Chapter 027 Chu Mufan

　　“I don’t know about the rest, but I’m just curious—what good is a useless thing who can’t even walk? Heh, zombies probably wouldn’t even bother eating him if you left him out in the wild!” The seductive woman sneered, glancing around at the group before continuing. “Why is our camp wasting resources on a dead weight like him? Hasn’t our camp always stood by the rule: no freeloaders? Winter’s almost here, you know. Food’s gonna get tight—that’s why they even made us come help out!

　　And this waste not only eats up our rations but also gets special care? Youyou’s always been the one looking after the young lady! This camp doesn’t belong to any one person. Why should some people starve or freeze to death, while he gets personal attention?!”

　　Many survivors were lined up nearby waiting for their meal cards. Her words acted like a fuse, instantly setting off a heated buzz among the crowd. Public opinion turned sharply against the “skin-and-bones” man. Most blamed Team Star for favoring him, complained the lord shouldn’t have assigned someone to tend to him, and mocked that someone as useless as Chu didn’t deserve precious food.

　　Just as the people in line grew furious, a roar cut through the noise, “Enough! What do you think you’re doing?! You don’t want to eat any more?!” The ragged survivors turned toward the source of the voice…

　　A burly man in camouflage stood there, an assault rifle in his right hand pointed toward the sky, eyes blazing with anger as he stared at the crowd. The survivors in the square fell silent, shouldering their bound crops and waiting quietly for their meal cards…

　　The captains’ wives and families, seeing their work was basically done, tidied up and prepared to return to the lord’s district—where the villas stood, fully equipped and amply supplied.

　　......

　　Shortly after the wealthy women had mostly left…

　　On a path not far from the open area, a young man impossibly thin leaned against a tall tree. Its trunk hid his gaunt body perfectly, placing him close enough to have heard every word exchanged in the square...

　　He looked relatively young, but his eye sockets were sunken, his skin shriveled with not a trace of muscle—only bones wrapped in skin! If the survivors harvesting wheat in the fields were thin, he was emaciated beyond measure, shrunken to the core...

　　Especially his sparse hair; were it not still black, one would think he was a man already well into his eighties or nineties. At that moment, he leaned entirely against the tree. His hands, previously just supporting his weight, now tensed, fingers digging hard into the bark behind him...

　　His withered, claw-like hands had almost no strength left at all. The dry bark barely moved, no matter how hard he clawed at it...

　　After a while, exhausted, he slowly squatted down, wrapped his arms around his knees, and let a glimmer of tears form in his eyes.

　　He buried his head in his arms…

　　and began to sob softly...No one knew why he was crying so bitterly.

　　Just then, from the other end of the path, a young girl walked over carrying a basket of wild vegetables and mushrooms. She was simply dressed, her long black hair tied in a ponytail that swayed left and right with her light steps...

　　She hesitated, looking at the crying man, unsure whether to leave him alone or go comfort him.

　　After a long moment of hesitation, she made up her mind, walked over to him, squatted down gently, and asked softly, “Brother Chu, what’s wrong?” This skeletonlike man was none other than Chu Mufan—the “skinandbones” they had all been talking about.

　　“Nothing. Leave me alone.” He did not lift his head, only spoke in a low voice.

　　A short silence fell between them…

　　Chu Mufan raised his head, quickly wiped away his tears, and struggled to prop himself up with his hands. The girl beside him wanted to help, but he stopped her with one arm. “Leave me. I can do it myself.” Seeing his stubborn, proud gaze, the girl held back...

　　Chu Mufan’s trembling hands slowly and laboriously lifted him up. The girl stood there, lost in thought…

　　She could not understand. Earlier that morning, Brother Chu had begged her to come out with him for some fresh air. Why was he so heartbroken now? She had only gone to pick some mushrooms for a while, planning to make soup for him to nourish his weak body. What on earth had happened?

　　“Youyou… do you also think I’m useless?” Now standing, his right hand leaning against the tree to support himself, Chu Mufan asked with his back to her.

　　The girl hesitated for a moment.

　　“Why? Brother Chu, why would you ask that?”

　　Chu Mufan sighed, gave no answer, and slowly took a step forward. Youyou hurried over to support him. The two walked silently toward the camp…

　　The Shen Nongjia Survivor Camp was built on the mountainside of Shen Nong Peak, at an altitude of more than 2,000 meters. From October to April every year, frost covered the land, and the temperature dropped sharply in the morning and evening. Due to the high altitude and rough terrain, the camp was rarely harassed by large hordes of zombies. Also, protected by the powerful fighter known simply as “Star,” villain gangs nearby did not dare to set foot here easily. This made Shen Nongjia Camp one of the rare safe havens in the apocalyptic era.

　　The camp was divided into three districts:

　　The main camp on the mountainside housed the elderly, the weak, the sick, the disabled, and orphans. Most lived in shabby houses or thatched huts.

　　Scattered along the mountains outside the camp were small farm plots filled with crops. They survived by growing crops and turning them over to the lord in exchange for barely enough rations to live on—and the protection of the camp’s soldiers.

　　Hunger was the constant theme of this main camp...

　　About twenty minutes along the dirt road lay a smaller, more orderly district. This was the combat zone, home to the search teams, camp guards, and their families.

　　Inside, red-brick houses and large canvas tents stood in neat rows. Inside, red-brick houses and large canvas tents stood in neat rows. The entire district was surrounded by iron fences and barbed wire, with only two gates on the dirt road, both guarded by fully armed soldiers.

　　Besides the families, most who lived here were strong, able-bodied men.

　　To reach the final district, one had to pass through the back gate of the combat zone, reach a mountain road, then follow it winding up toward the peak.

　　The section of this road at the foot of the mountain had been blown up by survivors, to keep zombies and villains from climbing directly up to the camp. The hike up took at least an hour; by car, just over twenty minutes...

　　The peak district could only be accessed from the combat zone, and was heavily guarded. It was the home of the camp lord and the team captains.

　　Built inside an abandoned villa complex, it was known simply as the Lord’s Villa District.

　　Every house had clean, uniform crimson brick walls, free of the apocalypse’s usual decay.

　　At the center stood two large warehouses, stocked with all the camp’s food, supplies, weapons, and equipment. Between them stood the largest, most luxurious villa, with an outdoor swimming pool outside—bright and lavish every night.

　　In summer, many slim, beautiful women in bikinis played in the water.

　　The villa’s owner, with a huge beer belly and bloated frame obvious even under his long robe, wandered among them with greasy hands, holding women close, drinking fine wine, and feasting on delicacies...

　　The extravagant scene looked like a rich man’s party before the end.

　　This bloated man was the lord of Shen Nongjia Camp: Hu Gao.

　　......