Chapter Fourteen: An Acquaintance

Ma Yi immediately ordered Tie Zhu to kill the zombies outside the door, then looked at a middle-aged man running from inside and said, "The zombies are cleared, open the gate."

The middle-aged man appeared somewhat gaunt, and Ma Yi was visibly taken aback upon seeing him. "Well, isn't this a coincidence?" The man who came out was none other than Ma Yi's company's boss. Although the boss didn't recognize Ma Yi, Ma Yi certainly knew him. As an employee, not knowing your own boss would be rather absurd.

"You two look quite sturdy," the middle-aged man remarked, feeling cheerful now that all the zombies at the entrance were dead. He unlocked the big lock on the gate, which was originally meant as a backup in case of a power outage, and now, it proved useful.

"Chen Yuanshan, President Chen, isn't it?" Ma Yi strode inside, with Tie Zhu closely following him. He admired the vast courtyard before him—“platform” aptly described it, for the uneven mountainside had been leveled with concrete pillars supporting the area beneath them. Ma Yi couldn't help but marvel at the advantages wealth could bring.

"You know me?" Chen Yuanshan quickly pulled from his pocket a cigarette box, squashed and battered.

"It's quite a coincidence—I used to work as an order clerk in your company," Ma Yi replied, not minding the misshapen cigarette as he lit it and took a puff. The courtyard was even larger than it looked from outside—excluding the house, the yard alone was over two thousand square meters.

"That's truly remarkable! I’ve always been busy and had no idea such robust fellows worked in my company. Had I known, I’d have promoted you to be my bodyguard or something; it’s a pity you were just an order clerk," Chen Yuanshan laughed heartily, relieved after being cooped up in the villa for days without seeing anyone from outside.

"Come, let’s sit inside. As luck would have it, some others from our company are here too. Is that fellow behind you also from our company?" Chen Yuanshan eagerly led Ma Yi toward the house.

"He’s my brother—not from the company. He doesn’t like to talk much," Ma Yi glanced at Tie Zhu, who was standing there with a blank expression, which reassured Ma Yi.

Upon entering, Ma Yi immediately noticed the house was saturated with the scent of hormones; evidently, Chen Yuanshan had been hosting parties here during these days.

Several people, all looking gaunt, languished on the sofas. Their eyes lit up with delight at Ma Yi’s arrival.

Ma Yi recognized them all: the business department manager, Liu Jing, who had always been friendly to him, now sat naked on the sofa, her hair matted with dried white streaks, her skin marked with red scratches, clearly battered by hardship.

The general manager of the public relations department, Chen Liang—Chen Yuanshan’s nephew—lay listlessly in a corner. Vice President Zhao Guoqing, along with three female PR managers, were sprawled weakly on another sofa.

"Forgive the sight," Chen Yuanshan said helplessly when he saw Ma Yi’s raised eyebrow. "We were in a meeting when the virus broke out, yes, a meeting. Then we all got trapped here. Food ran out two days ago; we’ve survived only by drinking water."

"Oh, I see," Ma Yi nodded, smiling as he watched Chen Yuanshan wringing his hands, hesitant to speak. "I’ll bring you a few bags of rice soon. You can cook yourselves."

Ma Yi’s words made Chen Yuanshan’s eyes shine; he bowed and thanked him profusely. The others sat up excitedly at the mention of rice, their eyes gleaming green at the prospect. None of them had ever experienced hunger before, and now rice felt as precious as kin.

"Brother, you’ve practically given us new life. We were about to starve to death, and now you’ve saved us," Chen Yuanshan, a man worth over a hundred million, was quick with flattery and gratitude.

"Ah, don’t mention it. Meeting a familiar face at a time like this is already a stroke of luck," Ma Yi replied, enjoying the praise.

"You all tidy up while I fetch some rice," Ma Yi said, then left the room with Tie Zhu. He didn’t need Chen Yuanshan to unlock the gate—he simply jumped over the two-meter-high fence with ease.

Within ten minutes, Ma Yi returned in his van, carrying four bags of rice—all imported. He’d seen a container packed with it earlier; such imported rice was something he’d only heard of, never tasted.

Chen Yuanshan had waited at the gate the whole time, and when Ma Yi returned, he hurried to open the door. The others, who had previously been naked, now threw on some random clothes and followed behind him. Though Ma Yi had already seen everything, modesty and vanity still lingered.

Watching two men struggle to carry a single bag of rice, Ma Yi shook his head. In this apocalypse, lacking physical strength spelled doom. Women were a luxury to be sampled sparingly—though perhaps hunger was the culprit here. He instructed Tie Zhu to wait in the van.

Ma Yi carried all four bags of rice to the kitchen himself, watching the women busy themselves with preparation. He couldn’t help but notice how clothes, loosely draped on their bodies, seemed more alluring than nudity.

Led upstairs by Chen Yuanshan, Ma Yi found the rooms much cleaner than downstairs. The earlier embarrassment of seeing naked subordinates and his nephew had faded—after all, how often does one meet a living soul these days?

Ma Yi didn’t mind. Upstairs, he discovered two women, both fully dressed and tidy. One, older, was clearly Chen Yuanshan’s wife—her identity confirmed by family photos on the wall. The other, young and beautiful, was his secretary, whom Ma Yi also recognized from the company. Surprisingly, the wife and secretary were on friendly terms; clearly, there was some wisdom in that arrangement.

Learning that Ma Yi had brought rice, both women were relieved—they’d resigned themselves to starving, never imagining such luck, meeting a kind soul.

Ma Yi observed the secretary: even in the apocalypse, she still wore light makeup, her slender figure made more delicate by hunger. In the company, she was known as the “ice queen,” her head always held high.

"You fancy her? I can have her stay with you," Chen Yuanshan quickly offered, noticing Ma Yi’s gaze linger on the secretary.

"No need," Ma Yi replied. Chen Yuanshan was astute—he instantly picked up on Ma Yi’s fleeting interest and tried to curry favor by offering his secretary.

"If you change your mind, just let me know. I guarantee she’ll be happy about it," Chen Yuanshan added. Ma Yi didn’t respond, simply sitting quietly. Though he’d once fantasized about something with the secretary, now was hardly the time. If he truly wanted a woman, he could rescue more survivors and choose someone even more attractive.

Soon, those working downstairs finished cooking the rice.

"President Chen, there’s still electricity in this house?" Ma Yi finally noticed the lights had been on the whole time and asked curiously.

"Ah, calling me President Chen is too formal. I’m a bit older—just call me Old Chen or Chen Brother," Chen Yuanshan said with a smile.

"Our villa has its own generator. Each building has its own, so we never worry about power. As long as we have diesel, the electricity will keep running," Chen Yuanshan explained, his expression gentle, far removed from his usual lofty demeanor in the company.

"Impressive! That’s really something," Ma Yi nodded, grinning in satisfaction. He felt he’d chosen the right place this time.

Watching the group devour their food with no regard for appearances, Ma Yi reflected that once, these people were all elites—those halfway up the social pyramid. Now, they were desperate to make up for days of hunger. Ma Yi, smoking and contemplating, thought that if he hadn’t been bitten, mutated, or gone to watch the chaos, he might be just like them—waiting passively for starvation or venturing out only to be eaten by zombies. Life was full of coincidences; now, Ma Yi stood at the top of the pyramid, while they languished at the bottom.

Even a big shot like Chen Yuanshan was now willing to give away his secretary for a few bowls of rice. Ordinary people fared even worse—like Liu Wen’s parents’ neighbors, who, faced with apocalyptic violence, either suffered beatings and hunger, or joined the chaos, becoming accomplices. Had Ma Yi not intervened, Liu Wen’s parents might have met a tragic end; Liu Guoliang could only have watched his wife and daughter abused, dying with bitterness.

"I’ve never tasted rice this good," Chen Yuanshan said, extracting a cigarette from his battered box and lighting it, his face full of satisfaction. As a successful man, he’d grown accustomed to delicacies—rarely did anything taste special. Now, even plain rice felt exquisite.

"There’s plenty outside. If you have the guts, you could eat your fill," Ma Yi said, smiling at his former boss. His visit was purely coincidental; he certainly didn’t intend to support them. He’d rather spend his time at home teasing Liu Wen.

"Ah, I’m getting old—my courage is fading," Chen Yuanshan admitted, embarrassed. Years of comfort made him ill-equipped for the dangers outside.

"You used to work at our company? You’re doing well, young man. When the chance comes, I’ll make sure you rise to the top," Vice President Zhao, revitalized after eating, patted Ma Yi’s shoulder, acting as if following him would guarantee success.

Ma Yi was dumbfounded by the vice president’s bravado. Even now, he was so self-assured. Had it not been for Ma Yi, they’d likely have starved in a few more days. Where did this confidence come from?

"Oh? How do you figure?" Ma Yi laughed at the vice president, whom he never had a good impression of—was he offering a boxed lunch with his first words?

"Once society stabilizes and Old Chen is here, I’ll promote you right away," the vice president boasted, clearly convinced that everything was temporary and, once society returned to normal, he’d resume his lofty position, still dreaming the government would restore order.