Are you kidding me? Fifty people expecting Zhang Yi to save them? He wouldn't even bother saving five. These people were born with silver spoons in their mouths and have lived more in their twenty years than most people do in sixty-five. Saving these pampered young masters and princesses would only bring him trouble.
"I'm only here to take Yang Xinxin. The rest of you can forget about it," Zhang Yi said as he prepared to leave with Yang Xinxin.
But how could the children of these wealthy officials and businessmen be anything but smart? Some of them quickly realized Zhang Yi wasn't planning to take them with him, so a few students quietly moved closer to Yang Xinxin and suddenly took her hostage.
"You have to take all of us with you! If not, we'll kill her!" Zhang Mengning threatened, her face twisted with anger.
Lu Keran, shocked by her classmates' actions, tried to rescue Yang Xinxin but was pushed to the ground by a tall male student.
"No! You're all classmates, you can't do this!" Liang Yue weakly tried to stop them, but no one listened to her. To these students, she was nothing more than a glorified bodyguard. Faced with life and death, they chose to be selfish.
Several students held Yang Xinxin tightly. Zhang Mengning glared at Zhang Yi and said viciously, "If you don't take us with you, then no one leaves!"
Zhang Yi sneered, ignoring Yang Xinxin for the moment, and looked at Xu Pangzi and Uncle You. "Tell me, why are there so many self-righteous people in this world?"
As he pretended to glance back casually, his hands had already switched to a more manageable police-issue pistol.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Without hesitation, Zhang Yi fired four shots in quick succession. Blood holes appeared on the foreheads of the four students beside Yang Xinxin, and their bewildered expressions faded as they lost consciousness forever.
"Thud—" The four bodies fell to the ground, dead with their eyes wide open.
"Murder!"
"Ah!!!"
The surrounding students scattered in all directions, avoiding Zhang Yi as if he were a wild beast, their eyes filled with fear.
Liang Yue was furious, her eyes wide as she pointed at Zhang Yi. "You… you actually killed these children!"
Zhang Yi sneered, "They looked old enough to me, even knew how to use a classmate's life to threaten others. You call that children?"
He paid no attention to their moral outrage, walking over to Yang Xinxin with his gun in hand. Surprisingly, Yang Xinxin showed little reaction to the dead bodies around her.
Numb? As long as her mind was still functioning, taking her back for a while should help her get over the psychological impact.
Liang Yue continued scolding Zhang Yi for his cold-blooded behavior and begged him to take the other students with him. Zhang Yi ignored her completely.
"Let's go. I'll take you home," he said, extending a hand to Yang Xinxin.
For the first time, a flicker of emotion appeared in Yang Xinxin's blue eyes.
"Okay." She nodded and reached out her hand.
"Um… could you take my friend too?" she asked, pleading.
"Your friend?" Zhang Yi looked at Lu Keran, who stood not far from Yang Xinxin, hesitating.
After witnessing Zhang Yi's deadly skills, Lu Keran was too scared to approach, but her eyes clearly showed a desire for Zhang Yi to take her along.
Zhang Yi raised an eyebrow. Another mouth to feed? He wasn't sure if he needed that.
"She's a student at Tianqing Academy like me, both of us were special admissions," Yang Xinxin explained.
"What does 'special admissions' mean?" Zhang Yi asked with a smile.
Yang Xinxin elaborated, "There are only two types of students here. One type comes from powerful and wealthy families. The other is specially admitted to help the school gain prestige by winning various domestic and international competitions."
She continued, "Keran is a genius in mechanics, on par with a Caltech engineering master's student. She customized this wheelchair for me, and it's been working perfectly for a long time."
Yang Xinxin spoke highly of her friend, trying her best to convince Zhang Yi.
Hearing this, Zhang Yi took another look at Lu Keran. The short-haired girl seemed physically fit, which is essential for a good mechanic.
"What else can you do?" Zhang Yi asked.
Lu Keran's eyes lit up, realizing this was her chance. She quickly said, "I'm very skilled in vehicle design and repair, and I have some knowledge of firearms. If you take me with you, I can modify cars and guns for you!"
She added, "I've also learned how to forge blades as a hobby. If the conditions are right, I can even craft cold weapons for you."
Zhang Yi had to admit, she had convinced him. He needed a genius like her.
He clapped his hands, "Alright, you can come with us."
Lu Keran exchanged a look with Yang Xinxin, both of them barely able to contain their excitement.
"Thank you… um, what should we call you?" Lu Keran asked gratefully.
Zhang Yi chuckled, "My name is Zhang Yi. You can call me 'brother' considering your ages."
"Yes, Brother Zhang Yi!" Lu Keran said with a wide smile.
Zhang Yi let Lu Keran push Yang Xinxin's wheelchair as they prepared to leave.
The remaining students were on the verge of tears.
"Mr. Zhang, I'm useful too! I can drive! I'm an excellent driver!"
"I speak eight languages, I could be your translator!"
"I'm well-versed in literature and can recite 'Dream of the Red Chamber' backwards!"
…
There were indeed many geniuses among the students. After all, they had received elite education since childhood. Even Liang Yue, a national martial arts champion, had been hired as their martial arts teacher, showing the extent of their privileged education.
However, most of what they had learned was useless in the apocalypse. Their focus had been on literature, history, philosophy, and finance, which had little practical value. Naturally, Zhang Yi had no interest in them.
"If you leave us here, we'll all die!" A girl with long, wavy hair stepped forward from the crowd, bravely meeting Zhang Yi's gaze.
It was Shen Miaoke, the class monitor.
"Ms. Liang is already very weak, and that monster was only let loose because of your intervention. If you leave now, what happens if it comes back to kill us?"
The thought of that terrifying monster cast a shadow over every student's heart.
"If it weren't for your interference, Ms. Liang might have killed that monster," Shen Miaoke continued. "Are you really planning to just walk away? If you must leave, at least help us take care of that problem!"
The students, although frightened by Zhang Yi's gun, were unwilling to sit and wait for death.
But Zhang Yi was indifferent. He shrugged, "You talk as if you would have survived if we hadn't come!"