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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Five: Hidden Dangers
Bai Yudong had not been in a good mood these past few days.
First, the reconnaissance team accompanying An Zheng lost contact while heading to Station Two. Then, the mobile diesel generator in the camp stopped working. Just as Bai Yudong was about to lead a team to fetch some diesel, an unexpected heavy rainstorm hit.
The generator did not significantly affect the daily life of the unit, but all the electrical equipment in the building relied on its support. The reconnaissance team had been gone for three days and should have been nearing Station Two by now, yet at this critical moment, the generator had failed. Bai Yudong distinctly remembered that the generator could last a few more days. After his conversation with An Zheng, he had asked the communications soldier, who told him that as long as they didn’t start up the equipment group for a few days, it would hold out for a week without any issues.
Though frustrated, Bai Yudong was relieved it wasn’t a mechanical failure, so he didn’t dwell on it too much. He planned to go to Jiang He and the others at the service area where they had found a handgun to get some fuel and also retrieve their fallen comrades' bodies. However, thunder rolled through the night, and by morning, the entire camp had turned into a muddy swamp due to the torrential rain.
For safety reasons, Bai Yudong had no choice but to suppress his impatience and wait for the rain to stop. Five days passed, and it seemed that Heaven had no intention of ending this deluge.
The soldiers had endured harsher conditions before; a heavy rainstorm was not enough to defeat them. However, in order to fend off zombies, the entire station was built against the mountainside, with pits dug around the concrete walls to create defensive structures. Now, after five consecutive days of heavy rain, those pits had completely collapsed; trenches turned into channels filled with water that flooded into the observation station located in low-lying areas. As a result, not only was it impossible to traverse through the woods in such downpour, but even eating had become a problem for everyone.
The makeshift cafeteria’s outdoor cooking area was completely washed away, and dead wood piled at the shooting range was rejuvenated by the rainwater—some even sprouted tender shoots. Jiang He and his group’s food was mostly taken by Zhou Huai, leaving barely enough for anyone else. Moreover, Bai Yudong firmly refused any food from Jiang He’s group and insisted on eating only the cucumbers they had grown themselves for several days. But with no sign of the rain letting up and not enough cucumbers to feed all the soldiers, they were in dire straits.
Electricity and food were not Bai Yudong's biggest concerns; after all, they were soldiers and knew how to adapt to harsh environmental conditions. However, adapting did not mean they could resist nature. In recent days, large amounts of sand and mud began sliding down from the mountain right next to their camp, prompting Bai Yudong to reassess the severity of their situation.
Due to severe nationwide power shortages, the government had previously implemented favorable policies encouraging private investment in building hydropower stations—especially in remote mountainous areas and rural regions. Consequently, there were numerous small hydropower stations across the country; countless wind turbine factories began taking root on mountainsides. The enormous profits attracted businesses and individuals alike; within just a few years, small power stations sprang up like mushrooms after rain while more and more green hills were stripped bare, leaving only loess behind.
Behind their camp stood a large thermal power station, meaning that most of the vegetation on that mountain had been destroyed. Without vegetation to hold it together during continuous heavy rains, the likelihood of flash floods and mudslides occurring was far greater than any risks associated with unprotected encounters with zombies. Once a flash flood or mudslide occurred, there would be no need for imagination—the consequences were clear.
The team heading to Station Two included An Zheng and ten others who took away most of their elite members. Only six combat personnel remained in camp along with five culinary team soldiers and five medical team nurses; Jiang He’s group consisted mostly of injured members or children. Forget about disaster relief; it would be fortunate if they didn’t add to the chaos.
Bai Yudong considered leaving but wondered if this heavy rain would draw out all the zombies. If they encountered zombies on their way out, it would be better to drown than face them.
He wasn’t alone in his worries; aside from two children, everyone else looked anxiously at the pouring rain.
Today marked the sixth day of torrential rain, and their food supplies were nearly depleted. If it continued raining today, tomorrow they would have no choice but to resort to eating those two black-skinned pigs raw.
Jiang He rushed into Bai Yudong's coffin room, drenched by the pouring rain, and Xiaoyun was there too.
Seeing Jiang He looking like a muddy monkey, Xiaoyun chuckled and said, "Why can't the weather just behave? Why are you running around?"
Jiang He took a towel to wipe his face and grinned, "Aren't you here too? This isn't the girls' dormitory."
Xiaoyun shot him a glare and turned to leave for the next room.
"What's up?" Bai Yudong pushed the cigarettes on the table, leaning back in his chair with a weary expression.
"Big deal," Jiang He replied without hesitation, lighting a cigarette and crossing his legs. "Are we having pork sashimi tomorrow?"
Bai Yudong sighed, wiping his glasses. "Do you still have an appetite?"
"I do; starving is a serious matter." Jiang He stopped joking and said seriously, "We can't just wait around without checking the weather forecast. What if there’s a flood?"
Bai Yudong exhaled two puffs of smoke through his nostrils. "I've been considering that too, but... sigh."
"Are you worried about Zombie or Dr. An?" Jiang He raised an eyebrow and asked softly.
"Both," Bai Yudong admitted without avoidance. "I'm not too worried about Dr. An; the team accompanying him consists of elite members from the unit, so there shouldn't be much of a problem."
"Then what are we waiting for if we're not evacuating?" Jiang He rubbed his hands together. "Your choice of observation station isn't great; they started losing soil on the mountain yesterday, thankfully no one got buried. The rain hasn't let up at all these past couple of days, and we're out of supplies. It’s really dangerous if we don’t leave soon."
"What are your plans?" Bai Yudong fixed his gaze on him and said slowly, "You didn't come here just to ask for my opinion, did you? Share your thoughts."
Jiang He nodded. "Ming the Great Hero said there's a Power Station on the mountain; we should head up there."
"Climbing the mountain in the rain? Are you all crazy?" Bai Yudong chuckled. "If you want to commit suicide, I can lend you a gun; there's no need to go through all this trouble."
"We're not going up from here," Jiang He explained. "On the day we entered the forest, we split up to search. Wei Ge found a spot to the west. They say there are plenty of trees and grass on that slope, and the terrain is relatively gentle, so it shouldn't be a problem."
Bai Yudong nodded thoughtfully and suddenly asked an unrelated question, "What does he do?"
"Huh?" Jiang He was taken aback. "He's a white-collar worker, a senior white-collar worker."
"Oh." Bai Yudong seemed slightly surprised but didn't say anything more, merely smoking in silence.
Jiang He wasn't sure what he was thinking either. After sitting for a while and feeling awkward, he decided to take his leave.
"I'll think about it and give you an answer tomorrow," Bai Yudong replied just before Jiang He stepped out.
Once Jiang He left, Bai Yudong called out, "Xiao Yun, come in."
The young nurse pushed the door open and immediately started coughing from the thick smoke filling the room.
"How much longer can our food and water last?" Bai Yudong asked.
Xiao Yun put her hands in her pockets and began to calculate.
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