Chen Yunhao, who had taken a riot fork from the vehicle’s trunk, and Nurse Fan Xiaoqiu—already anxious and rushing—quickly caught up.
They were delayed by less than a minute.
When they walked from outside the meeting room toward the office area, they happened to pass by the deputy police chief and his team.
And in the next breath—
Under the torrential rain, the police were locked in a struggle with villagers, screaming and grappling.
Inside the rooms, township cadres were being dragged and bitten by villagers, and the sounds of screaming echoed nonstop.
Chen Yunhao’s hands holding the riot fork trembled slightly. A buzzing sound filled his head.
Instinctively, he raised his phone with one hand and started recording.
Beside him, the nurse sister, trembling, pointed toward the meeting room.
Through the open door, dozens of villagers lay scattered on the ground. Their bodies suddenly twitched violently, as if electrocuted—and then, in bizarre postures, they slowly stood up.
“…Zom… zombies…”
Chen Yunhao’s pupils contracted. His heart rate spiked. Adrenaline surged through his body. He was trembling all over.
As a medical worker, Fan Xiaoqiu was even more sensitive to this horror-movie-like scene.
She screamed:
“They’ve risen from the dead!!!”
Without even a second of hesitation, she turned and ran!
Her white figure plunged into the dark rainy night, heading straight for the nearest ambulance.
Chen Yunhao’s mind went blank—and he ran after her.
Panic spreads like a virus. Several police officers who had been barely holding their ground saw the man and woman screaming past them, followed by dozens of convulsing villagers rising and chasing them.
Their brains short-circuited.
Without thinking, they dragged up the fallen deputy station chief and ran.
Chen Yunhao ran out into the courtyard, then suddenly remembered his colleagues were still inside.
His mind was chaos. No time to think—he turned back again, sprinting toward the office building from another side of the yard, screaming in despair:
“It’s zombies!!! Run!!! Uncle Li! Uncle Luo! Brother Zhang! Run!!!”
But inside—it was already total chaos.
Blood and flesh everywhere.
Through blurred vision—whether rain or tears, he couldn’t tell—images flashed through his mind.
Zombie movies he had watched.
Zombie games he had played.
Zombie novels he had read.
Scenes of people being bitten and turning flashed like exploding fireworks.
He used to mock characters in those stories for being stupid.
He used to confidently argue online that in a zombie apocalypse, you had to be ruthless, decisive, that “soft-hearted people die first,” that survival required cold logic.
But now—
What if… what if this was just a mutated rabies outbreak?
He was alone. In the dark rain. In unfamiliar territory.
Where could he run?
Could he really leave everyone behind?
And if he did… how would he explain it to his colleagues later?
Gritting his teeth, Chen Yunhao stuffed his phone into his pocket and rushed in, swinging the riot baton to push away the nearest figure that was biting down on Uncle Li—
His phone, still recording video, was jostled in his pocket.
The recording ended, and due to movement and accidental touch on the screen, the video—still unlocked and waterproof—was automatically:
Saved → Shared → Forwarded to the most recently accessed WeChat work group.
At the township government duty room, staff member Tu Mingxiao opened the work group chat and saw a 40-second video.
It was common for field staff to send photos and videos to the group, so she instinctively opened it.
In an instant—
The footage hit her like a shockwave.
Boom!
Lightning flashed. The duty room lost power.
Her colleague Gu Lili muttered something and leaned over to look at her frozen face and phone screen.
A moment later—
Both girls and the voice from the video screamed in unison:
“F***!!! AHHHHHH!!! IT REALLY LOOKS LIKE ZOMBIES!!!”
Inside the township Party Secretary’s office, Secretary Zhou’s phone played a robotic female voice:
“The number you dialed is temporarily unavailable…”
Chen Yunhao’s phone could not be reached.
The deputy police chief could not be reached.
The situation was unknown.
Secretary Zhou closed his eyes and gave himself a few seconds.
Countless possibilities collided in his mind:
A riot? Unlikely—the township had always had stable relations between officials and civilians.
Mass poisoning? Also unlikely—no industrial plants, no shared meal tonight.
Then the injured Secretary Huang… who, within half an hour, also started biting people…
Rabies mutation?!
Knock knock knock—
Apart from the duty room staff, all township cadres rushed toward the office, crowding outside the door, tense and anxious.
When Deputy Mayor Zhang had set off earlier, Secretary Zhou had already recalled all remaining cadres back to the township government for standby.
Most of them were now gathered here.
Secretary Zhou opened his bloodshot eyes and took a deep breath.
He was the core of the entire township. He had to stay calm and ensure the safety of all residents.
No hesitation. No panic. No fear.
He began issuing orders:
“The time from Secretary Huang’s first call to the current video is approximately 34 minutes. Based on current information, we preliminarily assess this as a mutated rabies virus.”
“Director Xiao, call Deputy Mayor Deng. Tell them not to enter the village office—park outside and observe. Coordinate with police depending on situation. Also, inform the group chat: no one is allowed to share any videos or information publicly.”
The group chat was already full of villagers and cadres asking what was happening.
“Deputy Secretary Wang, contact the Political and Legal Committee. Request special police and armed police support from the county. At the same time, open the emergency supply warehouse and move medical supplies here.”
“Deputy Secretary Lin, draft a brief report within 50 characters for the county Party Committee, government office, and emergency command center.”
“Deputy Mayor Hou, forward the video to the higher-level health authorities. Prepare isolation rooms immediately. Compile rabies prevention guidelines and distribute to all village groups.”
“Organizational Officer Zhu, notify all villages to monitor evacuees’ health conditions. Ask about recent animal bites or scratches. Separate any suspicious individuals. Coordinate with publicity department to control rumors and prevent panic.”
Everyone immediately left to carry out orders.
Then someone raised a hand:
“Secretary Zhou, lightning may have damaged the signal tower. We can’t view the village office or surrounding area via the surveillance system…”
Just as he spoke, thunder roared again.
Even if technicians were on the tower, stable communication was no longer guaranteed.
Secretary Zhou paused.
“Comrade Zhao, contact telecom personnel and stabilize communication as much as possible…”
Before he finished, another series of thunderclaps struck.
He exhaled slowly.
“Director Wei, gather all retired military personnel among township cadres. Open the armory. Distribute walkie-talkies and riot equipment. Bring drone surveillance units used for forest fire prevention. Head immediately to Tashui Village Office. After arrival, do not rush in. First use drones to assess the situation and meet Deputy Mayor Deng.”
Director Wei was a thin, short man—responsible for armed forces affairs—but actually a civilian cadre transferred from the county government. His expertise was writing documents, not combat.
Secretary Zhou looked at him.
Then added:
“Old Mao, you go with Director Wei.”
Old Mao was a former armed forces director—tall, strong, muscular, with real military experience. A veteran who could run ten kilometers without breaking a sweat even in his fifties.
A classic contrast: one weak in physical ability, one strong.
This pairing slightly eased Secretary Zhou’s tension.
A group of seven veterans stepped forward and left with Wei and Old Mao.
Next, flood control staff raised their hands:
“Secretary Zhou, rainfall is still continuing. The upstream hydroelectric station is still discharging water. Flow has exceeded safety limits. The dam may overflow within 20 minutes. The road to the dam is already closed.”
Transportation staff followed:
“Several sections of the highway have collapsed. Ambulances from the county are stuck en route. We may need local cadres familiar with the terrain to guide them through mountain paths. Reinforcements won’t arrive quickly.”
Secretary Zhou’s face remained expressionless.
He took a few deep drags from his cigarette and several sips of strong tea.
Then he said calmly:
“All personnel return to their posts and maintain contact with higher authorities.”
“Emergency office, fix the backup power system.”
“Security office, wake up all supermarket owners in town and prepare for requisition of supplies.”
“Office staff, bring out the emergency response plan. We are preparing for tomorrow’s disaster relief operations.”
Hearing that even tomorrow’s arrangements were being made, everyone gradually steadied themselves and returned to their posts.
The group chat once again flooded with dark humor memes about survival, exhaustion, and endless overtime.
After everyone left, Secretary Zhou finally rubbed his face hard.
Now, in addition to the suspected rabies mutation outbreak, there was also red flood and geological disaster warning.
Heavy rain could trigger landslides and mudslides at any moment. Communications could fail at any time.
He silently repeated to himself:
Calm down. The county has already been notified. Within two hours, provincial and municipal emergency departments will also know. As long as tonight stabilizes, reinforcements will arrive tomorrow.