Rotting Land: Survive

Chapter 680 - 669: Unexpected Visitor (Part 6)

A new day, destined to be a busy one, saw the survivors of the second shelter rise early to begin preparations for house renovations and repairs.

For Wang Qiang and Tang Xiaoquan, painting walls, a technical task, was completely novel to these two outsiders.

Fortunately, with Old Zhao, the expert, guiding them, they managed to perform quite well.

Tang Xiaoquan even specially selected a blue paint as the main color for painting, with his own idea being to make Wei Yang and the others feel like they were swimming in the ocean after moving in.

His idea was good, but limited by their unfamiliar painting skills, it really left much to be desired.

Knock, knock, knock, three crisp knocks on the door shattered Li Huiru’s cold heart like three heavy clubs. All night she maintained her initial curled-up position, and the thick, high-end wool blanket failed to bring her any warmth, leaving her trembling like a popsicle struggling inside a refrigerator.

"Miss Li, breakfast is ready, you should prepare and come down to eat." Wei Yang’s slender voice sounded so gentle, yet to Li Huiru, it was like a death sentence being announced.

This might just be her "last supper" at the villa. Li Huiru knew well what finishing this meal signified. She would have to face a hazardous and bloody world of zombies.

Seeing no response from inside the room, Wei Yang knocked on the door again and repeated her previous statement.

Li Huiru knew that avoiding and not answering wouldn’t buy her a chance to stay at the villa; instead, it would create resentment towards her.

Therefore, she mustered up the energy to reply, "Oh, I know, I’ll come down in a moment."

Li Huiru didn’t know how she put on her clothes piece by piece, nor did she know how she managed to move her stiff steps down to the first floor.

Although it was only 6 a.m., and the sky outside was still pitch black, the villa’s living room was already bustling with the flickering lights of candles.

Everyone gathered together, chatting happily.

However, the zombie-like Li Huiru was clearly out of place with everything there.

Lost, she found a corner to sit down. The others knew her somewhat, but since they hadn’t interacted much before, no one approached her for conversation.

Yet, from the moment she appeared on the first floor, someone had been staring at her closely, albeit with a gaze full of cold hostility.

Yang Xue waking up so early was indeed a surprise to everyone in the living room, as she was known to be the "Sleep God" among them. So, though no one said it, they all more or less connected her unexpected action with Li Huiru.

Congee with steamed buns, Li Huiru cherished this breakfast, laden with significant meaning for her, eating it very slowly. If possible, she even wanted to turn the bun back into flour to eat it grain by grain, thus prolonging her stay at the villa.

The people in the villa, unaware of the truth, just assumed it was her usual dining demeanor, while Yang Xue whispered disdainfully: "Bitch, who are you pretending to be pure for, damn it!"

Li Huiru envied everyone present. She longed to become one of them, but she knew it was an unattainable luxury for her, something she could only blame on herself.

Wasn’t it herself who caused today’s situation? If only she hadn’t pursued those elusive luxuries, she wouldn’t have ended up in today’s predicament.

Thinking about this, Li Huiru’s eyes involuntarily became moist. Her sudden change in expression perplexed the villa crowd, who paused their conversations and looked toward her.

Perhaps perceiving the surrounding oddities, the once lively living room suddenly fell silent. Li Huiru instinctively looked up, seeing several pairs of eyes staring at her, which made her drop her head quickly, afraid they would see her reddened eyes.

"Disgusting, if I were a man, I wouldn’t like such a pretentious and affected woman." No matter how Yang Xue looked at Li Huiru, she found her unappealing. She grumbled unhappily again, and the bun in her hand suffered as she repeatedly kneaded it.

"Here, I’ve prepared some items for your journey, I’m sorry you came at a bad time, coinciding with our lack of supplies. So, there’s not much I can offer. I checked, and if you ration them, your food and drink should last for about three days. I packed a few more clothes for you, oh, and these as well, bedding and sheets are also included. Additionally, there’s a weapon; considering your physique, I chose a lighter machete." Old Xu placed two large bags on the table in the guest room, indeed the maximum support the villa could offer to Li Huiru at that moment.

Li Huiru hesitated to reach out or express any gratitude. In fact, she was somewhat dazed. Although she had been trying to prepare herself to accept this reality, when it actually happened, she was scared. A night of pondering hadn’t clarified her future path.

"Miss Li? Miss Li?" Old Xu waved his hand in front of the slightly dazed Li Huiru. The suddenly moving black shadow startled the already fearful Li Huiru, making her retreat.

Her action scared Old Xu as well: "Miss Li, what happened? Are you alright?"

After a two-second silence, Li Huiru suddenly yelled out of control, "Commander Xu, reconsider, would you leave me? Aren’t you facing a formidable enemy? An extra person is an extra strength; I’m willing to do anything!"

At this moment, Li Huiru was desperate; she didn’t even consider what she could do. Her only thought was to make one last effort to stay at the villa.

To be honest, after hearing the woman’s words, Old Xu indeed hesitated for 2 or 3 seconds, but it couldn’t change his already made decision.

His answer was clear and equally despairing: "Sorry, Miss Li, I understand your feelings, but I’ve made it very clear before. I don’t want to cause a conflict with the Factory because of keeping you here. As you said, we are facing an imminent threat, and at critical times, I can’t afford to create a new enemy. Let’s not talk further about it. Take these two bags and leave. I’ll have someone fill the car with gas, and what’s left will depend on your own luck."

Realizing that staying was hopeless, Li Huiru collapsed backward, directly sitting onto the bench. Old Xu sighed deeply: "Miss Li, though I know surviving outside alone will be tough, it’s not enough to lose hope. My suggestion is that once you leave here, immediately find a place near the outskirts to settle for the time being, calm down, and adapt to the surroundings. Remember, you have three days’ worth of food, ration it, and you can last longer. Have some confidence in yourself." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)