The restaurant

Central Avenue, the Welcome Guest Restaurant.

The restaurant's rolling shutter was tightly closed, and the only light inside filtered through the gaps in the blinds.

In the dining hall, twenty-three people sat on chairs in heavy clothes, wrapped in blankets.

Every face was clouded with misery.

They were all nearby residents who had come out looking for food and drink, unable to stand being cooped up any longer.

But they had never expected the zombies in the street to be so alert, giving chase the moment anyone showed their face... Luckily, the zombies weren't particularly fast, and a supervisor at the Welcome Guest Restaurant had held the door open to rescue people. Otherwise, all twenty-three of them would have died.

"Hot water's here. Have some hot tea, everyone." The restaurant supervisor, Tan Hui, carried a kettle around, filling everyone's cups with hot water.

After a few murmured thanks rose here and there, the dining hall fell silent again.

Life held no hope, and they hadn't seen sunlight in ages. Though the restaurant had plenty to eat and drink, their spirits had been worn almost completely away.

Amid the silence, a skinny man quietly leaned toward the man beside him. The other man was tall and powerfully built, with tattoos covering his wrist and extending into a Tattooed Arm.

The skinny man spoke in a weak, mournful voice. "Boss... I really don't think I can take it anymore. I... might as well die. Just shoot me with your gun."

"Cut that shit! What bullets have I got left? Drink some rat poison and die yourself. There's plenty of that here." Tattooed Arm finished irritably, then added, "Fuck, you're useless! Once it warms up a bit, come out with me and hack those rotten bastards to death! We'll find the boys, get a few more guns, and fight our way out of the city. We're alive, aren't we? We'll find a way!"

"What boys are left? It's just you and me now, boss..." The skinny man wiped his tears. "Boss, I really can't stand it anymore. Rat poison's fine, but I feel like I'd be missing out... Before I die, I want to... sleep with someone..."

"Sleep with who?" Tattooed Arm drew his neck back and frowned. "What are you mumbling about? You want to sleep with me?"

"No! That... that crazy chick." The skinny man turned and pointed toward a woman tending to her mother behind another table.

"I've been watching her for two days. She's the only decent-looking one... Boss, there are too many people here. I want to lure her into the kitchen. Help me out."

"Huh?" Utter bewilderment filled Tattooed Arm's eyes.

He knew his underling was a useless lecher who was starting to crack under the strain, but he hadn't expected him to go this crazy.

The bastard actually meant it, and he even dared to order him around!?

"Have you... never seen a woman before? Can't live without one?" Tattooed Arm grabbed the skinny man by the neck, cocked his head, and demanded angrily, "Look at what's happened out there! You haven't spared a thought for your dead family and brothers, but you've still got time to think about your dick? Did a fucking donkey kick you in the head!?"

After cursing him out, Tattooed Arm stood, wound up his arm, and slapped the skinny man so hard he toppled to the floor.

When he looked up, everyone in the hall was staring at him.

Tattooed Arm paid them no mind and sat back down to drink his tea.

"Scumbag!"

Tattooed Arm's hand froze as he lifted his cup, and his gaze shot toward the bespectacled man who had just spoken from the table opposite.

Narrowing his eyes, he sneered. "Kid, I remember your name's Yue Hao, right? Tell me... who were you just running your mouth at?"

Yue Hao gave him a sidelong look. "We're all here taking shelter. Since when do I answer to you? You came in shooting that gun. From the way you handled it, you used to be a soldier, didn't you?"

Tattooed Arm rose with a hostile expression, flexing his wrists. "What's it to you whether I was a soldier?"

"Hmph. If you want to throw your weight around, go fight the zombies. They've wrecked the whole city. You used to draw a government paycheck, but I haven't seen you charging into battle!"

"Oh, yeah?!" Tattooed Arm laughed in fury, rolled up his sleeves, and came around the table toward the man in glasses. "Forget whether I dare fight zombies. First, I'm going to teach you a lesson!"

"Even if I can't beat a zombie, you think I can't beat you?"

"Try it!" Yue Hao stood to face him, completely unafraid.

"Stop fighting!" Tan Hui promptly stepped between them, his face full of anger. "Making all this noise-look how badly you've frightened that mother and daughter! There are still zombies outside!"

Everyone looked in the direction Tan Hui pointed.

The young woman held her trembling elderly mother, constantly comforting her with a trace of tears in her voice.

"It's okay... Mom, it's okay. Once we get through this, I'll take you to find the aliens, and we'll be saved!"

"She was already crazy. How's that my fault?" Tattooed Arm folded his arms and sneered.

"I'm not crazy!" Ding Jia looked up at everyone, her eyes brimming with tears. "Please, I'm begging you, believe me! I really have seen aliens! A Namekian has come to save us, and there's a spaceship too! Let's find a car and get out of here. The alien lives in the Talents Residential Compound."

"A fucking residential compound? I've had enough of this!" Tattooed Arm strode over to Ding Jia, grabbed her by the back of the neck, and dragged her toward a gap in the curtains. "Fine, let's say you've got aliens. Take a good fucking look!"

"We were doing fine before the aliens came. Now look what those fucking aliens have done to us! Wake up!"

"That's not what happened! The Trisolarans did all that outside! The Trisolarans poisoned us!" Ding Jia cried.

"She's messing with you, boss!" The skinny man who had been slapped to the floor crawled over.

"Trisolarans? Just pulling it out of your ass, huh? You sure make things up fast!" Tattooed Arm flung Ding Jia back into her seat.

Then he kicked the skinny man over again.

"Even a lunatic wants to survive. You really are useless. Go find somewhere empty and die. Just looking at you pisses me off now!"

When Ding Jia was flung back, her thick coat was pulled open, revealing the clothes underneath.

Tattooed Arm caught sight of them, and his expression changed. "...City Psychiatric Hospital...? Well, damn. I thought you'd gone crazy afterward. Turns out you escaped when things went wrong at the hospital!"

Ding Jia could no longer hold back her tears of hurt and frustration.

She had escaped to seek help from the Namekian. The Namekian hadn't called her, and she had worn this outfit because she was afraid of not being recognized when they met.

Seeing Tattooed Arm's misunderstanding, Ding Jia hurriedly pulled her coat open to reveal all the lettering on her uniform.

"No... I'm not. This is my work uniform."

"And you fucking stole someone's clothes!"

"Waaaaah!" Ding Jia covered her face and burst into sobs.

At that moment, she understood all too well the exact same injustice Fu Qingdai had once felt.

Tan Hui came over again, stood in front of Tattooed Arm, and said angrily,

"That's enough! I rescued everyone at a time like this so we could work together to survive! You're even bullying a mentally ill woman with her elderly mother in tow. Are you human?"

"I'm not mentally ill..."

"Fine!" Tattooed Arm snapped. "Tan Hui, you're a good man, so I won't argue with you! I know you look down on me, but even out on the streets, I live by a code. I'll back off for your sake!"

"But if certain people provoke me again, don't blame me for getting rough!" Tattooed Arm turned his gaze toward Yue Hao.

Yue Hao met Tattooed Arm's eyes head-on, then glanced aside a moment later and said, "That elderly lady's passed out. Is she okay?"