Rebirth: Leading Families to Survive in the Apocalypse-Chapter 351 - : Not Free
Chapter 351: Chapter 351: Not Free
In his view, the people who ran the shops, pawnshops, and cafeterias here were actually the invisible managers of the base.
They controlled the prices within the base and continually attracted survivors to stay by using the word “freedom.” In the end, the wealthy would become wealthier, and the poor would become poorer.
The survivors who went out daily to scavenge for supplies and kill zombies were, in essence, working for these people. They exchanged their cheap labor for a meager amount of food, while the owners of the shops, pawnshops, and cafeterias had access to the best resources, like an endless supply of mutated crystal nuclei.
“Put plainly, the people here are being indirectly ruled, they just don’t realize it yet.”
After hearing Lu Hao’s words, the family all agreed.
“What kind of Freedom Dawn Base is this, if not hidden exploitation?”
Lin Xiuyuan commented that even in the apocalypse, these profiteers were still keen on making money.
Su Jin also lost interest in the base. They simply gave up on the remaining half of their journey and headed straight back to the dormitory building.
“There are zombies up there.”
When they arrived at the base of the dormitory building, Mao Qiqi looked up and said.
“One, two, three…”
It wasn’t Mao Qiqi counting, but rather, in one area of the upper floors, people were continuously turning into zombies.
“…”
So, could people still safely live here?
As a noisy commotion erupted, a man covered in blood at his neck ran down from upstairs, and Lu Hao quickly shielded Lin Yunguo and Li Xiuying with his body.
“Save, save me!”
The man’s hand clutching his neck continued to bleed profusely; it was clear that he was beyond saving.
Whoosh!
A wind blade struck the back of the man’s head, silencing him forever.
Wan Peng came down from the upper floors, approached Su Jin and the others, and asked, “Are you guys alright? Weren’t scared, were you?”
“…”
Scared?
Did they look that fragile?
“Zombies?” Lu Hao asked.
“Yes, but don’t worry, things like this happen almost every few days in the base. They’re just survivors who return from the outside and get bitten. Just kill them, and it’s fine.”
Wan Peng talked about the situation as if it were completely normal, seemingly completely unaware of the dangers.
Bang!
A figure fell from the upper floors to the ground behind the crowd.
“…”
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“This happens every few days?” Su Jin asked incredulously.
Lin Xiuyuan quickly covered Li Xiuying’s eyes, fearing that the gruesome scene would leave a scar on the elderly woman’s psyche, and Lu Hao also stepped in front of Lin Yunguo.
“Ahaha, no big deal, no big deal. A space element ability user will come by later to clean it up,” Wan Peng said.
“…”
The group noticed that, apart from Wan Peng, some people who returned from outside also merely shook their heads and sighed upon seeing this scene, and some even glanced over and went inside, indicating this indeed happened often.
“Where’s Ah Wang?”
Su Jin asked, thinking that Wan Peng would always bring the dog wherever he went.
“He might have been taken out for a walk by my sister. Do you guys want to eat? It’s my treat,” Wan Peng said with a smile.
As people gradually started coming and going more frequently, the group deliberately moved to a vent on the side of the dormitory building to talk. Otherwise, speaking in front of a grotesque corpse would make anyone feel uncomfortable.
It must be said that Su Jin and her companions all felt that the siblings Wan Peng and Wan Li were very kind people. In the Apocalypse, who would easily offer to treat others to a meal, especially when they had so many people to care for?
“Little Wan, it seems you and your sister have some ability. Save your money if you can, because you will need a lot of it in the future,” Li Xiuying advised.
She felt that it was not easy for these two young siblings to depend on each other for survival in the Apocalypse, where the base was so exploitative. She truly hoped these young people would be more cautious.
“Here you go.”
Su Jin took out two boxed lunches and handed them to Wan Peng.
“What is this?!”
Wan Peng was surprised as he looked at the two boxed lunches Su Jin handed over. Although they had cooled down, he could still see the rich dishes and the pure white rice through the clear plastic of the lunch boxes.
“We made these on the road earlier, have a taste,” Su Jin said with a smile.
“How could I accept this? You already paid for our travel expenses today, and you still…” Wan Peng hesitated to accept.
“Just take them before someone else sees and it becomes a bother,”
Lin Xiuyuan urged, as it was getting dark and Nie Qing and Lu Hao were standing outside, so nobody saw what Su Jin was holding.
Wan Peng swallowed nervously, stuffing the two boxed lunches into his jacket pockets. His sister, Wan Li, used to be quite particular about food, but since the Apocalypse began, she had been eating dry bread and steamed buns for a long time. If he could improve her meal just once, he would shed his pride!
“Thank you guys,”
Wan Peng, with tears in his eyes, said that this was the first time people in the Apocalypse had shown them kindness.
After saying goodbye to Wan Peng, when Su Jin and her companions returned to their room, they found the padlock at the door had indeed been picked, and in the now-empty room, drawers and bedsprings had been upturned.
“This really is Freedom Base…”
Lin Xiuyuan felt he truly experienced “freedom” here firsthand.
“Let’s take turns resting tonight,”
Su Jin suggested with a frown, obviously referring to entering the Space.
This place was really too unsafe, almost worse than finding a random spot in the wilderness to rest.
“No problem, we have plenty of time, hehe,”
Lin Xiuyuan said, readjusting the bed while he spoke. They could rest for about four days inside the Space.
“If anyone’s tired, they can go in first. Two people staying here should be enough,” Lu Hao suggested.
The group didn’t feel particularly tired, but there were no places to sit in the dormitory, so they all went into the Space, leaving only Su Jin and Lu Hao outside for the time being.
Local Tyrant Gold also curiously wandered around the dormitory, even lifting the curtain to look outside for a while.
Su Jin and Lu Hao then reinforced the door lock inside the room. Fortunately, the lock inside was still functional, otherwise they really would have had to change rooms.
At night, when it was Lin Xiuyuan and Nie Qing’s turn to keep watch, they indeed heard someone tampering with the door lock.
Yan San and Song Lian and their group had been watching this group at the base cafeteria. They had kept watch around the dormitory since early evening, waiting for the middle of the night when everyone was asleep to sneak in quietly.
Their skills in theft were very refined by now, and often those who were robbed woke up early in the morning only to realize their places had been burglarized, so they were quite brazen.
In the moment the door lock was touched, Lin Xiuyuan and Nie Qing noticed immediately. The two were fully rested from sleeping in the Space and were watching a tablet with the volume down very low…
Lin Xiuyuan, with a smirk, waited excitedly in the darkness, like a cat waiting for a mouse to take the bait.
After Yan San and Song Lian tiptoed into the dark room, they unexpectedly bumped into a cold wall.
This, this is an ice wall?!
“What’s going on?”
Yan San, confused, looked at Song Lian and the others.
Bang!
A gust of wind brushed over their heads, slamming the door completely shut behind them.
