What?! I Became the Zombie Beauty in the Villain’s Arms – CH93

Chapter 93: Women Don’t Love Bad Men

Duan Xiaolin hugged her, resting his chin heavily on her shoulder. He let out a muffled, low laugh. “Six o’clock.”

“Oh, it’s only six o’clock. That’s okay,” she mumbled. I can still take a nap.

But just as she was about to let her heavy eyelids slide shut, a terrifying realization hit her. She immediately started patting the mattress, searching for her phone.

After a minute of blind fumbling yielded nothing, she gave the man a weak push. “Where is my phone?”

“On the floor,” he replied lightly.

“Please pick it up for me.”

Duan Xiaolin actually complied. He leaned over the edge of the bed and searched the hardwood floor for a moment, finally retrieving the device from a tangled pile of discarded bathrobes.

Pei Xiqing squinted at the illuminated screen.

No wonder the heavy blackout curtains were drawn so tight. It wasn’t six in the morning. It was six o’clock in the evening—of the following day.

She had honestly thought it was early morning and that she could simply catch a few more hours of sleep.

Panic flared in her chest.

Her body felt entirely disconnected from her command inputs. She possessed absolutely zero kinetic strength.

Duan Xiaolin watched her internal crisis for a moment before asking, “Are you absolutely sure you want to try and get up?”

Pei Xiqing collapsed back onto the mattress, utterly defeated, pulling the quilt up to her chin. “I’m not sure of anything right now.”

She literally couldn’t force her limbs to coordinate. She had tried to sit up just a second ago, and her body had just flopped like a wet noodle, which he had clearly found highly amusing.

“How do you feel?”

“Not very good.” Looking back on the past twenty-four hours, she genuinely felt like she had been clinging to the edge of death.

She had never calculated that her baseline civilian biology possessed that level of raw endurance. She had somehow managed to withstand the physical stamina and crushing power of a top-tier ability user.

But it had pushed her to the absolute brink. Her brain and her body had essentially decoupled from one another under the sheer sensory overload.

She had been entirely at his mercy, utterly controlled by his rhythm. She had nearly rolled her eyes back and blacked out multiple times. He had been forced to pull her back from the edge of unconsciousness over and over, granting her brief windows to catch her breath before she could barely recover.

Furthermore, all of that icy, rational “self-control” he normally projected had proven to be absolute bullshit last night.

Duan Xiaolin gathered her into his arms. “Do you want to eat something, or would you rather keep sleeping?”

“…”

“I’ve administered some medical stabilizers to your system. Rest well. If you feel any lingering discomfort, you must tell me immediately.”

Pei Xiqing’s processing units were still sluggish and clouded, making it impossible to formulate a coherent response. She simply closed her eyes and nestled against his warmth. Within minutes, she slipped back into a heavy, dreamless slumber.

By the time she finally recovered enough energy to boot her system online, daylight was already streaming through the gaps in the curtains.

Her lips were a little pale, but a healthy, lingering flush colored her cheeks. She leaned weakly against the headboard, her long, dark hair cascading loosely over her chest. Her skin felt thoroughly refreshed and clean, and even her hair carried the light, floral scent of fresh shampoo.

It wasn’t a mystery. Duan Xiaolin must have carried her unconscious frame into the bathroom to execute a complete shower protocol.

She sat there for seven or eight minutes, waiting for her internal equilibrium to stabilize. Finally, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed, washed her face in the basin, and checked her phone.

Zero unread messages.

She simply checked the time.

Rubbing the persistent ache in her lower back and neck, she slowly walked out into the living room. Xiaobai was lying listlessly in the center of the courtyard, looking bored. But the exact millisecond the Husky spotted her clearing the threshold, he was instantly revived, jumping up and sprinting toward her like a furry missile.

Seeing the heavy hound preparing to launch his entire body weight at her chest, Pei Xiqing quickly threw up her hands. “Wait a minute, Xiaobai! Hit the brakes! Stop right there!”

Xiaobai’s simple brain was completely overwhelmed with joy. He aborted the jump, but he couldn’t contain his excitement, frantically circling around her legs like a tornado. His tail whipped the air so fast it was a blur.

Pei Xiqing currently felt as fragile as a piece of thin paper that could be blown away by a strong gust of wind. If the heavy dog had actually pounced, her knees would have instantly buckled. As Xiaobai’s rapidly wagging tail thumped against her calves, she felt herself swaying unsteadily.

Since the ecstatic dog was entirely blocking her path to the kitchen, she opted to sink onto the living room sofa instead. She waved Xiaobai over, gently patting his broad head.

“Why are you getting more and more clingy by the day? You’re a zombie hound, act tough.”

As she stroked his fur, she noticed that Xiaobai seemed to have bulked up significantly over the past few days. His face had rounded out, looking soft and thick like a stuffed bun. He rested his heavy chin on her thigh, acting exactly like a spoiled child. She playfully scratched his ears. “Bark for me. Let me hear your vocal output.”

Xiaobai let out two sharp, happy barks, immediately bringing a smile to Pei Xiqing’s face.

“Are you absolutely sure you’re not just executing a spoiled routine? Hmm?” She lightly pinched his round, furry cheeks. “Who fed your system while my line was offline for the past two days?”

Right on cue, the heavy outer gate clicked open. Duan Xiaolin walked into the courtyard carrying a large bag of fresh groceries and a secondary bag of clean laundry.

Xiaobai immediately trotted over to him, his tail wagging a steady rhythm, and sat dutifully beside the man’s boots. The hound looked back at Pei Xiqing, as if signaling that this was the specific asset responsible for his logistics.

Pei Xiqing’s eyes crinkled with a warm smile. She whistled the dog back over, burying her hands in his incredibly thick, fluffy coat. Looking up at Duan Xiaolin, she asked, “Brother Duan, what exact nutritional parameters have you been feeding him? How is it mathematically possible that he looks like he gained ten pounds of mass in just forty-eight hours?”

“Premium cuts of beef and lamb, chicken hearts, and fresh fish, supplemented with a vegetable grid of broccoli, carrots, and pumpkin to optimize his vitamin intake.”

Pei Xiqing was completely dumbfounded.

“Wait… are you telling me the dog’s dietary baseline is exponentially better than the average civilian’s?”

“The logistical conditions across the base have stabilized significantly compared to the early winters,” he explained calmly. “I extracted this specific canine nutritional model from several high-clearance directors who maintain pets.”

Pei Xiqing lightly tapped Xiaobai’s forehead. “Oh, you spoiled brat! It seems my previous protocol of only feeding you raw meat was severely mistreating your system. Your bowl is actually processing a vegetable variety that my own palate is jealous of.”

Hearing her tone, Xiaobai dropped to the floor and happily rolled onto his back, exposing his belly.

She laughed out loud, leaning back as Duan Xiaolin approached. Reaching out, she wrapped her arms lazily around the man’s narrow waist, pressing her cheek against his stomach in a spoiled, coquettish gesture. “I’m so hungry. My fuel reserves are totally empty.”

Duan Xiaolin lightly pinched the nape of her neck, exactly like he was comforting a stray kitten. “Understood. I secured some high-grade rations for your system.”

She genuinely hadn’t consumed a single calorie in two days. The medical stabilizers he had injected her with might have suppressed her appetite temporarily, but now that they had worn off, her stomach felt hollow enough to devour an entire cow.

“If your return vector had delayed any longer, my stomach would have completely caved in.”

“Care to let me run a physical diagnostic?” The man set the bags down on the counter, easily lifted her frame from the sofa, and pressed his large, warm palm directly against her flat stomach.

Pei Xiqing was caught entirely off guard as his fingers executed a slow, deliberate rub over her bare skin.

Then, his deep voice vibrated near her ear. “The structural curves all seem perfectly intact.”

Her mind had been so intensely focused on securing food that the underlying implication of his words didn’t compute until he leaned down and firmly kissed her lips. Her eyes went wide, and she quickly shoved his chest away. “You—you—you!”

“I verified the structural integrity with my own eyes.”

“Terminate the vocal transmission!” Pei Xiqing slapped her hand over his mouth, her face burning. “I just want to eat.”

Duan Xiaolin calmly reached up, pulled her hand away from his lips, and pressed a soft kiss to her palm before finally releasing her.

“Then eat.”

Pei Xiqing was starving to the point where she completely abandoned her usual refined table manners, practically inhaling the hot food he set in front of her.

As she was chewing, she heard the sharp, metallic clink of a silver lighter behind her. Turning her head, she saw the man sitting on the far end of the sofa, smoking in absolute silence. If she actively ignored the heavy, intensely possessive heat burning in his eyes through the haze of gray smoke, an outsider might have calculated that he was in a foul mood.

A sudden shiver rippled through Pei Xiqing’s body. She silently shifted her plate a few inches further down the table, deliberately opening up the physical distance between them.

Rule one: Never provoke a predator who has just broken a decade-long fast.

Even while she was simply trying to eat her meal, his gaze remained locked onto her profile, staring at her with the raw intensity of a starving wolf tracking its prey. She quietly lowered her presence, making her chewing and movement as small and unobtrusive as possible.

“Brother Duan, please crack a window. The smoke… cough, cough… it’s a bit heavy,” she complained softly, rubbing her throat. “Stop chain-smoking. Your system is obviously entirely satisfied.”

“Which specific diagnostic told you my system was satisfied?” He smoothly crushed the cigarette ember into the ashtray and stood up to open the window, letting a draft of cool air cycle into the room.

“…”

Pei Xiqing decided playing stupid was the safest tactical maneuver.

“You.”

“Heh.” The corner of his mouth curved upward. He walked back over, his long fingers gently stroking the length of her dark hair. “Then your analytics are severely underestimating the biological capacity of a man.”

Pei Xiqing nearly inhaled a mouthful of rice straight into her lungs.

She erupted into a fit of frantic, violent coughing, choking so hard that tears welled up in her eyes.

What the hell is his vocal track broadcasting!

She could underestimate the operational capacity of any other male asset in the wasteland, but she would never make the mistake of underestimating his specific baseline again, okay?!

Duan Xiaolin calmly patted her back, sliding a glass of warm water into her hand. “Is your system genuinely that excited by the data?”

Pei Xiqing shot him a glare, her eyes watery and coquettish. “Delete those types of phrases from your vocabulary.”

“What specific phrases does your station prefer I use?” he asked smoothly.

“Return your algorithms to a normal, professional baseline! I want your vocal track to deliver serious, administrative data—just like before, completely cold and unmoved.” Watching the supreme Chief Judge display these highly unfiltered, predatory expressions was entirely too overwhelming.

Duan Xiaolin arched a dark brow. “The analytics suggest your psychology actually prefers receiving a disciplinary penalty?”

“My system absolutely does not!” she retorted immediately, panic flashing in her eyes.

“We can verify that hypothesis during the next cycle.” It wasn’t a question; it was a flat, declarative statement.

He left absolutely zero room for Pei Xiqing to negotiate the terms.

She guiltily shoveled two more bites of rice into her mouth, her eyes darting away.

Oops.

She had just dug another massive trap for herself.

She had no idea how many horrific, unfiltered “disciplinary” protocols his tactical database still held in reserve.

Stealing a furtive glance from the corner of her eye, she watched him stand up and walk out into the courtyard. He leaned against the porch pillar, lighting a fresh cigarette. Every single micro-movement he executed radiated a terrifying synthesis of high-society elegance and absolute, unvarnished villainy.

Pei Xiqing’s throat suddenly felt incredibly dry.

She forcefully tore her gaze away.

This bad man.

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