CH : 35 Troubles

Ethan held Julia, remembering when Julia took care of him when he was seriously injured. His heart softened, and softly said: "All Right! All right! All right! From today on, you are my girlfriend."

Just after Ethan said this, a valiant and handsome figure flashed in his mind.

Julia wiped away her tears, a playful smile breaking through as she held onto Ethan. "Big brother Ethan, you said it! From now on, I'm officially your girlfriend. And no matter how many other women come along, they'll all have to call me 'Big Sister,' 'First Wife' the Chief Wife! and rest will be just your concubines"

After speaking, Julia also took a look at Chloe.

Julia was also a beauty, her figure was fuller than girls her age. However, compared to Chloe, she was still a bit lacking. Chloe's skin is white and youthful, her bosom very full and still growing, and had a lovely cute face. Truly an example of a youthful virgin. Seeing Chloe, it put a lot of pressure on Julia.

Elisa was ignored by Julia, she intuitively felt Elisa was not her rival, and so was not a threat to her at all.

Sensing that Julia was looking at her, Chloe lowered her head. These last dozens of days of experiences had made her mature. In the past, she would definitely glared back at Julia, and give Julia a good look. Now she can only lower her head to avoid aggravating Julia. Currently, she is no longer the Mayor's daughter, but a woman with a fate where she can't even control her own body. She was now a pitiful woman just like some commodity that can be given away.

Ethan patted Julia on the back, comforting her and said: "Good! They will listen to you."

Julia finally stopped sobbing, smiling toward Ethan, and like a spoiled child, said: "I want to sleep in here tonight."

Ethan held Julia, smiled and said: "Okay!"

Julia was content sleeping next to Ethan, while Chloe slept on Ethan's right side. Elisa was curled up at the corner of the big bed.

The next day, Ethan and his party went to the dining hall.

Breakfast was boxed milk, hot white steamed buns, and pork sausages.

Luna and the girls only got the gruels with wild vegetables. Looking at the gruels, all the girls were nauseous. Even though they were hungry all night, they still didn't want to eat that disgusting gruel.

At the table, Tiger looked at Ethan, laughed and said: "Little brother Ethan, last night was fun right! HA HA!"

Ethan said with a smile: "Thanks to Boss Tiger's generosity yesterday, I did sleep well."

Last night, even though Ethan did not do anything with the three women, but holding Julia and Chloe while sleeping all night, it was not bad.

While eating, Zhang Xiang looked at Ethan with poisonous eyes, then lowered his head to eat the steamed buns and pork sausages.

Lei Chen looked at Ethan with jealousy and hate, he wanted to enjoy Chloe for a long time, but had not succeeded. Now that Ethan had enjoyed it first, he was filled with jealousy and hate for Ethan.

Chen Yan carefully looked at Ethan, eyes flashing, with his thoughts unknown.

Ethan looked at Tiger, and said: "Boss Tiger, are we going to the arsenal today?"

Seeing Ethan so energetic, Tiger couldn't help but pause a moment before saying: "No rush! Our brothers had just gone out and performed the tasks, they were too tired, and needed to rest for two days. Two days after, we will set off to the arsenal. These two days, you should take your time and relax here."

After the militants go out to perform a task, they will relax for two days, this is a rule that was set in Always Bright Village. In the outside world, there is constant danger of dying. Tiger's men have the Type 81 rifle and Type 79 submachine guns to deal with ordinary zombies. Ordinary zombiers are not a problem, but if it was S1 or L1 zombies, they would be killed. Under the tremendous pressure of dying any time, if they are not allowed to relax, those militants would revolt.

In fact, among the survivors that Tiger gathered, many had committed suicide because of the bleak future.

Ethan nodded, then stood up and went outside.

Seeing that Ethan stood up, Tiger said: "Little brother Ethan, since you don't want to join us. Starting from today, you must use your own supplies for food and drink. We cannot treat you like today."

Every bit of supplies in this post apocalyptic world is hard to come by. Ethan's group has more than 10 people, even just eating the gruels, they would eat a lot. Tiger naturally was reluctant to let Ethan freeload off of him.

"I understand Boss Tiger!"

Ethan after finishing the sentence, along with Luke and William, left the dining hall. He had a Volvo truck full of supplies, if provisioned carefully, it was not a problem for more than a dozen people to eat over half a month.

After leaving the dining hall, Ethan saw the women around the big pot of gruel, none of them were eating it. Chloe and Elisa as Tiger's women did not have to worry about food and clothing. Even they could not eat that rancid gruel.

Leah walked toward Ethan with a bitter face and said: "Ethan, we should leave immediately! This place is not a place for people to stay."

Olivia also looked at Ethan anxiously, and asked "Yes! Ethan, how long do we have to stay here?"

The environment here was suffocating the women. More than 10 women crowded into a small room, and their food was worse than dog food before the end of the world. Luna previously had a pet dog, the dog food that her dog ate was better than the rancid gruel.

Ethan, in a deep voice, said: "Three days, we would have to stay here for at least 3 days!"

Ethan had managed to acquire a decent number of firearms by searching the police station, but his stockpile of ammunition was worryingly low. Every bullet he had was precious, hoarded with care, knowing that in this harsh new world, each one could mean the difference between life and death. He yearned to find an arsenal, a place that could provide enough ammunition not just for survival but to truly hone his shooting skills. Mastering combat was essential, a necessity in a world where danger lurked around every corner.

Yet, it wasn't just survival that weighed heavily on Ethan's mind. Every time he looked outside at the Always Bright Village, at the children around him, their eyes devoid of the joy and wonder that should fill their youth, he felt a deep, suffocating sorrow. Those eyes, once bright and curious, now reflected only despair. And the women—broken, hollow shells of their former selves, reduced to mere shadows of life—haunted him. It was impossible for him to ignore the suffering that surrounded him.

Ethan knew that as long as Tiger and his gang held sway, there could be no peace, no chance for these people to reclaim even a semblance of the lives they had lost. The weight of responsibility bore down on him, making every decision, every plan, a matter of profound importance. He couldn't simply walk away, couldn't sleep soundly knowing he had the power to change things. He had to plan carefully, strategize every move—because the stakes were too high to allow even the slightest mistake. He was determined to rid this place of the evil that had taken root, to restore some hope, if only to see the spark of life return to those hopeless eyes.

Leah's complexion changed greatly, and said: "Three days, you can't get us out of here right now? I don't want to stay in this damn place even a minute more."

The other women also looked at Ethan, they wanted to get out of this place.

Ethan frowned, looking over at Chloe and Elisa on one side. He didn't think that Leah would be so stupid as to ask these questions in front of unknown people.

Leah did not truly experience the end of the world, and was rather naive. Subtlety was not her forte. So she wasn't guarded against Chloe and Elisa.

"We can! I can take you out of here."

Ethan's words made the girls happy, and then his next words crushed their hopes: "However, beside me, Luke, Grace, Luna, and Julia, even half of you surviving is amazing."

At this moment, a pleading voice came from the gate: "Don't beat me! Don't beat me, I'm pleading with you, don't beat me!"

Attracted by the sound, Ethan and his party walked out.

Outside, Vickey was holding a whip. He was whipping a woman that was curled up into a ball holding her face while on the ground.

Surrounding Vickey were six or seven militants, and seven or eight hungry looking men.

Tiger had guns, but not much ammo. The gunmen he selected were all able-bodied men that dared to fight zombies. Among the survivors, there were also some men who didn't dare fight. They were only good for digging up wild vegetables and grass to eat. They were of the lowest social status.

Ethan saw a woman on the ground who had been whipped. He wrinkled his brows and asked:

"What's the matter?"

"Ah, Ethan!" Vickey gave her a whipping. He laughed and said to Ethan as he walked up: "It's no big deal. This dirty whore, her hands have been dirtied. She stole a steamed bun to eat. She was caught red-handed and dragged out to receive punishment. Let these guys see what happens."

At that time the girl curled up on the floor receiving the whip was endlessly begging on the floor with an extremely piercing sound.

The women at Ethan's side couldn't bear it.

Chloe and Elisa looked at the girl curled up on the ground, dread flashed in their eyes. They didn't want to become that type of pitiful person.

Leah standing by Ethan's side couldn't help but blurt out: "It was only a steam bun, do you have to go this far?"

Vickey's eyebrow raised up. He irately said to Leah: "Us men are speaking, You women dare interrupt? Looking to get whipped?"

Vickey had a heavy murderous aura. Leah was frightened by him, retreating back a couple of steps, not daring to say anything else.

Vickey looked at Ethan and imparted some teaching on women: "Ethan, You have amazing skills, but you are still lacking skill in training women. Right now what are the ways of the world? Women need to be beaten to make them honest and docile. We are on the outside fighting to death seeking food to raise them, they fret about at home all worried. Among daddy's women, there is one who was a venture capitalist and a feminist. She was unwilling with daddy at the time, always complaining, and being insolent. After getting beaten several times, she is like a trained dog, licking daddy's feet."

[Note: Yes, Vickey actually refers to himself in the third person. Guys who think they are BA in china refer to themselves as "老子" which literally means father/daddy, but they use it arrogantly to mean something like "I'm the man."]

Listening to Vickey's advice on women to Ethan, in addition to the women standing at his side, Grace, Sydney, Luna, and every woman in the team's faces all became extremely ugly.

Among this team, Ethan's military force was superior. Luke was also Ethan's diehard follower. He really wanted to change Vickey's appearance for the worse. Hardly any women were able to resist his violation. In the final age of this crumbling world's order, they really didn't know how Ethan would react.

These women continuously received Ethan's support at the end of this world. Although they all knew the world changed, requiring strong people providing safety. But they never thought the outside world would become this dreadful. The deep darkness hiding in most men's hearts unexpectedly exploded forth with the end of the world's arrival.

Grace and Luna had only fought alongside Ethan side. They never expected beforehand they would run across these mad thugs on the way to Lei Jiang City. They knew several people's minds started to warp into madness in some parts of the world.

Ethan's silence didn't interrupt Vickey's interests.

"Carry her into the Henhouse!"

"Right, send her to the Henhouse!"

The gunman was tired of beating her, finally stopping his hand. The gunman to the side grabbed her by her hair.

The women In Always Bright Village were split into five types. The first type were the most young and beautiful women. They were divided up among the four chiefs strictly for their personal enjoyment. The second type were the women shared among all of the gunmen. Tiger also awarded women to gunmen for great service. These women were those gunmen's private property. Not even the head boss could use them. The third type were the women in the always bright village who searched for vegetables, caught fish, raised chickens, and raised pigs. These women were able to receive mouldy food to stay alive. The gunmen weren't able to lightly handle these women. The fourth type were the wives of the Always Bright villagers. Tiger also didn't let the gunmen mess with these women as they pleased. But Always Bright villagers also had to contribute to the daily vegetables and grass tax. The fifth type were the Henhouse women. All of the gunmen were able to do as they pleased with them, and their status was the lowest.

At this time, an approximately 30+ year old man rushed into the group. He knelt before the gunmen, unceasingly bowing his head before the crowd: "Please no!! Please no! Masters, I'm begging for your approval! I don't want to send my wife to the Henhouse!! I'm kneeling and begging before you! She really is starving! I'm begging you all to please release my wife!"

Vickey's eyes flashed a light. He walked into the crowd. He kicked the 30+ year old vegetable picker onto the ground, coldly saying: "For thieves, women get sent to the Henhouse! Men get their hands cut off and thrown outside the village. This is the rule big brother Tiger established. There aren't any exceptions to the rules. Big dog, even if you bow your head, there's no use."

The person named Dog crawled on his knees repeatedly bowing his head before Vickey until his head started to leak blood. He painfully implored: "Brother Si, Grandpa Si, I'm begging you, give your approval! Don't send my wife to the Henhouse! I guarantee, she didn't dare, she wouldn't dare again. I'm begging you!"

Vickey immediately took his 81 rifle and put it to the dog's head. He evilly said: "Scram again! and Die!"

The woman curled up on the ground weakly spoke: "James... quickly leave!"

All of the gunmen in Always Bright village were malicious. Not only did they dare to fight zombies, but they also didn't hesitate to kill people. All of the "thorns in the side" of Always Bright village were shot on the spot by the Gunmen.

James kneeled on the ground, wailing: "Ah Ying... I'm sorry! Ah Ying...!

Vickey coldly said: "Drag her away!"

Two gunmen soon after obscenely smiled towards the crumpled up woman on the ground and walked over.

This cold sight brought forth chilliness and sympathy from the women's hearts. They were fools like flowers in a greenhouse experiencing for the first time this world's cruelty and terror.

Grace's face changed color, a cold light flashed. Her fists tightened, she couldn't help but to take a step forward. And it was the same for Ethan; it was just that he could better control his emotions.