After dinner, Zhang Xiaoqiang and Angor returned to the guest room. This time, the atmosphere was more harmonious. Zhang Xiaoqiang smoked freely while Angor enjoyed the premium wine Zhang Xiaoqiang gave him.
Karina spoke Chinese more fluently now. At least, she did not have to keep Zhang Xiaoqiang guessing for a long time. At the same time, she could find suitable words to translate Zhang Xiaoqiang's words to Angor.
"We don't care about the ownership of Vladivostok. The government has forgotten about this place. The number of survivors is dwindling day by day. At first, there were hundreds of us. Now, there are only ten of us. We have no future. We have no hope. I've wanted to kill our children more than once …"
Karina translated and looked at Angor in horror. Zhang Xiaoqiang did not say anything when he heard the last sentence. He understood Angor's feelings. Before the apocalypse, these children were Jiaojiao's treasures. Their parents would buy them anything delicious. But now, a few cans of food was the best they had ever tasted. For these children, there was more suffering ahead.
"There were people who stood up and tried to lead the survivors out of the city. Some of them succeeded, some failed. Whether they succeeded or failed, they all disappeared. No one ever came back. We don't even know if they're still alive.
There used to be people living on ships and they would appear on the beach from time to time. But now, they're all gone. We're all cowards. We don't dare to face the unknown outside. At least, we survived until now. It's been a hard life … "
Vladivostok was vast and sparsely populated, but there were also many survivors. The Russians had a habit of shopping in one go and always liked to bring back boxes and bags. At the beginning, there was no shortage of food, enough for them to survive for a long time. After that, the Vladivostok garrison troops and the Pacific Fleet's marines began to gradually gather the supplies and rescued some survivors.
As the evolved zombies appeared, the army suffered heavy casualties. Settlements fell one after another. The survivors were scattered again. It was not that no one wanted to run, but Vladivostok was surrounded by mountains. It was not easy to find food. It was the same for the island opposite Vladivostok. It was not easy to catch fish here.
The difficult life made the survivors reluctant to leave the city, causing them to struggle in hell and hope. Even though the living conditions in Vladivostok were much better than the mainland of China, with the appearance of high-level zombies, the survivors began to feel precarious. Although the survivors could always find a way to survive, they were still on the brink of extinction.
"Our biggest enemy is not the demons wandering the streets. We've learned how to avoid them in two years. Our biggest enemy is always our own kind. Every survivor group has been attacked by bandits. They probably think that attacking humans is less dangerous than demons …" Angor lowered his head in pain.
He pulled his hair with both hands and mumbled, "Fifty of my people died in the hands of these bandits. They rob everything, including corpses. They eat everything, including their companions. They can't be called human anymore. They gave up their language and their dignity as human beings. They will do anything …"
Zhang Xiao Qiang did not respond to Angor's anger. He had seen many people like this, and he had killed many of them. He was already tired of killing them. Zhang Xiao Qiang did not care about these Russian bastards. He only cared about his own survival.
"Alright, I'm here to ask about one thing. Where can I find the fastest motorboat here …"
This time, Zhang Xiao Qiang was not prepared to be a savior. His purpose was to find a motorboat and return to the mainland along the coast. If possible, he hoped to follow the entrance of the Yangtze River all the way to HB. This was the fastest way home.
Angor's expression changed when he heard Zhang Xiaoqiang's question. He understood what Zhang Xiaoqiang meant. This China man would leave eventually. He wanted to ask him to stay, but he did not know what to say. After a moment of silence, he drained the glass of wine in one gulp …
"It's easy to get a motorboat, but I don't recommend using one. It's for civilian use and has limited endurance. It can't withstand big waves, and the surrounding sea conditions are complicated. Strong winds can capsize the motorboat. I suggest you find an assault boat, usually used by the customs for smuggling. The fastest one can reach 65 knots. Or find a torpedo boat retired from the Pacific Fleet. It's a little slower, but it can reach 45 knots …"
Zhang Xiaoqiang suddenly became interested. He then asked about the concept of knots and learned that knots were the length of one nautical mile. One nautical mile was equivalent to 1.9 kilometers, so fifty knots was equivalent to 100 kilometers. In other words, the motorboat he took to escape from the island on the great lake only had a speed of about fifty knots. Fifty knots could help him escape from the big fish, and sixty-five knots was impossible for most water creatures to catch up.
"Where can I find a sniper boat?"
Zhang Xiaoqiang asked in a hurry. He had already decided on a sniper boat as a tool to get home. It was fast enough. It could go 120 kilometers in an hour, which was faster than a road race. It could go 500 kilometers with one refuel, and with two barrels of oil, it could go a thousand kilometers without a problem.
Zhang Xiaoqiang's question stumped Angor. It was already dark outside. A candlestick had been erected in the reception room. There was only one candle burning on the luxurious metal candlestick.
The candlelight emitted a tri-colored light that illuminated the surroundings. Only Angor, Zhang Xiaoqiang, and Karina were present. The luxurious reception room was decorated with antique furniture, complicated curtains, old oil paintings, and dim candlelight. It was as if the place had been reconstructed from the 18th century …
There was no entertainment in the apocalypse, especially at night. Zhang Xiaoqiang enjoyed a hot bath provided by Angor and carried his backpack to the living room. The furniture in the living room was just as luxurious. There was a king-sized bed, which was the most expensive bed Zhang Xiaoqiang had ever slept in in his life. Carved and hollowed, copper pillars, crystal lamps … anything that Zhang Xiaoqiang could not think of, was here.
Looking at the bed, Zhang Xiaoqiang could not help but shake his head. If this was in China, it would create a huge amount of GDP. Then he jumped on the sun-smelling bedsheet, crawled between the silk sheets, and placed the luminous pearl next to his pillow. The luminous pearl was soft and did not affect his sleep at all. Zhang Xiaoqiang did not close his eyes. He looked at the crystal lamp on the ceiling and counted in his mind.
Just as she counted to 87, the door was pushed open and then closed. Karina, who was wearing a light muslin dress, bent over and made a groping gesture. She looked at the light that illuminated the room in surprise. She then saw the luminous pearl beside Zhang Xiao Qiang's pillow, and a trace of greed flashed in her eyes.
Even with a luminous pearl, it could not light up the entire 60-square-meter bedroom. Zhang Xiaoqiang, who had seen countless people before, could clearly see the glint in Karina's eyes.
"Don't bother. I'm not interested in you …"
Zhang Xiaoqiang rejected indifferently. His tone was so cold that Karina could not help but shiver. She suddenly took two steps forward and knelt in front of Zhang Xiaoqiang's bed. Zhang Xiaoqiang did not move. He just looked at Karina's sad face indifferently.
"Please, help me. I'm living in hell here. Please get me out …" Karina begged Zhang Xiaoqiang.
Karina begged Zhang Xiao Qiang. She tore off her clothes and revealed her scarred body, showing him the suffering she had gone through. In the next moment, a bedsheet covered her body. She was overjoyed. Zhang Xiao Qiang, who was wearing his leather armor, jumped to the ground and grabbed Karina's hair. As she screamed, he dragged her to the door, opened the door, and threw her out … Karina's heart was filled with joy. Zhang Xiao Qiang jumped to the ground and grabbed Karina's hair.
Zhang Xiao Qiang, who had tossed Karina aside, let out a long sigh, turned around, jumped onto the bed, and closed his eyes peacefully. Karina's tragic experience and suffering had nothing to do with him. Even if Karina was a hundred times more beautiful, he wouldn't have any hesitation. In this world, he couldn't care less.
Karina was forgotten. Zhang Xiaoqiang put his hands behind his head and looked at the top of the bed with the gauze curtain hanging down. He was thinking about something. Zhang Xiaoqiang had a rough idea of the place Angor mentioned.