Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Wang Xiao also quieted down, looking at Xu Xiaoyan with curiosity, wondering how she would react to his "three questions" and Xie Yingtang's reminder.

Xu Xiaoyan remained unwavering. "I know it's far and dangerous, but I have to go."

She didn't explain the reason, but simply reiterated her determination. Relatives might just be an excuse, but Linchuan City was a destination she had to reach.

Seeing her insistence, Xie Yingtang pondered for a moment, then exchanged another glance with Wang Xiao, seemingly reaching some kind of tacit understanding.

He looked up at Xu Xiaoyan and made a suggestion:

"Since you're determined to go to Linchuan City, and we happen to need to continue searching for a suitable base, why don't we travel together for a while?"

He paused for a moment and explained, "We are quite familiar with this area, so we can avoid some known dangerous areas. With more people, we can look out for each other."

Of course, if we find a suitable survivor base to stay at along the way, we may choose to stay.

Xu Xiaoyan quickly weighed the options in her mind.

Crossing this perilous plain alone is extremely risky, but these two young people don't seem to be bad people at first glance.

Moreover, their knowledge of the surrounding terrain was exactly what she needed. Although she couldn't completely trust them, short-term cooperation would be more beneficial than harmful.

"Okay," she nodded, accepting the suggestion succinctly. "Then we'll travel together for now. Thank you for your help."

After a short rest, the three of them set off together.

Xie Yingtang and Wang Xiao were clearly familiar with wilderness travel. They tacitly agreed that one of them would scout ahead slightly while the other would keep an eye on the flanks and rear, with Xu Xiaoyan following behind them.

They would occasionally exchange a few words along the way.

Xie Yingtang and Wang Xiao were the main speakers, introducing Xu Xiaoyan to the terrain they might encounter ahead and the information they had heard about the surrounding area at the Xintang outpost.

Wang Xiao shared practical tips on identifying edible plants and finding water sources in the wild. He was still talkative but open-minded, and he shared information very seriously.

Xu Xiaoyan mostly listens, occasionally asking one or two questions.

From their conversation, she gradually pieced together the images of the two young people:

They seemed to have received some basic survival training and adapted quickly to the apocalypse, but they still retained a kind of kindness that was out of place in this cruel world.

The companions did bring convenience; under Xie Yingtang's guidance, they successfully found a stream that could replenish their drinking water.

As the sun began to set, they found a sheltered spot behind a large rock to prepare for the night. A campfire was lit, dispelling some of the chill and the fear brought by the darkness.

Wang Xiao took out three hard, baked flatbreads from his backpack and gave one to Xu Xiaoyan.

Xu Xiaoyan hesitated for a moment, then took out a bag of dried meat from her own space (pretending to take it from her backpack) and handed it over as a return gift.

"Thank you!" Wang Xiao's eyes lit up as he took the package and carefully tore it open.

Xie Yingtang looked at the flickering flames and whispered to Xu Xiaoyan:

"At this pace, after about two more days, we will reach a place called 'Huangsha Town,' where I heard there used to be a small, spontaneously formed market."

I don't know if it's still there now. If I'm lucky, I might be able to get something in return, or find out more about what's happening ahead.

Xu Xiaoyan silently memorized the name "Huangsha Town".

Looking at Wang Xiao's profile, still bearing a youthful air, illuminated by the firelight, and Xie Yingtang's focused and calm expression as he tended the fire, a complex emotion welled up within her.

They shared food, information, and directions. This kindness, which seemed almost "luxurious" to her, provided a subtle outlet for the loneliness and repression she had long suppressed in her heart after witnessing darkness.

After a moment of silence, Xu Xiaoyan's voice rang out amidst the crackling of sparks, slightly lower than usual: "I... have met some people before."

Wang Xiao immediately turned his head curiously, his face still bearing the satisfied smile after enjoying the jerky, his eyes clear, as if anticipating a travel story.

Xie Yingtang also raised his head, his gaze calmly falling on her, as if listening attentively.

Xu Xiaoyan avoided their gazes, stared at the leaping flames, and began to tell her story.

She didn't dwell on her emotions, but simply described the abandoned university town in the most objective possible tone.

Those intact buildings, heads peering out of windows, and that chilling atrocity that took place in broad daylight.

Four or five men were chasing a woman, surrounded by commotion and indifferent onlookers.

She even mentioned the mentally unstable, screaming girl she had encountered earlier on the path, and connected the two.

As she spoke, the atmosphere around the campfire subtly changed.

Wang Xiao's smile gradually froze and disappeared. His eyes widened, filled with disbelief, and his hand holding half a piece of jerky unconsciously tightened.

When he heard the woman's desperate pleas for help and the commotion around him, he even instinctively gasped.

The color drained from his face, revealing an expression that was a mixture of fear, anger, and disgust—a reaction of a pure and direct conscience, untouched by the world, being challenged.

"How...how could this happen?" he murmured, his voice trembling. "Those people...are they even human?"

However, in stark contrast to Wang Xiao's almost palpable shock and discomfort was Xie Yingtang's reaction.

He remained seated there calmly, his expression barely changing, though his eyes appeared even more profound in the firelight.

He didn't interrupt or exclaim in surprise, but his eyes would darken slightly for a moment when Xu Xiaoyan mentioned the key points.

His index finger tapped lightly on his knee unconsciously, a sign of contemplation rather than emotional fluctuation.

Only after Xu Xiaoyan finished speaking did he slowly open his mouth, his voice so steady it was almost calm: "That university town has formed a distorted little society, following the darkest law of the jungle."

His words were devoid of any emotion, as if he were analyzing an objective phenomenon, and his views were incisive.

She may have been misled by the interaction between the two and Wang Xiao's apparent kindness, thinking that they both harbored similar good intentions, but now she understands.

Wang Xiao's fear and anger stemmed from the sincerity and sense of justice that had not yet been extinguished within him.

Xie Yingtang's calmness and indifference stemmed from his thorough understanding of the evil in human nature, which he had long anticipated and perhaps even taken for granted.

His goodness was buried deeper beneath reason and vigilance, reserved only for a very few people, such as his simple-minded companion.

His "accompaniment and tolerance" was not only a tolerance of Wang Xiao's personality, but also a form of protection, protecting the naivety in Wang Xiao that seemed particularly fragile in this apocalyptic world.