Chapter 42 Decisive Killing

Chapter 42: Decisive and Ruthless

The two watched as Dong Mingyue headed upstairs, and then followed after her.

Dong Mingyue knocked on the door, and Wang斌 soon emerged, holding a knife in his hand: "You should thank the heavens just for being alive, and yet you've come back to throw your life away?"

Wang斌's mother followed closely behind, also wielding a hatchet: "My son worked hard to go out and get a little food, all of which was wasted by a freeloading parasite like you. We were kind enough to spare your life earlier, and still you dare to come back?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Dong Mingyue drew her gun and cocked it. "This is my home, an apartment my parents bought for me. What the hell do you think you are?" She aimed the muzzle right at Wang斌's head.

Wang斌 was startled for a moment, but then he laughed. "Oh come on, Dong Mingyue, where did you even get a toy gun to scare me with? Go ahead, shoot! If you don't dare to kill me, just wait and see how I torture you to death."

With that, Wang斌 reached out to grab Dong Mingyue's hand.

Without any hesitation, Dong Mingyue pulled the trigger. The shot hit Wang斌 squarely in the head, though it was slightly off-center—one of his eyeballs burst right out of its socket, and blood exploded across the scene in an instant.

A look of disbelief and sheer terror twisted across Wang斌's ruined face as he fell backward.

Horrified, Wang斌's mother rushed to slam the door shut, but it jammed against her son's corpse. Screaming in panic, she shrieked, "Murder! Murder!"

Dong Mingyue did not hesitate. She picked up Wang斌's dropped knife, stepped inside, and struck Wang斌's mother twice. "You aren't even worthy of wasting the bullet my best friend gave me."

She then bent down, confirmed neither of them had any pulse, and dragged their bodies out of the room, hauling them down toward the ground floor.

Seeing that Dong Mingyue was completely unharmed and capable of handling the aftermath herself, Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng finally set their minds at ease and quietly departed.

On their way back, the two caught sight of a towering billboard displaying an advertisement for Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake pre-orders at some bakery.

That was when Gu Pan realized that the Mid-Autumn Festival had already passed days ago. How time flew—the apocalypse had been going on for this long already.

Since their return path passed by Guo Gang's place, the two decided to drop by for a visit.

Arriving outside Guo Gang's door, Lu Ruisheng knocked.

Guo Gang opened the door himself, overjoyed to see them. "If you guys hadn't come, I was planning to head over to your place in a couple of days anyway. Come on in."

Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng stepped inside, and Guo Gang quickly shut the door behind them.

Their apartment was quite warm. A brazier sat on the floor, and a large pile of firewood was stacked in the living room.

Once they sat down, Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng removed their hats and gloves, placing them close by.

Guo Gang's wife, Zhang Xiumin, brought them cups of hot water. "Have some hot water to warm up. Fortunately, since we have elderly family and a child, we're never short on thermoses. In this freezing weather, that's a huge advantage—we always have hot water to drink."

Taking the cups, the two replied, "Thank you, Sister-in-law."

With a broad smile, Guo Gang turned to Lu Ruisheng. "The day before yesterday, I discovered a root cellar in the back kitchen of a restaurant not far from here. The kitchen had been rummaged through numerous times, but somehow nobody noticed that cellar. It's packed with Chinese cabbages, potatoes, and radishes, and none of them are frozen solid. I was just wondering how to bring some over to you without letting them freeze when you guys showed up."

Lu Ruisheng said, "We still have food for now. If that cellar is well-hidden, we shouldn't take everything out all at once. Once brought out into the air, they'll freeze immediately. Being able to access fresh vegetables straight from the cellar all winter long would be a great thing."

Guo Gang nodded. "That was my thought as well, but I was definitely worried about someone else stumbling upon it."

Gu Pan thought for a moment before suggesting, "Just drag a couple of corpses to block the entrance. Once ordinary people see dead bodies, they won't go in."

Guo Gang slapped his thigh and stood up. "Now that's a brilliant idea! Junior sister-in-law has a sharp mind. Why don't Ruisheng come with me to stage the scene, and then we can harvest some vegetables to bring back for you guys to take home?"

Gu Pan had no objections, knowing that the combat capabilities of Lu Ruisheng and Guo Gang were more than sufficient. "Alright then, I'll stay here and chat with Sister-in-law."

Lu Ruisheng stood up, put his hat and gloves back on, and left with Guo Gang.

Zhang Xiumin chatted with Gu Pan about domestic matters, touching upon some of the events after the apocalypse began. "Thankfully, you gave us those supplies, and you were the first to tell us to go out and scavenge. That's why we haven't run out of food and drink in this end-of-the-world scenario."

Gu Pan smiled. "Brother Guo and Ruisheng are like brothers; doing that was only right." She couldn't very well tell her that in her past life, they had starved themselves to share rations with her—a debt of deep gratitude indeed.

Zhang Xiumin remained deeply grateful to Gu Pan. "In times like these, even blood brothers will turn on each other over a single bite of food. We will never forget the kindness you've shown us."

At that moment, Guo Gang's four-year-old daughter, Mengmeng, ran out from the bedroom. Catching sight of Gu Pan, she grew a bit shy and hid behind Zhang Xiumin. Because of the prolonged isolation of the apocalypse, the child hadn't seen many outsiders and had become rather introverted.

Zhang Xiumin told Gu Pan, "My mother-in-law hasn't been doing too well lately. She just took her medicine and went to sleep. Who knows how much longer our medicine supply will last? The child is doing all right, though—she has enough to eat and drink—she's just a bit timid now."

Gu Pan understood completely. "An environment like this is a severe test for both the elderly and the children." She stood up, unzipped the backpack resting behind her, pulled out a bag of fruit, and handed it to the little girl. "Mengmeng, look what Auntie has for you."

Mengmeng's eyes lit up at the sight of the pretty fruit, but she didn't dare step forward, looking instead to Zhang Xiumin for permission.

Zhang Xiumin gently patted her daughter's bottom with a smile. "Go ahead and take it. Auntie is family; it's okay to accept things from her."

Only then did Mengmeng dare step forward to take the fruit, whispering, "Thank you, Auntie."

Finding the child adorable, Gu Pan smiled and pulled out a few more small snacks, several boxes of milk powder, and some elderly-formula cereal, placing them all on the table.

Naturally, these items were all drawn from her spatial dimension. The backpack she wore looked quite bulging, but it mostly contained everyday items. Her visit here had been an impromptu decision, so she hadn't specifically prepared anything, yet her space lacked nothing.

Seeing the pile of goods, Zhang Xiumin looked somewhat embarrassed. "Junior sister-in-law, don't give us all of this. You need to keep more for yourselves. In this world, hoarding a bit extra and hiding it in multiple locations is always the right move—you must never keep all your provisions in one place."

Gu Pan nodded. "Don't worry, Sister-in-law, we have other places where we store things. Our supplies are still quite sufficient and we have enough to get by. I specifically brought these for the child and the elderly, so please don't stand on ceremony."

Looking at the assortment of items on the table, Mengmeng beamed, her eyes curving into crescent moons. "Auntie is amazing! Your bag has everything in it."

In a child's mind, anyone who could produce delicious treats seemingly out of thin air was truly extraordinary.

Yet what the child said also reflected another facet of Gu Pan—her bag truly did contain everything. As long as she wished to pull something out, she could even retrieve a yacht if she wanted to.

With a smile, she gently patted Mengmeng's head. "Then would you like Auntie to bring you more good things next time?"

Mengmeng nodded happily. "Then Auntie, please come back soon!"

Zhang Xiumin lightly scolded her daughter, "Children shouldn't be greedy. You need to have manners, did you forget?"

Gu Pan smiled at Zhang Xiumin. "Sister-in-law, we're all our own people here; there's no need to let the child treat us like outsiders."

Zhang Xiumin smiled as well. "Right, no treating you like outsiders, none at all. To still have a genuine family member to speak with and rely on during times like this... it truly makes my heart so happy."

As she spoke, tears welled up in Zhang Xiumin's eyes. She had been smiling just moments before, but as she smiled, a complex wave of turbulent emotions suddenly washed over her heart.