Chapter 96: Did You Just Take Me for a Nanny?

“Gag… gag…”

Zhang Su glanced at the two men vomiting uncontrollably, silently shook his head, and said nothing—after all, they weren’t his team members; let them do as they pleased.

Soon, the first wave of six or seven zombies was wiped out, splattering bloody slime everywhere and staining many items inside the convenience store.

“Xiaoshan, go lure out the zombies!”

Zhang Su tilted his head toward Zhong Xiaoshan.

“Mm!”

Zhong Xiaoshan was about to move, but another person blocked her.

Kuang Miao reached out to stop her and smiled: “Sis, let me go—I can handle it!”

Zhang Su raised an eyebrow; seeing Zhong Xiaoshan’s questioning look, he nodded slightly and said nothing more.

Kuang Miao, having received approval, hurried toward the front door.

“I’ll go with you!”

Chen Hanzhou glanced back at the other two companions, gritted his teeth, and followed Kuang Miao toward the convenience store.

“Look at these two—they know how to seize the chance to train. Now look at those two…” Zhang Su couldn’t help shaking his head, then gave Lu Yubo a meaningful look.

Lu Yubo understood what Zhang Su meant; he glanced at Song Yijun and Pei Lan, who were catching their breath nearby, and sighed bitterly.

Luring out zombies wasn’t difficult: Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou clapped their hands by the office door, and immediately, zombies followed them out.

Killing zombies systematically only required overcoming fear and nausea; the real danger lay in sudden emergencies. This method—luring zombies out slowly and killing them one by one—was the easiest task possible.

After several rounds, Zhang Su’s group finally eliminated all the zombies inside the convenience store.

“Ah!”

When Zhang Su opened the back door and stepped out again, Old Zhao nearly jumped out of his skin.

“You—you killed all those zombies?!”

Old Zhao sat against the wall, looking up at Zhang Su with utter disbelief in his eyes.

“Kuang Miao, you four take these three inside the store—then you can eat and drink all you want!”

Zhang Su ignored Old Zhao completely.

“Really? Great! Quick—Chen Hanzhou and I will guard this fatty, Song Yijun, you watch the old man, Pei Lan, you take care of the woman!”

Upon hearing Zhang Su’s order, Kuang Miao’s eyes lit up green with greed, and he immediately gave orders.

As a minor leader among the students, his authority was accepted without protest, and everyone obeyed.

Zhang Su watched Kuang Miao and the others drag Old Zhao and the others away, then turned to Tan Huajun: “Old Tan, can you dismantle the generator?”

“Sure, but I can’t manage it alone—it’s heavy. I’ll need help.”

Tan Huajun nodded immediately.

“Yubo, Xiaoshan, go help him—we’ll load it straight onto Halandar!” Zhang Su nodded toward the vehicle.

Zhong Xiaoshan waved her hands: “My car’s already full—I’d have to offload some supplies first!”

“Right!” Zhang Su slapped his forehead, then looked at Lu Yubo: “Any space on the H6? Load it onto your car.”

“OK!”

Lu Yubo nodded without hesitation.

The three sprinted toward the generator’s installation spot behind the building.

“Come on, let’s say goodbye—we’ve worked together, and maybe grab a few more things while we’re at it!”

Zhang Su patted Zheng Xinyu’s arm, then draped his hand over her shoulder as they walked into the store together.

“Delicious! Holy crap, I never thought cucumber-flavored chips could taste this good!”

“That’s nothing—I’ve got instant noodles, and they’re way better! Get lost, go get your own—there’s plenty left, don’t steal mine!”

“Stop grabbing my chocolate, you bastards…”

Inside the store, Kuang Miao and the others were gorging themselves, crunching loudly on various snacks; even Pei Lan had dropped her ladylike pretense, shoveling food in and gulping water when she choked.

Hunger made everyone equal—this disaster had made these students taste true suffering.

Old Zhao and the other two were dumped in a corner like beggars; the students, at least, had shown some humanity by giving them a clean spot.

“So… satisfied?”

Zhang Su smiled at Kuang Miao and the others.

“Beyond satisfied!”

“Food earned by risking our lives tastes amazing!”

“Bro Zhang, aren’t you guys eating anything?”

Kuang Miao held up his bag of chips and asked Zhang Su.

Zhang Su waved his hand: “Our cooperation today had flaws, but overall it went well. Night’s falling—we’re leaving. Goodbye, everyone!”

“What?!”

“Bro Zhang, you’re leaving already?”

“Don’t go! Don’t leave—won’t you stay the night?”

Kuang Miao and the others froze mid-bite, a wave of panic rising in their chests.

Their brief alliance had made them dependent on Zhang Su’s group—they felt safe with them. Hearing they were leaving shattered that rare sense of security.

“Hey, big brother, untie us first!” Old Zhao shouted from the floor.

The old man, no longer calm, pleaded: “Sir, where are you going? Please take my daughter—she’s sick, please save her!”

Zhang Su guessed the woman was the old man’s daughter and assumed she was ill—not bitten by a zombie, or she’d have turned already.

He gave Zheng Xinyu a strange look, thinking: I just came to say goodbye—why are these people making such a fuss?

Ignoring Old Zhao and the others, Zhang Su turned to Kuang Miao: “No need to stay the night—we’re heading elsewhere to regroup. This place… well, you can clean it up and sleep here fine.”

“Wait, what are they doing? This… this is your partner… that car is his?”

Suddenly, Song Yijun noticed someone loading items onto a vehicle and was stunned.

“That’s right. We stopped here earlier, but someone drove in over a hundred zombies—we had to retreat!”

Zhang Su revealed the truth: “Per our agreement, half the store’s contents belong to us. We’ll leave the food and drinks for you—just take the generator.”

“Sir, please, save my daughter! You’ll earn infinite merit—I’ll kowtow to you, I’ll kowtow!”

The old man stood up and began banging his head against the floor.

The woman finally reacted, coughing as she shielded her father with her body, whispering weakly: “Dad, don’t… I’m fine. Just rest… I’ll get better with rest.”

“Qingqing, rest well!” The old man shifted to shove his daughter aside and resumed banging his head: “Sir, please—my daughter has the flu. She needs antibiotics and fever reducers—any pharmacy will have them. Save her, save her!”

Zhang Su stepped aside, refusing to accept the old man’s kowtow, his face grim as he shook his head: “I’m sorry—I can’t carry someone who can’t defend herself. That’s irresponsible to me and my team.”

Kuang Miao’s group felt heavy at Zhang Su’s words.

They thought him cold-hearted, yet also saw his logic—and even envied his ability to make such a cruel choice, because if they’d faced the same plea, they’d have been unable to refuse.

Zheng Xinyu stood silently, eyes lowered. She felt pity for the sick woman, but knew they couldn’t take her—she could barely walk; she’d be dead meat within hours outside.

“I’ll protect her. My father and I will protect her. Take us with you—will that work?”

The speaker wasn’t anyone else—it was Old Zhao.

Zhang Su turned his gaze to Old Zhao, and suddenly, a figure flashed in his mind: Wang Guangjun, who’d also barred him from entering.

On the surface, Old Zhao and Wang Guangjun’s door-closing acts seemed selfish—but from their own perspective, they were justified.

Survival in the apocalypse isn’t a fairy tale; often, people must follow their selfish instincts.

“What do you do?”

Zhang Su asked Old Zhao.

“I gut fish at Guangli Supermarket’s fresh section, big brother. I was wrong before—take us with you, I swear you won’t regret it. I kill zombies like a beast!”

Old Zhao’s face was earnest.

Zhang Su understood: “That’s the Guangli Supermarket on the east side? Good. Gutting fish is useful…”

Then he stepped forward, cut the ropes binding them, and said: “Since you can protect her, go on your own. No need to follow me.”

“This…?” Old Zhao thought he’d been accepted—instead, he’d been dismissed.

“Big brother, more people mean more strength! The streets are full of zombies—let’s go together, carve out a future!” Old Zhao slapped his chest.

Just then, Lu Yubo entered the store and heard Old Zhao’s words—he was furious.

“You? Carve out a future? If you could even kill one zombie, would this store be in this state?”

Lu Yubo pointed to the empty display window beside them.

“Bro Zhang, this guy’s a bit… inept, I’ll admit. But he’s right about one thing: more people mean more strength. Ten people are stronger than five. Let us join you—please?”

Kuang Miao laid the groundwork, then revealed his true intent.

It wasn’t just his own wish—it was a decision he’d made with the others while Zhang Su talked to Old Zhao.

Zhang Su’s group had far superior combat ability and decision-making—nothing like these students. In just a few days, eleven people had been whittled down to four. If they hadn’t met Zhang Su today, he didn’t know how many of them would still be alive…

“What are you doing? Are you turning my place into a refugee camp? You three—except the fish guy, who seems halfway capable—what can you two do? Old man, you carry a rolling pin? A chef?”

“And you four!” Zhang Su turned to Kuang Miao’s group: “Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou have potential. But Pei Lan and Song Yijun? You’ve been running from zombies for days, and you still throw up at the sight of them. Do I look like your baby sitter?”

The more he spoke, the angrier Zhang Su became.

“Bro, Bro Zhang, they’ll try harder! Don’t be mad—I promise they’ll grow!”

Kuang Miao rushed forward, grabbing Zhang Su’s arm and pleading.

I’ve read all your comments—thank you all for your understanding and support. Those who don’t understand or support? You won’t even see this. Hehe…

Today’s update is a bit shorter—I’m taking a break. Tomorrow looks like a recommendation slot—I’ll resume daily 10k.

(End of chapter)