Chapter 55, Chapter 11: Female Supporting Character in an Apocalyptic Novel
The person who came was a man, and Xu Qingzhou did not recognize his identity.
Almost everyone in Zone E looks the same – equally disheveled and thin.
However, the anxiety and worry in his eyes were still accurately conveyed to Xu Qingzhou.
He didn't have time to ask any more questions. He went back to get a coat, put it on, grabbed a flashlight, and followed him there.
Outside of Zone E, at the boundary with Zone D, people were bustling about, and the sounds of arguing could be faintly heard.
With the light shining from Zone D, it was barely possible to make out that the people were divided into two groups.
One group stepped into the D zone, their eyes filled with disgust; another group hid in the shadows of the E zone, their expressions obscured.
The flashlight's faint light was particularly glaring in the darkness of Zone E, and it was quickly spotted.
"It's Xu Qingzhou!"
Someone shouted, and the surging crowd suddenly fell silent for a moment. Dozens of eyes, like nails, all turned to him.
Those eyes were filled with disgust and resentment towards him.
But no one was willing to step forward, cross the boundary line, and set foot on the territory of Zone E.
It's as if stepping on it will get you dirty.
People in Zone E also saw him, and some glared at the person next to Xu Qingzhou.
"Who told you to bring him here? You're just making things worse!"
"That's right! Qingzhou, go back, they won't dare to do anything to you!"
"Yes, yes, you go back first. We want to see if the higher-ups really don't care about our lives and just send troops to kill us!"
Xu Qingzhou frowned, said a few words to comfort them, and instead of leaving, took two steps forward to see the scene ahead.
Three figures were curled up on the ground, one with his face buried in the rubble, the veins on the back of his neck bulging, twitching abnormally.
One person was rolling on the ground, trembling and clutching their throat, while another was slumped on the ground, bent over and coughing up blood.
Xu Qingzhou's heart skipped a beat, and he instantly understood something.
"What are you doing...?"
Before he could finish speaking, a blue gas canister suddenly fell from the man who was coughing up blood and landed at his feet.
At the same time, a man wearing a leather jacket suddenly stood out from the crowd, pointed at the oxygen tank, and cut Xu Qingzhou off with a sharp and stern tone.
"Your logo is even engraved on this gas canister! What else do you have to say?!"
The oxygen cylinder wasn't an expensive brand; it was just a common model. But it had a clear "boat" character engraved on it, which was easy for people to see.
Gasps came from behind the crowd, and those who were already standing at the edge of section D retreated even further.
"It really is his jar..."
"Damn it... I secretly bought some of his gas too, and my throat has been hurting terribly these past few days. It must be because I inhaled this bastard stuff!"
For a time, the D area was in complete chaos, with all sorts of rumors circulating.
Anyone experiencing physical discomfort, regardless of the cause, would attribute it all to the oxygen sold by Xu Qingzhou.
Xu Qingzhou was so angry he almost laughed.
"You think this canister is mine just because you say so? Anyone who has ever bought gas from me knows I never put these kinds of markings on gas canisters."
He calmly observed the noisy people in Sector D, showing no fear of the leather jacket, and retorted methodically.
"If you don't believe me, go home and take a closer look. Do you see if the character 'boat' is engraved on those jars?"
The crowd fell silent for a moment. The man in the leather jacket narrowed his eyes and, without giving them a chance to think, immediately retorted.
"Everyone knows that the people in District D who buy gas from you mostly bring their own gas cylinders to fill up. Since they fill up their own gas cylinders, of course they can't have your logo on them!"
Pointing at the three people on the ground, he righteously condemned them.
"But those three are different! They bought their gas cylinders directly from you!"
“He’s right. I’m afraid there might be bacteria in the gas cylinders in Zone E, so I’ve never bought gas cylinders from him directly.”
"I recognize these guys. They're a bunch of petty thugs from the back alley, always stealing chickens and dogs, always running around like madmen. They were fine a few days ago, but today..."
The man in the leather jacket curled his lips into a smile.
"They heard that you had gas here that was just as good as the official gas, but cheaper, so they bought it because it was cheap. And in just a few days, it turned into this. What you're selling isn't oxygen; it's clearly murder gas!"
Panic spread like mold, instantly covering the faces of everyone in Zone D.
It's unclear who started it, but suddenly someone began throwing stones at area E, accompanied by shrill shouts and curses.
"You murderer!"
"Pay up!"
Once there was a first one, there was a second, and a third; a dense barrage of stones rained down upon us.
All sorts of vulgar and offensive language kept pouring into Zone E, mixed with words like "poisonous gas" and "garbage is garbage".
These people were so excited that no one listened to Xu Qingzhou's explanation or rebuttal.
His voice alone would be drowned out by the shouts and curses in an instant.
Xu Qingzhou had never met such a person before, not even in his original world, when he started from the bottom and worked his way up.
In that instant, he finally understood what it meant to be a scholar encountering a soldier, feeling utterly powerless and unable to reason with them.
Fuck you!
The people in Zone E were also enraged. An old cripple, braving the rain of stones, stood in front of Xu Qingzhou, raised his cane, and began to curse.
"When you people from District D sneaked in to exchange oxygen, why didn't you complain about the toxic gas? When we, Qingzhou, were kind enough to sell it to you cheaply so you could exchange it for a couple more pounds of compressed biscuits, why didn't you complain then? Now you're turning around and biting the hand that feeds you? Bah!"
More people surged forward, firmly protecting Xu Qingzhou behind them.
An old woman was carrying a tattered burlap sack filled with the scraps she had collected that day. Her cloudy eyes shone with a coldness that was colder than the occasional spotlight sweeping across the D district.
"Who doesn't know these cowards? Taking advantage of the fact that no one cares about Zone E, they sneak into Zone E all day long, hide in the garbage dump and eat some ecstasy pills, trembling like leaves. Today they're blaming the oxygen?"
There was also a young woman holding her skinny, still-weaned child, who didn't hide behind her either.
"Smash it! Smash it right here! I'm going to see today if no one in our E district is in charge! Are you really trying to drive us to our deaths!"
The crowd seemed to be parted by an invisible hand, and the people in Zone E automatically formed a circle, protecting Xu Qingzhou in the middle.
Their tattered shirts were stained with oil, their faces were filthy, but each of them had a fierce glint in their eyes.
Even the half-grown children stood in front with fierce expressions, staring intently at the clean-cut, fair-skinned people in Section D, like a bunch of angry little wolf cubs.
Xu Qingzhou looked at them, his expression dazed, his throat tight.
These were people from District E that he had never seen before, nor had the original owner of this body had ever seen before.
In his memory, the people of District E were always numb, empty, like walking corpses.
But now, they have unleashed astonishing power, simply because they were driven to the brink of despair, simply because he did not raise their prices after the oxygen concentrator was repaired, giving them a sliver of hope.
His eyes suddenly stung, and he felt a mix of emotions welling up inside him.
"Thanks……"
But they don't need that.
"It was said on the radio!"
Suddenly, someone shouted at the top of their lungs from area D, drowning out his slightly choked whisper.
"The broadcast said! The oxygen station in Zone E is operating illegally! It's a source of new toxic gas! He's trying to harm you! And yet you're still protecting him!"
"Bullshit!"
The cripple spat, his throat sounding as if it were filled with metal, his words rough and unpleasant, yet each one was uttered with a heart-wrenching pain.
"Back then, when the government withdrew from Zone E and blocked us from going to the front, they didn't say they were harming us!"
"They cut off all energy supplies to Zone E, not even leaving us a single oxygen generator, which not only harmed us!"
"Xu Qingzhou risked his life to bring back an old-fashioned oxygen generator that you had abandoned from the ground. He fed us with residual oxygen and kept us on our feet, but instead of helping us, he harmed us!"
"Now that he's finally found a way to fix the oxygen concentrator and let us breathe qualified oxygen, he's coming to say he's harmed us!"
His voice trembled, filled with resentment and questioning that he had never uttered since being abandoned all these years.
The people in Zone E fell silent, their eyes red and their breath coming in ragged gasps.
Sector D gradually fell silent, rendered speechless by their desperate and piercing questions.
The man in the leather jacket frowned; this wasn't right.
In their imagination, Xu Qingzhou should be abandoned by everyone at this time, isolated and questioned by all.
Are these people in Zone E crazy?
He quietly shrank behind the crowd in section D, reached into his pocket, and pressed something.
The next moment, the sound of clattering footsteps rang out.
What are you all doing gathered here?
Xu Qingzhou looked up.
It's the patrol team from Zone B.
Behind them, a modified SUV was parked, its window rolled down, revealing the refined and gentlemanly face of the man in the passenger seat.
In a flash, Xu Qingzhou understood.
This time, it wasn't just that his oxygen concentrator had stolen from the black market.
And then there's him, the wealthy man from Block B, Mr. Wang's revenge.
The patrol team was well-trained and quickly separated the people. The captain, holding an arrest warrant, stood at the boundary between light and shadow, his face cold and expressionless.
"Xu Qingzhou, upon investigation, the oxygen you sold contained an unknown toxin. You are hereby arrested for questioning. Please come with us!"
Before the people in Zone E could say anything, Xu Qingzhou stepped forward and raised his hand to stop them.
"As far as I know, apart from the D District patrol team coming here a few months ago under the pretext of searching for fugitives, no official personnel have ever come to the E District. I don't know how you verified this? Based on people who bought my gas? How do you know those people didn't lie?"
The captain frowned, and Xu Qingzhou continued to speak.
"I think, as a citizen of the underground city, I have the right to know the answer. Or is it that, in your eyes, the people of Sector E have already lost their status as citizens of the underground city?"
The captain's eyes betrayed his displeasure, but he still put away the arrest warrant and answered in a measured and formal manner.
"So this is just to have you investigated. We will seal off Zone E for further verification and will never wrong an innocent person."
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