The World Turned into Zombies, So I Went Back to the Countryside to Farm 42

Chapter 42: Undercurrent

Jiang Zao had always been a light sleeper. When Wen Zhao put her on the bed, she groggily opened her eyes. “Who is it?”

“It’s me, Wen Zhao.”

Hearing the familiar voice, Jiang Zao’s hand, which was gripping her collar, finally loosened. Perhaps she was really drunk. When Wen Zhao took off her jacket for her, she rarely resisted, and then her shoes.

Finally, Wen Zhao even carefully untied the bandage that was covering her eyes, so that she would be more comfortable when she slept.

Wen Zhao tucked her in. Just as she was about to leave, her wrist was grabbed again.

Jiang Zao was muttering something, and she couldn’t understand what she was saying.

Wen Zhao bent down to listen.

“You… you now know… the coordinates of the survivor base… will… will you leave us?”

She was mumbling because she was worried about this. Wen Zhao’s eyes grew hot, and she stared at her face for a long time.

There were still tear stains on her eyelashes. The hair that had been shaved off because of her injury had grown long again and was spread out on the pillow like seaweed.

Although she saw her every day, Wen Zhao was once again attracted to her. Perhaps Jiang Zao was not the type to be stunning at first sight, but her features were very delicate and pleasing to the eye.

Wen Zhao had always felt that a girl’s beauty was not a one-size-fits-all thing and could not be defined by any standard.

But Jiang Zao’s type was perhaps what was called a “light beauty”?

In addition, she had a unique and vibrant vitality like a wild grass, a unique temperament that made people want to get close to her without realizing it. And once they got close to her, they would want to possess her.

Wen Zhao couldn’t help but reach out. After hovering over her cheek for a long time, she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Perhaps because she had been waiting for an answer for a long time, Jiang Zao struggled to open her eyes again. She reached out to fumble, but her hand was held in return, held in her palm.

“You… why… why aren’t you talking?”

“You’re drunk.”

“I… I’m not.”

Jiang Zao struggled, trying to pull her hand out of her palm, and stubbornly asked again.

“Will… will you go to the survivor base?”

Please, please don’t look at me like that.

Wen Zhao’s breathing was also a little chaotic. She sighed in resignation, reached out, and gently covered her eyes.

“Alright, I won’t go. Now go to sleep.”

Her eyelashes fluttered twice in her palm, bringing another tickling sensation. Wen Zhao forced herself to look away from her face.

Fortunately, Jiang Zao, who had received a definite answer, also quickly quieted down. Wen Zhao tucked her hand into the quilt and sat in the darkness for a while. After her breathing became even, she tiptoed up and gently closed the door for her.

Li Mi had finished tidying up the main hall and was also preparing to go to bed, but she saw Wen Zhao come down from upstairs and then prepare to go out with a sickle.

“Big sister, why are you still up so late?”

Wen Zhao smiled. “You go to bed first. I’ll be right back.”

Perhaps it was because she couldn’t hold her liquor. Jiang Zao slept particularly soundly that night, and the nightmares that had always plagued her also disappeared.

She felt as if she were sinking into a cloud of cotton candy, warm and secure.

But when she woke up, she opened her eyes, and the world was as dark as ever. Jiang Zao’s heart was a little flustered, and she subconsciously reached for her pillow.

Until—

Ting-a-ling, the crisp and pleasant sound of a wind chime rang.

Jiang Zao couldn’t believe it and followed the sound to ring it again. Only then did she realize that a string of wind chimes had been tied to the head of her bed. But she remembered that there was no such thing in the house. Who had tied it here?

As if to confirm a fact, she slowly reached out and touched the wind chime again. It was cool to the touch, and she could faintly smell the fresh scent of bamboo. Jiang Zao’s eyes suddenly widened.

She held onto the side of the bed and slowly got up. With the guidance of the sound, she was not so afraid.

From that string of wind chimes, she also felt a thin hemp rope and followed it.

Until she touched the doorknob. The moment she opened the door, a breeze blew past, and the bamboo wind chimes tinkled.

Jiang Zao pursed her lips, and her eyes suddenly turned red.

As expected, a string of wind chimes was hung on the stair railing every three to five steps to guide her. After she had clearly counted twenty steps, she heard Wen Zhao’s usual gentle voice.

“Good morning, Jiang Zao.”

She raised her head slightly, a smile on her lips, but there were tears in her eyes. “Morning.”

Jiang Wuni also came in from the kitchen with a bowl at this moment. “You’re up? Today is the first day of the new year. I’ve made sweet rice balls. Come and eat.”

The skin of the sweet rice balls was handmade with glutinous rice flour and warm water. The filling was made by grinding black sesame seeds and roasted peanuts into a fine powder. Fearing that it was not sweet enough, Jiang Wuni had also added some brown sugar and mixed it together.

The little bit of fermented rice that was left in the house was also taken out and boiled in the soup. A sip in the morning would drive away the cold and warm the stomach.

But the sweet rice balls that Jiang Wuni had made were as big as a fist. Jiang Zao was full after eating two and only drank all the soup.

Wen Zhao stacked the bowls and chopsticks and was about to take them out when Li Mi beat her to it. “Big sister, you go and rest. I’ll wash the dishes!”

The dark circles under Wen Zhao’s eyes were scary. Although Jiang Zao couldn’t see, being blind didn’t mean being heartless. To cut bamboo from behind the house and then make so many wind chimes, she didn’t know what time she had stayed up until.

“No need, I’m fine. I was just thinking of taking advantage of the clear weather to go and search for supplies in the village…”

Jiang Wuni waved her hands repeatedly.

“There’s no rush. As the saying goes, sharpening the axe doesn’t delay the work of chopping wood. It’s not too late for us to go together after you’ve had a good sleep.”

Jiang Zao pulled her sleeve and moved her lips.

“Go and rest.”

Wen Zhao looked down at her and finally compromised. “Alright.”

***

Wen Zhao woke up when the sun was about to set. She and Li Mi were preparing to go out with Kele to get firewood. Recently, because they had been busy cleaning up the zombies, there was not much firewood piled up outside the kitchen.

Although they usually wouldn’t go out at this time, now that the zombies in the village had all been eliminated, they could go out whenever they wanted and no longer had to worry about encountering zombies.

As soon as the two of them and the dog left, the courtyard became quiet. Jiang Wuni was busy making dinner in the kitchen.

She wanted to help, but her eyes couldn’t see, and Jiang Wuni also thought she was in the way.

Jiang Zao sighed. Now she was the most idle person in the house.

Just as she was thinking this, Jiang Wuni came out of the kitchen and went upstairs, then brought down a bag of yarn and threw it into her arms.

“You’re idle. Help me sort out the yarn.”

Jiang Zao: ??? My eyes can’t see, and you’re making me do this? You’re not treating me as a blind person, and you’re not treating me as a person. [1]

She touched the soft ball of yarn and felt that it was a little familiar. She remembered that there was no such thing in the house before.

“Isn’t this…”

“I got it from the widower Sun’s house. I went there last time to find some yarn to knit you guys sweaters and wool pants. Winter is still long.”

Mentioning the widower Sun, the two of them couldn’t help but remember the argument last time. Jiang Wuni glanced at her, her gaze falling on the cloth strip covering her eyes, and turned to leave.

“Zao’er, I know you’re doing this for my own good.”

Jiang Zao stood up. “Why don’t we just hang the Guanyin Bodhisattva back up?”

But Jiang Wuni turned her head and smiled.

“No. You’re right. People are more important than clay bodhisattvas. We don’t have enough food for ourselves. Let’s eat first.”

Wen Zhao and Li Mi came home with the smoke from the kitchen. As soon as they got home, Wen Zhao put down her basket. “Look what good thing Kele found.”

Jiang Wuni was cooking, and Jiang Zao was sitting in the kitchen with her, sorting out the yarn. Hearing the noise, both of them stood up.

Wen Zhao quickly came over to help her up. Jiang Zao squatted down and felt a square box.

“What’s this?”

“Kele found it on the mountain. It’s an official airdrop.”

The front of the box was printed with: “United as one, helping each other.”

On the side were the four large characters “Relief Supplies.”

A few heads gathered together, looking eagerly. It reminded Jiang Zao of the joy of opening packages in the past.

She was also a little excited. “Then hurry up and open it and see what’s inside.”

“Alright.”

Wen Zhao used a small knife to cut the tape on the box. Inside was another foam box. After opening the foam box, the first thing on top was a first aid kit, which included common items like alcohol, iodophor, cotton swabs, and tourniquets.

Under the first aid kit was a small medicine box, which contained some common medicines for internal, external, gynecological, and pediatric use. Although the quantity was not large, the variety was complete.

Jiang Wuni’s eyes were sharp. “Oh, there’s also the kind of blood pressure medication I usually take.”

The bottom layer was survival supplies, including military rations, canned luncheon meat, compressed biscuits, and even water purification tablets and windproof matches, as well as a survival whistle and a map of the base.

With these things, it would be no problem to survive in the wild for seven or eight days. Wen Zhao took them out one by one and read them to Jiang Zao.

Jiang Wuni looked at the dazzling array of things and sighed. “Sigh, it’s not easy to get so many supplies in these special times. Perfect, there’s luncheon meat here. I’ll add a dish for you.”

Hearing “add a dish,” the eyes of one person and one dog instantly lit up. Li Mi skipped to the side of the stove.

“Grandma, what delicious food are you making today?”

“Hot pot rabbit. Have you had it before?” Jiang Wuni lifted the lid of the pot, and the aroma instantly filled the air. Not to mention Li Mi, even Wen Zhao’s mouth was watering. She quickly washed her hands and went to get the bowls and chopsticks.

“Then I’ll go and get the rice.”

The rabbit had been killed and marinated yesterday, with salt, pepper, and cooking wine to remove the gamey smell, and then coated with a batter made from the sweet potatoes she had harvested herself. The secret to making the rabbit meat tender and firm was to not forget to add a little cold oil at the end to lock in the moisture.

Although it was called hot pot rabbit, it was actually a little different from a traditional hot pot. The cut rabbit meat had to be deep-fried first. After it had all changed color, it was quickly taken out so that it would not be overcooked.

The rest was similar to a normal hot pot. The oil was heated, and the hot pot base, dried chilies, and bean paste were added. Jiang Wuni also took out some pickled peppers from her secret pickled vegetable jar and made an improved version, a sour and spicy hot pot rabbit.

After the water boiled, the fried rabbit meat was poured in. Jiang Wuni also soaked some dried shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and vermicelli, as well as the dried long beans from the summer. She also took out potatoes and sweet potatoes from the cellar, and with the luncheon meat that Wen Zhao and the others had brought back, she cooked a large pot and brought it directly to the stove in the main hall.

The few of them gathered around the stove, cooking and eating. In the cold winter, eating such a sour and spicy hot pot rabbit made them all warm, and even large beads of sweat formed on their foreheads.

There was still some wine left from last night. Jiang Wuni took it out and poured a little for Wen Zhao. When she was about to pour some for Jiang Zao, she quickly refused. “I’m not drinking. You guys drink.”

She had been drowsy from drinking last night. She vaguely remembered that Wen Zhao had carried her up to bed. When she woke up, Jiang Zao was still a little flustered, but she found that she had only helped her take off her outer clothes and shoes, and had even carefully untied the bandage that was covering her eyes and placed it by her pillow where she could reach it.

She felt that her worries were unnecessary. After all, she was a lesbian, and Wen Zhao was not. In Wen Zhao’s eyes, it was probably just taking care of a drunk good friend, no big deal.

Especially this morning, Wen Zhao had not mentioned anything about last night, as if nothing had happened.

No, nothing did happen. I just got drunk and was carried upstairs. Why is my heart pounding now?

Jiang Zao was thinking about things when Wen Zhao gently put a piece of meat in her bowl. “Eat. What are you thinking about?”

Jiang Zao coughed a couple of times and almost choked on the rice grains in her throat. “No… nothing.”

Seeing her flustered, as if she had been caught, Wen Zhao curved her lips and placed her hand on her back, patting it gently.

What Jiang Zao didn’t know was that the calmer the surface of the water, the more turbulent the undercurrent.

Translator’s Notes

[1] “I’m not treating you as a blind person, and I’m not treating you as a person.” (没把我当盲人，也没把我当人。) – This is a humorous line from a popular Chinese sketch comedy, often used to complain about being given a ridiculously difficult or inappropriate task.