"Coming towards us? Got it, Iām heading to the surveillance room now!"
Grabbing the walkie-talkie for a quick reply, Zhang Su said to Fu Weijun, "Iāll go ask about the flaying matter later, um, Xiaowang, a little help here, please escort Dr. Fu back to the lab, Iāve got to go!"
With that, Zhang Su handed the gun back to Zhao Dezhu and headed towards the surveillance room.
"Youāre here? Brother Su, look, sheās looking around cautiously as she heads towards us, seems like sheās planning to come up the mountain!"
Wu Lue had already zoomed in on the surveillance screen that showed the direction of the self-constructed road. A figure in dark gray clothes was wandering down the road in a strange, distracted manner.
"Indeed, judging by her shape, she seems to be a minor, a girl. What the hell is this? You said she came from the south?"
Zhang Su scrutinized the screen with a furrowed brow.
"Yeah, I watched the tape several times, she definitely appeared from the left side of the road (south). Could she be a survivor from the city?"
Wu Lue asked curiously.
Qi Xiaoshuai exaggeratedly said, "Oh come on, dude, are you saying this little girl is a superwoman? Came all the way from the city alone? Forget about her, even we would struggle to do that alone!"
Wu Lue was speechless; the journey from the city to Celestial Horse Island was nearly twenty kilometers. In todayās environment, traversing it on foot would be incredibly challenging!
After months, zombies rarely appeared alone. When they did, they came in hordes. Even if they occasionally encountered one or two, they moved fast, making the combat ability of a little girl imaginable.
"Hereās my analysis!" Qi Xiaoshuai stroked his chin, saying, "She might be a child from a nearby village, hiding in her village before, and only came out when she had nothing left to eat or drink."
Wu Lue threw up his hands and said, "Well, itās a bit more plausible than my guess, just a little bit. So, Brother Su, what should we do? Itās obvious she intends to come up the mountain and will certainly discover our camp."
Zhang Su pondered for a moment, furrowing his brow, then called Wang Longzhong to the surveillance room via the walkie-talkie.
"Brother Su, what do you need?"
Wang Longzhong came quickly, arriving at the surveillance room in under two minutes.
"Itās clearer now than before. Come here, Old Wang, see if you recognize this person!"
Zhang Su pointed to the screen.
Wang Longzhong leaned in for a closer look and then immediately shook his head, "Donāt know her. Our village previously received many survivors from nearby villages, but none matched this girlās physique. Unfamiliar!"
Before his nephew Wang Xingui became the leader, Wang Longzhong had thoughts of leading United Village, so he had been covertly observing everyone, remembering the survivors in the village clearly.
"Since sheās not a survivor from United Village, letās leave her be for now. Maybe sheāll just leave after checking out the foot of the mountain. Weāll deal with it if she actually comes up!"
Zhang Su turned around, pulled over a chair, sat down, and handed out cigarettes to everyone while watching the surveillance video and discussing the Cyan Dragon Corpsās grain collection with them.
About ten minutes later, Wu Lueās expression suddenly tightened, "Not good, Brother Su, two zombies approaching from the north have spotted her, and sheās running towards the mountain..."
The girl, previously wandering along the self-constructed road, noticed the zombies. After some hesitation, she started running towards Celestial Horse Island, seemingly in a panicked state.
"Iāll go check it out!"
Zhang Su stood up and exited the surveillance room.
Bang, bang, bang.
As Zhang Su strolled towards the mountain gate, he heard the distinct pounding on the far-off gate constructed from steel roofing and pipes.
"Little girl, stop knocking. Where are you from? Are there no adults with you?"
Zhang Ya stood behind the wall, communicating with the girl outside through a window the size of a human head.
"Sister, Iām from Guanzhuang. I got separated from my uncle and aunt when escaping two days ago. Monsters are chasing me. Can I come in and hide?"
The girlās voice wasnāt clear but rather hoarse, somewhat unpleasant, and tinged with a sobbing tone.
This voice made Zhang Ya feel especially sorry for her, without even having to think. It was clear she had suffered much fright recently, her throat hoarse from shouting. However, the girlās plea put Zhang Ya in a difficult position.
If it were up to her, she would open the gate and let the girl into the camp. But there was a rule that no outsiders could enter without Zhang Suās approval!
"Little sister, donāt worry, let me... Oh, Brother Su! Youāre just in time..."
Zhang Ya was about to grab the walkie-talkie to consult Zhang Su, but just then, he arrived with her boyfriend Wang Xin.
"Brother Su, thereās a little girl outside the gate asking for help. She should be the one Wu Lue mentioned earlier!"
Zhang Ya quickly reported the situation, hoping to get the girl into the camp quickly, as the zombies would soon be upon them; while they posed no threat to the camp, they would surely harm the little girl.
"I saw her!"
Zhang Su nodded, then approached the gate and called outside, "Where are you from? Whatās your name, and how old are you?"
"Hello, Uncle, my name is Su Xiaoya. Iām from Guanzhuang, 15 years old. I got separated from my uncle and aunt two days ago when escaping!"
The girl explained sorrowfully, her tone filled with loneliness and grievance.
"Brother Su, let her in first. She spotted zombies at the foot of the mountain, probably..."
Zhang Ya was a bit anxious.
Wang Xin gave her a look, and Zhang Ya pursed her lips and stayed silent.
"Guanzhuang? Where exactly is that located, which township does it belong to, and what villages are nearby?"
Zhang Su showed no intention of opening the gate and instead asked more questions. If the zombies came, they came; itās just two of them, nothing to worry about.
Su Xiaoya seemed a bit rushed and whimpered, "Guanzhuang... Guanzhuang is somewhere south, a dozen minutes by car? I donāt know which township it falls under, but nearby... I know thereās a Yangpo Village, and, uh, more..."
Zhang Su and the others exchanged glances, each raising an eyebrow. Just then, the girl let out a scream.
"Ah, the monsters are here! Help! Save me!"
Su Xiaoya urgently knocked on the door.
"Brother Su, even if thereās a problem, we should handle it ourselves and not just watch her fed to the zombies..."
Zhang Ya pleaded with Zhang Su.
"Let her in first!"
Zhang Su also felt that no matter what, they couldnāt just let her die, though Zhang Yaās line of thinking puzzled him a bitāwhy do it yourself when zombies could do it for you...
On his command, Wang Xin and Zhang Ya worked in tandem to open the gate, one releasing the latch, the other pulling the door.
The iron gate swung open, and a figure darted into the camp, stopping and turning around with a terrified look towards the steel door, pounding her chest. Her face was pale, crisscrossed with grime.
Howl, howl, howl!
The two zombies soon lunged at the iron gate, but before they could start banging, two steel rods stabbed out through holes. After much training, almost everyone in the camp could effectively use the holes to stab zombies, excluding the newly joined villagers of United Village.
Zhang Su stood aside, calmly observing Su Xiaoya. She was at most around 160cm tall, not considered short but not too tall either. Stalks clung to her messy hair, her tattered down jacket was not just leaking down feathers, but also covered in weeds, dirt, and dust.
He looked down, scrutinizing her clothing, and then his eyes glinted.
"Thank you, brother and sister, and uncle!"
After Zhang Ya and Wang Xin finished off the zombies, Su Xiaoya graciously bowed, but her face turned troubled as she touched her empty stomach, asking hopefully, "Could I please have a bit of food? Iām really hungry."
"Iāll take her to get something to eat, you two stay here!"
Zhang Su nodded to Zhang Ya and Wang Xin, then jerked his head towards the camp, saying, "Letās go, little beauty."
Su Xiaoya seemed a bit afraid of Zhang Su. When he spoke to her, she pressed her lips together and nodded nervously, occasionally casting pitiful looks at Zhang Ya.
"Go ahead, itās okay, Uncle Zhang is a good person."
Zhang Ya smiled to reassure Su Xiaoya.
She wasnāt someone who lacked vigilance, but she couldnāt perceive any threat from the little girl.
"So, tell me, where are you really from? We saved your life, so you owe us the truth. Otherwise, Iāll just reclaim the life I saved!"
As they walked towards Little Lucky, Zhang Su suddenly said coldly.