Chapter Five: Raw Meat Town, The First Night
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Even as the taillights of the red car vanished into the depths of the night, Zheng Nanfang still couldn’t fathom what had just transpired. He wasn’t particularly worried about Hu Bi; judging from Hong Xiangcai’s demeanor and words, it was clear that she and Hu Bi were old acquaintances. Whether their relationship was friendly or hostile, the fact that she hadn't killed him on the spot meant Hu Bi was safe for now. Besides, Zheng Nanfang had only known Hu Bi for two or three hours; their connection was shallow, and it was far from the point where he’d rush out into a storm to save him.
Zheng Nanfang slid his steel-edged saw blade back into his belt and surveyed the chaos before him, a headache already forming. Hong Xiangcai had taken only Hu Bi, leaving behind the three women who had come with her. Zheng Nanfang had no intention of making trouble for them, but it was obvious these women were far from innocent. Letting them go unchecked, he worried they might cause him trouble later.
“Hey.” Zheng Nanfang nudged the female gunman who had been his hostage earlier. “You all know your way back, right?”
She straightened her hair, a peculiar look in her eyes. “What do you mean?”
Zheng Nanfang pursed his lips, bent down to gather up the three submachine guns, and calmly stuffed them into his pack. “I’m in a hurry, so I won’t be escorting you back. You’re on your own.”
With that, he climbed into the heavy-duty pickup, brushed the broken glass off the seat, and tried starting it. Luckily, the vehicle was battered but not beyond repair; it sputtered but still ran.
The other two female gunmen slowly came to, bewildered by the scene before them. They stood dazed by the roadside, watching Zheng Nanfang as he tidied up the cab, exchanging uneasy glances.
“Oh... almost forgot...” Suddenly Zheng Nanfang slapped his forehead, jumped out of the truck, and ran toward the embankment. “Hey, Shaman, are you still alive?”
The wilderness was silent, only the cold wind sweeping by.
Zheng Nanfang called out a few times, but hearing no response, he made his way back to the truck and asked the three confused gunwomen, “Which of you is familiar with Raw Meat Town?”
They looked at each other and all raised their hands.
“Uh...” Zheng Nanfang rephrased, “Who’s willing to come with me to Raw Meat Town?”
The three women exchanged looks, nodded in unison, then climbed into the pickup. Six bright eyes fixed on Zheng Nanfang, saying nothing.
He swallowed, subtly moved the bag of guns closer to his feet, and, seeing they didn’t speak, said nothing more. He started the battered vehicle and set off once again.
...
Not long after the heavy-duty pickup left, a petite figure crawled up from the wild grass.
Shaman stood with hands on her hips, exhaling deeply. The bite mark Hu Bi had left on her lip still ached, but that was nothing compared to surviving an encounter with those two fiends. She was grateful just to be alive.
The scent of gunfire still lingered faintly on the road. Shaman calculated her options: she couldn’t return to Raw Meat Town—Zheng Nanfang was heading there, and returning would mean walking straight into a trap. As for Hu Bi, he seemed to have been taken back to the Deep Blue Asylum, a hundred kilometers away. There was little chance they’d cross paths again. The lower district and the wastelands were vast; as long as she avoided sensitive areas, she’d be fine.
The more she thought about it, the happier she became. She couldn't suppress a low, sly laugh, her smudged makeup splitting into a mischievous grin as she slipped a black card from the neckline of her vest.
As a seasoned survivor of the lower district, Shaman knew all too well the value of this “Last Stand Invitation.” She herself was too weak to use it, but the lower district was never short on bloodthirsty, inhuman zealots.
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In the barter-crazed lower district, this card could guarantee Shaman a carefree life, free from want.
“No matter how cunning you two think you are, in the end, you still have to drink my foot-washing water!”
...
After a string of ordeals, Zheng Nanfang finally arrived safely at his destination—Raw Meat Town.
The heavy-duty pickup, barely holding together, belched black smoke as it crawled into the outskirts of Raw Meat Town, attracting stares and jeers along the way.
Remembering Hu Bi’s advice, Zheng Nanfang ignored the provocations of the bizarrely dressed locals and focused on steering his battered truck to a repair shop made from piles of car wrecks.
The sandstorm season made for short days and long nights, and it was now near midnight—the bustling hour in the lower district. In the center of the repair yard stood three massive oil drums blazing with fire.
Around the bonfire barrels sat a motley crowd, men and women alike, none of them appearing remotely normal.
Dressed as a wasteland drifter, Zheng Nanfang’s appearance was deliberately low-key, unlikely to draw much attention. But the three voluptuous nurses trailing behind him were another matter entirely.
“Why are you following me?” Zheng Nanfang noticed that many in the crowd were already eyeing them hungrily. He was here to fix his car, not to stir up trouble.
The three women were none too pleased with Zheng Nanfang—he clearly didn't know the rules of the lower district. They had chased after him with Hong Xiangcai, been knocked down and captured, and now, since Hong Xiangcai hadn’t arranged a prisoner exchange, by the district’s rules, they were Zheng Nanfang’s “spoils of war.”
They could have turned on him or regained their freedom with a word from him, but if they hadn't gotten in the car, they’d have had to walk a hundred kilometers back to the Deep Blue Asylum.
Three well-endowed, unarmed women alone on the deserted highway at night—might as well have been lambs to the slaughter.
They didn’t like Zheng Nanfang, and he was clearly a clueless newcomer, but at least he was tough.
In a place like Raw Meat Town, swarming with fiends and monsters, there were plenty who would devour them. If they left his side, they’d be torn to pieces before they got two hundred meters. But as long as they stuck with Zheng Nanfang, anyone wanting to snatch them would have to kill him first.
In short, Zheng Nanfang was their human shield.
“We belong to you now,” said the red-haired nurse who’d been his hostage, her eyes shimmering with feigned innocence. “That’s how it works in the lower district—Sister Hong traded us for the fat guy.”
Zheng Nanfang quickly waved his hands. “I don’t know your district’s rules, so I don’t have to follow them. You’ve brought me here; you’re free to go wherever you wish.”
Seeing he wasn’t taking the bait, the red-haired nurse changed tactics. “In that case, you’ll have to kill us.”
“What kind of nonsense rule is that?” Zheng Nanfang was stunned, frowning as he looked around for someone to explain. Unfortunately, all his friends seemed busy, and no one answered.
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“When in Rome, do as the Romans do. You’ve come to the lower district; you have to abide by its rules. Breaking the balance here is seen as a provocation by everyone else,” the red-haired nurse said with a helpless shrug, tossing the decision back to Zheng Nanfang.
She wasn’t bluffing. The jungle had its own laws—even the most arrogant monsters had to play within certain boundaries.
“So I really have to keep you three with me?” Zheng Nanfang asked suspiciously. “If I don’t, I’m provoking everyone?”
“That’s right. You have to follow the rules—at least here in the lower district.” The red-haired nurse coughed lightly. Three men, wrapped like mummies, approached from behind.
Though Zheng Nanfang hadn’t adjusted to the local rules, his instincts for danger were intact. His gaze sharpened, and he glared at the newcomers. Sensing his hostility, they stopped a few meters away, gestured at the nurse trio, and then pointed toward a nearby bus-turned-hostel.
“What do they mean?” Zheng Nanfang asked in a low voice.
“They’re inviting you to the hostel,” the red-haired nurse explained. “They want to trade supplies with you for us.”
“Can I make the trade?” Zheng Nanfang asked tentatively.
The nurse’s mood was probably much like Shaman’s when she’d been sent out as bait. She gritted her teeth and warned, “It’s a trap. If you follow them in, you’ll never come out.”
“Didn’t you just say there were rules?”
“Rules are for equals,” the nurse scoffed. “They don’t see you as a real threat.”
“Then why bother negotiating? Why not just take you by force?” Zheng Nanfang was even more confused.
The red-haired nurse sighed in exasperation. “If a single blow to the head would do it, why waste a bullet? Ammunition is expensive, you know!”
“Got it, got it.” Zheng Nanfang stopped asking. The logic was simple enough—survival of the fittest.
His expression darkened. He lifted his coat, drew his steel-edged saw blade, and strode straight toward the three mummies.
The nurse trio froze in shock.
Wait—didn’t you say you understood? What part of this did you actually understand?! Who told you to just start hacking away?!
The red-haired nurse was on the verge of tears.
The mummy trio took a few steps back, exchanged glances, and after a moment’s hesitation, each drew a weapon and prepared to fight.
Around them, the crowd of monsters and bandits erupted, jeering and whistling. The flames in the oil drums blazed three stories high, and the chords of an electric guitar exploded with a blast of drums—the wild revelry of Raw Meat Town had officially begun.