Candlelit dinner, a romantic night.
Unfortunately, there were three third wheels sitting beside them. What’s even more unfortunate is that it’s currently daytime, not nighttime.
Yue Zheng, accompanied by his younger brother, and two sons, gave off the appearance of a sightseeing trip to the North District, showing no signs of romantic intentions. Perhaps he was a bit emotionally slow… No, wait, it’s the apocalypse after all, so it’s understandable that he prioritizes his children’s thoughts.
Qian Yu imagined the scenario and came up with a satisfactory result. With a gentle and warm smile, she led the group into the North District for a sightseeing tour. In her imagination, she concluded that Xu Song must be Yue Zheng’s cousin. Otherwise, if she knew that these two were a couple, even if she had the confidence to snatch someone’s love interest, she wouldn’t show a good expression to the trio.
The architectural style inside the North District was indeed different from the outside. Unlike the mass-produced buildings outside, the buildings here were much more aesthetically pleasing.
European, Chinese, a mix of various styles, and all sorts of buildings were present. Apart from the buildings housing the stationed military forces, most of the structures were small detached houses.
Unlike the shelters in the south, there was vegetation growing between the buildings in the North District.
Qian Yu, leading the group, explained, “The plants in the North District are all cultivated uniformly. They are all edible and non-aggressive crops. These are the crops that our research institute has confirmed as safe.
“Although most plants have mutated now, with some even becoming aggressive, the edible crops have also increased their yield significantly, like those cucumbers over there…”
Qian Yu specialized in the study of botany, which was advantageous in today’s mutated society. She had a high level of education, a pleasant appearance, and decent social skills, granting her unexpectedly high privileges within the shelter.
Especially when it came to the finished products verified by the botanical research institute, she interacted with all of them.
Xu Song had no intention of tightly guarding against her at the moment, mainly because he knew Yue Zheng wasn’t that type of person. So, with a curious and modest attitude, Xu Song allowed Qian Yu to half-show off and half-please him, explaining every crop they passed by.
This was much more visually informative compared to the previous encounters at the shops outside, where they only saw the fruit of the plants.
Yue Zheng didn’t interrupt their conversation, instead, he listened attentively with his enhanced hearing while holding his twin sons’ hands.
Seeing that her future brother-in-law, who was quiet before, became enthusiastic, Qian Yu decided to change her mind temporarily and led the group toward the greenhouse base.
“There are many crops that weren’t planted outside due to their average decorative effect. Let’s go and have a look at the greenhouse.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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The group proceeded towards the greenhouse, not far ahead, concealed behind harmless shrubbery, was the plastic-covered structure.
Mo Tiancheng and Mo Tianyou each held one of Yue Zheng’s hands and suddenly shook them: “Daddy, daddy, hug, hug.”
This was a signal they had agreed upon before entering the northern district, and the fact that both children sent the message simultaneously indicated that they had found their target!
Yue Zheng bent down, one hand on each child, effortlessly lifting them up without any pressure.
Qian Yu heard the commotion and looked at the three of them in surprise. “Oh, Yue Zheng, can you carry both children?”
“No problem, they’re not heavy.” With Yue Zheng’s physical fitness, even before the apocalypse, he could easily carry a small boy like Xu Song on his back and hike for half a day without breaking a sweat.
“Sister Qian, are there only greenhouses here? Are the crops in those greenhouses different?” Xu Song quickly diverted Qian Yu’s attention.
Behind them, while the twins were still in Yue Zheng’s arms, they said, “Over there, getting closer!”
“He’s coming, very soon.”
Very soon? Yue Zheng’s eyes sharpened as he glanced in the direction the twins were pointing, raising an eyebrow. “A car?”
There were quite a few people in the northern district at this time, many of them family members of administrators and laboratory personnel. There were quite a few people walking on the streets. But the “plant man” had suffered such serious injuries just yesterday, so he shouldn’t be able to move on his own today. The fact that he was moving quickly could only mean one thing, he was in a car!
Yue Zheng’s judgment was correct. Listening to the directions given by the twins from time to time, combined with Yue Zheng’s excellent vision, he personally saw a car parked outside a small building at the two intersections, and some people carrying something inside.
When they came, they came from a different direction, so they would try to see if Qian Yu could take them back that way.
The greenhouse was quite large, with a total of six greenhouses closely connected. Inside, there were fruits, vegetables, and some rice and corn.
Xu Song was very interested in these crops that were said to have mutated. They hadn’t tasted them all in the past few days, but it seemed that they were quite good, more natural than the artificially ripened and genetically modified foods.
“…Our research institute is currently trying to find ways to experiment and see if we can increase production. At present, our S City only has these greenhouses, and we are planning to learn from B City and build multi-story ones.”
The size of the vegetables and fruits now was already large enough, and they wanted to increase production and improve them? What would these further improved crops look like?
“Do you have contact with B City?” Xu Song asked curiously.
“Of course, we exchange information with B City on the availability of crops. Otherwise, if we rely solely on ourselves, how could we keep up with the research?” Qian Yu smiled somewhat helplessly. Before the mutation, B City was hosting several major conferences, and all kinds of top experts and scholars had gathered there.
Not only archaeologists and historians, but also renowned scholars and promising researchers from other fields were mostly in B City. If it wasn’t for the sudden change and people hadn’t died in such an unpredictable manner, those who knew about the situation would have thought that the government had received some advance information about the impending apocalypse, so they had gathered those people there ahead of time.
Because of this situation, young experts like Qian Yu held important positions in S City. Otherwise, if those old scholars hadn’t left, she would at best be an assistant.
After circling around several greenhouses, this area was under the direct jurisdiction of the Plant Research Institute, so their journey went smoothly.
After leaving the greenhouse, under the coaxing of the two children, Qian Yu indeed chose another path, the children expressed that they wanted to see different houses.
Qian Yu felt that today was a very progressive day. Although Yue Zheng still maintained his polite and aloof demeanor, she got along well with her younger brother-in-law. The twin brothers also gave her face and talked to her affectionately—the children insisted on taking a different route.
It’s good to make progress! Today is about spending time with the whole family, and next time, I’ll make plans to meet Yue Zheng alone…
Thinking about it, Qian Yu asked Xu Song for confirmation: “I noticed that the younger brothers seem a bit introverted. Do they only play with you guys and not like interacting with outsiders?”
Xu Song nodded. “There have been too many incidents on the way, and it scared them.”
“When they go to sleep at night, do they only want their dad or is it okay if you accompany them?”
Xu Song found it a bit strange but still replied, “Either of us can accompany them.” The two kids can sleep together without necessarily needing an adult to be with them.
Qian Yu finally felt relieved. Alright, worst-case scenario, they would live in the same house together, and she and her future husband would share a room while Xu Song takes care of the two kids at night!
Not knowing what Professor Qian was imagining, Xu Song took a half-step back, following the guidance of Yue Zheng and the small tree in his arms. He deliberately took note of a villa they had just passed by on the roadside.
From the outside, the villas here didn’t differ much from the others. Qian Yu also mentioned that this area was a residential district.
Although the villas were standalone, each house accommodated more than one household.
“Let’s go to the restaurant ahead for lunch and then visit my house,” Qian Yu pointed to a building in the distance. It was a European-style structure with a red roof, brown walls, and intervals between each floor made of beige bricks, giving it a cozy appearance.
The exterior was warm, and the interior decoration was equally inviting. The people living here were originally residents of S City, and most of those living in the northern district were influential and well-off families. At the very least, they were middle-class white-collar workers. As a result, the buildings here had an air of elegance and style.
If the people living in cramped spaces outside saw this, their eyes might pop out in disbelief.
The restaurant they entered was a Western-style one. Xu Song and Yue Zheng each taught one of the children how to use a knife and fork. The restaurant was quiet, with a piano solo playing nearby, soon followed by a violin. Most people in the restaurant were dressed in suits and polished shoes, making Xu Song and Yue Zheng’s casual attire stand out. Fortunately, it was the apocalypse, so the restaurant didn’t enforce a dress code.
“Yue Zheng, come to my house later. It would be best for the children to take a nap after lunch,” Qian Yu wiped her lips with a napkin, smiling gracefully.
“No need, it’s too much trouble for you. They don’t stay still when they sleep.” If they hadn’t found the place yet, they would probably have to continue exploring the northern district with Qian Yu in the afternoon.
They hadn’t expected that the research institute, in order to remain inconspicuous, had chosen a location in the residential district and set up a new laboratory. It was an unexpected surprise.
Qian Yu smiled. “Why would it be troublesome? What’s our relationship? I live on the third floor, and there are several vacant rooms there. The people living in that villa are all my colleagues from the research institute, and the remaining rooms… are also intended to be allocated to our family members.”
Qian Yu was single, and if she were to get married, at least one more room would be assigned to them. By then, she could have Xu Song stay with the kids.
Yue Zheng was originally a criminal investigator, skilled in combat and knowledgeable about firearms, making it easy for him to find work in the shelter.
“By the way, what was your major in college?” Qian Yu turned to Xu Song and asked. If Xu Song’s major wasn’t practical enough, she would suggest he switch to another field and learn “useful” knowledge on his own. She didn’t want herself and Yue Zheng to support him for nothing.
Xu Song looked helplessly at Yue Zheng, brother, I can’t handle this anymore…
As seen through the eyes of Qian Yu, everything is just going peachy. Xu Song is at the end of his tether, lmao! Thanks for the update 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥👀 🤣❤️🤣❤️🌳
Already working on your daily life with “her future husband”. Madam, he’s just an acquaintance and you never dated !
Not Qian yu already planning ahead 😂😂. Thanks for the chapter.
Thank you for the chapter!♥️❤️♥️♥️♥️❤️
Her imaginations are too wild to bear.