Betrayal

Leaving Meng Fanhai embedded in the lobby wall, Ren Anhua went upstairs alone.

Besides teaching Meng Fanhai a lesson, she had another important reason for returning: to confess her feelings to Lin Aijing.

Ever since the transformation, this thought had been circling in her mind.

The apocalypse was so dangerous; even as powerful as she was, who could say how long Ren Anhua would live?

If she had died—if that RV team had intended to kill her and she was just gone—then her greatest regret in the final moments of her life would have been not telling Lin Aijing her true feelings.

She decided she absolutely had to confess to Lin Aijing.

Even though she knew Lin Aijing would most likely reject her, she just didn’t want to live with any regrets.

And so, Lin Aijing found herself being confessed to by a cute young girl in an “Idiot” swimsuit.

“Uh… let’s put the love part aside for a moment. More importantly, little sister, can you tell me who you are first?”

First, there were the sounds of a fierce fight and shouting from downstairs, and now a cute girl like this had suddenly appeared before her.

Lin Aijing was having some trouble understanding the current situation.

The moment she saw Lin Aijing, Ren Anhua felt the flames of her anger subside.

Lin Aijing was alive.

Of course she was alive.

No matter how blinded by rage Meng Fanhai was, he wouldn’t have ignored Ren Anhua’s repeated instructions to ensure Lin Aijing’s safety.

But even though she was sure Lin Aijing was alive, the stone hanging in her heart wouldn’t drop.

Now, seeing with her own eyes that Lin Aijing was safe, any anger she had dissipated with the wind.

She didn’t even mind when Lin Aijing called her “little sister.”

Having calmed down, Ren Anhua realized that her current appearance was not suitable for a confession.

But even so, she desperately wanted to confirm Lin Aijing’s true feelings.

Although Lin Aijing had never shown any affection for him, what if?

What if Lin Aijing did love him, but just never said it?

And if he, subconsciously assuming she didn’t like him, never confessed, and then one day died in an accident—what a tragedy that would be.

“You probably won’t believe me when I say this, but I am Ren Anhua,” the girl in the school swimsuit said earnestly.

“This appearance of mine is only temporary. I’ll be back to my original body soon.”

“I’ll be going on a trip recently specifically to restore my body, but it won’t take much time. In short, I really am Ren Anhua.”

The girl looked at the disbelieving expression on her beloved’s face, feeling utterly helpless.

She had already demonstrated her unique ability.

Why couldn’t Lin Aijing confirm her identity like Old Hou, like Zhao Sanyan, like Meng Fanhai?

“How about this? If I am Ren Anhua, just assume I am.”

“Right now, it’s Ren Anhua confessing to you… would you accept? Um… I mean, just starting as friends.”

As she spoke, Ren Anhua suddenly felt a little shy.

Perhaps her brain had cooled down, and she was now beginning to realize what she was doing.

It wasn’t that Ren Anhua had never had a girlfriend, but she had never confessed to a girl before.

Thinking back on her life, it seemed it was always the woman who took the initiative, both before and after the apocalypse.

This was her first time confessing.

‘And for my first confession, I’m in a girl’s body. How humiliating.’

“If it were Ren Anhua…” Lin Aijing thought for a moment.

“I think I still wouldn’t accept. The one I actually like is Meng Fanhai.”

‘Lin Aijing likes Meng Fanhai.’

Of course she knew. She could see it.

Why add “actually”? She had vaguely sensed it long ago.

But couldn’t it have been a misunderstanding?

Couldn’t it be that Ren Anhua had misunderstood Lin Aijing, and that Lin Aijing actually liked Ren Anhua?

“How could this be!”

Ren Anhua was utterly dejected.

Unsurprisingly, Lin Aijing had given the exact answer she had anticipated.

Even though she expected it, even though she already felt this would be the result, the disappointment in her heart wasn’t lessened in the slightest.

“Is there something wrong with Ren Anhua? I’m so powerful. In this era, if you’re with me, you won’t be in any danger.”

“I can protect you, and even give you anything you want!” Ren Anhua’s emotions were running high.

“No, I have the ability to protect myself. I can handle my own affairs. I don’t need anyone to give me what I want.”

“As for Ren Anhua… to be honest, he’s too powerful. I’m a little afraid of him. But if he were to force me…”

“Say no more. Ren Anhua won’t force you. He would never force a woman!”

The young girl left the room without listening any further.

‘Doesn’t need anyone’s gifts, doesn’t need anyone’s protection.’

Lin Aijing had rejected Ren Anhua for these reasons.

Would Ren Anhua hate Lin Aijing for this?

Of course not, damn it.

Those were the very two things Ren Anhua loved about Lin Aijing.

Her strength, her courage, and that unyielding spirit.

Ren Anhua never knew a woman could be so beautiful because of these qualities.

Was she heartbroken? Yes.

But even so, he would never do anything untoward to Lin Aijing.

He wouldn’t even feel jealous of or hate Meng Fanhai because of this.

Ren Anhua was not so petty.

Ren Anhua was an open and magnanimous person, and that was precisely why he had earned the loyalty of his brothers.

And it was precisely because of Ren Anhua’s magnanimous character that Meng Fanhai followed her, and it was precisely because of Meng Fanhai that Lin Aijing fell for him.

Regardless, Ren Anhua’s heart was broken.

‘Life is a path where you’ll have regrets no matter which choice you make.’

Ren Anhua thought to herself as she sat on a bench by the lake.

Night had fallen.

The biting autumn wind carried a bone-chilling cold, but Ren Anhua didn’t feel it.

Her ability prevented her from feeling such sensations.

But the cold made her think of Ke Xiaoshan.

Although they hadn’t spent much time together, she could sense that Ke Xiaoshan was a gentle child.

At first, Ren Anhua only wanted to restore her own body, but after spending time with the RV team, she had genuinely begun to want to save Ke Xiaoshan.

She wondered what the RV team’s situation was now.

Leaving without a word like this would probably make them very angry.

She didn’t want to hold up the team’s progress, but she really couldn’t abandon her family matters.

This return trip was an unauthorized action, and Ren Anhua planned to rush back overnight.

She had begun to grow fond of the atmosphere in the RV team.

Although she was used to leading others, the occasional day where she didn’t have to think too much and could just live easily was also becoming quite appealing, especially for the current Ren Anhua.

Just as Ren Anhua was about to get up and leave, she was called out to.

Meng Fanhai walked over with a bag of skewered barbecue and two cans of beer.

“Brother Anhua,” Meng Fanhai said with a smile. He looked to be in good spirits.

There was no trace of the beating from earlier on his face, and he had calmed down considerably, back to his usual self.

“Hmph. You say it so nicely. Do you know where you went wrong?”

Ren Anhua took the beer Meng Fanhai tossed her, opened it, and took a sip.

Though it had only been a day since she’d last had one, Ren Anhua still felt it was a rare delicacy.

Barbecue really did have to be paired with beer.

“Of course I know. I shouldn’t have been so impulsive and led the brothers to their deaths.”

Meng Fanhai took a sip himself, bit into a skewer, and sat down.

“But at the time, I thought you were really dead, Brother Anhua, so I…”

“Even if I were really dead, you couldn’t lead the brothers to get themselves killed!”

Ren Anhua stood up and tapped Meng Fanhai’s head with the beer can before sitting back down.

Ren Anhua herself had calmed down.

Although her tone was still angry, after what happened with Lin Aijing, she realized that not everyone could believe she was Ren Anhua.

Meng Fanhai’s trust felt very comforting to her.

“Hehehe,” Meng Fanhai rubbed his head.

“I know. But Brother Anhua, you look really cute right now. Uh, I mean, compared to before…”

“Cute? Did you misunderstand something? I’m telling you, I can change back soon.”

“This body is only temporary, and it’s very inconvenient. I don’t like it.”

Ren Anhua took another sip of beer.

“What! You’re going to change back? No, Brother Anhua, you don’t have to change back at all. You’re fine just the way you are now.”

“Uh… I mean, you can stay like this forever.”

Meng Fanhai seemed a little agitated upon hearing this news.

“What nonsense are you talking about? Of course I’m going to change back. How could I possibly live like this?”

“You are not allowed to change back!” Meng Fanhai’s voice suddenly grew louder.

“Meng Fanhai, what do you mean?”

Ren Anhua suddenly felt that something was off with Meng Fanhai.

“Brother Anhua, I’ve always admired you, liked you. And I don’t just mean that kind of like.”

“I mean, I used to think, if only I were a woman, I would definitely marry you. But I’m not, and that troubled me. But how could that be changed? Two men can’t be together.”

“But it’s different now. Now you’ve become a woman, Brother Anhua. And you’re so cute, so beautiful. It’s perfect.”

“We can finally be together now. We can even get married and have children!”

A hint of fanaticism glinted in Meng Fanhai’s eyes.

“Meng Fanhai, what are you talking about? Did one beer get you drunk?”

Ren Anhua stood up and took two steps back.

She suddenly felt that Meng Fanhai was dangerous.

She had thought Meng Fanhai’s feelings were simple admiration, never expecting him to be hiding this kind of emotion.

“No, Brother Anhua, of course I’m not drunk. But you will be.”

“A small, cute girl will of course get drunk from drinking.”

Seeing Ren Anhua stand up, Meng Fanhai also stood and took two steps toward the girl before him.

Only then did Ren Anhua suddenly realize that her consciousness was starting to blur.

“f*ck! You bastard, what the hell did you put in the beer!”

Ren Anhua threw the beer can in her hand at Meng Fanhai’s face.

“And I always treated you as a brother!”

“Give up resisting, Brother Anhua. You’re so beautiful now, there’s nothing wrong with being a woman.”

“Once we have children, you won’t have this attitude anymore.”

Meng Fanhai showed no sign of backing down.

“I think you’ve lost your mind!”

Fierce flames erupted around her body. The immense heat even melted the brick ground into a thin layer of lava.

Activating her ability finally brought Ren Anhua a sliver of security.

“You think drugging me will work?”

Faced with Ren Anhua in this state, even Meng Fanhai dared not approach.

“Don’t waste your energy, Brother Anhua. That’s no ordinary drug.”

“One of Zhang Yidong’s subordinates had a pretty good ability. I removed his limbs and have been keeping him fed. His blood contains a powerful paralyzing toxin.”

“Most importantly, this toxin can paralyze even one’s ability. I know you’re used to solving every problem with high heat, but against this toxin, the moment you use your ability, you are destined to fail.”

“f*ck! Meng Fanhai, you’re insane. You’re really insane to do something like this.”

The blurriness in her mind was intensifying.

Not only that, but the heat radiating from her body began to diminish.

Only then did Ren Anhua feel a strong sense of unease.

Sensing the situation was dire, Ren Anhua unleashed her ability to its maximum extent and bolted toward the exit of the complex.

A bright meteor streaked across the deep darkness.

“Carpet search! Search by car! Search on foot! Just find Ren Anhua for me!”

“She’s been poisoned, she can’t have gotten far, and the glow of her flames makes her an obvious target. Go and bring her back!”

Meng Fanhai quickly gathered his subordinates and gave the order.

The night in the East Suburbs suddenly erupted with activity.

“Hey, are we really doing this?” Er Gou asked the person next to him, unsure if what he was doing was right or wrong.

“Brother Anhua treated us well. Even though he’s scary, he was still protecting us properly.”

“So what? Do you dare say no to the second-in-command now? Ever since Brother Anhua disappeared, he hasn’t been right in the head. You know what happened to the people who defied him.”

“Besides… besides, that little girl might not even be Brother Anhua. How could Brother Anhua be like that… Anyway, just don’t think of her as Brother Anhua and it’ll be fine,” the person next to him replied, though his tone sounded a bit uncertain.

Er Gou thought about it and decided to continue following the second-in-command’s orders.

Although Brother Anhua was terrifying, the second-in-command was even more terrifying.

And the second-in-command could actually kill them.

One terror is replaced by an even greater terror.

Besides, maybe that little girl wasn’t really Brother Anhua?

Ren Anhua ran through the forest.

The woods in the East Suburbs were quite dense, and had become even more so since the apocalypse.

Her searing body burned a wide path, but it also left an obvious trail.

Worse, her consciousness was growing fuzzier, and she could hear people searching behind her.

‘They are all my brothers! Those bastards!’

Ren Anhua didn’t know what to do.

At this rate, she would definitely be caught, but she didn’t dare stop.

She could only run and run, trying to get as far away as possible from the place that was once her “home.”

In her despair, a blinding light appeared before her, sending her spirits plummeting to rock bottom.

‘Have they already gotten ahead of me?’ Ren Anhua thought.

But she still refused to let her consciousness fade.

She was terrified of waking up to find herself lying in that familiar bed, with her once-trusted brother, Meng Fanhai, beside her.

“An-chan!”

That call seemed to strike a fragile spot in Ren Anhua’s heart.

Tears welled up in her large, cherry-blossom eyes.

This stubborn person who had not cried in years couldn’t help but break down at this moment.

“Waaaaah—”

Dispelling the high heat she could no longer sustain, the young girl threw herself into Bai Rui’s arms like a swallow returning to its nest.

“It’s okay, it’s okay now.”

Bai Rui stroked the girl’s soft, pink hair, comforting her gently.

In a short while, she noticed the girl in her arms had quieted down, her eyes closed, already asleep.

“It’s okay. We’re here to take you home.”

Bai Rui tried to lift Ren Anhua and found her body to be exceptionally light; she could carry her with ease.

Bai Rui speculated that Ke Xingmei’s transformation might have had a few minor issues.

“However… leaving the team without permission also requires a little punishment~”

Holding Ren Anhua in her arms, Bai Rui thought of a certain treasure she had purchased back at the base.