Chapter 34
Tang Man surveyed the kitchen ingredients, deciding on crepes for breakfast.
She whisked flour with finely chopped chives, eggs, salt, pepper, and water to form a thin batter. After heating a flat pan and lightly oiling it, she poured in a ladleful of batter for each crepe. The thin crepes cooked in mere seconds, and soon a tall stack accumulated on the plate.
Next, she rinsed the shredded potatoes to remove excess starch, drained them thoroughly, and stir-fried them into a tangy and spicy dish.
Separately, she stir-fried shredded cured meat, carrots, and lettuce stems, quickly yielding a vibrant mix of red and green.
With the crepes and fillings prepared, Tang Man also poured a cup of hot milk for everyone.
Before she could even call them, Sheng Yao and Tang Teng descended the stairs. Their faces were etched with fatigue, dark circles under their eyes—they had been too anxious about the situation outside to sleep.
“What’s it like out there?” Sheng Yao called out before reaching the bottom step.
“Same as ever. At this rate, we just need to clear them out every half hour. Once these crows are gone, we should have a good haul of crystal cores…” Tang Man showed no concern for the zombie crows outside their protective barrier.
“Come eat breakfast. Sheng Yao, sit here—this sweet milk is for you…” She intercepted the two as they made to head outside.
Sheng’s mother also rose from the sofa, a hand on her lower back.
“Mom, are you alright? Do you want me to give you a massage later?” Sheng Yao rushed to her side, his voice laced with worry.
“I’m fine. I’ve just never pulled an all-nighter like this before. Getting older, my body isn’t as adaptable. I’ll be fine after some rest.” She gently pushed his hand away and slowly made her way to the dining table.
Sheng Yao followed closely, hovering protectively, fearing she might stumble.
Tang Man frowned slightly. “Auntie, after you eat, please go back to your room and rest properly. Nothing is more important than your health!”
“I’m really fine…” She didn’t know how long this situation would last. They were already short-handed; if she rested, could Sheng Yao manage alone?
“Mom, just listen to Jie! If something happens to you now, we can’t even get you to a hospital. Please don’t make me worry, okay?” Sheng Yao helped his mother into a chair, then pulled up the one beside her. Donning disposable gloves, he prepared a crepe filled with the sour and spicy shredded potatoes for her.
Their last meal had been dinner around 6 PM the previous day, nearly thirteen hours ago. After a night of intense stress, Sheng’s mother felt a sudden pang of hunger as she finally relaxed.
She took a bite of the crepe. The golden wrapper, dotted with specks of green, was visually appealing and delightfully chewy. The flavors of wheat, chives, and egg blended perfectly, making it incredibly delicious.
Considering it was breakfast and everyone was on an empty stomach, Tang Man had used very little chili in the potatoes, allowing the sourness of aged vinegar to dominate, making the crispy shredded potatoes wonderfully appetizing.
After finishing one, Sheng’s mother’s appetite was fully awakened, and she couldn’t resist making another for herself.
The other three, being meat-lovers, focused on the shredded cured meat dish. The savory richness of the cured meat had fully infused the sweet carrots and crisp lettuce stems. Paired with the chive-and-egg crepes, the combination offered a rich and complex flavor profile. They devoured the wraps in just a few bites, quickly clearing most of the dish from the plate.
“Jie, is there more milk? I’m a bit thirsty this morning,” Sheng Yao mumbled, his mouth full of crepe.
“In the cabinet above the oven. There’s both powdered and boxed milk—help yourself.” Tang Man replied without looking up, then added, “If that’s too much trouble, you can just drink water. The water in the cold pitcher was boiled this morning.”
Sheng Yao hesitated, then grabbed a fresh cup, poured himself some warm water, and stirred in two spoonfuls of sugar.
Tang Man thought: Just as I expected!
By the third day, the zombie crows had largely disappeared, but the sun didn’t make its appearance until the morning of the fourth day. Thus, they remained confined indoors for a full four days.
For the first three days, apart from Tang Man, the other three barely slept. On the fourth day, with no more zombie crows, they slept soundly, not even bothering to eat.
Zhongqiu was practically climbing the walls with boredom. Its main activity was perching on the windowsill, gazing at the rain, hoping it would stop so it could go “hunting” with its human instead of being cooped up indoors and forced to practice “roasting.”
With the continuous rain, Tang Man, noticing Zhongqiu’s constant demands for cuddles, decided to give it a task.
Since the rain prevented sun-drying the cured meat, Tang Man had Zhongqiu use its small fireball ability to air-dry the meat on the second and third-floor balconies. If it burned even a single piece, it would lose a day’s worth of snacks and dried fish. Motivated by its treats, Zhongqiu’s control over its ability improved remarkably fast.
Once the rain stopped, their first order of business was to dig for crystal cores. The pile of zombie crow corpses outside the wall was nearly half a meter high; when Tang Teng opened the courtyard gate, he was almost buried by the avalanche of bodies.
Extracting crystal cores wasn’t a difficult task, so all four of them participated.
Once they mastered the technique, they were extracting a core with almost every cut, finishing the job of clearing all the crow corpses in just over an hour.
After dealing with the corpses, Tang Man went to the backyard, found a small brick-moving cart, and used a shovel to scoop all the crow bodies into it.
“Xiao Teng, you and Sheng Yao will take these crow corpses to the plaza outside the community and burn them. If they don’t catch fire, use some gasoline…” Tang Man instructed them. “Remember to cover yourselves thoroughly and protect yourselves. Be careful, there might still be some stragglers.”
They nodded in agreement.
With the crow corpses dealt with, Tang Man carried Zhongqiu and took a stroll around the community. Many windows with wide gaps in their security bars had been shattered by the zombie crows.
The villa area had gained a few more zombies, which Tang Man promptly dispatched whenever she encountered them.
Passing by Sheng Zhang’s villa, she paused, taking a few extra glances inside. The floor-to-ceiling windows were completely shattered, and though the courtyard gate was still closed, there was no sign of zombie activity within. The Sheng Zhang family was likely hiding somewhere inside the villa.
Tang Man hesitated but ultimately decided not to enter. It was better not to provoke troublesome people like Sheng Zhang; getting entangled with them would only lead to problems.
Tang Man’s expression grew heavy as she observed the widespread devastation in the community. If even their well-protected home had suffered such damage, how much worse must it be for the defenseless ordinary people living in tents outside the safe zone?
She wondered how many more lives this sudden disaster would claim.
“Meow~” Zhongqiu climbed onto her shoulders with its front paws, rubbing its head against her cheek, seemingly trying to comfort her.
“Zhongqiu, are you hungry? Come on, let’s go home. I’ll get you a fish today…” Tang Man shook off her melancholic thoughts, kissed Zhongqiu’s little head, and then petted it thoroughly from head to tail.
“Mrow~” The little furball went limp in her arms, exposing its belly, completely at her mercy.
By the time they arrived home, Tang Teng and Sheng Yao had already cleaned the courtyard walls. Zhongqiu immediately leaped from Tang Man’s arms and dashed straight to the backyard.
When Tang Man reached the backyard, she saw it dipping its tail into the pond, wiggling it to “fish,” its round eyes fixed intently on the water without a blink.
Amused by its cuteness, she smiled, deciding not to disturb it. Instead, she walked towards the egg-laying boxes.
Sure enough, the number of eggs collected that morning was only half of what it usually was.
A few chickens and ducks had likely been frightened by the zombie crows and hadn’t laid eggs for days. Tang Man decided to observe them for a while; if they continued not laying, she would eat them. After all, she was getting tired of eating cured meat every day.
“Red Comb, make sure your wives lay eggs. If they don’t start laying soon, I’ll eat them, and you’ll become a widower…” Tang Man playfully threatened the drowsy, water-powered rooster in the coop.
Red Comb: “…”
Zhongqiu soon had a bite—a palm-sized fish actually tried to nibble its tail. However, Zhongqiu seemed unimpressed by the fish’s size, withdrew its tail, and moved to another spot to continue fishing.
Tang Man shook her head, letting it continue its antics with the fish in the pond, and took the collected chicken and duck eggs to the kitchen.
Sheng’s mother had returned to her room to rest after digging for crystal cores. The past few days of constant anxiety and sleeplessness had left her utterly exhausted, and new fine lines had appeared around her eyes.
The kitchen was well-stocked with fresh vegetables, but cured meat was the only meat available, and Tang Man was already tired of it.
Indeed, it’s easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality. In her previous life, at this point, she would have cried with gratitude just to have a hot meal every day. Now, with every meal featuring vegetables, meat, and rice, she was actually complaining that the meat wasn’t fresh!
Tang Man inwardly admonished herself to be content with what she had and decided to prioritize the breeding of chickens and ducks.
Tang Man planned to visit the safe zone after Sheng Yao and the others finished burning the zombie crow corpses. She wondered if she could find an egg incubator there. The chickens and ducks at home laid eggs quite frequently, and letting them brood naturally was too inefficient.
She found a box of flower and fruit tea that Sheng’s mother had bought earlier. After brewing a cup, she leaned against the kitchen counter, leisurely sipping her tea.
The fragrance of flowers and fruit diffused into the air. The tea brewed to a beautiful red color, with colorful petals and dried fruit floating in the transparent glass, making it look very appealing.
Tang Man blew on the tea to cool it before taking a small sip. It was wonderfully tart and sweet. She thought it would be even better with a little something to nibble on.