026 New Difficulties (Please continue reading, read, read, read)
Page 1 of 3
“Are you hurt?”
Although Zhang Su had more or less confirmed that Zhong Xiaoshan had not been involved in any fighting, he still asked to make sure.
“No, absolutely not. Don’t worry!”
Zhong Xiaoshan shook her head repeatedly. She treasured her life more than anyone.
“Good. Be extremely careful. If you get bitten, you’re basically finished. Scratches and claw marks aren’t much better! Sit down and rest for a while. Xinyu, pour her something to drink.”
After giving the order, Zhang Su walked over to the backpack and unzipped it. As he began taking things out, he asked Zhong Xiaoshan, “What was Brother Li’s place like?”
At the mention of it, Zhong Xiaoshan’s expression darkened.
“His place… It was horrific.”
Apparently unwilling to relive the scene, she offered only that brief summary.
Zhang Su continued removing the items from the backpack one by one. Hearing her answer, he looked up and saw the gloom on her face. His tone softened slightly.
“It shouldn’t have taken long to gather these things. Why were you delayed? Did you run into some trouble?”
“Drink slowly. Don’t choke.”
Zheng Xinyu handed Zhong Xiaoshan a disposable cup filled more than halfway with an energy drink.
Zhong Xiaoshan looked at Zheng Xinyu gratefully. After returning her smile, she took a cautious sip. Orange flavor.
“When I went inside, I saw blood all over the floor. I thought… I thought there was no one there. No, I thought there were no zombies. I found a backpack and went into the kitchen to fill it. Then a middle-aged man who had turned into a zombie suddenly appeared from somewhere and wandered into the living room, blocking my way.”
“I hid in the kitchen until he left. Then I hurried downstairs!”
As she recalled what had just happened, Zhong Xiaoshan’s heart began racing. The paper cup in her hand crumpled, and she nearly spilled her drink.
Zhang Su had already emptied the entire backpack onto the coffee table. Scratching his head, he said, “Looks like you really only made one trip to the kitchen…”
The coffee table was covered entirely with kitchen supplies. There were small items such as a peeler, forks, and spoons; medium-sized things like plastic wrap, a kitchen scale, and a cleaver; and larger provisions, including two packs of dried noodles, a clumped-together bag of frozen dumplings, more than three pounds of flour, and an unopened bottle of peanut oil marked 1.8 liters.
There were also plenty of other things, such as luncheon meat, instant noodles, ginger, scallions, and raw eggs. They all carried a strong sense of ordinary domestic life, completely unlike the kitchen in Zhang Su’s home.
“Um… Did I pass?”
Zhong Xiaoshan finished her drink. Her lips were moist and had regained a trace of color as she asked hopefully.
Zhang Su stroked his chin, his eyes sweeping over her. Then, without warning, he said, “Come on. Take off your clothes.”
Page 1 of 3
Page 2 of 3
“What?”
Zhong Xiaoshan stared at Zhang Su in disbelief. The request had come far too abruptly. Yesterday, when she had thrown herself at him, he had refused her. Now he wanted her to take off her clothes. What was he thinking?
Zheng Xinyu was stunned as well. It wasn’t that she was jealous, but doing something like this right in front of her was going too far!
“Take off your clothes, and your pants too. You don’t have to listen. In that case, these supplies belong to me. I’ll give you two extra packs of instant noodles, but don’t bring up joining us again. We’ll each go our own way.”
Zhang Su spread his hands.
Seeing that there was not the slightest trace of lust in his eyes, Zhong Xiaoshan’s thoughts raced. She instantly understood his intention and swiftly pulled off her knitted sweater.
“You want to see whether I’m hiding anything, don’t you? I’m not. I haven’t hidden a thing!”
Rustle, rustle.
Once she understood what Zhang Su meant, Zhong Xiaoshan was remarkably straightforward. In a moment, she stood completely undressed in the living room. The air had turned cold after the temperature dropped, and she shivered repeatedly as gooseflesh rose across her arms.
Zheng Xinyu stood to one side, deeply embarrassed. She knew in her heart that Zhang Su’s demand was necessary, but she still felt he was being awful. There were clearly other ways to verify things, yet he had insisted on making the woman undress…
“All right. It’s cold, so put your clothes back on.”
Seeing Zhong Xiaoshan trembling from the cold, Zhang Su nodded in satisfaction.
“Let’s get properly acquainted. My name is Zhang Su. She is my… well, my girlfriend, Zheng Xinyu.”
Just moments ago, he had used Insight Tag on Zhong Xiaoshan. Three bubbles now floated above her head.
[Decisive] [Third Party] [Repays Kindness and Vengeance]
The real reason Zhang Su was willing to accept Zhong Xiaoshan had nothing to do with Decisive or Third Party. It was Repays Kindness and Vengeance.
A grudge carried for nine generations may still be avenged; a kindness as small as a meal must be repaid.
If Insight Tag was accurate, then someone like her was worth bringing along.
“Brother Su, Sister Xinyu… I-I’ll be counting on both of you from now on.”
Zhong Xiaoshan was thrilled. As she dressed, she showered them with flattering words, secretly rejoicing that she had finally found someone to rely on. Although she was older than Zheng Xinyu, in certain situations, whether someone was called an older sister or a younger sister had little to do with age.
Zhang Su smiled and shook his head.
“It’s not a matter of one person taking care of another. Everyone looks after themselves while helping their companions as much as possible. That applies to me, to Xinyu, and to you as well.”
“I understand, Brother Su. Just tell me the rules. I’m a very disciplined person, and I absolutely won’t cause trouble.”
Soon, Zhong Xiaoshan had dressed again. A faint blush colored her face. Being seen completely naked by an unfamiliar man was still embarrassing, after all.
Page 2 of 3
Page 3 of 3
“Since we’re sticking together now, then…”
Zhang Su picked up the frozen dumplings, which had clumped together, and smiled.
“Let’s cook this bag and eat together. We’ll celebrate Nurse Zhong joining us.”
“Good, good! I’ll do it!”
Zhong Xiaoshan was overjoyed. She had done all that simply for the chance to have a meal and a safe place to stay.
A bag of frozen dumplings that had been left at room temperature for more than a day would once have been something the three of them would not even have glanced at before throwing it straight into the trash. Now, it was a rare delicacy.
Zhang Su handed the dumplings to Zhong Xiaoshan and watched her trot eagerly toward the kitchen. He then worked with Zheng Xinyu to sort the supplies. Just as they had finished putting everything back into the backpack, Zhong Xiaoshan emerged from the kitchen with a crestfallen expression.
“The gas is gone.”
She stood in the kitchen doorway, her face filled with unease.
“What?”
Zhang Su was startled. He hurried into the kitchen and struck the burner repeatedly, but the gas stove showed no response at all. A wave of frustration surged through him. He raised his hand, wanting to slap the pot, but forcibly restrained his anger.
“With explosions happening everywhere, it’s not surprising that the gas was cut off…”
It was not surprising, but that did not make the situation any less troublesome. Not only could they no longer cook the dumplings, most of their vast supply of snail rice noodles had suddenly become useless.
Instant noodles could be soaked or even eaten dry, but snail rice noodles had to be boiled. There was no other way to prepare them.
Judging by their stored supplies, without fire, the amount of food they could eat would instantly drop by seventy percent!
“The water is gone, the internet is gone, and now the gas is gone. Could this virus actually be destroying the infrastructure too…?”
Zheng Xinyu complained in confusion.
Zhang Su spread his hands.
“I once watched a science video about what would happen after humanity disappeared from Earth. According to scientific predictions, if humans vanished for less than five days, all the things you mentioned would stop working. The current situation is practically no different from humanity disappearing.”
Without people to maintain them, many systems and facilities would eventually grind to a halt.
Page 3 of 3