Chapter 40: It's Done
1361 Words
The benefit of eternal night was that, as long as there was no light, one could be almost certain that there was no one around to see what they were doing—unless someone possessed the same night vision abilities as Zhou Lin.
With the help of a map and a military-grade compass, Zhou Lin and Huang Mengying finally pinpointed an area. If nothing unexpected happened, digging down should lead them to the warehouse storing the dehydrated vegetables.
“Let’s get started. Time’s limited, so we’ll split up the work.”
They had already discussed their plan on the way here. Zhou Lin would dig into the warehouse, while Huang Mengying would prepare a temporary shelter—essentially a snow hut. Normally, a warehouse would hold dozens to hundreds of tons of dehydrated vegetables. Even if they had a dozen or twenty people, it would be impossible to move everything in one go.
Moreover, regardless of whether the snow would continue or not, as long as the snow hadn’t melted completely, each time they came to move the dehydrated vegetables, they would have to dig and fill the hole to avoid exposing the location of the warehouse. A relatively stable resting place would not only be used for rest but could also serve as a storage point for the supplies.
After taking two shovels out of the sled, Zhou Lin and Huang Mengying split up. Although the intensity of their work was very different, when Zhou Lin reached the warehouse roof, Huang Mengying had only managed to dig a shallow hole, barely deep enough to cover her calves.
“Move faster,” Zhou Lin called out in a neutral tone. In the apocalypse, there was no room for tenderness—only those who were well-fed and warm could think of anything else. Those struggling to survive would only do whatever it took to live, and anyone who held them back would be ruthlessly abandoned.
Huang Mengying felt a little embarrassed, but the snow had already frozen hard, making it difficult to dig. Zhou Lin, on the other hand, needed no rest and quickly uncovered the air vent on the roof of the warehouse.
“I’ll go down and check.”
After informing her, Zhou Lin knocked on the glass and slipped into the pitch-black warehouse. Huang Mengying waited nervously outside.
Inside the warehouse, the darkness was almost absolute. Zhou Lin had to use a flashlight to see anything.
“Lucky us,” Zhou Lin muttered to himself.
He saw neatly stacked, sealed boxes of dehydrated vegetables, all marked with island characters and images of vegetables. It seemed they were on the right track.
Each box of dehydrated vegetables weighed thirty kilograms, and based on the standard of 100 grams per meal, one box would last a person for about half a year. The warehouse likely contained thousands of boxes.
Unfortunately, since he was only here with Huang Mengying, Zhou Lin couldn’t take everything. He took about 2,000 boxes, which only emptied a small part of the warehouse, so it wouldn’t raise suspicion.
“Come in. It’s safe.”
Seeing the stacks of dehydrated vegetables, Huang Mengying’s eyes welled up with tears, and she took a long time to calm down before asking Zhou Lin how they were going to take the supplies back.
“Go up and help with the loading. We’ll take ten boxes for now and divide them later,” Zhou Lin said.
After a moment of thought, Huang Mengying couldn’t think of a better way. While it might be easier to avoid detection on the road, once they were back in the community, it would be another matter. If they ran into property management staff—she certainly didn’t trust them anymore—things could get complicated.
Even ten boxes of dehydrated vegetables were difficult for their improvised sled to carry. Huang Mengying had to sit on top of the boxes, watching Zhou Lin push the sled forward with snowboards strapped to his feet. Her mood was complex as she observed the scene.
During their breaks, Huang Mengying was overly attentive to Zhou Lin, offering him food and water, and practically spoon-feeding him.
“Boss Huang, no need to be so polite,” Zhou Lin said, feeling uncomfortable.
“Don’t call me ‘Boss Huang.’ If you don’t mind, just call me ‘Huang Jie,’ or even my name,” she replied.
Zhou Lin understood a bit more now and quickly said, “Alright, let’s go. Otherwise, we won’t make it back tonight.”
“Okay, but I owe you one. Come by my place tomorrow, and I’ll cook for you,” Huang Mengying offered.
“No need. It’s not hard,” Zhou Lin replied as he continued dragging the sled, picking up speed. Huang Mengying didn’t speak again—it was too cold.
As they passed a building, suddenly, several beams of light converged on Zhou Lin and the sled!
“D*mn!”
Zhou Lin immediately dropped the snow barrier and drew his gun!
A moment later, seven or eight figures rushed out of the building, each wielding various improvised weapons—some had baseball bats, others held kitchen knives, and even some had cleavers.
“Don’t move!”
“Leave the stuff behind!”
“We don’t want to kill anyone, just don’t resist!”
...
Perhaps because the apocalypse had just begun, these would-be robbers still had some boundaries. But it could also be a tactic—a warning, in case Zhou Lin resisted. How could they guarantee they wouldn’t kill him if he fought back?
Huang Mengying was so nervous she couldn’t speak. She had never faced anything like this and had no idea what to do.
Seeing that the robbers didn’t have firearms, Zhou Lin holstered his gun and walked directly toward the man in the front holding a raised cleaver.
He squinted and threw a punch!
His fist, as large as a sandbag, exploded through the air and landed directly in the man’s chest with a deafening c***k!
There was no hesitation. Even in peacetime, Zhou Lin would have done the same!
Thick winter coats and thermal wear couldn’t completely cushion the force of the blow. Through the heavy layers of clothing, the sound of bones breaking could be heard. The man with the cleaver opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but his eyes immediately bulged, and his life drained away as he collapsed to the ground.
Seeing this, the five other robbers immediately froze in place!
They were ordinary people. When they saw Zhou Lin’s “one-punch kill” in person, who could muster the courage to continue attacking?
Human nature is inherently inclined to avoid danger.
“Gulp~”
Someone swallowed nervously and then began to back away.
Without any further words or negotiations, the robbers turned and fled!
“Is... is he dead?” Huang Mengying whispered nervously, opening her flashlight to check the man’s frozen face.
“Let’s go.”
Zhou Lin shook his head as he strapped on his snowboards again.
If it weren’t for Huang Mengying being a burden, he would have chased the robbers into the building.
It wasn’t to kill anyone—he wasn’t that cold-blooded or cruel—but he wanted to understand how they had discovered him and Huang Mengying.
Until that question was resolved, the next time they encountered this group, they might resort to using long-range weapons.
Guns, bows, or even slingshots—it was hard to say, but it was certain they would.
Even though Zhou Lin had just given them a warning, when it came to starving to death or taking a desperate gamble, anyone would choose the latter.
Unless, of course, they didn’t let anyone see them.
To achieve that, Zhou Lin first needed to figure out how they had found them.
Dragging the sled back toward the community, Huang Mengying jumped off the sled when they neared the gate, ready to open it.
“Don’t turn on the light. Let me do it,” Zhou Lin suddenly said.
“Why? Is it still not safe once we’re back in the community?”
- Writer
