[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-zombie-apocalypse-creation":3,"chapter-zombie-apocalypse-creation-zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-761":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Zombie Apocalypse: Creation",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1887578,2510,"Chapter 761: Yu Hua’s Plead","zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-761",761,"\u003Cp>Weirdly enough, the first thing Xiaoyun noticed when going through Shaoguan’s main entrance was isolation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something felt off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The deafening solitude on the empty road. All the overgrown grass and the crumbling buildings in the distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He just never happened to notice all the small details of the city when he traveled to Shaoguan in the past.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Xiaoyun had to describe the city in one word, it would be lifeless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one was walking on the streets, despite it being four o’clock on a Friday afternoon. No street vendors or food trucks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everywhere they looked was just abandoned buildings. If it weren’t for streetlights, he would have genuinely thought zombies still occupied the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Houqin, do you know how many people live here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Um, I don’t know that. You’ll need to ask Yuqi about it... But I know at least fifty logistics staff stay here full-time.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the driver entered the city proper, Houqin quickly signaled the driver to stop as they reached a building that looked more like an old warehouse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wait here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two of them quickly exited the car, heading towards the warehouse, before they ran into a worker who happened to be coming out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Miss Houqin? C-Commander Xiaoyun?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One logistic worker’s voice soon made all nearby logistic workers turn around as they all looked right towards the open door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hello. We came here just for a little visit... Ahem, do one of you guys mind showing us around?\" Xiaoyun asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No problem, sir!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A senior-looking worker immediately volunteered, leaving all the other workers looking a little disappointed as they turned back around to their work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Long time no see, Yu Hua. You have grown so much taller since I last saw you.\" Houqin complimented as she led Xiaoyun to the senior worker.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It really has been a while... Miss Houqin, what brought the two of you here to visit? Is there something wrong?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is there something wrong?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Houqin intently looked back into Yu Hua’s eye, a sweat suddenly began to drop from Yu Hua’s forehead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"O-Of course not.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sheer nervousness made it abundantly clear that something was off. However, to Xiaoyun’s surprise, Houqin wasn’t mad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I told you you can’t feed a stray animal. Tell me you at least wrote it in the book and didn’t just count it as transportation lost again.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The original amount is inside this warehouse right now. I already paid it out of my own pocket to cover it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s not about paying it back. It’s a crime to allocate resources outside of the original intended destination.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"B-But...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There is no but. I can’t let this slide again. Rules are rules, you can’t just break them and get away with it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What are you two talking about?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Xiaoyun questioned out loud, the two quickly realized they had been speaking publicly in front of all the workers right at the front entrance still.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ahem, nothing. Everyone, go back to work... Yu Hua, bring me to your office.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After walking for a bit, Yu Hua brings the two of them into a private room as she grabs a chair for them before closing the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Miss Houqin, I’m really sorry.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t say sorry to me... Explain what you did to Commander yourself.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Hua hesitated for a second as she looked over to Xiaoyun, then her face mysteriously blushed a little as she looked back down to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sorry, Commander, there wasn’t any food available in the market at the time, and I just couldn’t resist helping them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Who’s them? The stray animals?\" Xiaoyun questioned, his mind recalling what Houqin had mentioned earlier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes... There are a lot of stray animals. You probably don’t see them often, but they are very much alive in the dark alleys.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If I’m understanding this correctly, you took a soldier’s food away and fed it to stray animals?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Yu Hua continue to stare at the ground in silence, it became clear to Xiaoyun that she had indeed broken a rule.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rule that could lead to disastrous consequences if broken. An illegal act that was beyond breaking ’rules’ as a government worker.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You do know those food supplies are essential for soldiers on the front line, right?\" Xiaoyun coldly questioned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I... I know. But I...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I what?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I... I thought it wasn’t really an urgent need. I was even able to spend my own money to make up for it after the fact.\" Yu Hua argued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So you decided to do it again.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I... I did.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Houqin, you’re the department head. What is the punishment for someone misallocating, no, embezzling critical resources?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ranging from five years in prison to life... If the embezzlement includes a weapon, it could also be a death sentence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within seconds, Yu Hua’s face was on the verge of tearing up, filled with fear, as her legs started trembling in disbelief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"M-Miss Houqin, C-Commander, p-please, I didn’t mean to break the law. I’m really, really sorry for what I have done.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Houqin, you can decide the punishment.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Xiaoyun threw the decision over to her, she only looked back into Yu Hua’s eyes before letting out a small sigh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yu Hua, I already tried to give you a chance. But you stumbled my face over and over again.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please, Miss Houqin. I’m begging you. Please don’t put me in jail. I-I’ll never do it again, please.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Hua collapsed to the floor as she grabbed onto Houqin’s ankle, tears running down her face as she pleaded over and over again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If only I’d known, I wouldn’t have done it. Please, give me another chance. I-I’ll never feed those stray animals ever again.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Houqin didn’t answer back, only looking over to Xiaoyun, who was sitting there watching it unfold with a little chuckle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Miss Houqin! I have elderly parents and young children to take care of. I can’t lose this job, or else my whole family goes hungry.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why didn’t you think of that when you were feeding those animals?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Hua’s sobbing sound finally stopped for a second, but it soon resumed her pleading once again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m sorry. My mind wasn’t in the right. Please, let me fix my mistake. I’ll never do this ever again.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Maybe you should just let this slide. It’s just some stray animal—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Once a rulebreaker, always a rulebreaker. She first reallocated the food meant for soldiers, what’s stopping her from allocating firearms to gangs next?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I-I’ll never do that! Please, Miss Houqin. Please don’t put me in jail!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Yu Hua’s sobbing sound increasingly gets louder and louder, Houqin still remained conflicted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Deep inside her heart, she couldn’t bring her former co-worker and a friend to prison, especially someone whom she had known for years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at the same time, Houqin could feel an invisible pressure. An invisible hand was reminding her of what justice and order meant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can’t let—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Miss Yu Hua, how about this as a punishment. Instead of firing you or throwing you into prison, you get to keep your job.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sudden interruption caught Houqin a little offguard, but she didn’t try to intervene as Yu Hua looked up at Xiaoyun with hope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Y-You serious, commander?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Do I look like a man who’s joking?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"N-No, sir.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There you go... But before you get away scot-free, there are a few conditions that I need you to fulfill.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nervousness began to fill Yu Hua’s face as she silently looked back at Xiaoyun, waiting for him to reveal the condition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I need you to show me where the stray animals are.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"T-That’s it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Hua nervously asked again, her face looking taken aback as if she couldn’t believe the simple request he had made.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I said a few... I might change my mind depending on how I feel when I meet those stray animals.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thank you, sir!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Xiaoyun, why are you just letting her go free like this?\" Houqin questioned as the two of them waited outside the private room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You should be thankful that I gave you a step down to save face.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The straightforward answer caught Houqin a little offguard, but still, she wasn’t about to just accept it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t need you to save face for me. We can’t just let this slide. What if someone sees this and breaks the rule themselves?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"All rules are broken sometimes under extenuating circumstances... Do you want to find a new person who can do a better job than Yu Hua?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, Houqin fell into silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one wanted to go out of the comfort of living in the capital. No one wanted to live in the middle of nowhere, a backwater city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shaoguan was already a dying city before the outbreak, a place that had nothing to offer other than its strategic location.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The same strategic location that made it too important to ignore. It was the gateway to Hunan province and Jiangxi province.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was and is a city that could be the frontline at a moment’s notice, and Yu Hua was the only one willing to take the job.\u003C\u002Fp>",1515,"2026-06-10T06:59:54.885Z",1,"novelbin.me","2f89771bc8147fe11bcee92ac496248750a85c9f360e759e7908fb801572d6a9","zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-512","zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-511",829,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fzombie-apocalypse-creation-cover.jpg"]