Chapter 43: Fans Bring Warmth

"Other survivors?"

Chongzi looked at Xiangge with confusion.

"Could a little girl have come up with this alarm device?" Xiangge gripped the iron spoon carefully, then pulled out scissors and cut the wires.

Chongzi laughed: "Hey, Xiangge, you’re not wrong—she’s a livestreamer who plays shooting games. She’s picked up plenty of dirty tricks from chatting with us; this is child’s play!"

"Alright then. Doesn’t matter. If there are others, fine—we’ll rob them together! Come on, move!"

Xiangge began hauling things away, utterly unconcerned.

…

"Su-ge?"

Zheng Xinyu saw Zhang Su staring blankly with a chopstick of noodles stuck in his mouth, and waved her hand in front of him.

Zhong Xiaoshan glanced worriedly at the strange Zhang Su and whispered: "Su-ge, are you under too much pressure? Eat, then get a good night’s sleep."

Though they now had some combat ability, their greatest reliance was still Zhang Su—they feared him falling apart.

Zhang Su’s vacant eyes suddenly refocused; he slurped the noodles into his mouth and mumbled: "No time to sleep—guests are here!"

"Guests?"

His odd words left the two women even more baffled.

"Didn’t you hear the alarm go off?" Zhang Su asked deliberately.

Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan exchanged surprised glances and both shook their heads: "No."

"Then your vigilance is way too low!"

Thud.

No sooner had Zhang Su spoken than a heavy object landed outside.

"That’s…?" Zheng Xinyu turned toward the door, her expression grim: "Did someone knock over the dressing table blocking the stairs?"

"Definitely!"

Zhong Xiaoshan’s face tightened; she immediately put down her chopsticks, snatched up an iron plate from the floor, and stood ready.

Zheng Xinyu moved just as fast, grabbing the baseball bat leaning against the wall and shot Zhang Su a questioning look: What now?

Zhang Su raised a hand to calm them, then whispered: "Not zombies—people. Stay alert."

He didn’t tell Zheng Xinyu or Zhong Xiaoshan what he’d heard—he wanted to see their reactions.

Zheng Xinyu wondered how Zhang Su knew it was people; she guessed he’d deduced it from the sounds, didn’t press it, and silently followed him to the door.

"Damn it, Chongzi, something’s off!"

Xiangge glanced back at the heavy sofa and dressing table: "Even if you say that girl knows a bunch of weird stuff, could she really move all this herself?"

Chongzi scratched his head. The sofa and dressing table were already heavy for them after two days of hunger—how could a little girl manage it, even if she’d eaten her fill?

"Maybe… hey, Xiangge, look—the marks of fire, leftover planks… there’s definitely someone still up there. Yeah, that’s it—these barriers were set up by survivors upstairs!"

Chongzi offered what he thought was a reasonable explanation.

Xiangge walked to the floor between the eighth and ninth levels, picked up a plank, and sneered: "Whatever. Let’s go to the little girl’s place first!"

Decided, the two reached the eighth floor, pushed open the safety door, and saw the door to 801.

Xiangge tightened his grip on the fire axe, gave Chongzi a glance, and signaled him to knock.

Chongzi dared not defy Xiangge. He picked up the crowbar and crept down the hallway, scanning around—no anomalies. He tiptoed to the door of 801.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Three dull knocks echoed.

Zhang Su, watching through the peephole, smirked. Seeing Chongzi forcing a friendly expression on the other side of the door amused him.

Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan stood perfectly still, eyes locked on Zhang Su, waiting for his command.

"Yu Mao-mao, you home? I’m your fan—I came to save you!"

Chongzi, getting no reply, felt slightly relieved—no zombies inside. He cautiously called out: "Yu Mao-mao, is that you? Good, you’re safe! I’m Yi Fei Chong Tian—the one who sent you gifts a few days ago. I came to check on you—are you okay?"

Zhang Su’s cheeks puffed out; he barely held back a laugh. He glanced at Zheng Xinyu with amusement—he knew "Yu Mao-mao" was her online name, but this was absurdly childish.

Zheng Xinyu knew exactly why Zhang Su was laughing. In this tense moment, she flushed crimson with shame and anger—and she was utterly bewildered: how could a fan know her address and come to rescue her?

Zhong Xiaoshan’s lips kept twitching—she clearly wanted to laugh too.

"What’s so funny? Hmph! Look how loyal my fans are—even after the outbreak, they still come to save me!"

Zheng Xinyu glared at Zhang Su, whispering fiercely: "I’m not happy about this!"

Unbeknownst to her, Chongzi had pressed his ear against the door and caught a faint sound. His face lit up: "Yu Mao-mao, is that you? You’re safe! I’m Yi Fei Chong Tian—the one who sent you gifts a few days ago. I came to see you—are you okay?"

His tone was sincere, almost warm. If Zhang Su hadn’t known this guy was up to no good, he might’ve almost believed the lie.

He’d originally planned to kill the two schemers outright—but then an idea struck him.

Zhang Su gestured for Zheng Xinyu to look outside.

"Yu Mao-mao, you got any food or water? I brought you plenty! You there? Say something!"

Chongzi spoke in the softest, gentlest voice he could muster.

After Zheng Xinyu glanced outside, Zhang Su motioned for them to move away from the door and whispered: "This guy’s sweet-talking—he’s no good."

Zheng Xinyu hesitated: "But… he doesn’t seem like he’s lying. And he really is a fan from our neighborhood. But I told all my fans I lived in Building Ten—I even put that on my delivery address. How did he find me?"

Zheng Xinyu still had basic safety sense—even with today’s internet, she’d concealed her real name and address when sharing her location in Sheng Qin Jiayuan.

"So, do you think you should open the door?"

Zhang Su didn’t dwell on the past. Someone had come—fine. He offered no opinion, only guided.

Zheng Xinyu grew even more uncertain. She glanced instinctively at Zhang Su and Zhong Xiaoshan, then murmured hesitantly: "Maybe… we should open the door and meet him? He really brought a big bag."

"Aren’t you afraid he’ll rush in the moment you open it?"

Zhang Su asked.

"You’re right here, so I’m not worried… fine, fine, I won’t open it."

Clearly, Zheng Xinyu’s indecisiveness had kicked in again.

"He’s right outside. Are you opening it or not? Or are you just going to keep pretending you’re not home?"

Zhang Su pressed on.

Open the door. Don’t open it but talk. Pretend you’re not home. Another option appeared—and Zheng Xinyu’s mind grew even more tangled.

"Maybe we should wait and see what he does next?"

Zhong Xiaoshan added another option from the side.

Zheng Xinyu nodded vigorously: "Yes! Let’s see what he does next. That way, we won’t kill an innocent, and we won’t fall for a villain’s trick!"

Zhang Su grinned, saying nothing. He saw Zheng Xinyu still clung to her old, peaceful-world mindset—that’s why she was so torn. He decided to use this moment to give her a proper lesson.

(End of Chapter)