doomsday shelter

Chapter 14：lack of food

A week has elapsed, yet neither zombies nor rescuers have appeared. Song Yunian led everyone to open the doors of Villa No. 1 and Villa No. 3. The Hao family moved into Villa No. 3. They also went to the vacation area's small supermarket, restaurants, and other places to gather some remaining foodstuffs.

Song Yunian redistributed all the food according to the number of individuals in the three families, reserving the least for himself. Liang Jiajia was deeply dissatisfied and engaged in a heated argument with Song Yunian upon returning to her room. Song Yunian, feeling justified, patiently comforted Liang Jiajia for quite some time until she calmed down.

In the evening, Song Yunian stood atop the roof, observing the town of W below through a telescope. He noticed a pitch-black expanse with no hint of light. Within tens of kilometers in all directions, there was no artificial source of light except for the villa lights, which became the sole illumination in the area apart from the moonlight. A goal emerged in Song Yunian's mind - to rescue more survivors, unite everyone's strength, and rebuild humanity's abode.

Faced with the dwindling food supplies day by day, despite being extremely frugal, everyone was deeply worried. They gathered at Zhang Jian's house to discuss strategies.

Song Yunian said, "Each family's food won't last for two weeks. Now everyone must think of a solution. What should we do next?"

Zhang Meng suggested, "We can go down the mountain to those supermarkets. There are many supermarkets in W town! We used to go there for shopping!"

Hao Yaowu said, "Both inside and outside the supermarkets are infested with zombies. How can we retrieve food? We might end up as prey if we're not careful!"

Song Yunian remarked, "W town has a population of twenty thousand; there must be plenty of stored food. But in the past few days of observation, there are tens of thousands of zombies roaming the streets. Dr. Zhang, do you have any ideas?"

Zhang Jian shook his head and said, "No way!" This succinct and plain statement plunged everyone into despair, rendering them silent.

Suddenly, Zhang Jian added, "I've seen a zombie movie before. There was a method in it, though I'm not sure if it works in reality!" Everyone seemed to regain a glimmer of hope upon hearing this.

Liang Jiajia urged, "Hurry, tell us!"

Zhang Jian explained, "Zombies distinguish living humans from their kind by sight, hearing, and smell. In the movie, people smeared zombie blood on themselves, tricking the zombies into thinking they were one of them, thus avoiding attack."

Hao Yaowu suggested, "We can give it a try!"

Liang Jiajia remarked, "Smearing it on ourselves? That's disgusting!"

Zhang Meng questioned, "But where do we get zombie blood?"

Hao Yaowu suggested, "We can kill a few isolated zombies downhill, then..."

"No!" Song Yunian interrupted Hao Yaowu, saying, "That's merely a plot from a movie. We cannot risk our lives without confirmation. Let's consider other options!" With that, he walked away.

He strolled into the garden in front of Villa No. 2, where Hao Yaowu's wife Yuan Hui, her parents, and Xu Xiaoli were playing with their three children. The sunlight remained bright, though the sky was no longer azure but somewhat hazy. The temperature was also not as scorching as when they first arrived on the mountain.

Song Yunian watched the three innocent and carefree children with a smile on their faces. They surely didn't grasp the current predicament. He truly wished for their safe and happy upbringing, hoping that his and Liang Jiajia's future children would also lead joyful and healthy lives.

At some point, Liang Jiajia approached Song Yunian, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind. Seeing Song Yunian so fond of children, she whispered softly in his ear, "Husband, let's have a child!"

Upon hearing this, Song Yunian smiled, albeit a bitter one.