I’m rich! I’m rich!
After confirming that the rat colony had been completely wiped out, Su Yue finally lowered herself back to the ground and dismissed her vines.
Then she used a vine to rummage through the burrow some more.
Out came a pile of corn kernels and various unidentified seeds.
Each corn kernel was about the size of a coin.
From start to finish, the entire raid on the rat colony had taken less than three minutes.
Su Yue stuffed the pink baby rats into her cloth bag.
They couldn’t crawl yet.
All they could do was squirm and wriggle around.
As for the adult rats, she dragged them into the woods.
Under a large tree, she skinned them one by one and dug the crystal cores out of their skulls.
Back during the zombie apocalypse, survival had often meant eating rats.
As a result, she was very skilled at skinning them.
When she checked their radiation levels, she made an exciting discovery.
Two of the rats were edible.
Immediately, she wrapped the meat in large leaves and stuffed it into her bag.
The baby rats seemed to smell the familiar scent and instinctively wriggled toward the meat.
Well…
There was nothing she could do about that.
Blame this damned world.
Better the rats die than she does.
She packed away the rat hides as well.
Then she tore off a strip of cloth from her clothes and smeared it with rat blood.
Wrapping it around her ankle, she created the appearance of a fresh wound.
At a glance, it looked as though she’d been bitten while fighting the rats.
The baby rats remained surprisingly quiet.
Probably because they felt safe near the scent of the meat.
Now came the difficult part.
How should she explain things to Song Zhizhi?
After spending the last few days together, Song Zhizhi certainly didn’t seem like the kind of person who would betray someone for profit.
But Su Yue knew all too well that appearances meant very little.
In her previous life, even a boyfriend she’d dated for three years had personally shoved her into a horde of zombies.
Compared to that, someone she’d known for only two days was practically a stranger.
She no longer trusted easily.
After some thought, she decided to leave the baby rats and rat meat inside the bag.
The rat hides she flattened and tucked beneath her clothing, securing them with vines so they wouldn’t fall out.
The crystal cores went into an inner pocket.
Then she covered the baby rats with grass leaves.
The rat meat was hidden beneath corn kernels and seeds.
At a glance, the bag looked like it contained nothing but forage and grain.
Only then did she go looking for Song Zhizhi.
Song Zhizhi had been pacing anxiously the entire time.
She’d finally found a scavenging partner she trusted.
One who had even saved her life.
She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her.
The moment she spotted Su Yue, she finally relaxed.
Then her eyes landed on the bloodstained bandage around Su Yue’s ankle.
Immediately, her heart jumped back into her throat.
“You got bitten?!”
She crouched down, trying to inspect the wound.
Su Yue stopped her.
“It’s okay. I squeezed the blood out. There were some dandelions nearby, so I used them for basic treatment. We’ll deal with it properly when we get back.”
“Honestly! You just had to mess with a rat nest!”
Song Zhizhi scolded her.
“When we get back, go straight to the clinic!”
Not once did she ask what Su Yue had found inside the nest.
She showed remarkable restraint.
Instead, she was genuinely worried about her.
“I’ll carry your sack. You take mine. Mine’s lighter.”
“No need. I can manage. It’s only a small bite.”
Of course she could manage.
She wasn’t hurt at all.
Before Song Zhizhi could protest, Su Yue hoisted the sack onto her shoulder.
Song Zhizhi sighed helplessly.
“Fine. But if you get tired, tell me. I’ll carry it.”
The two joined the flow of people heading home.
Walking, resting, and walking again.
By the time they reached the refugee district, it was already five in the afternoon.
Normally, Song Zhizhi would have said goodbye immediately and headed home.
This time was different.
Before leaving, she repeatedly reminded Su Yue:
“After you disinfect the wound, come to my house.”
“My family grows mugwort. Radiation doesn’t really matter for it.”
She continued seriously,
“You were around rats today. There could be bacteria. After you visit the clinic, come dig up a mugwort plant. Take it home, burn some leaves, and fumigate the house. It’ll help disinfect things.”
Warmth spread through Su Yue’s chest.
People who scavenged alone usually had no one to rely on.
Because of that, they rarely told others where they lived.
And when food was scarce, nobody willingly shared resources.
“Okay.”
Carrying her supplies home, Su Yue soon received another message.
[Location]
[Su Yue, this is my house. Come over after you disinfect your wound.]
[Okay.]
In reality, most people raised in the refugee district were used to these conditions.
As long as there wasn’t an open wound, bacteria from rats weren’t usually a major concern.
Still, Su Xing was young.
Her immune system wasn’t strong.
Fumigating the house with mugwort would be safer.
[Great. See you soon.]
After arriving home, Su Yue discarded the bloodied bandage and washed her ankle.
Then she messaged Song Zhizhi and prepared to head over.
She didn’t want to accept the mugwort for free.
So she slipped the remaining three jujube leaves into her pocket.
She also packed two near-expiration biscuits.
Depending on the situation, she planned to offer them as a gift.
The two households were separated by about three streets.
The walk took roughly ten minutes.
When she arrived, Song Zhizhi immediately pulled her inside.
Song Zhizhi’s mother was sitting on the bed sewing something.
When she saw a stranger enter, her expression instantly became guarded.
“Mom, this is Su Yue.”
The moment she heard the name, her face relaxed.
“So you’re Su Yue! Sit, sit!”
She smiled warmly.
“Thank you for saving Zhizhi!”
Song Taotao also wandered out after hearing an unfamiliar voice.
The young man grinned foolishly.
“Hehe… don’t know you…”
Looking around, Su Yue noticed that Song Zhizhi’s home was in even worse condition than her own.
“Auntie, please don’t mention it. Zhizhi has helped me a lot too.”
Xu Chunwan suffered from radiation syndrome.
Most of her hair had fallen out.
She was painfully thin and looked exhausted.
Walking only a few steps left her breathless.
She could do little more than stay home and manage household chores.
As for Song Taotao, exposure to an unusually high-radiation zone during childhood had left him mentally disabled.
Embarrassed, Xu Chunwan brushed at her thinning hair.
“Su Yue, I’ll go dig up a mugwort plant for you. Roast some of the leaves at home for disinfection, then replant it.”
Su Yue nodded.
“Thank you, Zhizhi.”
“Oh, don’t be so formal. We’re friends.”
Song Zhizhi moved quickly.
Less than a minute later, she returned carrying a mugwort plant nearly as tall as Su Yue herself.
Su Yue immediately offered the gifts she’d brought.
But Song Zhizhi absolutely refused.
“That’s too valuable! Mugwort isn’t worth anything! Keep this food for yourself!”
Xu Chunwan was equally firm.
“No. Listen to Auntie. Put it away.”
But Su Yue was just as stubborn.
Eventually, Song Zhizhi accepted the gifts with tears in her eyes.
“You’re really a good person, Su Yue.”
Three jujube leaves and two near-expiration biscuits.
Used carefully, they could feed her family for three days.
Of course, Su Yue wasn’t simply being generous.
She had her own reasons.
Song Zhizhi’s family was small.
Her mother suffered from radiation syndrome but could still manage household tasks.
Her brother might be mentally impaired, but he was physically strong.
Most importantly—
Leaving Su Xing home alone all day was becoming increasingly dangerous.
Perhaps, after observing their character for a while, it would be possible to move the two families closer together.
That way, when she and Song Zhizhi went scavenging, Su Xing could stay with Xu Chunwan.
Song Zhizhi’s house was damaged, but they had enough bedding to survive the winter.
Barely.
As for Su Yue’s neighborhood, the only nearby family was Aunt Yang’s.
The abandoned house on the other side had stood empty for years.
Part of the roof had already collapsed.
No one lived there anymore.
If it could be repaired and Song Zhizhi’s family moved in…
Both families would be much safer.