Just as they had a rough understanding of the situation, five minutes later, the internet completely cut out.
No electricity, no water, no internet.
The night wind blew in through the half-open window, sending shivers down their spines. Along with the wind came even more terrifying and desperate screams than before, echoing the moment the internet went down.
Jiang Zhu stood up and closed the dormitory window.
Although it couldn’t block out all the noise, most of the sounds were muffled outside. The atmosphere in the dormitory grew tense and oppressive, making it hard to breathe.
“What’s the situation now? Are we just sitting here waiting to die?” the stern-faced looking man broke the silence, asking.
Yan Chen, who was closest to him, smacked the back of his head and scolded, “What kind of nonsense are you talking about? Of course, we have to find a way to survive!”
“Yeah, yeah, waiting to die is too passive. Shouldn’t we hurry up and think of something?”
The simple-minded looking man stood up, looking anxious yet trying to comfort others in a somewhat silly way.
“The best plan for now is not to go outside.”
Jiang Zhu spoke up, and everyone turned to look at him. He continued, “We don’t know what’s happening outside. If we rush out recklessly, we might not even last a minute.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
“But what are we going to eat? There aren’t many instant noodles left in the dorm, right?”
The man with a stern face said as he bent down to pull out a wholesale box of instant noodles from under the bed. He counted them and said, “I only have thirty packs left, and they’re all mushroom-flavored. Do you guys like that?”
“I have twenty packs left, pork rib flavor,” the simple-minded looking man mimicked him, also pulling out his box.
Yan Chen scratched his head.
“I only have ten packs left.”
“Spicy and sour flavor,” he added.
Then everyone turned to look at the last remaining “native resident” of the dorm, Jiang Zhu.
Jiang Zhu, who had been lowering his head and scribbling something on a piece of paper, noticed their gazes and looked up, calmly replying, “None. I don’t eat instant noodles.”
Oh, right, everyone remembered. This guy never ate instant noodles.
They exchanged glances, silently conveying the message: So, is this all the food we have?
Tang Tang felt that these people might have overlooked the things she and Yan Chen had just bought and couldn’t help but remind them, “There are also these bags, the food we bought tonight.”
She pointed to the bags she had bought on the table and the two large bags Yan Chen had placed by the door earlier.
“Oh, right! I bought a lot of snacks and bread too!”
Yan Chen suddenly realized, exclaiming excitedly.
The dormitory erupted in brief excitement, but the next second, a few of them caught on.
Tang Tang frowned. Snacks?
Were those two large bags of his filled with snacks?!
She suddenly remembered that because the supermarket had been dark at the time, Yan Chen hadn’t let her go inside with him to shop. She had stood by the entrance, only seeing Yan Chen buying what seemed like a lot of things, including plenty of water. Later, when she asked him if it was all food, he had said, “Of course, it’s all food,” and she had felt reassured.
After all, she and Jiang Zhu were both people who didn’t snack, how could she have imagined that such a tall guy would actually enjoy junk food?
Tang Tang was now filled with regret. If only she had shamelessly followed him back then. She quietly mulled it over on her side.
Meanwhile, the fierce-looking guy on the other side was much more direct, he simply roared right into Yan Chen’s ear.
“Are you an idiot? What did you buy snacks for? Can they fill you up? Huh? Huh?!”
Yan Chen was stunned by his outburst. When he came to his senses, he slapped himself in frustration and cursed, “You’re right, I’m an idiot! What was I thinking buying snacks? Damn it!”
Then he realized something else.
“Wait, hold on! How the hell was I supposed to know something like this would happen? Did you know beforehand?”
He shot the question back at the fierce-looking guy, who scratched his head and fell silent. Then Yan Chen turned to the simple-minded guy.
“Did you know?”
“No,” the guy shook his head.
Yan Chen instinctively wanted to ask Jiang Zhu, but when he saw him still engrossed in writing and sketching, seemingly completely unaware of what was happening around him, probably deep in thought, he decided not to disturb him.
So he shifted his gaze to the only girl in the dorm room.
Tang Tang’s heart skipped a beat.
Was he going to ask her the same question? But she did know. Should she lie? Would her insistence on making him buy something seem suspicious?
Just as Tang Tang was anxiously wondering whether she’d be suspected, Yan Chen spoke up. He didn’t ask Tang Tang at all. Instead, he waved his hand dismissively and continued on his own.
“You definitely don’t know either.”
…False alarm.
Tang Tang breathed a sigh of relief.
After that topic, the dorm fell silent for a moment.
Suddenly, the sound of Jiang Zhu’s pen scratching against paper became more prominent.
The scratching of the pen tip against the paper seemed to carry a naturally soothing power on such a restless night. His figure wasn’t particularly tall, but it was exceptionally slender and pleasing to the eye.
He always seemed this way, calm no matter the situation.
Tang Tang had dated him for three years, and aside from their breakup today, she had never seen him lose his composure.
“By the way, what did you buy?”
The fierce-looking guy spoke up again, turning towards the girl still standing near the door.
Everyone in their dorm, and even the entire school, knew this girl was Jiang Zhu’s girlfriend. Well, ex-girlfriend now, right? What was her name again? Tang Tang, wasn’t it? Sounded a bit odd.
“Me?”
Tang Tang realized someone was talking to her and looked over. It was the fierce-looking guy from earlier, the one who seemed a bit short-tempered.
“Yeah.”
“I bought thirty packs of instant noodles, some chicken legs and eggs, and twenty bottles of water.”
Tang Tang actually wanted to buy more, but the water was too heavy, and buying too much at once might have raised Yan Chen’s suspicions. Looking back now, she was filled with regret.
“Well done!” the fierce-looking guy praised.
Compared to Yan Chen, who had bought several packs of spicy strips and potato chips, Tang Tang was practically a god-tier teammate. At that moment, Jiang Zhu, who had been writing and sketching all along, finally stopped.
“Come take a look. This is my plan for possible escape routes going forward.”
He turned the paper to face the others.
Of course, Yan Chen and the others didn’t hesitate and immediately walked over. But when they gathered around the table, they noticed that Jiang Zhu, who had called them over, hadn’t made a single move. Looking up, they saw him staring straight past them, toward something behind them.
They froze.
A chill crept up their spines, followed by a tingling sensation on their scalps, and their legs began to feel weak.
No way…
Could zombies have gotten in at this moment? Their hearts pounded heavily in their chests, almost too much to bear.
Slowly, they stiffly turned their heads…
***
T/N: Drops chapter. *hide away*
Jiang Zhu & Yan Chen roommate name’s: Thing1, thing2…
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Translated by NightOwll
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