201 - Cinderella’s Dream: Together Forever

Chapter 201 (Extra Update) After talking with Wei Si Yu, Yi Yi enthusiastically brought out a new tablet and transferred a large amount of data from her optical brain to it, only stopping when the tablet was almost out of storage. Chen Wan winked at Yi Yi and asked, "Do you still have more stock? Qin Ke and I might want to have a look later." "Yes, I do. I happen to have another unused tablet. I'll transfer some information onto it shortly," Yi Yi replied warmly. Once Wei Si Yu left, Yi Yi sneakily led Chen Wan and Qin Ke back to her room and retrieved another new tablet, loading it with plenty of study materials. Chen Wan chuckled and said, "Why don't we watch one together?" "Sure, we have nothing else to do; consider it leisure time," Qin Ke nodded in agreement. Yi Yi casually opened a folder labeled "Study Material," and they all gathered around to watch its contents. Due to a sense of embarrassment, Yi Yi kept the volume low. While they were engrossed in the viewing, Jiang Yan Xin and Jiang Wan Ning came out looking for Chen Wan with Cai Cai. After searching around and not finding her, they checked Qin Ke's room. Shen Ming Yan was there alone; Qin Ke wasn't in her room either. Perplexed, they decided to check Yi Yi and Jiang Wan Ning's room to see where Chen Wan and the others had gone. When Jiang Yan Xin knocked and pushed the door open, they found Chen Wan and her friends huddled together, watching something on the tablet that emitted some strange sounds now and then, perplexing those outside the door even more. Sensing something amiss, Shen Ming Yan quickly covered Cai Cai's small ears, prompting Yi Yi to hurriedly hit the exit button. The group exchanged glances, but Chen Wan laughed and asked, "Why are you here?" Jiang Yan Xin, noticing their expressions, teased Chen Wan, "Are we here at a bad time? What are you all looking at, being so secretive?" "Nothing much, just a regular movie," Chen Wan laughed, explaining. Jiang Yan Xin, with a teasing smirk, walked over and glanced at the tablet Yi Yi held, "A movie? Then why so nervous? Watching something indescribable, perhaps?" "Really, it's just a regular movie. Look if you don't believe me," Yi Yi responded quickly, randomly opening a video just to prove their innocence. It turned out to be an episode of Peppa Pig. Cai Cai, upon hearing this, became excited and clapped his little hands, asking Chen Wan, "Mommy, why are you watching Peppa Pig without me?" Chen Wan coughed lightly and made up a story: "Weren't you playing with Mommy and Auntie? I was going to call you over after you finished playing." Jiang Yan Xin prodded Chen Wan's shoulder with a smirk, "Our baby wouldn’t join such antics. You might corrupt him. Right, Cai Cai?" Still thinking about Peppa Pig, Cai Cai shook his head, "No, no. I want to watch together~" "Alright, why are you all still sitting here? Are we going to continue watching, or are we returning to our rooms?" Jiang Yan Xin surveyed the group. Yi Yi held onto the tablet, looking innocently at Jiang Wan Ning, whose face was flushed. Although others might not understand Yi Yi, Jiang Wan Ning knew exactly what Yi Yi had shown Chen Wan and the others, glaring at Yi Yi sharply. Qin Ke rejoined Shen Ming Yan and got dragged back to their room. Chen Wan stood up, smiled at Jiang Yan Xin, and coaxed softly, "We really weren't watching anything inappropriate, just Peppa Pig, right, Cai Cai?" Cai Cai nodded his little head earnestly, echoing, "Yes!" Jiang Yan Xin chuckled coldly, "Alright, then let’s have a proper discussion in the mental domain later." With that, Jiang Yan Xin carried Cai Cai out of Yi Yi’s room, with Chen Wan trailing behind, pleading, "Come on, honey, I was wrong, okay? Can we not enter the mental domain?" Jiang Yan Xin smiled at her but uttered a firm, "No." Compared to the chaotic aftermath of Chen Wan's group, Wei Si Yu seemed more adept. After returning, she had dinner with Li Xiao Xiao and Kang Wan, took a bath, then lay in bed with the tablet. Upon opening it, she noticed a folder named "Study Material" on the main screen. She murmured with a smile, "Yi Yi is quite considerate to label it specifically." Laughingly, she opened the folder, only to find the video titles oddly named. Initially suspecting the tablet was infected with a virus, she quickly dismissed the thought due to the post-apocalyptic context where networks had collapsed, ruling out such possibilities. With curiosity, she decided to view one of the videos. At first, it seemed innocuous—just some emotional interactions between the female characters—but the storyline soon took an unexpected turn. Startled by such bold content, Wei Si Yu quickly shut the tablet. She leaned back to calm herself, her face flushed, but couldn’t help wondering about how the plot would progress. Determined, she decided to finish watching before bed. By the time she was done, it was already 10 PM, leaving her thoroughly wide awake. The next morning, Chen Wan, exhausted, wearily bathed Cai Cai. Her wife had really been harsh with her the previous night. Yawning, she washed the little one’s face. Cai Cai, noticing her fatigue, asked confusedly, "Mommy, what's wrong today? You look sleepy." Chen Wan kissed his cheek and explained, "I didn't sleep well last night. See, Mommy has dark circles. You must sleep well; otherwise, you'll feel terrible like Mommy, okay?" Cai Cai nodded, reassured, "Okay~" When Chen Wan and Cai Cai went out, Jiang Yan Xin had breakfast ready. As they ate, Chen Wan noticed Qin Ke struggling with her wrist while using her right hand to pick up some pickled vegetables, dropping them repeatedly. Finally, Chen Wan helped, placing some in Qin Ke's bowl, prompting an embarrassed thanks, "Thank you." "What did you do last night?" Chen Wan asked, already guessing that Qin Ke probably experienced some 'handling' of a different sort. "Nothing much. Let’s eat quickly. We’re low on groceries and fruits. We should get more from the camper later," Qin Ke quickly changed the subject. "Alright then," Chen Wan responded, and resumed eating. Meanwhile, Wei Si Yu had it worse than Chen Wan or Qin Ke, still reeling from the previous night's shock. She had barely slept, eating breakfast before heading to pick up Qi Jing. Seeing the shadows under her eyes, Qi Jing quickly said, "You didn’t have to come and pick me up; I could have made my way. And what happened to your eyes? Go back and rest." "It’s fine. I wouldn’t sleep any better at home. Let me drop you off first," Wei Si Yu took Qi Jing’s hand, leading her out of the building. Li Xiao Xiao and Kang Wan deliberately kept some distance, giving them space to interact. Upon reaching their location, Wei Si Yu helped set up tables and was eager to assist Qi Jing further, but, too tired to stay awake, she opted to return for a nap. Chen Wan and Qin Ke retrieved some items, only to be immediately called to discuss matters with Cao Wei. Cao Wei, seeing their exhausted states, suggested, "Let's head to the meeting room; this office can't accommodate everyone." She led them through the hall. Alongside Chen Wan's team, several other larger survivor groups and a few military officers joined. Seated in the compact meeting room, Cao Wei began, "I’ve gathered everyone here to discuss crucial matters. With our base’s population increasing, the resources and vegetables we collect will eventually run out. Therefore, we plan to expand the base, incorporating the fertile lands north of the city into District One’s territory. This requires many hands to help construct walls against zombies and mutant beasts. Additionally, we need to address a critical issue concerning seeds. Our base currently only has rice and flour seeds; we lack most vegetable and fruit seeds. Someone will need to venture to Beijing. I spoke with our agricultural experts who confirmed that Beijing’s agricultural research institute holds many seeds. Though initially useless in the apocalypse, once stability returns, we will need to cultivate vegetables and grains." Cao Wei surveyed the group and continued, "I've tasked A Nuan with expanding the outer walls. As for the journey to Beijing, which team is willing to undertake it?" "Commander, I’ll lead my team," Chai Zhi Hui volunteered first. Cao Wei smiled, "A Nuan is already occupied. I need you to handle base matters." "Commander, our team can go," offered a fire ability user, eager to contribute to the base's welfare. Chen Wan thought for a moment and then spoke up, "We should go. After all, we came from Beijing, so we're familiar with the situation there. At the most, it should only take us two days round trip." Cao Wei considered this and nodded in agreement, asking, "How many military personnel do you plan to take with your team?" "Twenty soldiers will suffice. Given the distance to Beijing, I don't plan on taking too many. We'll bring one armored vehicle and two trucks for transporting goods—that should be enough," Chen Wan replied thoughtfully. "Alright, then. As for the other teams, if there are any Earth Element ability users, they can assist A Nuan. The other ability users can continue taking on missions to search for supplies in the surrounding areas," said Cao Wei, clarifying the arrangements before dismissing everyone. Chen Wan and her team received their new assignment, collected their equipment and firearms, and prepared to set out early the next morning. As long as they could obtain the seeds, Chen Wan was confident that District One would thrive. Notably, Jiang Zhao Yuan wasn't the only Plant Element ability user in the district; she knew of seven in total. With seeds and their cultivation skills, vegetables and fruits would mature quickly. Then, they could opt for dining out using points, enjoying better meals than their usual fare, which far surpassed the meager offerings of District One’s restaurants.