Three days had passed since they repelled Lei Bao's all-out assault.
The morning sun was exceptionally bright, as if determined to banish all the gloom from the wasteland.
Chen Shouzhou woke up earlier than the chickens, not out of vigilance, but out of sheer excitement. He practically scrambled to the edge of the farmland on the east side of the warehouse, the plot that held all their hopes. Then, like a devout believer, he carefully crouched down.
Before him, in the moist soil soaked with their sweat, a tender green seedling was shakily breaking through the earth. It sported two tiny cotyledons, still fragrant with the smell of soil, stretching its body in the morning light. The dewdrops on its leaves were crystal clear, reflecting the sun's rays.
In this desolate wasteland of gray, black, and brown, that single speck of green was like a drop of life's pigment accidentally spilled by the creator, instantly illuminating the entire world.
"It's alive! It's alive! It's really alive!" Chen Shouzhou was so excited he almost kowtowed to the tiny seedling right then and there. He reached out with his rough fingers, wanting to touch the tender leaf, but stopped mid-air, afraid that even his breath might break its fragile stem. He turned his head and grinned foolishly at Su Wan'er and Lin Mo, who had just walked over. His voice trembled with an emotion he himself didn't even notice. "See that? We actually grew something! We'll have fresh vegetables every day, no more constipation! Our 'Safe House Farmstead' officially opens for business today!"
Seeing his goofy excitement, Su Wan'er, whose eyes were usually cool and distant, couldn't help but let a gentle smile grace her lips. She picked up her notepad and wrote: "You're more excited than the seedlings."
"Of course I am!" Chen Shouzhou said righteously, standing up with his hands on his hips like a king surveying his domain. "This isn't just any seedling. This is hope! This is our safe house's 'first newborn.' As its 'father,' how could I not be excited? When it grows up, I'm definitely throwing a one-month celebration for it!"
Lin Mo was much calmer, more like a rigorous scientist. He took out his notepad, crouched down to carefully observe the seedling's condition, and recorded data such as soil moisture and light intensity. He mumbled to himself, "Growth rate is 15% faster than expected. The system's energy nourishment is significant. Leaves are full, no signs of pests or diseases. It seems we can appropriately reduce the watering frequency to conserve precious water resources. We must optimize the subsequent planting plan."
Just as they were all basking in the joy of this hard-won harvest, Lin Mo suddenly looked up, his expression serious, breaking the warm atmosphere.
"Chen-ge," he said, pushing up his glasses, his tone grave, "perhaps we should talk. About Lei Bao, do you know why he's been relentlessly targeting us?"
Chen Shouzhou's smile faded slightly. He knew that some things couldn't be hidden forever.
Lin Mo didn't wait for his answer. He took out a map, on which he had marked the locations of their several encounters with the Viper Gang and their route back from the black market with a red pen.
"Look," he said, pointing to several spots on the map like a calm analyst. "All our conflicts with them have occurred near this line. Based on my analysis over the past two days, and some rumors I heard at the black market, they are tracking a high-value target. And we… just happened to appear several times in the areas where that target might be. It's too much of a coincidence."
Chen Shouzhou shrugged, pretending to be relaxed. "Maybe I'm just unlucky? A natural-born trouble magnet. I probably didn't check the almanac before going out and always step in dog crap."
He still didn't want to reveal the truth about the "test subjects" and "Sky-Curtain Biotech" to the team yet. The secrets behind those words were too heavy and might crush this newly formed home.
Just then, Su Wan'er, who had been silently organizing the spoils from last night's battle, suddenly walked over. In her hand was a still-functional walkie-talkie she had taken from a dead thug's body. She seemed to have found something on it, her face a mixture of confusion and gravity.
She played a fragment of a garbled transmission from the walkie-talkie, which she had managed to clean up enough to be barely audible.
A hoarse voice crackled through: "...target... last seen... in... Area X07... repeat... Area X07... Bao-ge's orders, block all exits, find it at all costs!"
"X07?" Hearing the code, Lin Mo immediately found the corresponding area on the map. It was the very path they had taken back from the black market. "Is this an area code? Or a code name for a target?"
Su Wan'er's face grew even paler. She took a deep breath, picked up her notepad, and quickly wrote a line, showing it to the others. Her handwriting was so forceful it almost tore through the paper.
"The number on Bai Bai's dog tag was '07'."
The air instantly froze. None of them were fools. X07 and 07—this coincidence could no longer be explained away as "bad luck."
"They… they might know part of the Test Subject Project, or even… their target was the 'test subject' from the very beginning!" Su Wan'er wrote again, her eyes filled with shock and worry.
Lin Mo's expression became unprecedentedly serious. He nodded heavily. "We must find out what they're looking for and what they plan to do. If their target really is a test subject, then things are going to get complicated. The consequences of a test subject going out of control… I know better than anyone."
Chen Shouzhou looked at their grave faces and sighed inwardly. It seemed the secret was out. He was just about to confess everything when Xiao Hei at the entrance suddenly started growling at something outside, interrupting their discussion.
The three of them were immediately on alert.
Chen Shouzhou made a gesture for them to stay put, while he quietly moved to the door and peered through a crack.
There was no one outside, but a cloth-wrapped bundle had been left in the open area in front of the warehouse.
"Another gift? This guy is really persistent," Chen Shouzhou muttered, but this time he didn't lower his guard.
He carefully opened the door, and after confirming there was no ambush, he walked over and poked the bundle open with a stick.
Inside was a pristine bottle of medical-grade alcohol and a note wrapped in waterproof oilcloth.
The handwriting on the note was flamboyant and full of arrogance.
"I know what you need, and I know you have what I need. We still have a chance to cooperate. Tomorrow at noon, same old place. —Lei Bao"
"Heh," Chen Shouzhou sneered, looking at the note. "So this is his new tactic after failing to win by force? A carrot and a stick. It seems he wants to negotiate, not just rob us."
"Don't forget, the Viper Gang never makes a losing deal," Lin Mo reminded him, frowning. "This is very likely a trap. What he wants is probably more than just alcohol. It's more likely… the intelligence we have, or rather, us."
Chen Shouzhou, of course, understood this. Lei Bao, that formidable figure, had first launched a full-scale assault, then sent a gift, and now wanted to negotiate. It was a chain of events, and his true goal was likely the notebook from Da Liu that he hadn't had time to study carefully, and… everything related to the "test subject."
Late at night, all was quiet.
Chen Shouzhou sat alone on the newly built watchtower. The evening breeze brought a chill. He wasn't looking at the stars, but repeatedly rubbing the cold metal dog tag in his pocket, a sense of unease he had never felt before rising in his heart.
From a vagrant who only wanted to survive, to this "hot commodity" targeted by several factions, everything had happened too fast. He felt as if he had been pushed by an invisible hand into a huge, bottomless vortex. He was no longer just fighting for survival, but was forced into a conspiracy he knew nothing about.
"Did I… really get involved in something I shouldn't have touched?" he murmured to himself. This feeling of having no control over his own destiny brought a long-lost sense of fear.
A soft footstep came from behind. He didn't need to turn around to know who it was.
Su Wan'er appeared silently beside him. She didn't speak, just gently patted his shoulder and handed him a note and a cup of warm water.
Under the dim moonlight, the handwriting on the note was clear and gentle.
"No matter what you decide, we will support you. You are not fighting alone."
Chen Shouzhou stared at the words, stunned for a moment. He turned his head and looked into Su Wan'er's eyes, which were still clear and bright in the darkness. The unease and confusion in his heart seemed to be instantly dispelled by this silent warmth.
He smiled. The cynical playfulness of the daytime was gone, replaced by a warmth and firmness.
"Thank you, Dr. Su."