Chapter 1350: Zhang Shi Moves into Territory Three

Using her body to shield Ye Yiyi, the dentist Zhang Shi recognized those familiar teeth, steadied her emotions, and greeted him, "Brother Duan's teeth are still as white and beautiful as when we last met. Are you here to see Sister Qing?"

The waist-broken wolf, who had been grinning happily, closed his mouth at Zhang Shi's question and stared at her solemnly.

This brain-evolved beast, as tall as she was, was no longer grinning ferociously with bared teeth, and its magnetic field had become less gentle. Zhang Shi grew tense too. Not knowing what to do, she simply stood still, avoided its eyes, and tried hard to keep her emotions calm.

This was no ordinary evolved wolf, not even an ordinary brain-evolved wolf—this was her patient's family member. Tomorrow she would start her new post, and she had to adapt as quickly as possible to her role as an animal dentist…

The waist-broken wolf stared solemnly at Zhang Shi for a few seconds, glanced at the little head peeking out behind her, then backed out of the cave, closed the door, and headed for Territory Three.

Only after the evolved wolf had walked out of her magnetic-field sensing range did Zhang Shi finally relax. She turned and, in a gentle tone, soothed the child behind her, "Yiyi, that evolved wolf just now is called Duan Yao. He's your Auntie Qing's friend; he won't hurt us. Does Yiyi still want to go out and look at the stars?"

Perhaps because she had never seen an evolved beast hurt anyone, little Ye Yiyi was not frightened by the waist-broken wolf. Hearing that she could go out, longing immediately showed in her eyes.

This little girl, born in the outer city of the safe zone, raised from childhood in a narrow windowless room, then taken by Zhang Shi to a hidden valley where she had stayed inside a wooden cabin ever since, stepped out of this cave for the first time and was captivated by the boundless starry sky and the glittering dew on the grass blades, staring for over an hour.

Seeing her focus on something for the first time, Zhang Shi felt that going out to watch the stars was good for her condition, so for the past few nights she had wrapped her in a blanket every evening, carried her outside the cave to watch the starry sky for a while, and brought her back to the tent to sleep once she grew drowsy.

Although winter had already set in, while Ye Yiyi watched the stars, various animals large and small still appeared here, their eyes gleaming in the night, yet not a single one came to attack them. This put Zhang Shi greatly at ease.

Tonight, Zhang Shi decided to let Ye Yiyi stay up a little longer watching the stars. If the child slept deeply during the move, she could skip the sleeping pills; taking too many sleeping pills also causes chronic damage to the body.

At four in the morning, Xia Qing arrived at the hidden valley right on time to pick them up. Zhang Shi had already packed all their luggage. Xia Qing first sent the luggage up above the valley, then jumped down, used binding straps to secure Zhang Shi—who was holding Ye Yiyi—onto her back, and easily climbed out of the valley.

Then, without putting Zhang Shi and her daughter down, Xia Qing softly greeted the Feather-Plucking family not far away, and, carrying the two of them on her back and holding all their belongings, swiftly and steadily passed through the North Area One gate and the north gate of Territory Three in succession, entering her territory.

The instant she passed through the gate, Zhang Shi's heart felt as if someone had clenched it in their fist. Had she not been on Xia Qing's back, she would very likely have stepped back out on instinct.

Outside the wall lay the vast evolved forest; inside, the human living area. This wall both protected and constrained humanity. Zhang Shi, a human being hunted madly by her own kind, stepped through this wall and could not help but feel fear.

Xia Qing, whose magnetic field was gentle and calm, walked with quick yet steady steps through the North-Waste grass wall, followed the somewhat uneven stone steps past her orchard, Greenhouse One, and Greenhouse Two, crossed the stone slab bridge, and passed through greenhouse after greenhouse. When the human dwellings appeared before Zhang Shi—who was being carried piggyback—her fear was replaced by a complicated swirl of emotions.

"Sister Qing, it's steadier here—let me walk on my own?"

"No need, the path is rough, we'll be there in a bit. If you walk yourself you'll leave footprints." Xia Qing, freshly revived after a medicinal bath, declared that carrying this hundred-plus jin on her back was nothing to her at all—she could stride like flying even with another thousand jin. "Sister Shi's family's remains are buried in that abandoned village to the west. Once we're home, I'll tell you the exact spot."

"Okay."

Carried back to the village by Xia Qing, Zhang Shi gazed quietly at the ruins in the morning mist, her eyes also misting over. When her magnetic field sensed two large beasts, the mist in Zhang Shi's eyes cleared.

"Boss, Wolf Lao Er, I've brought Sister Shi and Yiyi back."

The lively, cheerful tone Xia Qing used when greeting the two animals was one Zhang Shi had never heard before, and she was stunned. How could a sheep have such a fierce, hunter-like magnetic field? She could not help wanting to turn her head for a look.

Sheep Boss, who had also taken a medicinal bath and was fully revived and spoiling for a fight, squinted at Xia Qing and pawed the ground with his hooves, wanting to spar with her.

"Boss, don't rush. Once I've settled Sister Shi in, we'll spar. Wolf Lao Er is amazing—I'll boil you some eggs later."

With her magnetic field cheerful, Xia Qing carried her forward. Zhang Shi saw a strong ram with a coat of pure white and a she-wolf dog carrying a small basket in her mouth.

The instant their eyes met, the she-wolf dog's magnetic field instantly turned sharp and aggressively hostile. The sheep beside her showed little change, though she also narrowed her eyes as if not very pleased.

Holding the child, Zhang Shi nodded to them, "Boss, Wolf Lao Er, morning."

Now even the sheep's magnetic field turned sharp. Zhang Shi shut her mouth.

Xia Qing crossed patch after patch of ruins overgrown with waist-high wild grass, arrived at an open area, entered the laboratory, set down the luggage, and undid the binding straps before finally letting Zhang Shi, who was holding the child, set her feet on the ground.

Zhang Shi thanked her, changed into the straw sandals Xia Qing had prepared for her, and looked around the laboratory.

Xia Qing briefly explained the purpose of each laboratory to Zhang Shi, then stopped outside the scanning room, opened the lead door, and showed her the two machines inside. "Both of these CT machines belong to the waist-broken wolf. The CBCT machine is brand-new—Sister Shi can use it too. The CBCT was procured through secret channels and smuggled in; I only moved it in yesterday."

Xia Qing was a farming lord; publicly procuring a dental X-ray machine would be far too conspicuous and would immediately let the people hunting for Zhang Shi lock onto her location, so it had to be a secret purchase.

Zhang Shi nodded.

"The dental chair was procured together with it and has already been put in the underground workroom. Sister Shi, come with me."

Xia Qing picked up the luggage, opened the cabinet door in the decontamination changing room where clothes were kept, pushed aside a few white coats to open the hidden door leading to the basement, and led Zhang Shi and her daughter down.

Opening the first door of the basement revealed a workroom with a dental chair and another workroom with a refrigerator. Only by passing through the workroom could one enter the living quarters for Zhang Shi and Ye Yiyi, which contained only two folding beds.

Xia Qing explained, "Time was short; I haven't had a chance to make beds and furniture yet. Once the Deadly Snow period is past, I'll start making them."

According to the weather forecast, Deadly Snow would fall in four days. Xia Qing had to insulate the crops in her territory, reinforce the walls, arrange disaster-prevention work for Center Nine and Mountain Fifty, and squeeze in time to plaster the walls of the newly built kitchen and bathroom—she simply had no time to make furniture.

"I'm not put out. This is already wonderful. Yiyi needs a transition; sleeping in a tent for now will actually make her feel safer. We can make the beds and furniture ourselves." Zhang Shi gently laid rosy-cheeked Ye Yiyi on the simple bed covered with a cotton pad, pulled off the thick blanket, and covered her with only a thin quilt.

These two basement rooms were more spacious than she had imagined, and were connected to the laboratory's ventilation system. The interior was warm and quiet, and the living quarters were even a little larger than the workroom. Living here felt stifling at all; for Zhang Shi and Ye Yiyi, it was a wonderful shelter.