Surviving the Apocalypse with the Young Miss - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Scared?

A fact people often mentioned was that Song Ge’s parents were both dead; she was an orphan.

So, she lives in a place like this all by herself?

A windowless basement with zero ventilation—save for half a window that only let in light but couldn’t be opened a tiny single bed, and an old desk. On the desk sat a water jug, upside-down bowls and chopsticks, and a jumbled mess of charging cables, pliers, and tape.

Tong Xiangyu felt a wave of complex emotions. She thought: For a seventeen-year-old girl with no parents to survive in a big city on her own and manage to rent even a basement like this… it couldn’t have been easy, could it?

The two drank their water in silence, and the room grew quiet.

Although Tong Xiangyu was skilled at social interaction, that “social” circle certainly didn’t include someone like Song Ge. Conversations only work when there’s a response, and Song Ge was clearly not someone who enjoyed giving them.

Every time she spoke, Song Ge wore a face that screamed “You’re so annoying.”

Tong Xiangyu clutched her glass, wishing she could drink from it forever just so she wouldn’t have to open her mouth.

Song Ge had no idea what was going on in Tong Xiangyu’s head.

She walked to the window. Although it was only a half-window, it offered a decent view of the situation outside.

The soundproofing in the basement was poor. From time to time, she could hear the sound of cars colliding or exploding. Many people on the street were screaming and fleeing in a panic; some were snatched and bitten by monsters right as they pulled out their phones to make a call.

Song Ge assessed the situation. The fact that this was breaking out in different locations at roughly the same time meant the “virus” had already spread while everyone was unaware. It had infected many people who were in the incubation period, unnoticed. Now that it had “gone live,” the situation was grim because the monsters were unkillable and highly infectious.

And they were all completely unprepared…

The most important thing now was to find the source of the virus. As long as the source could be contained, there was still room for a turnaround.

Song Ge thought with characteristic detachment: In a time like this, the country will definitely send rescue teams.

She withdrew her gaze and turned to see Tong Xiangyu standing perfectly still, clutching her water glass. Song Ge blinked; she had been so lost in thought she’d forgotten about the presence of this “Golden Young Mistress.”

“Sit wherever you like. The stool or the bed is fine,” Song Ge said. “Don’t worry about it being dirty. Even if rescue comes, it won’t be this early. Unless you plan on standing like that all day.”

Hearing this, Tong Xiangyu couldn’t help but think: This person is truly terrible at talking.

Just as she was about to say “It’s not dirty here,” she saw Song Ge look away.

Song Ge pulled out her phone to check the trending searches.

Sure enough, there were four or five topics related to Kecheng, all at the top of the list, followed by a dark red [HOT] tag.

The first search result included a video. It claimed that a large number of patients infected with a mutated rabies virus had suddenly appeared in Kecheng, biting people indiscriminately on the streets. Even the arrival of the police was useless—the infected bit the officers, too. They looked completely insane, and more importantly, they couldn’t be killed by gunfire.

In the comments section, many people were saying: Isn’t this just a zombie virus?! It’s exactly like the movies!

Song Ge exited that search and clicked the second one. This one featured an insider’s leak, claiming that half a month ago, the city’s main hospital had admitted several patients with rabies-like symptoms for treatment and research. At the time, the patients were merely manic, irritable, and aggressive. However, it wasn’t long before they lost all reason and began biting everything. Their teeth had gradually “animalized,” turning into sharp, predatory fangs.

Song Ge wanted to see more related information. She clicked on the profile of the blogger who spoke with such certainty, only to find the message: “This user has been deactivated.”

When she went back to the main page, she realized the entire trending topic had vanished.

Song Ge refreshed the page again. It was as if the [HOT] searches she had just seen were mere hallucinations; the list was now filled with discussions about TV stars and idols.

Tong Xiangyu carefully smoothed her school skirt and sat down on the small stool. Seeing that Song Ge was too busy to notice her, she finally dared to curiously survey her surroundings.

The room was small and easy to take in at a glance.

Soon, Tong Xiangyu noticed several boxes of instant noodles and bottled water stacked in the corner, along with compressed biscuits, dried meat, and sausages.

The quantity was extraordinary.

Song Ge lived alone, and there was a supermarket just a hundred meters away. Why would she stockpile so much food?

Just as she was wondering, she felt Song Ge’s gaze on her. She immediately looked away, feigning an innocent, “spaced-out” look to cover her tracks.

Song Ge didn’t call out her clumsy acting. She asked, “Did you bring your phone?”

Tong Xiangyu “snapped out of it” and replied, “Yes.”

“Check the trending searches.”

“Okay.” Tong Xiangyu reached into her pockets but found them empty. Her face turned pale. She stood up and turned both pockets of her uniform inside out, then looked at Song Ge with a panicked expression.

Song Ge: “You lost it?”

Tong Xiangyu’s voice trailed into a sob. “How could I? I clearly called my driver from the classroom!”

“If it’s lost, it’s lost.” Song Ge remained emotionally stable. After a thought, she handed over her own phone. “You remember your family’s numbers, right? Try calling again.”

Tong Xiangyu fell silent.

Seeing her reaction, Song Ge asked, “You don’t remember them?”

Tong Xiangyu felt the sting of Song Ge’s perceived mockery. Feeling embarrassed, she whispered a defense: “You can open the navigation app and search for my dad’s company. The front desk number will be there.”

“I don’t have a navigation app.”

“You can download one.”

“I don’t have enough data.”

Tong Xiangyu muttered something under her breath.

Even with her sharp hearing, Song Ge didn’t catch it. “What was that?”

Tong Xiangyu summoned her courage and repeated: “You had enough data to browse the trending searches…”

Song Ge laughed out of sheer annoyance. How is that even the same thing?

Setting the phone issue aside for a moment, Song Ge pocketed her phone and sat on the edge of the bed. Looking at the beautiful girl whose face was now flushed with embarrassment, she said, “Weren’t you the one who wanted to stay back and save people?”

The moment Song Ge mentioned this, the memory of the scene flashed back. Tong Xiangyu’s flushed face instantly turned deathly white.

She felt a wave of nausea. Stumbling back two steps, she bumped into the wall.

Tong Xiangyu felt panicked, but she was also deeply confused. She had witnessed such a terrifying scene and experienced such horror—she should have been in despair. Why was it that while she was talking to Song Ge, she hadn’t even thought about those things?

Tong Xiangyu couldn’t help but look at Song Ge and ask, “You… why aren’t you afraid at all?”

Song Ge said, “I am.”

Tong Xiangyu: “…I can’t tell at all.”

Song Ge scoffed. “Being afraid doesn’t always show on your face. Besides, showing it does nothing but make you more scared. If you have the energy for that, you might as well use it to find a way out.”

Tong Xiangyu hesitated.

Song Ge: “If you have something to say, just say it.”

“You… you ran away back then…”

“I did.” Song Ge sat on the bed, leaning against the wall, looking at the “Great Bodhisattva” Miss Tong with a frank gaze. “What? Am I not allowed to run?”

“But you clearly could have saved them at that time…”

“I already tried to save them.”

Tong Xiangyu couldn’t help but argue: “No you didn’t!” She clearly just ran away without hesitation!

Song Ge replied, “The moment I finished making the ‘escape route,’ I asked you all if you wanted to jump.”

Tong Xiangyu was silenced. She remembered. She had heard it, but Chu Qiao had said Song Ge was crazy they were on the third floor; wouldn’t they fall to their deaths?

Song Ge looked at Tong Xiangyu’s pale face and red eyes. Recalling how she’d found the girl cowering alone behind the tree, shivering with fear, it was clear that even worse things had happened after she left.

Song Ge didn’t say more. She stood up. “You come sit over here. I’m going to wash my hands.”

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