Chapter 103 @The Value of the Dormitory Battle Royale...
Fu Qing hadn't expected to return to Fangzhou so soon.
She had assumed that the other party would at least detain her and keep her under strict surveillance for a period of time until they could completely prove that her words were true before allowing her to go out and make her own moves.
However, the superiors chose to have Tian Xuejun station her men near Fangzhou instead of directly controlling Fuqing, clearly to demonstrate a more moderate attitude of cooperation.
Fu Qing accepted their kindness.
The system said internally: "Host, the cameras at the south and east gates, as well as on the perimeter wall, have captured numerous people passing by in the vicinity of the campus."
It paused for a few more seconds: "...They took over some of the houses near the school, and the original residents are now packing their belongings and evacuating in an orderly manner with their help."
The system's cameras are not the same as common surveillance cameras; they are more like countless eyes of the system.
Traditional cameras may miss certain details due to limited pixels or insufficient observation skills of the monitor, but at Fangzhou, the system can observe what is happening as long as the camera can capture the area.
This also ensures that zombies approaching the school can be detected immediately.
As for the organization's patrol teams and sentries, they are mainly for the purpose of being able to identify the type of zombies and deal with them in a timely manner after they are discovered.
Although the system possesses intelligence, it is entirely dependent on its host. All intelligence must be transferred to Fu Qing for judgment and processing. Fu Qing established campus patrol teams, sentry posts, and other positions largely to reduce his own workload.
Fu Qing listened to the system's report and hummed in agreement: "Don't worry about it."
They had chosen the way that would least disturb her, and she had no intention of hurting that trust.
only……
I made arrangements for the next few days before leaving, but I didn't expect to be back just a few hours later.
When Fu Qing stood on the campus again, she felt a moment of bewilderment, which was rare for her.
She opened the system, sent a message, and prepared to gather the teachers together temporarily to convey the situation outside and the decisions made by the higher-ups to everyone.
*
Just after 5:30 p.m., television stations and online platforms across the country suddenly began broadcasting the main news program live. Several representatives and spokespersons from various fields, dressed in formal attire and with solemn expressions, appeared on screen. They first reported on the information regarding the sudden emergence of the virus and informed their superiors that the highest level of emergency response had been activated. Immediately afterwards, heads of various departments took turns appearing to elaborate on the actions to be taken.
The official intervention temporarily brought an end to the chaos that had lasted all afternoon, but then information about the virus’s high lethality and transmissibility reignited a new wave of fear among the public.
The panic subsided somewhat when the medical academician explained that he had begun leading a team to accelerate the development of serum and vaccines, and the military representative also stepped forward to emphasize that emergency reserves would be mobilized to ensure the supply of materials.
...
Before the live broadcast started, Fu Qing turned on the projection devices installed in each classroom and sent a notice to all students and parents in Fangzhou, asking them to go to the nearest classroom to watch.
Some of the classrooms were already occupied, but the residents didn't seem to mind. They simply moved their bedding aside and generously invited everyone inside.
The classrooms were packed to capacity, and people looked up at the screens, their emotions rising and falling like a rollercoaster as the live stream progressed.
Some sentimental people couldn't help but tear up when they saw armored vehicles driving on the streets and soldiers working together to carry supplies.
Fu Qing and the teachers were also watching all of this from the conference room in the administration building.
Xu Mingyue couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief: "This operation was much faster than the last one."
In fact, the teachers knew perfectly well that, considering the special nature of the zombie virus and the existence of the devout believers, even if the authorities acted swiftly this time, the chaos brought about by the virus was still unavoidable.
Whether it can even prevent the extinction of humanity remains an unknown.
But what people need is this glimmer of hope from the authorities.
Faced with massive and irresistible disasters, humanity is both fragile and resilient.
People may despair and break down over trivial matters, but they may also stubbornly cling to that sliver of hope and continue to live.
This live broadcast was like a shot in the arm for people who were fearful and anxious in the early stages of the virus outbreak.
After the official statement, a press conference was held, where experts explained in detail the follow-up response measures, such as closing doors and windows and making preparations.
This live broadcast not only occupied television and online platforms, but was also pushed to the whole country through emergency broadcasts and text messages, so as to make the information reach every remote and isolated corner of the country as much as possible.
Even after the live stream ended, the replay continued to play on screens still accessible on the streets. Meanwhile, experts, scholars, authoritative institutions, and even influential media figures began reassuring the public through their respective channels.
Although such a scenario had occurred in the previous life, due to the lack of timely measures taken in the early stages of the virus, the large number of infected people, the destruction of much infrastructure, the loss of internet and electricity, the cessation of communications, and the collapse of television stations, the voices that were made with such difficulty could not reach many people's ears.
People like Xu Mingyue, Lu Yan, and Bai Tang, who came from the previous life, felt an incredibly distinct and intense difference at this moment.
The butterfly's wings have already begun to flutter, and the wind is sweeping across an even wider expanse of land.
...It makes one pray in their heart that it will blow even more violently, until it sweeps across the entire land of China and the entire blue planet.
*
Meanwhile, in various countries.
Regardless of whether it is day or night, the heavily guarded building in every national capital is brightly lit.
People of different skin colors, genders, and social statuses sat in differently decorated conference rooms, with videos sent from China playing in front of them.
Upon hearing the translator's words, someone couldn't help but contort their expression and slam their fist on the table, exclaiming, "What rebirth? What do you mean humanity is going to perish? This is utterly absurd!"
"What is the Chinese government doing? Do they think we'll believe them just because they sent us a video like this? What exactly is their purpose?!"
Their country is sparsely populated and the virus is not serious at present. There are only a few underreported deaths. Therefore, he did not want to believe this argument at all, and felt that it was even like a vicious curse.
This is an attempt to drag all countries in the world into this mess.
He had no idea that this vicious virus was spreading rapidly in the shadows, and countless buildings that were supposed to be responsible for reporting the virus were already deserted, with only zombies wandering around.
In this situation, how could one possibly obtain accurate data?
But he was not the only one who had the same doubts after receiving the video, especially those from countries with opposing political stances, whose thinking had long since raced toward conspiracy theories.
In a conference room of a mansion, several people were arguing fiercely.
One person shouted, "I strongly suspect that this strange virus that suddenly appeared was released by China! Otherwise, how could they have acted so quickly?"
"According to the latest news, they have closed the land border crossings and issued a warning to the public. With such speed of action, they must know something that we don't, but they haven't told us."
“We cannot trust them. I suggest that we immediately send out intelligence agents and find out their intelligence sources at all costs.”
A small number of people objected, saying, "But as far as I know, the same virus has also appeared in China at the same time. If this is a virus they released themselves, they could have just released it to the capitals of key countries. Why would they want to spread it to the whole world, including all their friendly countries and themselves? This doesn't make sense."
"Put yourself in their shoes and think about it. If you were in their shoes, would you do the same?"
"Otherwise what?" someone interrupted him, their tone sharp. "Otherwise what are they doing?"
"You don't actually think they're being kind, do you?" he scoffed, then his voice sharpened as he accused, "Following their advice, we should immediately halt all socio-economic activities and stop foreign trade. Have you even calculated how much damage that would cause?"
The person who had just expressed opposition was a medical expert, and fell silent upon hearing this.
His chest heaved repeatedly, filled with both anger and helplessness.
What he didn't say was that, due to China's large population and dense population, the casualties are currently even more severe than in their own country.
Recalling the shocking death and infection figures reported by his subordinates on the way here, and looking at the politicians in the room who were still blinded by their own positions, his heart was already ice-cold.
Can they only see the so-called disputes and interests, but not hear the painful cries for help from the masses?
The expert, struggling to contain his anger and anxiety, said with a trembling voice, "Open your eyes and look! This virus has spread throughout the world; it's no exaggeration to call it a catastrophe for all humanity. If we lose 'people,' how can society continue to exist, and how can the economy continue to develop?"
“I strongly suggest that we immediately follow China’s measures, close public places, restrict people from going out, deploy the army to protect hospitals, clear infected people from the streets, and send people to gather homeless people who are not yet infected and wander the streets together for unified resettlement—they are the most vulnerable in the disaster. We should also build emergency shelters and distribute emergency supplies to the people.”
His proposal immediately met with widespread opposition.
“Our people have guns, so they can protect themselves if they encounter danger.”
"Do you mean we should restrict the personal freedom of our citizens?"
Amidst the clamor of opposition, the experts desperately turned their gaze to the elderly man in a suit sitting at the head of the table.
After a long period of contemplation, the latter finally made a decision.
In summary, this means that while maintaining the normal operation of society, the government issues public safety warnings to the public, urging them to protect themselves when going out, and at the same time, it deploys armed forces to take home homeless people on the streets into shelters for centralized isolation.
The experts, their voices hoarse, repeatedly emphasized: "We have currently discovered a very small number of rapidly moving infected individuals. At their speed, even armed ordinary people cannot kill them! Expecting them to protect themselves is unrealistic!"
However, his voice stopped abruptly after the old man waved his hand.
"Professor, you said it yourself, that's only a very small number of cases."
"The situation is still under control for the time being, and there is no need to prematurely terminate economic activities."
"We will continue to observe the situation, and it will not be too late to take further action if the situation worsens. With our country's armed strength, we can easily suppress unarmed infected individuals."
"You are offering advice from a doctor's perspective, but we also have socioeconomic and political considerations. Please understand."
Each word, spoken with absolute certainty, swayed the expert back into his chair in dejection.
In another meeting room, however, the debate had already ended.
The country has had diplomatic relations with China for a long time. Although the top leader had doubts about China's sources of information, after hearing about the measures taken by China, he inexplicably sensed a tense atmosphere of impending storm.
After a quick discussion, a similar policy was soon adopted.
...
Reactions varied across countries. Some dismissed China's suggestions, while others sensed something amiss from China's cautious and tense demeanor and took preventative action. Major powers, relying on their strength, opted for either military suppression to eliminate the zombies or remained calmly observing. Many smaller nations, lacking sufficient power, chose to align themselves with larger powers, seizing the opportunity to clarify their stance. Some even united, attempting to use the situation to shift blame for the virus outbreak onto China.
Not to mention, in places unseen by the public, countless intelligence agents in China have already received orders and quietly begun their operations.
These reactions, when shared on the Chinese internet, naturally sparked another huge controversy.
But seeing the unwavering reaction from above during this period, it seemed that they had anticipated all of this the moment the video was released. So after the netizens finished their angry outbursts, they gradually returned to their concerns about the current situation.
They haven't even resolved their own problems yet, so who has time to meddle in other countries' messy affairs and political games? It's just that people like Grandma Zhang and Zhao Ya, who have relatives and friends abroad, can't help but worry when they see the news.
Zhao Ya received a message from Zhao Liang at 9 p.m. that evening.
Zhao Liang was delighted to say that the local embassy had issued a notice asking all overseas compatriots to stay home as much as possible and not go out, but if they really had difficulties, they could also seek help from the embassy.
After a thorough examination confirms there are no open wounds, the embassy will provide temporary protection and accommodation.
“I heard the news that there may be further evacuations in the future, but we need to be quarantined for at least three weeks before boarding the plane to confirm that we are not infected…” Zhao Liang said, “There are too many Chinese in Country A. If they all gather together, there is no telling when an infected person will emerge. Moreover, everyone still has food at home, so people in our group are saying to wait a while longer, and only ask the embassy for help if we really can’t hold on any longer.”
Zhao Liang was still hiding in the storage room, too afraid to go out, but hope had already appeared on his face.
Zhao Ya and Grandma Zhang were naturally happy to hear this, and their worries were finally put to rest.
...
These various voices also reached the ears of the Chinese upper class.
Not all of them actually supported blindly believing Fu Qing's words, and the decision they ultimately made by overcoming the opponents can be described as a desperate gamble.
But as time ticked by, more and more deaths were reported, and more and more injured people suddenly mutated. Fu Qing's many statements about the incubation period and other things were further confirmed, and even those who had initially opposed him broke out in a cold sweat.
There are too many infected people on the streets, and even if they act quickly enough, the situation is still sliding towards spiraling out of control.
Everyone finally realized that if they made a decision a few hours later, it might really be too late.
All my words can be summed up in one sentence: Thank goodness.
Fortunately, they chose to believe her.
——————————
A female dormitory at a university in City D, China.
Zhao Yun and her roommate wrapped their entire bodies in clothing, huddled together on the same bed close to the wall like two frightened little animals, their faces covered with dried tear stains, sweating profusely but too afraid to move.
The dormitory had a thin wooden door. To prevent zombies from breaking in, the two had already placed all the chairs in the room against the door, and filled their suitcases to use as weights on the chairs to block the door.
There were constant rustling footsteps outside the door, like someone dragging their feet, moving slowly and deliberately.
Zhao Yun knew that it was probably a girl living in the next dormitory room.
She usually wears round, black-rimmed glasses and the same pajamas as Shin-chan from Crayon Shin-chan. She even took the same class as Zhao Yun.
But when Zhao Yun closed her eyes, all she could see in her mind was a girl covered in blood, pinned down by a zombie, crying and reaching out to her for help.
Zhao Yun couldn't help but shudder again, covering her mouth and letting out a sob.
Her roommate, who was snuggling next to her, hugged her even tighter, then took out her phone and typed: Don't cry, it's not your fault.
Neither of them dared to speak, and they could only communicate via their mobile phones.
Back at noon, Zhao Yun and her roommate went to the supermarket to buy a lot of food to participate in the @DormitoryBattle event, and then waited for the live stream to start.
They were the first to return to the dormitory. Some of their other roommates were locals and weren't in a hurry to leave, while others were still on their way. The two of them occupied the dormitory room, so they simply turned on the speakers and ordered a bunch of takeout, planning to watch the live stream while eating.
Unfortunately, there were too many participants, and the two were not selected during the live stream. They could only take photos of the supplies they had prepared and post them on online platforms with the hashtag, hoping to be selected in the later lucky draw.
Around 2 AM, Zhao Yun couldn't hold it in any longer and got up to use the restroom in the hallway. But before she finished, someone started banging on the stall door.
When she emerged disheveled, her roommate grabbed her hand and they ran like mad, saying things like "There are zombies."
Zhao Yun hadn't figured out what was going on yet, thinking she was confused by watching the live stream. Just as she was about to laugh and tease her, the two of them suddenly saw at the entrance of the building that a girl from the next dormitory room screamed and was tackled to the ground by another person.
The man lay on top of her and did something. The girl cried out and kicked him, but soon fell silent.
They were terrified.
Realizing what had happened, he ran back to his dormitory, locked the door, and dared not move again.
The video content of @DormitoryBattle felt like it had suddenly crossed dimensions and was actually happening to me.
It was also thanks to the fact that they were watching a live stream and hadn't detached themselves from the world of the video that Zhao Yun almost immediately recalled the many descriptions of zombies in the video.
For example, their eyesight has deteriorated, and they rely mainly on hearing and keen sense of location to pinpoint the location of their prey.
Although she couldn't believe that zombies had really appeared, Zhao Yun remembered the crazy behavior of the man who attacked the girls, so she quickly called her roommates to move all the dormitory's belongings to the door and block it.
The movement made noise, and the wooden planks slammed against the door. The two dared not delay any longer and blocked the door completely before stopping. They then hid on the bed furthest from the door.
Afraid of making any noise, they didn't even dare to turn on the fan.
The live stream continued, and the two had already lost interest in watching, but just as they were about to turn it off, the mysterious sixth person appeared.
They watched as she dragged a corpse onto the roof of the truck.
As she picked up a "person" that looked exactly like the one they had just encountered, she defined it as a zombie with certainty and then taught the audience how to kill it.
Finally, he even threw out the question, "Did you learn it?"
The two of them, each wearing an earphone, huddled on the bed, listening in stunned silence.
The two of them usually watched every video of the escaped zombie, and would even occasionally marvel at how interesting other people's campus life was. But when it actually happened to them, they realized that they didn't even have the courage to face the zombies!
Whether they want to believe it or not, whether they dare to face it or not, all of this has truly happened.
The zombie outside lingered at their door for a while, then finally left, seemingly because it heard no more noise. The two quickly issued a warning in the building's group chat and repeatedly reminded their roommates in their small group chat, but not long after, they heard another scream coming from the corridor.
They trembled and tried to cover their ears, but they couldn't stop their classmates' terrified cries. They could only stifle their own sobs under the covers.
They were filled with both fear and hatred for their own incompetence.
It turns out the video was all fake. It turns out that people like Tao Tao and his group of five who would stand up to save their classmates are one in a million.
But they are not such brave protagonists.
It wasn't until after 5 p.m. that the two of them, with red eyes and wearing headphones, finished watching the live news broadcast.
The experts in the live broadcast used a lot of technical terms that they didn't understand to describe the suddenly appearing virus, as if using scientific language could reduce people's fear of it.
But Zhao Yun and the others knew that this was the zombie virus.
They even seriously suspected that Tao Tao knew something—the performance of the mysterious sixth man was the best proof of that.
The more the experts explained and the more their stories corroborated Tao Tao's earlier remarks in the video, the more convinced the two became.
However, the expert only described the route of infection and the symptoms of those infected. He did not mention many things that TaoTao mentioned in the video, such as the sense of smell and hearing that zombies possess.
Zhao Yun and her colleague believe this may be because, after all, it is an official broadcast aimed at the whole country, and it is impossible for them to arbitrarily convey unverified information to the public.
But they can.
@DormitoryBattle is already quite popular as a self-media streamer, but it's far from being a household name. Some people may have come across their popular videos, but they've only watched them once or twice. It's impossible for them to be as devoted as Zhao Yun and her partner, watching every single episode.
They had some ideas.
Hesitating, Zhao Yun reopened the pink-themed website where @DormitoryBattle Royale first uploaded the video.
To her disbelief, almost at the same time the official news live broadcast ended, multiple videos from @DormitoryBattleScarlett simultaneously made it to the top of Bilibili's trending topics, even occupying half of the homepage!
Most other platforms were dominated by real-time zombie attacks, but Bilibili, due to its special nature, still mainly features long videos carefully crafted by content creators. Few people upload short videos in real time. Therefore, after the outbreak of the virus, Bilibili's traffic plummeted, and the homepage still featured some song and dance, mashup, or prank videos that had been uploaded before.
Until the moment the live stream ended, @DormitoryBattle Royale's videos replaced these irrelevant videos one after another at an astonishing speed, taking over half of the screen.
The other half, of course, is the news from earlier.
This makes the homepage of Bilibili (a Chinese video-sharing website) look completely fragmented.
Zhao Yun quickly clicked into one of the videos and checked the comments. It showed that over 1 million people were watching simultaneously, and many were discussing how @DormitoryBattleRogue must know something, which is why they rushed back to watch their video after seeing the news. Zhao Yun's attention was drawn to one particular comment.
[With so many videos appearing on the homepage simultaneously, it's unlikely that it's just because viewers are watching them; it's probably an official move by Bilibili.]
[But I don't think that with a disaster raging, the official channels would have the time or inclination to push out apocalyptic-themed videos to run their website. That's absurd. So I suspect that this move by the official channels was actually following orders from above.]
[The fact that a comedy video blogger was specifically featured on the homepage speaks volumes about their quality, right? @DormitoryBattleRival definitely has something special. I wonder if anyone has compiled their "world-building" information; I'm starting to suspect that it might be more than just setting...]
The disaster did not completely affect everyone, especially the viewers of @DormitoryBattle, many of whom did not leave their homes to watch the live stream and ended up staying in the safest place, their homes, by some twist of fate.
So a few people in the comments section teamed up and actually went to compile the settings, promising to share them as soon as they were done.
Their comments were quickly pushed to the top by netizens, receiving hundreds of thousands of likes, with a row of "crying" comments below.
Zhao Yun and her companion finally made up their minds.
It's too slow for others to compile the information; they want to spread the important information they can remember first.
Of course, they couldn't guarantee that the information was completely accurate, but at least when they were desperate, they had another option to try.
Just then, someone in the school's group chat sent out a distress signal, saying that she was trapped in the cafeteria. She had found a place to hide, but it wasn't safe enough, and there was a risk of zombies breaking in at any time.
She said tremblingly, "[Could someone please call security for me? Please, I'm so scared.]"
But soon another person replied, sadly and tactfully saying that he saw the security guard being dragged into the horde of zombies.
The girl didn't say anything more, and everyone in the group was shocked. The large group of thousands of people fell silent for a moment.
Zhao Yun, who usually loves to join in the fun and whose group chats are usually bustling with 999+ messages, was surprised to find that no one spoke up one day. She was initially surprised, but quickly realized that everyone was just afraid to speak up for fear of drowning out other people's SOS messages.
This realization brought tears to her eyes and made her feel even heavier. She exchanged a glance with her roommate, then looked at the cafeteria address the girl had shared, quickly typed a message, and sent it, tagging the girl at the end.
A cloud on the horizon: [@Passing Level 4 but not changing my name, if you're in the second cafeteria, I remember there's a garbage dump behind it? Because there's a lot of food waste there, it's usually very dirty. You could go there to avoid the mess tonight.]
A cloud on the horizon: [As far as I know, zombies mainly rely on their sense of smell and hearing to move around. The smell of garbage can mask your scent. If you continue to hide there, you'll be in big trouble if you're discovered tonight. But just in case, before you act, check if you have any strong-smelling garbage nearby. It's best to throw it out the window and see if the zombies are attracted to it.]
This method has not been verified, and she doesn't dare let girls try it directly.
About ten minutes later, the girl reappeared in the group chat, this time with a more excited tone.
However, Level 4 (without changing the name): [It really worked! We just threw a plate a little further away, and the sound of it shattering attracted the zombies nearby. Now we've moved to another room. Moving slowly, we should be able to reach the garbage dump before dark.]
However, Level 4 won't change my name: [There were two other classmates trapped with me. One of the boys would always be spotted by zombies quickly no matter where he went. Xiaoyun, you mentioned it, and we realized it might be because he sweated too much and smelled. We poured a bowl of leftover snail noodle soup over him, and afterwards, the zombies didn't pay much attention to him anymore.]
However, the fourth-level code won't be changed: [We can't charge our phones, and they're almost out of battery, so we have to use them sparingly. Anyway, thank you so much!!]
Zhao Yun was stunned for a moment.
Ah, the broth of snail rice noodles...
Although rationally I know that I shouldn't be disgusted by dirt in this situation in order to survive, this passage is just too disgusting.
A cloud on the horizon: [That's good. Please be careful.]
The classmates who had been trying their best to remain quiet and not disturb the two of them finally couldn't hold back when the conversation ended. Many people immediately tagged Zhao Yun, asking her how she knew the zombies' weaknesses.
[Is there any further information you can share?]
Please say more!
Zhao Yun and her roommate exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of excitement in each other's eyes.
Even if they don't have the power to stand up and kill zombies, there are still things they can do in this world to help their classmates.
This is... wonderful!!
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