A residential complex.
At the dining table.
"Bro, is he okay?" Ren Jiali asked as she ate.
The table in front of her held a meal that wasn't lavish, but was decent enough.
Tomatoes and scrambled eggs.
Vegetable soup.
Shredded pork with green peppers.
And, as always, Lao Gan Ma chili sauce. Even without any dishes, you could polish off a bowl of rice with nothing but Lao Gan Ma.
"He's fine. It's like this the first time. He's pretty good, though. Fat guys have their advantages; skinny guys just yelp. But he, he, he..."
Ren Yan laughed, full of energy. The emptiness he'd felt for days had been completely satisfied. He'd never been interested in women, not in the slightest.
Ren Jiali knew what her brother was like. She'd seen the group of pretty young men who used to follow him home. Who could've guessed that the ones who looked so refined, and even wore glasses, would be into her brother's type?
One of the pretty young men had been dumped by her brother.
He'd actually thought about jumping off a building.
Her brother had glared at him, and he'd obediently come back down, then huddled off to the side like a chick. Her brother had smacked him twice across the face, making his eyes see stars, and yelled, "So you've got some nerve, jumping off a building in my place. Get your ass back home."
She hadn't seen any hatred in the young man's eyes, only deep admiration. She couldn't make sense of it. All she could say was that he was a pervert.
"Bro, we can't keep hiding here forever. We have to find a way to move somewhere else."
Ren Jiali had already rationed the supplies at home. They'd last, at most, ten days to half a month. The water was safe to drink; her brother had simply cupped his hands and drunk it, proving it was fine. She didn't have the nerve to do that.
"Right. Keep watch from the balcony for now. If anyone drives by, find a way to lure them over. Now that the apocalypse is here, anyone who can drive around outside has some way to protect themselves. Once they know their lives are safe, women and supplies will be their first choice. Don't underestimate the apocalypse. Morality's gone, and people can do whatever they want. When those guys are tense and on edge, women are the best outlet for them," Ren Yan said between bites.
"Bro, that's really disrespectful to women," Ren Jiali said.
"Heh, it's not that I'm disrespecting them. It's just that most people are like that. Anyone who's still alive is ruthless."
Inside the room.
Autumn Blade Slashes Fish He Mingxuan lay bound, haggard, staring blankly at the ceiling.
A voice kept echoing in his mind.
How had this happened to me?
Why had this happened?
He'd known that people couldn't be trusted in the apocalypse. But he'd been confident in his build. Even if the other guy had ulterior motives, he'd been sure he could control him.
But who could've imagined... that someone even more muscular than him would show up?
He'd even been ready to submit, become the other guy's underling in the apocalypse, charge into battle for him, and do all the vile things he wanted.
But who could've imagined that this guy would... would...
Boo-hoo...
He didn't want to talk about it. It was too humiliating. His butt still hurt like hell, and he felt sick just thinking about it.
He struggled against his bindings. They were too tight; there was no way he could break free. Thinking about the big guy's abuse made him shudder.
He'd pinched him, slapped him, cursed at him, and even spat water on him.
If he didn't find a way to escape, things would get really bad. Hospitals were closed now, and there weren't even any doctors, let alone anyone in proctology.
Just then.
Ren Yan walked in, carrying a bowl of rice. He came over to He Mingxuan, pulled the cloth out of his mouth, and started feeding him.
"Sweetie, don't think about leaving. It's nice here. You've got food, entertainment, and someone to take care of you. Just be good and do as I say. If you don't, don't blame me for throwing you outside. Those zombies won't be nearly as nice to you."
"Come on, eat."
As far as He Mingxuan was concerned, anyone who had food and didn't eat it was an idiot. He wolfed it down.
Seeing how enthusiastically he ate, Ren Yan smiled with satisfaction.
"Eat up. Get your strength back. I'll show you some more love later."
He Mingxuan: ???
You're doing it again? Are you a dog or something?
Water Treatment Plant.
Wang Kai and Field Dog ate dog food. He was almost sick of it.
There was no choice. Dog food was the only thing left to eat.
At night, listening to the zombies' howls left him exhausted and put him through intense mental torment. Without Field Dog by his side, he was afraid he'd go crazy.
The plant needed to be patrolled, and its equipment inspected. That was essential to keeping the city's water supply running.
After scouting the area, he'd confirmed the zombies' locations inside the Water Treatment Plant. Some stood swaying in place, as if they'd gone into hibernation. Without outside noise to disturb them, they didn't move around much.
Of course, Field Dog had played a huge part in keeping him safe.
He had a phone there.
He'd tie the phone to Gouzi, set an alarm, and then, while he inspected the plant, send Gouzi running outside to lure the zombies away from their posts. That bought him time.
Getting this kind of teamwork wasn't just his doing. Gouzi had to be good at following along and understand what people said.
It was time to make his rounds again.
"Gouzi, I'm counting on you. Once the alarm stops, sneak back here."
Wang Kai patted the dog's head, then opened the door. The dog immediately took off outside. Before long, the shrill alarm rang out. The zombies in the plant heard it and rushed frantically toward the sound.
Wang Kai took the opportunity to leave and inspect the equipment.
Sunshine Residential Complex.
Security Room.
Lin Fan stood in front of the mirror inside the Security Room, checking his reflection carefully. He was wearing a brand-new security uniform, the spare uniform once kept by the complex's former security guard.
Looking at himself in the mirror, he said to himself, "I'm a security guard now. I have to keep the complex safe."
Of course, security work could be complicated or simple. When people showed up, he had to register them. When nobody was around, he could do his own thing.
He could look at his phone or hum a tune.
He wasn't the kind of person who liked to take it easy. He figured he could clean up outside while working as a security guard.
He walked around the complex, keeping an eye on his surroundings in case any thieves tried to climb over the wall. He also checked the ground for litter. If he saw any, he had to pick it up and throw it in the trash.
He finished his rounds without finding any thieves or troublemakers.
The complex was safe.
He jumped over the iron gate and looked at the street.
"Ah, it's so dirty."
He really couldn't stand looking at it anymore. The street had once been perfectly fine, but now it was filthy.
He looked at the shop he'd cleaned so thoroughly.
Honestly, the contrast between the two was striking.
"The shop I cleaned so carefully is much cleaner. A hundred yuan for the cleaning was absolutely worth it."
Now he had a baby to raise, and the pressure was mounting. He had to work hard.
He didn't go far.
Xinfeng Agency.
"Boss, your shop is so dirty. I'll clean it up for you. There's a lot of broken glass on the floor, so it's a bit dangerous, and there are flyers everywhere, so it'll take some effort to tidy up. It's a lot of work."
"Hmm... I'll count the agency fee I owe you as payment for cleaning up."
He didn't like owing the boss money.
It was true that the owner of Xinfeng Agency, Gu Wen, was handsome, generous, and friendly.
If he told the boss, "I've been having a bit of a hard time lately," the understanding boss would probably wave him off and say, "It's no big deal. It's a small amount. You don't have to pay."
But he definitely wouldn't do that.
He'd pay off this debt with sweat and hard work.
He got right to it.
The hardest thing to clean up in the shop was the scattered flyers. He didn't take his time like before, but worked faster—though he was still very thorough.
After cleaning the shop until it was spotless, he dragged over a trash can. Looking at the boss, whom he'd chopped in half, he felt a little helpless. He should've been gentler back then. He'd grabbed one of Gu Wen's legs in each hand and stuffed him straight into the trash can.
At last.
He gazed with satisfaction at the spotless Xinfeng Agency.
"Boss, if you could see this, you'd be very pleased," Lin Fan said confidently.
He felt he'd cleaned it up very well.
It was still early; it wasn't time to get off work yet.
He returned to the Security Room, sat there obediently, and watched the locked iron gate. It was the complex's only entrance and the key to keeping it safe.
He wouldn't let his guard down.
He had to keep his eyes on it and stay completely focused.
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