Finally, the walkers in front of me noticed me running in the middle of the alleyway and started making noise, moving towards me.
Seeing the large horde rushing towards me, my scalp began to tingle.
I quickly glanced back at the smaller group of walkers behind me, realizing I was trapped between two groups.
As the walkers drew closer, I grew increasingly anxious, gripping my dagger tightly and glancing back and forth.
Sweat covered my entire body.
Suddenly, I noticed a courtyard gate about a few meters ahead that was half-open.
My heart skipped a beat as I quickly assessed the situation.
I calculated that taking out the few walkers in front of the gate and hiding inside the courtyard would give me a better chance of survival than standing there frozen.
Without hesitation, I gritted my teeth, gripped my dagger, and charged forward.
I dodged the first walker and sprinted towards the ones near the gate.
I kicked the closest walker, sending it tumbling to the ground, which in turn knocked over the one behind it.
I took advantage of the momentary distraction to approach the gate, stabbing and killing the two walkers near the entrance.
The walkers behind me were closing in, but I had already reached the gate.
Without wasting a second, I slipped inside and prepared to shut the gate behind me.
However, the pursuing walkers slammed into the gate, almost pushing it open.
I quickly extended one leg behind me to brace myself, leaning my upper body against the gate to hold it shut.
The walkers outside weren't numerous enough to overpower me, and with a surge of strength, I managed to slam the gate shut.
I rapidly secured it with the latch, ensuring it would hold against the horde outside.
Only after catching my breath did I realize that the courtyard behind me might not be entirely safe.
I turned around and quickly scanned the courtyard.
The thick layer of snow was pristine, with a large tree in the center and a grape trellis in the corner - a simple rural courtyard, not too big.
I took a deep breath, and given the untouched snow and lack of footprints, I inferred that the courtyard was likely safe.
The old-fashioned iron gate behind me was being battered by the walkers outside, who were scratching and pounding on it, accompanied by their incessant, ear-piercing roars.
Irritated, I kicked the gate, which only seemed to provoke more intense shouting and scratching.
I sighed, deciding not to waste my energy on the dead.
They had a simple goal - to eat me.
I was impressed with myself for being able to make dark humor in this situation.
Given the number of walkers outside, it was unlikely they would disperse anytime soon.
I would have to wait for Suo Tian and the others to come and rescue me.
I glanced at the house facing the gate, which looked ominous in the darkness.
However, compared to standing near the gate listening to the walkers, I preferred entering the relatively warmer house.
I took a deep breath and walked towards the house, noticing that the snow in the courtyard had started to melt, making the ground soft and soggy.
By tomorrow, the sun would likely melt the snow entirely.
As I approached the house, my shoes were getting wet.
I stomped my feet to shake off the snow and then examined the house.
The door was open, and the moonlight illuminated the interior.
With the limited light, I scanned the room and held my dagger at the ready before entering.
The house had three connected rooms, with the central room serving as the living room.
The other two rooms were likely bedrooms.
The living room was in disarray, with several benches scattered on the floor and a dark, congealed bloodstain on the ground.
Despite the cold, I caught a whiff of a foul odor.
I scanned the living room and my gaze was suddenly drawn to something shiny under the large wooden table.
When I took a closer look, I was overjoyed to see that it was an old-fashioned flashlight.
I quickly walked over and retrieved the flashlight from under the table.
After turning it on, it took a few moments for the light to flicker and shine brightly.
What a pleasant surprise!
Although the light wasn't as bright as the modern flashlights I'd seen before, it was sufficient for examining the small house.
As the saying goes, "a cat is a good cat as long as it catches mice."
In this case, the old flashlight was a good one because it was helping me.
With the flashlight in hand, I entered the left room, which seemed to be a storage room filled with junk.
There was a pile of rotten cotton and discarded shoes and clothes.
It was clear that the previous occupants had been hoarders, keeping useless items that were now taking up space.
After a quick scan, I found nothing of interest and exited the room.
I then turned my attention to the room on the right.
This room seemed to be the owner's bedroom, and it had a kang (a traditional Chinese bed for sleeping).
What surprised me was the small bookshelf filled with many books, accompanied by a small desk with several stacks of exercise books.
As I flipped through one of the exercise books, I was astonished to discover that the owner was an elementary school teacher!
A colleague, of sorts.
Smiling wistfully, I thought about how I used to bring home my students' assignments to grade, often sharing the humorous parts with Yangyang, and we'd laugh together.
I sat down in the chair at the desk, placing the flashlight aside, and noticed the thick layer of dust on the desk, indicating that the owner had been gone for a long time.
I wondered if the owner had become one of the walkers outside or was perhaps part of Zhang Hongsheng's group.
I opened the desk drawer and found a thick black notebook.
As I flipped through it, I saw that it was a diary.
Although reading someone's private diary wasn't exactly right, given the circumstances, I felt justified in doing so.
I flipped to the last entry and was slightly taken aback by the date – it was from a couple of months ago.
(2012/11/22 (It's very dark)
The situation outside is still absurd.
This morning, I heard Sister Wang's screams.
She's probably dead now, but I'm too afraid to go out and check.
I actually thought Sis Wang would have died earlier.
The leaves on the poplar tree in the courtyard have fallen, and Er Waizi still has a fever that won't go away.
I still have the mood to write in my diary. I'm crazy."
These few sentences, despite their simplicity, felt suffocating.
The writer seemed to be filled with despair, and the words conveyed a sense of hopelessness.
The tone was gray, without any hint of optimism, and the logic was even somewhat disjointed.
I noticed the mention of "Er Waizi still has a fever" and thought about the mess in the living room and the bloodstain on the floor.
Whose blood was it – the writer's or Er Waizi's?
Sighing, I flipped through the pages and found a gap of several blank pages without any writing.
Curiously, I turned back to the page before the blank ones and found an entry without a date, consisting of only one sentence.
"(Everyone's gone crazy, everyone's gone crazy, the whole world's gone crazy, everyone's lost their minds)"
I was taken aback and quickly flipped through the pages to the previous entries, skipping over the blank pages.
One of the earlier entries read:
"(2012.09.27 Thursday, sunny
Today, for some reason, several students were absent from class due to illness.
In the office, I heard other teachers say that they also had students absent in their classes.
Speaking of illness, I'm not sure if it's related to the rain we had a few days ago, but the old lady and her youngest son next door are also sick.
This morning, I saw them going out to call Dr. Sun.
The village broadcast warned about the flu at noon, and with the hot weather and plenty of rain, bacteria are thriving, making it easy to get sick.
Starting tomorrow, I'll need to pay attention to Er Waizi's hygiene.
His teacher called me today and said that Er Waizi has been zoning out in class, which worries me.
With the upcoming mid-term exams next year, this won't do.
I want to talk to Er Waizi about it, but he's not willing to listen.
It's worrying when children grow up and become distant.)"
The tone of this entry was normal and concerned, a stark contrast to the later entry.
Right now, the people next door are shouting and screaming again, probably because of another fight between the husband and wife.
Maybe Lao Zhou is beating his wife again, and it sounds like he's hitting her pretty hard - she's screaming louder than usual.
I'm not going to intervene this time.
Their fights always seem to involve outsiders, and I've been the one to get caught in the middle.
Last time, I got slapped by Lao Zhou's wife for no good reason.
I'm not getting involved this time.
Lao Zhou's yelling too now.
These two can't seem to keep the peace.
I just hope they shut up soon so I can get some rest.
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