Chapter 5: Shelter
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Damn it! Zhang Xinrou!
The little one lay on the cushion, curiously pawing at a cloth doll.
“Little one, wait here for Mommy a moment, Mommy will be right back!”
“Abba abba.” Okay.
Tang Miao sprinted all the way and saw Zhang Xinrou still sound asleep on the floor, letting out a long sigh of relief.
Although Zhang Xinrou had been unpleasant in her memories, she was not deserving of death; wanton killing was not Tang Miao’s way of doing things.
She hoisted Zhang Xinrou onto her shoulder with one hand, and as she got into the car, a loud clatter rang out.
Tang Miao jolted and carefully placed Zhang Xinrou in the front passenger seat.
The little one curiously looked at the bump on Zhang Xinrou’s forehead and poked it.
Tang Miao felt guilty. It seemed she wouldn’t wake up anytime soon, so she continued gathering supplies.
Soon, frying pans, rice cooker inner pots, stainless steel pots, steel pipes, and other metal objects filled half the van.
“Ah!”
A sharp human scream suddenly came from the driver’s seat of the truck. Tang Miao hurried over.
Zhang Xinrou was still unconscious but had changed position.
The little one held up a Labubu doll innocently: “Abba abba.”
Awake, dizzy.
Tang Miao patted the little one’s head. “Keep watching her, Mom will go find some more things.”
Tang Miao placed the food she had prepared and all the crop seeds she could find in the driver’s seat.
She raided a stationery store for label paper and pens, and a supermarket for some small cosmetic containers.
She categorized and sampled water, soil, plastic, and various foods from this world.
Until she found some kind of aid tool, Tang Miao had to keep a close watch on these items.
The headache was that she had turned this entire residential complex upside down but still could not find any such aid tool.
“Abba abba.” Sleepy.
Tang Miao patted the little one’s head. “You go to sleep first, Mom is tired from running around. When you wake up, we’ll set off again.”
Just as she laid the little one on the soft cushion, Zhang Xinrou’s hand twitched.
She groggily looked up, and upon seeing Tang Miao, her eyes reddened.
“Tang Miao, where did you just go?”
Who could understand—waking up to see a zombified child holding a doll, babbling at her, was a surreal kind of salvation.
“I was busy gathering materials. You woke up just in time.” Tang Miao blinked, tossing Zhang Xinrou a piece of bread. “Hungry? Eat something.”
After speaking, Tang Miao glanced guiltily at the bump on Zhang Xinrou’s forehead.
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The little one hadn’t fallen asleep and excitedly tugged a piece of bread toward Zhang Xinrou: “Abba abba.”
“Auntie eat.”
Zhang Xinrou shuddered, the bread in her hands crushed suddenly as she stared fiercely at the little one.
Tang Miao noticed the little one’s eyes were bulging again and calmly pressed them back.
Bang.
“Abba abba.” Auntie fainted.
Tang Miao rubbed her forehead and used firm methods to wake Zhang Xinrou, attempting to explain.
After repeatedly shutting down and rebooting, Zhang Xinrou finally accepted the reality that Tang Miao was raising a zombie child and intended to start a farm with it.
The little one and Zhang Xinrou exchanged glances.
“Abba abba.” Auntie good.
Zhang Xinrou clutched the bread, ignoring the headache, and trembled as she asked Tang Miao, “What did it say?”
Tang Miao raised an eyebrow. “It said you need to listen to me well, or it will eat your brain.”
The little one paused, slowly turning its head: “Abba abba?” Huh?
The apocalypse had just begun; the power supply and communication systems were mostly intact.
Tang Miao had also collected a bunch of phones and power banks, among which one had no screen password.
Zhang Xinrou quietly crept over.
“What are you doing?” Tang Miao covered the phone, wary.
“Tang Miao, why are you so guarded against me? We’re in the same boat now!”
Tang Miao narrowed her eyes. “You’ve done plenty of shady things before. How can I trust you?”
Zhang Xinrou’s eyes widened slightly. “You remember everything?”
“What else?”
Zhang Xinrou secretly rejoiced, thinking Tang Miao was still the same, only that after dying once, she had changed personality.
Feeling cheerful, Zhang Xinrou muttered with a crooked smile, “If you don’t want to look, then don’t.”
Tang Miao turned her back to Zhang Xinrou, randomly entering a group chat—the owners’ group for Building A, Unit 5.
The group chat had over 99 unread messages; she was curious how people could still be so lively during the apocalypse.
“TD to human: Damn it! Someone’s driving a truck scavenging resources in the opposite complex!”
“AAA Wholesale Building Materials—Brother Wang: Are you sure? A truck is such a big target. Isn’t that just making themselves a live target?”
“Shangshan Ruo Shui: Is it this one?”
“Shangshan Ruo Shui: Picture.jpg”
“Shangshan Ruo Shui: She’s holding a mother and daughter hostage, the kid’s still alive, but the mother looks half dead, being carried into the truck.”
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“TD to human: The truck’s half loaded with frying pans and rice cookers; haven’t seen her take any food yet.”
“TD to human: I suspect she’s gone crazy, maybe dismembered that mother. I heard her call out twice earlier, but now it’s completely silent!”
“Innocent Cockroach Hot: By the way, is there anyone left in that opposite complex?”
Tang Miao frowned, calmly took a bite of bread, and looked toward the complex across the street.
The buildings there were generally about 31 stories tall, giving her a clear view of the complex she had scavenged.
No wonder she always felt a chill behind her while scavenging. Fortunately, she was careful and had hidden the food well before loading it onto the truck.
Zhang Xinrou held her breath, frowning as she peeked at the phone screen.
That zombie child was not hers; she would never be as crazy as Tang Miao, raising a little zombie.
“Shangshan Ruo Shui: I took a closer look at this girl; she’s pretty. I’d be willing to take her in.”
‘Shangshan Ruo Shui retracted a message.’
“Calm Heart Naturally Cool: Take her in my foot! Don’t think I didn’t see that you retracted the message! Why don’t you go take in that whole bunch of zombies over there!”
Tang Miao nodded thoughtfully, guessing that Calm Heart Naturally Cool was probably Shangshan Ruo Shui’s wife.
“Taking in a wandering boy: The opposite complex has been swept clean by a bunch of thugs. Our complex’s high floors kept them away.”
“AAA Wholesale Building Materials—Brother Wang: So awesome! You know why there are basically no zombies in our area?”
“AAA Wholesale Building Materials—Brother Wang: Picture.jpg”
“TD to human: Just as my friend said, the military has protected this area and set up a quarantine line!”
Tang Miao discovered the key information and zoomed in on the photo.
A barricade made from various vehicles was set up in the middle of the road, isolating the few zombies outside.
Tang Miao joined several more group chats, sketching out the quarantine zone’s boundaries from the photos people shared.
Within the protected area, Song Mingchen and the others should be relatively safe.
Zhang Xinrou couldn’t help but speak: “Don’t even think about farming anymore. Staying inside the protection zone is the safest. If you don’t care about your life, I still do.”
Tang Miao curled her lips. “Believe it or not, it’s only by starting this farm that we can both survive.”
“Abba abba.” Mommy look there.
The little one hadn’t slept and pressed against the window, pointing at a spot in the opposite complex.
Tang Miao followed the direction and spotted a woman near the entrance of Building A, Unit 5, sneakily tearing her clothes.
Squinting, Tang Miao probed with her mental powers, her scalp tingling.
The woman’s spiritual energy fluctuated abnormally and was completely different from Song Mingchen’s.