The man said helplessly, "Don't be so impulsive next time."
This little girl had been testing their identities from beginning to end. She had probably already guessed that they were both soldiers.
But to be sure, she deliberately set up a situation to confirm it.
It had to be said, although this girl seemed bold and reckless, she was also careful and meticulous.
If she could be recruited into his ranks, she might be a good prospect.
The man snapped back to reality, only then realizing what he had been thinking about.
It was the apocalypse now.
This girl was clearly no pushover, and how could she obediently join the army and be subject to orders.
"I admire you. You are brave and resourceful. If it weren't for the current special circumstances, I might have recruited you to join my team."
Xu An didn't rush to refute, but instead said something unrelated.
"If it weren't for the special circumstances, I wouldn't have met you at all."
Everyone present, whether it was the man, Zhou Zhe, or Xu An,
fell silent.
Yes, if it weren't for the apocalypse, Xu An might have been a comfortable second-generation rich kid at home.
How could she have become what the other party called "brave and resourceful."
The man did not delay for long and said, "I promise you, as long as your questions do not involve military secrets, I will tell you the truth."
Xu An inwardly scoffed, why would she ask those things? This man really thought highly of her.
"First question, did you clear the zombies in this supermarket?"
The man shook his head, "No."
Upon hearing this, Xu An did not press further and continued.
"Second question... Where is the landing point of the lighthouse?!"
Hearing this, the man's eyes immediately became serious, and his body instantly tensed up, like a hunter waiting to pounce, ready to strike.
"How do you know about the lighthouse?"
"It's my turn to ask you questions, not for you to interrogate me! I know there are quotas for ordinary people to access the lighthouse, and this question does not fall within the scope of what you call military secrets. Tell me!"
Xu An also adopted a forceful stance, brushing off all of the man's questions.
The man did not speak, standing in the shadows, staring silently at Xu An.
Time ticked by.
Zhou Zhe could feel his captain's body cooling down due to excessive blood loss.
Although he was sweating profusely with anxiety, he also knew that dissuading her was useless. He had even considered snatching it from her directly.
However, after seeing the brief exchange between this woman and their captain, Zhou Zhe knew at a glance that the woman in front of him was definitely not one of those fakes who struck a few poses in a gym and claimed to know martial arts.
Every move of this woman was a killing blow.
Even he himself might not be able to defeat this woman, let alone the fact that they were both seriously injured.
He looked pleadingly at the man and whispered, "Captain..."
As a secret unit of the central government, Zhou Zhe naturally knew about the existence of the lighthouse.
He was surprised why Xu An knew so much.
But he also knew that such a big matter could not be kept secret forever.
Currently, the lighthouse was transferring some high-ranking officials and political figures.
Although quotas were indeed left for the public, the method of notification was extremely stringent.
Notifications were transmitted through Morse code composed of electromagnetic waves from the radio broadcast.
It was easy to imagine that those who could decipher the content were no ordinary individuals.
The country was indirectly screening genes.
Seeing the man remain silent, Zhou Zhe turned to look at Xu An.
"Can you give me the tourniquet first? My captain... his body temperature is already starting to drop!"
Xu An remained unmoved, "I said, three questions in exchange for what you want."
"There's no such thing as a free lunch in business."
Zhou Zhe: "You..."
"Who are you? Why do you know about the lighthouse?" Now it was the man's turn to ask.
Xu An let out a cold laugh.
"Our transaction does not include me answering your questions."
Xu An did not have to wait long.
The man's voice was already a little weak, and he said softly, "The nearest landing point is on the top floor of Xinmao Commercial Building in City B, and the deadline is by the end of the year."
Xu An was shocked by this. By the end of the year? Wouldn't that mean the lighthouse would ascend before the zombie tide ended?
It was already early December, and they only had one month left!
After thinking about it, Xu An felt a mix of relief and lingering fear. If she hadn't had a whim to come out today, they might have really missed their chance.
The man asked, "There's one last question."
Xu An casually asked, "What's your name?"
The man was stunned, seemingly not expecting Xu An to ask such a strange question. He burst out laughing, "Are you out of questions? Are you asking this to fill a slot?"
"Not exactly, but you don't have to answer if you don't want to."
She had originally asked three questions as a cover. Now that she had gotten the answers she wanted, she naturally didn't care if he answered or not.
She just felt that this man had strong perseverance. Although she already knew that soldiers were not afraid of hardship or fatigue.
But to see him insert a dagger into his own arm without a groan was something.
Xu An also inexplicably felt a sense of reverence.
She took off her backpack, rummaged through the medical equipment she had found earlier, and while the two of them were not paying attention, she took out some spare medicine and bandages from her spatial storage.
Then she threw a black plastic bag to the man.
The bag was well-equipped, containing not only a tourniquet but also painkillers and anti-inflammatory injections.
After all, for such a deep wound, if it became infected, the man would surely die.
Zhou Zhe hurriedly took the plastic bag, opened it, and found not only complete medicine but also four bottles of mineral water, bread, and sausage.
Without any further hesitation about their previous conflict, he repeatedly thanked her and turned to bandage the man's wound.
The man's deep voice sounded again, "Thank you... Also, my name is Qin Chuan."
Xu An didn't hear very clearly and asked, "What did you say?"
"Whether the third question was a filler or not, the answer is Qin Chuan."
Xu An was thinking about the lighthouse and didn't pay attention to the probing gaze that Qin Chuan cast at her.
"Oh, I see. Then take good care of your wound, I'm leaving now."
"Then what's your name?"
Xu An paused her steps, then continued walking forward without even thinking.
"We won't meet again anyway, so there's no need to know my name."
With that, she didn't hesitate at all and darted into another fire escape.
The dumb but cute husky, who had been coaxed by Zhou Zhe to follow, disappeared into his line of sight along with the woman.
Qin Chuan looked at the woman's receding figure and withdrew his gaze.
"Let's leave after a simple bandage. We can't stay here long. That thing escaped, and the lighthouse matter has been leaked. We must return to report to the Doctor as soon as possible."
Zhou Zhe seemed to be deep in thought, showing some hesitation.
"Captain, the direction that little girl ran just now... seems to be the direction that monster fled, right? Shouldn't we remind her?"
Although that monster had been seriously injured by Qin Chuan, it was still a mutated beast.
Wouldn't that girl die by the monster's hands?
The pretense of kindness on Qin Chuan's face completely vanished, and he reverted to his usual indifferent and cold demeanor.
The terrifying killing intent erupted, revealing Qin Chuan's true nature.
"She didn't ask me anything else. After all, our deal was only for three questions, wasn't it?"