Chapter 1: Goodbye, Zhan Yun
On a bright, sunny afternoon, Su Ruizhe stood outside a barbecue shop in a school uniform that looked a bit worn. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
He had missed this smell so much…
“Uncle Wu! Give me ten skewers of chicken, ten of lamb, and ten of beef!” Su Ruizhe swallowed hard, then pulled a few crumpled bills out of the pocket of his shabby uniform and handed them over.
The owner of the barbecue shop was named Wu Qi, a middle-aged man nearing forty. Of average build and about 175 centimeters tall, he wore glasses and had a refined, scholarly appearance.
“Little Zhe? Why are you eating so much today?” Wu Qi’s shop was right outside the gate of No. 1 High School. Su Ruizhe often worked here during summer vacation, so Wu Qi knew him well and was aware of his fondness for this kind of food. But Su Ruizhe had always been strapped for cash—he would save for seven or eight days just to buy one or two skewers to take home and share with his grandfather, merely to satisfy a craving. He had never spent money so freely before.
Su Ruizhe rubbed his hands together, took out a few more crumpled bills, and placed them into Wu Qi’s money basket. A faint smile appeared on his youthful, delicate face. “Uncle Wu, I made some money today, so I wanted to treat myself.”
“You made money?” Wu Qi paused slightly as he grilled the skewers, then looked up at Su Ruizhe and asked casually, “How did you make it?”
Wu Qi knew about Su Ruizhe’s family situation. His father had died in an accident, and his mother, unable to endure hardship, had run off with someone else. The child had been raised entirely by his elderly grandfather. Through sheer effort, Su Ruizhe had managed to get into No. 1 High School, but tuition had become a major problem. His grandfather, living on a subsistence allowance, could only go out to collect recyclables to earn money.
Not long ago, while picking up trash, Su Ruizhe’s grandfather had suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage and passed away. Losing his only relative, Su Ruizhe had become completely orphaned. At seventeen, he was already too old to be sent to an orphanage and could only survive on the four hundred yuan of monthly subsistence allowance provided by the local community. Feeling sorry for the boy, Wu Qi had let him work in the shop during holidays. Earning just over ten yuan a day was nothing more than a drop in the bucket for Su Ruizhe—barely enough to get by. With the new school term approaching, tuition and living expenses had become an enormous problem.
Now Su Ruizhe said he had made money? A minor—where could he possibly earn any real money? No wonder Wu Qi couldn’t help but take it seriously.
Su Ruizhe smiled shyly and took out a small plastic bag from behind him. “These are vegetables I grew myself. I sold them for money.”
“Oh? You grew them yourself? Let me take a look.” Hearing that the money came from selling vegetables, Wu Qi’s worry immediately eased. He reached out and took the bag from Su Ruizhe.
“Heh, quite a variety, huh?” Inside the bag were seven or eight different kinds of vegetables, mixed together. There wasn’t much of each, but they looked very good.
Wu Qi took out an ear of corn, smelled it, then snapped off a kernel and put it in his mouth. His eyes lit up at once. “This tastes great—you can tell it’s extremely fresh! I’ll take this whole bag. Here, take the money. And when you grow more, you have to come sell them to me again.”
Wu Qi’s barbecue shop didn’t just sell meat skewers; it also sold grilled vegetables. Su Ruizhe’s produce was far better in quality than what Wu Qi usually bought wholesale from the market. Without hesitation, he took a red hundred-yuan bill from the cash box and stuffed it into Su Ruizhe’s hand.
Su Ruizhe pressed his lips together and accepted the money. Two small dimples appeared on his slightly chubby cheeks as he smiled and thanked him. “Thank you, Uncle Wu. When I have new vegetables in a few days, I’ll definitely sell them to you.”
“Here you go—your thirty skewers.” Wu Qi took a plastic container and packed up the barbecue Su Ruizhe had ordered.
“Thanks, Uncle Wu. Goodbye.” Su Ruizhe politely bade him farewell and turned to leave the shop.
With the aroma of grilled meat lingering at his nose, Su Ruizhe couldn’t wait. He pulled out a skewer and took a big bite.
Ahh! Pure bliss!
Su Ruizhe nearly burst into tears—he couldn’t even remember how many years it had been since he’d tasted something this delicious…
As he walked, he wolfed down more than ten skewers. Then, after carefully looking around, he turned into a narrow alley.
When he emerged from the alley again, the little box of barbecue was gone. In its place was a large bag of fresh cherries.
“Sweet, big cherries! Ten yuan per jin (1 jin = 600 grams)—if they’re not sweet, they’re free!” Su Ruizhe squatted by the curb near a nearby market, opened the bag in front of him, and the bright, glistening cherries immediately caught the attention of several aunties.
“Kid, can we try one?” one of the women asked.
“Of course!” Su Ruizhe pinched a cherry by its stem and handed it over. The two dimples at his cheeks appeared faintly, making him look obedient and adorable. “Auntie, these are home-grown—absolutely fresh.”
The woman nodded. She could tell at a glance that the cherries were fresh, still dotted with water, clearly just washed. She popped the cherry straight into her mouth.
“Mmm! So sweet!” The burst of sweetness and juice filled her mouth, and her eyes lit up. “Kid, weigh me three jin!”
“Coming right up!” Su Ruizhe smiled as he took a plastic bag and a small electronic scale out of his backpack, filling most of the bag with cherries. “Auntie, three jin of cherries—and I’ll throw in a potato for you.”
Only then did the woman notice another bag by Su Ruizhe’s feet, with several round potatoes inside, all looking quite good. Delighted, she paid promptly and left with her purchase.
Suddenly, a group of hooligans swaggered down the street, all dressed in a flashy, delinquent style. The man at the very back, however, stood out the most.
He was nearly 1.9 meters tall, long-limbed and imposing. He wore black sunglasses that hid his features, but his high-bridged nose and sharp, hard-set facial lines were unmistakable. A ring of bluish stubble made him look especially intimidating.
He wore a tight black vest that outlined his solid muscles. Paired with his wheat-colored skin, he looked like masculinity personified—so handsome it was almost overwhelming.
It was a pity, really, that he was just a street thug…
Su Ruizhe lifted his small face and looked at the familiar group of punks. His eyes reddened unconsciously.
“Heh, Boss, you’re way too fierce. Look—you haven’t even done anything, and the kid’s about to cry,” said a yellow-haired thug, who spotted Su Ruizhe at once. The kid’s skin was far too pale, his looks far too well-behaved. Those big black eyes seemed able to speak, and now they were rimmed red, shoulders hunched as if frightened—like a little quail. Somehow, it only made him look cuter.
“Oh?” Zhan Yun pushed his sunglasses down slightly, revealing a pair of narrow, deep-set eyes, and looked in Su Ruizhe’s direction.
Su Ruizhe felt as if his heart were about to leap out of his chest. He dug his nails hard into his palm to stop himself from calling out “Brother Yun.”
As a result, his eyes only grew redder…
“Hey, kid, what’s your deal…? We’re not even collecting protection money—we’re just passing through. Why are you so scared?” The yellow-haired thug walked over in a few strides and squatted in front of Su Ruizhe, completely baffled at why the kid looked so terrified.
Su Ruizhe also felt he was being utterly pathetic. He hurriedly forced back his tears, rubbed his eyes hard with his sleeve, and looked up with wet, shining eyes, doing his best to squeeze out a smile. His slightly chubby cheeks puffed out adorably, and the two dimples by his cheeks appeared again, making him look even more meek and lovable.
“Tsk.” Zhan Yun kicked the yellow-haired thug in the butt in annoyance, sending him away from Su Ruizhe. He then squatted down in front of Su Ruizhe himself. “What’re you selling?”
“Cherries! Big, sweet cherries…” Su Ruizhe rubbed his palms together and asked timidly, “W-would you like to try one?”
Zhan Yun studied him for a long moment, then reached out, picked up a cherry, and popped it into his mouth. The sweet flavor instantly filled his mouth—this was honestly the first time he’d ever tasted cherries this good.
“How many do you have?”
“S-still… more than ten jin left.”
“Give me ten jin.” With that, he stood up and called to the yellow-haired thug he’d kicked earlier. “A Wang, pay up!”
“Got it!” A Wang quickly pulled a hundred-yuan bill from his pocket and tossed it over, adding in an especially domineering tone, “No need for change!”
Su Ruizhe hurried to bag the cherries. When he handed the bag to A Wang, he replied in a small voice, “I-it’s… exactly right. No change needed…”
A Wang nearly tripped over his own feet at that, and his brothers immediately crowded around to tease him. The group left in a rowdy, laughing cluster.
Watching Zhan Yun’s back disappear around the street corner, the light in Su Ruizhe’s eyes slowly dimmed…
He… still didn’t recognize him.
Only after the hooligans had gone did the aunties who had been watching from nearby swarm in. In no time at all, they bought up all of Su Ruizhe’s remaining cherries. Even the boss of East Street thought they were good—he’d bought ten jin in one go! If they were slow, there’d be none left!
After giving away the last few potatoes as well, Su Ruizhe dusted off his pants and happily packed up to go home.
Passing through several narrow alleys, Su Ruizhe returned to the small, low house where he had lived with his grandfather. He opened the old wooden door with its peeling paint and looked at the familiar little home. His eyes couldn’t help but redden again.
“Grandpa…” Su Ruizhe sobbed, tears slowly dripping down his cheeks, “If only I could have come back sooner… sooner…”
However, considering that the world would become a carnage in a month, he thought that perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad if his grandfather left now…
***
Translator’s Note:
Hi Panda Readers~
Starting another apocalypse series! This is one I’ve reread many times and finally decided to re-translate. If you enjoy stockpiling, farming-style apocalypse stories—or if you’ve read and liked the Otaku series—you’ll probably enjoy this one too.
Happy reading~
Thank you for reading 🙂 I hope you all liked my translations. If you enjoyed my work, please consider buying me a Ko-Fi 😉
