"Are you hurt?"
Zhang Su, though pretty sure Zhong Xiaoshan hadn't been in a fight, still asked worriedly.
"No, absolutely not, don't worry!"
Zhong Xiaoshan shook her head repeatedly; she cherished her life more than anyone.
"That's good. Be careful, if you're bitten, you're basically done for. Even scratches aren't great! You sit and rest for a bit first. Xinyu, get her a drink."
Zhang Su gave a command, walked to the backpack, unzipped it, and asked Zhong Xiaoshan, "How's Brother Li's place?"
At the mention of this, Zhong Xiaoshan's face darkened. "His place... it's dreadful."
Not wanting to recall, Zhong Xiaoshan just summed it up.
Zhang Su took out the contents of the backpack one by one and looked up at Zhong Xiaoshan after hearing her words. Seeing her gloomy expression, he asked in a slightly softer tone, "It shouldn't have taken long to pack these items. What took you so long? Did you run into some trouble?"
"Sip slowly, don't choke."
Zheng Xinyu handed a disposable cup filled halfway with an energy drink to Zhong Xiaoshan.
Zhong Xiaoshan looked gratefully at Zheng Xinyu, smiled in response, and took a slow sip. It was orange-flavored.
"When I went in, I saw the place covered in bloodstains, and I thought... I thought no one was there, no, I thought there were no zombies. I found a backpack and went to the kitchen to pack stuff. Suddenly, an uncle-turned-zombie appeared out of nowhere and blocked my way, wandering into the living room."
"I hid in the kitchen until the uncle left and then hurriedly ran down!"
Recalling the encounter, Zhong Xiaoshan's heart raced, and the paper cup in her hand deformed, almost spilling the drink!
Zhang Su had already emptied the backpack's contents onto the coffee table, scratched his head, and said, "Looks like you really only made a trip to the kitchen..."
On the coffee table, there were all sorts of kitchen items, from a peeler, forks, and spoons, to cling film bags, a kitchen scale, and a kitchen knife, to two packs of noodles, clumped together frozen dumplings, over three pounds of flour, and a sealed jug of peanut oil labeled 1.8L.
There were also items like luncheon meat, instant noodles, fresh ginger and green onions, and raw eggs — all very domestic items, quite different from Zhang Su's kitchen.
"So... did I pass?"
Zhong Xiaoshan finished her drink, her lips moist and a bit more colorful, and she asked hopefully.
Zhang Su touched his chin, glanced over Zhong Xiaoshan, and suddenly said, "Take off your clothes."
"Wha-what?"
Zhong Xiaoshan looked at Zhang Su in disbelief. The request was so sudden. He didn't want it yesterday when she threw herself at him, but now he wants her to take off her clothes, what is this...
Zheng Xinyu was also stunned. Even though she wasn't jealous, doing this in front of her was too much!
"Take off your clothes, and your pants. You can choose not to comply, but in that case, these supplies are mine. I'll give you a couple of extra packs of instant noodles, and we can part ways."
Zhang Su spread his hands and said.
Seeing that Zhang Su's eyes held no evil intent, Zhong Xiaoshan quickly understood his intention and swiftly took off her sweater, saying, "You want to see if I've hidden anything, right? I haven't hidden anything at all!"
Hulalala.
Understanding Zhang Su's intention, Zhong Xiaoshan was straightforward, standing cleanly in the middle of the living room. The chill of the air made goosebumps rise on her arms.
Zheng Xinyu stood awkwardly to the side, knowing it was necessary for Zhang Su to make such a demand, but still felt he was bad. There were clearly other ways to verify, yet he insisted on making her take off her clothes...
"Alright, it's cold. Put your clothes back on quickly!"
Zhang Su, seeing that Zhong Xiaoshan was shivering from the cold, nodded satisfiedly, "Let's reintroduce ourselves. My name is Zhang Su, and this is my, uh, girlfriend, Zheng Xinyu."
Just now, he used the Insight Label on Zhong Xiaoshan, and now he could see three bubbles floating above her head.
[Decisive] [Third Party] [Vengeful]
The real reason Zhang Su was willing to accept Zhong Xiaoshan wasn't because of [Decisive] and [Third Party], but [Vengeful]!
A vendetta spanning nine lifetimes can still be avenged; a meal's kindness must be repaid.
If the Insight Label is correct, a person like this can be taken in!
"Brother Su, Sister Xinyu, I'll be counting on you in the future."
Zhong Xiaoshan, excited, dressed while flattering them internally, thinking she finally found someone to rely on. Although older than Zheng Xinyu, sometimes age doesn't define who is an elder sister or younger sister.
Zhang Su shook his head, smiling, "No one's taking care of anyone else. We all help each other while managing ourselves. That's how I am, and how Xinyu is. You're no exception."
"I understand, Brother Su. Just tell me any rules. I'm very rule-abiding and won't mess around."
Soon, Zhong Xiaoshan was fully dressed again, a slight blush on her face. Being seen nude by a stranger was still somewhat embarrassing.
"Since we're all in this together now..." Zhang Su picked up the clumped dumplings from the floor and smiled, "Let's cook these dumplings together to celebrate Nurse Zhong joining us."
"Sure, sure, I'll do it, I'll do it!"
Zhong Xiaoshan was overjoyed. She did all this just for a meal and a safe place to stay.
A bag of frozen dumplings left at room temperature for over a day — three people wouldn't have glanced at it before, tossing it in the trash instead, but now it's a rare treat.
Zhang Su handed the dumplings to Zhong Xiaoshan and watched as she happily headed to the kitchen. Then he and Zheng Xinyu started sorting supplies again. Just after finishing repacking the items, they saw Zhong Xiaoshan emerging from the kitchen, looking distressed.
"We're out of gas."
Zhong Xiaoshan stood at the kitchen door with a worried expression.
"This..."
Zhang Su, surprised, quickly walked to the kitchen and tried to ignite the stove, but there was no response, causing frustration. He was about to hit the pot but restrained his anger.
"With explosions everywhere, it's not surprising the gas is out..."
It's not surprising, but still, without gas, they couldn't cook dumplings, and most of their snail noodles were effectively useless.
Instant noodles could be soaked or chewed, but snail noodles required boiling — there was no alternative cooking method.
Looking at their current stocks, without fire, edible resources instantly dropped by seventy percent!
"The water's gone, the internet's out, and now the gas is out. Could this virus be destroying facilities..."
Zheng Xinyu puzzledly complained.
Zhang Su shrugged, "I watched a science video about what happens when humans disappear from the Earth. Science suggests that within five days of humankind disappearing, everything you mentioned would cut off... The current situation isn't much different from humanity vanishing."
Without human maintenance, many facilities would come to a standstill!