C11 Wei Siblings

"Tonight, one of you will keep watch while the other rests. Switch places after four hours. If you're thirsty or hungry, help yourselves to the kitchen," Han Feng instructed, glancing back at Liu Rui ascending the stairs before quietly addressing the two conscripted soldiers.

"Understood." The soldiers nodded and set about their duties.

...

The following morning.

Han Feng descended the stairs, stifling a yawn. "Quiet night, wasn't it?" he inquired of the two soldiers on the ground floor.

"We spotted a couple of zombies, but they stayed out of the twenty-meter perimeter. Other than that, all was calm," reported the Winter Soldier.

Han Feng's relief was palpable, but it was tinged with anxiety. It wasn't the zombies that spooked him; he had forgotten to order the soldiers not to fire their weapons last night. Had the zombies breached the perimeter... He shuddered at the thought.

After all, Han Feng was merely a recent college graduate, not a battle-hardened commander. His leadership skills, by military standards, were rudimentary at best.

He reassured himself that everything was okay and made a mental note to be more thorough in the future.

Glancing at his watch, it was just after seven. The Winter Soldier's ammo would be replenished in three hours. No rush, he thought.

Entering the kitchen, Han Feng's heart sank at the sight of the staple supplies. Cooking was not his forte.

He rummaged around and settled for making instant noodles.

"Boss Han, up with the dawn, huh?" Liu Rui's groggy voice floated down from upstairs.

"Later, I'm heading to the gas station to scrounge up some fuel. You coming?" Han Feng deflected Liu Rui's question with one of his own.

"Of course, who else is gonna drive?" Liu Rui quipped as he descended.

Han Feng smacked his forehead, chiding himself for forgetting his lack of driving skills.

"Eat up quickly. We've got to haul some stuff from the neighbors' places," Han Feng said, passing a steaming bowl of noodles to Liu Rui.

Liu Rui quietly slurped his instant noodles, offering only a nod in response.

Three hours later, Han Feng and his party of four had cleared out the food supplies from several nearby homes. Liu Rui's fridge was too small to fit all the meat, prompting Han Feng to have two mobilized soldiers bring in two large refrigerators to barely accommodate the haul.

"Winter Soldier, did you get an equipment update?" Han Feng inquired.

"It's updated," replied the Winter Soldier.

"Updated? What about your grenade?" Han Feng asked, confused.

"I haven't used my grenade, so it hasn't been updated," the Winter Soldier clarified.

This was a mix of good and bad news.

The upside was that the grenade hadn't been used, suggesting Wai Yun was safe for now.

The downside? If Wai Yun never used the grenade, would the Winter Soldier be stuck with an outdated one forever?

But then, Han Feng's concern dissipated. Of course, if the grenade could be updated, what would stop the Winter Soldier from discarding his AK47 just before an update, only to end up with two of them seconds later? The system was airtight, offering Han Feng no loopholes to exploit.

"Let's hit the road! To the gas station!" Han Feng shook his head, signaling the departure.

Liu Rui's car sped swiftly, quickly leaving the villa district behind. They passed a road marred with bloodstains, a neighboring shop ablaze, and zombies wandering in the distance.

"Slow down! There's a car up ahead!" Han Feng spotted a blue sedan creeping forward not too far away.

It looked eerily familiar... Han Feng thought to himself.

As the two vehicles approached each other, the distance between them shrank.

"Wai Yun!" Han Feng blurted out instinctively.

"Wai Yun? Who's that?" Liu Rui turned to Han Feng with a questioning look.

"Get closer and get ready to stop," Han Feng instructed, his gaze fixed on the approaching vehicle.

Only when he saw the license plate did Han Feng confirm it was indeed Wai Yun's car.

The blue sedan also noticed the black Hummer. The occupants, hesitant to exit their vehicle, slowed down instead.

Han Feng was the first to step out of the car, followed closely by two mobilized soldiers.

Moments after Han Feng exited the vehicle, the doors of a blue sedan swung open, revealing a vibrant and attractive young girl. It had to be Wai Yun—who else could it be?

"Boss Han! I'm so relieved! I've finally found you!" Wai Yun's voice was tinged with excitement, yet she kept it subdued to avoid drawing the attention of any zombies.

"Your brother—did you manage to find him?" Han Feng inquired as he approached Wai Yun.

Instead of replying, Wai Yun gestured to someone inside the car.

A young man emerged, gripping an air nailer in his hands.

"This is my brother, Wai Peng."

"Brother, this is the 'big brother' I've been telling you about—Han Feng," she introduced them.

Their brief exchange sufficed for introductions.

Wai Yun recounted to Han Feng how she had located her brother. At the onset of the zombie outbreak, Wai Peng had been in a workshop, honing his skills, with a wireless air nailer within reach. Amidst the chaos, he had used the air nailer to fend off the zombies, managing to kill a few in a desperate bid for survival. Luckily, the workshop was sparsely populated, so Wai Peng escaped unscathed.

Having fled the school, Wai Peng fortuitously reunited with Wai Yun. Their parents were far away, residing in H-S City, some 200 kilometers distant. The siblings had spent the first night of the apocalypse in hiding, and as fate would have it, Liu Rui's villa was not far from the university.

Deciding to seek out Han Feng at the break of dawn, Wai Yun, with only a vague idea of his whereabouts, had been circling the vicinity of the villa.

Han Feng was intrigued to learn about an unusual change in Wai Peng—his speed had inexplicably increased.

Indeed, Wai Yun confirmed her brother's running speed had accelerated—not just a surge of adrenaline from escaping, but a tangible quickening.

"Give it a run; let me see for myself," Han Feng encouraged Wai Peng.

Wai Peng glanced at his sister, then at the soldiers and the Hummer behind Han Feng. Realizing that the man his sister had spoken of was no ordinary individual, with luxury cars, armed escorts, and powerful weapons at his disposal, Wai Peng couldn't help but imagine the soldiers as Han Feng's personal bodyguards.

"Alright." With those words, Wai Peng set down the air nailer and took off running with everything he had.

Wai Peng had his own agenda. He was determined to prove his and his sister's worth to stay by Han Feng's side, motivated purely by their safety. He wasn't concerned about Han Feng harboring ulterior motives toward his sister; from what she had told him, Han Feng would have acted already if that were the case. Plus, his recent observations had all but confirmed that Han Feng was one of the good guys.

Wai Peng ran as if his life depended on it.

But what he didn't realize was that he had completely blown Han Feng's mind.

"Are you kidding me?!!! Is this guy even human?!" Han Feng was taken aback as he watched Wai Peng sprint. He was so astonished that he didn't even try to hide his reaction.

The speed was unbelievable! Han Feng was astounded.

A few hundred meters in just over ten seconds! Not even a cheetah clocking sixty miles an hour could match him!

"How... how did I do... I'm fast, aren't I?" Wai Peng returned, gasping for air, his steps faltering. Clearly, the kid had given it his all.

If he had miscalculated, an unforeseeable disaster awaited him.

Without his speed, in a world overrun by zombies...

But as luck would have it, fortune smiled upon the Wei siblings.

"Come with us," Han Feng offered, steadying Wai Peng.

Wai Yun felt a weight lift from her shoulders; they had found refuge, albeit not the strongest.

The siblings climbed into the back seat of the Humvee, which was designed for five but now accommodated six.

The spacious Humvee was suddenly cramped, especially with two burly soldiers in the back.

Thankfully, the Wei siblings were slight in stature. Had it been two individuals the size of Liu Rui...

The Humvee's power remained unaffected by the extra passengers, roaring as it sped off toward the gas station.

Han Feng, seated in the front, kept his eyes on the weakened Wai Peng.

"You okay?" he inquired.

"I'm okay! I just need a little rest! Seriously! Just a short break! I can still run!" Wei Peng mustered his energy and struggled to sit up from his sister's arms, responding to Han Feng with a voice that was strained but still carried some strength.

Wei Peng was well aware that his mysterious speed wasn't without limits. Each burst of acceleration left him temporarily weakened. In his eagerness to impress, he had sprinted unrestrainedly, and he had yet to fully recover.

But what troubled Wei Peng even more was the fear that Han Feng would see him as useless—a one-trick pony whose speed came at the cost of prolonged weakness. He dreaded the thought of being unnecessary to Han Feng, and the idea that his sister might also be deemed expendable was even more terrifying.

Wei Peng had even contemplated a desperate gambit: a suicidal charge to complete a mission for Han Feng, hoping it might secure his sister's place by his side.