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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter One: Wounds
The cold moon hung high in the sky, and the cicadas chirped noisily.
Chao Yifan, with his head wrapped in thick bandages, sat on the ground, poking at the campfire with a stick. Some of the branches were not particularly dry and crackled as they caught fire, sending up sparks.
Ming Junwei, An Zheng, and two small children sat around the fire, silently watching the flickering flames.
The night in the forest was damp, and everyone was dressed in thin clothing, rubbing their hands together for warmth. From the darkness came the faint sound of footsteps as Jiang He returned with two plastic bags.
"Is it over?" An Zheng took the plastic bags, distributing several bottles of water to everyone before rummaging through a few medicine boxes by the firelight.
"No, but it's not as bad as during the day," Jiang He said as he sat down next to Chao Yifan, pulling out two thin blankets from another bag and handing them to the children.
An Zheng searched for a long time but couldn't find the necessary medication. He turned to Jiang He and asked, "Is this all there is?"
"Yeah, most of the supplies are still in the ambulance," Jiang He sighed helplessly. "I should go back for a bit; this isn't a solution."
An Zheng remained silent and leaned closer to Ming Junwei, feeling his forehead. "How do you feel?"
"I'm okay; my arm just still won't move," Ming Junwei replied, his face pale. His shoulder was also wrapped in several layers of bandages, with signs of blood seeping through.
"At least you don't have a fever. Given our limited conditions, we can only do simple treatments. We need antibiotics; otherwise, your wound will get infected," An Zheng said, looking somewhat haggard. He took out a box of medicine he had previously discarded and pulled out a few pills to share with Ming Junwei and Chao Yifan. "This is just regular anti-inflammatory medication; make do with it for now."
Chao Yifan accepted the pills and swallowed them without a word.
"We'll leave it at this for tonight; we'll think of something when dawn breaks," An Zheng said, covering Ming Junwei with another blanket. "Yi Fan, you should get some sleep too."
Chao Yifan shook his head and got up to sit against a tree a few meters away.
An Zheng glanced at Jiang He, who let out a sigh.
“How are you?” An Zheng asked.
“I’m fine,” Jiang He replied with a self-deprecating smile, touching the scab on his forehead.
“You should go check on Yi Fan. He… sigh.” An Zheng hesitated, then added, “I don’t even know how Song Yao is doing.”
Jiang He nodded and walked over to Chao Yifan. Chao Yifan had his head resting on his knees, trembling, and Jiang He could hear him sobbing.
Unsure of what to say, Jiang He sat down beside Chao Yifan and looked up at the night sky through the gaps in the treetops. It was a dull gray, with no stars visible.
Chao Yifan cried quietly, his fists clenched tightly, nails digging deep into his flesh.
Leaning against the tree, Jiang He let out a deep breath and pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. The last cigarette broke in half. He lit the end with the filter and handed it to Chao Yifan while taking a puff from the other half, spitting out the tobacco strands.
Chao Yifan looked up and wiped his eyes, choking out, “Do you know what she said in the end?”
Jiang He shook his head.
“She said ‘pain’,” Chao Yifan took a deep drag from the cigarette and started coughing. “Just one word, then she stopped moving. No matter how I called her, she wouldn’t respond.”
Jiang He felt a pang in his nose, involuntarily thinking of another person.
“Why did we have to come in? Wouldn’t it have been better to leave directly? So what if we couldn’t drive? Can’t we walk? Why did we have to go into the woods? Why?” Chao Yifan turned to look at Jiang He, questioning him incessantly.
Jiang He remained silent; he didn’t know why either. It seemed there was no reason. Was it because of that dog? Because of Ming Junwei’s suggestion? No, it was because Jiang He thought that since no one opposed it, they just went in.
“What did you find? Zhou Huai? Zombies? And what about Song Yao? Tell me the truth—has Song Yao gone missing or is he dead?”
Faced with Chao Yifan’s relentless questioning, Jiang He could only remain silent.
He knew that Little Gold's death had a tremendous impact on Chao Yifan. These questions were merely a way for Chao Yifan to vent his frustrations, but Jiang He understood that Chao Yifan's inquiries were not unfounded; however, he found himself at a loss for words. An Zheng had declared himself the team leader in the Service Area, and everyone began to treat him as such. What to do next and where to go became mere suggestions from the group, while the decision-making power was left to him. Yet, Jiang He remained indifferent and even complained to Ming Junwei about it.
Chao Yifan did not press further; he simply sighed deeply and pulled out a folded piece of paper from his pocket.
Jiang He glanced over, noticing several lines written on the paper. At the top was Chao Yifan's name, marked with a bright red handprint; below it was Jinhua's name, written in elegant script, accompanied by a simple smiley face. In front of Chao Yifan's name was the title 'Boss,' while Jinhua's name was preceded by 'Finance Minister.' Jiang He also saw his own name alongside Song Yao's, both labeled as 'Salesperson.'
"What is this?" Jiang He asked hoarsely.
Chao Yifan managed a bitter smile as he replied, "You and Song Yao went out looking for things that night while we waited for you at the bar... We agreed that once we found a safe place, I would open another bar. She would handle the finances, and you and Song Yao would go out to run business and attract clients... Heh, she even said she would bake us cakes."
As he spoke, Chao Yifan laughed, but soon tears began to stream down his face.
Unable to bear it any longer, Jiang He closed his eyes and covered his face with his hands, that glaring bloodstain reappearing in his mind.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Jiang He considered himself lucky to be alive. He had been knocked unconscious under the car by Zhou Huai's kicks. If Ming Junwei hadn't discovered him in time, he would have soon become some zombie's undigestible feces, eventually expelled from its rear end.
Jinhua's shot hit Zhou Huai; it was the young girl's first time firing a gun. However, Zhou Huai was no novice; as he was shot in the abdomen, he retaliated with a gunshot that struck Jinhua squarely in the chest.
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