Chapter 13

Everyone turned toward the tent entrance. Jiang Shan looked too.
There was a faint sound. Then Jiang Shan’s eyes went wide—a man in a wheelchair had appeared in the doorway.
He was gripping the wheels with both hands, pushing himself slowly forward.
The moment he entered, everyone’s attention shifted from Jiang Shan. The man with the gun called out: “Lao Wei!”
Well, “Lao Wei” was a stretch—this man looked ordinary and nowhere near “old.”
Jiang Shan also noticed he was in plain clothes, not wrapped up like the others.
“Don’t be afraid. That’s a tranquillizer gun, not a real one.” The first thing he said was to reassure her.
Jiang Shan felt like her brain had short-circuited. She stayed slumped where she was. A tranquillizer gun? Was that okay to point at people?
Wei Yuan looked at Zhang Zheng. “Who said you could point a gun at a civilian?”
They hadn’t brought any modern equipment on this trip, but as a precaution they had borrowed a few tranquillizer guns from Songshan Hospital.
Zhang Zheng glared. “How do you know she’s a civilian?”
Jiang Shan had run out of patience. If she wasn’t a civilian, was she an alien?
Wei Yuan didn’t waste more words on Zhang Zheng. He turned back to Jiang Shan, met her eyes for a few seconds, and said: “Hello.”
Everyone: “…”
Jiang Shan: “…”
In the eerie silence she couldn’t process it. Had he just said “hello”? She was a bit stunned.
Wei Yuan saw she wasn’t responding and moved his wheelchair toward her.
“Don’t go over! Don’t get close to her!” The others lost it again.
Wei Yuan raised a hand to quiet them and kept moving toward Jiang Shan.
She watched him approach. She would have backed away, but there was nowhere to go. To her, these people seemed a bit unhinged.
Wei Yuan stopped about half a metre from her—sensible distance.
She was afraid if he came any closer she’d snap.
At that range he could see the dirt on her face; she could see every line of expression on his.
Once she sensed something “real,” her guard began to drop.
They sized each other up in silence. Wei Yuan was the first to show goodwill, as if greeting a friend: “Hello. I’m Wei Yuan.”
With that, he held out his hand.
Jiang Shan: “…”
She was still wary of that hand. His companions looked like they were about to lose it.
Wei Yuan’s hand stayed in the air. He seemed patient. His gaze stayed on her.
This “Lao Wei” had faint crow’s feet, a calm face, no more than thirty-something. The calm he showed her didn’t look put on.
After she didn’t know how long, Jiang Shan slowly raised one hand—thin, bony—hesitated, then placed it in Wei Yuan’s.
“H-hello… I’m Jiang Shan.”
The moment her fingers touched his palm, they both felt the warmth of a living human. Good. They were both human.
“Nice to meet you.” Wei Yuan’s smile was genuine.
Jiang Shan pressed her lips together and said nothing.