allendalepharm Chapter 45 Seeking Help
Chapter 45 Seeking Help
After replacing all the zombies, Lu Chen turned around, clapped his hands at the huge crowd in front of him, and raised his voice, saying, "Lunch should be ready by now. Let's all go upstairs and have a good meal."
The sound echoed in the open space in front of Building 3. The 46 survivors who had just been rescued were silent for a moment, and then their faces almost simultaneously lit up with joy.
Several young people standing in the front row grinned on the spot, while a woman in the back row holding a child suddenly had tears in her eyes and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
It's important to understand that not everyone has food stored at home. In the seven days following the arrival of the Red Moon, quite a few people did indeed stockpile supplies based on online rumors, but a considerable number of others didn't take it seriously and went to work and ordered takeout as usual.
When Lu Chen kicked open the door this morning, a tall, thin young man was squatting in the corner. His lips were dry and white, and he spoke weakly. When asked when he ate his last meal before the apocalypse, he said that he ate half a pack of instant noodles the day before yesterday at noon. It was dry because there was no hot water.
So even if Lu Chen just casually handed out a few compressed biscuits, these people would be extremely grateful, let alone a formal lunch.
"Thank you, Captain!" someone shouted from the crowd, followed by a chorus of thanks.
Lu Chen stood on the steps, his expression unchanged, only nodding slightly, but the warm current coming from his left wrist made him quite satisfied.
This is what he wanted.
When we went to Building 4 to rescue people in the morning, we received a wave of gratitude for every family we rescued. The gratitude for surviving such a disaster was the strongest and of the highest quality.
With these scattered expressions of gratitude, plus the pre-meal ritual led by Gao Yuan in the morning, the meteorite imprint's energy level has reached about 40%.
During lunch, Gao Yuan will organize a pre-meal gratitude gathering, and there will be another meal in the evening. Based on today's pace, completing the second reinforcement tonight is almost a certainty.
As he was pondering these things, he turned around to lead the team back. Just then, a hoarse shout suddenly came from Building 5 not far away.
"Help...this way! Help!"
Lu Chen immediately turned his gaze over. On the 7th floor of Building 5, a window was pushed open more than halfway, and a man was leaning half his body out of the window, holding a large red cloth in his hand and waving it back and forth frantically.
The sunlight shining on the red cloth was particularly dazzling, and it could be clearly seen from across the entire neighborhood.
Cheng Qihang waved the red cloth in his hand as wide as he could, his eyes fixed on the crowd at the entrance of Building 3 in the distance, especially the young man standing on the steps surrounded by a group of fully armed zombies.
His heart pounded in his chest, his knuckles turned white as he gripped the red cloth, and the same thought kept replaying in his mind: Look over here, please look over here.
In fact, when Lu Chen and his group came out this morning, the elite zombie was circling around the community square and garden, summoning its kind. More than 40 zombies followed behind it in a grand procession. The commotion had already alerted all the survivors still alive in the buildings.
Cheng Qihang was hiding behind the curtains when he saw the elite zombie standing by the fountain, roaring with its head up. More than 40 zombies gathered from all directions, crowding the small garden in a dark mass. His legs went weak on the spot.
Only one thought remained in his mind... Oh no, these zombies are about to sweep through the building.
He could only pray that the zombies weren't coming for his building.
Then he saw the leading elite zombie lead the horde into Building 3. At that moment, he silently mourned for the people in Building 3.
But just five minutes later, an unbelievable scene unfolded.
He saw several people walk out of the unit door of Building 3. The one walking in front was a young man wearing a dark short-sleeved shirt. He looked calm and walked at a leisurely pace.
Behind him, a group of zombies followed obediently. They were dressed in long sleeves and trousers, with scarves around their necks and motorcycle helmets on their heads. They held kitchen knives and cleavers in their hands, lined up in two rows, as quiet as a silent army.
Cheng Qihang was stunned.
He rubbed his eyes and peered through the curtain seam for a long time.
That's right, those zombies were following people's commands. Wherever the young man went, they went too, and some zombies even took the initiative to lead the way.
He had lived for over thirty years and seen many movies, but he had never even imagined a scene where a real person commanded zombies.
By the time he came to his senses, the group had split into two teams, heading towards Building 4 and Building 2 respectively.
Cheng Qihang pondered for a while. People who can control zombies must be superhumans.
He had heard about Project Dawn on the radio yesterday and knew that people with superpowers could save lives in exchange for military merits. But he dared not speak up rashly; who knew what kind of people these were? What if they were even more ruthless than zombies?
So he kept observing!
He watched the two groups enter buildings 4 and 2, listening to the occasional roars of zombies and the clanging of metal coming from inside, silently counting the time in his mind.
More than two hours later, the two groups emerged one after the other, led by the same two people, each followed by a large group of survivors. There were elderly people and children, men and women, and everyone's face showed a mixture of disbelief and relief at surviving the ordeal.
They really are saving lives!
Cheng Qihang could no longer sit still, which led to the scene where he waved the red cloth and took the initiative to ask for help.
Lu Chen's gaze lingered on the window on the 7th floor of Building 5 for two seconds, and then he saw more figures moving behind the windows.
On the 9th floor of building 4, someone opened a window a crack, revealing half of their face.
On the 12th floor of Building 5, someone timidly held up a red T-shirt behind the curtains, not daring to shout loudly, but just swaying it slightly.
On the third floor of Building 6, a thin, bony hand reached out of a window, clutching a piece of red cloth that was hard to tell if it was a towel or a handkerchief, which fluttered in the wind.
Some people were waving, some were observing silently, and some were hiding behind the curtains with only half an eye showing.
Lu Chen instantly understood. The commotion this morning had alerted everyone still alive in the entire neighborhood.
These people are observing, judging, and seeing whether this team that can command zombies is a savior or a greater threat.
What he needs to do now is give them a clear signal.
Lu Chen thought for a moment, then took two steps forward and stood by the flower bed at the entrance of Building 3. This was an excellent spot, as he could be seen from several buildings throughout the complex.
He raised his hands to his mouth like a megaphone, took a deep breath, and then shouted loudly.
"The rest of you survivors, don't worry... I've joined Project Dawn and will come to your rescue as soon as possible!"
His voice was quite loud. On the fourth day of the apocalypse, the entire city was shrouded in a depressing silence. Everyone was walking on tiptoe and speaking in hushed tones.
His shout bounced back and forth among the empty apartment buildings, echoing against the walls and reverberating throughout the entire Xiangyang residential area.
Even the zombies wandering the streets outside the residential area heard the commotion, and several of them turned their heads to look towards the entrance of the residential area.
Lu Chen ignored them. He continued shouting, "Survivors who want to be rescued, hang a red cloth on your window so I know there are people inside... Rescue will begin this afternoon!"
Hanging a red cloth is a simple and intuitive standard.
When we go door-to-door again in the afternoon, we won't have to knock on doors one by one to make judgments, which will improve efficiency even further.
After shouting, Lu Chen waved in the direction of Cheng Qihang, the gesture casual but firm.
Cheng Qihang saw this action from the window on the 7th floor. He paused for a moment while waving the red cloth in his hand, then waved it twice more before pulling back out of the window.
Lu Chen turned around, preparing to lead the team back to Building 3, when he caught a glimpse of someone waving a red cloth diagonally above his head.