The Fiercest in the Apocalypse
Chapter 26: New Difficulties

Chapter 026 New Difficulties

"Are you hurt?"

Although Zhang Su was almost certain that Zhong Xiaoshan hadn’t been in a fight, he still asked with concern.

"No, absolutely not, don’t worry!"

Zhong Xiaoshan shook her head repeatedly. She cherished her own life more than anyone else.

"That’s good. Be extremely careful. If you get bitten, it’s game over. Even scratches aren’t great! Take a seat and rest for a bit. Xinyu, get her a drink," Zhang Su instructed. He then walked to his backpack, unzipped it, and asked Zhong Xiaoshan, "What’s the situation at Brother Li’s place?"

At the mention of this, Zhong Xiaoshan’s face darkened. "His place… was a complete tragedy."

She seemed unwilling to elaborate, summarizing it with just a few words.

Zhang Su pulled items out of his backpack one by one. Hearing her response, he glanced at her, saw her somber expression, and softened his tone slightly as he asked, "It shouldn’t have taken that long to grab these things. Did you run into any trouble?"

Zheng Xinyu handed Zhong Xiaoshan a disposable cup filled with more than half a cup of energy drink.

Zhong Xiaoshan looked at Zheng Xinyu gratefully. After giving a small smile, she took a careful sip. It tasted like orange.

"When I went in, the floor was covered in blood. I thought… I thought there was no one—no, I thought there were no zombies. I found a backpack and went to the kitchen to pack supplies. Then a man who’d turned into a zombie somehow appeared. He wandered into the living room and blocked my way."

"I stayed in the kitchen until the man left. Only then did I quickly run downstairs!"

Talking about the experience quickened Zhong Xiaoshan’s heartbeat. The paper cup in her hand deformed under her grip, nearly spilling the drink inside.

Zhang Su had already emptied his backpack onto the coffee table. Scratching his head, he remarked, "Looks like you really only made it to the kitchen…"

On the coffee table were only kitchen-related items: a peeler, forks, spoons, plastic wrap, a kitchen scale, a knife, two packs of dried noodles, a clump of frozen dumplings, over three pounds of flour, and a sealed 1.8L bottle of peanut oil. There were also items like canned luncheon meat, instant noodles, ginger, green onions, and fresh eggs—a very domestic assortment, completely unlike Zhang Su’s kitchen.

"So… did I pass?"

Having finished her drink, Zhong Xiaoshan’s lips now had a hint of color. She looked at Zhang Su expectantly.

Zhang Su stroked his chin, his gaze sweeping over Zhong Xiaoshan before he suddenly said, "Alright, take off your clothes."

"W-what?"

Zhong Xiaoshan stared at Zhang Su in disbelief. This request was way too abrupt. Yesterday, he had ignored her advances, and now he was telling her to strip? What was going on?

Zheng Xinyu was also stunned. She wasn’t the jealous type, but watching this unfold right in front of her was crossing a line!

"Take off your clothes, and your pants too. You don’t have to listen, of course, but in that case, these supplies will be mine. I’ll give you two extra packs of instant noodles. Don’t mention staying with us again—we’ll each go our separate ways."

Zhang Su spread his hands.

Zhong Xiaoshan noticed there wasn’t a trace of lewdness in his eyes. Her mind raced, and she quickly understood his intent. She promptly took off her knit top while saying, "You’re checking if I’ve hidden anything, right? I haven’t! I didn’t hide a thing!"

In a flurry of motion, Zhong Xiaoshan stripped clean, standing bare in the living room. The chilled air after the temperature drop sent shivers down her body, raising goosebumps on her arms.

Zheng Xinyu stood awkwardly nearby. She understood that Zhang Su’s request was necessary, but she still found it infuriating. Surely there were other ways to verify this—did he really have to make her undress?

"Alright, it’s cold. Put your clothes back on," Zhang Su said, nodding in satisfaction as he looked at the shivering Zhong Xiaoshan. "Let’s reintroduce ourselves. I’m Zhang Su, and she’s my—um, my girlfriend, Zheng Xinyu."

Just moments ago, Zhang Su had used a skill called 【Insight Tags】 on Zhong Xiaoshan. Now, three floating tags appeared above her head: 【Decisive】【Third Wheel】【Vengeful】.

The real reason Zhang Su was willing to accept Zhong Xiaoshan wasn’t because of 【Decisive】 or 【Third Wheel】. It was 【Vengeful】.

Even if it’s an old grudge, she’ll repay it; if it’s a favor, she’ll return it a hundredfold. If 【Insight Tags】 were accurate, this was someone he could rely on.

"Brother Su, Sister Xinyu, thank you so much for taking care of me!"

Zhong Xiaoshan spoke with excitement, dressing quickly while throwing in some flattery. Finally, she felt she had found someone to depend on. Though she was older than Zheng Xinyu, in situations like this, seniority wasn’t determined by age.

Zhang Su shook his head with a smile. "No one’s taking care of anyone here. As long as you handle your own responsibilities, we’ll do our best to help each other. That goes for me, Xinyu, and you."

"I understand, Brother Su. Whatever rules you have, just tell me. I’m great at following rules and won’t step out of line."

Before long, Zhong Xiaoshan was fully dressed again. Her face was faintly flushed. Even though it was for a practical reason, being seen naked by a man she barely knew still made her feel shy.

"Since we’re teaming up, let’s…" Zhang Su picked up the frozen dumplings, now stuck together, and smiled. "Let’s cook this bag of dumplings and have a meal together. We can celebrate Nurse Zhong joining us."

"Yes, yes! I’ll do it!"

Zhong Xiaoshan was thrilled. All her efforts were just to get a hot meal and a safe place to stay.

A bag of frozen dumplings left at room temperature for over a day would have been thrown in the trash before. Now, it was a rare and precious feast.

Zhang Su handed the dumplings to Zhong Xiaoshan, watching her happily trot off to the kitchen. Then he and Zheng Xinyu began sorting the supplies, packing everything back into the backpack.

Before they finished, Zhong Xiaoshan returned, looking dejected.

"We’re out of gas."

Standing in the doorway to the kitchen, her face was filled with unease.

"What?"

Zhang Su was surprised. He rushed into the kitchen, striking the stove’s ignition repeatedly. Nothing happened. Frustrated, he almost slammed the pot but stopped himself just in time.

"With all the explosions, it’s not surprising the gas supply is out…"

Not surprising, sure. But this meant they couldn’t cook the dumplings. More importantly, most of their river snail noodles were now practically useless.

Instant noodles could be soaked or eaten dry, but river snail noodles had to be boiled.

Without fire, 70% of their stockpile instantly became inedible!

"No water, no internet, and now no gas. Could this virus also sabotage infrastructure?" Zheng Xinyu complained in frustration.

Zhang Su shrugged. "I watched a science video once about what would happen if humans disappeared. They said that within five days of humanity vanishing, all these things would stop working. What we’re experiencing is no different from humanity disappearing."

Without human maintenance, much of the infrastructure would break down!