Chapter 16

They briefly surveyed the entire community. The drone didn’t manage to enter the residential area in detail, instead flying over the villa area in a circle. The sky was already dark.

Although the drone had night vision capabilities, the visibility was still limited. They saw various zombies slowly stumbling out in search of food, but there were no living people in sight, so there was no need to continue the search. The drone was controlled to return.

Guan Yuanfeng sounded a bit melancholic. “We didn’t find a single survivor. I wonder if anyone’s still alive in the apartment buildings.”

Zhou Yun replied, “It’s unlikely. Most people probably evacuated to the rescue stations. In times like this, people tend to follow the crowd.” But the apocalypse had only just begun. At a time when the patterns of the zombie virus had not yet been understood, the more crowded the area, the faster people would die.

By the end of his past life, Zhou Yun remembered that this red mist, which triggered the activation of abilities, never descended again.

Zhou Yun looked at the map he had just marked and circled a large area near the public store area beside the fountain square with a red pen. “Once we’ve rested, we can try to collect supplies here. But it’s best to find a place to temporarily store them. It’s too much trouble to keep hauling things up.”

Guan Yuanfeng said, “The power should be cut off later in the community, and the elevator will stop working. It’ll be inconvenient to go down.”

He adjusted the video footage taken by the drone with the mouse and pointed to the hillside villa area next to the store by the lake. “This is my house. We can store the supplies we collect down there for now, especially the ones we don’t urgently need. I’ve installed iron doors, iron windows, and a security system. It’s in the basement.”

Zhou Yun replied, “That sounds good. We’ll need a vehicle to move the supplies.”

Guan Yuanfeng zoomed in on the video and showed him. “Here, this is my car.”

Zhou Yun widened his eyes. “You have such a cool car!”

Guan Yuanfeng smiled.

Zhou Yun mumbled, “You must be really rich.”

Guan Yuanfeng said, “I’m not like you, spending money recklessly. My money is spent on important things, like houses and cars.”

Zhou Yun paused for a moment and then said, “I spend my money on myself.”

Guan Yuanfeng thought of how his house and car had been taken over by his parents and younger brother. He touched his nose but didn’t argue. He coughed lightly. He thought to himself that his parents and younger brother were probably unlikely to survive overseas. Despite the conflicts and resentment he had with his family in recent times, when faced with the final farewell of the apocalypse, it was inevitably saddening.

A bit of sadness involuntarily appeared on his face.

Seeing his expression, Zhou Yun felt a little regretful and added, “Actually, my parents passed away one after another, so there’s no one to take care of me anymore.”

Guan Yuanfeng didn’t linger on this topic. He pointed at the off-road vehicle and said, “It’s equipped with bulletproof glass and doors, bulletproof widened tires, and superior configuration. The only problem is that it consumes a lot of fuel. We can collect all the gasoline from the outdoor parking lot, but we’ll need a lot of fuel cans. Also, this car is equipped with the most advanced solar panels, so it’s a hybrid, running on both gasoline and electricity.”

Zhou Yun muttered, “Such an expensive configuration, do soldiers really have that much money…” In his previous life, he had ridden in this car, thinking it was brought by one of his comrades. He never imagined that it actually belonged to Guan Yuanfeng.

Guan Yuanfeng explained, “I was part of an overseas rescue mission once, where I saved a prince from a small country. He’s very wealthy and insisted on rewarding me. He originally wanted to give me money, but I said no due to the rules. Instead, he gave me this car, which he had used but didn’t want anymore because he was once kidnapped. He had also had it overhauled and was planning to replace it, so he gave it to me as a gift. I reported it, and it was registered as a vehicle for our team’s operations.”

Guan Yuanfeng stared at the rugged black vehicle on the screen, as if recalling the passionate days of the past. “But this car is really fuel-hungry, almost like a gas guzzler. Even though it has solar panels… I didn’t drive it much. Later, after retiring, my superior specifically wrote a report on this car and, with the prince’s gift letter as proof, transferred ownership to me and allowed me to take it home.”

Zhou Yun knew this must be a compensation for his significant contributions, and he smiled, “A classic ‘007’ move, so exciting. With such a fine car, did you get any beautiful women too?”

Guan Yuanfeng chuckled. He actually wanted to suggest going out tomorrow to search for supplies, but seeing the many zombies outside, he felt it was safer to stay on the rooftop for now. They had enough food and water for the time being, and Zhou Yun had just recovered, so he couldn’t allow him to go alone. If Zhou Yun decided to go, he would accompany him. Moreover, with Zhou Yun in a wheelchair and never having faced zombies before, it wasn’t suitable for him to go alone.

They still needed more information on the zombies, their patterns of movement, and their weaknesses. Only then could they act without taking any risks.

He had led teams before, and despite his adventurous spirit, he kept himself in check. “Let’s observe a bit longer, see how the zombies behave during the day and night, and check if they leave when they no longer sense human flesh.”

Zhou Yun agreed, “Sure, let’s practice archery more. I bought a lot of steel arrows back then, and they can be reused.”

Guan Yuanfeng nodded; he knew he needed to become stronger.

After looking at the map again, Zhou Yun suddenly had an idea. “Although it’s hard to get supplies from downstairs right now, there’s a place we can try to work on.”

Guan Yuanfeng was puzzled. “Where?”

Zhou Yun pointed to a part of the map indicating their building, “Look here, this is the top floor of another unit in our building, the Cloudtop Restaurant.”

“It’s just a wall away from our rooftop. From your side, we can climb over. We could set up a ladder and get there. The restaurant has a glass dome, making it a great place for a greenhouse. It’s spacious, and it would be much easier to practice archery there too.”

Thinking about archery, Guan Yuanfeng was interested, “That makes sense. The rooftop here is really too small.”

Zhou Yun smiled confidently and casually continued, “The zombie outbreak happened late at night, so the restaurant should be empty. Even if there are any zombies, they’re probably just a few employees or security guards who got infected.”

“We just need to be well-prepared. We can fly the drone around first, then lock the entrance to the downstairs. If needed, we can build a wall. I have leftover lime and bricks from building the fish pond.”

Guan Yuanfeng was impressed, “You really have everything.”

Zhou Yun just smiled without saying a word.

Guan Yuanfeng added, “Only you would still be thinking about farming in the apocalypse.”

Zhou Yun replied, “What can I do? The weather has been abnormal for a long time. There’s been constant rain for half a month, followed by a long drought. The temperature during the day is high. This glass dome restaurant is perfect for growing herbs as a temperature-controlled greenhouse.”

Guan Yuanfeng nodded, “Alright.” Zhou Yun’s suggestion was exactly what he needed. Otherwise, his anxiety about being stuck in a wheelchair was overwhelming, and he didn’t know how to deal with it.

He wanted to do something, but he couldn’t, and the frustration of being trapped in the wheelchair was excruciating.

He leaned back and finally noticed the cushion behind him.

Zhou Yun said, “Let’s go eat. I just made some chicken soup. We can use it to cook wontons.”

At that moment, Guan Yuanfeng realized he was hungry and tired, so he powered his wheelchair over, “Okay, but if you’re not fully recovered, don’t push yourself. I can go instead.”

Zhou Yun smiled, “I look much better than you. I’ll give you acupuncture later. You should rest well.”

The golden chicken soup smelled delicious, and the translucent wontons floated in the broth.

Guan Yuanfeng thought even if it was just frozen dumplings, Zhou Yun’s cooking made them taste better than when he cooked himself.

During Zhou Yun’s illness, he had been eating instant noodles, but now, seeing Comet (the dog) eat the chicken bones without looking up, it seemed even the dog was tired of dog food.

Zhou Yun explained, “The soup is good, right? You probably smell the coconut aroma. I put some Five-fingered Herb in it. It helps strengthen the spleen, nourish the lungs, regulate qi, clear dampness, and boost immunity.” The chicken fat was also used to stew pea shoots, making it extra fragrant.

Guan Yuanfeng slowly ate the wontons while Zhou Yun went over to turn on the TV. There was no signal, so Zhou Yun opened the DVD player and asked, “There’s no TV program, but we can watch DVDs. Do you have any movies or shows you like?”

Guan Yuanfeng replied, “I don’t mind. You can choose.” He noticed a DVD in the player, “Just play what you had before, don’t make it too complicated.” All he needed was some visuals and sound to avoid an awkward silence while they ate.

Zhou Yun hadn’t watched DVDs in a long time. Since his rebirth, he had been busy stockpiling and had forgotten when he put the DVD in the player.

He took it out and glanced at it: “The Seventeen Moments of Spring… it might not be to your taste.”

It seemed like something he had watched for leisure before, but hadn’t finished, and had left in the disc drive.

Guan Yuanfeng didn’t mind, and hearing the name, he thought it was some kind of artsy film: “No need to bother, just put it on and let’s see.”

Zhou Yun opened the media player, inserted the disc, adjusted it, and started the movie. The opening scene showed faded images: trees, roads, cars, and a baritone singing a foreign song with a melancholic, expressive tone.

It was actually an older foreign film, which surprised Guan Yuanfeng.

Seeing Zhou Yun watching the screen with a slightly melancholic expression, he was even more surprised.

Zhou Yun turned to look at him, smiled, and said, “This song became quite famous later, the lyrics are like a poem.”

Guan Yuanfeng read the subtitles, watching as the grayish-white text passed: “Sometimes it’s hard to tell if it’s the beginning moment or the last instant.” He thought it was just an artsy film and, noticing Zhou Yun seemed quite emotional, he nodded and said, “Hmm, it looks like an old film—looks like you enjoy reading poetry?” He was indeed fond of a wide range of things.

Zhou Yun replied, “Yes. The plot is a bit slow, with a lot of conspiracy, and the characters’ names are long and hard to remember.”

Not long after the main film began, the plot took a surprising turn. The handsome male protagonist started decrypting coded messages after receiving a telegram, accepting a mission. It was the story of an unknown hero.

Guan Yuanfeng quickly became engrossed, watching intently.

Normally, he was quiet and serious, giving off an air of coldness and authority, but now, focused on the TV, his demeanor showed a bit of a normal life.

Zhou Yun watched his profile, slightly lost in thought, remembering the lyrics he’d just seen:

“Sometimes you spend your whole life waiting, anticipating, and when it finally comes, it feels like a storm pouring down to the earth.”

The plot was slow and delicate, and after dinner, they had only watched about half an episode. Guan Yuanfeng wasn’t someone who would indulge in entertainment; his self-discipline and diligence were ingrained in him. He just took his bowl to wash it and casually chatted with Zhou Yun: “What’s so popular about this movie? The plot?”

Zhou Yun thought for a moment and said, “Maybe it’s the contrast between the grand history, the heroic epic narrative, and the small, insignificant personal emotions that runs throughout, which resonates with people. The wheels of history crush forward, and personal fate is like dust in the wind—heroic deeds, honors, and the true pain of personal sacrifice…”

Guan Yuanfeng: “…” Can you speak in plain language?

Zhou Yun turned off the TV while smiling at him. In Guan Yuanfeng’s eyes, that smile carried a bit of mischief, making him seem lively and animated.

A slight stirring moved in his heart.