Chapter 54: The Door to Rebirth in the Apocalypse – Full Novel Website
Chapter 54
Gu Ning looked at Lu Jiazhi and continued, “If possible, I think it’s best if we don’t see each other again in the future.”
Her tone was still calm, without a hint of blame or resentment.
For some reason, seeing Gu Ning like this made Lu Jiazhi feel helpless. He rubbed his temples, feeling inexplicably irritable, but still managed to keep his composure as he said to Gu Ning, “Ningning, I don’t know what happened during the three months you were missing. I shouldn’t have come today; I should have let you rest for a while longer…”
Gu Ning suddenly seemed to remember something and asked, “How far have you and Jiang Yu gotten?”
Lu Jiazhi was taken aback, his furrowed brows suddenly relaxing, and his tense nerves slowly easing. He smiled wryly and said, “Is that why you’re mad at me?” It had to be said that Lu Jiazhi was good-looking enough that his wry smile could easily give the illusion that he was infinitely tolerant and doting on his lover.
Seeing that Gu Ning still didn’t speak, he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender and explained, “There’s been no progress between us. After we met at your birthday last year at your place, you asked me to take her home. She kept my number and called me a few times, but it was always for work-related advice…”
“After you went missing, she asked me out to talk about your disappearance, and since then, I haven’t seen her again. She did express interest in taking things further, but Gu Ning, I’m busy. I don’t have time for a romantic relationship, and she’s not my type. So there’s no need for you to let an irrelevant person affect our relationship. If you’re unhappy, I won’t answer her calls anymore…” Lu Jiazhi paused after saying this, suddenly frowning. He couldn’t believe he had just made such a promise because of Gu Ning’s little tantrum…
Gu Ning said seriously, “I’m not unhappy. If the two of you end up together, I would genuinely be happy for you. I’m not joking or angry, Lu Jiazhi. I just don’t like you anymore.”
She was just puzzled. The only time Lu Jiazhi and Jiang Yu had interacted was at her birthday last year. How did their relationship develop to that point?
Now, she finally had the answer. It seemed Jiang Yu had taken a liking to Lu Jiazhi from that very first meeting, even though she knew Gu Ning had liked him for years. Jiang Yu had been subtly probing for more information about Lu Jiazhi under the guise of curiosity about Gu Ning’s crush. If Gu Ning had been a bit more sensitive back then, she would have been more cautious. But whether it was Jiang Yu’s skillful manipulation or Gu Ning’s blind trust in their sisterly bond… if not for the apocalypse, she might have only realized the truth when the two of them stood hand in hand before her.
But from what Lu Jiazhi said, it seemed they hadn’t reached that point yet. Having been reborn, Gu Ning didn’t have the slightest desire to break them up as revenge. For her, Lu Jiazhi and Jiang Yu were a good match. She was too busy strengthening herself to survive the apocalypse and didn’t have the time or energy to plot revenge. As long as they stayed far away from her and didn’t keep popping up to annoy her, that was enough.
Gu Ning had even thought about moving away once she had enough money, far from these people, preferably never seeing them again.
Lu Jiazzi was silent for a long time. He gazed at Gu Ning under the osmanthus tree, looking at her familiar yet unfamiliar face, and suddenly said, “Is it because of that guy who accompanied you to the hospital that day?”
Gu Ning was momentarily stunned before realizing he was talking about Method. She knew Lu Jiazzi had misunderstood, but after a moment of hesitation, she said, “No.” She didn’t want to cause unnecessary trouble for Method.
However, Gu Ning’s hesitation made Lu Jiazzi suspicious. He frowned slightly but didn’t press further. Instead, he said, “I know you’re tired. I heard from Auntie that you’re working as a tutor now. Although the pay is good, it’s not a long-term solution. What I said at the hospital still stands…” He didn’t give Gu Ning a chance to refuse and continued, “You don’t have to rush to reject me. I hope you’ll think it over carefully. Even for the sake of your parents, you need a stable job. If you decide, give me a call.” He paused, then added, “Dad knows you’re back and has mentioned a few times that he hopes I can bring you home. You know his health hasn’t been great in recent years, and he doesn’t get around much. When you have time, go visit him. Alright, you can go up now.”
Gu Ning opened the door and went upstairs without even saying goodbye.
This was the first time Gu Ning had turned her back on Lu Jiazzi first.
After Gu Ning went upstairs, Lu Jiazzi stood under the osmanthus tree for a while longer before driving away.
“You’re back,” Gu Ning was greeted warmly by Gu Mama as soon as she entered. “Did you run into Jiazzi downstairs?”
Gu Ning hummed in acknowledgment and then collapsed onto the sofa.
Gu Mama said, “I heard from him that his company has a position ready for you. Did he mention it?”
“He did, but I’m not planning to take it,” Gu Ning sat up from the sofa and looked seriously at Gu Mama and Gu Papa. “Dad, Mom. I don’t like Lu Jiazzi anymore. To avoid unnecessary trouble, I don’t plan to keep in touch with him. As for my job, I’m quite satisfied with it for now, and it’s relatively stable in the short term. If there’s a better opportunity, I’ll keep an eye out.”
Gu Mama was momentarily stunned by Gu Ning’s words, then sighed and said, “If you don’t like him, then you don’t like him. After all, you’ve liked him for so many years, and he’s never said he likes you. If he really liked you, you would’ve been his girlfriend by now. Jiazzi is good, but my daughter isn’t bad either. I think Xiao Fang is quite nice, and he’s been so proactive in helping you find a job. If the two of you end up together, it would be fate.”
Gu Papa adjusted his glasses and said, “Then you should visit the Lu family less. Even though his parents like you, since you don’t like him anymore, it’s best to keep some distance. To avoid any misunderstandings later.”
Gu Ning was a bit surprised by her parents’ reactions. She couldn’t help but say, “I always thought you really wanted me to be with Lu Jiazzi.”
Gu Mama said, “We did want that. He’s good-looking, well-educated, successful, and his parents like you. If you married into their family, you wouldn’t have to worry about mother-in-law issues. But no matter how good he is, there’s one thing your dad has always been concerned about. He thinks Jiazzi is too deep, hard to figure out. You’ve always liked him more than he liked you, and we were worried you’d get hurt. We didn’t say anything before because you were so into him, and you wouldn’t have listened anyway. Now that you say you don’t like him anymore, we’re actually relieved.” She then shifted the topic to Method. “But Xiao Fang seems like a straightforward guy. He’s nice, sweet-talking, and his smile is so sunny! It just makes people happy. Seriously, you should consider him.”
Gu Ning stood up helplessly and walked towards her room, saying, “What’s there to consider? He doesn’t like me. Mom, don’t overthink it.” With that, she returned to her room.
Gu Mama was still a bit unconvinced. “How do you know he doesn’t like you? If he didn’t like you, why would he come all the way to our house? I think Xiao Fang is great. If he were my son-in-law, I’d be proud to show him off anywhere.”
Gu Papa shook his head helplessly and continued watching TV.
The door closed, cutting off Gu Mama’s voice. The bedroom was Gu Ning’s private space, where thoughts of Lu Jiazzi and Method were all tossed aside. She walked to her desk, opened her computer, which she hadn’t touched in over three months, and with nimble fingers, typed “Five-Star Brigade” into the search bar.
Gu Ning scrolled through at least ten pages of search results, finding locations, Taobao shops, guilds, and villages named Five-Star, but nothing useful.
She hadn’t held much hope, just wanted to see if she could find any clues. Not finding anything wasn’t a disappointment, as she had expected it.
It was still nighttime in the apocalypse timeline. She still had plenty of time here. Gu Ning was surprised to find herself with nothing to do, which felt strange after being in a constant state of urgency since her rebirth. She had been away from the ordinary life for too long, and suddenly having free time felt uncomfortable.
She leaned back in her chair and sat quietly for a while, then straightened up and began searching the vast internet for cold weapons.
She searched for cold weapons.
The first result was an advertisement for a cold weapon shop.
The second result was a cold weapon forum.
Gu Ning opened the cold weapon forum.
The posts were a chaotic mess, mostly useless. After quickly browsing through them, Gu Ning didn’t find what she was looking for. Just as she was about to close the page, she noticed a post titled “Private Collection, Only for Those with Appreciation Skills.”
She moved the mouse cursor away from the close button and clicked into the post.
The first floor was a lengthy introduction by the poster about the impressive qualities of their collection of swords and knives.
The second floor started posting pictures.
There were over a dozen pictures in a row.
Mostly swords and knives, with a few oddly shaped weapons.
Finally, the poster mentioned that they were facing some financial difficulties and decided to sell these weapons at a low price. Interested parties could contact them via the provided email.
The following posts were all from the poster.
For example, “No one? Really no one wants them? This is a one-time offer, don’t regret it later.”
But it seemed no one was interested, with only a few people commenting that the knives looked nice.
Then the poster disappeared.
Gu Ning noticed the post was made half a month ago.
She scrolled back up to the pictures and took a closer look at the third picture, which showed a uniquely designed knife. The two knife handles could be combined or used separately. The poster praised its sharpness, claiming it could cut through hair and had immense killing power.
She glanced at the email address, logged into her own email, and sent a message to that address.
