"We appreciate your kindness, but we truly do have important matters to attend to. We won't impose any further," Qin Ke declined politely.
Commander Yang smiled, his gaze sweeping over both of them. "No need to be so tense. Sit down for some tea before you go. I actually enjoy chatting with young people. What's your take on the state of the world now, in this apocalypse?"
As he spoke, Commander Yang wrote a few lines on a piece of paper and passed it to one of his personal guards, who quickly left the room.
Chen Wan had noticed the exchange. She looked at Commander Yang and smiled. "What view could ordinary citizens like us possibly have? Just live day by day. The actual rescue work and long-term planning — that's all in the military's hands."
"Well said. I've already sent someone to bring your family members to Zone A. Stay here a while longer, contribute something to the base — and if you truly want to leave in the end, I won't stop you," Commander Yang said with a smile.
Chen Wan had already half-expected something like this when she was called over, but hearing it confirmed still made her fists clench involuntarily.
Commander Yang noticed but didn't seem bothered. He smiled and continued: "Young one, that temper of yours won't do you any favors. Villa No. 198 in Zone A is arranged for you — consider it an apology for the incident earlier. It's getting late. Go back, have a hot bath, and get some rest."
Major General Yao, hearing the Commander's instruction, gestured for Chen Wan and Qin Ke to follow.
Chen Wan's eyes were cold as they swept over Commander Yang. Regardless of who this man was, the feeling of being strangled — forced to act under someone else's thumb — sat deeply wrong with her, both physically and mentally.
Commander Yang just smiled pleasantly at her. Then, as if remembering something, he added, "I heard one of your family members is ill? Major General Yao, when you take them over, bring a military doctor along to check on their family. These two are rare talents — the military must treat gifted people with respect."
"Yes, sir! I'll arrange it immediately," Major General Yao replied respectfully.
Chen Wan gave a noncommittal smile, said nothing more, and left with Qin Ke.
Major General Yao noticed that Chen Wan and Qin Ke seemed completely indifferent to the villa they were about to move into, so she took the lead in conversation: "Soldiers' families are usually placed in Zone B — similar in layout to the residential apartment blocks from before the apocalypse, with units assigned household by household. Being placed in Zone A by the Commander is something most soldiers can only dream of."
Chen Wan just smiled without reply. At this point, the military had already moved Yan Xin and the others — there was nothing more to say. She'd have to take it one step at a time. Besides, being moved to Zone A was clearly not out of goodwill — it was for surveillance and to keep leverage over her and Qin Ke. Still, having a military doctor was genuinely useful. If Wan Ning could get an IV drip and treatment, she'd recover faster. Getting her body back in shape was the foundation of any future escape plan. With that in mind, Chen Wan looked toward Major General Yao.
"Major General, is it possible to have the doctor come soon? An IV drip would be ideal. My father-in-law and mother-in-law are also getting on in years — could the doctor take a look at them, too? Also, how is food distributed in the villa area? Could you explain that to me?" Since there was no running away yet, Chen Wan decided to first get a clear picture of how things worked.
Major General Yao's expression immediately brightened when Chen Wan started asking about Zone A — a sign that she was beginning to come around. "No problem — I'll arrange for a general practitioner right away."
She gave a few quick instructions to the guard beside her, who went off immediately to carry them out. In the apocalypse, with communications cut off across most networks, coordination relied on satellite phones — but those were in short supply, and for anything at a distance, messengers often had to go on foot.
After arranging the doctor, Major General Yao continued conversationally with Chen Wan and Qin Ke — after all, if they were starting to show interest, it meant they were beginning to soften: "Zone A has a dedicated cafeteria, three floors, serving three meals a day with no restrictions on portions. Everyone in Zone A gets to eat their fill. The living conditions are on par with before the apocalypse — hot water around the clock. Talented people like you who have caught the Commander's eye will undoubtedly go far. Your families, of course, will receive the best of care."
Chen Wan smiled and nodded. "Hopefully so."
Before long, Chen Wan and Qin Ke were escorted to Villa No. 198 in Zone A. Major General Yao led them through the courtyard and into the living room, where Jiang Yan Xin and the others were already waiting — though with soldiers standing nearby, everyone looked a little tense and uneasy.
Chen Wan gave Major General Yao a wry look. "Major General, what's this about? Do you need to station guards to watch over us? The base is like a fortress — even if we wanted to leave, we'd have to get past the main gate."
"We have no other intention — the soldiers were just here to escort your family. They'll all be leaving with me shortly," Major General Yao said with a smile. "The doctor will be arriving soon. I'll go report back to the Commander now and leave you to rest."
Chen Wan gave Major General Yao a nod of acknowledgment. Giving these people a warm look was out of the question. Once all the soldiers had filed out of the living room, everyone finally began to speak freely.
"Chen Wan, what's going on? Weren't we supposed to leave?" Ye Lan asked quickly.
"Mom, the military has their eye on us — we probably can't leave for a while. But now that we're in Zone A, let's not panic. The world is in chaos right now, and there will be opportunities to slip away eventually. Besides, they have a military doctor here — we'll have them give Wan Ning an IV and get her body sorted out. I'm here, so don't worry," Chen Wan said with a reassuring smile.
Ye Lan felt as though she finally had a backbone to lean on. She relaxed a little. Back when it was just her, her husband, and their younger daughter at the base, every day had been filled with anxiety. But now that Chen Wan was here, no matter where they ended up, she felt a calm settle in her heart.
"Alright. Mom will follow your lead — wherever you say we go, we go." Ye Lan smiled at Chen Wan, and the more she looked, the more she liked her. She glanced over at her own daughter, who was still holding the little one and barely acknowledging Chen Wan, and sighed, shaking her head. It was the apocalypse — where would you find an alpha like this again? She genuinely couldn't understand what her daughter was thinking.
Major General Yao quickly headed back to report to the Commander. Hearing the knock, the Commander had a fair guess it was her and called out simply: "Come in."
"How did it go? What did Chen Wan and Qin Ke say?" The Commander sipped his tea unhurriedly before asking.
"I've taken them to the villa as instructed and arranged for a doctor. Chen Wan even asked about the food situation in Zone A — I think she may be starting to come around," Major General Yao reported.
"It's only a matter of time before they come around. Zone A's conditions are no different from before the apocalypse. Give it a while — I'd be chasing them away before they'd want to leave." The Commander smiled, then continued: "But nothing in this world is free. Arrange for both of them to join the First Special Operations Squad tomorrow — on that most dangerous mission."
"With the First Special Ops Squad? After what happened between them and Xing Feng today, I'm worried that they might..." Major General Yao didn't dare finish the sentence.
The Commander waved it off with a smile. "Conflict is exactly what I want. The ones who can come back alive from the hardest situations are the ones most useful to the base — the ones worthy of being my sword. Otherwise, why should I let them live in Zone A? Go make the arrangements."
"Yes, sir." Major General Yao answered respectfully and left the room.
About ten minutes later, the base's military doctor arrived with a nurse carrying supplies. Chen Wan hurried over to meet them. "Doctor, my sister has some allergies and has been running a fever. Could you take a look? An IV drip would be ideal if possible."
"Of course. Let's get her back to the bedroom first — it's not comfortable lying out here," the doctor said. She was a female alpha in her mid-forties.
Hearing that, Yi Yi promptly went over to carry the patient — she had carried her on her back when they first arrived at the villa, too.
Jiang Wan Ning was drifting in and out of consciousness. She felt as though she were floating in someone's arms, weightless. She forced her eyelids open the tiniest sliver and caught a vague impression of a strikingly beautiful woman holding her before her lids grew too heavy, and she slipped back into sleep.
Ye Lan and Jiang Zhao Yuan exchanged a glance. Despite having only known Yi Yi briefly, they both found her to be a genuinely thoughtful and caring young person.
Everyone followed up to the second-floor bedroom. Chen Wan trailed behind Jiang Yan Xin and tugged lightly at her fingers. Jiang Yan Xin knew exactly who it was. She turned and shot Chen Wan a glare — but the little one in her arms, spotting her mama, stretched out her chubby little hands and called out in her soft baby voice: "Mama~."
"Hey there, little one — mama's here. Want to play after we check on your little auntie?" Chen Wan smiled warmly at the child.
"Yes! Mama, tell me a story," the baby said, rubbing her small, chubby hands together and looking at Chen Wan with bright, eager eyes — just before Jiang Yan Xin turned and walked away with her.
Chen Wan trailed after them, putting on a pitiful face and whining softly at Jiang Yan Xin. "Honey, wait for me~."
Jiang Yan Xin's ears flushed slightly at Chen Wan's wheedling. Her parents were right there — when had this person picked up such shameless habits? Flirting openly in front of everyone?
Catching her mother watching with a beaming smile, Jiang Yan Xin cleared her throat and fixed Chen Wan with a stern look. "Behave yourself. No flirting. The baby is right here."
"Okay, then we'll continue once the baby's asleep," Chen Wan said quietly with a smile.
The baby's big, round eyes went wide. Mama had just promised to tell her a story — how had that turned into being put to sleep? She made her displeasure very clear: "Mama! You just said you'd tell me a story! I don't want to sleep!"
Jiang Yan Xin laughed and scooped up the baby, planting a kiss on her little cheek. "That's right, our Yang Yang is absolutely right. Go play with your mama."
Not wanting Chen Wan to start flirting with her again, Jiang Yan Xin said this and promptly handed the baby off to Chen Wan. The little one kicked her short legs happily and buried her face into her mama's arms with a grin.
Chen Wan sighed and bounced her gently. What could she do — this was her little troublemaker. Story it was. She'd coax her to sleep first and deal with the rest later.
Meanwhile, the doctor finished a quick examination of Jiang Wan Ning and sent the nurse back to fetch the IV supplies. She also took Jiang Zhao Yuan's and Ye Lan's blood pressure, confirmed they were fine, and waited in the room. Fifteen minutes later, the nurse returned with the prepared drips.
"Is everything ready?" the doctor asked.
"All set — one is a fever reducer, the other is a nutritional supplement." The nurse stuck an adhesive hook to the headboard, hung both bags, and began setting up the IV for Jiang Wan Ning.
The doctor turned to the others. "This young lady's condition isn't actually serious — her body is just too weak to handle the fever. One IV today, and I'll send the nurse back tomorrow to check on her. With another drip tomorrow, she should recover. After that, it's about proper care — I can see she's somewhat malnourished, so make sure she eats well."
"Understood. Thank you so much, doctor," Ye Lan said gratefully.
"No need to thank me. The fact that you're in Zone A means you're valued by the base — it's what we're here for," the doctor said with a smile. Once the nurse had the needle in, she asked: "Will someone be able to change the bags and remove the needle later?"
"Yes," Chen Wan and Qin Ke answered in unison. They'd both had basic medical training — pulling a needle was nothing; they could even handle placing one.