Chapter 36: Lure by Letting Go
Xiao Yi turned his head.
"Thank you!" The woman's eyes brimmed with gratitude, tears streaming endlessly down her cheeks, her face etched with helpless bewilderment.
"My name is Katherine Qinsheng. You can call me Katherine. It's an honor to meet you! Thank you so much for helping us. I apologize for my rudeness earlier."
Katherine bowed deeply in gratitude once more, her snowy cleavage quivering enticingly under the sunlight.
"Thank you, Uncle!" Jessica Alba bowed gratefully to Xiao Yi as well. "I'm Jessica Alba. You can call me Jessica."
It's really Jessica Alba!!
Xiao Yi's heart exploded with wild joy, as if he'd stumbled upon a priceless treasure.
Jessica Alba—the goddess he'd fantasized about countless times in his previous life. He'd fallen for her ever since watching Fantastic Four, captivated by her voluptuous figure and breathtaking, enchanting beauty.
He'd seen nearly every one of her films: Bad Boys, Sin City, Mechanic, and more.
His obsession wasn't fanatical, but he'd stroked himself to her more times than he could count.
And now, the real Jessica Alba stood right before him—so utterly helpless!
The only pity was that she looked no older than twelve or thirteen, a pure yet slightly precocious little girl.
If Xiao Yi remembered correctly, by 1993 Jessica Alba had already entered show business. She'd filmed Camp Nowhere around this time, and without the apocalypse, her standout performance would have launched her career, propelling her smoothly to the peak as a Hollywood superstar—the wet dream of countless men.
"I'm Xiao Yi, from China." Xiao Yi gave the grateful mother and daughter a deep look before turning and climbing out over the wall.
As they watched his retreating back, the pair clutched each other tightly once more and broke into wrenching sobs.
With the family's sole breadwinner gone, their food stores had run dry. They could scrape by on grass roots and tree bark for another day or two.
But without rescue soon, even those would become luxuries.
They'd clung to a sliver of hope before, waiting for the man of the house to return safely with supplies. No matter how bitter or exhausting, they'd endured.
But now, learning of the only man's death, mother and daughter plummeted into utter terror, confusion, and despair.
It was high noon, 12 p.m.—peak sun, scorching heat.
Zombies on the streets had thinned out, scattered few and far between. Most had slunk into woods or under cars.
Xiao Yi returned to the villa where he'd found the man's body. He tore down a curtain, wrapped the corpse tightly, lashed it to his back with rope, then carried it back to Jessica Alba and her mother's villa. He laid it gently on the front yard's open ground, peeled back the curtain to reveal the man's gruesome remains. The stench made Xiao Yi grimace.
"Mark!!"
"Daddy!!"
With two anguished wails, the villa door flew open.
Jessica Alba and Katherine rushed out, dropping to their knees beside the body in inconsolable grief. Katherine clutched the man's rigid, purpled hand, pressing her head against his corpse.
Sorrow and despair thickened the air in the yard. Xiao Yi could feel Katherine and Jessica's raw agony and pain; the sight of this family's shattered bonds stirred a rare sadness in him.
Thinking of his own parents, Xiao Yi wondered if he'd ever return to his original world in this lifetime.
He let out a long sigh, subtly eyeing the shotgun in Katherine's grip—the very one he'd discarded earlier. Even now, amid this devastation, she remained wary of him.
At this range, if the woman fired, she'd turn him into Swiss cheese without effort.
Her vigilance and caution exceeded Xiao Yi's expectations.
He'd assumed delivering the body would make the mother and daughter drop their guard completely.
But clearly, he'd been too optimistic.
The woman showed no relaxation whatsoever—in fact, she seemed to keep him at respectful distance.
"Thank you for bringing him back to us. Your kindness... we have no way to repay it."
The woman choked back her grief, steeling herself against the pain. She gazed tenderly at her husband's remains, a flicker of despair in her eyes. But seeing her daughter beside her, sobbing like a broken doll, her face hardened with resolve.
She longed to follow her husband into death. This cursed apocalypse held nothing for her.
Better to die with him than cling to this wretched survival.
Yet gazing at her daughter—lost in grief, helpless and bewildered—she forced down the pain. She had to keep living!
As a mother, she must protect her child, ensure Jessica survived.
No matter the cost—even giving everything she had.