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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Ninety-Six: Southern Pond Bandits
Nantang Township, located between Gaoxian Town and Yicheng County, is close to Xiangfen, with the Daiyun Expressway running through it, making transportation very convenient.
In the past, this place was not called Nantang but South North. The two small villages of South North were connected by a dirt road, separated only by the highway. Later, due to rural renovation planning, permanent structures were prohibited within 50 meters of the highway, and North Village happened to be right next to it.
During the day, adults worked in their fields while some children played unsupervised, wandering from their homes to the highway. There had been several incidents where children were killed by passing vehicles. The villagers complained to the Town Government, called reporters, blocked the hospital entrance with banners, and detained the drivers responsible. After many such disturbances, the local government had no choice but to pay out large sums in compensation to quell the unrest.
To prevent similar incidents from occurring again, highway authorities sent personnel to erect protective nets along the highway beside South North and installed cameras in hopes of eliminating pedestrians crossing onto the highway. For a time, everyone behaved themselves and refrained from taking risks. However, this calm did not last long; one morning, a loud crash echoed down the road.
The villagers of South Township lived farther from the highway and rarely got involved in such matters, but North Village was right by the roadside.
Many men and women wrapped in thin clothing emerged from their homes, bleary-eyed as they looked at apples scattered across the road and a large truck overturned on the side.
The truck driver was fortunate to be alive; he struggled out of the cab and watched as tens of thousands of dollars' worth of fruit lay smashed on the ground. Unable to contain his grief, he broke down in tears. Blood mixed with his tears as it dripped down his face, instantly blurring a visage marked by years of hardship.
The driver called the police and set up warning signals at a distance while bending down to pick up bruised apples and placing them back into broken cardboard boxes. These fruits were meant for supply to hotels and restaurants in the city, delivered once a month by truck.
After watching for a while, someone in the crowd shouted, "The fruit has fallen!" In an instant, everyone snapped out of their daze and rushed over the protective net toward the road.
Seeing this, the driver felt a surge of joy; he stood there bowing in gratitude to these villagers who had come over hill and dale to help him. He thought that at least people from the fields had kind hearts. However, his moment of appreciation lasted only a few seconds before his spirits plummeted.
These villagers were not there to help him collect fruit; instead, they surged forward to grab fallen apples and stuff them into their clothes before quickly returning home. When they came out again, they all carried woven bags.
The driver sat dumbfounded among the piles of apples, speechless.
After this incident, North Village found a new way to generate income. Over the years, they had collected fruits, vegetables, cooking oil, laundry detergent, and seafood from the road. Initially, villagers took what they found for themselves but later realized that it was more profitable to sell them at marked prices; if drivers wanted their goods back, they had to buy them at market value.
As a result, the quality of life for North Village residents skyrocketed while those from South Township fell behind significantly.
North Village developed unique skills for prosperity—living lavishly and raising prices at will—while South Township residents contracted Fish Pond operations, working hard from dawn till dusk.
The Fish Pond business thrived; South Township villagers turned their fortunes around and became known as a prominent aquaculture village, renaming themselves Nantang Township. Not wanting to be outdone, North Village secretly dismantled cameras and cut through protective nets; when there were no overturned vehicles around, they sent children and elderly people out to beg.
Time passed quickly until one night when a long-distance coach filled with passengers suddenly overturned on the road, causing temporary traffic congestion. The people of North Village rejoiced; men and women of all ages grabbed their woven bags and eagerly awaited an opportunity to profit once the vehicle collision ended.
The recent car accident caused a chain reaction involving over ten vehicles, with a fuel tanker overturning and cracking open, sliding along the ground for dozens of meters. Sparks ignited the leaking diesel, and flames erupted on the highway, leading to a series of explosions involving multiple cars.
Vehicles stuck in traffic came to a halt, unable to move forward or backward. Passengers got out and stood by the roadside, horrified as they witnessed the tragic scene unfold.
Villagers from North Village were nearby and were affected by the explosions and flames, injuring several people. Enraged, they rushed past the barricades demanding answers and began arguing with the drivers on the road.
No one noticed that from the overturned Coach, several bloodied individuals began to rise. It was an inevitable slaughter, a horrific night on the highway.
Terrified drivers fled back behind the barricades alongside the Survivors from North Village, pursued relentlessly by those who had come back from the dead. They surged through a gap in the barbed wire cut open by the villagers. Due to the cameras being dismantled, relevant authorities were unable to receive information in time.
Two hours later, a group of Military Police arrived at the scene. Except for a few Survivors who had crossed into South Township, all others had become food for the Zombies.
The Military Police unleashed their firepower, clearing out Zombies on the road and in North Village. The flames and explosions attracted more Living Dead. This contingent of Military Police suffered heavy casualties, with only a few managing to escape.
Eight or so drivers hiding behind the barricades were paralyzed with fear as they watched Zombies clawing at the barbed wire, trembling uncontrollably.
Zeng Yadong was one of the Survivors of this chain collision and Zombie massacre. The young woman from Guangdong had been traveling during the holiday and was fortunate to survive. After a brief moment of shock and terror, she led the remaining few into Nantang Township.
At that time, Nantang Township was shrouded in darkness. Villagers stared at the distant flames and then at the disheveled young people before them, all utterly stunned.
Zeng Yadong and her companions were taken to Xiangfen Hospital by villagers. It seemed something was amiss in Xiangfen as well; people hurried back and forth on the streets, and air raid sirens blared continuously from every corner as if bombers would fly overhead any moment.
The hospital was overcrowded; outside lay numerous Wire Beds filled with countless injured individuals moaning in agony.
Zeng Yadong and her friends looked at those with horrifying injuries and then at their own minor scrapes. They felt it would be inappropriate to take up space meant for those severely hurt, so they quietly left Xiangfen.
Had they insisted on staying at the hospital that night, perhaps Zeng Yadong wouldn't be sitting in front of Su Lan recounting what happened that night.
"The next day when we returned, it looked like the entire city had been slaughtered—there were corpses everywhere along with Living Dead!"
Zeng Yadong never tired of telling this part of her story; Su Lan had already heard it at least three times.
Su Lan showed no signs of impatience; resting her chin on her hand, she listened intently. Although she knew that next in Zeng Yadong's tale would be how she and a few others hid in a county cinema for over a week before encountering their savior among refugees while searching for food.
"At that time, you had no idea! The mayor and the others were simply amazing!" Zeng Yadong exclaimed excitedly, pointing at the man standing on the ping pong table outside. "With a knife in his left hand and a gun in his right, one slash equals one head, one shot equals one corpse. Behind him lay hundreds of bodies!"
"Doesn't he need to change bullets?" a young man scoffed, dismissing Zeng Yadong's story. He looked to be around twenty-five or twenty-six, fair-skinned with a mohawk hairstyle, wearing a tight t-shirt that showcased his muscular physique—clearly a fitness enthusiast.
"You don't know anything," Zeng Yadong shot him a glare. "The mayor was with his brothers, slaughtering an entire street and saving over thirty people!"
The mohawk guy smiled at her without getting angry. "If he’s as impressive as you say, why has he been stuck here all month? Our food is almost gone."
"Mr. Gu Yan, have you ever gone hungry for even one meal?" Zeng Yadong stood up irritably, grabbing the Miao Knife from the table. "Aso, let’s go get some sun and stop wasting time talking to this wimp."
Su Lan chuckled lightly, adjusted her skirt, and walked out hand in hand with Zeng Yadong.
The muscular man Gu Yan watched the two women leave with a grin, then lay back on the bed by the window. Remembering something Su Lan had told him, he got up to close the door and drew the curtains shut before turning on the display screen beside him. On the wall behind it hung a military-green voltmeter, its needle swaying unsteadily before settling in the red zone.
Gu Yan sighed and opened the back door to step outside. The back door led to a small courtyard surrounded by a red brick wall, where a transformer box stood in the middle. Next to the door was a stack of firewood with insulated shoes and gloves on top. Gu Yan put them on and walked over.
The Man on the Ping Pong Table finished speaking, surrounded by dozens of men and women who were all excitedly applauding.
When he saw the two women coming out from inside, a warm smile spread across his handsome face. He stepped down from the table and greeted everyone with handshakes before waving goodbye to the crowd and standing in front of the two women with a cheerful demeanor.
"It's rare to see you out today. How does it feel? Are you getting used to living here?" he asked with a gentle smile and nod.
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