025 The Trial

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Zhang Su deliberately wanted to test Zhong Xiaoshan’s abilities. If she met his expectations and could create enough value, taking on one more person would not be out of the question.

But he certainly would not make an exception simply because she was an attractive woman. In the apocalypse, a good figure and a pretty face could only serve as bonus points after one had proven capable!

Seeing the inscrutable smile on Zhang Su’s face, Zhong Xiaoshan’s heart suddenly tightened. She asked nervously, “How do I prove myself?”

Clatter.

Zhang Su pulled a string of keys from his pocket and held them out to her. “The zombie Xin Yu and I killed yesterday was the owner of Apartment 902. These are the keys. Go see what you can find there and bring back anything useful!”

Zhong Xiaoshan stared at the stained keys in astonishment. After hesitating for three or five seconds, she slowly took them from Zhang Su’s hand and asked uneasily, “Is anyone else in 902?”

Zhang Su was surprised again. He had expected her to refuse, but she had agreed after only a brief hesitation.

It seemed he had underestimated this woman’s will to survive in desperate circumstances.

“As far as I know, Brother Li’s family of five all lived together. But... his son is definitely dead. As for the two elderly people and Brother Li’s wife, I have no idea.”

“His child is definitely dead?”

Zheng Xinyu murmured softly from the side. As though she had thought of something, she covered her mouth and drew in a sharp breath. “That arm?”

Zhang Su nodded silently. He remembered that three months earlier, Brother Li’s child had been injured while playing in the residential complex. The boy’s arm had been cut by an ironwork ornament. The incident had caused quite a commotion, and in the end the property management office had paid for his medical expenses. A stitched scar had remained on the child’s arm—and it was exactly the same as the one on that severed limb.

Zhong Xiaoshan also remembered that arm vividly. After all, she had just dragged the zombie’s corpse into the stairwell. She was nearly thirty, old enough to be a mother herself, and although she had never married, learning the truth still left a bitter taste in her heart.

“There are too many people outside being chased down and devoured by zombies. We don’t have time to grieve over all of them. That’s just how things are, so stop dwelling on it.” Zhang Su offered the two women a word of comfort before looking at Zhong Xiaoshan again. “Any questions?”

Zhong Xiaoshan furrowed her brow and thought for a moment. Then she looked at Zhang Su’s arm and said firmly, “I need protective gear like yours. And... I need a weapon too.”

“No problem!”

Zhang Su readily agreed to her reasonable request. Sending someone out to clear unexplored territory without giving her any equipment would have been outrageous.

Soon, Zhong Xiaoshan was fully armed. Her arms were wrapped in discarded books and magazines along with plastic bags, and both hands gripped a large iron wrench tightly.

The wrench, more than a foot long, was another self-defense weapon Zhang Su had commissioned someone to make. Although it was shaped like a wrench, anyone who actually tried to use it as a tool would curse furiously. Not a single screw or bolt would fit it. It had been made purely to pass inspection.

Watching Zhong Xiaoshan hold the oversized wrench as though she were a soldier invading a village, Zhang Su felt both amused and uneasy. The woman clearly had no combat experience at all. Could she really handle zombies on her own?

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He did not know.

But he knew this was a challenge Zhong Xiaoshan had to face. Out of a sense of responsibility, he taught her how to use the wrench to deliver effective blows.

Zhang Su watched Zhong Xiaoshan leave through the security door, then gently closed it behind her.

“Brother Su, isn’t it a little inhumane to send her out alone?”

Pressing herself against the peephole, Zheng Xinyu watched Zhong Xiaoshan’s back disappear beyond the security door. Unable to bear it, she asked Zhang Su the question.

“Inhumane? Human civilization is practically finished, and you’re still talking about humanity? By that logic, if I go search for supplies alone, that’s inhumane of you. But if I send you to search for supplies, then I’m the inhumane one?”

Zhang Su did not sit idle. He rummaged through the wardrobe, pulled out several large backpacks, and carried them toward Zheng Xinyu’s room.

“If it were just the two of us, I’d definitely go if you asked me to. But if someone else is going too, I don’t want to be the only one going alone...” Zheng Xinyu answered seriously.

Zhang Su paused. He was somewhat surprised by her response, but he did not say much. He merely told her, “Keep watch. Call me if anything happens.”

Then he crouched down and began loading supplies into the backpacks.

After an entire night, Zhang Su had thought things through. Leaving the supplies scattered around was not practical. If something happened and they needed to relocate, they would not have time to gather everything. So, based on the priorities of survival, he stuffed several backpacks to the brim.

If everything remained peaceful, taking things out of the bags would not be much trouble. But if an emergency arose, they could immediately grab the backpacks and evacuate.

When he finished, he looked toward Zheng Xinyu, who was keeping watch, silently asking for an update. She shook her head.

“If something happened, she would have come back. If nothing happened, she should have taken what she could and left immediately. Maybe she’s just dithering because she doesn’t know what to take...” Zhang Su had spent more than twenty minutes packing the bags. If Zhong Xiaoshan had known what she was doing, that would have been more than enough time to search the apartment for supplies.

“There’s been no noise, so nothing must have happened. Maybe there were just too many things?” Zheng Xinyu bit her lip. She wondered whether her position would be threatened if Zhong Xiaoshan returned with a large haul of supplies.

The moment the thought occurred to her, she secretly cursed herself. At a time like this, she was actually still thinking about jealousy and rivalry over a man. How foolish!

“I’ll keep watch for a while. You go exercise.”

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Zhang Su took over from Zheng Xinyu.

Another ten minutes passed, and everything remained perfectly quiet. Not even a fly had passed by.

“That woman... Could she have taken Brother Li’s things and run off?”

Zhang Su muttered under his breath.

“Whew.”

After finishing a set of exercises on the equipment, Zheng Xinyu’s face was flushed. Hearing him, she shook her head. “Impossible. Who knows how many zombies are hiding in this building? Zhong Xiaoshan would never run away by herself!”

Zhang Su nodded slightly. Her reasoning made sense, but the timing was wrong. More than half an hour had passed. Even if she had emptied an entire convenience store, one person could only carry so much.

Unless she suffered from indecisiveness—wanting this as well as that—or perhaps had somehow been possessed by the spirit of a baggage soldier.

“We’re not waiting any longer. I’m going up to take a look!”

With that, Zhang Su quickly put on his arm guards and picked up his ax-hammer. He gently pushed open the door. The supplies in Brother Li’s apartment could not be allowed to fall into danger. Of course, Zhong Xiaoshan’s safety was another concern.

However, just as Zhang Su opened the door and was about to step out, the stairwell door was pulled open.

Zhong Xiaoshan had returned.

Seeing Zhang Su fully armed and ready to leave, a look of terror still on her face, Zhong Xiaoshan managed to force out a relieved smile.

“I’m back!”

“Get inside, quickly!”

Zhang Su rapidly scanned her from head to toe. Seeing no signs of a struggle, he hurriedly opened the door wider.

“I... whew... I could only bring back this much. There’s still plenty left, but I didn’t get the chance to take it.”

Thud!

Zhong Xiaoshan set the heavy backpack on the floor, then bent over with her hands braced on her knees. Her chest heaved violently. She had not exerted herself all that much; her rapid breathing was mainly the result of extreme tension.

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