Chapter 26: "How the Mighty Have Fallen"
Seizing a moment when no one was watching, Zhang Mingyuan crept quietly to the side of the RV and knocked on the door.
"Brother Su Chen, Brother Su Chen…"
Inside, Su Chen had just eaten his fill and was about to fall asleep under the cool air-conditioning when the knocking startled him—his mood instantly soured.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Zhang Mingyuan!"
Hearing the voice, Su Chen was only slightly surprised.
He had watched the entire "royal battle" that morning between Ah Biao and the others and the rest of the survivors. Munching on a bag of chips, he'd thoroughly enjoyed the show.
After the official broadcast declared that rescue was off the table, ruthless thugs like Ah Biao—strong, vicious, and cunning—quickly took control.
With fists and muscle, they robbed survivors of their resources and actually lived quite well in the apocalypse.
A harsh truth revealed itself: only the ruthless survive in the end times.
Now that Ah Biao had stopped distributing food and the outside heat was unbearable, Zhang Mingyuan had no choice but to come begging.
"Well, if it isn't Young Master Zhang. It's only been a few days, and you're already in such bad shape?"
Su Chen's voice was dripping with sarcasm. He didn't even bother lowering the steel-shuttered window—just spoke through the intercom.
"You don't know how awful that b*st*rd Ah Biao really is…" Zhang Mingyuan had completely dropped his haughty tone and now groveled pathetically.
He poured out his frustrations, describing every detail of how Ah Biao had betrayed him.
"Alright, I don't have time to hear you whine. What do you want?"
Su Chen cut him off impatiently.
"Well… I haven't eaten properly in days. Do you… have any food?" Zhang Mingyuan asked carefully.
"Are you insane, Young Master Zhang?"
Su Chen couldn't help but laugh.
"If I remember correctly, wasn't it you who brought Ah Biao here from out of town, just to teach me a lesson?"
"And now you've got the nerve to ask me for food?"
Zhang Mingyuan's face froze in embarrassment.
Su Chen wasn't wrong—he'd invited Ah Biao just to mess with Su Chen. And now he was paying the price.
"Brother Su, I apologize for what happened before."
"As for your food, I'm not asking for it for free. I'll pay you!"
Zhang Mingyuan pulled out a thick wad of cash—at least ten or twenty thousand yuan.
"I'll trade this for ten packs of instant noodles. What do you say?"
"Young Master Zhang, you're dreaming," Su Chen sneered.
"If ten packs is too much, how about eight? Five?"
"No, no—you've misunderstood me. The cash you're holding? I wouldn't even use that to wipe my *ss, it's too rough."
Zhang Mingyuan was stunned.
In normal times, that kind of money could buy a truckload of food.
And now, it couldn't even get him a single pack of noodles.
The irony was brutal.
Still, he couldn't walk away.
His stomach growled incessantly, and the hunger gnawed at his insides like fire.
Clenching his teeth, he begged:
"Brother Su, I'll give you 15% of my family's company—Mingyuan Group. If you'll just give me enough supplies to last two weeks, I'll sign the papers right now!"
Mingyuan Group was worth hundreds of billions. Fifteen percent meant tens of billions.
That was a massive offer.
And yet, Su Chen remained unmoved.
"Nice offer," he said casually. "But… I refuse."
Zhang Mingyuan panicked.
"Why?! That's billions of yuan! Don't you want it?"
"The heatwave can't last forever. Once it ends, you'll be rich beyond belief!"
Inside the RV, Su Chen smirked.
Even if such a contract was valid under current circumstances, he wouldn't accept it.
Why?
Because in the apocalypse, that kind of wealth was nothing but waste paper.
Like he said—too rough for toilet use.
If he hadn't lived through this once before, Su Chen might have been tempted.
But unfortunately for Zhang Mingyuan, he'd been reborn.
Stretching lazily, Su Chen couldn't be bothered to argue anymore. He hit a switch.
The RV went into soundproof mode.
No matter how much noise came from outside, the interior would stay completely silent—unless an emergency triggered the alarm system.
"Brother Su… Brother Su…"
Zhang Mingyuan called out a few more times, but there was no response.
He finally understood—Su Chen had completely rejected him.
That damned b*st*rd!
That worthless loser!
In the old world, someone like you wouldn't even deserve to speak to me!
Muttering curses under his breath, Zhang Mingyuan turned and left in defeat.
As he returned to his spot, one of his friends approached.
"Young Master Zhang!"
"What?" Zhang Mingyuan replied weakly.
In normal times, he would've taken care of these party friends with his family wealth.
But now? He could barely take care of himself.
"That b*st*rd Ah Biao is really heartless!" said the young man named Yang Zhen angrily. "After all the kindness you showed him, he turned on you too!"
His words hit home—but they were ultimately useless.
"What's the point? Got any food? I'm starving," Zhang asked impatiently.
"Food… no," Yang Zhen admitted. "But right now, we're all in the same boat. Young Master Zhang, we need to unite and figure something out!"
His words sparked a thought in Zhang Mingyuan.
Right. Without Ah Biao's protection, surviving was going to be tough.
He needed allies—people like Yang Zhen—to survive this.
"You got any ideas?"
"If we want to live, we'll have to scavenge supplies outside. Why don't you join our team?"
"I'm in," Zhang replied without hesitation.
He stood up and followed Yang Zhen to a corner of the garage.
But to his surprise, waiting there—along with a few of his usual hangers-on—were Xiao Mei and Liu Ling'er.
He'd just cursed them out days ago. Now, seeing them again was more than a little awkward.
Of course, Xiao Mei and Liu Ling'er hadn't joined Yang Zhen willingly.
They were just out of options.