RIACMET chapter 22

 

Jiang Nian put down his phone and snacks. He stood up and carefully walked toward the door. He peered through the modified night-vision peephole and saw that someone—or something—was indeed knocking on the outer door.

The knocking sounded very loud, as if they were using all their strength, but the door didn’t budge at all. It was worth every penny of the tens of thousands of dollars spent on renovating that door.

Between the outer door and the inner entrance was a gap filled with various self-defense tools, such as knives, baseball bats, steel pipes, and high-voltage electric batons.

This area was also used for storing household trash. Whenever Cheng Jing went out, he took it down to dispose of the trash every couple of days.

The original entrance was also equipped with a steel frame, and the outer door was a double-layered structure made of thick stainless steel plates and steel bars.

The outermost layer consisted of steel bars as thick as an arm, and the inner layer consisted of thick steel plates. One-third of the steel plate structure was cut into a small door that could be opened from the inside to see outside.

The knocking continued, showing no sign of stopping. Soon, a man’s and a woman’s voices could be heard.

“Hello, I know you’re home. We’re your neighbors from downstairs.”

“Your boyfriend from the rescue team brought us supplies two days ago…”

Before the apocalypse, Jiang Nian had memorized the names of the neighbors in their building. Since Cheng Jing was part of the rescue team, he often interacted with the neighbors when delivering supplies.

So, when Jiang Nian heard the man’s voice, he quickly figured out who it was. They claimed to be from downstairs, but the unit on the eighth floor, where a couple about their age lived, should have been downstairs.

Since too much noise at night would cause trouble, Jiang Nian carefully opened the inner door and slowly closed it. He took out a flashlight and turned it on. Feeling that the light was too bright, he switched to a tiny, thumb-sized flashlight. He stepped forward and asked coldly:

“Stop knocking! What do you want?”

Knocking loudly on a door in the dark was either stupid or malicious—or maybe both! He’d seen too much in his previous life.

The knocking stopped, and a woman’s voice said,

“Hey, our door lock is broken. Could you let us stay for one night?”

“No, you should find another place or someone else.”

Jiang Nian rejected them without hesitation.

Then, a man’s voice said:

“Brother, it’s just one night. We’ll leave tomorrow morning and won’t bother you for long.”

“No, there aren’t many zombies here. The rescue team cleared them out two days ago when they brought supplies. You can go back to your room, block the door with something, and make it through one night. Just don’t sleep too deeply.”

Jiang Nian didn’t waver. Their building was much better in terms of security because Cheng Jing was there. At the start of the apocalypse, the zombies hadn’t mutated yet. For Cheng Jing, who had awakened his supernatural powers, clearing out the zombies here wasn’t hard.

“Kid, you’re home alone, right? Let us in. We won’t bother you. You can make me sleep on the balcony, and we’ll give you supplies.”

The woman’s voice was pleading and anxious.

Jiang Nian gritted his teeth.

“No need. Just go. I won’t open the door. It’s late. You’d better head back and figure out how to secure your door.”

With that, he turned and went back inside. If he hadn’t been reborn and gone through what he did in his previous life, if he hadn’t been tormented by human nature, maybe his heart would have softened, and he would have opened the door. But not now. Even if he felt pity for them, he would never allow anyone inside.

What he didn’t expect was that, after he rejected them again, the people outside started knocking on the door again. In fact, they began trying to break down the door. They were clearly banging on it with something. These two had come prepared with tools while “asking for help.” Ha!

The man’s voice turned harsh.

“We’re all neighbors! How can you be like this? You’re part of the rescue team, and you won’t even let us stay in a safe house for one night? Damn it!”

The woman’s voice was no longer soft, either. She shrieked sharply.

“Yeah! You’re family of the rescue team! What’s wrong with looking out for us? We’re not taking advantage of you; we’re offering you supplies. What are you afraid of, grown man?”

“Shut up!”

Jiang Nian had never been a soft persimmon or a white lotus. He was furious when he heard that.

“Shout at your mother! This is the apocalypse—don’t try to morally blackmail me. Helping is kindness, and not helping is my duty. Do I know you that well? Get lost! If you keep making noise and attract things here, you’ll be the ones who die!”

There are only two options: be a saint or be a sinner. If he lets these two idiots in today, no matter the outcome, there will be others pulling the same moral blackmail tomorrow.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The man smashed something against the door, cursing furiously.

“What makes you so proud? Aren’t you just relying on the rescue team for supplies? You’re just a gay man living off another man! What’s so great about that?”

Jiang Nian laughed angrily.

“Damn right! My boyfriend gave it to me, and I’m happy. You’re someone’s boyfriend too. If you had any ability, you wouldn’t drag your girlfriend to someone else’s house at midnight just to smash their door. What kind of loser dares to spout nonsense to me? Go throw yourself into the zombie horde!”

With that, he ignored the people cursing outside, went straight back inside, and locked the door.

If it weren’t for the special situation and holding back his impulse, he would’ve opened the door and beaten the crap out of that fool! Who dared to act up in front of him?

Message notifications kept popping up on his phone. Cheng Jing had sent several messages asking what he was doing, how his training with his supernatural powers was going, and what he ate for dinner.

He hadn’t replied in time. Just as he picked up the phone to respond, Cheng Jing called.

The pleasant ringtone played for a moment. Jiang Nian calmed down a bit and answered with a smile.

“Hello, Brother Jing. I was busy and couldn’t reply to your messages in time.”

“I thought you were busy…”

Cheng Jing suddenly stopped mid-sentence. After a pause, he asked,

“What’s that noise over there?”

The couple outside was still banging on the door and talking nonsense. Jiang Nian glanced at the door and answered.

“A couple from the eighth floor said their door lock broke, so they came to ask if they could stay for the night. I refused, and then they started banging on the door angrily. They tried to morally blackmail me, saying that I rely on a man like some gigolo.”

“Don’t open the door, and don’t bother with them. Wait for me to come back and handle it. People like that won’t last long, so don’t waste your energy.”

Cheng Jing’s tone was cold. They clearly weren’t good people, getting turned away so late at night and reacting by smashing doors and cursing. Scum!

Jiang Nian knew Cheng Jing was worried he’d act on impulse and fight, so he smiled and said,

“Don’t worry, Brother Jing. I’m not acting impulsively. Besides, I’m quite happy enjoying this easy life. But you all be careful out there and stay safe.”

“Yeah.”

Cheng Jing replied calmly. Jiang Nian figured his teammates might be around, so he didn’t want to say much. He ended the call and went back to his snacks.

The noise outside the door continued, but he couldn’t be bothered to look.

Meanwhile, in a modified utility vehicle on the way home with the team, Cheng Jing was met with teasing looks from the others after he hung up.

Sitting in the passenger seat while Huang Qian drove, the bold female driver was the first to speak.

“Is your hamster in trouble?”