Ch 74: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Early the next morning, Qu Weiwei and Tang Wenjie went to sell vegetables as usual, while Song Kaiji and Shen Qing, under Mother Tang’s guidance, arrived at the refugee camp outside the base.

Compared to when they had brought Tang Wenjie and Mother Tang back to the base last time, the refugee camp had expanded significantly. Previously, people had hidden their tents along the southern wall and in corners, but now they had set them up right in front of the base’s main gate, stretching hundreds of meters outward.

A dense cluster of tents had formed, growing larger, more chaotic, and harder to manage.

“I asked around yesterday. Apparently, an official team went to the cities and counties below to carry out rescues and brought back a lot of people. Many of these tents were even set up with the help of the patrol team. But the entrance fee for the base has gone up again,” Mother Tang held up two fingers. “It’s already up to twenty crystal cores per person! Who can afford to get in? They’re all stuck outside.”

Shen Qing found it strange. “If they’re not allowed in, why keep rescuing more people?” Going to such great lengths to save them, only to leave them piled up at the gate?

Mother Tang lowered her voice. “The officials are split into factions. The ones going out to rescue people are the military, but the ones charging the entrance fee belong to the administration. The higher-ups probably couldn’t reach an agreement.” She glanced at the refugee camp. “But if you ask me, even setting up a tent at the base gate is still better than being out there!”

She had experienced both ways of living. Though being a refugee at the base entrance was tough, at least there was no constant fear of zombies appearing at any moment. The authorities regularly cleared out zombies around the base, making it relatively safer. The real concern was keeping an eye on the people around them and guarding their belongings.

Shen Qing only half understood, but Song Kaiji had heard whispers of such things before. The apocalypse had been raging for almost a year now, and even though Hongcheng Base was an official establishment, over time, people inevitably developed their own interests. Even if it wasn’t for personal gain, ideological conflicts were bound to arise.

The military believed that human lives should be saved whenever possible, while the administration thought the military was too focused on rescuing people without considering management. How could Red City Base accommodate so many? Even if there was space, without an entrance fee, where would the funding for base construction come from?

If people could enter for free, without any cost, who would appreciate it? And if they didn’t value it, how could they be expected to obey regulations? The world was no longer a peaceful era where human rights were a priority.

Those who couldn’t afford the entrance fee were, in a way, people without means of value. If they entered the base, how would they survive? How would they obtain food? Managing them would become significantly more difficult.

Neither side could convince the other, and neither wanted to compromise. With no higher authority to appeal to—communications were down, and no one could report the issue—the stalemate persisted, leading to the situation at hand.

As they navigated through the maze of tents, twisting and turning, they searched for Li Liang and Li Li’s tent. Since the three of them were dressed cleanly, they stood out among the refugees and attracted some trouble along the way. Some tried to steal from them, some attempted to rob them outright, and others pleaded to be taken into the base. Song Kaiji shielded Shen Qing behind him and coldly raised his gun, driving away several groups of troublemakers.

Meanwhile, Mother Tang struggled to pry off a small child clinging to her pant leg.

Song Kaiji walked a few steps ahead, then seemed to come to his senses, turned back, grabbed the child by the collar, and tossed them back into their parents’ arms. Ignoring the furious curses of the parents, he took Shen Qing’s hand in one of his own and pulled Mother Tang along with the other, trudging forward with difficulty.

“I shouldn’t have come to trouble you,” Shen Qing murmured. He had originally planned to return home last night after obtaining the book—Miao Shi was still waiting for him to celebrate the New Year. But seeing Song Kaiji looking so absent-minded and distracted, Shen Qing had stayed behind on a whim and even accompanied him to find people today, only to seemingly cause more trouble for him.

“How is this trouble? You’re willing to accompany me—I couldn’t be happier,” Song Kaiji said absentmindedly while scanning the tents, the words slipping out before he even thought about them. Shen Qing lowered his head, his sleeve still held by Song Kaiji, and felt a small warmth in his heart—Song Kaiji was finally back to his old self.

When they first met, Song Kaiji had taken him around Hongcheng Base like this, enthusiastically introducing every corner, always going out of his way to make him happy.

Shen Qing knew, of course, that back then, Song Kaiji was just trying to do business with him. But he had still enjoyed it. Yet, ever since their team had officially formed, Song Kaiji had changed—he had become quieter, avoided talking to Shen Qing much, and even seemed to be keeping his distance. Shen Qing found it odd but also felt an unspoken sense of disappointment.

Thankfully, he was back to normal now! This was the way Shen Qing felt most comfortable interacting with Song Kaiji.

They walked a little further before Mother Tang pointed the way. From a distance, Song Kaiji spotted Li Liang in the middle of a fight.

Apparently, someone had cut open their tent last night, leaving them freezing in the bitter cold. Li Liang, not one to tolerate such things, had started cursing loudly. But since he hadn’t found the culprit, he ended up disturbing the nearby residents.

Why should strangers put up with his outburst? At first, they simply shouted back, but soon, the argument escalated into a physical fight.

Li Li was on the verge of panic—why couldn’t her brother learn his lesson? If he weren’t her only family, she would have run away long ago, afraid of being dragged into his mess. But even if she wanted to, she didn’t have the courage to survive alone.

Just as she was fretting, she spotted that middle-aged woman from yesterday approaching with two men. One of them—who else could it be but Song Kaiji?

Song Kaiji was clean and well-dressed, without a single stain on him. Unlike her, who had been sleeping in the wild and in a tent for over half a month, covered in dust and grime.

He was clearly doing well in Red City Base.

A mix of jealousy and regret swelled in Li Li’s heart. If only she had known the apocalypse was coming, why had she bothered making things difficult for Song Kaiji over her second uncle’s inheritance? Her father had thought he was being smart—since her second uncle had no children of his own, rather than letting the assets go to an outsider, why not keep them within the Li family?

But once the apocalypse hit, what mattered more? A house that was now worthless? Money that couldn’t be used anymore?

And yet, here Song Kaiji was, thriving in the apocalypse.

Last night, she had been too prideful to ask outright. But now that she saw him in person, her tears flowed freely without any effort, as if all the suffering she had endured was because of him.

“Brother! Cousin, you’re finally here! We’re being bullied to death!”

The man fighting with Li Liang hesitated when he heard this, eyeing the gun in Song Kaiji’s hand warily. He spat forcefully onto the ground and stepped back.

If Song Kaiji had arrived any later, Li Liang’s teeth would have been knocked out. But now, having been pulled away from the fight, he still refused to back down and shouted, “Damn it, if you’ve got guts, don’t run!”

Song Kaiji coldly pushed away Li Li, who was trying to pull him back. “Enough. Pack up your things. Where’s Uncle? Do you know where my parents are?”

Li Li’s hand froze for a moment before she burst into tears. “My dad… my dad is gone, and my mom too!”

This time, her grief was genuine. And it was all Li Liang’s fault! Li Li finally had the courage to glare at him fiercely. She had been resenting Li Liang for a long time.

But with the rest of their family gone, leaving only the two of them, survival was much harder for a girl alone. She had no choice but to endure. Now that she had run into Song Kaiji, the prospect of a safer life was right in front of her, and she couldn’t help but let something slip.

They had lived in Zizhou, a prefecture-level city under Hongcheng. The city wasn’t particularly crowded, mostly inhabited by locals with few tourists, so at the start of the apocalypse, Zizhou had been in better shape than Red City.

Communication hadn’t been completely cut off until nearly a month after the apocalypse began. During that time, they had already gotten in touch with Song Kaiji’s parents and even moved in with them—Song Kaiji’s mother’s workplace had good benefits, often distributing rice and oil during holidays, so they had stored plenty of food, whereas Li Li’s family had already run out.

When Li Li’s father heard that Song Kaiji’s parents had contacted him and planned to reunite at Red City Base, he strongly opposed it. He didn’t care whether Song Kaiji’s mother left—one less mouth to feed—but he wanted Song Kaiji’s stepfather to stay and go scavenging for supplies with him and his brother. Because of this, Song Kaiji’s parents were delayed even after communication was cut—they hadn’t wanted to stay but had been held back by Li Li’s father.

Later, when a convoy from another city heading to Red City Base arrived and swept through the area, taking nearly all the remaining supplies, Li Li’s father had no choice but to agree to leave for the base.

They traveled with the convoy, and at first, no one minded—Song Kaiji’s family had a car and had even stored up some fuel in preparation for the journey to Red City Base.

But then Li Liang caused trouble.

He had always had a bad temper—calling it explosive wouldn’t be an exaggeration. In the convoy, there was a water ability user who, out of goodwill, would sometimes provide small cups of drinking water for free. However, anything beyond that required a trade of food. Li Liang, thinking himself clever, tried to take advantage by repeatedly asking for small amounts of water. The ability user quickly caught on and refused, leading to an argument.

After a few incidents, the water ability user grew frustrated and stopped providing their family with water altogether, even refusing trades. This infuriated Li Liang further, and his insults became nastier, calling the person heartless and devoid of humanity.

Initially, the ability user ignored him—after all, they were just traveling together. If things went south, they could simply go their separate ways. But Li Liang couldn’t let it go. He kept provoking them, shouting insults near their vehicle, and even nearly attacked the water user.

Though the water user endured it, their boyfriend did not. During one particularly dangerous moment, while their group was being chased by zombies, he used his ability to puncture the tires of Song Kaiji’s family’s car, leaving it stranded.

Unfortunately, at that exact moment, Li Li and Li Liang weren’t in the car—they had hopped onto another vehicle to trade for supplies.

Li Li could only watch as the car carrying her parents, along with Song Kaiji’s parents, got left behind, ultimately swallowed by the zombie horde.

Hatred burned deep within her. How could someone be so cruel? Just because of an argument, they condemned an entire family to death? If only they had just killed Li Liang and left her parents alive!

She desperately wanted to tell Song Kaiji. She wanted him to know that the water ability user and her boyfriend were inside Red City Base, that they should be killed for revenge.

But she didn’t dare. If Song Kaiji confronted their former convoy members, he would find out that his parents had been in that car too. Would he ever let them go after that? Li Li could only silently shed tears, swallowing her hatred. “…Because my brother offended someone, they sabotaged our car. My parents were inside…”

She deliberately omitted any mention of Song Kaiji’s parents.

Song Kaiji was stunned for a long time. He hadn’t expected his uncle to be like this… After taking a deep breath to compose himself, he asked, “What about my parents? Have you seen them?”

Li Li hesitated for a moment before repeating what she and Li Liang had agreed upon. “I saw them. At first, they were with us, but later, they said they had an agreement with you to meet at Red City Base, so they left early, afraid you’d be waiting for too long. Back then, my parents were still alive. What, they haven’t arrived yet?”

But Shen Qing, ever observant, had caught that brief pause in her response—and the way her eyes darted nervously.

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