Chapter 799: Chapter 784: Hit Someone (Part 2)
Talking about human lives in the apocalypse is no different from telling cold jokes during normal times; no one will argue with you over a few people’s life or death, and you won’t face the punishment of the law you deserve.
At times like these, a person’s death is as commonplace as stepping on an ant by the roadside, so if someone seriously wants to hold you accountable for someone’s death, then they’re either out of their mind or just joking with you.
Of course, there are no absolutes, and there still exists a small group of kind people who stubbornly uphold and adhere to the moral laws of human civilization. Wang Zhongyu and Wen Quanxin are among them.
So when Wen Quanxin confidently told Wang Zhongyu that the person he hit was indeed a survivor, the latter was taken aback, feeling a surge of guilt. He couldn’t believe it as he slowly stepped forward, stammering, "No, no, no, it’s impossible, there’s no way a living person could be here!"
Indeed, the street around them was full of zombies, and the sudden appearance of a living person was enough to leave one speechless.
"Damn, would I trick you? Just look at the complexion, the skin, it’s a living person, what else could it be?"
Wang Zhongyu squatted down and carefully observed, just as Wen Quanxin had said, aside from looking weary, there were no signs of rot or decay on the entire body, which alone was 90% sure that this person was alive and not a zombie.
"I’ve already told you, I saw him rushing out from the house by the street. But you went right ahead and hit him," Wen Quanxin continued his explanation adamantly.
Wang Zhongyu remained squatting on the ground, distractedly examining the dead man’s body, hoping to find even the slightest evidence of mutation or traces of being gnawed by zombies, which would alleviate some of his inner guilt.
His fingers kept prodding the dead man’s body, and as Wang Zhongyu’s finger slid across the other’s nose, he felt a faint warmth. With a hopeful heart, he carefully placed his finger underneath the man’s nose to confirm again: "Alive, still alive, not dead! Breathing, it’s still breathing."
Wang Zhongyu, like a child receiving a long-desired toy, danced around pulling Wen Quanxin to prove the fact that the man was still alive.
The latter, helplessly, squatted down with difficulty and extended his hand to confirm: "Damn, there really is still breath!"
"Hey, buddy, how are you? Say something!" Wen Quanxin gently shook the man on the ground twice, hoping to wake him, but unfortunately, the man showed no signs of reaction, like a dead person.
"Xiao Wen, this place is too dangerous, we should get him into the car."
Wen Quanxin thought it through, after all, they themselves were struggling to stay safe in the midst of zombies, and with the temperature as cold as it was, leaving the man in the snow would risk hypothermia and unforeseen incidents.
Driven by humanitarian rescue spirit, Wen Quanxin nodded: "Yes, let’s get him into the car and quickly get away from here."
Though the man wasn’t tall, his belly was quite chunky; it’s hard to figure how he managed to keep such a hefty figure during the apocalypse, it seems he had enough to eat.
Wang Zhongyu and Wen Quanxin expended a lot of effort to lift and move the man into the car, for safety reasons, Wen Quanxin suggested tying him securely.
To prevent him from waking up enraged and settling scores with them later, it was Wang Zhongyu who hit him.
Wang Zhongyu had another reason for agreeing with Wen Quanxin’s approach; ultimately, he felt the man’s presence here at this time was extremely strange, fearing he might already be infected with the zombie virus, so binding him securely was a necessary precaution against potential attacks during the journey.
Since Wang Zhongyu had to drive the car, the task of guarding and tying up the man fell to Wen Quanxin, with the former not feeling assured, he repeatedly instructed the latter: don’t untie the man, don’t easily get close to the man, and inform him immediately if the man wakes up.
After hearing Wang Zhongyu’s instructions, Wen Quanxin replied impatiently, "You just focus on driving your car and stop worrying about everything else! I’ll handle it!"
"Xiao Wang!" Old Zhao looked surprised at the silhouette at the balcony door, asking inexplicably: "Why did you come up?"
Actually, Wang Qiang hadn’t slept at all tonight, he’d been thinking of coming upstairs to help with surveillance since morning, but since he had a falling out with Tang Xiaoquan and was a face-saving person, he stubbornly held back on taking action.
However, as night fell and time stretched on, his anger over not being able to return to the villa because of Tang Xiaoquan’s meddling dissipated, and his mind began to clear.
Calming down, lying in bed, he started reflecting on his actions and words today.
As he pondered, he realized he had indeed done many absurd and excessive things, especially the things he said to his brothers were downright reckless.
Their efforts were for brainstorming and strategizing for the villa, while he was distressed by issues related to Yang Xue and Liu Yunpeng.
I’ve been such a fool! Wang Qiang spent the night in agonizing self-blame and conflict.
He had considered going up to replace the hard-working Tang and Zhao, but was at a loss for how to start the conversation.
Apologizing was out of the question, because despite everything, Wang Qiang still felt Tang Xiaoquan’s actions and arrangements today were somewhat inappropriate.
In his view, the starting point of Tang Xiaoquan’s suspicion of Liu Fugui’s malice was problematic.
Although he himself didn’t get along with the latter, that couldn’t be the standard for judging whether the other’s intentions in moving in were insincere.
Wang Qiang was thus entangled in frustration, until he heard snoring from upstairs late at night. Knowing someone was sleeping, he decided to go up and check; if it was Tang Xiaoquan, he’d continue to sleep; if it was Old Zhao, he’d go upstairs to switch and let the latter come down to sleep.
After all, compared to Tang, when facing Old Zhao, Wang Qiang didn’t have to worry about matters of face.
"Uncle Zhao, you should go down to rest, I’ll take over for you!" As he spoke, Wang Qiang had already walked onto the balcony and sat down cross-legged.
"Take over for me? Haha, no need, Xiao Wang, thank you, I’m not tired, you should go down." Old Zhao gently refused Wang Qiang’s offer, but the latter had made up his mind not to leave once he came, he didn’t want to continue dwelling in guilt over his actions today.
So he insisted: "Oh, Uncle Zhao, you’ve driven, cooked, and now you’re staying up to monitor, how can you bear it? Go down and rest, I’ll watch over here."
"Haha, no need, really no need, Xiao Tang, your Uncle Zhao isn’t that frail, you should know I often work on research projects overnight at the school, it’s common practice, a small case. So don’t worry about your Uncle Zhao, hurry down."
"No way, you’re driving later."
The two continued to refuse, neither willing to leave the balcony.
Eventually, Zhao Yunhai had no choice, he compromised: "Well, Qiang, if you really can’t sleep, how about you stay with Uncle Zhao here, anyway it’s late, Uncle Zhao can’t really sleep, might as well keep each other company, chat while we monitor, and stave off boredom. How does that sound?" (To be continued. If you like this work, we welcome you to visit Qidian.com to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
