Chapter 28

28 Selfish? Selfless?

The afternoon seemed calmer than expected. Jin She and Zhu Anfu took turns playing Monopoly in the room, surprised to find such a childish game on Zhou Zhi’s laptop. Childish as it was, the two played with great enthusiasm.

Even though no one came, the sentry at the door wasn’t withdrawn, and there were still night patrols. After dinner, Yuchi Ankang took the finished parts to measure them. With so few people working, progress was painfully slow. A whole day’s effort yielded only a handful of small components. They were still just building a model; at this rate, who knew how long it would take to complete a full-size mech.

Yuchi Ankang rubbed his temples and carefully put away the parts—these couldn’t be lost. Leaving the workshop, he saw Zhu Anfu squatting by the door, muttering to himself, so absorbed he didn’t even notice the door opening and closing.

Yuchi Ankang squatted beside him. “What are you thinking about?”

“Ha…” Zhu Anfu scratched his head. “It’s boring staying alone in the room. Jin She hijacked the laptop to play games, so I came to see what you were up to.”

“I was just looking over today’s parts. Progress is too slow; I don’t know when we’ll finish the model,” Yuchi Ankang said, pulling Zhu Anfu up. “Later, bring out your old computer and I’ll help you get it networked. I remember you have a lot of games on there.”

“That’s right, why didn’t I think of that?” Zhu Anfu brightened instantly, his eyes sparkling. They chatted as they walked back to the room. Yuchi Ankang helped move out the computer and desk, as well as his old laptop. After getting used to futuristic technology, the current machines just seemed laughably outdated. The difference was like heaven and earth—you couldn’t catch up even if you rode a racehorse, no, not even in a jet.

Hugging his computer, Zhu Anfu felt a bit down. He really wanted to play on the laptop he’d brought back, but it was just a thought. He clattered away at the keyboard, intending to write and save a draft, but without internet, his motivation fizzled.

“I have CS on my laptop, want to play a round?” Yuchi Ankang, noticing Zhu Anfu opening and closing documents aimlessly, offered an invitation. Zhu Anfu refused without hesitation—playing Monopoly or story-based single-player games was fine, but a CS match was out of the question! Even ten of him couldn’t beat Yuchi Ankang, who’d once won a CS championship.

“How about Red Alert?” Yuchi Ankang’s laptop was full of these kinds of games, none of which were really Zhu Anfu’s taste.

“Let’s play that!” Zhu Anfu yielded his seat for Yuchi Ankang to set up the network. “Do you think we’re crazy? Others are desperate just to survive, and here we are playing games.”

“Do you want to open the doors and let in all sorts of people? In that crowd, there might be old men, princesses, those who want power, or even someone carrying a mutant gene. Who would be responsible for our safety then? Maybe we’re selfish, but at this juncture, selflessness isn’t an option. You’ve written apocalypse novels—you should know what people are like at the end of the world. To survive, they’d step on others’ shoulders, even corpses if they had to.” Yuchi Ankang stood up and embraced Zhu Anfu, gently patting his back in comfort. “I know seeing others face death pains you, but I also know you understand what you must do. Anfu, our abilities are limited. To be someone others can rely on, you need to be truly strong. Besides, we’re not just playing around—building the mech is for our own safety, and to help more people.”

“I get all that. I guess I was just idle today and my mind started wandering,” Zhu Anfu said, now regretting not having studied Yuchi Ankang’s field in the future—at least then he could help now.

“If you’re really that bored, come with me to the workshop tomorrow. We need people to measure and record data for the parts. You and Jin She can do that, so you won’t be idle and let your thoughts run wild.” Yuchi Ankang nipped at Zhu Anfu’s ear, making him squirm uncomfortably. “Didn’t you want to play games? I’m not great at Red Alert, so don’t bully me.” Yuchi Ankang chuckled, sat down with the computer, and quickly set up the game.

There was no real sense of day and night in the cave; only the phone’s clock showed the difference. It was now the dead of night. As they played, Yuchi Ankang kept his eye on the time, not letting Zhu Anfu stay up too late—partly because they still needed to keep watch, partly because Zhu Anfu would be joining him in the workshop tomorrow and needed rest.

He fetched water for Zhu Anfu to wash his feet. The two of them soaked their feet in the same basin, playfully stepping on each other, teasing, or pretending to accidentally scratch the soles of each other’s feet. They were thoroughly entertained until the water cooled.

Yuchi Ankang told Zhu Anfu to get in bed while he emptied the basin. When he returned, Zhu Anfu was already playing a game on his phone. “Don’t you care about your eyes?”

“Just a little bit longer. Come on up, the bed’s warm now. The cave is really cold—just like home without the heat. Good thing we brought long sleeves and pants, or we’d both be down with a cold.” As soon as Yuchi Ankang got under the covers, Zhu Anfu nestled into his arms. Yuchi Ankang was wonderfully warm, and it was only cozy when they leaned against each other.

Holding Zhu Anfu, Yuchi Ankang looked on helplessly as he played a block-clearing game. He really couldn’t see the appeal, yet Zhu Anfu had been playing it for years and still loved it. “I remember you had a tablet—where is it?”

“Doudou’s taken it over. Doudou uses the tablet as a bed now.” Zhu Anfu almost wanted to cry. He’d made a bed for Doudou, but the little creature wouldn’t use it and insisted on sprawling on his tablet. If he tried to take it back, Doudou would bare his teeth. Who’s the owner here, anyway?

“How is Doudou still so tiny? I thought after going to the future he might mutate.” Yuchi Ankang chatted idly with Zhu Anfu while keeping an ear out for any trouble outside. “It seems like, except for the plants, nothing else has changed in here.”

“Just the plants and animals. Oh, and electronics. They don’t seem any different—well, perhaps they last a bit longer.” As soon as Zhu Anfu finished speaking, his phone shut off automatically…