Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 386: Chapter 376: Aunt Hua’s Insistence

”Sister Hua, you...”

Qiao Xin was stunned. She hadn’t expected Aunt Hua to still insist on going after hearing what Qi Jiaming had said.

”Aunt Hua, you shouldn’t go. It’s far too dangerous.” Qiao Jin didn’t approve of Aunt Hua going either. After all, while Aunt Hua had a straightforward personality, her combat ability was practically zero.

”Don’t any of you try to stop me. I have to go.” The determination in Aunt Hua’s eyes was undeniable.

”Sister Hua, Da Bao and Er Bao are still so young. They need their mother.”

Anyone could see that Aunt Hua was now driven by a death-defying resolve, single-mindedly seeking an answer.

As a mother herself, Qiao Xin tried to appeal to Aunt Hua’s maternal instincts to make her abandon this suicidal notion.

Was it really worth risking almost certain death for an answer?

”It’s worth it. My life is my own. If I really don’t make it back this time, Zhao Huan, I’ll have to trouble you to take Da Bao and Er Bao to that warlord you mentioned, the one with the surname Yang. Just say they’re the children sent by Yang Ahua. They’ll reward you.”

As Aunt Hua spoke, it was as if she were giving her last words. She didn’t say what her relationship with the Yang Family was, but at this moment, that no longer mattered.

Because Aunt Hua had already made up her mind.

”My life is my own. Even if I die, I have to find out the truth. My children have their own paths to walk. We can only be responsible for ourselves. Otherwise, what’s the point of this journey through life?”

Aunt Hua’s words silenced everyone. They couldn’t help but admire her open-mindedness, and it left them with no room for rebuttal.

”Alright. Since you’ve made your decision, let’s go together.”

Tang Mo admired a woman like that. She thought the same way: ’Before one can be a proper mother, one must first be a proper self.’

’If you can’t even be responsible for yourself, how can you be responsible for someone else’s life?’

What happened next was straightforward. Time was tight and couldn’t be wasted, so Zhao Huan immediately gathered everyone and told them about the situation at the food factory.

No one doubted Zhao Huan’s words.

After their entire journey together, no one questioned the character of the three Zhao Family brothers.

”The food factory is clearly no longer an option. Let’s all disperse and find our own way from here.”

Zhao Huan explained everything to them clearly. The rest was up to each individual’s choice.

Whether they chose to walk into a death trap or seek another path to survival was not something he could control.

After Zhao Huan explained the situation with the food factory, he had expected everyone to disperse, but to his surprise, the crowd below didn’t move an inch.

”You all know I came here looking for someone. The person I’m looking for is in that food factory, so I have to go there. You shouldn’t follow me anymore.”

No matter how dangerous it was, Zhao Huan had to go, which meant it was impossible for the others to keep following him.

”Then... can we wait for you here?”

Someone in the crowd spoke up, asking tentatively with a cautious expression.

”Yeah, we came all this way through so much hardship. Even if we split up, we don’t know where else to go. We don’t have homes anymore...”

”Captain, please don’t abandon us. I know we haven’t contributed much, but we still have food. We can give it all to you, okay? Please take us with you.”

”That’s right! We’ll give you all our remaining food, and we’ll pay the team fee again! Just take us with you!”

It was unclear who started it, but one by one, the people below began opening their backpacks, pulling out food, and placing it on the ground in front of them.

They had seen too many other groups on their journey. Everyone knew just how good, how precious, a leader like Zhao Huan was.

’We’ll never find another captain as good as him.’ This was the one thought on everyone’s mind.

Seeing how much everyone trusted him, Zhao Huan was deeply moved, and his eyes began to burn.

”I might not make it out of there alive this time. Besides, I don’t even know where I’m going next. Where would you follow me to?”

”You’ll definitely come back safely! As long as we’re with you, we’ll go anywhere!”

”That’s right! Anywhere is fine!”

The people below all chimed in. In this apocalypse, none of them really had a destination.

After all this time, they had clearly come to see Zhao Huan as their spiritual pillar. As long as they were following him, they would go anywhere.

As for what came after, how could they possibly think that far ahead?

”Alright! Since you’re all willing to trust me, then wait. When I get out, I’ll lead you all away from this place.”

Zhao Huan was incredibly soft-hearted to begin with. Seeing this scene, he was so moved that he couldn’t bring himself to refuse.

’Forget it,’ he thought. ’If I really do rescue Yang Jiabao, I’ll have to take him back to the Yang Family afterward anyway.’

’A few of us will be traveling regardless, so it won’t make much difference to bring everyone along. Besides, there’s Strength in numbers.’

With the method Tang Mo had taught them, Zhao Huan and his brothers felt much more confident about dealing with the Meat Dragons on the road.

They certainly weren’t planning a head-on assault on the food factory. Zhao Huan had Zhao Tian and Zhao Yu stay behind while he went alone with Aunt Hua and Tang Mo.

Their plan was to rescue the person stealthily under the cover of night.

Of course, this was Tang Mo and Zhao Huan’s plan. Aunt Hua, on the other hand, was preparing to walk straight into the trap to find Yang Ming and demand answers. She was essentially going there to die.

Tang Mo was certainly capable of keeping Aunt Hua alive, but she knew that for someone whose heart had died, living was more painful than death.

’Matters of the heart are not for outsiders to interfere in.’ So, naturally, she let Aunt Hua do as she pleased.

Besides, Aunt Hua’s intentions were clear. Da Bao and Er Bao were children of the Yang Family. Even if something happened to her, sending them to the Yang Family along with Yang Jiabao would ensure they had a place to go.

The three of them each had different objectives, but their final destination was the same: the food factory.

Tang Mo had no intention of forcing her way in. After all, there were too many innocent people inside, and she didn’t want to cause any unnecessary casualties.

’I just want to rescue Mr. and Mrs. Qiao and complete my mission in this world.’ She had no desire to do anything more.

To be safe, Qi Jiaming had to return to the factory. This would allow him to tip off George Lin inside. With their coordination, Tang Mo’s operation would be much smoother.

They had already worked out the plan. When night fell, Tang Mo’s group would take down the few guards at the entrance and get the keys to the room where the hostages and the ”bait” were being held.

George Lin and Qi Jiaming’s movements weren’t restricted inside, so once they got the keys, they could quickly bring out Mrs. Qiao. Tang Mo would then provide cover for the group to escape the food factory smoothly.