135 - Cinderella’s Dream: Together Forever

Chen Wan pondered for a moment, then took out a packet of fever-reducers. After all, the woman had answered all her questions honestly, a rare occurrence in the apocalypse, so Chen Wan decided to give her the medicine. Jiang Yan Xin had been observing Chen Wan for some time, surprised that she was conversing with a stranger for so long. If it weren't for the fact that the woman was an alpha, Jiang Yan Xin would have already been giving Chen Wan a death glare. The next instant, Yi Yi's voice reverberated in Chen Wan's mind: "She's Wei Si Yu." Chen Wan's eyes widened as she looked at Yi Yi, who nodded meaningfully at her. Because Yi Yi was one of the protagonists, she had the ability to scan and identify Wei Si Yu as one of the original story's main characters. Understanding the gravity of Wei Si Yu's actions, Chen Wan thought to herself, "As expected of a protagonist, one who saves the world." This certainly explained Wei Si Yu's recent demeanor. Remembering that in the original story, Wei Si Yu was her destined alpha wife, Chen Wan quickly glanced back at Jiang Yan Xin, scoffing internally. "My wife and child are both mine now, Wei Si Yu better not even think about it!" Jiang Yan Xin glanced at Chen Wan, puzzled as to why she would spend so much time with an unfamiliar alpha. Yes, the alpha was quite attractive, with delicate features, but certainly no match for her. Why was Chen Wan staring so intently? Could it be that Chen Wan, feeling bullied by her, was now drawn to any pretty alpha she saw? That wouldn't do! Lost in thought, Jiang Yan Xin's mood soured. Chen Wan was hers. She cleared her throat to remind Chen Wan, "Chen Wan, shouldn't we be leaving?" Chen Wan acknowledged, "Oh, let me just give her the medicine." Speaking to Wei Si Yu who was standing by the door, Chen Wan said, "I have some fever-reducing medicine here. Take it all." "Oh, thank you so much! But medicine is quite precious. Do you have enough for yourselves?" Wei Si Yu quickly expressed her gratitude. "No need to worry about us. By the way, what exactly is this person's illness?" Chen Wan was slightly curious about Wei Si Yu and felt her initial wariness fading, though she still kept her gun ready. "Well, it's hard to say. Her body is covered in various wounds. It's a mess, really." Wei Si Yu's eyes briefly showed compassion as she reached for the medicine from Chen Wan's hand. Hearing this, Chen Wan reflected that their RV had a sufficient supply of medicine, and since Wei Si Yu was a protagonist in the story, maintaining good relations with the protagonists was never a wrong move in this world. Chen Wan decided to go down and check on the patient Wei Si Yu mentioned. Perhaps she could administer an IV and was curious about the people around Wei Si Yu. Without adding any other medications, glucose alone could replenish bodily fluids, provide energy, supplement blood sugar, act as a cardiac tonic and diuretic, and detoxify. Thinking this, Chen Wan retrieved a medical kit from her compressed space. It contained disinfectants, glucose bottles, and IV tubing. After some thought, she also added antibiotics—administering an antibiotic shot would be effective if there were wounds on the body. When Wei Si Yu came over to Chen Wan, she was ready with the medical kit. "I'll come with you to take a look. If an IV is needed, I have everything here." Chen Wan tucked her handgun behind her waistband and prepared to get up. Wei Si Yu was surprised that this stranger was willing to come down to help. Giving away a packet of medicine was already a generous act in the apocalypse, yet this person wanted to assist even further. "I thank you on behalf of that girl, truly," Wei Si Yu expressed gratitude, her gaze towards Chen Wan filled with appreciation. Jiang Yan Xin watched them interact and felt increasingly uneasy. What was going on with Chen Wan? Spending so much time talking and now even helping a stranger on foot—this was unlike her usual cautious behavior. They preferred not to leave the RV whenever possible. Clearing her throat again, Jiang Yan Xin sought Chen Wan's attention. As expected, Chen Wan turned to her, "What's up, honey?" Jiang Yan Xin looked from Chen Wan to the outside woman, "Nothing, I'll come with you." She wanted to see for herself what was so special about this outside alpha that could prompt Chen Wan to take such initiative. "Alright," Chen Wan chuckled, "It’s good to have someone as capable as Jiang Yan Xin by my side." Qin Ke and Shen Ming Yan, feeling rather bored inside the RV, also wanted to follow Chen Wan outside. Thus, the four of them exited the RV and entered the convenience store where Wei Si Yu and her friends were. As they walked inside, Chen Wan casually chatted with Wei Si Yu to ensure she wasn't paying too much attention to Jiang Yan Xin and to prevent her from "stealing" her wife. "By the way, I'm Chen Wan. What's your name?" Chen Wan asked with a smile. "Wei Si Yu, I really appreciate you all for coming over to help," Wei Si Yu replied with a grin. Chen Wan nodded and took a quick look around the convenience store. Besides Wei Si Yu, there were three other people: an alpha male, an alpha female, and an Omega in their twenties, and lying on the ground was a female Omega. The female Omega shivered slightly, possibly from the cold. The gloomy weather meant Wei Si Yu and her companions were only wearing T-shirts. Chen Wan noticed three jackets laid under the Omega, likely belonging to Wei Si Yu and her group. "There she is," Wei Si Yu pointed to the girl lying on the ground. Looking at the girl on the ground, Chen Wan's smile faded. The girl's body was marked with numerous wounds and red marks, not life-threatening, but Chen Wan could guess what she had suffered. Then seeing the girl's face, she froze on the spot. "Qin Ke, isn't she one of those high school students we met at the service area?" Chen Wan voiced her suspicion. Qin Ke peered closer, seemingly recalling, "Yes, there were five of them at the time. She was indeed one of the high school students." Seeing the exposed skin covered in wounds, Chen Wan turned and pulled out new clothes, a blanket, and clean towels from her compressed space. She also asked Jiang Yan Xin for a basin of warm water from the RV, only then returning to the girl's side. Shen Ming Yan and Jiang Yan Xin had already begun checking the injuries. Chen Wan furrowed her brow and said, "You Omegas, help clean her up. There are clean clothes and a blanket here. Use iodine to disinfect the wounds. I'll give her an IV later." "Okay," Jiang Yan Xin replied, focused solely on saving the girl. Despite her dirt-streaked face, it was clear she was quite young. Shen Ming Yan wore a chilling expression. This child likely experienced something similar to her own past. To think such beasts would harm a girl this young. Chen Wan, Qin Ke, and Wei Si Yu, along with the two other alphas, moved to the convenience store's shelves, away from sight. The Omega with Wei Si Yu's group went to assist as well. Sensing the somber atmosphere, Wei Si Yu introduced her friends to Chen Wan. "These are my friends, Shi Tou and Jin Can. That’s Huang Li Li, the Omega who came with us. We met them while escaping—good people, all of them." Chen Wan nodded, "She's Qin Ke. The Omega over there helping is my wife, Jiang Yan Xin. The beta with her is Qin Ke's girlfriend, Shen Ming Yan." Since Shen Ming Yan changed bodies, lacking pheromones, she appeared to be a beta like Yi Yi. "Are you familiar with that girl?" Wei Si Yu inquired, recalling the earlier conversation. "In a sense. They were a group of five back then. One had a fever and sought our help. We gave them some fever reducers before parting ways," Chen Wan explained and, her expression turning severe, added, "But who would do such a thing to such a young girl?" The very thought infuriated Chen Wan, and Qin Ke, who had experienced similar ordeals, was even more enraged by those who forced others into submission. "When we drove over, she was lying in the middle of the road in the rain, already disoriented. We brought her to the convenience store to rest and gave her some food. That's when she warned us not to go to the ‘Tomorrow’ sanctuary. She said the people there were unscrupulous, using the promise of equality and building a better tomorrow to lure people in. It’s all a ruse to find laborers and pretty girls. Elemental users who cooperate receive VIP treatment; those who don’t are taken to be experimented on," Wei Si Yu's expression grew solemn as she explained. "So, you were waving your flashlight to caution passing vehicles not to go to this 'Tomorrow' place, but few actually stopped," Chen Wan interjected, drawing from Wei Si Yu's account. "Yes, there were very few who stopped to listen to me, and even fewer willing to come down and help. Only you all did," Wei Si Yu sighed, highlighting the harsh reality of the apocalypse. Everyone was constantly on the run, too exhausted to spare any attention to a stranger's plea for help. Chen Wan patted Wei Si Yu on the shoulder, saying, "There's no helping it. The apocalypse is just like this. You've done all you can." The group fell into a brief silence. Twenty minutes later, the three tending to the girl had finally finished cleaning her wounds with warm towels. They had also disinfected her injuries with iodine and dressed her in clean clothes. "Chen Wan, we're finished here," Jiang Yan Xin's voice announced. Chen Wan and the others quickly returned to the girl, who was now covered with the blanket Chen Wan had brought from the RV, her shivers significantly reduced. Chen Wan gently touched the girl’s head, opened the medical kit, hung the IV bag on a nearby shelf, and fixed the IV tube into place. She then took out a rubber tube to tie around the girl's frail wrist, easily spotting a few veins. Handing a piece of tape to Jiang Yan Xin, Chen Wan gestured for her assistance. She then removed the dust cover from the needle and expertly inserted it into the girl's vein, securing it with the tape Jiang Yan Xin provided. With that done, Chen Wan adjusted the flow rate of the IV drip. After some thought, she pulled out a disposable syringe from the medical kit and administered an antibiotic injection, feeling slightly relieved afterward. Wei Si Yu didn't expect she had truly found the right person in Chen Wan, who not only handled IVs but also proficiently administered injections and had access to medicines. "Were you a doctor before?" Wei Si Yu asked curiously. "No, just versatile out of necessity. Let's let her rest for now, and we'll talk more once she wakes up," Chen Wan replied, irritated by the so-called "Tomorrow" organization. She intended to ask the girl about the real situation there when she regained consciousness. Qin Ke also had no intention of leaving yet. She gently tugged at Chen Wan's sleeve and asked softly, "Should we check out this 'Tomorrow' place?" Chen Wan furrowed her brows and nodded, "We'll decide once we hear what she has to say when she wakes up." If "Tomorrow" truly was such a place, ridding it of its leading villains would be a necessary action. Using a name symbolizing hope to commit such vile and cruel acts was something Chen Wan couldn't tolerate. Besides, this dubious base might just hold the crystal core of a level 3 mutated beast, considering Wei Si Yu mentioned an existing laboratory inside.