relationship, in other words, submission.
—The Alpha would intensify the Omega’s natural fear through this direct pheromone infusion, achieving a brief psychological submission.
Si Nan imagined the scene and felt uncomfortable, as if believing the facts were not as Zhou Rong described. But knowing the principle of obligation, he sincerely said, “Yes, Rong-ge, you’re right.”
“Now you know why you can’t find an Omega as a partner, right? Don’t think that just because they occasionally show weakness, they’re interested in you. For a Beta like you, you’ll probably be completely deceived,” Zhou Rong took out a medicine box, thought for a moment, and then took out two fever reduction pills, signaling Si Nan to take them.
“I’m done talking. Go to sleep. If the fever breaks tomorrow, it means no infection.”
Si Nan leaned against the wall corner, with a thick clothing-padded pillow behind his head courtesy of Zhou Rong. Through the light seeping from the door crack, he saw most of the medicine box soaked with black blood.
“…Thank you.” He paused briefly, smiling: “I will accept your advice… I won’t look for an Omega.”
Zhou Rong casually patted the side of his head.
Just then, the door was knocked twice. Zhou Rong opened it slightly, seeing Chun Cao outside, who lowered her voice: “Let’s discuss the retreat route…”
Zhou Rong made a gesture, interrupting her: “Have Ying Jie bring a gun to guard here.”
The door closed softly, and Si Nan closed his eyes, listening to Zhou Rong’s footsteps gradually fading.
The next day, the doctor put down the thermometer, stunned: “Thirty-seven point three.”
Zhou Rong politely nodded and thanked him, though everyone could see from his expression he actually wanted to say: “You idiot.”
The doctor left dejectedly under Zhou Rong’s victorious gaze. He kicked Si Nan with his toe, indicating that since the fever had subsided, he shouldn’t keep lying there playing dead and should get up and work. Then he turned around, clapped his hands, and shouted loudly: “Excellent—everyone up! Pack equipment, move supplies, clean the mall corridors! Prepare for the helicopter emergency landing, hurry up!”
Corpses scattered on the ground listlessly got up. Si Nan walked out of the small compartment with a piece of seaweed and meat floss bread in his mouth. In the narrow corridor outside, Yan Hao sat on the ground, his long legs uncomfortably bent, holding the carbine gun that had been returned to him. Hearing Si Nan come out, he looked up and gave a gentle smile.
Si Nan’s steps momentarily paused.
Yan Hao stood up, stretched his stiff wrists and ankles, and turned to walk away.
Zhou Rong was a monster who didn’t need rest, energetic at all times.
Before lunch, he personally drew a retreat route, dividing survivors into fourteen groups, preparing to have them climb to the rooftop through the mall’s safe staircase; he also went to kill zombies wandering in the safe staircase, sealed all floor doors and windows, with special forces patrolling back and forth, reporting any abnormalities via walkie-talkie.
At 3:30 pm, he had Yan Hao lead people to clear the mall’s rooftop for the 101st time. The sound of four large helicopters roaring through the air could be heard.
“They’re here!” Yan Hao waved while shouting into the radio: “Helicopters preparing to emergency land! Arrange the first group to go upstairs!”
Survivors were a mix of joy and sorrow, sobbing and stumbling onto the rooftop under special forces escort. The pilot opened the cabin door, shouting in the hurricane: “From the front, don’t go to the tail—quickly! Don’t crowd, one by one!”
“Not enough planes!” the pilot shouted to Zhou Rong: “We’ll take one batch first, then return!”
Zhou Rong, sweating profusely, waved to acknowledge, rushed to the back of the queue, and pulled Si Nan out, stuffing him with a still-warm military knife and an apple he’d somehow obtained.
“Go up!” Zhou Rong pointed to the helicopter, shouting in his ear: “Go, quickly!”
