Seeing the three surprisingly harmonious heads, Liu Ying scrambled to her feet.

The headlights of the Spirit Car were still on, allowing Liu Ying to see the scene clearly.

She paused for a moment, lowering her head to feel her waist. The blisters there had almost completely healed, and her mind felt much clearer too.

Then, she excitedly raised her head to look at the three heads inside the car.

She seemed so overwhelmed with gratitude that she couldn't utter a word. Gu Mian and the others could only see her mouth moving slightly, as if she wanted to say something but was too emotional to form the words.

After a few more seconds, Gu Mian finally heard Liu Ying's voice.

"Thank you..." she said. "Thank you all..."

Her voice trembled with emotion, but it retained its usual gentle quality.

Listening to her, Gu Mian felt that the newly awakened girl might pass out at any moment from being winded.

Immediately after, he saw Liu Ying take a few steps toward them, her hands fumbling over her clothes as if searching for something.

It was clear she was trying to find something valuable to give Gu Mian. Unfortunately, she was utterly poor.

Gu Mian watched for several seconds, but Liu Ying didn't produce anything. He quickly waved his hand, "Never mind, don't bother. I don't want anything, really."

Liu Ying clearly recognized her own poverty.

She lowered her hands, her expression troubled. "Medicine that could heal me so quickly must be expensive," she said, her eyes filled with unease. "You must have bought it to protect yourselves from getting sick, yet you gave it to me. I'm so sorry..."

One had to marvel at the vividness of human imagination.

Seemingly influenced by Liu Ying, Fatty silently took a step back, retreating behind Gu Mian with a contemplative expression.

Noticing Fatty's odd behavior, Gu Mian turned to him, perplexed. "What's wrong?"

Fatty gulped and whispered to Gu Mian, "Speaking of which, don't these situations usually end with her pledging herself to repay the kindness?"

Gu Mian was speechless. "..."

To prevent the situation from escalating to that point, Gu Mian reached into the corner and pulled Xiao Hong to the window.

Liu Ying, still frowning in thought, was startled to see another head suddenly appear in the car window.

She stared intently, then flinched slightly as her gaze met the newcomer's eyes.

Gu Mian and the others had long grown accustomed to Xiao Hong's appearance. She was truly ugly, and horrifying at first glance. However, seeing her face day after day had diluted the initial shock by a good measure.

But for someone seeing that visage for the first time in the dead of night, it was enough to scare their soul right out of them.

Gu Mian had hoped Xiao Hong's appearance would startle Liu Ying—if not scare her off completely, then at least make her hesitant to speak to them further.

However, Liu Ying seemed to have remarkable composure. She only trembled slightly before quickly calming down. She showed no signs of terror or disgust, instead looking at Gu Mian with a bewildered expression, seemingly wondering why he had suddenly pulled a woman over.

Gu Mian was again speechless. "..."

Not only was she not scared off, she even has that 'how can I help?' look on her face, Gu Mian thought. There's no other way... Since she won't run, I'll have to be the one to leave...

And so, under Liu Ying's uncomprehending gaze, Gu Mian quickly slid into the driver's seat and slammed on the accelerator.

The still-confused Liu Ying watched as the white car before her suddenly roared to life. Its wheels spun rapidly against the ground, and the entire vehicle began to move. Within seconds, it had sped away from the scene.

It was just like a hit-and-run.

"Hey, wait!" Realizing something was amiss, Liu Ying ran several steps in the direction the car had gone, only to get a mouthful of dust kicked up from the ground.

After she stopped to catch her breath and looked ahead again, even the dust had settled. The car had vanished from sight, as if it had never been there.

If not for the scabs forming over the blisters on her waist, Liu Ying would have almost believed she had dreamt the whole thing.

"They're such good people..." Liu Ying murmured to herself, gazing in the direction the car had vanished, though she couldn't understand why good people would flee.

"If I ever get the chance to meet them again, I must repay their kindness." As she said this, she suddenly remembered something else. "Oh, right! I still need to buy medicine! It's so late; the neighbors must be waiting for me!"

With that thought, Liu Ying quickly got her bearings and hurried off in the direction of the supermarket.

Fate is indeed a wondrously strange thing.

Just a few days later, early one morning, Gu Mian and his companions once again encountered this woman—the one who, if the plot developed typically, might offer herself to them. It happened to be a bright and sunny noon.

Gu Mian and his companions had already left the previous town. For the past few days, Chu Changge had been scouting the surroundings to draw a map, selecting a relatively safe route for the Spirit Car to pass through. While exploring, Chu Changge was also searching for the high-level ticket booth they needed to find.

Effort always yields rewards. Chu Changge did indeed find a high-level ticket booth. However, just as Gu Mian and the others followed Chu Changge to this booth, they unexpectedly ran into Liu Ying, who had arrived at the same time.

Perhaps because it was a high-level ticket booth, many players were coming and going. A quick scan revealed that a large portion of them had already contracted the virus.

The sounds of coughing and sneezing were incessant.

Some wealthier players had bought barrier masks from the supermarket, but not many people were wearing them.

Amidst the chorus of coughs, Liu Ying spotted Fatty—his large build made him an easy target, after all.

She quickly ran over and, in public, grabbed the corner of Gu Mian's sleeve—because his white lab coat was the easiest piece of clothing to grab among the three of them.

Gu Mian didn't even have time to run. He could only endure the peculiar stares of the crowd as a girl clung to his sleeve.

Liu Ying looked relieved. "I was afraid I wouldn't see you all again..."

Gu Mian, almost in tears, lamented, "How on earth did we run into you again, even after traveling so far?"

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