"Lin Ye, Jiao Jiao asked me to ask you if you need hot water to clean yourself? If you do, I can go boil some water right now, and Jiao Jiao will come to help you clean up later!" At that moment, Jiang Yan walked over in a blue long-sleeve coat, trying hard to put on a pleasing smile as she looked at Jack.
"Then I'll trouble you, Jiang Yan, but you tell Jiao Jiao that I will help my husband clean himself!" Bai Ru looked at Jiang Yan with a kind smile, but her eyes quickly caught sight of Jiao Jiao, who was sneaking around the edge of the tent, observing them. She turned her head and glanced at Jiao Jiao with a blank expression, and Jiao Jiao immediately turned her body away. Bai Ru knew that Jiao Jiao was definitely still scheming and had sent Jiang Yan to test their bottom line.
"Jiang Yan? You... you are Jiang Yan?" Lu Liangjia, sitting at the corner of the table, suddenly exclaimed and stood up, looking at Jiang Yan in disbelief.
"You... you are Lu Liangjia?" Jiang Yan also looked at the other person with a face full of disbelief.
"It's me, of course it's me! How come you are here? Weren't you supposed to go to Wuhan with William Jianwei? Where is he?" Lu Liangjia shouted excitedly.
"He... he died!" Jiang Yan's emotions, which had been elevated by the appearance of an acquaintance, suddenly plummeted, and she looked at Lu Liangjia with red-rimmed eyes.
"What? Jianwei is dead? How did he die?" Lu Liangjia asked loudly, extremely shocked.
"Of course he was eaten by a zombie, how else could he have died? And that kid almost got us into trouble too!" Thomas Xu looked at Lu Liangjia with some displeasure, frowning as he dug at his ears because Lu Liangjia's voice was so loud it hurt his eardrums.
"Hmm…" Jiang Yan nodded sadly, her voice trembling as she said, "Jianwei suddenly went crazy that day and yanked open a door. I couldn't hold him back, and behind that door were all zombies…"
"Jianwei is dead? Jianwei actually died?" Lu Liangjia's voice wasn't very loud this time, but he suddenly looked as if his soul had been pulled away, his tall body dumbly collapsing into a chair, staring blankly at the ground with eyes that had no focus.
"Jiang Yan, are you classmates with Xiao Lu?" Jack asked, looking at Jiang Yan in surprise.
"No, he is my boyfriend's classmate and a good man from the same dorm, but we are not from the same school!" Jiang Yan gently shook her head, explaining why Lu Liangjia was so agitated.
"Jiang Yan, tell me about Jianwei's last moments. I haven't seen him for a long time before the disaster!" Lu Liangjia suddenly raised his head, looking hopefully at Jiang Yan beside Jack.
"Hmm, come with me over there to boil some water while we talk, and let's not disturb Lin Ye and the others!" Jiang Yan nodded, said a word to Jack, and took Lu Liangjia to a pile of bonfire.
"Lin, do you know about the gathering place by the river?" After Jiang Yan and Lu Liangjia left, Lin Guodong lit the cigarette that Jack had started passing to him, and asked Thomas with some urgency, as he had already realized from Cao Mei's words that something was wrong.
"I know, Thomas Xu came out from there!" Jack nodded.
"Is it really like what they say on the radio, that it's run by the government and they'll provide me with free housing and food?" Lin Guodong asked anxiously, while the people around him looked at Jack with eager faces, as this was a matter of their survival.
"Alas~ I'm afraid your hopes are going to be dashed!" Jack gently shook his head, looking at Thomas's face, which had instantly turned ashen. Leaning back in his chair, he slowly said, "Seeing you all rush here overnight, I knew where you were headed. But what the broadcast said is mostly nonsense. There are no more than five thousand people there, and the living conditions are quite grim. They might have plenty of houses, but they are also very short on food! The reason they broadcast this recording is simply to take advantage of survivors like you!"
"...Liars! They are all a bunch of liars! Even at a time like this, they still deceive their own people. Don't they fear a bad end? Wuwu..." Chen Yalan suddenly broke down and cried loudly, uncontrollably pounding the table. After that, she leaned over the table and cried out loud.
"Alas~ Xiaoya, don't cry! At least we are still alive!" William Guodong gently patted his wife's back and helplessly said to the despairing Old Lu beside him, "I told you before, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. What the broadcast said is clearly unreliable, just like an advertisement. Haven't we encountered such fraudsters before in business? If the government were involved, they wouldn't say it like this; they would definitely include some precautions, and there would surely be contact points on the outskirts!"
"I know, but that was the only hope we had. I finally understand the importance of the government in my heart!" Lu Bin sighed heavily and shook his head helplessly.
"Actually, Old William is right. At least you are all still alive. There is nothing more important than being alive right now!" Jack slowly looked at the six people in front of him and said, "You are all capable individuals; you can live wonderfully on your own!"
"Brother Lin..." William Guodong was the most composed among them. While holding his wife, he cautiously asked, "Where are you planning to go next? Can you take us with you?"
"You might laugh at us, but we are also heading to that gathering place!" Jack looked at William Guodong and said with a wry smile.
"Huh? Didn't you say the conditions there are terrible? Why are you still going?" William Guodong and the others looked at Jack in surprise.
"Alas~ To be honest, my personal destination is actually Nanzhou, and I have always been traveling alone. However, due to various coincidences, more and more people have gathered around me. But as far as I know, Nanzhou is quite dangerous right now, and I can't take so many people there. So I definitely need to find them a place to settle, and the nearest gathering place is only there!" Jack shrugged helplessly.
"But how will they survive there? You have mostly women and children here, including pregnant women. I think once they leave you, they basically have no way to survive!" William Guodong, being a businessman, quickly grasped the key point.
"I know they will definitely have a hard life, but... I'm not their babysitter, am I?" Jack's eyes dimmed for a moment, and after a long silence, he lowered his head and said, "This time, I plan to go there and take a look first. If they can barely survive, then they will have to rely on themselves. I can't protect them forever, but if it really comes to a point where there's no way out, I won't push them into the fire. I will think of another way to help them find a better gathering place!"
"From what you said, it seems that's the only way!" William Guodong nodded gravely, glancing at the few people around him, and helplessly said, "It looks like we can only go along and see. It's better than wandering around aimlessly outside!"
"Old William, you really don't need to worry too much. You four strong men won't starve to death, right? Once we get to the gathering place, I, Thomas Xu, will take care of you. I'll personally lead you to find food!" Thomas Xu said confidently, patting his chest.
"Then... thank you so much, man!" William Guodong immediately nodded excitedly, and the others also looked grateful, their faces filled with excitement!