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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 023, Second Video
The video was short, only 3 minutes and 29 seconds long. The first 9 seconds were completely black, but the sound of gunfire could be heard.
Then the camera moved, revealing the scene outside the Gas Station's lobby. The angle of the shot was from below, looking up. The Owner appeared to be either crouching or lying down, and the image shook violently.
In the video, four Land Rovers were parked by the fuel pump, and three men in suits stood in front of them, wearing sunglasses. They were too far away to see clearly. On either side of the Suit Men were many individuals dressed in matching uniforms that resembled Work Uniforms but were different from typical ones. These people were all holding guns, seemingly in a standoff with another group, which remained out of view due to the camera angle. It felt as if one could hear the unspoken thoughts of the three men; just then, the camera shifted slightly, revealing several soldiers in military uniforms appearing on screen.
Jiang He pressed the pause button, and the two people beside him remained silent.
No one spoke. Jiang He pressed play again. The two opposing groups were talking, but they were too far apart to hear anything clearly. Judging by how much the image shook, it seemed that the Owner was trembling continuously, and there was a suppressed sound of crying; the young man who had been sitting across from her had not reappeared. The image froze for about ten seconds before it seemed that the Suit Men had compromised and lowered their weapons. The soldiers said something else before turning to leave. At that moment, an astonishing scene unfolded: one of the men in suits made a hand gesture, and both sides opened fire simultaneously, shooting down the soldiers. Gasps erupted from those around them; they must have been previous customers. The shooters did not kill the soldiers but only hit their legs before rushing in to knock out a few soldiers with their gun stocks and dragging them out of view. One of the Suit Men pointed toward the camera; the shooters turned around, and chaos ensued. The camera shifted dramatically as it appeared that the Owner also got up to flee. At this moment, she said something directed at the camera: "They killed our troops." After she spoke those words, the video stopped.
Two clips filled with content yet utterly perplexing.
Jiang He closed his laptop and unplugged the digital camera while the other two remained silent, lost in thought.
"The soldiers we just saw were also killed; the passengers in the kitchen were killed too... Who are those people?" Jiang He felt a chill run through him. Even if what was shown in the video was Zombies devouring live humans, he wouldn't feel fear—perhaps just disgust. But witnessing soldiers facing off against a group of strangers and then being shot while innocent people were also murdered... that feeling was indescribable.
Beside him, Ming Junwei lit another cigarette, his face showing signs of fatigue.
Jiang He looked around; no one answered him. Chao Yifan's expression appeared somewhat dazed as if he hadn't fully processed what he had just seen.
"Let's go back; they must be waiting anxiously," Ming Junwei said as he stood up and brushed off some ash from his clothes.
"Do you know something more?" Jiang He asked, noticing his strange expression and feeling a twinge of suspicion.
"Sort of; I don't want to talk about it today. Let's get some sleep and discuss it tomorrow. I'll tell you everything I know."
"You..."
"What other questions do you have?"
"I find it a bit strange; normally... someone like you who harbors many secrets would keep quiet about them. Why are you willing to share with us?"
"I'm tired of holding it in; I don't want to bottle it up anymore."
Chao Yifan did not participate in the conversation between the two and hurriedly got out of the car to pack up the things.
On the way back, Jiang He couldn't help but ask, "Why were you so quiet just now?"
"I didn't know what to say," Chao Yifan replied, returning to his usual self, shrugging his shoulders. "To be honest, I'm not really interested in secrets."
"That's not like you. Aren't you usually quite nosy?" Jiang He found it somewhat amusing. Normally, if someone whispered something about Chao Yifan, he would eavesdrop, so why was he suddenly so indifferent?
Ming Junwei walked ahead quickly, ignoring their conversation. Chao Yifan glanced at Ming Junwei's back and said, "I don't know why, but ever since you mentioned his identity earlier, I feel like we've gotten entangled with something, and it just feels uncomfortable."
Jiang He pondered over this statement for a moment and vaguely felt that there was some truth to it. A sense of inexplicable annoyance surged within him, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was bothering him.
The three of them returned to the supermarket, where Song Yao and a few other women were sitting together in the back. They had brought blankets and candles from the car, and at that moment, a corner of the supermarket was illuminated by flickering candlelight. The three women and two children were wrapped in blankets around the candles.
"What happened? Why did you take so long?" Song Yao asked with concern as she noticed that the three looked somewhat unnatural.
"Nothing much, just a few Zombies," Jiang He said as he confidently sat down next to Song Yao, shamelessly wrapping himself in the blanket as well.
"You have a blanket; what are you doing?" Song Yao complained about Jiang He but shifted her body closer to let him in under the blanket.
"Two people together keep warm," Jiang He grinned mischievously.
Chao Yifan and Ming Junwei each grabbed a blanket—one leaned against Jinhua while the other settled into a corner by the wall.
On the first night after escaping the city, the atmosphere felt somewhat strange. The six adults and two children sat quietly without speaking; some were deep in thought while others simply felt too lazy to talk. The weak candlelight reflected on everyone's faces, casting different hues.
An Zheng managed to lull both children to sleep gently, laying them down carefully with a blanket underneath them and covering them with another layer.
Song Yao and Jiang He had found many sleeping bags at an outdoor store in the mall but couldn't carry them all due to their weight. So they ended up discarding the sleeping bags. Now recalling this made Jiang He feel a bit regretful; he realized he had taken things for granted—he had carried heavy tools like shovels and axes but discarded something essential for sleeping.
"Are you all okay?"
An Zheng finally couldn't hold back any longer and asked about their odd behavior.
"Why do you look so heavy when you left with such a smile? Do you want to talk about it?"
Jiang He didn't look up. He knew several people were watching him, but he didn't know how to start. Chao Yifan and Jinhua leaned against the wall, silent. Little Gold was puzzled too, but since no one else was speaking, she absolutely wouldn't ask. Chao Yifan had no interest in those matters, so there was nothing for her to say.
The awkward silence lasted for a few minutes until Jiang He finally relented and raised his head. He glanced at Ming Junwei, who was curled up in the corner, hidden in the shadows, breathing evenly; it looked like he was asleep.
Jiang He cursed inwardly: You’ve made me restless while you’re snoring away.
"Da Hai, you should really talk to them. You're the team leader now; it's important to share information promptly," Chao Yifan said as she adjusted her position comfortably and added seriously, "Just because I'm not interested doesn't mean everyone else isn't. You and Ming the Great Hero can keep it to yourselves, but you're making everyone else feel down."
Song Yao placed a hand on Jiang He's shoulder. Surprisingly, she didn't scold him but spoke softly, "What happened? You seem like a different person in just a short while."
Jiang He sighed helplessly and said, "It's not that I'm trying to be deep; I really don't know where to start... Alright, I'll tell you everything I know. If you have questions, you can ask Ming the Great Hero tomorrow, okay?"
An Zheng tied her hair back with a rubber band and smiled lightly, "Are you afraid we won't be able to sleep if you tell us?"
"Maybe a little. It's all quite chaotic," Jiang He replied as he took out a cigarette, glanced at the two sleeping children, then put the cigarette back in the box.
"It's fine; if you don't want to talk about it, then don't. Let's just rest for today; we haven't slept much these past few days," Song Yao said, looking at Jiang He's troubled expression with some sympathy.
Chao Yifan watched Jiang He's hesitance...
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