Apocalypse Star House Hoarding

Chapter 130

In the video, besides Wang Fen confessing her crimes, there were also other parents’ first reactions in a state of panic and terror.

Some people were ruthless by nature. Even when they saw someone who should have been dead appear in front of them in the middle of the night, they still shouted with anger, “I didn’t ask you to save me! You came out on your own! Since you’re already dead, then stay dead! I didn’t harm you, I just didn’t save you! I had to save my son! If you want to blame someone, blame your own stupidity! You could’ve followed us into the house, but you insisted on going to save those people! You didn’t even know them! You sacrificed yourself for a bunch of strangers, just to show how kind you are!”

…

Zheng Kun had been handsome, but in the video, when he spoke these words with his neck veins bulging and an almost ferocious expression, onlookers could only think of one thing: “Worse than a beast.”

From several videos, people had already pieced together the full sequence of events. When they saw that the person who had been rescued was not only ungrateful but also timid and was now trying to justify himself, they were disgusted by his hypocritical appearance.

“Spit! They saved your life, and you, like a coward, still try to make excuses!”

“Exactly! Hypocritical and disgusting! Just admit you’re a coward!”

“He wants to live, but the others don’t? Who doesn’t have a son? Others were murdered, and he’s telling them to stay dead! This kind of person is the most selfish!”

“I know this man. His name is Zheng Kun. His son goes to Blue City High, a senior this year. They were all parents from the same class, coming out with their kids to play. The son of the victim didn’t go up the mountain that day because he wasn’t feeling well, and now these people are down… The poor kid probably has no idea what happened…”

“Hey? Didn’t the video also mention other tourists? Wasn’t there a commotion in the hotel because some tourists didn’t meet their relatives? Maybe some of those tourists were among the victims!” “I know, one of the tourists was staying on the same floor as me. I’m going to let him know to come down!”

“Whoever did this, the faces of these people have already been put online. They’ve been looping on screens since this morning and can’t be deleted! There have been so many disasters lately, and so many people have risked their lives to save others. If every hero ends up facing trash like this, who will ever be willing to lend a hand when someone is in need?”

“Yeah, my boyfriend and I were trapped on the mountain before. Thankfully, when the typhoon came, we made it to the halfway point. Some parents with kids were slowed down, and in a critical moment, my boyfriend didn’t hesitate to rush over and help them!

At that time, I ran into a shop first. A few young people said they were closing the door, and I couldn’t stop them alone, but luckily an older woman stepped in to help, which allowed my boyfriend and the others to rush into the shop in time… Now, thinking about it, if it weren’t for that woman, my boyfriend and the others would have been stuck outside too…”

“How terrifying…”

“Look, is that them?”

“Yes! It’s them! I can’t believe they’re here, eating breakfast! These people are disgusting and terrifying! I’m going to remember their faces and avoid them next time I see them!”

Someone took out their phone and began recording, and soon there was a second, third…

Among Zheng Kun, Wang Fen, and the others, only a few of them encountered “Father Qu’s” “greeting” in the middle of the night. They were guilty, and originally didn’t dare to bring up the incident. When they woke up, they were still fine in their rooms, and they thought the experience had been a dream.

When everyone gathered the next morning, no one mentioned anything about last night’s events. They originally planned to discuss how to descend the mountain during breakfast, but as soon as they sat down, they realized they had become the target of everyone’s anger.

The screen nearby continued to loop their confessions, and the secret they thought they had buried—believing it would never be mentioned again—was now exposed in broad daylight for everyone to see.

“Ah—” Wang Fen was the first to react. She screamed, collapsing in her chair.

The children and students sitting next to the parents, who had been in a daze due to the previous turmoil, now saw their parents appear on the screen in this manner. They felt a burning shame on their faces, embarrassed to face anyone. They just wanted to dig a hole and bury themselves.

The video once again showed Zheng Kun’s face twisted in a grimace. When he said, “Stay dead and stay far away,” even the other parents with him couldn’t hide their discomfort.

Although everyone knew Zheng Kun was resolute, no one expected him to be this ruthless behind closed doors…

“Who did this?! Turn it off! Turn it off now!” Zheng Kun slammed his hand on the table, standing up in shock and anger, but most of all, in terror.

He was an educated man, and how could he not know what he had done?

But the actions taken in the chaos could not be undone. For his own sake, for his son’s sake, he had to continue, finding excuses to absolve himself.

But now, it was all over.

That day, when Zheng Kun and his group tried to leave, they were surrounded by an angry crowd.

“What do you want? We don’t know you, move out of the way!”

“This has nothing to do with you, this is a trap, someone is targeting us, framing us!”

“If you don’t move, we’ll call the police!”

…

They were half terrified, half furious, shouting about human rights but drawing even more wrath from the crowd.

“Call the police! Let’s see who the police will arrest first!”

“Who doesn’t know these videos are set up? No matter who did it, I just want to say well done!”

“Wait, aside from your fellow travelers, this thing also involves other tourists. Their families will be here soon to find you!”

“They’re here!”

“Over here! It’s these people, we’ve trapped them for you, come quickly!”

…

At this point, Zheng Kun and his group had no idea that the whole affair was just beginning.

The landslide blocked the route from the highlands of the scenic area down to the mountain, and the rescue team they thought was coming never arrived. The entire scenic area was small, and the closed-off situation made their social death very noticeable.

Everyone at the hotel, including the staff, remembered their faces and names. Trapped on the mountain, they couldn’t blend in with the crowd, unable to disappear. They were confined in a small circle, despised, and verbally abused by everyone.

They hid in their rooms for a few days, but eventually, hunger forced them to show themselves again. However, by then, the delay in rescue had significantly changed the situation on the highlands.

Food, clean water, and daily necessities were running out every day. The hotel no longer provided free meals, and stores began to limit purchases due to rampant hoarding.

In this situation, Zheng Kun’s group had fallen to the bottom of the food chain.

When they went to the store, no matter how many times they queued, they were always pushed to the back. By the time they finally reached the counter, they were told all supplies had been sold out.

Some managed to get food or supplies, but it was snatched away by others. The men who took their things looked like tough guys, the kind of people who lived off society’s scraps. After taking the supplies, they casually said that murderers didn’t deserve food.

They begged others for help, but no one dared to assist them. After all, they had killed the people who had once saved them—who would trust such people? No one would help them.

After facing rejection and cold stares, some began to regret their actions. They had actually wanted to open the door back then, but they regretted being too cowardly. Why had they let someone like Zheng Kun influence them, leading them to this desperate situation?

A few parents, who believed they had been neutral at the time, decided to personally go and apologize to “Qu Yichen.” In their eyes, only by gaining his forgiveness could they stop being ostracized.

To soften “his” heart, they even brought their children along, hoping that “he,” remembering their past as classmates, would forgive them…

However, they never even saw “Qu Yichen.”

From the moment they entered the hotel where “Qu Yichen” was staying, they were scrutinized by others. When they tried to access the upper floors, the hotel staff stopped them.

Yu Xi and Ya Tong had given clear instructions to the hotel staff earlier that if these people showed up, they didn’t want to see them, and they should be sent away immediately.

Because of their status as hotel guests and victims, the hotel staff was particularly diligent, and they didn’t even let them onto the floors.

Yu Xi and Ya Tong had been too busy to deal with these people the past few days. Since the typhoon, the rain hadn’t stopped, and the rainwater had caused the landslide areas to become increasingly unstable. Even with enough manpower and equipment to clear the mountain path, the risk of a secondary collapse remained constant.

With the mountain path blocked, rescue helicopters had other more urgent missions and couldn’t come to the scenic area to evacuate people, leaving the area isolated from the outside world.

Two or three days could be endured, but as time passed, problems would inevitably arise.

Now, the entire Lushan Peninsula was in a state of chaos. The continuous rain had caused floodwaters to persist, and after the eastern coastal regions were devastated, the southeast, south, and even the northern coastal regions closest to Luyuan Peak were also hit by floods.

It seemed as though the sky had broken, with the rain not stopping for a single day.

Due to its geographical location, the city’s drainage system was very well designed, and even with days of heavy rain, it typically wouldn’t cause flooding.

However, this time, a fifth of the city was submerged up to the second floor. The rescue teams were working around the clock, but there weren’t enough personnel, and even figuring out how to accommodate the evacuated people was a huge problem.

Meanwhile, an even larger issue hung over the leaders’ heads like a sword, pressing down on them at all times.

That issue was—no external help had arrived.

No matter how much they contacted or waited, not a single external rescue team had come. This information had been suppressed by the leadership and had not been released.

They felt something was wrong but couldn’t confirm it. Every time they made contact, someone responded, so why had they still not seen a rescue team or even a supply convoy?

The entire Lushan Peninsula felt like it was trapped under an invisible net, isolated from the outside world.

What had really happened?

The leadership held several secret meetings and finally decided to send a team off the peninsula to request help personally.

At the same time, through Yu Xi, Ya Tong had already made acquaintance with the father and son—Chen Lei and Chen Shengxin—from the rest stop.

From Ya Tong’s experience, establishing a human base was a long-term task that required team members at the start, but the team didn’t need to be large—character and intelligence were the most important factors.

Looking at the current situation, although the scenic area was in much better condition than other affected areas, the blocked mountain road still needed to be cleared.

Because there were limited supplies on the highlands, whether for the shelter or the base, large numbers of people would need to come in later. Supplies remained the most important issue. They would need to go below the highlands and compete with the floodwaters for resources.

However, plans don’t always keep up with changes.

When Yu Xi, Ya Tong, and the Chen father and son gathered with several technicians from the highlands, planning to drive to the collapse site and reinforce the mountain above, another super typhoon made landfall.

This time, the typhoon hit the northern coastal area, less than thirty kilometers away from the Luyuan scenic area where they were located.

How long is thirty kilometers in the path of a super typhoon?

With the central maximum average wind speed not less than 50 meters per second, thirty kilometers would take about ten minutes.

A tsunami warning and typhoon alert were simultaneously issued in the northern coastal areas of the peninsula. Despite the monitoring staff working tirelessly, they found no signs of an approaching typhoon before it hit the coastal zone.

Furthermore, in past typhoon records, over ninety percent of typhoons had made landfall from the southeast coastal direction. When had there ever been a typhoon coming from the northern, mountain-backed region?

“Report! The average wind speed at the center has exceeded 60 meters per second!?”

“How is that possible?!”

“The wind data is still rising! Wait—there’s a thunderstorm appearing near the coast!”

“My God…”

At the same time, the tourists who had been stranded in the Luyuan scenic area for several days finally understood the horror the tourists at the eastern beach had felt that day.

Ya Tong immediately turned the steering wheel, heading back toward the hotel area.

Yu Xi used the walkie-talkie to notify the Chen father and son and the technicians in the other car: “The typhoon is coming again, and this one is worse than the last. Get back to the hotel to take shelter!”

Just as she finished speaking, a lightning bolt struck a tall tree on the mountain path ahead.

The once thick tree trunk was split in two, half of it catching fire, while the other half teetered and tilted towards the mountain path, about to block the road.

Ya Tong didn’t slow down; instead, she pressed the accelerator hard. Yu Xi opened the sunroof, grabbed a small rocket launcher taken from the Star House warehouse, and aimed it at the falling tree trunk, firing directly.

The thick tree trunk exploded with a loud boom, fragments scattering in all directions. Yu Xi quickly retreated into the car, closing the sunroof just before the fiery debris could land.

In the car behind them, Chen Lei, who was driving, and Chen Shengxin, sitting in the passenger seat, stared in shock at the flying wood fragments.