WS - Chapter 131

Chapter 131

Ning Chuyang's words made some people's hearts jump, but for others, they sparked a sliver of hope.

From Mu Xingzhou's sudden upward glance, Zhao Da saw a light seemingly bursting through the dust of despair, and his heart sank.

"..." Zhao Er, who had been named, didn't know how to answer and subconsciously reached out and tugged at his silent brother.

Zhao Da turned to Ning Chuyang and gave an apologetic smile. "We want most people to be safe. But it's obvious now that sticking together is much less efficient than splitting up. By then, not to mention safety, even basic survival will be hard to ensure. Even though you have more people, your choice isn't rational. We choose to split up."

Ning Chuyang: "..."

"So you just don't want to go together. It doesn't really have anything to do with most people's safety." Zhuang Jiachuan was also a bit disappointed inside, but felt like he saw things more clearly.

"Our choice is to increase everyone's chances of survival. We don't insist that everyone supports our decision. Likewise... when it comes to survival, it's normal to have differing opinions. But if we can't bear the consequences of the other side's changed decision, then it's better not to force each other." Zhao Da's face was slammed with Zhuang Jiachuan's words, but when he spoke again, he still appeared to stand firmly on the side of justice and fairness.

"Then I want to ask: if the first team reaches the next camp first, will you leave food in the thermal storage boxes according to the headcount for the team behind?" Mu Xingzhou was somewhat unwilling; even though Zhao Da had made his meaning clear the previous night, he still asked the question again.

"Personally, I hope to do that, but I can't guarantee it." Zhao Da paused. "I already answered that question the night before last. That's my answer. I'll do my best, but things are unpredictable..."

Zhao Da's openness about the nighttime talk from two nights ago made Mu Xingzhou freeze for a second.

But that wasn't important.

What was important was that Zhao Da's answer was still so heartless. Whether in private conversation between just the two of them or in front of so many people, he could speak beautifully while making one immediately understand what the real outcome would be.

"You..." Ning Chuyang wanted to say more, but Yu Nianbing, who had stepped forward two paces, tugged her sleeve.

"Since everyone has made their decision, let's leave it at that." Yu Nianbing walked toward Zhao Da. "I can take a bowl of congee, right?"

Zhao Da's gaze fixed on Yu Nianbing as she kept approaching. He nodded. "You can also take half a portion of salad."

Yu Nianbing took a bowl of dried scallop and rib congee, then picked up a portion of salad and looked at Ning Chuyang. "Can you come over later and split this with me?"

Ning Chuyang still wanted to say something, but seeing Yu Nianbing gently shake her head, she forcibly swallowed her words and just said "Okay."

The intense topic originally thrown out by Director Zhang ended like this in Yu Nianbing's airy sentence.

Not just Ning Chuyang, even Zhao Da felt that Yu Nianbing's nonchalance made their back-and-forth debate seem somewhat... somewhat like child's play.

However, there was still a result.

When Mu Xingzhou spoke and Zhao Da answered him again, Zhao Da saw the resentment and despair in Mu Xingzhou's eyes.

He felt that things were settled.

One by one, they returned to silence, taking the congee and salad from the hands of Zhao Da and Zhao Er.

They dispersed, then gathered in twos and threes, drinking congee, eating salad, and talking quietly.

Ning Chuyang took a bowl of eight-treasure congee to Yu Nianbing's tent.

Yu Nianbing's was a single-person tent, with Song Shiyue lying inside, so there was no room for the two of them to sit. So they just stood outside and shared the salad.

"Oh right, Teacher Yu doesn't know yet: Feng Qianqian also woke up for a while this afternoon, not long ago. It's a pity the food is all in the thermal storage boxes, inconvenient to get, so we only gave her two mouthfuls of water-soaked jerky. Though she fell asleep after a few bites, she looked much more spirited than yesterday." As Ning Chuyang spoke, she forked a piece of lettuce into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed. She glanced at Yu Nianbing, who was frowning slightly, and added, "So Teacher Yu should stop worrying about Song Shiyue. She also woke up once last night, didn't she? Just like Feng Qianqian, if she can wake up and eat a little, she'll gradually get better and better."

Yu Nianbing nodded, accepting Ning Chuyang's comfort. But she just poked at the cherry tomatoes in the box and looked at Ning Chuyang as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

Ning Chuyang wolfed down several mouthfuls of leafy greens before she realized Yu Nianbing hadn't forked any salad for a long time. She couldn't help but lift her head from the salad box and look over.

"Teacher Yu..." Ning Chuyang paused and smiled. "Is Teacher Yu going to ask if I'll stay? Ha, no need to ask. If I go with them and leave Song Shiyue behind, am I even human? How could I live on? I'd be so guilty every night I couldn't sleep, and I'd die of regret and depression real soon."

Yu Nianbing: "..."

Actually, Yu Nianbing wasn't going to ask whether Ning Chuyang would really stay.

She was just...

The box of salad wasn't large; in the time it took them to exchange a few words, each took a few bites and it was finished.

After the salad was done, neither of them made a move to touch the congee.

"Is Teacher Yu also thinking of leaving the congee?" Ning Chuyang glanced at the congee bowl Yu Nianbing had placed by the tent and asked.

Yu Nianbing nodded. "Today I won't put it back in the thermal storage box, just in case Song Shiyue wakes up tonight."

"Mm." Ning Chuyang nodded. "I'll leave my share here too. For Song Shiyue to eat; I reckon one bowl won't be enough."

Yu Nianbing: "..."

In the end, Yu Nianbing didn't reject Ning Chuyang's kind offer.

After Ning Chuyang left, rubbing her stomach only half-full of salad, Yu Nianbing carried the two bowls of congee back to her tent.

A long, long time later, Song Shiyue, who was trying hard to savor the lingering fragrance of salad, heard Yu Nianbing's voice as if talking to herself.

"Actually... I should have urged her to go. But... I'm really afraid that alone... I can't take care of everything. Really, I feel..."

Yu Nianbing's murmur was interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps.

But Song Shiyue could imagine the words she hadn't finished.

It was an apology to Ning Chuyang, she guessed.

After all, staying... really is too hard.

But why should Yu Nianbing have to bear this guilt?

The burden is Song Shiyue's own.

Self-blame and worry occupied most of Song Shiyue's consciousness, until the sound of voices came from outside the tent.

"Didn't Song Shiyue wake up last night? She might wake up once today too. Give her this to drink. Hahaha, actually I noticed a long time ago that she can eat a lot. Every time Teacher Yu saves food for her, we greedy ones were too tactless to notice. This time let me have a chance to repay the favor." The speaker was Zhuang Jiachuan, bringing his bowl of dried scallop and rib congee. Seeing Yu Nianbing not reaching out to take it, he laughed with forced lightness and added, "Of course, I won't repay a life-saving grace with just a bowl of congee. When I said earlier that I would stay, I wasn't just talking off the top of my head. I will definitely stay."

Actually, Song Shiyue could largely guess that Ning Chuyang would stay. Ning Chuyang as a person is quite spontaneous, and her character is very clear about debts of gratitude and grudges.

As for Zhuang Jiachuan... after Song Shiyue collapsed, his protection and care for them was somewhat surprising. After all, during the livestream earlier, some of Zhuang Jiachuan's friendliness had a bit of performance to it. Especially back when they were on the spaceship... he had acted so much it was a bit embarrassing.

But now that the livestream was gone and the drawbacks of following them were so obvious... you could almost say he was repaying the kindness with his life.

It really was somewhat unexpected.

But what was unexpected wasn't just this little thing.

After Zhuang Jiachuan left, Guan Yongyi came and delivered a bowl of eight-treasure congee.

Without any extra words, Guan Yongyi just placed the congee by the tent, said "I'm sorry," and left.

As for this "sorry," whether it was directed at Song Shiyue or Yu Nianbing, it no longer mattered.

Even though Guan Yongyi had remained silent during the earlier argument, his decision was now clear and obvious.

There was nothing to criticize. They were just people who had met by chance a few days ago...

To get this bowl of congee was actually a bit better than what the others had done...

On the surface, it seemed like the situation was settled, but in reality, faint discussions were still happening in every corner of the camp.

Yu Nianbing's mood was visibly bad. After finishing the salad, Ning Chuyang rolled back to the tent where Feng Qianqian was.

But the frustration from the earlier argument hadn't dissipated at all.

Especially when eating the salad, Ning Chuyang had asked Yu Nianbing why she had stopped her from continuing to argue with those people.

Yu Nianbing had lowered her voice and replied, "Now that there's no livestream, and we don't know how long the lingering effects of the Yaoxing Storm will last, people's hearts are scattered. If we force everyone to go together, can we withstand the backlash that follows?"

This one sentence made Ning Chuyang freeze repeatedly, but it also made her even angrier.

Back at Feng Qianqian's tent, Ning Chuyang grumblingly repeated Yu Nianbing's words, then looked at Ni Jinghe and Mu Xingzhou with a displeased expression, seeking sympathy. "Are they really going to beat us up if they get upset? We're not like the people on Pinggu Prime decades ago who didn't understand the situation and thought it was the apocalypse with no hope. Everyone is going to go back home. Would they really get rough with us?"

"I think Teacher Yu is right. In a situation without any regulatory authority, don't try to test people's endurance." As Ni Jinghe gently wiped Feng Qianqian's face, she added, "After all, the side that wants to split up has more men and greater strength. We should keep a low profile and not force things. Not to mention others, just Zhao Da alone — all of us together wouldn't be a match for him. Right now people still care about face and are only arguing verbally. If they stop caring about face..."

Ni Jinghe didn't finish her sentence, but what would happen if they stopped caring about face was easy to imagine. Ni Jinghe's words were even more blunt than Yu Nianbing's.

Ning Chuyang also knew how correct those words were, but she just couldn't help the fire smoldering in her heart.

"I refuse to believe that with so many of us, we'll end up worse off than them. Teacher Yu knows tons of plants. Once it's light tomorrow, we'll go find food." Ning Chuyang cracked her knuckles resentfully and looked at the two. "Then you two can stay at the camp and help watch Song Shiyue. We can move Song Shiyue over here too. That way, Doctor Ni can keep an eye on her, and Mu Xingzhou, you can go gather firewood nearby."

"What use would you be? Let Teacher Yu and Mu Xingzhou go. The guy has more strength." Ni Jinghe glanced at Ning Chuyang. "You stay and gather firewood. I'll watch over these two."

"Fine. We can take turns going out. I can go the day after tomorrow." Ning Chuyang clapped Mu Xingzhou on the shoulder. "What do you think?"

Mu Xingzhou, who had been looking down at Feng Qianqian, slowly raised his head, his gaze evasive.

Ning Chuyang's hand on Mu Xingzhou's shoulder slowly fell. After a long moment, she forced a stiff smile. "Ha, you will stay, right?"

Mu Xingzhou: "..."

"Didn't you say Feng Qianqian is a very important friend to you?" Ni Jinghe stopped wiping Feng Qianqian's face and also looked at Mu Xingzhou in disbelief.

Silence, sometimes, is also an answer.

Ning Chuyang: "..."

Ni Jinghe: "..."

"I'm going out for some fresh air." Mu Xingzhou ultimately didn't answer their questions directly and fled the tent as if escaping.

A long time later, Ni Jinghe finally spoke again. "He... so, is it going to be a men-and-women split now?"

"Teacher Zhuang said earlier he would stay." Ning Chuyang clenched her hands tightly, struggling to keep her tone even, but the anger and disappointment in her heart continued to churn.

Mu Xingzhou... although Ning Chuyang and him were just a commercially promoted fake CP, they had filmed a drama together, done many promotional events together, and now come together to film this variety show. Even if they weren't especially close friends, they were at least friends who could talk to each other.

Of course, now it seemed that Ning Chuyang might have been the only one who thought that.

It was fine not to mention that a fake CP had no real feelings, but what about Feng Qianqian?

Even though after Feng Qianqian fell unconscious, Mu Xingzhou only admitted they were friends, from his behavior it was clear that it was absolutely not just that simple.

These past two days, he had been so anxious and upset, taking great care of the unconscious Feng Qianqian, throwing away tens of millions without a second thought, and had hardly slept for a day and night helping to drain water from the tent to give Feng Qianqian a relatively dry environment.

It was so obvious... you could tell at a glance how important Feng Qianqian was to Mu Xingzhou.

And now, he was giving up like this?

"Chuyang, don't blame him too much..." Seeing Ning Chuyang's tightly clenched hands, Ni Jinghe sighed. "After all, everyone wants to live."

"I don't blame him." Ning Chuyang said this, but her words were as if chewed to pieces in her mouth and squeezed through her teeth. "I just... don't understand why. Why can't he persist a little longer for someone he so clearly cares about? It's not like we've reached the end of the road yet..."

"By the time we reach the end of the road, it'll be too late to give up." Watching the sleeping Feng Qianqian, Ni Jinghe's eyes gradually filled with sorrow. "Too many people have left. With just us few, we won't live many days."

"Doctor Ni..." At these words, Ning Chuyang's pupils contracted and she looked at Ni Jinghe in shock.

"Three women without fighting ability, two unconscious patients who can't take care of themselves — even if Teacher Zhuang stays, he's just a nearly forty-year-old half-laborer..." Ni Jinghe reached out and placed her hand on Feng Qianqian's injured leg. "If they're still willing to share breakfast with us, our food will probably last only two or three days. The edible plants along the route have been cleared. You'd have to go very, very far, deviating from the path, just to stand at the starting point of a gamble. And of course, all of this is on the premise that no wild beasts come after the protective shield disappears."

"Teacher Yu and I both still have jerky in our bags... Once Song Shiyue recovers, we'll have one more person. We can build fences and treehouses around the camp to guard against wild beasts..." Ning Chuyang intellectually knew that Ni Jinghe wasn't just talking nonsense, but she still struggled and refused to accept it.

"I can't tell what exactly is wrong with Song Shiyue. I reckon we'll have to wait until we're out of Wilderness Planet and can use instruments to know. There are indeed many things we can do. But... we have too few hands. Assuming Teacher Zhuang really stays, then he and Teacher Yu will go out looking for food. One of us two will stay to care for the two unconscious and handle chores, while the remaining one gathers firewood, builds fences and treehouses... all the tasks will fall on that one person." Ni Jinghe spoke in a calm, even somewhat cool tone, breaking it down bit by bit. Then she sighed softly. "Mu Xingzhou isn't just one person. He's a very important, crucial labor force. Without him, the chances of survival for those who stay will inevitably plummet."

Ning Chuyang listened quietly. Her shock and confusion gradually gave way to disbelief, and then gradually returned to calm.

"Mu Xingzhou won't stay. Then what about you, Doctor Ni?" Ning Chuyang asked directly. She had been too exhausted this day — too exhausted to have the mood or energy to beat around the bush or talk in circles.

"Without Mu Xingzhou, the sliver of hope that those who originally planned to stay had for struggling on is now gone." Ni Jinghe's hand pressed heavily on Feng Qianqian's makeshift stretcher. Only this movement revealed the turbulence beneath her calm tone.

Ning Chuyang gave Ni Jinghe a deep look. Only after a long while did she speak again. "Judging survival odds based on changes in a patient's condition, then choosing whether to save or give up — has this become a habit you can't shake, Doctor Ni? Even though they both saved you, can you still so calmly assess the situation and then change your decision?"

"Yes..." Ni Jinghe slowly uttered that word, but did not meet Ning Chuyang's gaze.

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