Chapter Six

The crowd was growing larger, but my beloved, where are you? Are you well? Sitting on the ground, Zhao Qiang wiped his Type 81 rifle, looking helplessly at his surroundings. Outside, darkness reigned. This once bustling city was now eerily silent. Power and communication were both down; everything had come to a halt, leaving only despair.

Wei Tao remained as cold and unmoving as ever, sitting and staring toward the city center, ignoring Li Zihan’s question. Zhang Yongming and his colleagues gathered around, having somehow found a large oil drum. They lit a bonfire and formed a circle around it.

Zhao Qiang reached out to feel the warmth of the flames and glanced at the others. Yes, where should we go from here? For now, we still hold on to the hope of finding our loved ones, but what awaits us? What future does humanity have?

“Xiao Zhao, what are your plans?” Zhang Yongming lit a cigarette from the bonfire, looking at Zhao Qiang as he warmed himself.

“I don’t know,” Zhao Qiang replied. All he wanted was to find his wife before she starved or was torn apart by zombies. “All I know is that I have to look for my wife, but I don’t...” He trailed off, anxiety filling his heart as he recalled the nightmares of the past few days.

Everyone was discussing their plans at once, except for Wei Tao and Li Zihan, who stayed silent, simply watching the heated debate. Li Zihan kept her head bowed, knowing that as a young woman in this situation, she had no right to voice her own plans. As for Wei Tao, ever taciturn, he continued to maintain his sidearm with his usual cold detachment.

Zhao Qiang noticed Li Zihan’s hesitation. He went over and sat beside her, handing her a piece of chocolate.

“What are you thinking of doing?” Zhao Qiang tried to soften his tone.

“I want to go home. My dad, my mom... I don’t know how they’re doing.” The girl’s voice broke; she needed someone to hear her fears.

“Xiao Li, I understand how you feel. Wei Tao and I fought our way back to Changsha for our families, too. I believe you can do everything in your power for your family as well, don’t you?”

“But I’m just a girl. I can’t go anywhere without you all.”

“Do you know, just three days ago I was just an ordinary man, a useless nobody!” Zhao Qiang shared his true thoughts, hoping to help the despairing girl before him. “Look at me now. I’ve become a fighter, able to protect my family with my own hands. They’re not by my side, but at least now I have the means to keep them safe.” He shook the gun in his hand, his tone resolute.

“But I don’t know how to use a gun. I’m not like you boys who liked guns since childhood—I just liked dolls.”

“Like I said, three days ago I didn’t know how to use a gun either. But look at me now.” Zhao Qiang smiled, quickly disassembling and reassembling the gun in his hands. “Do you want to find your family?”

“I do, but...”

“No buts. Look at those police officers, and think about the zombies we rescued you from—those clumsy creatures who couldn’t even open a door! There must be other survivors like us. Maybe your parents are waiting for you in a safe shelter right now. Girl, you still have time. When you’re strong enough to go back and protect them, I’m sure they’ll be proud of you, won’t they?”

“You mean my parents are still alive? I can see them again?” Hope rekindled in Li Zihan’s eyes as she clung tightly to Zhao Qiang’s arm.

“Maybe. I don’t know. But as long as we’re alive, we shouldn’t give up hope, right?” Zhao Qiang couldn’t promise her anything; he himself didn’t know if he’d ever see his wife again.

“Will you teach me how to use a gun?” Li Zihan asked hopefully.

“No, I won’t teach you,” Zhao Qiang said, glancing at the disappointed Li Zihan before nodding toward Wei Tao. “But he will. He’s a teacher—much better than me.”

Li Zihan stuck out her tongue, glancing shyly at the cold Wei Tao. “Wei-ge?”

“What’s wrong, are you afraid?” Zhao Qiang teased.

“No, but Wei-ge never pays much attention to me. I’m afraid he won’t want to teach me.” Li Zihan didn’t have the best impression of Wei Tao.

“Haha, don’t worry. He may act tough, but he’s actually a good guy. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be here talking to you now. Besides, everything I know, I learned from him. You can trust him.”

Li Zihan’s face glowed red in the firelight as she walked over to Wei Tao, timidly asking, “Wei-ge, can you teach me how to use a gun? I want to…”

Before she could finish, Wei Tao cut her off sharply. “No! I don’t have time!” He shot a glance at Zhao Qiang, who was enjoying the show. “Go ask whoever sent you, I don’t have time.”

Now it was Zhao Qiang’s turn to be stunned; he hadn’t expected Wei Tao to pass the buck like that. With Li Zihan standing there, eyes full of pleading, Zhao Qiang had no choice but to accept the responsibility of being her teacher.

“Get some rest for now. We’ll talk about all this tomorrow. It’s late—you should sleep.” Zhao Qiang couldn’t refuse her request. He glanced at Wei Tao, who finally put down his work, cradled his rifle, and walked toward the bus blocking the gate. “There he goes, off to stand guard again. He’s good at everything except being sociable,” Zhao Qiang muttered, stretching his stiff limbs before leaning against the railing with his gun to sleep. The armored car’s cab had been given to Li Zihan, the only woman among them, so though December’s wind cut to the bone, Zhao Qiang couldn’t take shelter inside.

He woke again from a nightmare to find dawn breaking. The bonfire had burned down to small embers. The others still slept—the past days had drained them—but Wei Tao stood unmoving in the cold like a statue.

Zhao Qiang rubbed his face to wake up, added wood to the dying fire, then, rifle in hand, walked over to Wei Tao. He patted Wei Tao’s shoulder, and when the man turned, Zhao Qiang shook his gun. “I’ll take over. Go rest for a while.” There was much to do today, and Zhao Qiang didn’t want this iron-willed man to lose his fighting edge to exhaustion.

Wei Tao nodded without a word and walked to the bonfire.

Li Zihan awoke to the warmth of the car heater; the windows were fogged. She sat up and wiped the condensation away to see Zhao Qiang now on guard duty, the others still asleep.

“You’re awake?” Zhao Qiang took the bread she offered, smiling. “Why not sleep a bit longer? It’s early.”

“Thank you.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“What?” Zhao Qiang, mouth full of bread, hadn’t heard her.

“Thank you for turning on the heat.” Li Zihan blushed, pointing to the armored car.

Zhao Qiang laughed. “The heat? That wasn’t me. Must’ve been Wei-ge. I nodded off as soon as you left. Only he was on watch last night—everyone else was asleep.” That guy, Zhao Qiang thought, really is the silent type.

Seeing her embarrassment deepen, Zhao Qiang quickly changed the subject. After finishing his bread, he took out the 9mm police revolver he’d never used, unloaded it, and handed it to Li Zihan. “Didn’t you want to learn how to use a gun?”

She nodded and took it. Zhao Qiang recalled everything Li Hao had taught him three days before, along with what he’d picked up from magazines and TV, then began teaching her.

The 9mm police revolver, the first service handgun in modern China, was much better suited for a girl than the more popular Black Star pistol found in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Its simple, lightweight design made it easy for beginners to master. Zhao Qiang had originally intended it as a self-defense gift for his wife, but now found himself passing it to Li Zihan.

Hold it with both hands, feet apart, body facing the target, arms straight to form a stable triangle with your shoulders, lean forward slightly, don’t stick your backside out, keep your body taut! Align the rear sight, front sight, and your target in a straight line. See the letter “O” on that car over there? Aim and shoot.

Under Zhao Qiang’s patient instruction, Li Zihan completed her first shot. The hammer struck the empty chamber with a crisp click. Though it was an unloaded gun, Li Zihan was excited by the experience. “Seems not so hard after all.”

Zhao Qiang smiled and corrected her stance. “If it were really that simple, it’d be great. With live ammo, there’s a loud bang and heavy recoil. If you don’t want to injure your hands, you have to master every shooting position. What I’m teaching you now is just the basics. If you can’t adapt and use them properly, you’ll end up zombie food.”

Zhao Qiang had picked up this stance from a TV show called “Exploration and Discovery.” In America, where gun control is lax, this stance was commonly used by patrol officers and women. While not the most agile, it minimized recoil and ensured accuracy, though it took longer to aim.

“Remember, guns are very dangerous, but they can save your life when it matters most. See this part? The safety. I want it always switched on unless you’re ready to shoot!” Zhao Qiang did not relax his teaching for a moment, acting like a seasoned instructor despite only having learned about guns three days earlier.

As Zhao Qiang taught Li Zihan, Zhang Yongming awoke. Curious, he walked over to watch and listen to the lesson. After a light cough to get their attention, he said, “Xiao Zhao, not bad. My instructor taught us the same way.” He dug two small round devices from his police bag and handed them to Li Zihan. “These are speedloaders. I only have two, but they’re yours.”

“Thank you,” Li Zihan said, accepting them.

“No need. They’re no use to me,” Zhang Yongming replied, patting the Type 77 pistol at his waist. It wasn’t the most rationally designed, but as a semi-automatic, it was more suitable for a man than a revolver. “I won’t disturb your practice—hope those help you.” Waving, he sat nearby to relieve Zhao Qiang as lookout.

In the distance, a few zombies wandered aimlessly, not yet noticing the people in the courtyard. But no one could guarantee they wouldn’t be discovered soon. The two young people absorbed in their lesson might miss something, so Zhang Yongming was keeping watch. Lighting a cigarette, he watched them with interest, occasionally glancing at the zombies.

Time passed quickly, and soon it was noon.

Everyone gathered together as the first snow of 2012 began to fall.

“Xiao Zhao, what’s your plan for today?” Zhang Yongming asked.

“I’m not sure. Let’s see what Wei-ge wants to do,” Zhao Qiang replied, a little embarrassed. “I can’t drive, so I can only rely on others.”

Even with just three hours of sleep, Wei Tao looked refreshed, his cool face betraying no emotion. As everyone turned to him, he said, “I want to check on my home first. Xiao Zhao, come with me. If all goes well, we’ll go to your house, too.”

“What about me?” Li Zihan thought he meant to leave her behind.

“What do the rest of you want to do?” Wei Tao ignored her question, turning to the police officers.

Zhang Yongming, clearly their leader, looked at his colleagues and replied, “We plan to look for our families too. We’re all family men and worry for their safety. But since it wasn’t easy for us all to gather here, maybe we should agree on a place to meet up after we’ve finished?”

The other police officers agreed. Wei Tao nodded. “How about the Changsha SWAT headquarters? Plenty of weapons and ammo, and easy to defend.”

“Good!” Zhang Yongming consulted his colleagues and agreed. For survival and future battles, supplies and terrain were essential. They could not let themselves run out of food and ammunition again.

With the rendezvous set, Wei Tao finally glanced at the anxious Li Zihan. “Get in the car,” he said coolly.

Li Zihan’s heart fluttered in fear that this stone-cold man would abandon her. She had just begun to trust Zhao Qiang and Wei Tao. Zhao was friendly and chubby, but Wei Tao was icy all the time—she could never tell what he was thinking. He must be tired of me and wants to leave me behind, she thought.

Just as Wei Tao headed for the armored car, Li Zihan stood there lost in thought. Zhao Qiang reached out and tugged her back. “What are you daydreaming about? Hurry up and get in!”

Li Zihan looked at Zhao Qiang, then at Wei Tao opening the car door, and asked in confusion, “Are you guys going to leave me behind?”

Zhao Qiang couldn’t help but laugh. Wei Tao had told her to get in precisely because he intended to protect her. What nonsense was this girl imagining? Rubbing her head, Zhao Qiang said, “What are you talking about? Are we that kind of people? Get in before Wei-ge changes his mind!”

Realizing she had misunderstood the cold giant, Li Zihan stuck out her tongue playfully and hurried after Zhao Qiang into the car.

Zhang Yongming and his colleagues also boarded the bus they’d used as a barricade, slowly opening a path through the blockade.