Chapter 6

Chapter 6: So Hungry
After Lu Mie had wrapped Qiaoqiao up like a mummy, she finally escaped his clutches. Like a cat with its fur standing on end, she shoved him aside and darted back into her own room, slamming the door shut with a loud bang before burrowing tightly beneath her sun-warmed quilt.
Lu Mie’s focus shifted slightly; he had discovered that she wasn’t always so sluggish when she ran. Those two short little legs had been moving quite rapidly just moments ago.
Snug within her small blanket, Qiaoqiao shifted slightly, feeling constricted by bandages covering her entire body—a sensation deeply uncomfortable. Yet, her physical discomfort paled in comparison to the turmoil in her heart.
She had been completely seen and touched by her very own living food reserve.
Wuwuwu.
Qiaoqiao’s eyes turned red with aching sorrow.
Lu Mie had used his fire ability in the kitchen to prepare dinner. Realizing it was already dinnertime and Qiaoqiao hadn’t come trotting over as usual, he walked to her room to check on her.
The little zombie sat with reddened eyes, staring blankly at the wall.
Lu Mie: “…”
She heard the noise at the door, slowly turned her gaze, and then glared furiously at Lu Mie.
Lu Mie found her sudden anger baffling: “Why are you glaring at me? Did I do something wrong by bandaging your wound?”
Qiaoqiao nodded heavily.
Lu Mie laughed in exasperation: “So I should have let your wound fester, ooze pus, and kill you, is that it?”
Qiaoqiao pouted; she didn’t need him to bandage her—she could heal slowly, very slowly, all on her own.
Lu Mie walked over to her side, and she grew even more wary, wrapping herself tightly in the small blanket as she stared at him.
Lu Mie noticed that the bluish-white tips of her ears, exposed outside the blanket, had turned completely red. Suddenly, realization dawned on him, followed by disbelief and absurd amusement as he looked at her. “Little zombie, are you actually embarrassed?”
Hearing this, Qiaoqiao turned her head away, refusing to look at him.
Lu Mie reached out and forced her head back to face him, meeting her clear, dark eyes. He sneered, “Do you have any idea how ugly you are? Your body is nothing but wounds and rotting flesh. I haven’t even rejected you, yet you’re the one getting shy?”
Qiaoqiao, ruthlessly dissed, was on the verge of being driven to tears by him.
After being thoroughly seen and touched by her living food reserve, that very same living food reserve, Lu Mie, actually went on to belittle her as worthless.
As for Lu Mie, he felt it necessary to properly educate Qiaoqiao, to keep her from indulging in frivolous thoughts throughout the day, so he began chattering incessantly.
“Little zombie, don’t be too confident in yourself.” He stroked Qiaoqiao’s jet-black long hair, still slightly damp after washing, and said, “I won’t have the slightest interest in you.”
“You’re a zombie and I’m human; don’t develop feelings for me. There’s no future for us.”
“Besides, I’ll be leaving this place soon. Then we’ll go our separate ways, and you’ll have to live among your own kind again.”
“…”
Qiaoqiao, unable to bear it any longer, lunged forward trying to bite him, only to have her face firmly gripped by his hand, leaving her unable to struggle free.
He pinched her cheek, finding the texture acceptable, and said, “So, be good. I’ve cooked some fish. Do you want to eat?”
I don’t want to eat!!!
Qiaoqiao used both hands and feet to push and kick him, trying to drive him out.
Lu Mie couldn’t be bothered to engage with her any longer and stated coldly, “Then don’t eat. Starve.”
After he walked out, Qiaoqiao, who had initially only wanted to cry, was now thoroughly provoked into tears by him.
As she continued crying, Qiaoqiao suddenly caught the scent of meat drifting in from outside. Her sobs hitched, and then, traitorously, her tears began to trickle down from the corners of her mouth.
She was hungry again.
There was meat to eat.
Meat tastes so much better than blood.
Lu Mie brought out disposable bowls and chopsticks from the kitchen, only to find Qiaoqiao staring at the dishes on the table with red-rimmed eyes. As soon as she noticed him approaching, she quickly turned her head away, pretending she had no interest in eating at all.
Watching Qiaoqiao act so awkwardly, Lu Mie proactively handed her the bowl and chopsticks. Qiaoqiao seemed to let out a soft snort before deliberately adopting an air of reserve and picking up her chopsticks to begin eating.
He found it rather amusing.
Lu Mie had ventured quite far this time and reaped a rich harvest. The fish they were eating tonight was one he had specially caught from the river just for Qiaoqiao. Since the apocalypse began, animals too had undergone varying degrees of mutation; this sea bass, for instance, had grown several times its original size, enough to feed Qiaoqiao for days.
With few seasonings available, the sea bass was simply degamed with wine, boiled directly in water, and seasoned with salt—that was all it took. Yet Lu Mie controlled the heat so skillfully that the flesh turned out tender and delicious.
But judging by Qiaoqiao’s expression, she couldn’t tell good taste from bad. To her, it seemed any kind of meat was equally welcome.
Lu Mie felt he ought to guard against the day she might drain his blood—and eat his flesh along with it… No, wait. There would be no more occasions for her to drink his blood.
Sea bass has few bones, basically just one main spine, so Lu Mie didn’t have to worry about Qiaoqiao choking.
Of course, her getting stuck had nothing to do with him.
Lu Mie was lost in idle thoughts when he noticed Qiaoqiao pick up a piece of fish with her chopsticks and hold it to his lips, as if offering it to him to eat.
Her clear eyes were still rimmed with red, yet they seemed to shimmer with joyful laughter, radiant and bright, lending even her pale, decaying face a touch of luminosity.
Lu Mie was surprised by her gesture of sharing. “…For me?”
This little zombie was just fuming a moment ago, yet now she’s been placated by a single fish and is even offering it to him willingly.
The easily coaxed little zombie.
Qiaoqiao opened her mouth, gesturing for him to eat quickly.
Although it was just a fish tail with little meat, Lu Mie inexplicably felt deeply gratified, as if his little pet (zombie) had grown up, become sensible, and now knew to share with its master (?).
Qiaoqiao, unaware of his thoughts, assumed he disliked the fish tail, so she popped it into her own mouth before picking up another piece of snow-white fillet to feed him.
Lu Mie gently stroked her raven-black hair and said, “You eat it; I won’t.”
He wasn’t particularly fond of fish, and besides, this dish had been specially prepared for Qiaoqiao; he certainly wouldn’t compete with a little zombie for food.
Alright then.
Qiaoqiao sat back down.
After finishing dinner, Lu Mie cleaned up the kitchen scraps. Qiaoqiao followed closely behind him, mimicking his movements to help tidy up. Although she couldn’t be of much assistance, there wasn’t much waste to begin with, so they finished quickly.
Lu Mie washed her hands and face clean, then said, “Go to sleep.”
Qiaoqiao glanced at the basin of water, seemingly wondering if Lu Mie had brought back a large supply.
“What’s wrong? Do you want me to wash you again?” Lu Mie asked, unaware of her thoughts.
Qiaoqiao quickly shook her head; she absolutely disliked water, especially when Lu Mie helped her wash her hands and face.
Just as she was about to return to her room, someone knocked on the door that Lu Mie had repaired earlier that day.
The rhythmic knocking clearly indicated a single person standing outside.
Qiaoqiao remembered the man from earlier that day and began to tremble softly.
Except for Lu Mie, who had never harmed her, after what happened today, she feared all humans.
Lu Mie said, “Go back to your room first.”
Qiaoqiao was only too happy to oblige and quickly ran back to her room.
She ran quite fast, actually.
It seemed that from now on, he wouldn’t need to carry her whenever they went out together.
Thinking this, Lu Mie walked over to the door and reached out to open it.
Before and after the apocalypse, Lu Mie was never one to be trifled with. Having already killed a man today, he wouldn’t hesitate to do it again if the person knocking at his door had come to cause trouble.
He opened the door, only to find a young woman standing outside. She wore a fiery red dress that hugged her voluptuous figure, her features strikingly seductive. Yet her face bore a sickly yellowish tint, a clear sign she hadn’t eaten properly in quite some time.
Upon seeing Lu Mie open the door, the woman’s lips curved into a smile, her bewitching eyes casting an irresistible allure. “Handsome guy, hello there…”
“What do you want?” Lu Mie asked coldly.
The woman hadn’t expected Lu Mie to be so blunt. She adjusted her smile and continued, “Excuse me, have you seen my… brother?”
As she spoke, she described the appearance of the man she called her brother to Lu Mie.
Lu Mie realized immediately that she was talking about the man who had broken into his home earlier that day and hurt Qiaoqiao.
“Didn’t see anything,” he stated bluntly before reaching out to shut the door.
The woman was quick and agile, blocking the gap in the door as she looked at Lu Mie with tears welling in her eyes. “Did you really not see him? He hasn’t come back all day. Big brother, if something dangerous happened to my brother, what should I do?”
What does that have to do with me?
As she squeezed into the doorway, she spotted the food piled up in the living room, her eyes lighting up slightly.
“I haven’t eaten anything all day, big brother. Could you possibly…”
Lu Mie said, “Move aside.”
Except for Qiaoqiao, he harbored no excess pity. He had seen countless women like her in his past life. That man was most likely not her brother at all, but merely someone she depended on. With the man still absent after a full day, the woman naturally suspected something had gone wrong. Panic set in as she worried about her future and sought another way out.
Tears spilled from the corners of her eyes. She reached out with slender fingers to gently wipe them away. “Big brother, please take pity on me… I will repay you. However you wish…”
Her voice dripped with ambiguity, heavy with unspoken implication.
Lu Mie stood immovable, his brows slightly furrowed.
The woman extended her fair hand, as if intending to touch him, leaning forward slightly to reveal her graceful figure.
Finally, Lu Mie moved.
Before the woman could even rejoice, Lu Mie grabbed her arm and flung her out through the crack in the door.
She fell to the ground, staring at the firmly shut door in stunned disbelief.
How could a man be so utterly lacking in grace!
The woman bit her vividly red lips, then departed with reluctant steps.
Inside, once Qiaoqiao heard the sounds fade away, she timidly pushed open the door and stepped out.
Lu Mie was about to wash his hands when he saw her emerge and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Zombies possess an exceptionally keen sense of smell. A cloyingly sweet fragrance drifted around Qiaoqiao’s nostrils; she sniffed hard, then moved closer to Lu Mie, realizing the scent emanated from him, strongest on his hands.
Finding this aroma intriguing, Qiaoqiao held Lu Mie’s hand and curiously sniffed it again and again.
The sweetness was somewhat overpowering, and with a zombie’s heightened olfactory senses, Qiaoqiao couldn’t help but sneeze several times in succession.
She realized the taste made her uncomfortable, so she dropped Lu Mie’s hand and looked at him with disdain.
That look was exactly the same as the one Lu Mie had given her before, when he’d dissed her and made it clear he wanted nothing to do with her.
Lu Mie: “…” She sure holds a grudge.