CHAPTER 48: CHAPTER 48: ANOTHER ONE

The person Xiao Jing dragged back was a middle-aged man, unshaven, with clothes stuffed so full that he was almost an oval shape.

But just one look at his face, and you could tell he was as thin as a skeleton, as if a layer of skin was plastered on top.

Qu Jianlei gave Xiao Jing a surprised glance, "Didn’t expect you to be so strong."

Xiao Jing was direct, "He’s very light, and the materials in his clothes for warmth are also very light."

From the bottom of his heart, Qu Jianlei didn’t want to take in another person. In the winters of the Wasteland, when was there a year when people didn’t freeze or starve to death?

The original body that he had transmigrated into back then had also frozen and starved to death just as winter was ending.

He pondered for a moment before speaking, "What made you want to save him?"

"I came across him," Xiao Jing looked a bit helpless too, "just like you came across me back then."

Qu Jianlei didn’t want to hurt a child’s feelings but still refuted, "You said you were useful."

"Maybe he’s useful too," Xiao Jing answered instinctively, then quickly explained, "It’s up to you to decide whether to save him."

Of course, it’s up to me! Qu Jianlei’s mouth twitched, then he shook his head with a bitter smile.

"You’ve brought him back; what else can I do?"

If it were in the wild, he could ignore it and avoid it from afar, but seeing someone die so close by without helping, he couldn’t get past that hurdle in his heart.

Xiao Jing pursed his lips and then stated, "I can throw him back out."

Qu Jianlei was silent for a while and eventually sighed, "Forget it, it’s just a bowl of water and a tube of Nutrient Injection."

Xiao Jing was still very cautious, first blindfolding the person’s eyes, then tying up his hands and feet before feeding him.

Soon, the person sighed softly and came back to life—the life force of Wasteland people was truly unusually strong.

He moved his limbs a bit, shook his head, then his body stiffened.

And then he maintained that rigid posture, without any further movement.

"I know you’re awake," Xiao Jing impatiently said, "I saved you, understand?"

The person still didn’t respond, not even breathing.

"Stop pretending," Xiao Jing grew even more displeased, "If you don’t speak soon, I’ll throw you out right away."

The person’s body finally moved a little and slowly spoke, "Fallen?"

Xiao Jing disdainfully replied, "You’re this thin. Just how starved would the Fallen have to be to remember saving you?"

"Thank you then," the person nodded slightly in Xiao Jing’s direction, letting out a long breath.

"If it were the Fallen, I’d rather be dead... Now you’ve saved me, what do you need me to do?"

The latter half of the sentence reflected the typical mindset of a Wasteland person, saving a stranger in the icy snow... there must be an ulterior motive!

As for "kindness," such factors are never considered by the Wasteland people.

Xiao Jing had been waiting for this question and directly asked upon hearing it, "What can you do?"

The person, unsure if his brain was frozen badly, waited a while before answering, "I don’t seem to know anything."

"Then you’re useless," Xiao Jing unhesitatingly stepped forward, bent down, and grabbed the hood on the person’s head.

Then he started dragging the person outside, "Now that you’re awake, I guess that makes us even."

"Wait," the person finally panicked but still asked, "Why did you save me?"

"I came across you," Xiao Jing said as he dragged the person outside, "I was also saved by someone like this, so I’m just paying it forward."

"Hold on, I do know something," the person quickly spoke, "I have over twenty years of experience in outdoor survival."

"That... doesn’t seem too useful," Xiao Jing thought for a moment, then asked another question, "Can you drive?"

"Yes, of course," the person answered hastily, "Driving, repairing cars, shooting, repairing guns... all these are no problem."

Xiao Jing let go of his hand, "Why didn’t you say so earlier!"

The person immediately fell silent and then muttered after a long pause, "Aren’t these basic survival skills?"

"It’s me asking you!" Xiao Jing shouted without hesitation, "Besides those... what else can you do?"

The person froze again, finally replying after a long while, "I’ve traveled through many places and am quite familiar with the terrain and mutant beasts."

Xiao Jing first snorted disdainfully, then was momentarily stunned—I lack practical experience!

He looked at Qu Jianlei, "Brother, how should we handle this person?"

Qu Jianlei understood what the little guy was thinking when he heard him ask about driving.

It seems the last time they were pursued by so many vehicles, it left quite a shadow in his heart.

However, he still responded unhurriedly, "You need to think it through, we don’t have much winter supplies."

Xiao Jing promptly stated, "I will keep an eye on him, as long as he doesn’t starve to death."

Qu Jianlei wasn’t worried about this skinny guy causing trouble because he was currently in excellent physical condition.

The only concern was that if they took this person in, the location of this comfortable winter spot would be exposed.

This was a place they had painstakingly and laboriously perfected over nearly two months.

But then again, if Mr. Sai’s threat is not resolved, there’s no way he could risk spending a second winter here.

So he became more relaxed, "Tell me, surviving in the wild for over twenty years... how did you almost starve to death?"

The person’s mind turned incredibly slowly, taking a long time to slowly utter four words, "Encountered betrayal."

"Ha," at this, Qu Jianlei was no longer interested in asking further. Loyalty and betrayal is an eternal topic in the Wasteland.

He didn’t mean to rub salt on the wound, just glanced at Xiao Jing, "Do what you want, just don’t regret it."

Xiao Jing didn’t speak, and the other person also remained silent, the room suddenly fell quiet.

After a while, Xiao Jing kicked the man, "Are you not going to say something?"

That person waited for a moment before responding in a low voice, "If words could solve everything, there wouldn’t be so much betrayal."

"I don’t care about that," Xiao Jing said defiantly, "I want to hear you say it."

The person was silent again for a while before speaking, "Alright then, I promise... as long as I’m alive, I won’t let you die."

"That’s really troublesome," Xiao Jing muttered and then looked at Qu Jianlei, "Bro, should we let him stay here or find another place?"

"Do what you want," Qu Jianlei truly chose not to intervene, wanting to see the young one’s judgment and ability to handle the matter.

Xiao Jing glanced around the room, slightly hesitant, "Such a good place for winter, it might get exposed."

"For survivors, where isn’t home?" Qu Jianlei replied indifferently, "Wouldn’t staying in the Settlement be even better?"

"The Settlement isn’t as comfortable as here," replied Xiao Jing without hesitation.

He had plenty of authority on this matter, "Even if there’s something good, you have to hide it, this place is truly more carefree."

After a pause, he asked again, "Should I... remove his blindfold?"

Qu Jianlei spread his hands, too lazy to say a word: I told you to handle it.

Xiao Jing held the Short Dagger in one hand and untied the blindfold, then the ropes on his hands.

Once the person saw the Light, he realized the one who saved him was actually a child, a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

Looking again, the other "Bro" was also just a teenager, he was stunned again.

Are today’s kids really this formidable?

However, the shock was only momentary, the next instant his gaze turned dazed.

He didn’t even untie the ropes on his feet, just started staring blankly.

Xiao Jing paid him no mind, walked out the door, "I’m going to fetch Water."

To drag this person back, the bucket was still lying there by the pool.

And so this little winter shelter welcomed another person.

This person reported his name as "Crack," after shaving his beard, he actually appeared to be in his thirties.

Crack was tall, over 1.8 meters, very docile — or more precisely, dull.

Most of the time, he sat at the entrance, the most secluded spot in the room, staring blankly.

Even during meals, unless Xiao Jing told him to eat, he wouldn’t move.

Of course, sometimes his eyes moved when he smelled food, but his body did not.

Qu Jianlei and Xiao Jing’s training routine, he noticed it too, but he absolutely wouldn’t watch closely.

Xiao Jing even tried not giving him Water for two days, yet he never asked for it.

The furless creature also assigned him some tasks, which he didn’t refuse, but often stopped after a bit of work.

Xiao Jing felt this guy wanted to slack off, scolded him several times, but... he just couldn’t be taught.

The furless creature even got angry enough to want to kick him out, but finally tolerated it: if you like to slack off, I’ll just yell at you frequently.

The most unbearable thing for Xiao Jing was Crack’s attitude towards bathing.

Initially, the furless creature didn’t even consider letting him bathe — such a luxurious life wasn’t for everyone.

But after a few days, he couldn’t stand it; the smell from him was too strong!

After consulting Qu Jianlei, Xiao Jing ordered him to clean himself thoroughly.

Remarkably, Crack actually showed resistance: having conditions doesn’t mean being wasteful!

Xiao Jing had to take out the Short Dagger again, forcing him to comply.

After changing the bathwater countless times, Crack finally washed himself clean.

He was a man full of a sense of misery, but his age shouldn’t be that old.

Although his diet was restricted, he still grew some flesh, still thin, but somewhat human-shaped.

Subsequently, it continued to be Xiao Jing interacting with Crack, while Qu Jianlei spoke to him no more than three times.

This was insisted on by the furless creature, who believed that the person was rescued by him and therefore had to be responsible.

Plus, he said something quite philosophical, "Maintaining distance is key to upholding authority."

Qu Jianlei thought this phrase came from his predecessors but... it was indeed insightful.

Thus, time unknowingly passed by quickly.

Eventually, Xiao Jing still couldn’t hold it in quite well.

He dared not bother Brother Black Heaven, so he harassed Crack, wanting to know what exactly happened to him.

Crack was very unwilling to talk about his past, but being pestered endlessly, he revealed a bit.

In simple terms, he seemed to belong to a small team, and the relationships among teammates were well-tested.

But due to a woman, and then getting entangled with Fallen, he... got schemed against.

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