Chapter 35: The Desperate Leap (Dear Rich Master, Please Keep Reading)

“Huh, huh, puke…”

Zheng Xinyu gasped for breath; as the tense atmosphere faded, she noticed the floor littered with liver and internal organs, the stench of blood filling her nostrils, her stomach heaving violently as she vomited.

“Xinyu-jie… are you okay?”

Zhong Xiaoshan jumped at Zheng Xinyu’s sudden vomiting, sidestepping the splatter, and gently patted her back. “Don’t look at the ground—try thinking of something delicious. It’ll pass soon!”

“Delicious…”

Zhang Su thought to himself: thinking of delicious food right now? That’s just cruel.

He lit another cigarette, exhaled smoke, shut the door, then held the cigarette to Zheng Xinyu’s lips. “Take a drag—calm your stomach.”

Zheng Xinyu, nose running, snatched the cigarette and sucked hard; the thick smoke made her cough violently, but the urge to vomit vanished.

“There’s… still one more!”

At that moment, Zhong Xiaoshan pointed nervously toward a zombie crawling from the direction of the living room.

It was a zombie reduced to half its body—everything below the abdomen was gone. With only its arms, it dragged itself forward, yet its gnashing white teeth still clicked loudly, undiminished in its hunger for fresh flesh.

Zheng Xinyu, just now steadied, turned her head and saw the creature—another wave of nausea surged. The cigarette did nothing. She bent over, vomiting helplessly, but only bitter bile came out.

Zhang Su patted Zheng Xinyu’s trembling shoulder. This was something she had to overcome herself. Then he picked up his hatchet and walked toward the mangled zombie.

After disposing of the two zombies, the three entered the living room and found it styled like an office, not a home: two rows of desks faced each other, six computers in total.

“So this was an e-commerce after-sales office. I didn’t even know anyone worked upstairs…”

Zheng Xinyu spoke with a nasal tone, picking up a booklet on the desk and flipping through it—this was an e-commerce company.

Zhang Su emerged from the kitchen, shaking his hands. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

“This company probably just started, or moved here recently. All the bedrooms are empty shelves and packing boxes. Only these zip ties and tape might be useful.”

Zhong Xiaoshan walked out of the bedroom, equally frustrated, shaking the cardboard box in her arms—inside were over a dozen rolls of tape and some plastic zip ties.

“Check the desks. There might be something.”

As Zhang Su began pulling open drawers, a shout rang out from outside the window—then a dark shadow flashed past the glass, a cry of despair rising then fading as it fell downward.

“What was that?!”

The three startled, rushing to the living room window to look down. What they saw sank their hearts.

“No… it can’t be…”

Zheng Xinyu’s face twitched as she pointed upward.

Zhang Su frowned at the crimson blood spreading from a corpse’s center. “It must be the guy from 1201. In just this short time… he’s gone.”

He sighed inwardly—a neighbor who had generously shared food moments ago, now reduced to a pool of flesh.

Kindness may seem foolish now, but it remains a rare virtue.

Zhang Su knew he’d never be a kind man, but he held respect for those who were.

Zhong Xiaoshan covered her mouth and shook her head. “Why jump? Isn’t living better? Why choose to end it like this?”

Even in hardship, she believed life was precious. As long as you lived, suffering meant nothing. She couldn’t understand those who chose death.

“Maybe he heard us say the outside world’s fallen apart… and that’s why… his scream was so hopeless.”

Zheng Xinyu spoke, a trace of sorrow on her lips.

In these three days since the zombie outbreak, many had chosen suicide—not all from despair, but for other reasons too.

“Some pain you can’t understand unless you’ve lived it. His death isn’t our fault. Look at the corpse beside him—he was likely already infected, a family member…”

Zhang Su pulled back, unwilling to watch this human tragedy further—but as his gaze retreated, a figure flickered in his peripheral vision!

In a neighborhood teeming with zombies, a living human silhouette was an extraordinary sight—even if it lasted only a fraction of a second, he was certain: he’d seen a living person.

“Huh?”

Zhang Su frowned, scanning again—quickly locking onto the target: beneath the lowest floor of Building 4, on the east side, someone was peering out.

Due to the building’s design—perhaps for moisture prevention—the first-floor balconies didn’t touch the ground; there was a forty-centimeter gap beneath. Occasionally, stray cats could be seen there, and children loved hiding there during hide-and-seek.

But now Zhang Su saw a person hiding beneath the balcony.

“Boss Zhang, what are you staring at?”

Zheng Xinyu noticed Zhang Su’s intense gaze fixed on something—nothing like the blank stare he’d had when seeing death.

“There’s someone!”

Zhang Su pointed to the hiding spot. “Down there, bottom of the east side—look, there’s a person!”

Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan followed his direction. After a moment, they both turned to him with puzzled looks.

“He pulled back!”

Zhang Su pointed firmly downward. “He definitely stuck his head out just now. One hundred percent!”

Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan exchanged glances, as if reaching an unspoken agreement.

“Yeah… there was someone…”

Zheng Xinyu answered seriously.

“Yeah, yeah.”

Zhong Xiaoshan nodded in agreement.

Zhang Su, sharp as ever, saw right through their act. He frowned. “I really saw him. Why won’t you believe me… Fine. Even if there was someone, what does it matter?”

He shrugged and walked toward the desks, letting it go. Whether someone was there or not didn’t matter—what annoyed him was their refusal to believe him.

Soon, the three finished searching. From the desks they found plenty of snacks—more than the old couple’s home. Just one large box of Snickers would last them multiple meals. They were convenient, no cooking needed, and packed with calories and fat.

Other items: potato chips, dried mango, dried fruits—the usual office snacks…

But their greatest find wasn’t snacks—it was four full cases of mineral water, nearly a hundred bottles, sixty liters total—twenty liters per person. With care, it would last ten days.

“We’re rich now!”

Zhang Su beamed, pulled out a bottle, kissed it, twisted open the cap, and gulped deeply before shoving the rest into his bag.

They had plenty of drinks, but pure water was scarce—mostly sodas and beer. This water was vital.

(End of Chapter)