Su Huan looked over the 3,000 steel plates Yu Jing had listed and did the math. There were forty-two cars, plus the locomotive. Plating them all would be a massive job, but the train had plenty of one thing: people.
Qi Xiaoba only needed to cut and weld the plates, which wouldn't take much energy.
Su Huan rubbed his fingertips together and looked at Wan Xing. "Your job tomorrow is to collect Pan-Energy Crystals from the zombies. Don't worry about the zombies themselves. I'll deal with them."
"Okay." Wan Xing agreed without hesitation.
"Good. Liang Kuan, you have two jobs. First, sort and organize the supplies we've collected. Second, bring the zombie corpses here. You have to do that yourself. Don't let the people behind us board the train."
"Understood."
With Pan-Energy Crystals, the problem of keeping the train running was solved too.
Evolutionists could absorb Pan-Energy Crystals directly. The absorbed portion disappeared into thin air, while the rest remained in its stable "crystal" state.
However, that state wouldn't last indefinitely. Only Collectors could maintain Pan-Energy Crystals for an extended period.
Su Huan glanced at his watch when he had a spare moment. Before he knew it, it was already ten at night.
There was no denying it: time dragged when there was nothing to do for fun.
"That's enough for today. You can all get some rest. Feel free to pick any of the soft-sleeper compartments in Car Four."
Su Huan stood up first and headed for Car Three.
The entire car had been set aside for him.
He stopped in front of the door but didn't go in. After a long pause, he turned to look at Yu Jing, who stood behind him with a calm expression. Suspiciously, he asked, "Why aren't you going to bed? Why are you following me?"
"You have a lot of tools in your room. I'd like to borrow some."
Su Huan glanced sideways at her. I thought you'd come around and offer yourself to me.
He pushed the door open and stepped inside. The room had been completely transformed. All sorts of tools had been set along the wall on a makeshift rack, while loose pencils and rulers had been neatly arranged in a row on the desk.
The carpet had been replaced, and the greasy stains were gone. The bed was clean and tidy.
"My mom tidied up," he said.
Yu Jing walked in as naturally as if she belonged there and picked out a few things.
She was about to leave when she saw Su Huan standing in the doorway with an unreadable expression, making no move to let her pass.
Yu Jing lifted her pale chin, her phoenix eyes studying him. "Do you want to sleep with me?"
The question came out of nowhere. Su Huan hadn't expected her to be so blunt. For a split second, it felt like he was back three years into the apocalypse.
Back then, the girls had been just as forward and bold.
But this was clearly different. There was no hint of shyness or desire on her face. She had simply asked the question.
Su Huan refused to be outdone and curled his lips into a smile. "I want to do everything."
Yu Jing frowned, then relaxed. "I see. Physically, there's no problem. Ethically, this is the apocalypse, so there's nothing to worry about. But my mom might not be able to accept it."
Su Huan felt like a pervert who'd run into another pervert. Lust had lost the upper hand, but his fighting spirit had only grown stronger.
I'm a seasoned beast, four years into the apocalypse. There's no way I'm letting a virgin get the better of me.
"So you're saying you'd be okay with it?" Su Huan pressed closer instead of backing off, his hand settling around Yu Jing's slender waist.
It was very slim, and surprisingly supple.
Her high-waisted jeans fit snugly, accentuating her long legs and her trim, curvy figure.
Like she'd said in her introduction, she seemed brimming with healthy vitality.
He wrapped both arms around her, and a sense of control welled up inside him, along with a slight boost to his self-esteem.
Su Huan's grades in high school had been mediocre. He'd only just managed to get into a regular college, and some unconscious part of him still yearned for academic achievement. Yu Jing's excellence only stoked his desire.
Yu Jing showed no reaction to his advances. She calmly glanced at the watch on her left wrist. "If you need to, could you let me take a shower first?"
Su Huan narrowed his eyes, a dangerous gleam in them. "Are you in a hurry?"
"Don't worry. I'm twenty-two, and I've never had a boyfriend. This would be my first time. I'm healthy and disease-free, so I can meet your needs. But I'd like to sketch a few things before bed, so I hope you'll be quick."
"I'm usually pretty slow when it comes to that."
Su Huan's fingers slid down to the metal button at her waist. With a light flick, it came undone, and the thrill of unwrapping a present flooded his mind.
Yu Jing's gaze was calm, but touched with confusion. "After ten minutes, your senses will go numb. If you keep going after that, it'll probably be more painful than pleasurable."
Watching Yu Jing analyze it with such a straight face, Su Huan laughed in exasperation. He could see it now: she wasn't pretending to be calm. She truly didn't care if something happened between them.
Su Huan pressed his fingertip firmly against her flat stomach. "Would you feel the same way with someone else?"
Yu Jing looked up at him in surprise, then brushed her soft fingers swiftly across his chin. A smile touched her face, beautiful as the fleeting moment when an iceberg broke apart and slid into the sea. "That wouldn't do. You're at least a little handsome."
Then, while Su Huan stood there stunned, she ducked under his arm and slipped out.
Once she was out of the room, her brow relaxed and her smile gradually faded.
She didn't dislike Su Huan, but that was all.
She wasn't saying this out of any particular feeling. She simply thought it was the best option under the circumstances.
Men were simple creatures. When they couldn't have something, they prowled around like cats, sniffing and nosing at it until they became a nuisance.
She might as well let him have his fill in one go. Then he'd focus on her abilities and what she could contribute.
But she didn't want to earn her place on the train by using her body.
She liked the admiration in Su Huan's eyes, but she didn't want it mixed up with a man's admiration for a woman.
Besides...
She also quite liked this crazy plan: modifying the train and holding back the zombie horde.
In the dim light, a pencil drew straight lines across a sheet of paper. But at the last moment, the tip slipped, marring the elegant design with an ugly flaw. Crack.
Su Huan snapped the pencil in two.
Irritated, he clenched his hands. Heat flared, burning the design he'd just drawn of the train car's interior.
"Damn it, she got the better of me!"
"Forget it. I'm going to bed. Once I have some time, I'll show her what she's missing."
Su Huan thought viciously.
That night, the train conductor was so angry that he forgot to write in his log.
Inside Car Twenty-Four.
In the pitch darkness, a coarse voice cursed, "Who knows what that Su guy is thinking, letting any riffraff on board? That little brat even dared to steal from me. I only broke one of his fingers, and those old bastards in his family still had the nerve to talk back! They must have a death wish!"
"Take it easy, Brother Dog." A young man with a roguish face leaned back in his seat.
He planted a foot on the shoulder of the woman busy below him. "Go on. Help Brother Dog cool off."
The woman shrank back and quickly turned around, feeling her way through the dark.
Before she could find what she was looking for, the man behind her thrust against her, nearly knocking her off balance.
Panting heavily, the young man said, "That Su guy has some freaky tricks. Let the people in Car Seven test him out first."
Brother Dog grew impatient with the woman fumbling beneath him and slapped her.
"Useless!"
The woman groaned, but didn't dare make another sound.
Brother Dog let out a satisfied sigh. "They came to me too. I was thinking the same thing as you—let them test him out. I'm not going to be the first one to stick my neck out."
"Oh, and send a few people to bring that old woman's daughter-in-law over. Her family started the fire, so they can put it out themselves!"
A chorus of lecherous laughter rang out around them.
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