Chapter 296: Blue and Melancholy

In the terrifying Zombie Village, the central courtyard was filled with the scent of chicken.

This smell, you could only identify as the scent of chicken.

As for whether it was delicious or not, you couldn’t tell.

In the post-apocalyptic world, just having food was good enough; whether it tasted good or not didn’t matter anymore.

In the courtyard, Zhang Yiming lay motionless on a deck chair.

His eyes quietly gazed at the sky.

The drizzle had ceased, and the sun peeked out, its scorching rays shining into the courtyard.

After the rain, a long rainbow hung in the sky.

A forlorn aura surrounded Zhang Yiming.

No one knew how much he longed to become human, nor how much he envied Leng Yebai.

Clearly, Leng Yebai embodied everything he disliked, yet he still had to feed and house him.

"So sad, like blue mushrooms."

"Xiao Ming, would you like a bowl?" Fan Liping handed a bowl of chicken to Zhang Yiming.

He had chopped up two extra chickens today, enough to eat.

He thought his cooking skills were not bad today, exceptionally good, so he gave Zhang Yiming a bowl to taste.

Zhang Yiming and Fan Tangtang’s human-like appearances always made him forget that the two in front of him were Zombies, without a sense of taste.

Zhang Yiming took the bowl expressionlessly, shoveling mouthful after mouthful into his mouth.

He even chewed up and swallowed the bones.

Fan Liping raised his eyebrows, feeling that his culinary skills had reached a new level.

"I want some too!"

Fan Tangtang saw Zhang Yiming eating, and eating so crisply too.

It looked really interesting.

He quickly raised his hand, jumping up and down, acting cute towards Fan Liping.

"Alright, alright, there’s some in the kitchen, go help yourself!"

Fan Liping laughed with loving fondness on his face.

As a father, he understood clearly just how pure a father’s love for his son could be.

All along, his own dad had treated him like this too.

Fan Liping reassured himself in his heart.

"Keep going!"

As long as you keep feeding Dad the pot-roasted chicken he once loved, one day, he’ll surely remember life before the apocalypse!

"Dad, wait a bit, let Xiao Leng eat first, then I’ll feed you."

Fan Liping said a word to the elderly Zombie’s back, then turned to fetch a bowl of chicken from the kitchen and went to Leng Yebai’s room.

The elderly Zombie’s back shuddered slightly.

A trace of helplessness hung on its face, full of decaying flesh.

It only wanted to eat the fat guy who cooked, not the meal itself!

Crunch, crunch.

Zhang Yiming and Fan Tangtang chewed on bones in the courtyard, in a rhythmic manner.

Leng Yebai had already awakened and, with Fan Liping’s help, could barely sit up.

Yet, Leng Yebai somewhat resisted Fan Liping, evading his arm.

"Xiao Leng, how are you feeling now?" Fan Liping asked softly. "Meiling asked Xiao Ming, and he said you wouldn’t turn into a Zombie."

Seeing Leng Yebai like this, it was clear he was certainly worried about turning into a Zombie.

Honestly, at first, Fan Liping also thought Leng Yebai might not turn into a Zombie.

He’d seen people bitten or scratched by Zombies, who almost immediately turned into Zombies.

Someone like Leng Yebai, who could still ride a motorcycle, he hadn’t really seen.

"Re-really?"

Leng Yebai suddenly lifted his head, staring intently into Fan Liping’s eyes.

It was as if he couldn’t believe what he just heard.

Even now, he could feel pain in every cell of his body.

It seemed every cell was under attack; his body was covered with tiny punctuated points of pain.

He didn’t need to look at his leg; he knew there should be more decaying flesh there by now.

Decaying flesh was a characteristic of Zombies.

He clearly showed signs of becoming a Zombie!

"Xiao Ming himself said it, as long as you nourish yourself a bit more, you’ll be fine, quick, try my specialty." Fan Liping quickly handed the bowl of pot-roasted chicken to Leng Yebai, "Everyone says it’s good!"

"I really won’t turn into a Zombie?"

Leng Yebai, despite feeling the dense pain all over his body, was still a bit incredulous.

His throat tightened, wanting to let out a few roars, and if he hadn’t forcefully restrained himself, he almost would have.

Roar out loud like those hideous Zombies.

"Relax, don’t you trust Xiao Ming?" Fan Liping gave a thumbs up, "He’s the authority!"

An authority among the Zombies, without any Zombie disputing it, the sole spokesperson for Zombies.

"Heh heh."

Leng Yebai responded with a humorless laugh.

He believed what Zhang Yiming said to the Bai Family.

But the words said to others, especially those said to him, Leng Yebai, he trusted the least.

"Come on, try it! Eat a little more, it’ll help your wounds heal faster."

Fan Liping almost lifted the bowl up to Leng Yebai’s face.

Leng Yebai caught a strong aroma, which pierced straight into his nostrils, stimulating his taste buds.

Leng Yebai instinctively swallowed his saliva.

He glanced at the bowl and the plump hand holding it, feeling a weight in his heart.

The aroma he smelled definitely wasn’t the scent of chicken.

This was a smell he had never encountered before, a fresh fragrance with a tempting allure that made him greedy.

The smell came from Fan Liping’s body.

Could it be, he had already...

"Xiao Leng, come on, try some! My pot-roasted chicken is really good! Everyone says so!"

Fan Liping, seeing Leng Yebai lower his head, raised the bowl again towards him.

Leng Yebai endured the pain all over his body, restraining his inexplicable violence and bloodlust.

Every part of his body hurt; he was almost unable to control himself from pouncing on the slightly greasy man in front of him.

Fine, let’s have a little taste of what belongs to human life and warmth!

Leng Yebai tried to move his arm but couldn’t lift it.

"What’s wrong?"

Fan Liping noticed Leng Yebai couldn’t lift his arm.

"I can’t raise my arm, and my shoulder hurts terribly. Probably a sign of becoming a Zombie."

Leng Yebai’s eyes dimmed a bit.

He had already lost control over his arm?

Fan Liping: ...

This was Zhang Yiming’s fault.

"You fell off your motorcycle, you definitely won’t become a Zombie. Come on, eat!"

Fan Liping picked up a chicken leg and brought it to Leng Yebai’s mouth.

The aroma Leng Yebai picked up on became even richer; he lowered his head and took a bite of the chicken leg.

His face went blank for a moment, chewing haphazardly a few times before swallowing it with difficulty, then he turned his head, no longer biting the chicken leg.

"Thanks, I’m full!"

Leng Yebai said calmly.

"Huh? You only took a bite!" Fan Liping scratched his head, "Don’t tell me it doesn’t taste good? It shouldn’t be like that! Everyone else says it’s tasty!"

"Who says so?" Leng Yebai asked without expression.

"My dad, Tangtang, and that Zombie always wearing a suit, oh, and Xiao Ming too, they all ate it happily," Fan Liping grinned, "Though some don’t like it, my wife doesn’t, but others do."

Leng Yebai nodded, understanding.

Zombies like it, humans don’t.

If that’s the case, maybe Zhang Yiming was right, and he really wouldn’t become a Zombie.

Leng Yebai’s eyes sparkled with hope.

He decided to stay with Zhang Yiming for a couple more days to be sure he wouldn’t turn into a Zombie, then rush back to his beloved Xiao Niu.

...In case he accidentally turned into a Zombie, he thought, perhaps Zhang Yiming would understand him!

He came here thinking if he turned into a Zombie, Zhang Yiming surely wouldn’t let him harm Xiao Niu.

Leng Yebai ached all over, his body battered, yet he still mustered the strength to lift the corners of his mouth.

As long as he didn’t turn into a Zombie, he would be the happiest person in the world.