Chapter Seven: Zhao Yan

In front of the welding factory gates, Zhou Yu got out of the car and told everyone else to wait inside. Taking up his knife, he entered the welding factory. The workshop was empty; not a single zombie in sight.

Something felt off to Zhou Yu. Even if the outbreak happened at night, it was unlikely that such a large factory wouldn’t have at least a night watchman. He searched the area thoroughly, but there truly were no zombies. He walked back out.

He opened the heavy iron gates and drove the car inside. Seeing Zhou Yu do this, the others followed suit, driving their vehicles in as well. Once everyone was in, the gates were shut again.

Zhou Yu got out, opened the passenger door and let Xiao Jie out first, then helped Nian Yu down from the car. Nian Yu hadn’t spoken a single word the entire way. Zhou Yu glanced at her but said nothing.

He turned to the group and said, “It’s getting late. Let’s clean up and find a place to rest. You two, come with me to move some supplies. The rest of you, tidy up. Xiao Jie, take Nian Yu and find a place to rest. I’ll fetch some food to share with everyone.”

Zhou Yu led the two former soldiers he had called out to the rear of the car to move supplies. Meanwhile, everyone else was tidying up in the nearby rooms.

The two ex-soldiers were astonished when they saw the equipment in the car. They couldn’t help but wonder what kind of man this Zhou Yu was—someone with knowledge of firearms, ruthless, skilled in combat, and now equipped with all this gear.

The brothers exchanged a look but said nothing. They knew now was not the time for questions.

When Zhou Yu and the others moved the firearms aside and saw the food supplies inside, the brothers were utterly speechless. Clearly, Zhou Yu had anticipated a long escape—he had gathered enough supplies for at least half a year if it were just the three of them.

Zhou Yu noticed their surprise and said, “No need to be amazed. Grab some food and bring it down.”

One of the ex-soldiers spoke up, “Zhou Yu, brother, I’m not sure if I should say this…”

Zhou Yu looked at him, puzzled. “Go ahead.”

The ex-soldier replied calmly, “I think the supplies in the car should be sorted. Piling everything together makes it a hassle to find what we need when we need it. And if we’re in a fight, it’ll be difficult to grab what we need quickly if it’s all in a mess.”

Zhou Yu simply watched the man, silent, and the ex-soldier, unsure what Zhou Yu was thinking, remained quiet too. The car was still and silent.

After a moment, Zhou Yu asked, “What’s your name?”

The ex-soldier answered, “I’m Zhao Yan, and he’s Wang Kui.”

“You don’t look like you’re from different branches. Let’s sort things out here first, then bring the food down and eat while we talk.”

With that, Zhou Yu began organizing, and soon they had everything in order. They brought down some vacuum-packed cooked food and distributed it to everyone.

Once everyone had their share, Zhou Yu spoke. “Eat first. I have something to say. You all see what things are like now—the world is not the same as before. Whatever you used to be, whatever you used to do, it doesn’t matter anymore. From now on, survival depends on your own hands. I don’t have much to give you. If you want to eat your fill, you’ll have to go out and find it yourselves. I’ll ask again: who wants to stay with me? Let me be clear—I won’t feed freeloaders. If you expect me to provide everything for you, you’ll have to leave. And one more thing: if you stay with me, you cannot do anything to harm this group. I don’t need your answers now. Tell me in the morning. After you finish eating, you can rest.”

With that, Zhou Yu walked over to Nian Yu and Xiao Jie, sat down beside Nian Yu, and handed her a piece of chocolate.

Gently, he said, “Nian Yu, have some chocolate. In a bit, let Xiao Jie take you to rest. You’re too tense right now. Be good.”

Nian Yu looked at the chocolate Zhou Yu offered, saying nothing. Suddenly, she hugged him tightly and whispered, “I’m scared. Don’t go.”

Seeing her like this, Zhou Yu’s heart ached. He held her close, comforting her softly.

Beside them, Xiao Jie, feeling a little lost, said, “I’m scared too.” Zhou Yu felt a headache coming on—how was he supposed to comfort both of them?

Though this silly girl usually acted careless, she was still a woman after all. It was perfectly normal to be afraid in a situation like this.

Zhou Yu thought to himself, forget it, they’re women after all. He half-jokingly said, “Silly girl, what’s there to be afraid of? As long as I’m alive, nothing will happen to you or Nian Yu. And you—you're a criminal police officer, a police academy graduate. From now on, Nian Yu’s safety is your responsibility. If anything happens to her, you’ll have me to answer to.”

Xiao Jie felt a faint pang of disappointment and protested, “What do you mean, ‘your Nian Yu’? She’s mine, not yours.”

Zhou Yu just laughed and said nothing more.

After dinner, Zhao Yan and Wang Kui came over and said, “We’ll stay with you, but we need to know more about you first. After all, we don’t want to follow someone we know nothing about—it wouldn’t be responsible to ourselves. Even though you saved us, we can’t be sure you wouldn’t abandon us again if we run into zombies. People are selfish, after all.”

Zhou Yu looked at Zhao Yan for a while, then smiled, “I’m just an unemployed drifter, nothing more.”

Zhao Yan replied calmly, “Impossible. Your fighting techniques may be a bit rusty, but we can tell they come from the military. And not just the clumsy kind of inexperience, but the kind that comes from not practicing for a long time.”

Zhou Yu smiled. “I did spend some time in the military, but as a militia. Have you ever seen a soldier with tattoos?” As he spoke, he pulled back his shirt, revealing a tattoo—half Buddha, half demon.

Seeing Zhao Yan say nothing, Zhou Yu continued, “The combat skills I use aren’t something regular soldiers know. I learned them from an instructor in a special forces unit. He called it ‘killing arts’—the true national art, meant for killing, not for show. Since you recognize it, you must have been in special forces yourselves. Tell me, you’re still so young, how did you retire? I’m curious about you.”

With a trace of anger, Zhao Yan replied, “When we were in the army, I accidentally outshone someone with connections. He came after me with a group. Wang Kui stepped in to help. We drove them off, but didn’t come out unscathed. The next day, while we were in the infirmary, we got orders—once we recovered, we were discharged. Later, our instructor told us the man had powerful backing, and we were let go to protect us.”

Zhou Yu listened quietly, thinking, sigh, another pair of unfortunate souls.

He looked at Zhao Yan and Wang Kui and said, “I’m not a good man, but I’d never abandon my brothers. If you two stick with me, you’re brothers now.”

Zhao Yan said, “Alright. But if we’re with you, we want to help, not just follow. I hope—”

Before he could finish, Zhou Yu tossed him the car keys. “Brothers don’t stand on ceremony. Go pick out some weapons from the car, then find a place to rest. I’ll keep watch tonight.”