Chapter 119 The convoy slowed down
Lying on the ground wasn't a solution, especially since countless zombies had lain there before. Song Rushuang couldn't help but feel a stench of decay emanating from the ground.
"Where is the entrance to the basement?" she asked decisively.
“We have to go around the neighborhood. There’s a staircase leading down to the side of the noodle shop entrance…” an elderly man who was still fairly strong answered, then added timidly, “But we tried to push the door open, and there was a strange thing outside that bit Old Zhang to death.”
The two men's brows twitched; they had actually already encountered zombies head-on.
It sounds like the old man who encountered the zombie was bitten to death. It was both unfortunate and fortunate. If he had survived and been brought back by the others for treatment, the whole room would probably be infected by now.
"Okay, you guys wait here," Sun Wei said.
As the two were about to leave, a worried reminder came from the small window behind them: "Girls, please be very careful on your way! Should we call some more help?"
Whether it was because the elderly were hard of hearing or too hungry to check the situation outside, they seemed unaware of what the three of them had just done outside.
They called Zhang Han, and together they drove the car out of the residential area and parked it on the street next to the original noodle shop.
There are still a few zombies wandering the streets. Unfortunately, it's not a closed space like a residential area, so it won't be easy to clean them up completely.
After a brief discussion, the three decided to leave Zhang Han in the car to stand by. If any zombies headed towards the entrance, they would sound the horn as a warning and drive the car away to lure the zombies away.
Song Rushuang and Sun Wei were responsible for going down to rescue people, and they kept in touch with each other at all times using their bracelets.
After discussing the plan, the two rescuers got out of the car and searched around the noodle shop area. Sure enough, they found a hidden staircase leading down.
Two or three zombies were pacing in front of the door, seemingly having heard the commotion inside through the door, and were persistently scratching at it with their claws.
After quickly dealing with the zombie and dragging it aside, Song Rushuang knocked on the door.
A while later, the sound of tables and chairs being moved could be heard from inside.
After listening for a moment, Sun Wei was somewhat convinced: "How many things were placed at the entrance?"
But thinking about it, it makes sense; a group of frail elderly people really had no other means of self-rescue.
After a while, the door was opened a crack, and the people inside confirmed that it really was them. Their wrinkled faces trembled, and murky tears rolled down their cheeks.
We invited the elderly man, who was still sobbing, into the house to sit down, lest he become emotionally agitated and something else go wrong.
As soon as the door closed, the pungent odor inside made the two of them frown.
A dozen people were locked up in a cramped, poorly ventilated basement with a corpse for three days; you can imagine the smell.
Sun Wei used her bracelet to notify Zhang Han that she had found the person and asked her to try to contact nearby military or armed police forces for rescue using the car's radio. Song Rushuang inquired about the situation: "How did you get here? We came because someone heard the little girl crying. Where is the little girl?"
Finally, the rescue arrived, and everyone cheered up. Two or three elderly people who still had the strength to spare offered their explanations.
The two finally understood...
This place is indeed a card and mahjong parlor, quite famous among the elderly people in the neighborhood. Many of them come here to play cards and mahjong when they are bored after retirement and their children are out during the day.
Although the basement environment was poor, with the fight raging, no one cared about these issues. Many people even came right after lunch and didn't leave until almost midnight.
On the day the virus broke out, as usual, many people came here and started playing cards after noon, continuing until five or six o'clock. Some people rushed home to cook dinner, and that's when some people realized something was wrong.
This place is usually quite lively on weekends, so why hasn't anyone else come here all afternoon except for the group that came at noon?
Not long after Old Zhang, who was rushing home, went out, he let out a scream, stumbled back to the card room, closed the door, and without saying a word, he leaned against the door and died.
The other elderly people were horrified to discover that his throat had been almost bitten off.
At the same time, the low growls of wild beasts could be heard outside.
The sounds weren't from just one source; footsteps echoed continuously, accompanied by banging and scratching at the door.
Everyone was terrified. Their first thought was that an animal from a wildlife park had escaped, or that a tiger or wolf pack from the nearby mountains had run into the city.
This is not impossible. S City is surrounded by mountains, and every few years there are rumors of various wild animals coming down from the mountains due to hunger.
They were just thinking that someone would notice the commotion soon and call the fire department to rescue them, but they didn't expect to wait all night without any help.
Left with no other choice, they could only start with the only small window, letting the youngest girl, Jiajia, who had been brought to the chess and card room by her grandparents, try to climb out and ask for help.
The crying that people heard was the sound of Jiajia being lifted up through the window.
Unfortunately, the window was too narrow, making it difficult even for Jiajia to climb out, as her head and shoulders easily got stuck. To make matters worse, during their first attempt, after much effort, they finally managed to get half of Jiajia out, when several monsters, hearing the commotion, began to wobble and approach in their direction.
Jiajia was so frightened that she burst into tears on the spot, and the elderly people quickly took her back.
Their most energetic attempt failed. Later, while the monsters wandered off to other places, they tried several more times, but because they hadn't eaten, Jiajia was exhausted and they couldn't succeed. Each attempt was more difficult and took longer.
This is the source of the crying.
As for why they didn't call for help, it was because Jiajia's first attempt made them realize that making a sound would attract the monsters' attention, so they didn't dare to make a sound at all.
"Isn't there any food in this card room?" Sun Wei asked, puzzled.
"No," the old people shook their heads.
Too weak, her answers were also listless.
It turns out that there are quite a few cheap hole-in-the-wall restaurants above this chess and card room. In addition, most of the customers are elderly people who are reluctant to spend money. Many of them even come with leftover steamed buns from breakfast wrapped in plastic bags. Biscuits, instant noodles and the like simply cannot be sold.
Over time, the owner stopped ordering these goods, and the only thing left in the card room was hot water for making tea.
Restricting outside food is impossible; there are other card and chess rooms nearby, and if we dared to make that request, all the customers would leave the next day.
After being trapped, the elderly people managed to survive for three days on the little food and water they had brought with them.
On the last day, they were so hungry that they even shared the used tea leaves in the teacup.
The basement was so well soundproofed and had such a poor signal that they had no idea what was happening outside, and they even missed the news broadcasts from the previous two days.
When we go out later, we're likely to experience a significant shock.
Sun Wei and Song Rushuang exchanged a glance and quietly went out. They used their bracelets to remind Zhang Han and the rescuers outside to keep the situation outside a secret from the elderly.
Let them finish eating, rest for a while, and feel better before we talk about it.
Song Rushuang then asked, "Where is Jiajia?"
"Here."
Several elderly people hurriedly led her over to another separate mahjong room, where Jiajia was sleeping on the mahjong table, covered with a short-sleeved shirt. When she heard the noise, she slightly raised her eyelids, her breathing very weak.
The elderly people, who also have their own grandchildren, felt both heartache and guilt: "Her grandparents saved all their food for her, but this sensible child secretly saved it and fed it to her grandparents when they were starving, and she herself was starving too."
In the corner of the room, two elderly people were leaning against the wall, dozing off and watching over their granddaughter.
The old man was shirtless, and the short-sleeved shirt Jiajia was wearing must have been his.
Upon seeing Song Rushuang, the two exclaimed "Ah!" twice in excitement, but they were too exhausted to continue.
Song Rushuang didn't know what to say for a moment.
They say they love their granddaughter, but because they are addicted to playing cards, they take Jiajia, who is only seven or eight years old, to a smoky and chaotic card room.
They said they didn't love her, yet they left the only food for Jiajia when it came to life and death.
Song Rushuang swallowed her emotions, rummaged in her pocket for a long time, and actually pulled out a lemon candy. She didn't know when she had put it there. It had melted and solidified in the sun. She finally managed to tear off the sticky candy wrapper and quickly fed it to Jiajia.
"Hang in there, the rescue team will be here soon."
Hope ignited in the eyes of the elderly, and they offered a series of thanks.
Song Rushuang waved her hand: "You were saved because kind people outside noticed something was wrong, and also because of Jiajia's efforts."
Having been terrified by a zombie once, and being so scared that I tried it several more times afterward, even an adult might not have had the courage to do that.
The elderly people nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, we remember this kindness."
In fact, they tried their best to save food for Jiajia, but unfortunately, there wasn't much for her to eat.
After waiting for so many days, and finally seeing hope, a surge of strength rose from the weary bodies of the elderly, sustaining them to keep waiting.
About twenty minutes later, the nearby armed police arrived and efficiently cleared away the zombies in the vicinity, even moving the bodies a little further away before taking the elderly people out.
When they saw the sunlight again after three days, their knees buckled and they almost knelt down, but then they noticed something was wrong.
Why is it so deserted outside?
Moreover, the people who came to pick them up were all armed.
After boarding the buses used for the transfer, the paramedics gave each of them IV fluids and blankets. Another team of medical personnel boarded the buses with their equipment and began checking the elderly people's temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, and other physical conditions one by one.
These medical staff were also wearing thick riot gear.
The situation was better than they had imagined. Apart from four elderly people with underlying conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes who were in more dangerous condition, the others, including Jiajia, were only weak due to hunger and dehydration and would recover in a few days.
These people will all be sent to the nearest primary school.
—Under normal circumstances, the four people in more serious condition should have been sent to the hospital for further examination, but now the major hospitals in the city are already overcrowded and there are no beds available, so they can only find a place to stay nearby.
The curtains on the bus were all tightly closed, and the edges were even sealed with wide tape, so you couldn't see anything outside.
Although the elderly were uneasy, their weakness made their thinking somewhat sluggish. Under the comfort and care of experienced medical staff, their emotions gradually stabilized.
Outside the car, the lead officer was expressing his gratitude to Song Rushuang and the other two: "...If it had been half a day later, those four people probably wouldn't have made it. The others would also have been in great danger. You saved the lives of these nineteen people."
“I had heard of Fang Zhou’s existence before, but I never expected to meet him here. He is indeed young and promising.” Looking at the three of them, his eyes were full of appreciation. Then he became solemn and said, “On behalf of these nineteen people and their families, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you once again.”
Song Rushuang quickly waved her hand and briefly explained how she received the distress message from Shi Yue.
"So, I have a request. When we leave later, could the convoy pass through the main gate of the residential area?"
The officer blinked, then understood and readily agreed: "Of course."
...
It had been some time since Song Rushuang and the other two drove away from the residential area.
Judging from their behavior before leaving, they must have discovered something behind the flower bed. Unfortunately, the car drove out of Shi Yue and the others' sight, and they could not see what happened next. They could only sit anxiously on the bay window and continue to wait.
—What if those people come back later?
Do you think they found the child?
"I don't know." Shi Yue shook her head, then her ears perked up the next second. "Wait, did you hear something?"
It sounded like there were a few gunshots.
The three of them immediately leaned against the window and waited for about ten minutes before they finally caught a glimpse of a familiar white car slowly driving past the entrance of the residential area.
"It's them!" Shi Yue recognized them at a glance. "Did they rescue the person?"
They were frantic, wishing they had eyes that could see far enough to see if the little girl was sitting in the back seat of the car.
As the white car disappeared from sight, the three were about to look away when they suddenly froze.
Behind Song Rushuang and her group's car, another armored riot control vehicle appeared. Its pure black body and imposing appearance made it look very powerful.
Riot control vehicles led the way, followed closely by a bus, with a vehicle on each side and rear providing escort.
As the convoy passed the entrance of Qinghuanli residential area, it slowed down, as if intentionally conveying something.
Shi Yue trembled all over, and even felt an urge to cry.
After a long silence, one of the roommates said uncertainly, "Did they slow down for our sake?"
"Why would a whole bus be deployed just to save one child...?"
Another roommate paused halfway through his sentence, then asked, "Is there more than one person trapped inside?"
There were so many people that buses had to be dispatched to pick them up... Just how many people were trapped inside?
The three looked at each other, all somewhat dazed.
I feel like I've done something incredible, as if some unseen force has guided me.
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