Chapter 451: When You Run a Household, You Learn the Cost of Rice and Firewood

"Director Li, your Civilization Guardians are doing well. Our Dawn Brigade's area was sparsely populated even before the disaster—how many residents were there near the auto park? Forget large supermarkets. When we fled here, we brought almost nothing, and now getting supplies is incredibly hard. Food isn't an issue, but daily necessities… thank goodness it's cold now!"

Yang Xinqi shook his head with a pained expression. In camp, he never dared reveal his true feelings to his subordinates—he had to pretend everything was fine. Only now, among peers of equal rank, could he vent his frustrations.

Soap and shampoo? No problem at all—since it's so cold, bathing is already a challenge. But toilet paper, something utterly insignificant at first, has now become an absolute treasure.

"I don't know what other places are like, but within the Alliance, leaders at my level only get one roll per week. Sounds like a lot, right? But it's barely enough. If we run out, we have to spend points to buy more."

"The guys in our squads are worse off—only one roll every two weeks. Regular members? Forget it. We didn't even consider giving them any at first, until… Gong Chengming suggested it. So we decided to give each regular member one roll per month—but once it's gone, they can't buy more. They have to figure it out themselves!"

Thinking back to when the disaster first hit—how he'd complained about dirty chairs and wiped dust off them with toilet paper, or tore off a strip to clean his shoes—Zhang Xin wanted to slap himself.

"Is it really that hard?"

Zhang Su, Zheng Xinyu, and Zhong Xiaoshan exchanged glances, but inside, Zhang Su was delighted. Hardship was good—if they were struggling, he could help solve their problems, and his chances of success would rise dramatically. Seeing everyone still standing by the table, Zhang Su suddenly remembered: "Come on, sit down, let's talk later! Xin Yu, Xiao Shan, brew some good tea and bring out some snacks—I remember we have a box of Cantonese egg rolls."

As everyone sat, Li Zongkai looked curiously at Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan as they bustled about, and said, "Mr. Zhang, if I recall correctly, these two are your wives?"

"That's right."

Zhang Su admitted it openly—there was no need to hide. He only had two, after all. Liao Youzhi had four women!

"Ah, so these are Sister-in-Laws! Hello, hello…"

"Pleased to meet you, pleased to meet you…"

The moment they sat down and realized the women serving tea were the Concubine of the King of Hell, they all jumped up again, greeting them with great respect—even Liu Yao forced a smile despite his pain.

Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan showed no airs whatsoever, smiled back, and returned to their tasks.

"Brother Zhang, why make your wives do such menial work…?"

Zhang Xin had met Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan long ago but hadn't had time to understand the dynamics between Zhang Su and them. Now he whispered in confusion.

In the post-apocalypse, women's status had plummeted—but if one could attach herself to a leader, she'd surely live in comfort. Serving tea and pouring water was usually reserved for the leader alone. To see them treated like this now was astonishing.

"Haha, we don't have dedicated staff at Tianma Isle. These tasks aren't hard—anyone can do them. They also train for combat regularly. Xiao Shan didn't join the King of Hell's army earlier because she was on duty in the monitoring room!"

Speaking of his camp's fine traditions, Zhang Su was proud. He was certain the others' camps couldn't match Tianma Isle's standards—and now wasn't the time for modesty.

"Our Dawn Brigade claims to pursue equality, but it's nearly impossible. Only when I came to the King of Hell's territory did I understand what equality really means—it's humbling."

Yang Xinqi watched the two women working, filled with boundless admiration.

None of them found it strange that Zhang Su had two female companions. In fact, they thought—with his abilities—he should be taking care of even more women…

Soon, tea and snacks were ready. Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan waved to everyone and left the dining hall—they had no interest in the men's talk and preferred to go out and enjoy themselves.

Zhang Su lit a cigarette, ready to resume the previous topic, but noticed Liu Yao looking listless. He remembered the man was still injured, pulled out a piece of zombie cerebellum from his pocket, and said, "Commander Liu, catch!"

He tossed over a piece the size of a broad bean.

Liu Yao lifted his still-functional left hand, caught it, examined it, and asked, "What is this?"

"Just eat it. A gene drug developed by a doctor—it cures all physical injuries."

Zhang Su gave a brief explanation.

Hearing this, the others stared curiously at the substance in Liu Yao's hand—a gray, rubbery lump, casually pulled from a pocket. This… was a gene drug?

Fine.

You're the boss—you say it is. Liu Yao grimaced, pinched it—it had some elasticity. He sighed heavily, gave up questioning, and shoved it into his mouth. He chewed twice and swallowed it with gritted teeth.

Zhang Su nodded as Liu Yao finished. He turned to Li Zongkai and the others. "I've always thought food was the biggest problem. You all don't lack it?"

"Food is still manageable for now. Winter makes storage easy—we won't starve through this season."

Li Zongkai spoke first.

Yang Xinqi added, "Director Li is right. Cold weather is miserable, but food doesn't spoil easily. We're not too tight—we can last three or four months. If spring comes normally, we must start farming immediately."

Zhang Su nodded, stroking his chin. "I never paid much attention to daily necessities. There were so many supermarkets in the city—how could they be scarce?"

"The supermarkets were stripped bare in the first month. Now we're raiding apartments. I won't be embarrassed to say it—there's no real advantage to staying in the city. The only good thing is that buildings are sturdy and closer to our old habits. Everyone's reluctant to leave…"

"You, King of Hell, truly had foresight—leaving the city early and finding this paradise. We're truly envious."

Yang Xinqi praised sincerely—every word came from his heart. Since arriving at Tianma Isle, he'd felt its many advantages, imagining how wonderful it would be if the Dawn Brigade could live here.

Zhang Su waved his hand, mentally labeling Yang Xinqi as "flatterer, sycophant." From his behavior so far, Zhang Su couldn't fathom how Yang Xinqi led the Dawn Brigade—was it all just smooth talk?

Li Zongkai didn't respond to Yang Xinqi's praise. He said, "Cold weather still gives the city some advantages. Apartment buildings still hold abundant supplies—enough to sustain basic life. But industrial goods are depleting over time. For humans now, these are effectively non-renewable resources."

As he spoke, Li Zongkai tapped the tissue paper on the table.

Yu Wen adjusted his glasses and said gravely, "Resources in Qin City are dwindling. We must look upstream along the logistics network. Large warehouses and freight stations are concentrated in Qin City's development zone. Have you checked there?"

"Brother, our factions' territories are limited to northern Qin City. The development zone is controlled by another group—the boundaries are clear. Crossing them is an act of provocation. But I doubt we'd find anything even if we went—those people probably stripped it clean long ago."

Yang Xinqi spread his hands. The Dawn Brigade's position was closest to the development zone—just five or six kilometers south. A month ago, his men clashed with a faction there, and boundaries were formally drawn—but tensions never eased.

"My apologies—I forgot to introduce this gentleman. He's Yu Wen, formerly a Chinese language teacher. When I'm not in camp, he handles all affairs."

Zhang Su introduced him, then opened his mouth to speak—but noticed Liu Yao's expression had changed.

"Hey! It's itchy! Damn, so itchy!"

Liu Yao's face flushed red, his skin twitched as if ants crawled all over him—he scratched everywhere.

Zhang Xin, who had been sitting beside Liu Yao, leapt up instantly and stood aside, watching solemnly.

"Don't worry—it's normal after taking the medicine. Your injuries will heal right away."

"Right away?"

As Zhang Su spoke, the others were stunned.

They hadn't believed his claim about the gene drug at all—yet it worked this fast? It felt too fantastical.

"No no, damn it, it's hot and itchy!"

Liu Yao didn't care about dignity—he'd never had any anyway. He frantically stripped off his down jacket, then his wool sweater, thermal underwear, until only a long-sleeved base T-shirt remained. He hiked the T-shirt up to his neck and began scratching his belly and his fractured arm.

The others stopped talking, watching Liu Yao's impromptu performance.

It didn't last long. After just over two minutes, he fell still. His belly and arms were covered in red streaks—some even looked like the marks of guasha scraping.

He moved his hands, patted his several-toned abs, eyes wide with disbelief: "No pain! Really no pain! It's healed! I'm healed! Holy shit, what kind of medicine is this? With this, the King of Hell's army is unstoppable!"

Liu Yao stood nearly naked in the dining hall, gesturing wildly, his face radiant with ecstatic joy.

(End of Chapter)