Chapter 56: The Survivor's Goodwill

There is a grave issue urgently awaiting a solution: can one wear iron shorts to sleep?

The root cause for this question is the safety of Little Green Bamboo.

After waking up three days to find Little Green Bamboo in Minju's mouth two of those times, Xiao Guang felt he had to confront this matter directly.

This issue involves many concerns: ethics, personal safety, and the dignity of a shut-in.

As for why Minju had such a habit, Xiao Guang had thoroughly figured it out by last night.

First, after everyone had washed up and settled down, he was lying in the middle wearing his shorts, with Irene's spot always fixed on his left.

To his right was originally Minju, and to Minju's right was Hyewon. This was the initial arrangement of the four people.

Xiao Guang squinted, pretending to be asleep, and watched as Minju slowly raised herself from the right side, leaning over his chest. That was fine in itself, but her hand reached toward Irene's lips.

Irene gave her a light tap, and Minju withdrew her hand. However, it was clear she hadn't given up. She simply rested her little head on his chest and watched Irene. After about ten minutes, when Irene had nearly drifted off to sleep, she casually fished out the little sphere and placed it on his chest. Minju quickly picked it up and stuffed it into her mouth.

One could sense that Minju was extremely happy. Instead of continuing to lie on his chest, she burrowed under the blanket. Xiao Guang sensed that she had curled up near his feet and was playing quietly.

Whenever he discovered Minju, she was either hiding beneath a pile of clothes or curled up under the blankets, which seemed to give her a sense of security. Xiao Guang could understand why she did this, and up until this moment, he hadn't found any problem with it.

On the first day, Xiao Guang had just let it be, but he couldn't stay awake and fell asleep. When he woke up in the morning, Minju was sleeping soundly across his legs, and Xiao Guang felt a tugging sensation.

So on the afternoon of the second day, Xiao Guang slept for a little while, deciding to stay awake all night to get to the bottom of this. No matter how he looked at it, Minju didn't seem like someone with a weird quirk.

It was no different from the previous day: Irene played with it first, and when she got sleepy, she passed it to Minju. Then Minju hid at the edge of the blanket and played happily. She was genuinely happy, even letting out soft giggles.

Xiao Guang forced himself to stay awake. Near dawn, Xiao Guang discovered the turning point of the matter: Hyewon woke up.

Hyewon crawled over him first, leaned over Irene to check her mouth, confirmed the little sphere wasn't there, and then turned to dive under the blanket.

In the moonlight, Xiao Guang saw it very clearly. Hyewon pinched Minju's little mouth, reached out to fish the little sphere out, stuffed it into her own mouth, and then contentedly lay down on his right side, falling asleep shortly after.

Minju let out a wronged whimper, blindly fumbling around under the blanket, likely having discovered that the little sphere had vanished. Yet she didn't crawl out from under the blanket to check Irene and Hyewon. After a few gropes, her hands brushed against Xiao Guang's two lychees.

The subsequent events became crystal clear: his cotton shorts had vanished into thin air, and Minju had found the little sphere carrying his scent. To her credit, Minju was still somewhat conscientious; she didn't bite it off directly, but instead fell asleep happily with it held between her lips.

How should he put it? Irene's upbringing had been quite successful; Minju wouldn't bite him. That was the greatest misfortune among all misfortunes.

Everyone was satisfied, but Xiao Guang felt he had something to say.

~~~~

"Just this little sphere—what makes it worth the two of you tossing it back and forth? I've brought back so many other little spheres for you, yet you only fight over this one. I really don't get it."

The little sphere was held in Xiao Guang's hand. The gazes of the three zombie girls followed the sphere, just like little kittens mesmerized by a ping-pong ball. Seeing their expressions, Xiao Guang felt as though talking to them was entirely pointless.

Resignedly, he handed the sphere back to Irene. Fine, go ahead and play. What else could he do? Dawn had broken; time to make breakfast.

He found a large radish, slightly shriveled, washed it, cut it into pieces, tossed them into the pot of wild boar meat soup, added some water, and they could have another meal of wild boar meat.

While waiting for the food to cook, Xiao Guang picked up the walkie-talkie and fiddled with it. How should he put it? Although he knew rescue had nothing to do with him, he couldn't say it was completely unrelated either. Right now, he could practically be considered part of the overseas diaspora reception contingent.

Hearing a loud and clear broadcast in his native language during the apocalypse filled Xiao Guang with a deep sense of pride. At times like this, the demeanor of a great nation and collective action provided the most powerful driving force. Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen were only the beginning; with three points launched, Xiao Guang hoped to hear more good news. His hometown was a tier-three city, and Xiao Guang believed that day would come.

The little sphere was passed by Irene to Minju, who happily curled up in the sofa with both legs pulled up to her chest. If someone were to drape a few extra pieces of clothing over her right now, she would surely fly with joy.

Irene withdrew her gaze from the walkie-talkie, turned to look at Hyewon, and Hyewon's purple eyes shifted, seeming to give a slight nod.

"I'm going out to scavenge some supplies in a while. You don't all need to come along; Hyewon and Minju will guard the house."

Catching the aroma of cooked rice, Xiao Guang put down the walkie-talkie and spoke. Nowadays, he had to go out at least once a day to gather supplies. The weather was getting colder, and the gasoline in the fuel tank was running quite low. Though they weren't lacking in supplies, the habit of scavenging could not be abandoned.

~~~

Xiao Guang spotted a boy band. They were looking at him from the other side of the glass; some stood motionless, while others frantically licked the glass. Xiao Guang turned his head to look at Irene.

"Are they from your company?"

"It's EXO."

Xiao Guang counted the headcount—all eight of them were there. This was the first time he had ever seen such a large group of artists. The last time, at the broadcasting station, he had once seen four dead zombie girls. How pitiful.

Looking up at the name of the building, Xiao Guang leaned in for a closer look. The artists on the opposite side had clearly all grown thin, their cheekbones protruding and faces sunken.

An entire group wiped out in one go; he truly didn't know what to say. Frankly speaking, just a moment ago, Xiao Guang had thought the person standing in the middle was a survivor. Now, looking closely, that shriveled throat confirmed their identity as a zombie.

"Hey, do you have food?"

Xiao Guang heard the sound of a vehicle. He felt somewhat pleased, since he had never seen a zombie drive a car. When he turned around, a delivery truck had stopped by the roadside, the window rolled down, and Xiao Guang saw the middle-aged man speaking. Xiao Guang felt as though he had seen him on television before.

Xiao Guang stared at the man's face—he truly was a survivor. Even though this ought to have been a joyful occasion, alarm bells rang wildly in Xiao Guang's heart. Subconsciously, he half-retreated back toward the side of his own truck and asked in return,

"Don't you have food? Seoul is so huge."

The opposite truck inched forward a bit more. Xiao Guang immediately pulled open the door and climbed inside, but the other driver cut across, blocking the front of Xiao Guang's truck. The middle-aged man smiled at Xiao Guang and thrust a firearm out the window.

Without a single word exchanged, the moment Xiao Guang saw the gun, he ducked down into the gap between the seats and slammed his foot on the accelerator. The vehicle lurched forward, crashing directly into the truck opposite.

"Shit~~ You've got quick reflexes. Not dead yet, huh?"

The man leaped out of his truck and fired two shots directly at the tires of Xiao Guang's vehicle. The truck immediately listed to one side.

"Damn it, it's the apocalypse, and you still managed to bring along a chick. Shit, do you have any idea how pent-up I've been? Fuck, get your ass out here right now and kneel before me, and I'll give you a quick death."

Xiao Guang was panicking. He didn't know whether he should get out of the car. If he did, it would probably turn into a game of fatal cat-and-mouse with that man. Yet if he didn't, the man was already marching toward the driver's side.

"Damn, what fair hands. Sweetheart, turn your head and let me have a look. Following a real man like me beats this punk any day—I've got a gun."

Xiao Guang watched as the man raised his gun and walked toward the driver's side. Perhaps because he was approaching from the passenger side where Irene sat, and Irene was blocking his view of Xiao Guang, the man hadn't fired yet. Xiao Guang's mind raced as he desperately considered how to respond.

It was hopeless, because Xiao Guang could think of no solution. Though he was clutching a wrench in his hand, facing the other man's firearm, he seemed to stand no chance whatsoever. Xiao Guang tried hard to devise a countermeasure, but the man gave him no time at all.

The driver's side door was yanked open by the man in one motion. Xiao Guang caught sight of the man's grinning face, and simultaneously saw a metal chain whip through the air—followed by the man's head exploding. As Xiao Guang watched red and white matter splatter and dance through the air, his lips went dry.

"You... you... I... Irene, thank you."

Irene's fair little hand trembled slightly. The chain slithered back to her side like a snake. She turned her head, her crimson eyes gazing at Xiao Guang, and suddenly offered a faint smile.

"No need to thank me. There must be things you want inside his car."