pjbooks Chapter 309 A New Home
Chapter 309 A New Home
Ever since the convoy passed through the mycelium tunnel, Victor and the others have been talking non-stop.
It wasn't out of fear, but rather the sight before them that completely overturned their understanding of the world they had been living in recent days.
The streets here are not only clean, but most of the buildings are also well preserved.
Patrol personnel frequently passed by on the streets, and he even saw many elderly people wearing uniforms cleaning the drainage ditches along the roadside.
Is this still the end of the world?
This feels like returning to a normal human society.
"Victor, look over there."
Just then, Richie in the passenger seat nudged him with his elbow.
Victor looked in the direction he was pointing.
Not far away, a simple shed had been erected outside a building facing the street, with two long tables placed under it.
Several large iron basins were placed on the table, steaming hot, and looked like some kind of porridge or soup.
In front of the tent, there were about ten people lined up, taking food one after another in an orderly fashion.
They even have hot food here?
At that moment, seeing the food distribution shed, Victor could no longer stay in Bengbu.
You have to understand, for these people, when they were wandering outside, let alone hot food, even a piece of moldy bread was a luxury.
And now,
The people here not only have food, but it's hot food...
How could anyone not be devastated?
Victor's throat bobbed. He couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten something hot.
Although he desperately wanted to rush forward and get some hot food, the jeep in front of him hadn't stopped, so he didn't dare to stop either.
And so, the armored truck continued to follow Zhao Lei's jeep.
Every scene along the way was a shock to the nerves of the survivors on the bus.
Someone was repairing a generator by the roadside.
A guy wearing a welding mask was squatting on the ground welding something, sparks flying everywhere.
The faint sound of machinery could be heard in the distance.
The old man in the back row, who had been praying the whole way, had now completely stopped. He was peering out the window, his mouth agape and his eyes glistening with tears.
The skinny young man next to him was even more exaggerated; his face was stretched so wide that snot bubbles were practically coming out of his nose.
"Is this place... real?"
Even at this point, he still couldn't quite believe his eyes.
Victor did not answer.
He was thinking about the same question.
There's no way around it; everything here is like paradise compared to the outside world.
He was truly afraid that all of this was fake.
After driving for about three more minutes, Zhao Lei's jeep turned on its right turn signal and turned into a side street.
Victor hurriedly followed.
As soon as he turned the corner, he saw his destination.
It was a three-story building, and its exterior looked like a former community center or some kind of public facility.
The open space in front of the building had been cleared and marked out with several temporary parking spaces. Above the main entrance of the building, a handwritten sign read "Resettlement Center" in English.
Zhao Lei's Jeep stopped.
Zhao Lei got out of the car, turned around and waved to Victor, signaling them to park the car in the open space.
Victor did as instructed.
The moment the armored truck turned off, the entire vehicle emitted a heartbreaking metallic groan.
This armored cash transport vehicle, which had driven all the way from Washington to here, has finally completed its mission.
Victor opened the car door and stepped onto the ground of Raccoon City.
Solid.
Clean.
He stood there and took a deep breath.
There was no smell of decay or dampness in the air, only a faint fragrance of earth and plants.
The school bus behind also stopped.
The car door opened, and Monica was the first to get out.
She was in her early forties, her dark skin covered in dust and dried bloodstains, but her eyes were bright.
Then there are the children.
Six children filed out, jumping off the bus one after another. The youngest, Amy, was carried off by Monica.
The children stood in the open space, looking around.
The three people in the pickup truck got out. Danny walked over and stood next to Victor, asking in a low voice, "Isn't this place... a bit too clean? Isn't it dangerous?"
"At least it's more reliable than outside," Victor said.
Just then, Monica, who was walking towards them, suddenly felt someone tugging at the hem of her clothes.
Monica.
"Um?"
Amy stretched out her little hand and pointed to the food distribution shed not far away.
To be precise, it refers to the steaming iron basins on the table under the shed.
"Is...it something to eat?"
Monica looked in the direction she was pointing.
"Yes."
"Is it edible?"
"..."
Monica did not answer.
But the other children around her were all drawn to that direction.
A boy wearing a dirty blue hoodie stared intently in that direction, his throat bobbing up and down.
Another slightly older girl clutched the hem of her clothes tightly, her lips pressed together.
These children haven't had anything proper to eat for almost two days.
Zhao Lei, who was walking this way, wanting to tell Victor something, paused after hearing the children's words.
Then he turned his head and glanced at one of his men beside him.
"Go over there and get some food."
"Huh?" The subordinate was taken aback.
"Food." Zhao Lei pointed to the distribution shed not far away. "Get some food for these kids. If there's bread, get them bread; if there's porridge, get them a few bowls. Go quickly."
"Okay, sure." The person immediately jogged over.
After giving his instructions, Zhao Lei walked up to Victor.
"Victor, right?"
"Yes."
"Alright, while he goes to get his things, I'll tell you about the rules here."
Zhao Lei didn't mince words and said directly, "Raccoon City doesn't have many rules, but they can't be broken. First, everyone has to work."
Victor nodded: "No problem."
"I haven't finished speaking yet."
Zhao Lei raised his hand,
"It's not just you young and middle-aged people who have to do it; the elderly and women have to do it too. Children are an exception."
But as long as you still have hands and feet, you should do what you can. If you can't carry bricks, you can wash clothes; if you can't walk, you can help sort supplies—those all count.
Victor looked back at his team.
The old man who kept praying, two middle-aged women, and a man with a limp.
"You don't need to worry about the work at all," Victor said. "We've done all sorts of things on the road."
"it is good."
Zhao Lei nodded and continued.
"Secondly, if you want to stay in Raccoon City, you must obey the arrangements."
You go wherever your superiors send you, and you do whatever they tell you to do.
You can raise your opinions, but once an order is given, it must be carried out.
This made Victor frown slightly, but he didn't say anything.
Zhao Lei saw this but ignored him and continued:
"Third, private fights are prohibited within the base. Any form of private violence, regardless of who strikes first, will be dealt with. The lightest punishment is expulsion from the base. The heaviest—"
He didn't say anything more, but his meaning was clear.
Victor thought of what had happened to those two rednecks earlier and nodded silently.
"The last one."
"All weapons must be surrendered. Once inside the base, ordinary residents are not allowed to possess any weapons, except for those on missions."
Victor was silent for two seconds.
Then he said, "Okay."
"Aren't you going to ask why?"
"No need to ask." Victor glanced at Zhao Lei. "The fact that you've managed to run this place like this proves that the rules are effective. I'm a soldier; I understand the meaning of rules."
Zhao Lei scrutinized him for a moment, then nodded slightly.
At this moment, the subordinate who had been sent to fetch food returned.
He was holding a tray with several pieces of bread and several bowls of porridge on it.
Zhao Lei gestured with his chin toward the children.
His subordinate carried the tray over.
The six children were stunned the moment they saw the food.
Then—almost simultaneously—all the children looked at Monica.
They didn't rush up to grab it.
They are waiting for permission from adults.
Monica looked down at Amy, then at the other children.
She took a deep breath, squatted down, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Eat."
The voice just fell.
The six children rushed forward.
The boy in the blue hoodie grabbed a piece of bread, stuffed it into his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and swallowed it, choking so badly his eyes rolled back.
The girl next to me sipped her porridge slowly, but she did so quickly, and the bowl was soon empty.
The youngest, Amy, was being held by Monica, clutching half a loaf of bread and nibbling on it. Bread crumbs were scattered all over her, but she didn't seem to care.
As she ate, she looked around at everything with her big eyes.
Then she suddenly said something.
Monica.
"Um?"
"There's bread here."
"right."
"So, does that mean we don't have to run anymore?"
Monica didn't say anything.
But her eyes reddened.
Victor stood by, watching this scene, his throat tightening. He turned his head away, no longer looking.
Zhao Lei didn't say anything more. He took out a walkie-talkie from his pocket.
"The situation here is almost resolved. I'll have logistics come over in a bit to arrange accommodations for them. Weapons will be cataloged later."
He spoke a few words into the walkie-talkie, then put it away. He said to Victor:
"Please wait here for a while. Someone will come to arrange your accommodations and work assignments."
"it is good."
"besides--"
Zhao Lei took a few steps, then turned back and said, "Tell your men not to wander off. The base is huge, but there are some places they shouldn't go."
Victor nodded.
Zhao Lei turned and got into the jeep.
The vehicle started and drove into the city.
He was going to report today's events to Lin Fan.
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