A Precious Sense of Vigilance

The lights outside suddenly went out. Yao Wei wanted to conserve electricity, so after filling the oil barrel, she quickly went to the electrical box to remove the equipment and put it back in her schoolbag.

The lights of the Mechanical Dog inside the station suddenly became a bit harsh. However, Lu Xi'an quickly adapted and went to pick up the tires.

There were three toy motorcycles on the ground, all the same size, with six tires in total.

Lu Xi'an picked one up and examined it under the light from the Doggy's eyes. It was intact and of good quality. "Okay," he thought.

Yao Wei walked in at the station entrance and saw the toy tire in Lu Xi'an's hand. Her eyes showed some confusion, but she didn't ask.

Lu Xi'an, illuminated by the light spreading from the Mechanical Dog's eyes, caught a glimpse of Yao Wei's expression and proactively explained, "I plan to see if I can replace the Doggy's four tires. What do you think?"

Yao Wei glanced at the tire in Lu Xi'an's hand, then at the Mechanical Dog on the ground with its eyes shining, and nodded. "Mm."

Lu Xi'an sighed and said, "It's a shame I don't have a Screwdriver or Wrench. I can't try to modify it, so I'll just collect them for now and deal with it later."

Yao Wei said, "I have them."

Lu Xi'an's eyes lit up. "Thank you then."

Yao Wei said, "I can use the Doggy too," and then left without further ado, carrying the barrel.

Lu Xi'an watched Yao Wei's retreating back and smiled slightly. It seemed this woman had accepted the fact that she would embark on a journey with him and was indeed not going back on her promise.

After leaving the gas station, Lu Xi'an had the Mechanical Dog turn off the lights in its eyes.

In this Apocalypse, both of them were long accustomed to walking in the dark. If they were careful, they wouldn't fall into any ditches.

Conversely, if they walked with the lights on, they might become a target for something lurking in the shadows.

Lu Xi'an noticed that Yao Wei hadn't filled much gasoline; the oil barrel was probably only half full.

But he could understand why—

Carrying it like this was a bit easier, and even a full barrel of oil wouldn't make much difference to a car's gas tank. It was better to take a little now to top up the tank and then drive back here to fill it again.

They walked back, passing Jiangyu Road 276, 275, and 274. They walked past villa 272; the villa was quiet inside and out, indicating the Hyenas hadn't returned.

Even so, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei didn't plan to stop.

Lu Xi'an followed Yao Wei, and Jiangyu Road turned into a downhill slope. halfway down the slope, Lu Xi'an saw 270 and 269.

271 and 273 were gone.

They reached the bottom of the slope and walked for another half hour. The road was lined with lush, green trees.

In his past life, Lu Xi'an would have gladly walked or run in such a place, breathing in the fresh air. But in this world, such a place only made people feel uneasy.

Who knew what might be hiding in here?

He looked at Yao Wei, who had hidden her car inside.

Lu Xi'an followed Yao Wei into the woods. After walking a short distance, they found a car at the foot of a small slope.

The car had large tires, a very high chassis, and was covered in sheet metal. It looked like it had many patches, and even the car windows were covered with iron mesh.

Lu Xi'an instantly liked the car. In this world, a car like this looked much safer than a sports car.

However, he was puzzled and scanned the ground behind him. "Where are the tire tracks?"

"I cleaned them up when I left," Yao Wei said, sensing Lu Xi'an's confusion.

She didn't rush to get into the car or immediately fill the gas tank. Instead, she first walked around the car to inspect it.

This step, which was necessary for the driving test in her previous life to check the vehicle's condition, was now also for checking the vehicle's condition, but more importantly, to look for hidden dangers.

Therefore, Yao Wei inspected it meticulously, and Lu Xi'an helped her look.

After inspecting the car, Yao Wei opened the door, took off her backpack, and threw it into the car.

She opened the gas tank and took out a metal funnel from the car, using it to pour the oil from the sheet metal barrel into the tank.

Once that was done, she put away the barrel and funnel and said to Lu Xi'an, "Get in."

The interior space of this car was enormous, with two rows of seats. The oil barrel, funnel, and other items were placed in the trunk. The trunk could be accessed directly from the second row of seats.

The trunk could easily fit several people.

Lu Xi'an opened the rear door and glanced into the trunk. It was filled with various items, including what looked like a medical kit and a Toolbox. He wondered where Yao Wei had found them.

"You sit in the front," Yao Wei said, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Lu Xi'an smiled and said, "I'll put my things away. I wasn't planning on sitting in the back."

This woman was afraid he would ambush her from the back.

But it was understandable. If he were in her position, he would do the same.

In this world, who could completely trust anyone? Allowing someone into the car and sitting in the same row was already a great act of goodwill.

After placing his backpack and closing the door, Lu Xi'an opened the front passenger door, scooped up the Mechanical Dog from the ground, and got into the car.

Yao Wei didn't trust Lu Xi'an, and naturally, she didn't trust the Mechanical Dog either.

Even though it was a Mechanical Dog, it was still Lu Xi'an's Doggy.

So Lu Xi'an was very considerate and directly placed Doggy on the passenger seat, at his feet.

This was when Doggy's small size became an advantage; the space in front of the passenger seat was more than enough to accommodate it.

"Where's your screwdriver and wrench?"

Lu Xi'an asked.

Yao Wei replied, "In the trunk. We'll find a place to rest after refueling, and then I'll give them to you."

That was quite a lot of words for her, nearly twenty characters.

Lu Xi'an suddenly felt a bit regretful that he had used up all the water for his pen while writing his diary; otherwise, he could have kept track of how many words this woman said in a day.

Yao Wei started the car, its headlights illuminating, and drove onto the road.

Lu Xi'an leaned back against the seat, finding the hard backrest rather uncomfortable.

He gazed at the hazy yellow halogen light from the headlights blending with the darkness ahead, carving out a field of vision.

Looking inside the dark car, the faint fluorescence from the gaps in the dashboard and center console buttons made him feel a moment of daze, a sense of returning to the past.

How long had it been since he last rode in a car?

He really missed it!

Lu Xi'an turned his head to glance at Yao Wei. The woman was driving with a tense expression, still maintaining her vigilance towards him.

He smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't do anything. You're in control of the car. If I made a move on you, and you flipped the car, what good would that do me?"

After Lu Xi'an said this, the woman was silent for a moment, then replied, "Okay." She then visibly relaxed a little.

The car drove past Jiangyu Road, and the two saw Villa 272 again, but this time the villa was just an insignificant roadside scene, flashing past their vision.

They drove all the way to the abandoned gas station. Yao Wei drove the car directly to the gas pump they had confirmed was still usable and parked, but didn't turn off the engine.

She observed for a while inside the car. Seeing no one emerge, she opened the door and got out, holding her pistol.

Lu Xi'an followed suit, taking his pistol and getting out as well.

However, his pistol was tucked into his waistband, and he was holding the submachine gun in his hand.