161: One way in front of others

Jiang Dai heard her son crying.

At that moment, her eyes snapped open, her pupils constricted, and she instinctively erupted with a burst of strength!

She couldn't kill it with the knife, so she used the flat side of the blade to repeatedly smash it, making the zombie's head twist and turn.

The zombies had no intelligence, only knowing to instinctively pounce and bite. When she retreated, they lunged forward. The more she struggled, the more excited they became.

Soon, Jiang Dai's body was covered in gashes—her arms, shoulders, legs... blood streamed out, and the pain made her feel like she was about to faint.

But she didn't fall.

She couldn't fall.

She heard Guoguo still calling her.

She lifted her heavy foot, suddenly hooked the back of a zombie's rotting leg, and with all her might, pulled it backward.

“Bang!” The zombie fell to the ground with a thud.

Before she could even catch her breath, she rushed forward, knocked another zombie away, and, dragging her blood-soaked body, dashed out the door!

Before leaving, she didn't hesitate, turning to lock the glass door, trapping the zombies and the other residents in the building together.

She knew this decision was cruel, but she had no choice.

She looked back and saw Lei Qian standing outside, and in his arms was her child.

Jiang Dai practically lunged over: “Baby, Mommy’s here! Mommy’s right here!”

She took Guoguo from Lei Qian's arms, hugged him tightly, with such force as if to melt him into her bones and blood.

Guoguo was a “fool” in the Meng family’s eyes, but to her, he was all her hope, all the reason that sustained her to live.

She didn't care about the wounds all over her body, nor the bloodstains.

She just held her son tightly, desperately kissing his cheek, again and again:

“Mommy’s here, Mommy’s here, baby, don’t be afraid…”

If anything happened to Guoguo, she would never forgive herself.

“Watch out!”

Jiang Dai heard a sudden shout and flinched.

She instinctively looked back, only to find a zombie charging fiercely towards her.

This zombie was faster and more ferocious than any she had encountered before.

Watching the monster approach, Jiang Dai froze, but even in danger, maternal instinct still took over.

She subconsciously shielded her belly with her arm, turned her back to the zombie, and squatted down, holding her son tightly.

She closed her eyes, preparing for the impending pain and death, but the terrifying bite never came.

Startled, she slightly opened one eye and secretly glanced back, only to see Bai Wanning kick the zombie away.

“What are you waiting for?” Bai Wanning raised an eyebrow, looking at the woman squatting on the ground, and said in a calm tone, “Get up, or will you stay here to be the zombies’ main course?”

She looked at the woman in front of her and nodded with slight satisfaction.

At least she wasn't too bad; although her face was covered in swelling and bruises, she still put her child first in a life-or-death situation.

A woman could be weak, but a mother would never bow her head when her child’s safety was at stake.

“Jiang Dai!”

On the balcony, a blood-soaked man rushed out of the apartment, looking down at Jiang Dai with disbelief in his eyes, shouting like he was looking at a monster: “Jiang Dai, come and save us! You... aren't you able to defeat these monsters? Then hurry up and come upstairs to help us!”

“I will, I will forgive your past disrespect towards me and my family.”

Jiang Dai looked up, staring intently at the man, her eyes full of hatred.

While gently patting the child in her arms, she angrily retorted: “Hmph, are you crazy? Do you think you are the owner of this land? Have you forgotten what you did to me and my child? Why should I sacrifice my child to save you and your family?”

She hated this man so much that her teeth gnashed; if the situation weren't so urgent, she truly wanted to finish him and his family off with a single strike.

“You—”

“Stop it.” His wife pulled him back, whispering to the man: “Look at her, she’s covered in wounds, badly scratched by those things, she’ll turn into one of those monsters sooner or later. If she comes up and changes, then our whole family will die.”

As soon as these words came out, the man’s face stiffened, and he finally stopped urging Jiang Dai.

His wife, however, turned to shout at Jiang Dai: “Laugh! When you turn into a zombie, we’ll see if you can still laugh!”

Listening to these words, Jiang Dai’s heart gradually calmed down.

She looked down at the shocking scratches on her arms, neck, and legs, a chill running through her heart. Would she really turn into one of those monsters?

If she changed too, what would happen to her children?

“Don’t listen to her nonsense.” Lei Yan heard the woman’s malicious words, rolled her eyes, and retorted unceremoniously: “Scratches won’t infect people; only being bitten by a zombie’s teeth, or if their scratches are too deep, will cause infection.”

“The virus won’t spread from fingernails.” Seeing that Bai Wanning had no intention of interfering, Lei Yan took the initiative to persuade, “Come and rest with me. You’re pregnant and have been through so much, it’s better to rest more.”

Saying this, she supported Jiang Dai and led her into the car.

“Mom…” Guoguo looked timidly at his father, then turned to look at his mother.

“Your father won’t hurt us anymore,” Jiang Dai gently comforted her son.

She knew the child was scared. Every time they disobeyed the man, he would beat and kick them.

Guoguo’s tension finally eased slightly.

He obediently nestled in his mother’s arms and closed his tired eyes. He had cried too much earlier and was exhausted.

“Here.” Da Cheng got out of the car, handed the first-aid kit to Lei Yan, then turned to Jiang Dai and said, “I’ll hold the child; you deal with your wounds first.”

“Oh, right,” Lu Yin, following behind him, added with a smile, “You’re pregnant, so you can’t carry anything too heavy. Even though the child is small, he’s not light.”

Bai Wanning saw the two of them voluntarily helping and raised her eyebrows slightly.

It had to be said, Da Cheng was indeed an interesting character. Just a moment ago, he was sarcastically saying she was too soft-hearted for saving the child, and now he was enthusiastically speaking up for Jiang Dai.

Such a man, with keen observation and flexible handling of situations, was indeed likely to live very well in the Apocalypse, even more comfortably than anyone else.

Just a few hours ago, he still wanted to oppose Bai Wanning, but now that he saw she was the core of the team, he immediately changed his attitude and extended an olive branch.

As for whether this enthusiasm was genuine or not, Bai Wanning didn't care.

“Will she really be okay?” Meng Qibao frowned, looking at Jiang Dai, a hint of doubt in his tone.

Bai Wanning turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow and asking, “Are you worried about her?”

“I didn’t mean that.” The sunny youth nodded seriously, “It’s just… what if she turns into a zombie? Wouldn’t we all be in trouble then? Why don’t we quickly… before she changes…”

“Quickly kill her?” Before Meng Qibao could finish his sentence, Meng Suisui, standing behind him, stiffened, and her expression also turned ugly.