Chapter 10: Fallen Leaves Return to Their Roots

The people coming may not necessarily be good or bad.

But in a time when all order had collapsed, caution was the most basic element of survival.

Gao Yuan did not want to abandon this refuge. If the person coming was good, Gao Yuan would politely send them away, but if the person attempted to plunder his supplies, then Gao Yuan would do whatever it took to protect himself,

In fact, the plan Luo Xingyu suggested was a good one, letting her appear first to distract the newcomer's attention, then Gao Yuan would jump out and ambush them, which undoubtedly would increase the chances of success.

It was just that Gao Yuan was quite doubtful of Luo Xingyu's current physical condition.

"I'm fine, really fine. I don't want to be alone and deserted anymore, brother, I don't want to run away anymore. Besides, even if I ran away now, I would still be doomed, so we might as well fight together."

Luo Xingyu appeared fragile, but her expression was firm.

Gao Yuan hesitated for a moment, sighed, and softly said, "Follow me."

At this point, letting Luo Xingyu run away was pretty much synonymous with sending her to her death. Since that was the case, they might as well truly join forces and give it their all.

Gao Yuan led Luo Xingyu to the back of the house on the outermost edge of the village.

The person in the distance had come significantly closer, but there was still a distance of five or six hundred meters. Gao Yuan did not know if the other party had discovered them yet, but judging by the leisurely pace of their walk, they probably had not.

"You hide here, I'll hide there. Later, we'll see who's coming. If they don't seem friendly, we'll get control of them before talking. No, no matter who it is, we get them under control first."

Luo Xingyu whispered, "Should we just go on the offensive?"

After some contemplation, Gao Yuan felt this situation was somewhat tricky.

Even though it was the apocalypse, they couldn't just kill every person they met, right? If the newcomer was just an ordinary person seeking refuge, with no ill intentions, and they started attacking immediately, even an ordinary person would fight back.

After a moment's thought, Luo Xingyu then said, "I'll go out first. If the person sees that I'm a girl, plans something immoral, then he's a bad person, and you can ambush him from behind. If he's polite and doesn't seem like a bad person, you can come out and talk to him."

"Fine, but be careful. Don't go too far ahead, in case I can't save you in time. That's settled, then."

Having agreed on a course of action, Gao Yuan and Luo Xingyu each hid at a corner behind the house, Gao Yuan in front and Luo Xingyu behind. They knew that the person coming would have to pass by the old house, so an ambush from here was without doubt.

With a knife in his left hand and an axe in his right, Gao Yuan stood at the back of the house, waiting for the person to draw near.

He could hear footsteps now, Gao Yuan didn't dare to peek out any longer, fearing discovery by the newcomer. As the footsteps grew closer to the house, Luo Xingyu finally stepped out.

"Stop! Cough cough, who are you!"

Luo Xingyu called out, and both of Gao Yuan's hands trembled slightly, a result of extreme tension.

"Huh, you... you're a girl?"

The voice was of a man, surprised, and to Gao Yuan's alarm, there was also excitement in the man's tone.

This was not a good sign.

"What are you doing, don't come any closer!"

Luo Xingyu shouted, and Gao Yuan panicked, so he didn't wait any longer and burst out into action.

As he rounded the corner of the house, he saw the back of the newcomer.

The person had been wearing a green military coat, but by now, it was off and draped over his left arm, his right hand holding a stick planted in the ground.

Without knowing if this was a good or bad person, but judging by Luo Xingyu's frightened reaction, Gao Yuan labeled this person a bad guy.

Without a sound, Gao Yuan raised his axe and swung it towards the back of the newcomer's head.

He held back his mercy when not in action, but when he acted, he showed no mercy. If there was hostility, then he had to be ruthless.

The person in front of Gao Yuan turned around. Although Gao Yuan had made no noise, it was as if the man had eyes in the back of his head.

Turning around, he flung the coat he held in his left hand forward while the stick in his right hand whooshed straight up.

With the knife in his left hand, Gao Yuan meant to push away the coat, and his right hand continued to bring down the axe without hesitation.

But the stick pierced directly into Gao Yuan's chest.

Agony interrupted his breath, the strength in his right hand flagging as the axe fell weakly, his left hand unable to extend forward and fend off the coat.

The severe pain made Gao Yuan see stars, and for a moment, he could see nothing at all.

Right after, Gao Yuan felt his right hand loosen, but the axe was already dropped.

And Gao Yuan didn't even know how he had lost his axe.

When Gao Yuan finally regained sight, he saw the person in front of him had turned around, the stick in hand, looking towards Luo Xingyu.

"Ah! Run away!"

Luo Xingyu's face was flushed with embarrassment. She held the knife with such slow speed that it posed no threat, yet she still charged toward the person in front of Gao Yuan.

Gao Yuan didn't know where the strength came from, but he transferred the knife from his left hand to his right, clenched his teeth, and sprang forward without a word, thrusting the knife at the person before him.

There was a smack, and the knife in Gao Yuan's right hand was struck by a stick, clattering to the ground.

Immediately after, the person turned around, simply stretched out the stick to deflect Luo Xingyu's hand outward, and then nudged her leg, causing Luo Xingyu to lose balance and stumble forward to the ground.

But Luo Xingyu did not fall. As she pitched forward, she was suddenly caught by the back.

So strong, incredibly skilled.

Gao Yuan felt utterly hopeless.

"Stop! Everyone stop, what are you doing!"

Gao Yuan halted in his tracks, anxiously waiting for the person before him, and only then did he realize that the person who had thoroughly defeated him was an old man.

His hair was peppered with white, as was the unstubbled beard on his chin, and what he wore was actually a military uniform.

An old-fashioned military uniform, olive green service attire without collar patches, but for some reason, Gao Yuan felt considerably more at ease.

"What do you two young ones think you're doing!"

The old man sounded quite angry. Gao Yuan stood still, took a step back to the fallen ax, and shouted loudly, "Let her go!"

Luo Xingyu struggled desperately, shouting, "Are you stupid? Run! Run!"

"Don't move! Are you two out of your minds? If I had meant you harm, you'd be dead by now!"

After yelling in annoyance, the old man yanked Luo Xingyu up, straightening her from her forward fall, and then loudly said, "Stand still and talk properly! If you two hadn't seemed like decent folks, neither of you would be standing now. Speak up, why did you sneak attack me!"

The old man let go of Luo Xingyu, but his imposing manner prevented Gao Yuan from daring to make any rash moves.

"What were you planning to do to her?"

Gao Yuan knew he was no match, but he still stooped quickly to pick up the ax, then gestured to Luo Xingyu, now free, saying, "Come over here, hurry."

Luo Xingyu promptly moved behind Gao Yuan, picked up the knife first, but then in a low voice said, "This… this old gentleman doesn't seem like a bad guy."

Gao Yuan still eyed the old man, who said irritably, "What was I thinking? I saw the young lady freezing over there. I was walking and sweating all over, so I just wanted to give her my coat."

Gao Yuan and Luo Xingyu paused, stunned for a moment, and then Gao Yuan turned slightly to Luo Xingyu asking, "What did he do to you? Why did you scream?"

Luo Xingyu whispered, "He suddenly started to take off his coat; I was so afraid and nervous... I screamed, but I didn't ask you... to intervene."

Gao Yuan replied in exasperation, "I had to come out quickly when I heard your scream."

The old man's expression softened a bit. He shook his head but still said angrily, "The two of you youngsters are unreasonable. You're lucky it was me; with someone else, you might have gotten yourselves hurt!"

Gao Yuan sheepishly said, "We were just afraid of injuring an innocent person. That's why we did what we did; it's just a bit of a... misunderstanding..."

Luo Xingyu voiced her discontent, "Even if you meant well, you should have said something first. You just start taking off your coat – how am I supposed to know what you intend to do? Given the current situation, you're not unaware. What if we ran into a malefactor and got harmed?"

The old man thought for a moment, then chuckled bitterly, "I should indeed have informed you first. These days, it's hard to tell good from bad."

It seemed to be a genuine misunderstanding.

Gao Yuan said in a low voice, "How did you find this place, what do you plan to do here?"

The old man looked at Gao Yuan and said seriously, "This is my home."

"Your home? You're talking nonsense; this place has been uninhabited for decades."

The old man calmly replied, "Yet, here I am, having lived here decades ago, because this is my ancestral home."

It sounded quite reasonable, and Gao Yuan was taken aback for a moment before asking, "Your ancestral home? But why have you come back now?"

"Since this is my ancestral home, naturally I've come back to return to my roots."

The old man had a backpack on his back. Before he took off his coat, he had set it on the ground. Now, he put the stick aside, crouched down, opened the backpack, and took out a box.

It was an urn.

"This is my spouse's ashes. I want to bury her in the ancestral graveyard, and when my time comes, I'll also rest here. Do you believe me now?"

By now, Gao Yuan was completely convinced. Without hesitation, he said in a low voice, "I see, we're truly sorry; it really was a misunderstanding. Are you planning to settle down here then?"

The old man nodded, "Yes, I'm definitely settling down. Don't worry, I'm not a bad person; you don't have to be afraid. It seems you're also living here, so let's be neighbors. Thinking about it, this village has been empty for decades. I didn't expect to have a neighbor on returning, which is quite nice."

Being neighbors, is that really okay?

Gao Yuan didn't want a neighbor, but considering the old man's skills and seeing the old military uniform he wore, Gao Yuan thought perhaps having a neighbor might not be so bad after all.