Just as the sky hadn't completely darkened, the two of them quickly returned to Zhang Ye's home, escorted by twelve tall and burly bodyguards.
"Oh, I almost forgot to ask."
"What were you doing driving around outside in the middle of the night?"
Zhang Ye looked at Liu Qingqing, who was packing her luggage, with a face full of curiosity.
A week had passed since the zombie outbreak.
Anyone who survived had basically figured out the zombies' characteristics, searching for supplies as stealthily as if they were infiltrators in a village.
Who would dare to drive blatantly on the streets?
Especially at night.
Were they asking for death?
He had only asked casually, but who would have thought that Liu Qingqing's movements suddenly stopped, and then she began to sob softly.
"Wuu wuu wuu."
"They're all dead."
"Only Zhao Lei and I managed to escape, and he wanted to drive me home."
Seeing this, Zhang Ye immediately embraced the grieving woman without another word, holding her until she had finished telling what had happened, then slightly loosened his embrace.
Liu Qingqing had escaped from nearby Sanjiang University.
They had been trapped in the equipment room.
But just last night, one of their wounded classmates had suddenly mutated.
Several of the dozen classmates were bitten to death on the spot, and the rest fled the school in disarray, each returning to their own homes.
Zhao Lei had actually been injured while escaping the school, but he had harbored a crush on Liu Qingqing for a long time and naturally didn't want to miss this opportunity to play the hero.
But halfway through the drive, he couldn't go on.
Next, he crashed headfirst into a supermarket.
If not for Liu Qingqing's good fortune, she might have already died in that car.
Zhang Ye comforted Liu Qingqing with his words, but inwardly he was secretly relieved that the boy had died early.
Otherwise, with Liu Qingqing's character, she might really have been lured away by him.
He silently crossed himself in his heart.
Zhao Lei, brother, rest in peace.
I will take good care of your goddess for you.
Just then, Liu Qingqing, who was in his arms, suddenly looked up again.
"Ye Zi, can I go home and have a look?"
"Ah?"
Zhang Ye was startled, then quickly realized that Zhao Lei had apparently planned to drive her home.
Go home?
It seemed like it wasn't out of the question.
Conveniently, a new system mission had been released, requiring him to find a suitable location to use as the company base, and he could add a few more employee slots as a result.
With the twelve bodyguards from downstairs escorting them, would any group of fewer than twenty zombies dare to cross their path?
It was killing two birds with one stone, so why not?
"That's great!"
"You are so good to me!"
Liu Qingqing immediately beamed with happiness and kissed him, humming a tune as she continued packing the food and water on the floor, which were for the departure the next day.
Zhang Ye, delighted, lay down on the couch with his phone.
Being the boss was great.
Work for the secretary when there's something to do.
Do the secretary when there's nothing to do.
And what's more, when the secretary is such a pretty little one?
He had only practiced half of the theoretical knowledge on his first night driving, so today he had to practice all of it.
——
Early the next morning, the two set off towards Liu Qingqing's neighborhood with the protection of the twelve bodyguards.
More than an hour later.
"This is where you live?"
Zhang Ye looked at the opulent gates of the neighborhood in disbelief.
"Mmm-hmm."
Liu Qingqing nodded.
"A rich second generation?"
Zhang Ye asked again, and seeing Liu Qingqing shake her head, the curiosity in his eyes became even more intense.
Living in a villa neighborhood but not a rich second generation?
A Versailles princess then?
But Liu Qingqing scratched her head and said seriously, "My grandfather was the rich second generation, so to me, I guess that would make me the rich fourth generation."
Well, look at that, isn't there a saying that wealth doesn't last more than three generations?
Zhang Ye muttered to himself, yet the slightly comforting voice of Liu Qingqing rang in his ears again.
She seemed to be afraid that Zhang Ye would be hurt, and added a few more words:
"Ye Zi, don't overthink things!"
"Never look down on yourself!"
"As long as you work hard, working for a hundred and eighty years should be enough to buy a toilet here!"
"That's enough, stop talking."
Zhang Ye, with an expressionless face, cut her off and turned towards the nearby entrance.
Liu Qingqing watched his retreating figure, her heart filled with emotion again.
What a gentle man.
Even though it was she who had misspoken, he didn't seem angry at all.
Just then, a voice suddenly came from the front, "Remember to stick your butt up high tonight; I'm pretty hot-tempered."
The woman was stunned on the spot, "Huh?"
----
There were only about ten villas in the residential area, nearly empty of people, with only a few zombies wandering on the garden paths.
One of the villas had its door wide open, with plenty of bloodstains on it.
Clearly, something had happened.
Liu Qingqing's face instantly turned pale; without waiting for Zhang Ye to speak, she dashed into the villa with a few "security guards" following.
Upon entering, they found a body on the first floor.
It was their housekeeper.
"Keep calm."
"Follow me."
Zhang Ye grabbed Liu Qingqing, who was about to head upstairs, and then had Security Guard No. 004 walk in front of him.
The rest gathered around, forming a wall of bodies.
Even if there were zombies upstairs, they would be blocked by these strong and robust security guards, ensuring the safety of the two of them.
After the establishment of the company, the abilities of these zombies also received some enhancements.
They were no longer normal zombies.
Under the framework of the company established by Zhang Ye, any member who joined this framework would gain abilities matching their position.
In other words, these zombies assigned as security personnel were indeed security guards.
Genuine security guards.
In some situations, they were even more dedicated than humans.
They didn't need to eat, drink, rest, or even receive a salary.
At just a thought from Zhang Ye, these zealously eyed security guards would unhesitatingly stand in front of him, no matter what danger lay ahead.
If there was anything negative to say, it would be that they smelled terrible.
"Ugh—"
Zhang Ye, struggling to suppress his urge to retch, walked step by step up the stairs, his nose filled with an odor as if an old lady hadn't washed her foot wraps for over a decade and then wrapped a dead mouse in them.
The situation upstairs was quickly ascertained.
No living people.
No bodies.
It seemed that the owner of the house had left at the beginning of the chaos.
Both let out a sigh of relief and were ready to leave the place.
Ye Zi, why don't we just stay here for the time being?"
"Anyway, you can't stay in your place."
"We need to find a new residence, don't we?"
Zhang Ye was just about to go downstairs when hearing these words, he hesitated.
Liu Qingqing was right.
Indeed, he couldn't stay at his place, with so many zombies lurking at the door; it was somewhat of a hidden danger.
But the location of this villa was much closer to the city center than his place, and the bustling streets meant more zombies and larger hordes.
For the average survivor, it was absolutely more harmful than beneficial.
But for him, it was nothing to worry about.
They're just zombies, right?
The company had just started its ascent.
And what's needed in a period of ascent? Talent! An endless stream of talent!
His hesitation wasn't out of fear, but concern that his company wasn't big enough to accommodate so much talent!
Besides, the biggest advantage of this villa complex was its size.
Just the villa under his feet alone had a usable area of more than four hundred square meters, upstairs and downstairs, which was perfect as the company base required by the system tasks.