Chapter 28: Escape
Chaolu froze for a moment when she heard that.
“But it’s the apocalypse now. There’s no way I can avoid k*lling,” Chaolu couldn’t help defending herself.
Chaoyang, however, looked at her intently. “I’m not saying you can’t—but there’s a difference. You can k*ll when you’re left with no choice, when it’s the only way to survive. But you can’t k*ll just because you don’t like someone’s face.”
K*lling might be the same act on the surface, but the meaning wasn’t the same.
Chaolu was already showing faint signs of something dangerous, and he had to nip it in the bud before it grew.
She was only twelve. Her personality and values weren’t set in stone yet. In this situation, he had to do his job as a younger brother—make sure Chaolu didn’t grow up twisted.
…Wait. Something about that sounded a little off.
Forget it. Not important.
“Anyway, your first reaction when you see a person shouldn’t be to k*ll them.”
“…Fine, I’ll listen to you,” Chaolu reluctantly agreed. “Then what do we do about the two men guarding the gate?”
Chaoyang thought for two seconds. “Knock them out.”
“But we don’t have knockout dr*gs.” Chaolu spread her hands ㄟ(▔,▔)ㄏ
Chaoyang’s lips curved faintly. “The factory does. I can make a smoke bomb to distract them, then you spray the anesthetic at them while they’re confused.”
Everyone: “!!?”
Kid, aren’t you a little too sk*lled for your age?
The adults were completely stunned.
Soon, Chaoyang was wrapping nitrocellulose in tinfoil to make several smoke bombs, while also pulling out a few cans of ether from a corner of the factory.
Ether was dangerous stuff—colorless, highly volatile, and prone to explosion. Normally, it was used as an anesthetic.
Compared to Mibao, Chaoyang had much more freedom inside the factory. With nothing to do, he often wandered around, and it was during one of those times that he stumbled upon the ether.
“In a moment, I’ll throw out the smoke bombs. Cover your nose and mouth, and spray this at them,” Chaoyang handed the can of ether to Chaolu. “Remember, don’t spray too much.”
Too much inhaled could k*ll them.
“No problem!” Chaolu, wearing a pair of goggles, gave him an OK sign.
Everything was ready. Chaoyang lit the foil ball with a lighter, and the moment it began to smoke, he quickly tossed it out!
“What the—!?”
Ergou jumped in surprise. Before he could react, the foil ball on the ground began pouring out thick smoke.
Almost immediately, a second and a third foil ball were thrown out as well.
In an instant, smoke billowed in thick clouds at the factory entrance. Ergou and Ertiao were choking so badly they couldn’t open their eyes, and instinctively tried to rush inside.
But waiting for them was Chaolu, who smiled faintly as she watched the two stumble toward her.
Ertiao was the first to react, eyes going wide. “Who the hell are y—”
Hiss—
The moment Ergou and Ertiao finally stumbled out of the smoke, they gasped for air by reflex—and inhaled every bit of ether Chaolu sprayed out.
Thud!
Crash!
Two limp bodies collapsed to the ground without warning.
Seeing the two had fainted, Chaolu put away the ether and bolted outside.
The others, who had been waiting inside, held their breath and hurried out after her.
“…That’s it? We escaped just like that?” Uncle Wang looked up at the long-lost sky, his eyes moist, disbelief written all over his face.
“Uncle Wang, do you not want to leave here?” Mibao tilted her head curiously. “Do you want to go back—”
“No, no, no! Of course I want to leave! Ah, ptooey, I want to leave more than anything!”
Uncle Wang was so flustered his tongue got tied in knots.
Whoever wanted to stay in this hellhole could stay—he was never letting himself get locked up again!
“We need to leave. Now.” Chaoyang urged. “We’ve already wasted too much time. If Baldy and the others come back, we’re done for—does anyone here know how to drive?”
He looked at the seven adults.
Uncle Wang raised his hand right away. “I do, I do. My driving sk*lls are top-notch—I’ve been at it for years.”
There was only one van left in the factory, so seven adults plus three kids had no choice but to squeeze in as best they could.
“Little bro, which way are we heading?” Old Wang, sitting behind the wheel, turned to ask Chaoyang in the passenger seat.
By now, everyone had figured it out: Chaoyang was the brains, Chaolu the muscle, and Mibao… well, Mibao’s job was to be adorable? Ahem, not that they were looking down on the kid—it was just that Mibao was so very young.
Of course, no one thought of Mibao as a burden.
In this bleak, gray-tinted apocalypse, her presence was like a balm to their spirits.
Chaoyang thought for a moment, then turned to look at Mibao in the back. “Mibao, do you still want to go back?”
He didn’t really recommend it. And honestly, he doubted Mibao’s father would ever return to that villa.
“Daddy probably won’t go back to the villa…” Mibao lowered her head. “I think Daddy must’ve gone somewhere safer—so before we leave, I want to see Mommy one more time.”
“Mibao, isn’t your mom already…” Chaolu frowned in confusion.
Dead, wasn’t she?
“Mm. I want to pay my respects to Mommy.” Mibao nodded firmly. “If I go looking for Daddy later, I might never come back. I need to tell Mommy, so the star that belongs to her can find me.”
In the apocalypse, having such a naïve thought might seem laughable.
But everyone in the van could understand Mibao.
In her little world, her mother had simply turned into a star, watching her from the sky.
The only problem was, Mibao thought stars were fixed in the heavens. Their vision must be limited. If she left without telling her mom, then her mom wouldn’t be able to find her anymore.
“Alright, then let’s go see your mom,” Chaoyang nodded, then glanced around at the others. “Uncles, aunties—any objections?”
The uncles and aunties: “……”
Of course they had no objections.
Their lives had been saved by these three children. Who were they to have an opinion?
“Then I’ll trouble Uncle Wang,” Chaoyang turned to him.
Uncle Wang let out a hearty laugh. “What trouble? Everyone sit tight—I’m stepping on it!”
The moment his foot slammed down on the accelerator, the minivan shot forward like a missile.
Only a chorus of screams lingered in the air behind.
…
…
Meanwhile, Bald Man realized he had made a miscalculation—this weapons depot was completely empty!
“Damn it! Came here for nothing!” he cursed under his breath.
Turned out the place was abandoned long ago, all the useful gear taken by higher-ups.
His anger boiled over, but what else could he do? At least none of his men had been hurt—he had to take that as a small blessing.
Still, as hard as it had been to get inside, getting out again was even harder.
It was ridiculous—like pulling down your pants just to fart!
Worse yet, the zombies seemed to have learned from experience. Their usual diversion tactics weren’t working as well anymore.
A handful of zombies stubbornly refused to be lured away.
That left Bald Man’s group no choice but to fight their way out, and in the process they lost a brother.
Bald Man’s face darkened.
“Damn it all! Once I get out of here, I’m gonna k*ll that little brat!” he spat furiously.
Of course, none of this had anything to do with that kid.
But so what?
He needed someone to vent his rage on.