Chapter 26: Dog Eat Dog

When the neighbors realized that Auntie Lin was not responding to any of their calls, they finally understood that they had been swindled. The chat group was immediately flooded with "greetings" directed at Auntie Lin. However, from the moment she decided to deceive her neighbors, Auntie Lin had long since abandoned any sense of shame; she certainly did not care about their insults.

Yet, someone else had set their sights on the supplies she had swindled. That person was Chen Zhenghao, a local hoodlum. Although the apocalypse had only been going on for five days, the true state of the outside world remained unknown to everyone. Consequently, things had not yet reached the point where people were fighting to the death for resources. In Zhang Yi’s memories, Chen Zhenghao would later lead a group of thugs to rob others everywhere, even resorting to murder. But for now, he had not yet resorted to robbing his neighbors. After all, the thug wasn't entirely insane; he still had some sense left. Even Zhang Yi, who had shot and broken his leg, had not been targeted for a follow-up break-in because Chen lacked absolute certainty of success.

Currently, Chen’s own household was running low on supplies. A hoodlum like him had no habit of stockpiling. His fridge was full of beer, but that had long since frozen solid; it couldn’t stave off hunger, and if you wanted to drink it, you had to smash it and gnaw on the ice. Auntie Lin’s actions had caught his eye. She had claimed she would collect supplies for unified distribution. While he scoffed at her words, it was now obvious that she had obtained a portion of her neighbors' supplies through deception. That gave him a perfectly legitimate reason to seize them! Even if the ice and snow were to melt later and the matter were brought up, Auntie Lin, being in the wrong, wouldn't dare do anything. Thus, Chen picked up his phone and called Auntie Lin.

At that moment, Auntie Lin was happily eating biscuits with her grandson, Xiaohu. Instant noodles required hot water, which could only be boiled during the brief periods when the power was on. Suddenly, the phone rang sharply. "Grandma, the phone!" Xiaohu pointed at the device. Auntie Lin snorted, her eyes full of disdain. She assumed it must be one of the neighbors who had been swindled. She felt no guilt toward those "fools"—in her mind, they were just idiots. However, when she picked up the phone and saw the name of the caller, a look of fear crossed her face.

"Chen Zhenghao? Why is he looking for me?" Chen was a notorious local gangster; not only did he have many henchmen, but it was rumored he had powerful connections. He was not someone a minor neighborhood committee member like her could afford to provoke. Auntie Lin answered the phone.

Chen Zhenghao’s voice came through: "Hey, Auntie Lin! You’ve got quite the talent, getting everyone’s supplies into your own hands."

Auntie Lin became sensitive the moment she heard the word "supplies." She cleared her throat and said, "Ahem, as a member of the neighborhood committee, it is my duty to coordinate and manage the supplies for everyone."

Chen Zhenghao let out a cold laugh. "Heh, that’s perfect. My place is quite short on supplies right now, so you’d better bring them over quickly!"

Auntie Lin’s face stiffened. She hadn't expected this hoodlum to come knocking to extort her supplies! She seemed to have forgotten that she had used the same shameless tactics to swindle those very supplies from her neighbors. Although she didn't dare provoke Chen, she was unwilling to hand over the supplies she had worked so hard to get, as she needed them for her and her grandson’s survival. Gritting her teeth, she said, "I still need to coordinate and process these supplies. Besides, there are still some families who haven't turned theirs in, so I can't distribute them yet."

Chen Zhenghao was losing his patience. This old woman clearly didn't know when to quit, using such excuses to brush him off! He cursed angrily, "You old hag, don't push your luck! You’ve pocketed those things for yourself, haven't you? Let me tell you, it would be best if you just hand them over obediently. Otherwise, heh, I’ll come and take them myself!"

Auntie Lin was so frightened that her face turned pale, and she stammered, unsure of what to say. She had always been a bully to the weak while fearing the strong; she was arrogant and unreasonable when dealing with ordinary residents, but how could she know how to handle someone like Chen Zhenghao? She could only muster the courage to say, "What are you trying to do? I’m warning you, don't you dare act recklessly! I am a member of the neighborhood committee!"

Chen laughed even harder. "Pfft, what kind of nonsense is that? Don't think you're someone important! If you don't give them up, I'll come and take them myself!" With that, Chen hung up the phone.

Because of the extreme cold over the past few days, he had called his henchmen to his home. For one, having more people kept the place warmer; for another, many of them had fallen ill after being doused with cold water by Zhang Yi, and they needed someone to look after them. Thirdly, as a hoodlum, Chen had some brains. He realized the situation was taking a turn for the worse, so he concentrated his manpower. If it came to it, having men in hand meant he would have absolute bargaining power. But all those people needed to eat.

After hanging up, he summoned his men, and the group marched imposingly toward Auntie Lin’s home. Chen Zhenghao used a mop handle as a cane, clutching a baseball bat in his other hand as he charged toward her door.

Zhang Yi watched this entire scene clearly through his surveillance cameras. He sat on his sofa, feet propped up on the coffee table, eating potato chips while enjoying the spectacle on his monitor. "Oh ho, looks like it's time for the dogs to bite each other!" Zhang Yi said with a grin. It was only the fifth day of the apocalypse, yet such an entertaining show was already unfolding, and both sides were people he despised. Zhang Yi was in a very good mood.

Suddenly, he thought of the foolish neighbors who had been swindled by Auntie Lin. Based on his memories from his previous life and his understanding of these neighbors, even after this incident, others would continue to be swindled. There was no helping it; people always clung to wishful thinking, and due to thousands of years of Confucian influence, Chinese people would instinctively choose to obey Auntie Lin, who represented the neighborhood committee. And so, they would continue to be fleeced by her, layer by layer.

Zhang Yi rubbed his chin. "What would happen if I posted what’s happening here into the group chat?" A wicked smirk appeared on his lips. "That would certainly be quite spectacular!" He pressed the record button.

After arriving at Auntie Lin’s home, Chen Zhenghao and his men began shouting, demanding that she open the door. The Yuelu residential complex was a mid-range area, and every household had installed security doors. However, as everyone knew, security doors were meant to keep out burglars, not to withstand a determined, violent breach. Auntie Lin’s home was not like Zhang Yi’s. Although it was clear she was desperately trying to barricade the door, the lock could not stop a group of red-eyed thugs. They used baseball bats, steel pipes, and crowbars to bash the door, and soon the lock was destroyed. It was clear this wasn't their first time doing such things.

Once the lock was broken, the tables and sofas Auntie Lin had used to block the door were no match for them. Through the camera, Zhang Yi saw the terror written all over Auntie Lin’s pale face.