Chapter 93 She is their daughter, how could they...
Song Rushuang and the other two brought their parents back to their dormitory.
The four-person dormitory was very clean. All the students' personal belongings and decorations on the walls and furniture were removed. Even the bathroom tiles were polished until they were shiny. Only a bed board remained on the single bed.
Several parents walked around the dormitory, which showed no signs of life, and turned back in disbelief: "Is this your dormitory?"
"Have you really lived here for a year?"
It doesn't look like it at all!
Song Rushuang felt ashamed and glanced at it a few times. She thought that the four people who had lived here before probably crawled on the ground and cleaned up all the grout between the tiles before leaving. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so clean that the investigators couldn't produce any evidence.
Indeed, we should not underestimate the quality of our peers.
"This isn't our dorm, it's just where we'll be staying from now on," Song Rushuang said, picking up her luggage from the doorway. "I brought a mattress and blankets, let's tidy up a bit."
Only then did the group notice that there was only Song Rushuang's luggage behind the door.
Everyone was confused: Where did that little robot put Zhang Han's luggage?
Zhang Han and Sun Wei spoke up at the right moment: "Mom and Dad, let's live next door."
“We won’t sleep here, come with me.”
They shook the keys in their hands; the keychains had tags on them, one labeled 403 and the other 405.
Song Rushuang's family lives in room 402.
After the summer vacation, the dorm rooms were reassigned.
Considering that students will no longer return to school alone, dormitories are now allocated by student unit, with each person having a separate room. The room size varies depending on the number of available spots. Since the teaching buildings have also been converted into residential areas, the original classrooms have also been transformed into rooms of varying sizes. Students with 2-3 spots can stay in the original dormitories, while those with 4 spots can apply to live in the larger rooms converted from classrooms.
The soundproofing of rooms separated from the same classroom is slightly worse, and washing up requires going to the public restrooms and showers on each floor, which is more inconvenient than dormitories. However, considering that families living together sometimes need private space, and that larger rooms can be partitioned to create smaller, independent living spaces, many students still apply to live in the teaching building.
As for the underground shelter, due to the lack of light and the oppressive environment, and since there are still enough rooms available on the ground, Fu Qing has temporarily used it as an extra storage room.
Only as a last resort should we move underground. The advantage of living in the underground shelter is that there are only a few escape routes, and once they are blocked, it is very difficult for zombies to break in. Even special zombies cannot break through the thick security doors by brute force.
As long as they don't encounter intelligent infected individuals, the people living inside are absolutely safe. With their food and other supplies, they can easily hide for several months.
However, since people outside cannot get in and people inside cannot get out, it is destined to be used only as a last resort for escape.
Song Rushuang and Sun Wei, one with good grades and the other with extra points from the publicity team, should both be assigned to the large classroom.
But the four of them didn't want to separate and ultimately chose to stay together.
Living next door to friends makes the days when you can't go out much better.
Similar situations are not uncommon in schools. Fu Qing has not restricted students' applications to change dormitories. Staying in a high-pressure, closed environment for a long time can easily lead to psychological problems. In the future, she also plans to convert the currently unused gymnasium into an activity venue.
As for the playground, when the mall was first unlocked a year ago, Fu Qing originally planned to turn it into farmland. However, after the entire western plain was transformed, Fu Qing found that it already occupied a large enough area. In addition, the artificial lake, which was of little use, would also be converted into a breeding farm in the future, so the playground was left as is for the time being.
The realistic zombies and various training equipment removed from the gymnasium no longer need to be left idle; once the students graduate, they can be used to train their parents.
Even the coaches are readily available, one for each family, with a fixed quota. If any parent falls behind, it's the students who lose face. Because of this, they dare not slack off when teaching.
Otherwise, when everyone else's moms and dads have learned how to kill zombies, and your own parents still don't, you'll be too ashamed to face your classmates.
Of course, the parents didn't know what the future held. After Zhang Han and Sun Wei left with their parents, only Song Rushuang's family remained in the dormitory.
Three people share a four-person room, which is quite spacious, and there's even a private bathroom. There's a desk underneath the bunk bed; the desk is used for eating and storing miscellaneous items, and anything that doesn't fit on the bed can be placed on the extra one.
Song Rushuang lived in the dormitory for a year and was quite satisfied with the conditions, but Xu Mingyu and Song Jianguo felt that nothing was right.
They've been away from their student days for so long, yet they still come back to sleep on hard beds with a 90-centimeter ceiling and bunk beds. Song Jianguo, in particular, has a beer belly and can't even turn over on that bed.
Of course, during this special period, they couldn't complain about anything; they just spoke frankly and without reservation in front of their own family.
Song Jianguo touched the upper railing, very worried: "Won't I fall down while I'm sleeping in the middle of the night?"
Song Rushuang, who was tidying up with her head down, didn't look up and said, "The conditions here are already very good. Don't ask for too much."
Song Jianguo choked, finding himself at a loss for words.
Why does this sound so familiar?
If I say a few more words, Xiao Shuang might say in the next second, "How come everyone else can stay here, but you can't?"
Thinking of this, he immediately shut up: "It's good, it's good, much better than we were back then."
I just hope we don't stay too long...
Song Jianguo silently added a sentence in his heart.
The family of three quickly tidied up the pillows and bedding that Song Rushuang had brought. Only then did Xu Mingyu realize that Song Rushuang had brought exactly three quilts, no more and no less.
To explain this as a coincidence is too far-fetched.
Bedding isn't like clothes, where you can buy extra and leave it at home. It doesn't make sense for a student from the local area to go through the trouble of carrying three blankets to live on campus.
This was clearly prepared for her and Song Jianguo.
Moreover, Song Rushuang asked the two of them to help tidy up, which clearly meant she didn't intend to keep it a secret any longer and was just waiting for them to discover the truth and ask her herself.
And this dormitory, when we went back to the dormitory just now, Song Rushuang and the other two took the keys to their respective rooms from the key box downstairs. No faculty or staff member came out to assign rooms, and no one said anything about where to stay. If it was a temporary arrangement, why didn't I hear any arrangements since I have hardly been separated from Song Rushuang since she returned to school?
And it wasn't just Song Rushuang who was like this; Zhang Han, Sun Wei, and the students who were passing by all looked unusually calm compared to the parents beside them.
Everyone lined up to receive their keys, remaining quiet and orderly throughout, as if there was an unspoken understanding between them.
The parents, however, had no idea when or how this tacit understanding arose.
Since the outbreak of the mental illness and the subsequent school closures, plunging everyone into panic, the surrounding voices have mostly consisted of students comforting their parents. It's as if the roles of family and society have been reversed, with the parents unconsciously relying on their more reliable children in the face of disaster.
But when did they become so reliable?
When did you secretly prepare a change of clothes and bedding? When did you clean your dormitory and change your accommodation? And when did you accept the arrival of the apocalypse and develop such a strong physique and spirit?
Xu Mingyu stared blankly at the bloodstains on Song Rushuang's clothes.
Song Rushuang had already opened her suitcase, taken out the toothbrushes and slippers that the three of them had packed separately and put them aside, and then took out a change of clothes of her own, preparing to change her dirty clothes first.
She then handed the bag to Xu Mingyu: "Mom, there are no partitions in our place. If you need privacy, you can hang a bed curtain. There are three in here. Can you ask Dad to help you out... Mom?"
Xu Mingyu stared blankly down at the plastic bag.
Three bed curtains—they're not even acting anymore.
She grabbed Song Rushuang's hand and stared intently into her eyes: "Xiaoshuang, tell me the truth, do you know something?"
"Did you already know that this kind of madness would break out outside?"
Thinking of all those who had died, Xu Mingyu's hands trembled slightly.
If Song Rushuang really knew, then why would she know?
Is all of this related to her, or to Fangzhou School?
She refused to make that connection, yet was somewhat afraid to hear the answer, gazing sadly at her daughter.
Seeing the sorrow and fear in Xu Mingyu's eyes, Song Rushuang was somewhat taken aback, but she quickly understood what Xu Mingyu was thinking. So, in addition to feeling both amused and distressed, she also felt a pang of heartache.
At this moment, Xu Mingyu and the others are so similar to them a year ago. After the entrance exam, she also suspected the principal, and many conspiracy theories arose on the forum. It wasn't until later that everyone gradually dispelled their suspicions, so it's no wonder that Xu Mingyu overthinks things.
The idea of "rebirth" is hard for even young people like them to accept, let alone the older generation.
Without knowing more information, seeing that this group of people foresaw the end of the world and made preparations to protect themselves, even Song Rushuang herself found it suspicious.
She squeezed her mother's hand reassuringly, and out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Song Jianguo had also slowed down his packing, which made her chuckle.
Her father went out with her and witnessed firsthand the ruthlessness Song Rushuang displayed when killing zombies. He must have had even more questions on his mind than Xu Mingyu. It's remarkable that he could hold back until now and even cover for her in the cafeteria.
After a moment of contemplation, Song Rushuang slowly said, "Mom, Dad, it's not madness, it's a highly contagious virus."
“My dad saw it too. The infected people will lose their minds and attack people like zombies in the movies, so we call it the zombie virus. Even if the infected people turn into rotting corpses, they can still move. Some of the infected people will even undergo special evolution, running faster and stronger, making them difficult for ordinary people to kill without weapons.”
"This virus is highly virulent. Once a person is bitten by an infected person, they will mutate. At this point, the mutated person will still have a human appearance, but will no longer be a living person. In addition, even animals have a certain chance of being infected."
"Because the incubation period of the virus is unpredictable, and even the smallest wound can be infected if it comes into contact with zombie saliva. Now that there are infected people all over the world, we are destined to enter a period of uncontrolled spread, and the number of infected people will increase exponentially."
"Dad, Mom, this is no longer a peaceful society. From the moment the first video about zombies was uploaded to the internet this afternoon, whether we accept it or not, we will not be able to go back to our previous lives for a long time to come."
The hand holding hers trembled and was covered in a layer of damp sweat. Song Rushuang did not let go and continued looking into Xu Mingyu's eyes: "Therefore, we must be prepared to stay in school for a long time. If we want to survive, our family must work together."
"The refugees currently in the school and those who will be entering later are mostly my classmates and their relatives. We know each other well, so the situation is much more stable and safer than in a typical shelter. By sticking together, we can survive for a long time in the apocalypse."
She shook her mother's arm: "Mom, do you believe me?"
Xu Mingyu and Song Jianguo were both pale. After a long silence, Xu Mingyu finally managed to stammer, "Xiaoshuang, but... how did you know?"
"This intelligence wasn't even reported in the news."
How did you know?
Xu Mingyu was a little flustered, but Song Rushuang spoke so clearly and confidently that she had already believed most of it in her heart.
If anyone else stood in front of them and made a doomsday declaration, they would probably either think the person was crazy, or at least verify the information from multiple sources. They would never simply believe whatever the person said.
But since it was Song Rushuang who said this, they naturally believed her.
She is their daughter, how could they not believe her?
If they don't trust her, who else can they trust?
Song Rushuang hesitated for a moment: "I can't say."
The principal and her colleagues' experiences are too bizarre; the more people know, the worse it will be for her. Besides, it's hard for people who haven't experienced these things to believe.
They've never even seen holographic technology before.
"All I can say is that the teachers and students at the school are absolutely reliable. We did know about the apocalypse a long time ago, and everything we've done in the past year has been in preparation for that day, in preparation for saving more people."
"But we must keep it a secret until that day truly arrives, because besides us, there is another group of people watching us closely, and they want to ensure the outbreak of the virus. We were not strong enough before, and it would be too dangerous to provoke them."
Song Rushuang vaguely mentioned the devout believers, providing cover for the unknown force that was probably from the principal trying to prevent them from leaking information.
After saying that, she asked again, "Are you willing to believe me and stand by my side?"
Xu Mingyu and Song Jianguo exchanged a glance.
Song Rushuang's words solved the mystery that had been lingering in their minds these past few days—about her recent changes, why she had encouraged them to exercise actively throughout the summer, and why she had encouraged Grandma Zhang and a group of other elderly people to stock up on goods and install security grilles.
They always knew their daughter was kind. These events, in turn, confirm that…
“How could we not believe you?” Xu Mingyu said, forcing a smile.
Her heart was too heavy, and the smile quickly faded, but Song Rushuang still sensed the comforting and tender meaning in it, and she suddenly relaxed.
Song Jianguo also came over and patted Song Rushuang on the shoulder.
He didn't know what to say, his lips moved, and it turned into a sigh: "Thank you for your hard work."
It's easy to imagine that even without those "enemies," if Song Rushuang had started shouting "the end of the world is coming" months or even a year ago, probably no one would have believed her.
Before witnessing it all actually happen, she and her classmates will only be seen as crazy people who are obsessed with reading novels.
Therefore, Song Jianguo and Xu Mingyu could not possibly blame her for concealing the truth. They would only think that Song Rushuang, who had kept everything to herself, must have had a very difficult year.
As I thought about it, I felt a pang of heartache.
Fortunately, she had classmates to keep her company and like-minded roommates with whom she had a close relationship.
No, think about it carefully. If they hadn't entered this school, they would have had no way of knowing this information. They might have just treated today as an ordinary day and then, like countless ordinary people on the street who were attacked, they would have been caught off guard and faced their doomsday.
So it turns out that Fang Zhou saved them.
The two blinked, looked at the dormitory again, and thought of Fangzhou's principal, Fu Qing. Their feelings were completely different now, filled with gratitude.
The two people's expressions changed rapidly, one moment astonished, the next filled with lingering fear, and then staring blankly around. Their emotions were all too easy to understand.
As Song Rushuang observed, she couldn't help but recall some of the timelines in the simulation pod that occurred on the day of the apocalypse. Back then, as the protagonist of the simulation, she tried to convince passersby that the apocalypse was coming, but it wasn't that easy.
Her parents' faces showed heartache, shock, and pity, but not the suspicion and disgust she was used to seeing.
This is also a natural advantage of Fangzhou; all those who escaped were chosen by the students themselves from among their closest relatives and friends. Whether they were family or friends, there was a natural trust between them, especially the parents who came in first—they were almost the least likely to betray you in the apocalypse.
In such a refuge, there would be far less suspicion and backstabbing.
Some people may not be able to believe what the child says for the time being, but most of them are not acting out of malice.
Given more time, the people in the shelter will eventually unite as one, and the final Fangzhou will be far more united and powerful than any other official or unofficial shelter, whether it is about to be established or already existed but has been destroyed.
Song Rushuang has this confidence.
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