Chapter 104: Thank You, Big Brother

The news that weapons had been discovered weighed heavily on Zhang Su; the weapons depot being opened meant these men didn’t just have two crossbows—they could guarantee each man a high-quality dagger or cleaver, far outmatching their own gear.

As he furrowed his brow in thought, he heard another sound from inside.

“I know why Su Chef kept that girl!”

A voice not heard before spoke up: “Just now I went to pee and heard Su Chef muttering—he’s arranging a ghost marriage for his son!”

“No wonder he won’t touch her—he’s saving her for his son!”

“Fuck, we guys can’t even get real wives, and he’s arranging a ghost marriage for his dead kid? What a waste!”

“It is a bit wasteful, but the dead deserve respect. Since Su Chef has a specific use for her, let’s honor it—don’t want to ruin the peace among us.”

“When’s the ghost marriage? We should come watch.”

“Dunno about that…”

Zhang Su stopped listening. He walked back to the group, his face grim in the dark, voice barely a whisper: “Bad news—they’ve got weapons. Good news? They’re all horny bastards. Perfect for Plan D.”

“All you men think about is that stuff all day!”

Zheng Xinyu frowned and shot Zhang Su a look, adding: “Most of you.”

“Enough chatter. Get ready. Remember—only one task: seize the crossbows. Once you have them, give the signal immediately. Yes, there are two crossbows—try to get both. If you can’t, at least control one. Strike unexpectedly, and move fast.”

Zhang Su gave his instructions seriously.

Both Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan’s palms were sweaty. They mentally reviewed the plan once more, then nodded firmly.

Moments later, Zhang Su signaled “three, two, one.” Then came heavy breathing from Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan, followed by a rapid flurry of footsteps.

“Lanlan, quick—there’s a convenience store here!”

Zheng Xinyu pulled Pei Lan to the store’s entrance, speaking urgently.

“Oh no, the roller door won’t open—what do we do?”

Pei Lan’s soft voice carried a note of desperation that tugged at the heart, yet her hands didn’t stop—she rattled the roller door with loud clangs.

“Here, let’s pry it—maybe it’s not…” Aah!”

As Pei Lan bent down, the roller door suddenly groaned and rose with a thunderous rumble.

“What are you doing?”

A man blocked the entrance, holding a dog-leg military knife identical to Zhang Su’s, watching the two women warily.

“Someone! Oh my god, Lanlan, there’s someone—we’re saved!”

“Yeah, never expected to meet a living person. Lucky us!”

The two women clung to each other nervously, their cheers muffled, perfectly portraying the fragile relief of survivors still barely out of danger.

“Lao Yang, what’s going on?”

Two more men approached—one holding a small flashlight.

“Oh! Two beauties!?”

The flashlight beam swept across Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan’s faces—the men’s expressions brightened instantly.

“Quick, quick! You two girls must be terrified of the monsters outside. Big brother will protect you—come in!”

The man with the flashlight, seeing the two women’s delicate, vulnerable beauty and only one holding a baseball bat, immediately lowered his guard.

“Wait.”

The man who had pulled up the roller door, Lao Yang, frowned: “Where are you from? Just the two of you?”

“We—we Wuwu …” Zheng Xinyu burst into quiet sobs: “We escaped from the Technical College, ran all the way here—haven’t eaten in two days. Brothers, can you give us something to eat?”

Pei Lan began wiping tears, mournfully: “My boyfriend was with me… but yesterday, yesterday…”

“Alright, alright, don’t cry. Dead boyfriend? No problem—I’ll be your boyfriend. Good girl. Lao Yang, stop lurking—can’t you see the little sister’s starving? Come in, big brother’s got treats for you.”

As he spoke, two more men arrived.

“Hey, such a pretty girl—stop crying, hahaha! Want something to eat? Help yourself!”

Four men surrounded Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan, ushering them inside the store.

Lao Yang sighed helplessly, peered left and right. The cold night outside was pitch black. For safety, he switched on his flashlight, scanned the surroundings—no anomalies—then shut the roller door.

Lao Yang didn’t know that moments after he closed the door, five shadows emerged from an advertising print shop.

Inside the store, the atmosphere shifted—from grumbling to jubilation. The dim light made shadows dance with renewed energy.

To celebrate the arrival of the two beauties, the men pulled out snacks: chips, chocolate, gum, canned food, NFC juice—everything lavish and varied.

Zheng Xinyu, a livestreamer by trade, could spin flattery effortlessly—“Thank you, big brother,” “Big brother’s so kind,” “Too much, I can’t eat it all”—sending the men into a daze.

Pei Lan wasn’t as eloquent, but her fragility stirred deep pity.

These young men, long starved of attention from young girls, had never been praised like this—they were practically floating out of their bodies.

Humans simply can’t handle too much comfort.

When struggling for survival, vigilance runs high. But once given brief safety and a full belly, lewd thoughts immediately creep in.

“This juice tastes bad, beauty—try this! This one’s killer!”

One man placed a pack of flavored liquor in the center, exchanged knowing grins with his buddies—their lewd intent obvious.

“Oh, big brothers are so naughty—just arrived and you want to get us drunk? What if we pass out?”

Zheng Xinyu casually picked up a bottle, pouting coyly.

“Drunk? Old saying: drink till drunk, sleep on bed. Hahaha, no bed here—floor’s fine.”

“Exactly! Come on, beauty, let’s drink! I remember there’s roasted chicken over there—I’ll get it for snacks!”

“What are you doing?”

As laughter filled the room, the warehouse door opened. A tall silhouette emerged, outlined by candlelight.

The man who’d risen to fetch the chicken froze, then plopped back onto the floor.

“Two little girls escaped from the Technical College—nothing serious, Su Chef, mind your own business.”

The man spoke dismissively—he was the one most resentful of Su Chef’s possession of Zhao Xue.

“Technical College?”

Su Chef strode forward, face dark, glaring at Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan.

Pei Lan shivered under his cold gaze, her smile turning stiff.

“Uncle!”

Zheng Xinyu reacted instantly. Seeing Pei Lan falter, she stood up, thrust the bottle toward Su Chef with a bright, youthful smile: “Uncle, sitting alone in there must be boring. Come sit with us?”

“Hmph!”

Su Chef ignored Zheng Xinyu, turning to the seated men: “A bunch of pigs with no self-control—you’ll all die because of women!”

“Yes yes! I’d rather die in a woman’s arms than in a zombie’s mouth!”

“Su Chef, you already got that other girl—don’t go taking ours now!”

“I’m not interested!” Su Chef tightened his crossbow on his shoulder, shot them a glare, then turned to head back to the warehouse.

Zheng Xinyu’s eyes locked onto the crossbow. She remembered Zhang Su’s order—quickly said: “Wow, Uncle, is that a gun on your shoulder? So cool! Men with guns are the coolest—can I see it?”

“Idiot!”

Su Chef halted, didn’t turn, and walked into the warehouse, closing the door softly—then clicked the lock.

“Uncle yelled at me…”

Zheng Xinyu pouted, looking utterly wounded.

“Pfft, what a jerk—he doesn’t like us? We find him annoying too!” Someone immediately flipped him off toward the warehouse door.

“Exactly—he’s an old bastard. His son died, went crazy.”

“It’s just a crossbow—others have them too! Lao Yang, bring your crossbow—show the girls!”

Zheng Xinyu realized then—the other crossbow was on the gatekeeper. The dim light had hidden it; now she glanced and saw it tucked behind his back.

Lao Yang, like Su Chef, was a kitchen chef—head of the chopping station, overseeing Qiba men, ten years older than the four servers. He frowned at the boys: “Crossbows are for defending against zombies and criminals—not for showing off to girls. Don’t act like fools!”

“Fuck, like you’re the only one who can kill zombies? We’re all fiercer than you! Su Chef gave you the crossbow because you’re accurate—stop pretending. Hand it over—let the girls see our strength!”

The lewd man waved his hand impatiently.

Lao Yang sighed, picked up the crossbow, fiddled with it, muttering: “Just loaded the bolts—now I have to unload them again. Annoying bastards.”

“No need to unload,” another said.

“No unload? Bullshit. Guns can misfire—this one can too! No safety awareness? What did your department manager teach you?”

As he spoke, Lao Yang carefully removed the bolts, then handed the crossbow to the waiting lewd man.

“Be careful—don’t break it! This is your lifeline,” Lao Yang warned.

The lewd man snatched it eagerly, grinning: “Relax—it won’t break just from playing. Looks solid enough.”

As he spoke, he walked beside Zheng Xinyu, boasting: “Beauty, I don’t just have a crossbow—I’ve got a big gun. A red-headed big gun!”

Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan both swallowed hard. They ignored his lewd words, hearts pounding—according to plan, they were to signal once they got the crossbow. But the other one was still in the warehouse—a hidden threat.

“Wow, big brother’s gun is so awesome!”

Zheng Xinyu clutched her fists, staring at the crossbow with genuine awe.

The composite stock glowed faintly in the candlelight, its unique design shattering her preconceptions of crossbows.

“Hehehe.” The lewd man was practically drooling, smugly glancing at his buddies, then swung the crossbow in his hand: “Girl, wanna play with my gun?”

“Mm-hmm!”

Zheng Xinyu nodded vigorously, lips pressed together—adorable and innocent.

“Alright then—first you play with this crossbow, then later you play with the red-headed big gun. Got it?”

The lewd man hooked his finger under Zheng Xinyu’s sharp, slender chin—saliva nearly dripping.

“Then your red-headed big gun better be as cool as this one—or I won’t play!”

Zheng Xinyu feigned coyness and flicked a seductive glance.

Gulp.

Around them, several gulps echoed; a few men felt ants crawling over their skin, burning with heat.

“Xiao Kai, what the hell are you dawdling for? Hand the crossbow gun to the beauty, you idiot!”

Someone couldn’t wait— a heavenly beauty had fallen from the sky, and she was so cooperative. Why delay fulfilling her little request? Waiting for your red head to turn purple?

“Here, beauty!”

Hearing his companions grow impatient, Xiao Kai quickly handed the crossbow gun to Zheng Xinyu.

“Mmm, so heavy!”

Zheng Xinyu took it with both hands and felt its weight— she hadn’t expected a crossbow gun less than half a meter long to be heavier than her baseball bat, weighing close to ten pounds.

“Look how starved our little sister is— can’t even hold this little thing. Eat more later; tonight we’ve got to work up a good sweat, hehehe.”

The lecherous man rubbed his hands, already fantasizing about the joyful scene to come.

“Wow, this is a crossbow gun? What a strange shape...”

Pei Lan, trembling with fear, pushed herself up from beside a shelf and walked to Zheng Xinyu’s side.

“Lanlan, touch it— this crossbow gun is amazing!”

Zheng Xinyu suddenly raised her voice.

“Of course it is— this one’s...”

Clatter!

Before the lecherous man finished speaking, the rolling shutter suddenly rattled open— it had risen for no reason.

“Who’s there?!”

Someone shouted; in the five men’s terrified gazes, a group of bulky black shadows (overdressed and swollen) burst in.

Crash.

The shadows smashed into a shelf, sending its contents scattering across the floor.

“Get out! There are people here!”

“Old Yang, you didn’t lock the door!”

“I locked it! I’m warning you— we have weapons, don’t try anything!”

Old Yang knew the crossbow gun had been taken; he pulled out his ancestral kitchen knife and charged forward.

Before the lecherous man and his three companions could mount any defense, a black shadow flew sideways with a scream.

“Ahh! My hand... Fight back, you bastards, fight back!”

Old Yang hadn’t expected to lose his arm in one blow— he nearly wet himself, clutching his arm and scrambling wildly.

“Kill them!”

The lecherous man still had his tent up; the sudden chaos infuriated him— just as he was about to climax, how dare a gang of bandits burst in!

But as he bent down to pick up the cleaver, he realized the gleaming blade was already in Zheng Xinyu’s hand?

“You wanna play with the gun?”

Puff!

Zheng Xinyu didn’t hesitate— she delivered a groin kick, then mimicked Zhang Su’s sword-swinging motion and brought the dog leg down with a puff onto the lecherous man’s shoulder and neck!

Spurt... Blood sprayed out in a steady stream from the wound.

“Ahh...”

The cry didn’t come from the lecherous man— he’d nearly fainted from the groin kick. The scream came from Pei Lan, who now had hot blood splattered across her face, trickling down her cheeks.

“These two bitches are with them!”

Seeing Zheng Xinyu cut down their companion, the other three men instantly understood the situation— they grabbed their weapons and moved to kill Zheng Xinyu and Pei Lan.

“Don’t freeze— go!”

Zheng Xinyu didn’t dare pause; she shoved the dog leg into Pei Lan’s hands and dragged her backward. Just escaping this immediate danger was enough— because Zhang Su and the others were already rushing in.

But at that moment, a crash— the warehouse door was kicked open, followed by a strange, faint sound.

Shhh!

Amid the chaos, the whistling wind was barely audible.

“Ahh...”

Thud.

“Lanlan! Lanlan, what’s wrong?!”

Lu Yu heard Pei Lan’s cry and his heart clenched.

“Bozi, don’t panic— I’ll take care of her!”

Zheng Xinyu toppled a shelf and desperately dragged the fallen Pei Lan toward the exit.

(End of Chapter)