Chapter 208: A New Beginning

Niuziquan Town remained exactly as before, the barbed wire untouched, showing how few survivors remained nearby—no one had come to scavenge, and the two excavators Zhang Su had coveted sat quietly at the town's entrance.

"In the end, it's all just a handful of yellow earth, a pile of white bones…"

Zhao Dezhu saw the corpses of the group that had attacked him—after so many days, they were heavily decomposed, exposing gleaming white bones.

His arm wasn't fully healed yet, but he couldn't sit still—he wanted to get out and work, so he came along to help with whatever tasks he could manage.

"Not bad, Zhuizi! You got yourself a well-educated father-in-law—your speech level's shot up!"

Zhang Su teased.

Zhao Dezhu waved his hand in front of his nose and chuckled helplessly: "Of course—I've gotta improve, hey big brother, this stink is unbearable, pass me a cigarette."

The whole street reeked. Zhang Su was about to light up when he glanced sideways at Zhao Dezhu: "My cigarettes are rationed, you know. What about your own?"

"Hehe, I'm saving mine for slow sips."

This afternoon was the happiest he'd had since the collapse—not just because he now had stable living, but because he'd truly contributed to the team and received a heartfelt "thank you" from his companions. That satisfaction towered above basic needs by several levels.

Zhang Su ignored Zhao Dezhu's shamelessness and walked ahead.

These small, unnoticed improvements quietly raised everyone's SAN value—only when things kept getting better would their will to survive grow stronger.

"Don't fight Zhong the nurse for it…"

Amid laughter and chatter, Zhang Su rubbed his buzz cut and said to those around him: "I really hope we can keep living like this—this calm, carefree state, it's so comfortable."

Once back at camp, the world inside the walls and mountain gate felt cut off from everything else. Seeing the smiles on people's faces and the steaming meals on the table, Zhang Su felt as if he'd returned to his old life.

That afternoon, Lu Leiyang gave haircuts to every male in the safe zone. They weren't stylish, but at least the hairy monsters had returned to neat, clean appearances—their spirits visibly lifted.

As for video games, variety shows, fishing, skiing—these could all be replaced by farming, chopping wood, and practicing shooting.

When the group returned to camp, Zhang Su handed Lu Leiyang a large bag of barber tools. The effeminate man was moved to tears and laughter, treating them like a priceless treasure.

"Get lost, get to work!"

"Alright, I'm third."

After dinner, sitting in the warm dining hall, watching the men transformed, Zheng Xinyu tugged at her matted, shapeless hair and made a face.

Lu Leiyang laughed heartily.

There were plenty of barbershops on the street—three cleared out, two ordinary, one slightly upscale, with better scissors and a variety of hair dye products.

"Who cares about hairstyles anymore? Just cut it short so it's easy to manage! Deal? Tomorrow, give us all haircuts. Come on, girls, line up—I want first!"

Zhao Dezhu flicked his head dramatically, scattering scalp flakes that made Guo Dachao behind him jump back in disgust.

"I'm second!"

"Damn it, the scissors are that important? Hurry up, give me a cool, trendy haircut!"

"I'm fine with anyone, but I warn you—I've never styled women's hair before. If you're unhappy, you'll have to bear with it…"

"Honestly, big brother, since the disaster, my life's better and more fulfilling than before."

"Tony, when can you do the ladies too?"

Watching Yu Qing and the women laughing together, Zhao Dezhu smiled, pulled out a cigarette, and absentmindedly passed it around. Only after everyone lit up did he remember cigarettes were rationed…

"I worked in a supermarket for eight years—first three years stocking shelves, next five years gutting fish. Every day the same routine, no house, no car, no wife. My coworkers thought I was carefree—was I? No, I had no choice."

"Now look—I kill fish, now I kill zombies. Sometimes I kill a few bastards. Got a house, a car, a wife. Damn, big brother, tell me—is this progress or regression?"

Zhao Dezhu's reflections moved those around him deeply.

Wang Xin and Liu Tianji had savings but sat daily in front of computers, typing endless code with no idea where their path led.

Lu Yubao hung out with a gang of thugs in karaoke bars and pool halls, drifting day by day—seemingly free and easy, but when money and women ran out, all his sorrows would strike.

Qi Xiaoshuai rode his electric scooter, spending at least ten hours daily weaving through city streets in all weather, delivering food for algorithm-controlled pay, his future locked inside big data, unable to escape the framework.

Pang Dakun stole here and stole there—his future was clear: he'd end up in jail.

Lu Leiyang, who got along well with the women, had a good job, but struggled to find a partner; his parents had distanced themselves for various reasons. He had some money but wasn't happy.

Jia Shiqin and Yu Wen had clear life goals—because they had a family, everything they did was for its survival.

"Hey, Dachao, what did you do before?"

Zhang Su realized he'd never asked Guo Dachao about his past.

"Me?" Guo Dachao crushed out his cigarette. "I worked on cars."

"Huh?"

Zhang Su exchanged glances with Zhao Dezhu and Jia Shiqin, then pressed: "What kind of car work?"

"I can do bodywork and engine repair… but, Boss Su, don't tell me you're talking about those two wrecked vehicles down the hill—those can't even be fixed at a 4S shop. I can't do anything with them…"

Guo Dachao scratched his head helplessly.

"Not those two junkers. Ordinary family cars can rot. Can you fix excavators?"

Zhang Su asked hopefully—he hadn't forgotten the two giants at Niuziquan Town.

"Excavators? Oh, you mean the ones at Niuziquan today? I checked them out—can't say they're beyond repair, but I need tools and time. I can try."

Today was Guo Dachao's first time accompanying Zhang Su to Niuziquan Town.

Zhang Su slapped Guo Dachao's shoulder. "We've got tools. Jia Shiqin here used to be an electrician—he can help you. And Old Tan? She knows some mechanical repair too. Tomorrow, go check them out together!"

"If we can get one of those excavators back, dig a ditch three or five meters deep in the fields, and let the zombies jump right in—then we're set for life, hahaha!"

Zhao Dezhu clapped enthusiastically.

"Everyone, it's snowing!"

Suddenly, Yang Wenjie pushed open the dining hall door from the monitoring room, pointing outside with a smile on her face.

"Snowing?"

"Let's go see!"

Everyone walked into the courtyard. The sky was dark, but under the lights, sparse snowflakes drifted down—so light they were visible only in the air, vanishing the moment they touched the ground.

Zheng Xinyu reached out and caught a flake, but felt no cold before it melted.

"Everyone's so happy today, and now it's snowing—a rare weather event, Mr. Zhang. Why don't we draft a new calendar?"

Yu Wen suggested cheerfully.

"Huh?"

Zhang Su was baffled—calendar? Haircuts? What's going on…

"Calendar—Gregorian, lunar, solar. Calendar. To discard the old and welcome the new. The old era sank in disaster; the new era is reborn in darkness."

Yu Wen spoke with fervor.

But the others showed little interest.

A calendar was too grand a thing—before, it wasn't even something a single nation could decide!

"Uncle, this… we can't even decide it. Isn't it unnecessary?"

Zhao Dezhu was the only one in camp who called Yu Wen "uncle."

"You don't understand!" Yu Wen waved him off, too lazy to explain to this simple-minded son-in-law, and turned to Zhang Su: "Symbolism is belief—it has deep impact. Mr. Zhang, consider it?"

Zhang Su wasn't particularly interested either—his old calendar was already well-established, and changing it felt strange. But as Yu Wen said, the old era must pass, replaced by the new.

Even if human civilization one day blossomed again on this planet, it would no longer be the same civilization. Whether other survivors accepted it didn't matter—so long as those here did.

Maybe someone else had already begun counting years from the disaster's start.

"Today is…" Zhang Su lifted his wrist to look at his watch.

"Today is December 7th, Gregorian. Funny—it's Da Xue. Lunar October 25th. If we're replacing it, then today is the last day of the old Gregorian calendar. Starting tomorrow, we use the new calendar. The lunar calendar remains our tradition—unchanged!"

Before, no one had thought much of it. But when Zhang Su said, "Today is the last day of the Gregorian calendar," everyone's expression changed—becoming solemn. The idea no longer seemed absurd; it felt almost sacred.

That was how many felt.

"Mr. Zhang, please name the new calendar!"

Yu Wen raised his hand solemnly.

"Name it…"

Zhang Su looked up at the sky, bright to him, drew a deep breath, and said: "Call it the Light Calendar!"

(End of Chapter)