Apocalypse: I Have A Multiplier System

Lianhua shook her head. "That's awful."

"Awful is putting it lightly," Ou Lin said bitterly. "She complained about every little thing. Whined when the water was too cold, whined when it rained, whined if she had to carry something heavy. I was patient at first, but there's a limit."

Su Rong lifted her chin. "You could have talked things out."

He laughed without humor. "Talked? I tried. All she cared about was what she could get from me. And when I finally decided to end it, she had the audacity to demand more than half my property."

Lianhua's eyes widened. "More than half?"

"Yes!" Ou Lin slammed his palm against his thigh. "She didn't contribute anything to our marriage except headaches, and she still wanted to walk away richer than she came in."

Su Rong smirked like she had just found something shiny to throw.

"Lian Hua, you don't really know this guy, do you?" she said loudly, pointing a finger at Ou Lin. "He acts like a kind husband, but in reality, he was a bad one from the start."

Ou Lin's face darkened. "Don't talk nonsense."

But Su Rong wasn't done. She turned toward Lian Hua and spoke with fake innocence.

"You know what he expected from Su Yun? He wanted her to do all the house chores while his precious mother sat at home and enjoyed all the benefits."

"That is not true," Ou Lin cut in quickly, but Su Rong kept going like she didn't hear him.

"And," Su Rong added, "he also wanted Su Yun to join his mercenary team while still doing all the chores at home. Can you imagine that? He wanted her to fight outside and still scrub floors inside. And he even told her to use her family's connections to get him more benefits from the agricultural department of Willow Base. Oh, and smuggle extra food for him too. Wasn't that right, Ou Lin?"

Lian Hua looked surprised and turned to Ou Lin. "Is that true?"

Ou Lin's face had gone pale. His lips pressed together before he finally said,

"That was not how it happened." He faced Lian Hua directly, his voice trying to sound calm but shaking a little.

"I admit my mother was a bit harsh to Su Yun. But you have to understand, my mother had serious health problems back then."

Su Rong snorted and folded her arms. "Serious problems? Yes, she had one. She loved to laze around."

"Shut up!" Ou Lin's voice came out sharp, his eyes glaring at her like he wanted to burn holes through her head.

Then he turned back to Lian Hua, his expression softening so fast it was almost strange.

"I am telling the truth. Su Yun was the one lazing around all day. As for asking her to join my mercenary team, it was not to make her work for me. I just didn't want her to be helpless if we separated. I wanted her to have the skills to survive."

Lian Hua gave a small nod. "I see. That does make some sense."

Inside her mind, though, she was sneering. This was exactly the type of guy who would put his wife or girlfriend through suffering and then call it 'training' for their own good.

She found it almost funny.

Thank goodness she did not have any real love for him. For her, this was just… a convenient relationship.

Still, on her face, she showed nothing but kindness. She reached out and held Ou Lin's hand gently.

"I can understand you," she said softly. "You are working for me now, and I know you are trying to impress my sister. That is why you are doing all this hard work. I get it."

Ou Lin's eyes moistened, and he blinked quickly. "You are amazing, Lian Hua. Thank you for understanding me." Without warning, he pulled her into a hug.

Lian Hua smiled politely and patted his back. "It is fine."

Su Rong, however, was clenching her fists. Her gaze flicked between the two of them, and a strange thought entered her mind.

If Su Jiyai is the boss, then why is Ou Lin still here with Lian Hua? Shouldn't she have kicked him out? Shouldn't she want revenge for what he did in the past? Or is she planning to take revenge later?

None of it made sense to her.

The only thing Su Rong was sure of was that her own impression in front of Lian Hua must be ruined now. Lian Hua's calm face didn't show much, but Su Rong felt like she had said too much.

She stepped back. "I have work to do," she muttered. "I will leave you two alone."

Lian Hua didn't stop her. She just smiled politely, and Ou Lin ignored Su Rong completely.

Su Rong turned away quickly, her steps faster than usual. Inside, she was boiling. In the past few days, she had been trying so hard to keep her presence small.

She avoided drawing attention, avoided getting in the way, all so she would not catch Su Jiyai's fury.

Now, though, she had a sinking feeling she might have done the opposite.

She muttered under her breath as she walked. "Better keep quiet for now. Better not make things worse."

Back on the bench, Lian Hua sipped her soup like nothing had happened. Ou Lin sat beside her, still looking a bit shaken.

"You alright?" she asked, her voice gentle.

He nodded. "I just… hate when people twist my words."

She tilted her head. "Sometimes the truth and lies get mixed. People hear what they want to hear."

Ou Lin looked at her like she was speaking deep wisdom. "You always know the right thing to say."

Inside, Lian Hua wanted to roll her eyes. But instead, she gave a small smile. "Come on. You still have work to finish today."

Ou Lin grinned a little. "If it is for you, I can do it."

On the other side, far from Lian Hua and Ou Lin, there was a meeting taking place in a dark, ruined hall.

The air smelled of dust and something rotten. A few crooked windows let in thin strips of gray light. In the middle of the hall sat Narak, the leader of the zombie kings.

He was slouched back in a large chair that looked like it used to be a throne a long time ago, but now the cushions were torn and the wood was cracked.

Around him, several other zombie kings were seated on different chairs. To call them thrones would be a lie.

Most were just broken dining chairs, missing legs, or covered in old stains. But the way the zombie kings sat, with their glowing eyes and dangerous aura, made the chairs feel like they were part of something important.

Narak's eyes swept across the room. His gaze landed on two figures sitting to his left.

These were the newest zombie kings he had recruited. One had pale green skin, like sickly moss, and the other's skin was a patchy gray that looked like it was falling apart.

"I have called you all here for a reason," Narak began, his voice slow and deep. "Our next stop will be Hope Base. The attack at the other base is falling apart."

The two new zombie kings nodded, though their expressions quickly shifted. Slowly, a look of disgust spread over their faces. It was like they were remembering something stupid, something that made them feel insulted just by thinking about it.

Narak saw their expressions but stayed quiet for a moment. He knew exactly what they were thinking about. In fact, he was thinking the same thing.

In his mind, he saw the failure at Cedar Base. He had trusted Tarak and Sarak to handle it. They were supposed to crush the defenses and take control quickly. But what happened?

They never even got past the first defense line. Days went by and they still stood in the same place, snarling and wasting time.

Narak's lip curled slightly. "Those two fools," he thought, but he kept his face calm.

The pale green zombie king finally spoke. His voice was slow but clear.

"Attacking Hope Base will not be easy. Boss Su's base is surrounded by those strange walls. If we touch them, we burn. Before we find a way to pass them, we will not leave unharmed."

There was a short silence. The gray-skinned zombie king nodded. "It is true. We have seen those walls. They hurt. They kill. They are not like normal walls."

Narak let them finish, then shook his head slowly. "I already have a way to pass those walls," he said.

Both of the zombie kings stared at him, their eyes lighting up with sudden interest. The gray-skinned one leaned forward. "You do? How?"

"Yes," the green one added. "Tell us. We must know."

Narak turned his head slightly and pointed at one of the older zombie kings in the room.

That zombie stood up and walked to the corner of the hall. He opened a large wooden box with rusty hinges and pulled something out.