Chapter 12 She's the Ugliest

As dawn gradually swept across the land, wisps of white steam rose from the gray-brown signs of several breakfast shops on the old street, while people took turns eating breakfast at the small square tables in front of their doors.

People rushing to finish their work don't have time to sit down and enjoy breakfast; they buy steamed buns and soy milk and hurry on their way to school, just like school children.

Lin Xi looked down at everything from behind the curtains; this was the last peace before the end of the world.

Lin Xi's phone vibrated, and after looking at the caller ID, she hesitated before answering the call.

The call connected, and a question came from the other end: "Lin Xi from the Finance Department, you've been absent from work without cause for two consecutive days. Do you have a reason for requesting leave?"

Yes, the end of the world is coming.

Lin Xi cleared her throat: "Um... I haven't thought of anything yet."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone. Zhou Ling's voice was filled with pressure as she said, "According to company regulations, two days' wages will be deducted and a fine of 500 yuan will be imposed. Three consecutive days of unexcused absence will result in dismissal. I hope you take your work seriously."

Who the hell cares? Who cares when zombies come?

Lin Xi shrugged inwardly.

She couldn't help but remind you, "Um... there will be a notice today to lay off employees ahead of schedule. I hope you will not hesitate to issue the dismissal notice immediately upon receiving the notice."

Their big factory is notorious for exploiting its employees. Although it's not as extreme as the 996 work schedule, it still doesn't give the overworked employees any time to breathe.

When the zombie outbreak occurred, their company issued an evacuation notice late, and various departments had not yet implemented it in time. By the time they actually started laying off employees, the first floor of the company had already been occupied by zombies.

Although Lin Xi knew that the company was very close to Hongwen Hospital and that the entire B area was a high-risk area, and that even if she escaped the building, it would be difficult to return home safely, there was still a possibility of escape as long as she was not surrounded inside the building.

Zhou Ling, however, remained oblivious and coldly replied, "You did not provide a valid reason for taking leave. You will be fined 500 yuan this month."

The other end of the phone hung up.

Do your best and leave the rest to fate. Lin Xi stopped struggling; preserving her own life was the most important thing.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Xi went out to take care of one last thing—

She used to always dress impeccably before going out, but now she goes out without makeup, carrying important family belongings in her handbag.

Three luxury bags.

As a resident of a listed company, Lin Xi's income is not low. After deducting her living expenses, she can save two-thirds of her income each month. She buys a bag she likes every year, and she has always cherished them after a long period of deliberation.

Lin Xi felt no reluctance when she sent the two bags to a second-hand luxury goods resale store; after all, her life was more important.

Lin Xi exchanged the three bags for over 20,000 yuan. With the remaining balance, she planned to do one last shopping trip to see if there were any supplies she had forgotten or hadn't prepared, such as binoculars, ropes, and sleeping bags, which might be useful.

With a remaining balance of over ten thousand yuan, all of it was spent on snacks: potato chips, preserved plums, spicy strips, oatmeal, yogurt, and sunflower seeds. In that difficult living environment, being able to eat something good was a kind of comfort.

As Lin Xi moved the last batch of supplies home and closed the door, she felt extremely uneasy.

Once the door is closed, who knows when it will be open again.

The good thing is that for her, a homebody, the days that followed were practically an early retirement phase.

Lin Xi took out an induction cooker frying pan, retrieved a piece of pork belly with three parts fat and two parts lean from the refrigerator, and sliced ​​it into evenly thick pieces to make her own barbecue. She was preparing to celebrate her safety in this life with a delicious barbecue.

At 10 a.m., a notice about the company's emergency layoff of employees was posted in a group. At first, everyone thought it was just a temporary work stoppage caused by the company's own reasons. Then, within 10 minutes, various groups were spreading the emergency layoff notices issued by their own companies.

My mom's workplace is also conducting an emergency evacuation of employees, telling everyone to stay home and not go out.

- Could it be a natural disaster?

-What natural disaster? Why should we stay home? There aren't any typhoons coming this season.

There are many armed police officers on the streets of Block B! [Photos] [Photos]

-Oh my god, is there going to be a war?

I prefer the atomic bomb...

Just like in the previous life, everyone was baffled by this sudden dismissal notice, and all sorts of speculations flew around.

In a large group of hundreds of onlookers, Lin Xi, who had never said a word before, sent a message that was completely unexpected: "Zombies are coming, run!" However, the messages were scrolling too fast, and no one noticed her post. Perhaps some people did notice it but thought it was too absurd and did not respond.

Just like Zhou Ling and Gu Lanjuan, no one in peacetime took such rumors seriously. If Lin Xi hadn't experienced several life-or-death situations, she would never have imagined that such an apocalyptic movie would become a reality.

She went to the balcony, drew back the curtains, and looked out. Because it was a weekday, there weren't many people on the street, and those who were out strolling or playing chess were preparing to go home.

Before long, several groups of people gathered together and began to whisper among themselves. Some astute citizens had already rushed to supermarkets to stock up on supplies.

Then, like a drop of water falling into a pot of oil, it immediately exploded—everyone received a unified message from the relevant departments that the zombie outbreak had occurred as scheduled.

A GIF image of a zombie began circulating in a certain group, spreading across various groups.

Lin Xi discovered she had been tagged. Clicking on it, she saw a comment from an unfamiliar netizen: "This guy is really insightful; you actually guessed right."

His tone was sarcastic, as if he didn't care how serious the matter was at all.

In her previous life, when the zombie outbreak first occurred, Lin Xi was busy procuring supplies and didn't have time to check the news. Now, squatting at home, she realized that there are indeed people who love internet traffic like their lives depend on it. Even in such an urgent situation, some people still want to show off.

A fitness blogger was running in Zone B when a zombie with a twisted neck and a hideous face appeared in the shot.

"Little zombies? I'm not afraid at all~ Please send me a cruise ship message, I'll give you a live demonstration of hand-to-hand combat with zombies!" He showed off his muscles in the live stream to attract attention, racing and dashing around with zombies, which was really exciting.

Those in the safe zone watched the live stream and excitedly sent him messages about the cruise ship. However, the next second, a gaping maw appeared on the screen, the image jolted several times, and finally froze on a blood-red surface.

Bullet comments:

-I just watched the cruise ship stream, is the streamer going to go out of business?

Is the streamer still online, or can they say something?

- That's scary, I hope the streamer is safe.

-Hope you are safe

However, when the streamer's face appeared in the video, his proud and confident expression was gone. His once strong arm was covered in blood, revealing the white bone. He rolled his eyes, roared, and finally left the screen.

Lin Xi witnessed firsthand how a person turned into a zombie.

He tilted his head and thought for a moment, then couldn't help but slam his hand on the table—

Why is she so ugly when she turns into a zombie?! She's either bowlegged or pigeon-toed!