Chapter 57

For dinner, they prepared grilled meat on a hot plate. Sheng Yao’s mother had traded for a generous amount of meat at the supply point the day before. Sheng Yao used his water ability to freeze it solid before storing it in a foam cooler, which was then bundled snugly in thick quilts.

Given the frigid outdoor temperatures and the ice, the meat would keep for a long time.

The pork belly was washed and sliced paper-thin. After lighting the alcohol burner, Tang Teng brushed a thin layer of oil onto the homemade grill.

Tang Teng’s ingenious "grill," resembling a small table, sat atop the dining table, with two alcohol stoves placed side-by-side underneath, providing a continuous supply of heat.

Once the oil was hot, the pork slices were laid out. The pork belly sizzled as it met the hot oil, curling at the edges, its fat gradually turning translucent. The savory aroma quickly filled the room. When the time was right, Tang Teng began to sprinkle on the seasonings.

Just as the three of them were hungrily eyeing the pork belly on the grill, a knock sounded at the door.

Tang Man opened it to find Dong Mingxu standing there, backpack slung over his shoulder, pillow and quilt clutched in his arms, a fawning smile on his face. "Man-jie, I’ve come to seek refuge with you all…"

He caught a whiff of the meaty aroma wafting from inside and took a deep, appreciative breath, his eyes lighting up as he peered into the room. "Man-jie, you’re having dinner! Perfect timing—I’m starving too. You don’t mind an extra pair of chopsticks, do you? Heh heh heh…"

Tang Man shook her head helplessly and stepped aside, gesturing him in. "Come in."

As Dong Mingxu settled down, the first batch of pork belly was perfectly cooked. Without hesitation, he grabbed a crisp green lettuce leaf from the platter, layered a slice of tomato on it, and then added two perfectly browned, slightly crispy slices of pork belly.

After wrapping it up, Dong Mingxu opened his mouth wide and stuffed the entire bundle of lettuce into his mouth. The refreshing crispness of the lettuce, the sweet-sour juice of the tomato, and the savory, charred pork belly mingled in his mouth, releasing a magical burst of flavor that made him close his eyes in blissful satisfaction.

*This* was the life a normal person should lead!

What he’d eaten for breakfast and lunch was utterly dreadful in comparison!

"Why did you come out with your dad today?" Sheng Yao asked curiously, his hands not stopping as he wrapped another pork belly roll for Tang Man and placed it on her plate.

A shadow crossed Dong Mingxu’s face. "After I moved out with Yaoyao and the others, those leeches in the family instigated him to sell the villa. But he didn’t get a single crystal from the sale, so he had no choice but to live in the free tents outside the safe zone…"

"This morning, he found our place and threatened me. He said if I didn’t support him, he’d go shake down my mom for crystals. Her mental state has only just started improving, and I was worried he’d harass her and Yaoyao while I was gone, so I had no choice but to bring him along…"

His face was contorted with indignation as he spoke, clearly harboring deep resentment towards his father.

After hearing his story, Tang Man was silent for a few seconds before patting his shoulder. "Be careful on the road. Don’t let him drag you down… And stay close to our car."

"Does he know you’re here tonight?" Dong Mingxu’s words reminded Sheng Yao of Sheng Zhang’s actions earlier. He didn’t even bother calling him "your dad" anymore, simply referring to "Dong father" as "him."

Dong Mingxu let out a cold laugh. "He’s worried I’ll run off in the middle of the night and leave him behind, so he’s guarding the car."

"The pork belly’s ready. Eat up—I’ll grill the next batch, or it’ll burn," Tang Teng interjected, trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere. "I’m feeling a bit hot. Mingxu, pass me the orange juice behind you. Third Brother, turn the water in my cup into ice…"

The atmosphere significantly improved after that. The four of them chatted as they devoured a platter of pork belly and five large plates of vegetables, ending up so full they simply collapsed onto the sofa.

Their room was a suite, featuring an L-shaped sofa in the living room and two queen-sized beds in the bedroom. Their original plan was for Tang Man and Zhongqiu to share one bed, and Tang Teng and Sheng Yao to squeeze into the other. Now that Dong Mingxu had arrived, he would have to make do on the living room sofa for the night. The door between the living room and bedroom was left open, ensuring they would notice any movement.

That night, numerous Level 2 zombies appeared outside the hotel. However, the command center had already arranged for night watchmen downstairs, and the zombies were dealt with before they could even approach the lobby. Consequently, the hotel occupants slept relatively soundly.

Breakfast the next morning was pan-fried buns again. After eating their fill, the four packed up and left the room.

Ye Min, who had planned to deliver breakfast while trying a different approach, was stunned when she saw Tang Man walk out of the room with three handsome men.

*Why is this woman so lucky?!* Three handsome men surrounded her, smiling warmly, and they had even slept in the same room last night!

The four naturally noticed Ye Min too. Dong Mingxu didn’t recognize her at all, while Tang Man and the other two thoroughly disliked her. However, given that she was currently the only healer in the team, they couldn’t do anything to her. They simply ignored her, walking past without a word.

Lost in her own thoughts, Ye Min let them pass without reacting.

"Ah! What are you doing?!" A woman’s furious low growl suddenly came from behind.

Immediately after, Zhongqiu, who had been following them, darted past them like a gust of wind.

The four turned to look. Today, Ye Min was wearing a light green loose sweater paired with light blue skinny jeans, and brand-new white sneakers—looking very youthful and adorable.

However, those white sneakers were now stained with an unknown yellow liquid. Based on Sheng Yao’s experience, it was likely Zhongqiu’s urine.

Watching Ye Min’s expression twist in disgust, Tang Man subtly curved her lips into a faint smile. She bent down and scooped Zhongqiu into her arms. "I’m so sorry, Miss Ye. Our little furball is in heat right now. I hope you won’t hold it against a cat…"

Though her words sounded apologetic, the thinly veiled sarcasm in her tone was unmistakable.

Zhongqiu, who had already been neutered: "……"

"You—you—!" Ye Min’s finger trembled as she pointed at Tang Man. She wanted to lunge forward and scratch that smug face, but glancing at the three handsome men standing around Tang Man, she instinctively reined in her expression, her eyes welling up with tears, looking as if she was about to burst into sobs.

She looked utterly wronged and bullied.

"Your shoes reek. Aren’t you going to clean them?" Tang Teng suddenly spoke up, covering his nose with one hand, looking as if he was overwhelmed by the smell.

Being scorned by the handsome man she admired, Ye Min’s face instantly flushed crimson with embarrassment. Tears streamed down her face as she covered her mouth and ran away.

Tang Man watched her fleeing figure, her lips curving into a smile, clearly in a good mood. "Let’s head downstairs."

Once downstairs, Tang Man realized the temperature had dropped significantly today. It had snowed last night, blanketing the earth in silver. The outdoor temperature was frigid, and even the patrol teams were huddled in their cars with the heaters blasting.

The moment Dong Mingxu’s father saw him, he scrambled out of the car and rushed over, extending his hand directly towards Dong Mingxu. "Where’s breakfast? And the car keys?"

His hands were blue from the cold, and his face looked even more haggard than when they had set out yesterday. He was even starting to regret coming along.

He had thought that by following his son, he could pocket some crystals under the guise of "safekeeping" when his son collected them. To his dismay, his son used every crystal he collected on the spot, leaving him nothing to take.

All night, the dull sound of gunfire had been incessant. Zombies continuously approached the convoy only to fall dead. Terrified, he hadn’t slept a wink. Then, the temperature dropped further in the middle of the night. With Dong Mingxu having taken the car keys, he couldn’t turn on the air conditioning. He hadn’t brought many clothes, so he had endured the night freezing in the car, wrapped in two thin hotel blankets that offered little warmth.

Dong Mingxu pulled a rock-hard multigrain bun from his backpack and tossed it to his father, then walked directly to the front of the convoy to ask Captain Bai when they would depart.

As for his father’s demand for the car keys, he simply ignored it. Gasoline was too expensive; there was no way he would let his father use it to run the air conditioning for warmth.

Tang Man went to the back of the car and pulled out a long down jacket, putting it on. Zhongqiu struggled to adapt to the sudden cold, burrowing deep into her down jacket, only its fluffy little head and two front paws peeking out, clinging to the zipper as it observed the outside world.

"Aren’t you a fire ability user? Hurry and use your ability to warm yourself up…" Tang Man teased, gently kneading Zhongqiu’s soft paws.

"Meow~" The kitten allowed her to play with its paws, then snuggled its head deeper into her embrace, as if the wind was too chilly.

Today was another full day of battle. Due to the sharp drop in temperature, the zombies’ movements were much stiffer than before, and people’s efficiency in killing them increased significantly.

However, some still collapsed from the cold or exhaustion, only to be torn apart by zombies, leaving behind nothing but a skeleton within moments.

Most of the people participating in this mission knew there was a high chance they wouldn’t make it back. Many had been forced to join out of desperation—how could a few hundred people possibly clear millions of zombies in the eastern district?

This was merely an attempt by the higher-ups, a test to see if humanity could preserve the city’s civilization with their own strength in this disaster, ensuring they wouldn’t have to start from scratch later.

If they failed, the higher-ups would order missiles to destroy the city, turning tens of millions of zombies along with the once-prosperous metropolis into ruins.

The zombies were growing stronger. In the past half-month, news of small safe zones being overrun reached the capital almost daily. The growth of human ability users was too slow; there wasn’t much time left for them to continue growing…

Tang Teng and the others were protected by Tang Man. Although they encountered some dangers, she rescued them at critical moments, ensuring they didn’t suffer any injuries.

But the endless waves of zombies and the continuously falling teammates still filled the rest of the team with despair.