Bai Qingqing first went to the house closest to the old grandmother’s place. After walking for a few minutes, she finally arrived outside the house and looked inside through the fence.
A woman, with half of her body wrapped in indigo fabric, came out of the room holding a winnowing basket. She seemed to be planning to take it out to dry. There were several mother hens in the yard surrounding her, clucking and demanding to be fed.
The middle-aged woman went back inside and brought out some grains, scattering them on the ground to feed the chickens.
Bai Qingqing stood outside for a while but didn’t see any sign of a man. She thought to herself that this Zhou Village was just as strange as described in the original book.
The middle-aged woman noticed someone outside the fence and spoke harshly, “Who’s there? What are you sneaking around for? Come out!”
Bai Qingqing emerged from the corner and stood outside the fence, revealing a sweet and harmless smile. “Auntie, I’m new to the village and I have something I want to ask you.”
The middle-aged woman frowned as she scrutinized her, her eyes filled with caution. In this manner, they spoke to each other through the fence. “What do you want to ask me?”
Fortunately, the language spoken in Zhou Village was similar to the official language, with a hint of local accent, so it wasn’t difficult to understand.
Bai Qingqing held onto the fence, her eyes twinkling with a smile. “Auntie, I’m looking for someone named Awang.”
The middle-aged woman’s face immediately changed, and her expression and tone turned hostile. With her hands on her hips, she interrogated, “What business do you have with my husband?”
The woman’s husband must be around forty or fifty years old, and he had a wife. It was unlikely that he would be the target of her mission.
Bai Qingqing quickly waved her hands when she saw the woman mistaking her for something like a vixen. “I probably got it wrong. The person I’m looking for is in his twenties.”
The middle-aged woman’s expression softened at this point. She walked towards Bai Qingqing, looking her up and down, and said, “Young girl, not to criticize you, but girls shouldn’t actively seek out men. Such behavior is improper, you know?”
Bai Qingqing: “…”
Was it considered improper for her to look for someone? What kind of reasoning was this?
“I…” She was about to speak.
Auntie furrowed her brows, resembling a headmistress as she admonished Bai Qingqing, “Don’t interrupt your elders when they’re speaking. As a woman, don’t dress flamboyantly. Men will only like you if you dress modestly. Understand?”
“Auntie said it for your own good. Go back and change your clothes quickly.”
Bai Qingqing didn’t expect to be scolded out of the blue. She chuckled twice and turned to leave.
According to the original book, from the perspective of the female lead, Bai Tiantian, after she and the Thunder Squad arrived in Zhou Village, they were lavishly provided with food and drink, and people tried every means to keep her there as a saint.
Bai Tiantian didn’t suffer much in Zhou Village. In the end, she was forced to marry the Mountain God and was successfully rescued by the Thunder Squad in anxious anticipation.
At that time, in order to successfully leave Zhou Village, Xiao Yang set fire to it. Bai Tiantian saw the village engulfed in flames and even thought of returning to help the people of Zhou Village. However, she didn’t go back because everyone was injured.
Bai Qingqing had an intuitive feeling that there were many secrets in Zhou Village. Even during broad daylight, she hardly saw anyone in the village, only some old women at home, and some men armed with knives patrolling at the village’s entrances and streets.
According to the description in the original book, people in the village rarely went out. Men, women, and children stayed at home to work on farming, occasionally going ten miles away to the town to sell things in exchange for daily necessities.
Where did the young men, women, and children of the village go? Could it be because of the end of the world that they all stayed at home?
Bai Qingqing couldn’t figure it out and thought she should complete the mission quickly and leave this isolated village. She currently didn’t have much combat power, and if she encountered danger, she might not be able to escape.
Hurrying to the second house, she climbed the wooden ladder and walked up to the closed door. She raised her hand and knocked, “Is anyone home?”
As she knocked on the door, she surveyed the surroundings of the courtyard. It must be said that the scenery of Zhou Village, with its beautiful mountains and clear waters, was captivating. Every household had flowers in their yards, and the beautiful flowers and plants adorned the courtyards, creating a serene and delightful atmosphere.
After knocking for a few minutes without any response, she was about to give up when suddenly a dog ran out from behind the house, startling her.
Bai Qingqing looked at the orange-colored dog and waved at it, saying, “Da Huang, come here.”
The dog didn’t expect her to be so familiar and tilted its head, scrutinizing her. It made a whimpering sound in its throat, as if it was trying to determine whether she was a bad person or not.
Bai Qingqing took out a chicken leg from her space and squatted down, extending her hand to gesture to the dog, “Da Huang, be good, come and eat this chicken leg.”
The aroma of the chicken leg filled the air, and the dog shamelessly drooled, taking a few steps forward with a wagging tail. Just as it opened its mouth to eat, the chicken leg disappeared into thin air.
The dog froze, barking in disbelief as if it was shouting, “Where’s my chicken leg? Give it back to me!”
Bai Qingqing narrowed her eyes, her smile turning mischievous as she caressed the dog’s head. “Where’s your owner? Where did they all go? Tell me, and I’ll give you chicken legs to eat. Otherwise, I’ll chop you up and cook you.”
If the dog had any morals, it would have shattered instantly. How could there be such a despicable woman in the world?
“Let go of Xiao Hua!” A crisp child’s voice rang out.
Bai Qingqing followed the sound and saw a child sticking their head out of the window, grimacing at her. “Bad woman, let go of Xiao Hua!”
To her surprise, she hadn’t seen any children since entering the village, and she unexpectedly encountered one in this house. Her eyes flickered slightly as she continued to stroke Da Huang’s head.
“Child, come out and talk to big sister.” She took out a bag of potato chips from her space and raised it, “I’ll give you something to eat.”
The child remained cautious and suspicious, biting their lip as they stared at her and the snacks. “I don’t want it.”
Oh, still being stubborn.
Bai Qingqing opened the bag of potato chips and started eating, feeding a piece to Da Huang as well. Both the child and the dog enjoyed the delicious snacks, awakening their inner gluttony.
The child swallowed their saliva and stared at her eagerly.
Seeing the longing in their eyes, Bai Qingqing stood up and walked to the window. She squeezed the potato chips through the narrow gap and said, “Here, for you.”
The child seemed to find it hard to believe that she would be so kind as to give him snacks. Holding the barbecue-flavored potato chips, they asked, “Really for me?”
“If you don’t want it,” Bai Qingqing raised an eyebrow, “then I’ll take it back.”
The child quickly hugged the chips to their chest and said, “I want it.” It seemed like they hadn’t eaten in a long time as they wolfed down the food.
Bai Qingqing couldn’t help but remind them, “Eat slowly, don’t choke.”
The child glared at her with their dark eyes. They wouldn’t choke, hmph! This wicked woman thought she could buy him off with just a bag of snacks. He had even heard her say she would chop up his dog earlier.
Bai Qingqing took out some jerky from her space and played with the dog at her feet.
She noticed that both the child and the dog seemed unusually thin and weak. She wondered if it was due to the influence of the post-apocalyptic world or if this family was originally poor.
Bai Qingqing asked through the window, “Child, what’s your name, and where did your family go?”
“Sister,” the child’s sweetened mouth responded after eating, “I’m called A Bao. Can you pretend you haven’t seen me?”
“Huh?” Bai Qingqing asked in confusion, “Why?”
A Bao’s big eyes were filled with fear. “Daddy and Mommy said there are monsters outside and told me to hide at home and not go out, or else I’ll be taken away.”
They didn’t let the child come out because there were zombies outside?
“Who are you?”
A voice filled with fear came, and a woman dressed in exotic clothing appeared, rushing over and scolding, “A Bao, have you forgotten what Mommy said? Go inside quickly!”
A Bao’s face turned pale, and they quickly entered the room, disappearing from sight.
Bai Qingqing explained to her, “My name is Bai Qingqing, an outsider who came to the village yesterday. I mean no harm…”
Suddenly, A Bao’s mother knelt down in front of her, crying and pleading, “Sister, I beg you, please don’t reveal that you saw A Bao at home.”
Bai Qingqing furrowed her brows lightly and leaned down, saying, “Please get up first.”
“If you don’t agree, I won’t get up.” A Bao’s mother looked terrified and begged, “Sister, I can give you food, please don’t say anything.”
“I don’t need it.” Bai Qingqing’s storage space was filled with provisions, so she had no need to ask A Bao’s mother for food.
A Bao’s mother even started kowtowing, crying, “I’m begging you, please…”
Bai Qingqing sighed and said, “Alright, here’s the deal. You give me an ear of corn, and I will keep it a secret for you.”
“Okay, okay.” A Bao’s mother wiped her tears and got up. She glanced around, opened the door, and quickly found an ear of corn. “Sister, please take the corn. You must promise to keep it a secret for us.”
Bai Qingqing took the corn and nodded, “I will.” After a pause, she asked, “Is your husband’s name A Wang?”
“Other than A Bao’s dad, do you have any other siblings?”
A Bao’s mother shook her head, “There’s only me and my husband in our family. Sister, please don’t wander around the village. Go back quickly.”
Bai Qingqing left A Bao’s house with the corn and walked a few meters before noticing Da Huang following her, staring up at the corn cob in her hand.
She chuckled, “Da Huang, you want some corn too?”
Da Huang barked twice, drooling, not caring about maintaining a dignified dog demeanor.
Bai Qingqing didn’t want to give it to him, “You can’t have this. I’ll feed you some jerky later.”
Leading Da Huang, she visited the remaining two households in the village, but they were not the task targets she was looking for. She had no choice but to return along the way.
“Qingqing.” A voice came from her left.
After strolling around all day, she finally encountered familiar faces. She felt relieved and turned around to see Xiao Yang and Fu Chen, smiling, “Brother, Xiao Yang.”
Fu Chen had changed his appearance today, wearing exotic-style clothes that gave off an air of a brooding exotic tyrant.
Apparently, he had also joined the group doing manual labor.
Bai Qingqing glanced at his shoulder and showed a pained expression, “Brother, does your shoulder hurt?”
Fu Chen replied lightly, “No, it doesn’t.”
Xiao Yang pretended to be in pain, clutching his shoulder, “Sister Qingqing, why are you only concerned about Fu Ge? My shoulder hurts too.”
Bai Qingqing looked at him, “Is it very painful? Do you want me to get some medicine for you?”
She had stocked up on a lot of medical supplies in her storage space.
Fu Chen glanced at Xiao Yang indifferently, and the chestnut-haired teenager received the danger signal, scratching his head and said, “No need, no need. I was just kidding.”
“Didn’t I tell you not to wander around after entering the village?” Fu Chen’s brow furrowed coldly.
Bai Qingqing’s clear eyes showed concern, “Brother, I came out to find you because I was worried about you.” She handed him the corn, “Here, this one is sweet.”
“No need, you eat it yourself.” Fu Chen glanced at the approaching patrol team and said, “Go back quickly and don’t come out at night.”
“Okay.” Bai Qingqing pretended to look disappointed and lowered her head.
Fu Chen’s eyes flickered slightly, and he said in a low voice, “We’ll leave in a couple of days.”
“Understood.” Bai Qingqing turned and walked back up the path.
A moment later, she stood on the mountainside with a solemn expression, observing the geographical environment of the village. She thought to herself that she must find the task targets tomorrow, or it would be too late.
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