Chapter 166: Tianma Yu

"Hey, hey, stop chatting—has anyone been to Tianma Yu?"

Zhang Su picked up the walkie-talkie and asked everyone.

"I've been there, I've been there…"

Soon, Zhang Ya in the same car replied: "Last year, my company did a team-building trip to Tianma Yu!"

"Tell us what it's like."

Zhang Su turned to look at Zhang Ya and said.

Zhang Ya thought for a moment and said: "To be honest, it's just a few mountains, with a long valley, gentle slopes up and down, well-built roads, nothing special—just felt the air up there was nice. It's a newly built attraction from the past few years, no real charm. Our company picked it just to save money."

"But there should be places to stay on Tianma Yu, right?" Zhang Su pressed.

Zhang Ya answered without hesitation: "Yes, there are several farmstay-style lodges on the mountain. Eating and everything is convenient, Brother Su, I think it's pretty good—I remember…"

"Watch out for two old-six zombies!"

No one objected. After wandering outside for so long, they needed a place to settle down—this seemed like a suitable spot.

He stood by the roadside, gazing toward the mountain; through the gaps in the still-partially-dead trees, he could just make out shadows of houses—very hidden.

After eliminating the zombies and pushing the bodies under the roadside trees, he got back in the car, drove another two hundred meters up the winding mountain road, and arrived at a wide semi-mountain platform—Tianma Yu's parking lot!

On a large stone seven or eight meters tall near the parking lot, bold characters read "Tianma Yu." A short distance away stood the scenic area's entrance arch and ticket checkpoint.

Zhao Dezhu grumbled, jumped out once the car stopped, and swung his knife at the zombie's neck.

The road from the provincial highway down to the mountain base was a very smooth, self-built road—the principle that "to get rich, first build roads" held true everywhere.

Judging by their clothing, the two zombies were local villagers, both male. They turned at the sound of the car's engine and charged toward it.

Walking twenty or thirty meters along another fork in the road, the farmstay lodges appeared before them. Built into the mountainside, each had its own character; from the scattered signs, there were at least seven or eight of them.

The scenery on either side of the self-built road was clearly better than the provincial highway. Though zombies wandered in the distance, the nearby wasteland was clean.

Zhang Su glanced toward the distance and said: "So Tianma Yu really is suitable as a safe base. There's not much farmland on the mountain, but we're few in number—plenty enough. Plus, there are fish ponds. Worth checking out!"

After driving along a field self-built road, the vehicle began climbing the mountain. Just after rounding a bend, two zombies appeared ahead.

When the car reached the fork marked "Tianma Yu," Zhang Su pulled over and told everyone to get out.

Zheng Xinyu and Master Jia handled the other zombie together—Zhang Su didn't need to lift a finger.

"Yeah, I'm not used to it."

"We're pretty pitiful. Even a breath of fresh air has become a luxury."

Zhang Su rolled down the window. A cold wind rushed in—familiar, clean air. He took a deep, greedy breath, feeling it soothe his soul.

She knew Zhang Su was considering setting up camp, so she dredged up every memory she had of Tianma Yu.

The others in the car felt the chill, saw Zhang Su's blissful expression as he enjoyed the breeze, and followed suit.

"I'd almost forgotten what fresh air smells like!"

With that, the four got back into the Prado and drove toward the scenic area.

"Xinyu, Zhu, Master Jia—you three come with me to scout ahead. See what's up there. Everyone else stay here."

Unlike the ruined shops in the city, the farmstay lodges in this area of Tianma Yu remained in excellent condition—as if even the heavy rain from a few days ago had barely touched them.

Zhang Su had little interest in the scenic area's interior and couldn't drive further into the mountains, so he parked the car in the middle of the parking lot.

"If not for this disaster, this place must've been packed during Golden Week…"

Stepping out of the car, Zhang Su looked around at the eerily silent farmstay lodges, deeply moved.

"Someone's coming!"

Just as he was about to walk toward the nearest lodge, called Wangshan Farmstay, he suddenly heard footsteps. He instinctively gripped his rifle.

Zheng Xinyu and the others followed Zhang Su's gaze but saw no one—yet they all faintly heard footsteps coming from behind the courtyard wall, and all grew alert.

Soon, a man and a woman turned the corner and appeared in their view. Both sides froze upon seeing each other.

The woman wore a light yellow down jacket, around thirty-something. The man wore a black cotton coat and was just pulling off an apron from his chest—he'd clearly been working.

"Oh! Gentlemen, you've finally come! Thank heaven! We've been waiting so long!"

The man noticed the standard-issue rifles on their chests, blinked in surprise, then burst into joyful shouts.

"Gentlemen, are you here to rescue us? We've waited for days—finally, you've come!"

The woman also excitedly rubbed her hands.

Zhang Su slowly lowered his gun and asked cautiously: "How many people are here?"

"Gentlemen, have a cigarette. There are four of us—my sister and I, plus one male and one female chef who survived."

As he spoke, the man eagerly offered a pack of cigarettes, flatteringly: "Gentlemen, you've had a long journey—come inside, rest up."

"Don't rush. I'll ask you: Is the entire Tianma Yu scenic area now only home to the four of you?"

Zhang Su didn't take the man's cigarettes and asked warily.

"Yes! We were counting on Golden Week profits, but just as we stocked up, the disaster hit. We tried to return to the city, but the roads were full of biting zombies, so we had no choice but to come back here for shelter!"

"Yes!" the woman added: "Phones don't work, TVs have no signal—we know nothing! It's driving us crazy. Could you tell us, what's the situation in the city now?"

The woman stared hopefully at Zhang Su.

"The city's situation is worse. When the disaster first broke out, there must've been quite a few people here who turned into zombies. Did you four handle them all?"

Zhang Su asked, puzzled. Based on the size of the lodges, each likely had three to five staff. Even during off-season with no tourists, this area should've had at least forty people!

By the infection rate, at least thirty should've turned. But the scene here showed no signs of struggle—clean, orderly, untouched.

"Huh?" the man looked confused: "A lot of people? Not many…"

"This year, the scenic area was closed for reforestation and wouldn't reopen until Golden Week. No tourists. Most lodge owners live in Qincheng or Qingxian and rarely come unless there's business. Back then… maybe a dozen people."

"How did you deal with the zombies?" Zhang Su pressed.

The man pointed nervously to a nearby cliff: "We knew they were zombies—we all worked together and pushed them off the cliff…"

Zhang Su and the others exchanged glances, silently dumbfounded. Getting rid of zombies here really was convenient.

"Since then, have there been no zombies here at all?"

Zhao Dezhu asked.

The man waved his hands dramatically: "Of course there are! Every few days, a few wander up. But never many—max three or four. Someone's always on watch. When we spot one, we lure it to the cliff. They're dumb—they don't step sideways, just fall right off. Never any danger."

"Enough!" Zhang Su said bluntly: "I won't waste time. We're not soldiers, and we're not here to rescue you. We're survivors—just like you."

"Survivors too?"

The brother and sister blinked, then the slightly chubby man said: "Survivors? Great! We're in the same boat. You're planning to hide here, right? No problem—we've got plenty of space!"

Zhang Su looked at the overly enthusiastic man and felt something odd—but couldn't pinpoint why. He wondered: Was it because since the disaster, he'd met no good people, so now that he had, he felt uneasy?

"You seem awfully friendly?"

Sometimes, direct questions are the best way to expose lies.

Facing Zhang Su's question, the man smiled awkwardly and pointed to their chests and backs: "You've got guns. The world's in chaos now—guns mean you can protect this place. If you come, you protect us. How could we not be friendly? Hehe."

"Besides… we wouldn't dare oppose you."

Very realistic. Felt utterly genuine…

(End of Chapter)