Because I want to snatch you away and make you my wife

Jin Zhaoye lifted her eyes to glance at her and reminded, 'Don't waste time.'

Xie Li's heart bloomed at that look. She stopped daydreaming and quickly dashed into the jade shop, sweeping up everything from the counters—counters and all their contents—in one go, stuffing it all into her Space.

The goods in this shop were somewhat inferior; after collecting a huge pile, her experience bar only inched up a little.

Xie Li scanned the shop layout, her gaze landing on the hidden door at the back that was tightly shut.

In a shop like this, the really good stuff definitely wouldn't be displayed openly. She hurried toward the room at the back.

The moment she rushed in, she nearly collided with a rotting face.

Xie Li reacted instantly, kicking the zombie square in the chest. The zombie in its suit was sent flying backward, crashing into the wall.

She closed in quickly, grabbed a dusty stone from a shelf, stepped on the zombie's wrist, and smashed the stone down.

With a 'squelch,' sticky liquid burst out.

Xie Li dropped the stone, examined the zombie's clothes, and fished a set of keys from its pocket.

She tried them, and the door opened smoothly. Inside was a small office: a desk, a chair, and a huge metal safe.

Xie Li dashed over, focused her mind, and the safe vanished on the spot. After collecting everything, she turned and ran.

As she rushed out of the office, her peripheral vision caught a shelf nearby. She noticed many dusty stones of various sizes with rough surfaces.

She quickly guessed what those stones were for. Without a second thought, she swept her hand and took both the stones and the shelf. Then she turned, ran through the hall, avoided the broken glass on the floor, and dashed toward the half-open shop door.

Jin Zhaoye was still standing guard by the car, the hammer hanging by her leg. A few more zombie corpses lay beside the off-road vehicle.

Her stance was casual, as if it were the most ordinary morning, waiting by the roadside for a friend who had gone into a convenience store to buy breakfast.

Even though not far behind her, a dark mass of the zombie horde had already closed in—the nearest ones less than ten meters from the off-road vehicle—her expression didn't change in the slightest, nor did she have any thought of abandoning Xie Li and getting in the car to flee.

'Fifty-one... fifty-two...' Xie Li had been counting seconds in her mind. As she burst out the door, she shouted to the person by the car, 'Go, Jin Zhaoye, get in the car.'

Even as she shouted, she had already reached the car, pulled open the passenger door, and dove in.

The moment Xie Li appeared, Jin Zhaoye yanked open the driver's door, got in, and floored the accelerator. The off-road vehicle shot forward, leaving the zombies that had almost reached them behind.

A rotting zombie claw grabbed the rear bumper, and the speeding off-road vehicle dragged it along the ground, leaving a trail of shredded flesh.

Xie Li watched the receding zombie horde in the rearview mirror and finished counting the last number in her mind: one minute, exactly.

The things she had collected into her Space were rapidly disappearing. The experience points in her mind kept jumping. She glanced at the progress bar—just a tiny sliver left until level five. Too bad she couldn't push it all the way to level five in one go; otherwise, she could have gone to collect supplies from the warehouse supermarket.

Xie Li stopped worrying about it and turned to smile at the woman gripping the steering wheel beside her. 'Jin Zhaoye, why don't you ask me what I went in there to do?'

Jin Zhaoye kept her eyes on the road ahead and replied flatly, 'Do you want to tell me?'

'I went to steal jade.' Xie Li grinned, pulled a particularly fine-looking jade ring from her pants pocket, and held it out to Jin Zhaoye. 'For you. Do you want it?'

Jin Zhaoye glanced at the thing in her palm. The jade was warm and lustrous—clearly not something a roadside shop like this could have. She had probably taken it from home last night.

She shook her head. 'It would break too easily in a fight.'

'That makes sense.' Xie Li put the ring away. 'Then next time I'll find you a gold one?'

'Why do you insist on giving me a ring?' Jin Zhaoye gave her a helpless look.

'To thank you for trusting me unconditionally.' Xie Li thought to herself, 'Because I want to snatch you away and make you my wife.'

'If it's just trust, there's no need to give a ring. You're twenty years old now; you should understand what giving a ring means.'

'...I'm not an idiot.'

Jin Zhaoye glanced at her through the rearview mirror, her eyes clearly saying, 'You're not much different from an idiot.'

Xie Li shut her mouth. This conversation was really impossible to continue.

The off-road vehicle sped forward for a while, shook off the zombie horde, then gradually slowed down, carefully weaving through the gaps between cars.

After turning a corner, Jin Zhaoye hit the brakes and pulled over to the side of the road.

Not far ahead was one of Nancheng's famous landmarks, Jingfeng Tower. Parked at the base of the tower was a yellow school bus with the words 'Nancheng University' written on its side.

Xie Li said, 'That's Lan Ran and the others' bus, right?'

'Let's go check.' Jin Zhaoye unbuckled her seatbelt, opened the door, and got out.

The two walked forward.

The school bus must have squeezed through from the opposite direction, so it had blocked this side of the road.

When they reached the bus, Xie Li poked her head in for a look. The interior was relatively clean, with not much blood visible. The bus itself was in rough shape—the windshield was completely shattered, the front was crumpled, and it was splattered with blood.

Jin Zhaoye examined the marks on the ground and said to Xie Li, 'They've probably taken shelter inside the building. Let's go in and look.'

The two entered. The first-floor lobby was a mess, the marble floor covered in dried blood. A dozen or so zombie corpses lay on the ground, their heads smashed in.

There were also many wandering zombies that, attracted by the two's appearance, crawled out from corners and shuffled toward them.

Xie Li gripped her pistol, and Jin Zhaoye hefted her hammer. The two fought and moved together, working in sync, and after some effort, they cleared out this batch of zombies.

Jin Zhaoye didn't rush upstairs. She first scanned the layout of the lobby. Her gaze fell on the floor directory next to the elevator, and she walked over to take a look.

'From the fifth floor up, it's all office space. When the disaster started, it was rush hour, so there would have been a huge crowd. Lan Ran and the others probably wouldn't have gone up. They have no supplies, so they'd likely be hiding on the third floor. Let's go up.'

'Okay.' Xie Li nodded, pretending she had analyzed it too, and followed her upstairs.

They took the fire escape. When they reached the second floor, Xie Li glanced inside.

The fire door on the second floor was wide open. Through the light coming in from the glass curtain wall, she could see a very spacious exhibition hall with no one inside.

They didn't stop and continued upstairs.

The fire door on the third floor was tightly shut. Through the door, they could faintly hear voices inside. Jin Zhaoye signaled to Xie Li.

Xie Li immediately pressed herself against the wall, gun pointed upward, and turned her head to watch the fire door.

Jin Zhaoye stepped forward, raised her hand, and lightly knocked on the door panel.

The voices behind the door instantly fell silent.

'Is anyone there?' Jin Zhaoye called through the door.

After a moment of quiet, a familiar voice replied, 'Yes, yes, yes! Dr. Jin, wait a moment.'

The fire door was quickly pulled open. Ning Meng stood at the entrance, looking at the two. Behind her was a group of familiar faces—everyone who had escaped from the school was here.

'Dr. Jin, Xie Li.' Ning Meng stepped aside, lowered her voice, and waved them in. 'Come in first, then we'll talk.'

Xie Li holstered her gun and slipped inside with Jin Zhaoye. Ning Meng gently closed the door.

The curtains on the third floor were all drawn, with only a few lights on for illumination. The air was thick with a complex smell—food, sweat, and blood mingled together, not very pleasant.

Lan Ran saw Xie Li and immediately came over. 'Xie Li, how did you find us here?'

Xie Li glanced at Lan Ran. Her complexion wasn't great, but she wasn't injured—that was good.

She smiled and said, 'We just tracked you down, of course. I said I'd take this little tadpole home to find her mother; I couldn't let you get lost, could I?'

While Xie Li was talking to Lan Ran, she kept an eye on Jin Zhaoye from the corner of her eye. She saw her say a few words to Ning Meng and then walk deeper into the hall.

Her gaze followed Jin Zhaoye's back until that slender, graceful figure disappeared before she looked away.

Lan Ran followed her line of sight and leaned in to whisper, 'Xie Li, have you got a crush on my goddess?'

Caught off guard, Xie Li's face heated up. She changed the subject. 'What's she going in there for?'

'Major General Fu is resting in the private room inside.' Lan Ran lowered her voice.

Hearing Fu Yunsheng's name, Xie Li grew restless.

She patted Lan Ran on the shoulder and said quickly, 'I'm going to see if there's anything I can help with. You rest here.'

With that, she hurried off in the direction Jin Zhaoye had disappeared.

The door to the private room wasn't fully closed; light seeped out, and voices could be heard from inside. Xie Li walked up to the door, stopped, and knocked.

'Come in, the door's unlocked.' A pleasant female voice came from inside—gentle, composed, unhurried. Just the sound of it made one feel well-disposed toward her.

Xie Li pushed the door open and scanned the room.

The private room was spacious and luxuriously decorated. The dining table had been pushed to a corner, leaving a large open space in the middle with a few sofas pushed together.

Fu Yunsheng lay on them, covered with a blanket. Jin Zhaoye and Ning Meng stood to one side, talking in low voices.

Beside Fu Yunsheng sat another woman. She turned her head and looked at Xie Li.

Xie Li unexpectedly met her gaze. The woman's eyes were like a deep, bottomless lake—gentle and clear. Her long hair was neatly pinned up, revealing a slender, swan-like neck.

Her skin was fair, like fine suet jade, even whiter than the white suit she wore. Her brows were like paintings, her red lips soft and full.

She was like a white rose blooming in the ruins.

That phrase inexplicably popped into Xie Li's mind. She thought she knew who this person was.

One of Fu Yunsheng's harem, the heir of Nancheng's richest family, the Bai family, the youngest and most outstanding CEO of Jingfeng Group. The book had used many beautiful words to describe her, and Xie Li had never been able to imagine it.

Seeing this woman at this moment, she suddenly felt that the original author's vocabulary was still too limited. This face, these eyes, this aura—words couldn't capture even a tenth of her beauty.

Jin Zhaoye cleared her throat and looked at Xie Li. 'Why aren't you staying with your friends?'

Xie Li withdrew her gaze and replied, 'I wanted to see if there's anything I can help with.'

'Dr. Jin, and this is?' Miss White Rose asked.

Jin Zhaoye said succinctly, 'Xie Li, my teammate.'

'Hello, Xie Li. I'm Bai Jingning.'

Xie Li nodded to her in greeting.

Bai Jingning stood up and addressed the group. 'You two have had a long journey. It's about time for a meal. Let's go out and have something to eat first.'

'Then thank you for your hospitality, Bai Zong.' Jin Zhaoye said politely, and walked out of the private room with Bai Jingning.

Once out of the room, hot food was brought out shortly after.

The meal was very home-style: white rice, tomato and egg drop soup, stir-fried greens, and a plate of braised pork. But under these circumstances, it was an absolutely top-notch meal.

Xie Li and Jin Zhaoye sat together, holding their steaming bowls of rice, eating with their heads down.

The rice had just been cooked—hot, chewy, each grain distinct. The greens were stir-fried until bright and crisp. The braised pork was perfectly marbled, rich in sauce, and the sweet, savory gravy mixed into the rice was incredibly delicious.

Paired with the tangy tomato egg drop soup, which cut through the greasiness of the pork perfectly, Xie Li ate three bowls of rice. She put down her chopsticks and let out a satisfied burp.

'Are you full?' Jin Zhaoye saw her eating with such relish and teased gently. 'If you're not full, go ahead and have more. Bai Zong has plenty of rice here for now.'

'I'm full. Actually, I don't usually eat this much, but I haven't had rice in a few days, so I ate a bit more.' Xie Li rubbed her belly, a little embarrassed.

As she spoke, she glanced at the leftover braised pork on the table. She could probably still eat another bowl, but she had things to do in the afternoon, so she couldn't eat too much—otherwise, if she threw up later at a disgusting scene, it would be a waste.

'By the way, are we not going back to Guanlan Garden for now?' Xie Li asked.

Jin Zhaoye put down her chopsticks and wiped the corner of her mouth with a tissue. 'Most of the survivors here are Bai Zong's employees and survivors who fled from nearby. It depends on how she wants to arrange things. Do you want to take everyone back?'

'I'm fine either way. Being with you is best.'

Xie Li shared her plan. 'But I want to go with Lan Ran to her home first. Her mother is in Lingxi County. If we're going to evacuate, it would be best to bring her mother along.'

Jin Zhaoye said, 'It's already noon. If you set off now, won't it be too late?'

Xie Li shook her head. 'I still have other things to do this afternoon. We'll talk about it tomorrow.'

Jin Zhaoye lowered her voice and asked in her ear, 'Going out to steal more jade?'

Xie Li's ears grew hot. She shrank her neck and nodded. 'I need a lot of jade.'

'Wait for me a moment. I'll go with you.' Jin Zhaoye stood up and walked toward Ning Meng.

Xie Li stayed where she was, watching her lean down and say a few words to Ning Meng, who kept nodding.

After giving her instructions, Jin Zhaoye straightened up and walked back to Xie Li.

'Let's go.'

Just as they had arrived, the two quietly went downstairs, returned to the off-road vehicle, and Jin Zhaoye drove again.

Xie Li sat in the passenger seat, staring at the woman who was focused on driving with one hand on the steering wheel. Her profile was sharp, her eyelashes long and thick, her nose bridge high and straight—she was incredibly good-looking.

Even though Miss White Rose was indeed very beautiful, almost perfectly so, Xie Li felt that Jin Zhaoye was still more attractive.

'Whenever you see a pretty Omega, do you always stare at them like that?' Jin Zhaoye suddenly spoke, her voice flat, unreadable.

Xie Li quickly averted her gaze and stared straight ahead, her ears red as she stammered a defense. 'I was just looking to see if there were any zombies on your side.'

But Jin Zhaoye didn't let her off. 'Back in the private room, you stared at Bai Zong until your eyes went straight. That was very rude.'

'...I wasn't looking at her.' Xie Li faltered. 'No, I mean, I was looking at her, but I wasn't really looking at her. I was thinking at the time.'

'So, Xie Li, you like to stare at pretty Omegas while you think, is that it?' Jin Zhaoye kept twisting the knife.

Xie Li was left speechless. She gritted her teeth and, steeling herself, said bluntly, 'I only like staring at you.'

She threw a straight ball, but Jin Zhaoye didn't take the bait. She stared unblinkingly ahead, as if she were concentrating on driving.

The car drove smoothly down the street, shaking off zombies that lunged at them one by one, and soon reached their destination.

Jin Zhaoye turned the steering wheel and parked the car outside the jade market.

She turned to Xie Li and instructed, 'Wait until I draw the zombies away before you go in. Remember to be careful. Meet back here in thirty minutes.'

Xie Li nodded, unbuckled her seatbelt, and opened the door to get out. 'You be careful too.'

'Mm.' Jin Zhaoye acknowledged, stepped on the gas, and drove the car straight into the street of the jade market.

The roar of the engine echoed through the empty street. Most of the shops on both sides had their doors open, glass display windows shattered, covered in bloodstains.

Many zombies were wandering aimlessly. The commotion of the off-road vehicle passing by stirred them up.

Those aimlessly wandering figures turned around and, howling, chased after the off-road vehicle that was deliberately slowing down.

Xie Li stood outside the market, watching the off-road vehicle turn a corner and lead away a large number of zombies. She quickly ran into the market.

The market was large, and the stench of decay was strong. Xie Li collected jade as she went, not missing any counter that had goods on it.

If the quality was poor, she made up for it with quantity. Her Space quickly filled up with various counters, so she started tossing the counters out.

After collecting from a dozen or so shops in a row, a golden light flashed in Xie Li's mind, and a message about her Space leveling up popped up.

[Congratulations! Your Space has been upgraded to LV.5!]

[Storage Space: 160m³]

[Farming Space: Unlocked. Farming area: 100m² (upgradeable). Comes with an irrigation stream. Currently plantable crops: basic grains, vegetables, fruits...]

[Livestock Space: 100m²]

[Spiritual Spring: Locked (unlocks at LV.10)]

Xie Li looked at the Space description, overjoyed. It was square meters, not cubic meters, and it came with a stream! Did this mean she wouldn't have to worry about daily water anymore, and the height of the Space was unlimited, allowing infinite stacking?

She had been worried before that she wouldn't be able to take all the supplies from the warehouse supermarket, afraid her Space wouldn't be big enough. Now she could go all out.

Not bothering to savor the benefits of the upgrade, Xie Li leaped up, grabbed the eaves of a shop, and climbed onto the roof.

Standing at a high point, she surveyed the jade market. The warehouse area was at the very back of the market, taking up a huge space, so there must be a lot of stock.

Xie Li had lost interest in the miscellaneous goods on the street. She wanted to get some big hauls from the warehouse.

Like a monkey, she parkoured across the rooftops, hopping from one roof to another until she reached the roof of the warehouse area. She slid down a drainpipe and landed at the back door of the warehouse.

The chain on the door was thick, with a fist-sized lock hanging on it. Even a hydraulic cutter would probably take some effort, but that wasn't a problem for Xie Li. She grabbed the chain, focused her mind, and the big lock vanished.

'Great, I think I've gotten the hang of stealing,' Xie Li scolded herself inwardly, but her hands didn't stop. She pushed the door open and ran inside.

This warehouse was at least four or five hundred square meters. Rows of iron shelves were neatly arranged, filled with baskets and baskets of jade material, cut rough stones, semi-finished scraps, and the like—stacked to the brim.

Xie Li took everything she could. She moved swiftly, and wherever she ran, the baskets disappeared.

Row after row of shelves were emptied in succession. Experience points kept jumping in her mind, but upgrading the Space again still seemed far off.

She noticed that jade didn't seem to boost the Space as much anymore. After collecting so much jade, the experience bar had only moved a tiny bit.

Since she was already here, Xie Li didn't complain. She kept running deeper into the warehouse and soon reached the far end.

Just as she approached a shelf full of stone materials, a chill ran down Xie Li's back, and a strong sense of crisis shot straight to her head.

She made a split-second decision, lunged forward, rolled on the ground, and got away from her original spot.

Behind her came a faint sound.

Xie Li turned around and found a tiger standing where she had been, baring its teeth, its golden eyes fixed on her.

The tiger looked very cat-like, with an orange-yellow coat and beautiful fur—a bit like a Garfield cat. The fur on its back was thick and dense, its limbs sturdy, and its claws easily gouged deep furrows into the concrete floor with a single scratch.

Xie Li's hair stood on end. Was this a cat? How had it gotten so big? Was it infected, or had it mutated?

Had the book mentioned animals mutating? She couldn't remember. What she remembered was all about the female lead's romantic affairs.

If even cats and dogs had mutated like this, what about the wild animals in Nancheng Zoo?

In that instant, countless thoughts flashed through Xie Li's mind, and her palms began to sweat.

Neither the person nor the cat moved; they just stood there in a silent standoff.

The big cat kept emitting a low growl from its throat. Perhaps its instincts as a pet cat were still controlling it, preventing it from attacking humans.

Xie Li sensed that its attack intent wasn't strong. She slowed her movements and pulled a frozen pork leg out of her Space, placing it on the empty ground in front of her.

She softened her voice and said, 'Come on, good kitty. Have something to eat. You're hungry, aren't you?'

'Let me go, okay? I promise I won't steal from your place again.' Xie Li talked as she slowly backed away.

The big cat took a few steps forward, lowered its head, and sniffed the frozen pork leg. It didn't eat.

It raised its head again, its golden eyes still fixed on Xie Li, a low growl rumbling in its throat. Its claws scraped the ground, sending up concrete dust. Its intent to attack became more obvious.

'Fine, fine, fine. I'll pay tribute to you. You think I'm easy to bully, don't you?' Xie Li muttered, pulling out a piece of beef from her Space and tossing it over. 'Let me tell you, I've got the truth in my hands. Don't make me use my gun on you.'

The frozen, hard beef hit the ground with a dull thud.

The big cat stepped forward a few more times, sniffed again, then extended its paw and scraped both the beef and the pork leg that Xie Li had thrown over to its own side, piling them together.

Then it raised its head and continued staring at Xie Li, the meaning clear: 'I'll let you go, but you have to pay up—no, you have to add more meat.'

Xie Li: '...'

She suspected she had been set up by a cat.