Ch 70: Opening a Survival School Before the Zombie Outbreak

After the New Year, winter break seemed to hit the fast-forward button.

While the students were home, Fu Qing carried out another round of campus upgrades and renovations. The farmland enclosed on the western plain expanded significantly. The system had already finished reclaiming the soil in advance, waiting only for spring planting. After that, students in the agriculture class would handle daily maintenance, irrigation, fertilizing, pest control, weeding, pruning, and pollination, all important components of their regular course credits.

In addition, she spent more funds to designate a plot in a corner of the campus, planning to raise piglets, chicks, calves, and the like.

Worth mentioning was the batch of dyed chicks Fu Qing had brought back earlier. After some gradually died off, a surprisingly large number survived. The dye on their feathers slowly faded, revealing their natural colors again.

Not long ago, they had even started laying eggs. The students sent them all to the cafeteria, and that day the egg drop soup was especially generous with eggs.

University students could practically be called one of the most animal-loving groups. Not only did they carefully care for the chicks, even the stray cats that wandered onto campus were fed until their coats shone. Their increasingly plump bodies swayed as they strolled leisurely around the grounds.

Perhaps because the environment was so unusual, these stray cats became the first cats in the world to see “zombies.” They treated the simulated zombies as nothing strange. Some time ago, when Fu Qing passed by the warehouse storing inactive simulated zombies, she saw one chubby orange cat curled comfortably in the arms of a powered-down model, sprawled belly-up and snoring peacefully.

It wasn’t afraid when it saw her. Instead, it walked over familiarly, rubbing its round head affectionately against her palm, purring loudly.

The temptation completely bewitched the principal. The next day, she secretly added several cat beds to the supply list.

In short, with both pasture and farmland prepared, Fangzhou finally achieved food self-sufficiency instead of relying entirely on stored supplies.

As for reinforcing the walls and installing zombie traps outside them, Xu Mingyue suggested assigning the work to students from the infrastructure class, much like digging tunnels.

With the remaining points, Fu Qing purchased large amounts of cold storage and additional warehouse space, installing them underground where it was cool and dry without occupying surface area.

Once the renovations were complete, she finally began to enjoy what little remained of winter break.

The winter sunlight made people pleasantly drowsy. Fu Qing left her office and found a bench with a good view beside the artificial lake. Facing the shimmering water, she took a notebook from her backpack, its edges worn and wrinkled from repeated use.

She had developed the habit of keeping notes starting from the entrance exam. Over time, the notes accumulated until three thick notebooks were completely filled.

Opening one, every page contained several names accompanied by short but incisive evaluations, her first impressions when each person entered her field of view.

Further in, some names appeared again. When someone improved rapidly, she added brief comments noting their potential. Translated on Hololo novels. When someone showed severe weaknesses, she circled their name in red pen so the system could remind them after monthly exams or evaluations to address shortcomings, or at least understand their vulnerabilities to avoid suffering later.

These three notebooks recorded the growth of Fangzhou’s 2,730 students over five full months since the semester began.

Through this process, each student’s performance had also etched itself into her memory.

If, at the start of term, the sheer number of students meant Fu Qing only remembered a few standout individuals like Su Huaijin, then after a semester she now firmly remembered every face and every distinguishing trait at Fangzhou.

She turned to a new page in the notebook, its thickness nearly doubled from constant handling, and wrote the first name across the blank paper.

Song Rushuang.

During the entrance exam, she remained calm despite being framed, killed a zombie, and successfully ranked within the top one hundred. Later, on Yongxin Road Pedestrian Street, she stepped forward during a crisis to protect a mobility-impaired stranger now roommate. In every subsequent assessment, she showed clear improvement. According to system reports, she even ranked in the top five of the grade in the final physical education exam, demonstrating outstanding combat capability.

Fu Qing understood that the key to dealing with zombies lay in whether one could overcome fear and face them directly.

That fear came partly from fear of zombies themselves, and partly from fear of killing.

Song Rushuang had forced herself to take that first step during a life-and-death test. After that, everything naturally became easier.

Besides, she was talented to begin with.

When Fu Qing considered forming an elite squad to hunt the Believers, Song Rushuang was the first person who came to mind.

There were certainly students at Fangzhou better at pure combat. In the final practical combat exam, which focused solely on close-quarters fighting against zombies, Song Rushuang ranked twelfth. But the strategic awareness and sudden flashes of ingenuity she displayed during testing were enough to make up for that gap.

Fu Qing had not forgotten that the outrageous idea of hanging Sun Wei up as bait during the first monthly exam had been Song Rushuang’s.

…As she reviewed earlier notes and reflected on each assessment, her hand never stopped moving, writing down name after name across the page.

Song Rushuang had no idea she had already secured a place in the principal’s mental shortlist. She spent the entire winter break happily replaying Fu Qing’s words, “Happy New Year,” in her mind.

Then, on the day school reopened, she urged her parents to leave early and arrived at Fangzhou’s gates before eight in the morning, dragging her suitcase behind her.

Before she even entered campus, she ran into someone she knew.

Song Rushuang stared in surprise at Sun Wei. She never would have imagined that someone else from Dorm 1111 would suddenly feel the same impulse to return to school early.

After all, Sun Wei had not received a “Happy New Year” from the principal.

Swallowing her urge to brag, Song Rushuang noticed two people standing beside her.

A woman carefully lifted Sun Wei’s suitcase out of a car trunk. After exchanging a few words, Sun Wei waved goodbye to them and began pulling her luggage toward the school gate.

Then she spotted Song Rushuang, who had apparently been standing there sneakily observing for who knew how long.

Song Rushuang had already recognized the pair. They were the mother and son who had been with Sun Wei before the Yongxin Road Pedestrian Street incident. The woman wore her long hair neatly pinned up and black-framed glasses, her appearance gentle and scholarly, though her expression carried an unshakable fatigue. The boy was strikingly beautiful, with long curled eyelashes framing dark eyes that held a captivating intensity, though he was rather short, not even reaching Sun Wei’s chest.

Back then, Song Rushuang had not known Sun Wei would become her future roommate. Seeing the three together and equally good-looking, she had assumed they were family.

Later, chatting in the dorm, she learned Sun Wei did not have a younger brother.

She had forgotten to ask about their relationship until now, making this the perfect chance to satisfy her curiosity.

“Oh, them…” Sun Wei scratched her head. “Remember when I broke my leg before school started? That was when I saved that kid.”

The two dragged their luggage toward the dormitory as Sun Wei quickly explained.

The “kid,” named Jing Yun, was actually thirteen and in his first year of middle school. Translated on Hololo novels. It had been summer vacation. Sun Wei had just received her Fangzhou admission notice and was running home excitedly when she turned a corner and collided with Jing Yun, who was also running.

Because of the size difference, Sun Wei was fine, but Jing Yun staggered backward. Behind him happened to be a flight of stairs.

“I grabbed him, and we both rolled down together,” Sun Wei admitted honestly. “Honestly, I was partly at fault too. But Auntie Jing kept saying I saved her son. She thanked me several times and even treated me to dinner. Today she saw me dragging my suitcase and insisted on driving me to school.”

Song Rushuang finally understood the story behind the “Sun Wei broke her leg saving someone” incident the principal had casually mentioned before.

“Auntie Jing is really kind,” Sun Wei added softly. “She’s a single mother raising her son alone. It’s not easy.”

Lowering her voice, she continued, “I told her in the car that the economy’s been unstable lately and society feels unsettled. I suggested she change the locks and prepare some protective supplies.”

When the apocalypse arrived, those supplies might at least give the mother and son a chance to defend themselves if someone with bad intentions targeted them.

A single mother with a child was clearly a high-risk group in the apocalypse.

…Especially given how eye-catching their appearances were.

Song Rushuang nodded. During winter break, she had also taken advantage of family visits to discuss similar precautions with relatives who lived in isolated areas or poorly secured neighborhoods.

Her parents, Song Jianguo and Xu Mingyu, had been baffled. Ever since starting university, their daughter’s personality seemed to have changed completely.

The girl who once hated visiting relatives now actively started conversations, even dragging them to reconnect with distant family members they had not seen in years. It was as if she had become a different person.

“I don’t know how much they’ll actually listen,” Sun Wei said quietly, still worried, “but I’d feel guilty if I didn’t at least warn them.”

Song Rushuang agreed wholeheartedly.

Every night after midnight, their student wristbands displayed the apocalypse countdown. Even during normal use, the timer ticked down in a corner of the interface. As the numbers shrank, everyone’s nerves grew increasingly tense.

After unpacking and grabbing lunch at the cafeteria, Zhang Han and Shen Qingqing returned to campus later that afternoon with the rest of the students.

At three o’clock, while Song Rushuang was chatting in the dorm, her wristband suddenly vibrated.

Shen Qingqing raised her wrist at nearly the same moment. The two glanced down, and their expressions changed instantly.

Sun Wei and Zhang Han looked confused.

“What are you looking at?”

“Did something pop up?”

Zhang Han even opened her wristband interface, but nothing appeared.

Song Rushuang stared at the notification, unsure how to explain. Shen Qingqing recovered first. Translated on Hololo novels. Though she sounded calm, a trace of excitement leaked through her voice.

“It’s from the principal.”

“She wants us to come to her office. It’s… about forming an elite class.”

By the end, Shen Qingqing could no longer suppress the slight upward curl of her lips.

“It looks like the elite class will be taught personally by the principal.”

…

Half a minute later.

Shen Qingqing bolted out the door clutching her head.

Behind her came Zhang Han’s devastated howl:

“One of you got a New Year greeting from the principal, and the other gets into the elite class. Why do I get nothing?! I’m protesting!!”

“Shen Qingqing, you’re definitely showing off, aren’t you? I’m mad! Wait, Xiao Shuang, where are you going?!”

Song Rushuang, who had been slowly edging toward the door, froze. Then, in a flash, under Zhang Han’s betrayed and despairing gaze, she decisively turned and hurried after Shen Qingqing.

Neither of them explained. There was no point. At that moment, nothing anyone said would calm Zhang Han down.

Behind them, Zhang Han’s loud wailing mixed with Sun Wei’s opportunistic encouragement:

“This is outrageous! How could they betray their sisters like this? You have to get revenge!”

“That’s right!” Zhang Han sniffled. “For a whole week I won’t save them seats in the cafeteria! I won’t grab limited fried chicken legs or braised pork or spicy boiled pork slices for them! And I won’t do their daily game tasks either!”

Sun Wei: “…”

A question mark slowly appeared in her mind.

Under Sun Wei’s complicated gaze, Zhang Han wiped her tears and loudly declared:

“This time, I! Am! Really! Angry!”

Far down the hall, Shen Qingqing and Song Rushuang slowed their pace and both let out relieved breaths.

“I knew it,” Shen Qingqing muttered. “The harshest revenge she could come up with is probably posting on the confession wall.”

The two patted their chests in relief and headed off to find the principal.

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