Chapter 36: Take the Gamble
When the van stopped at the entrance of the neighborhood, Ye Duo—who had been keeping watch at the window—spotted it immediately.
Her eyes lit up. Were the people in that van coming inside?
If so, would she have a chance to leave with them?
But very quickly, she realized the people in the van had no intention of getting out.
They only pulled out a loudspeaker and began to broadcast a recording.
“…Residents of the town, listen up. We’ve placed a radio at the security booth. If you’re capable, you can come and take it.
In addition, from the radio we received an official announcement from the nation: safety bases have already been established, located at…”
The loudspeaker kept blaring as the van slowly started to circle around the neighborhood, trying to make sure any survivors inside could hear it.
Ye Duo’s heart instantly sank.
No… don’t go!
If they left, she was surely going to die!
Panic rose in her chest as she watched helplessly while the van slipped out of sight, leaving only the broadcast echoing in her ears.
No…
Wait.
The van was circling—maybe even more than once.
If she could make it to the entrance in time, wouldn’t she have a chance to leave with them?
With that thought, Ye Duo immediately grabbed her backpack and a baseball bat, ready to head out.
But just as her hand touched the doorknob, a startled voice sounded behind her.
“Duoduo, what are you doing?”
Ye Duo turned her head and saw her pale, weakened uncle and aunt staring at her in shock.
Ye Duo pressed her lips together. She still had feelings for her uncle and aunt.
“Uncle, Aunt, I know there’s no food left at home… I want to take a chance outside. Maybe I can leave with the people in that van. Do you want to come with me?”
If they all left together, once her uncle and aunt had food, surely they wouldn’t think about eating her anymore.
“Duoduo, what nonsense are you talking about?” her aunt quickly tried to dissuade her. “We don’t even know who those people in the van are. You’re just a young girl—if you run off recklessly, who knows what kind of danger you’ll run into?”
Her uncle nodded. “That’s right, Duoduo. Be good, don’t open the door.”
Ye Duo looked at the two of them, her eyes carrying a faint trace of disappointment.
“Uncle, Aunt, I’m not stupid. I know if we stay here, it’s only a matter of time before we die.”
“Who says that? If we just hold out a little longer, maybe the government people will come…” her aunt said, still clinging to hope.
“Aunt, our place is too remote,” Ye Duo said seriously. “Even if there is rescue, by the time they get here, we’ll already have starved to death.”
That cruel truth, spoken so plainly by a child, left the two adults speechless.
Of course they knew it too. But… if they didn’t keep thinking that way, they wouldn’t be able to go on.
“Come with me. Let’s give it a try. Maybe…”
“Duoduo, if you go out now, you might die today,” her uncle couldn’t help but say. “You can’t go!”
Her aunt echoed him: “Yes! Those zombies outside are too frightening…”
The two kept trying to persuade her, but Ye Duo couldn’t wait any longer.
She had to get to the entrance quickly—if the van drove away, then she really was done for!
So she stopped trying to convince them, yanked open the door, slipped out, and shut it firmly behind her.
Her hand holding the baseball bat trembled slightly. Of course she was afraid of the zombies. But if she didn’t summon her courage now, she was going to die anyway!
Dead sooner or dead later—it was all the same. Better to take the gamble!
Ye Duo took a deep breath and carefully made her way downstairs.
The main entrance of the stairwell was closed, so inside was still relatively safe.
When she reached the bottom of the building and stood before the security door, she drew in a deep breath.
Come on… you can do this.
Her building was already the second block, closest to the main gate. She only needed to cross one short path.
Ye Duo carefully opened the security door, just a narrow crack, squeezed through, and quickly shut it again.
Afraid of being noticed by zombies, she crouched low and closed it slowly, terrified that a loud noise might draw them over.
Even though she was determined to leave, there were still other residents in this building—she couldn’t just leave the door open.
In front of the apartment buildings was a belt of greenery, which gave Ye Duo places to hide.
She moved along almost plastered against the flowerbeds, crouching so low that her pace was painfully slow.
From the road came the meaningless howls of zombies. Ye Duo could tell—they were close.
She was trembling all over, terrified, her mind filled with the image of her classmate’s half face being bitten off a month ago.
She wanted to scream, but she knew she couldn’t.
Clenching her teeth, she crawled forward bit by bit.
Meanwhile, the van made another loop around the neighborhood. The loudspeaker blared loud enough to attract a few zombies that now followed after it.
“These zombies are so annoying, just like flies,” Chaolu muttered, propping her chin in her hand as she stared outside.
“They’ll move along once we drive away,” Chaoyang replied, reading a book as he spoke.
Chaolu leaned over to peek at his book. “What are you even reading… huh, Encyclopedia of Weapons? Little brother, you’ve switched tastes? Didn’t you always read finance before?”
Chaoyang turned his head and gave his sister a speechless look. “Times have changed.”
Chaolu: “…”
Well, true.
It was the apocalypse now—domineering CEOs weren’t worth anything.
Money power was useless, too.
Zhu Dafu, who was driving: “…”
An e-eight-year-old reading finance?
Was he crazy—or was the whole world crazy?
Oh, right—it wasn’t just the world turning upside down.
It had turned upside down into the apocalypse.
The van soon circled back to the neighborhood gate, which meant they’d finished a full loop.
So Zhu Dafu decided to hit the gas and shake off the zombies tailing them.
“Wait! Don’t go!”
Just then, a girl’s voice suddenly rang out from not far away, immediately drawing everyone’s attention inside the van.
Zhu Dafu couldn’t help grumbling, “Yelling that loud—trying to get yourself killed?”
There were zombies everywhere!
From the entrance of Hope Garden sprinted a teenage girl, a baseball bat clutched in her hand, waving frantically at them.
Her shout instantly drew all the zombies chasing the van. They howled and charged straight toward the girl.
Ye Duo knew shouting would definitely attract zombies, but she had no choice—the van was obviously about to leave!
That couldn’t happen!
She had barely managed to crawl out of the compound alive; she didn’t have the guts to crawl back in again!
But with that one shout, every zombie nearby turned on her, and Ye Duo instantly panicked.
She ran desperately toward the van, but the zombies were clearly faster.
The stench was already invading her nose, and despair flooded Ye Duo’s heart.
Was she… going to die here?
Should she have never run out in the first place?
Tears poured down in her total breakdown, but the pain she expected never came.
“Swish! Swish! Swish!”
The zombies about to grab Ye Duo had arrows pierce through their skulls, collapsing lifeless to the ground.
Ye Duo stood frozen in place.
“What are you standing there for? Get in the van!”
The van door swung open, and at the entrance a girl with a bow shouted at her.
