010 Are You Secretly in Love with Me?

“If I get infected... I’ll make sure to go out with a bang!”

Zhang Su stared at the grotesque, neither fully human nor ghostly zombie before him, silently resolving that if given the chance, he would prepare a mercy bullet for himself. When the time came, at least he could leave with some dignity.

As he pondered this, he carefully observed the creature. Four or five minutes passed before he heard Zheng Xinyu’s voice.

“Let me take a look too…”

Zhang Su glanced at Zheng Xinyu’s face, its expression tangled with reluctance and curiosity. Despite her strong resistance, she decided to try, her conflicted emotions knitting her brows.

He nodded silently and slowly stepped aside.

Zheng Xinyu edged closer to the peephole, brushing aside the long strands of hair obstructing her view. When she finally saw the zombie’s form, it was like an electric shock hit her. Just as she nearly let out a scream, she clapped a hand over her mouth.

“Ugh… huff, huff…”

She emitted a barely audible grunt, followed by rapid breaths, leaning against the foyer wall and pounding her heaving chest, her face overwhelmed by uncontrollable horror.

Zhang Su had no time to comfort her. He hurried to the peephole and found that the zombie showed no reaction, continuing its aimless spinning like an old donkey grinding a mill with blindfolded eyes.

“The sounds just now were indeed faint, but in such a quiet setting, even I should have heard them. It seems the zombie can’t hear, indicating its hearing isn’t as sharp as I thought!”

He stared at the zombie’s ears, noting their color was off, but their shape remained unchanged.

“Feeling any better?” Zhang Su asked, carefully observing Zheng Xinyu, who had calmed considerably.

“Let me see again…”

Her hand pressed to her chest, Zheng Xinyu’s face was still marked by fear and stubbornness. Without waiting for his consent, she leaned in once more.

Zhang Su prepared to cover her mouth, but found her reaction much improved. Aside from her rising and falling chest and slightly trembling fists, she showed no extreme response. He quietly stood aside, pondering ways to deal with the zombie.

The two stood silently—one observing, the other thinking—as seconds slipped by.

Unbeknownst to Zheng Xinyu, who struggled to face her fear of the zombie before her, another pair of eyes watched from just inches behind the peephole of apartment 802’s door.

---

Zhang Su’s unit comprised two households per floor. Apartment 802 was larger than 801, featuring a three-bedroom, two-living-room layout with excellent ventilation from north to south, spanning over 120 square meters.

A young woman in a silk nightgown, her delicate face even paler than the pristine calves revealed beneath her dress, clung to the door like a large gecko, her movements comical.

Watching the zombie wandering the stairwell outside, terror nearly overflowed from her eyes.

After about ten minutes, Zheng Xinyu pursed her lips and withdrew her gaze, rubbing her stiff shoulders and neck from holding one position too long.

The two returned to a spot farther from the door and sat down. Zhang Su looked at Zheng Xinyu with approval.

“Not scared anymore?”

She nodded uncertainly. “Still a little, but I can accept it now. At least I won’t freeze up from fear.”

“That’s pretty good progress in a short time. Since you’re not afraid, how about we take down that thing together?”

Zhang Su posed the question.

“Take it down? Is that right?” Zheng Xinyu furrowed her brows, visibly conflicted.

“What’s wrong with that? You don’t think it’s still human, or that it’s Brother Li, do you?”

She blinked and countered, “Isn’t it?”

“Of course not!” Zhang Su snapped, flicking a small red spot onto Zheng Xinyu’s fair, glossy forehead. “From the moment the zombie virus controls him, he’s no longer human!”

Zheng Xinyu nodded, puzzled. “Even if you’re right, why kill him? Are you planning to go downstairs for supplies? There’s no need—we have enough food and water for half a month. Don’t take unnecessary risks!”

Killing a fish was one thing; killing a zombie was too much. Managing not to fear the zombie from behind the door was already a feat—she couldn’t guarantee she’d stay calm when facing it directly.

As they spoke, the sound of helicopters filled the sky again, this time more densely.

Zheng Xinyu hurried to the window, sliding open a crack and peering at the sky. She turned to Zhang Su with excitement.

“More than ten helicopters! They must be the SWAT reinforcements, right?”

Zhang Su neither agreed nor denied. His eyes, now mostly calm, stared blankly at the helicopters sweeping by in the distance.

“Brother Su, let’s just stay home quietly. The reinforcements have arrived; they’ll probably control the situation soon. Maybe the rescue will come sooner than we think. Really, don’t do anything dangerous!”

No one had told Zheng Xinyu those were reinforcements, yet she deceived herself into believing it.

---

“Do you think you’re not eating enough? It’s okay—I’ll eat less and give you more. Please don’t take any risks!”

Zheng Xinyu pleaded earnestly.

Right now, two things gave her a sense of security: Zhang Su, and the tightly closed front door.

To her, once that door opened, endless terror would flood in and finally swallow her in a sea of blood.

Hearing her words, Zhang Su’s serious expression softened into a faint smile.

“You’re willing to eat less and save it for me, being this good to me—could it be you have a crush on me?”

Zheng Xinyu didn’t expect him to joke amid such tension. She rolled her eyes and glanced away briefly but then, considering their situation, felt a surge of resolve.

“Yes, I’m attracted to these muscles of yours. What are you going to do about it, you eunuch?”

Zhang Su found the first part flattering but was baffled by the last three words.

“Eunuch? I change girlfriends every three months. You can’t imagine the fun I have!”

Zhang Su scoffed disdainfully.

“You…” Zheng Xinyu was speechless and annoyed. “You just brag. The less you have, the more you brag. If you really changed girlfriends every three months, I’ve dropped hints more than once—I’m not ugly. You’re acting like an old monk!”

If what Zhang Su said were true, changing girlfriends every three months, Zheng Xinyu believed such a playboy wouldn’t turn down food served right to him!

She didn’t mind a scoundrel—she just feared he might be gay.

“Well…”

Many of a man’s actions hinge upon benefits. When faced with two advantages but only able to choose one, he tends to go for the greater gain.

Zhang Su could sense Zheng Xinyu’s goodwill, but from his perspective, turning a tenant into a girlfriend meant losing more than just rent; it would cost him a lot more. No matter how he calculated it, the deal was a loss.