Zhang Su intended to assess Zhong Xiaoshan's abilities. If they met his expectations and could create enough value, bringing another person along wouldn't be out of the question.
He certainly wouldn't give her special treatment just because she's a good-looking woman. In this apocalypse, a good body and a beautiful face only become bonus points if abilities are on par!
Seeing Zhang Su's inexplicable smile, Zhong Xiaoshan suddenly felt a pang in her heart and asked nervously, "How can I prove it?"
Whoosh.
Zhang Su pulled out a set of keys from his pocket and held them out to Zhong Xiaoshan: "The zombie that Xinyu and I killed yesterday was the owner of apartment 902. This is the door key. Go see if there's anything useful and bring it back!"
Zhong Xiaoshan was stunned to see the stained keys. She hesitated for a few seconds before slowly reaching out to take them from Zhang Su's hand and asked anxiously, "Is there anyone else in 902?"
Zhang Su was surprised again. He expected Zhong Xiaoshan to decline, but she agreed after just a brief hesitation.
It seemed he had underestimated this woman's will to survive in desperate situations.
"As far as I know, Brother Li and his family of five lived together, but... his son is definitely gone. The two elders and Brother Li's wife are unknown!"
"The child is definitely gone?"
Zheng Xinyu mumbled softly on the side, as if recalling something, and gasped, covering her mouth. "That arm?"
Zhang Su nodded silently. He remembered that three months ago, Brother Li's child had an accident while playing in the community, scratching his arm on an ironwork landscape. It caused quite a commotion at the time, and eventually, the property management paid some medical compensation. The little guy's arm had a scar from stitches, identical to the one on the severed arm.
Zhong Xiaoshan also recalled that arm vividly. After all, she had just dragged the zombie's corpse to the stairwell. Nearing thirty and at the age to be a mother, despite not being married, learning this truth left a bitter taste in her heart.
"Too many people outside are being chased and bitten by zombies—it's overwhelming to be sad. That's just how things are, don't think about it," Zhang Su comforted them and once again turned to Zhong Xiaoshan: "Do you have any problems?"
Zhong Xiaoshan furrowed her brows and thought for a while, then looked at Zhang Su's arm and said firmly, "I need you to provide the same protective measures and a weapon."
"No problem!"
Zhang Su readily agreed to Zhong Xiaoshan's reasonable request. Asking someone to pioneer without giving them equipment would be ridiculous.
Soon enough, Zhong Xiaoshan was fully armed, her arms wrapped in discarded magazines and plastic bags, tightly gripping a large wrench!
The wrench, over a foot long, was a weapon Zhang Su commissioned for personal defense. Though it looked like a wrench, anyone trying to use it as a tool would certainly curse—it didn't fit any screw size, purely made to deceive inspections.
Watching Zhong Xiaoshan holding the large wrench like a soldier invading a village, Zhang Su found it both amusing and worrisome. Could a woman with no apparent combat experience really handle a zombie on her own?
He didn't know...
But he knew this was a challenge Zhong Xiaoshan had to face. Out of responsibility, he taught her how to effectively attack with the wrench.
As he watched Zhong Xiaoshan step out the safety door, Zhang Su gently closed the door behind her.
"Brother Su, isn't it somewhat inhumane to send her alone?"
Peeled from the peephole, Zheng Xinyu watched Zhong Xiaoshan's silhouette disappear behind the safety door, feeling uneasy as she questioned Zhang Su.
"Inhumane? Human civilization is freaking close to collapse, what's there to talk about humanity? By your logic, if I go alone to scavenge supplies, it's inhumane on your part; if I send you, I'm the inhumane one?"
Zhang Su didn't remain idle, rummaging through the closet to pull out several large backpacks, which he then carried towards Zheng Xinyu's room.
"If it was just the two of us, I'd definitely go if you asked me to. But if there's someone else, I wouldn't want to go alone..."
Zheng Xinyu replied seriously.
Zhang Su paused in his steps, a bit surprised by Zheng Xinyu's answer, but he didn't say much more, only replying, "You keep watch, call me if anything happens."
Then he squatted down and began packing supplies into the backpack.
Over the course of the night, Zhang Su had pondered a lot. He felt it wasn't feasible to leave the supplies scattered around. In case of an emergency, there would be no time to gather them quickly. So he packed several backpacks according to survival priorities, filling each to the brim.
If all was well, taking things out of the backpacks wouldn't be a hassle. Should any unforeseen situation arise, they could quickly grab the backpacks and relocate!
Once he finished, he glanced questioningly at Zheng Xinyu, who was on lookout. She only shook her head in response.
"If there's any situation, come back. If not, take the stuff and quickly retreat. If she's dawdling, she probably doesn't know what to take..."
Zhang Su spent roughly twenty minutes packing the backpacks. If one had a clear idea of what to do, that time was more than enough to scavenge supplies.
"No movement, nothing likely happened. Maybe there are just too many things?"
Zheng Xinyu bit her lip, wondering if Zhong Xiaoshan returning with a pile of supplies would threaten her status.
Just as she thought this, she silently cursed herself. At a time like this, how could she harbor such petty jealousy? It was truly foolish!
"I'll watch for a bit, you go exercise."
Zhang Su replaced Zheng Xinyu.
Another ten minutes passed, still nothing, not even a fly buzzed by.
"That person... unless she took stuff from Brother Li's house and ran off?"
Zhang Su muttered lightly.
"Ugh."
Zheng Xinyu, flushed from completing a set of exercises, heard Zhang Su's muttering and shook her head. "Impossible, with so many zombies hiding in the building, Zhong Xiaoshan would never run off alone!"
Zhang Su nodded slightly. It made sense, yet the timing felt off. Over half an hour had passed; even if one were to scour a convenience store completely, an individual's carrying capacity was limited.
Unless it's someone with selective preferences, wanting this and that, or perhaps someone possessed by a quartermaster?
"Let's not wait, I'm going up to check!"
With that, Zhang Su quickly donned arm guards, grabbed an axe-hammer, and gently pushed open the door. Brother Li's supplies mustn't be lost, and Zhong Xiaoshan's safety was also a priority.
However, just as Zhang Su opened the door about to step out, the safety passage door swung open, and Zhong Xiaoshan returned.
Seeing Zhang Su fully armed and ready to head out, a relieved smile squeezed through Zhong Xiaoshan's terrified face, "I'm back!"
"Come in quickly first!"
Zhang Su's eyes quickly scanned Zhong Xiaoshan, finding no signs of struggle, and hurriedly opened the door.
"I... phew, I only brought back this much, there's still a lot left. I just didn't have the chance to grab more!"
Thud!
Zhong Xiaoshan dropped the heavy bag on the ground, bent over with hands on knees, her chest heaving violently. The physical exertion wasn't that great, but extreme tension made her breathing rapid.