"Unless the government establishes shelters, I think going out will only lead to a quicker death. But brother, if you insist on leaving, I'll be by your side."
Duan Sihai said weakly, with no glimmer of hope in his eyes.
Duan Wuhu felt slightly relieved that his younger brother finally agreed with his proposal, and he patted his thin shoulder, saying, "Sihai, the two of us, united as brothers, can overcome anything. We will surely find a safe haven to survive!"
"Let's go to Qing County. There aren't many people there, so even if there are zombies, there won't be many. The terrain is complex; we'll find an abandoned farmhouse, grow crops, raise livestock, and with well water and firewood, we can surely survive!"
Perhaps infected by the beautiful picture painted by his brother, Duan Sihai's eyes began to brighten, but then suddenly dimmed again: "Brother, it sounds easy when you say it. Let me ask you, the zombies in just our apartment complex are enough to give us a hard time, let alone going beyond the neighborhood..."
"Do you have a plan? How do we escape the building, which route to take? Without a proper plan, rushing out would be suicide, brother!"
Duan Wuhu nodded, feeling slightly gratified: "Sihai, it's good you're thinking about these things. I have a preliminary plan. Join me in analyzing it, and suggest any improvements you have!"
Upon hearing his brother had a draft plan, Duan Sihai became interested. If there's truly hope for survival, who would want to be trapped waiting for death...
The two brothers gathered around the dining table, paper and pen laid before them, discussing seriously as it concerned matters of life and death.
Upstairs, Zhang Su returned from apartment 902 with an induction cooker and a soup pot, all without incident, completely unaware of the brief conversation the two women at home had conducted.
"Are you okay?"
Zheng Xinyu saw Zhang Su carrying an axe dripping with a sticky liquid, knowing he'd dealt with zombies, and asked with concern.
Zhang Su handed over what he was holding to Zhong Xiaoshan, whose expression was a bit odd, and shook his head, saying, "I ambushed them, no difficulties!"
An ambush lacking honor? Not at all...
While removing his gear, Zhang Su commented with excitement: "Brother Li's fridge has quite a lot inside. We'll move it over when we have time!"
"But where to store them? That greedy landlord didn't provide a fridge..."
Zheng Xinyu gave Zhang Su a side glance as she spoke.
Zhang Su held his forehead; if he'd anticipated this day, of course he would have bought a large freezer for home, but it's too late now.
"Then just leave them there. Brother Li's family... sigh, surviving isn't necessarily happiness, and all of them dying might actually be a release. Anyway, no one's left in their house now..."
Feeling the keys in his pocket, Zhang Su sighed with emotion.
Busy in the kitchen, Zhong Xiaoshan paused, thinking of her rural parents, feeling a hint of sadness. But as usual, it's already hard to take care of oneself, worrying too far ahead only adds to the troubles.
A quarter of an hour later, dough ball soup was served...
Due to the dumplings sticking too much, they couldn't be separated, and ultimately, they were all mashed into dough ball soup.
Just over a day's time, from initially losing internet to losing water, now with even gas gone, the situation deteriorates rapidly, making a bowl of hot dough ball soup a rare luxury.
None of the three had any complaints; smelling its fragrance, they swallowed back their saliva, long tempted by the aroma.
"Let's dig in, stop staring!"
Zhang Su was the first to serve himself a bowl; the lamb dumplings turned dough ball soup tasted quite good. He took out a bottle of chili from Brother Li's house and scooped a spoonful, thoroughly enjoying it.
Zhong Xiaoshan was very considerate, stopping after a single rice bowl, leaving Zheng Xinyu, who wanted a second bowl, somewhat embarrassed.
Zhang Su, seeing the two's demeanor, pointed to the leftover dough ball soup, saying, "Have more, as we're starting training next. Without enough food, the training won't be effective!"
"Training?"
Zhong Xiaoshan curiously looked at Zhang Su.
Zheng Xinyu answered for Zhang Su: "Brother Su developed a training plan. It's quite intense, leaving me sore in the arms and thighs right now from yesterday's practice."
Since Zhang Su encouraged them, Zheng Xinyu wasn't shy and scooped another half bowl of dough ball soup, warming herself thoroughly.
"Brother Su, can I ask what you did before this? Facing such a major event as calmly as you do is really rare."
As Zhong Xiaoshan scooped the dough ball soup, she asked curiously.
Zhang Su, munching, replied incoherently: "I was just a landlord; she's actually a celebrity, an internet streamer!"
The composure stems from nearly a decade of life experiences, matters too personal to share with outsiders.
"It's just a few thousand fans, and even some are bots, nothing of celebrity status..."
Zheng Xinyu embarrassedly defended herself. Even at her maximum she only had over three hundred viewers, sometimes dropping to just a few dozen.
"You two are really impressive; truth be told, I initially thought Brother Su was a retired special forces soldier."
Zhong Xiaoshan gave Zhang Su a flirtatious glance, delicately enjoying her dough ball soup.
"You're exaggerating, I just casually work out, far from matching a special forces soldier. You two stopped, right? I'll finish it then!"
Zhang Su, seeing the two women wave their hands, grabbed the pot and started feasting.
His training intensity was three times that of Zheng Xinyu, requiring ample food to sustain. If faced with food scarcity, he would lower the intensity to ensure coping with daily situations.
Finishing the meal around 1 PM, after a brief rest, Zhang Su was about to gather them for training when Zheng Xinyu, raising the curtain to look outside, suddenly said: "Oh no, Zhang Su, quick, come look, something's happening!"
"What's the situation!"
Zhang Su's heart tightened as he quickly approached the window.
"Quick, look over there. Oh my, so many zombies!"
Zheng Xinyu couldn't help covering her mouth, her eyes filled with fear, her body trembling.
"What the hell..."
Zhang Su followed Zheng Xinyu's pointed direction, his eyes wide, cursing uncontrollably.
The street engaged by the special forces with the zombie horde last night was bustling with zombies now, breaking through the wall and drilling into Sheng Qin Home. Upon closer inspection, it was clear they were chasing a drone!
A drone with a peculiar design hovered in the sky, carrying a loudspeaker beneath it!
"Damn it, someone is leading zombies into our neighborhood!"
Zhang Su instantly understood the situation, although the distance wasn't close, he could vaguely hear what the loudspeaker was broadcasting, which was attracting the zombies' attention.
"Oh my, are these the zombies from last night?"
Zhong Xiaoshan also leaned forward to look afar, the sight of zombies scaling walls sending chills down her spine.
Due to nighttime visibility issues, the trio hadn't truly felt the oppressive presence of a zombie horde. Now they did.
Those zombies, when running, weren't slow, appearing more ferocious than a hunting fierce tiger, relentlessly pursuing the drone!
One can imagine if a living person appeared before them, the outcome would be grim, most likely consumed completely within a minute.