It was one in the morning, and the rain had intensified.
Grandpa Zhang opened the back door with a creak—
Seven or eight neighbors, men and women, young and old alike, poked their heads out from behind it like a school of small fish.
“Hurry, go now. There are no zombies outside for the moment.”
“As we agreed, everyone head home and get ready.”
“Report any news right away. You can even beat gongs and drums if you have to.”
“Got it—keep it down! Go, quick!”
“You’re the loudest one here.”
The group slipped out into the night, splashing through puddles as they filed away toward their homes.
Lin Zao brought up the rear, hands raised over his head to shield himself as he ran out after them.
“Brother Cheng, Little Bao, hurry! Open the door for me!”
Fortunately, their house was right next door to Grandpa Zhang’s.
Fu Cheng and Lin Xiaobao were already positioned behind their own door, poised and ready.
At Lin Zao’s command, Lin Xiaobao twisted the lock a couple of times and swung the door open for Dad.
“Dad, get in here quick!”
“Coming, coming!”
Lin Zao dashed inside and shook out his hands.
Lin Xiaobao clambered onto a small stool and stretched up on his tiptoes to pat the water from his clothes.
Fu Cheng glanced at the door lock, as if suddenly understanding something. He quickly averted his eyes and reached out to ruffle Lin Zao’s damp hair.
Lin Zao shook his head like a kitten, flinging off the water droplets clinging to it.
“Alright, I’m fine. The bad guys could show up anytime—we need to get ready fast too.”
“Little Bao, head upstairs and…”
Lin Zao had originally planned to send Lin Xiaobao upstairs to keep watch outside.
But on second thought, he decided against it.
The boy was still so young. He should stay with Dad and Big Daddy.
“Our family of three sticks together on this.”
Lin Zao made up his mind and grabbed some tools from the shelf.
“First, let’s block that window in the utility room.”
The opening gaped empty, utterly bare—like an invitation for someone to crawl right through.
It was far too dangerous.
The family of three headed to the utility room. Lin Zao shoved aside the bedding, clambered onto the stainless steel table, and took a quick look around.
The thief must have pried off the exhaust fan from up there earlier.
Fortunately, the blades were still intact. They could use it to seal the gap.
Lin Zao handed Fu Cheng some iron nails and the iron hammer, then pointed at the wall beside the window hole. “Nail them in a circle.”
Fu Cheng got the idea but set the hammer aside. Instead, he pinched a nail between his fingers and pressed it straight into the wall.
It sank in as easily as if the wall were made of soft pie.
Lin Zao shot him a look, motioning for him not to drive the nails all the way in—leave about the length of a pinky finger sticking out.
Fu Cheng nodded and kept at it.
Meanwhile, Lin Zao picked up the exhaust fan and wrapped some wire around its frame several times.
By the time Fu Cheng had all the nails in place, Lin Zao had the fan ready too.
Time to assemble it.
He looped the wire around the fan and hooked it onto the protruding nails, securing it firmly over the window.
With some wire left over, Lin Zao crisscrossed it over each nail head and wrapped it several more times.
That ought to hold.
Unless the enemy was packing a chainsaw, they wouldn’t get through that barrier.
Even so, as the family left the utility room, Lin Zao made sure to lock the outer iron door behind them.
One more layer of protection couldn’t hurt.
With the window sealed, they patrolled the house once more, double-checking that every door and window was locked tight.
Next, they headed up to the third floor—the highest point in the house.
Two windows there would come in handy.
One overlooked the front street from the hallway.
The other faced the back wall from the master bedroom.
From either one, they had a clear view of the entire length of Happiness Street.
Anyone approaching would be spotted immediately.
But defense alone wasn’t enough.
They needed the means to strike back.
Ideally, ranged weapons that let them hold the high ground and drive off attackers.
Lin Zao’s usual iron stick and chainsaw wouldn’t cut it.
Dropping those would just be handing supplies to the enemy.
Lin Zao led Fu Cheng and Lin Xiaobao back downstairs to rummage through the first floor.
“Dad, what about the firecrackers?”
“Those’ll work. Keep an eye on them for now—Dad will grab them in a bit.”
“Zao—”
“Brother Cheng, zip it. I’m not tossing you out the window.”
Lin Zao couldn’t help regretting it.
If he’d known this day would come, he would’ve secretly bought a couple of guns and stashed them at home.
Even BB guns would’ve done the trick!
The house was full of stuff, but suitable weapons for high-ground attacks were few and far between.
All Lin Zao could find was a slingshot—Lin Xiaobao’s toy one.
Fu Cheng had picked it up at a street stall, but the boy hadn’t taken to it, so it had ended up buried in a box.
Still, it might work…
Lin Zao tugged at the elastic band.
Not bad—it still had plenty of snap left, no rot.
A slingshot needed ammo, of course.
Ammo…
Inspiration struck Lin Zao. He bolted to the window. “Grandpa Zhang!”
“Eh?”
“You still have those beer bottle shards from earlier? Pass me some!”
They’d make perfect projectiles—sharp, easy to handle, and devastating when fired at people.
Grandpa Zhang carefully packed the remaining glass fragments into three layers of plastic bags and handed them through the gap in the anti-theft net.
“Watch your hands—don’t cut yourself.”
“Thanks!” Lin Zao took the bags and passed them to Fu Cheng. “You be careful too. Don’t sleep through this.”
“Got it.”
A quick exchange of words, and the two families parted ways again.
With weapons secured, Lin Zao selected a few essentials—like the chainsaw, iron stick, and Fu Cheng’s toolbox for car repairs—and had Fu Cheng and Lin Xiaobao carry them upstairs.
If the enemy attacked, the first floor would take the brunt.
Should they actually breach it, they needed to keep the damage to a minimum.
“Alright.” Lin Zao glanced around. “That’s everything.”
He was just about to head upstairs when his peripheral vision caught the dog bed in the corner.
The little dog lay curled inside, tail wagging furiously. “Whine whine whine—”
“Forgot about you.”
Lin Zao hurried over and scooped up the dog bed, dog and all.
“Let’s go!”
Now there really was nothing left behind.
Lin Zao raced upstairs and rejoined the other two.
Preparations were as complete as they could be.
All that remained was to wait.
Wait in tense silence for enemies who might arrive at any moment, for the conflict that could erupt without warning.
Lin Zao’s nerves had him clutching his stomach. He couldn’t bring himself to set down his weapon, let alone climb into bed.
Lin Xiaobao, meanwhile, seemed to have slept his fill. His eyes gleamed with excitement, positively raring to go.
He was ready! So ready!
Primed to take on any bad guys who showed up.
Lin Zao opened the door to the children’s room and dragged out the foam mat laid on the floor.
Lin Xiaobao loved sitting on the ground to play, and the mat kept his butt from getting cold.
Now it made a perfect spot to rest under the window, topped with a layer of blanket.
Lin Zao figured the street-facing side was the more vulnerable spot—more likely to draw attention—so he set it up in the hallway.
It was the wee hours now, and with the rain pouring outside, the chill seeped in. Just sitting there made their skin prickle.
Fu Cheng sat squarely in the middle of the mat, back against the wall, a blanket draped over him.
Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao settled in front of him, wrapped up snugly in his arms.
Lin Zao gripped the slingshot, with the glass shards for ammo and an assortment of other weapons within easy reach.
Lin Xiaobao had his own little arsenal nearby—items he’d gathered on his own while Dad and Big Daddy were busy.
A frying pan—the cold weapon straight out of Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf.
A magic gun—the firearm from Balala the Fairies.
Lin Zao had been wrong earlier. They did have a gun after all.
This one.
And if cold and hot weapons alike failed, Lin Xiaobao had a helicopter at the ready for a quick family getaway.
Talk about thorough.
The rain outside grew heavier, fat droplets battering the window glass overhead with a relentless patter.
Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao nestled against Fu Cheng.
Lin Xiaobao waved his weapons around, lost in fantasies of heroically driving off the bad guys and protecting Dad and Big Daddy.
Lin Zao tried to focus, counting his breaths with eyes wide open—only to lose track every time he hit ten, disrupted by the steady thump of Fu Cheng’s heartbeat behind him.
Fu Cheng held them close, gazing down and tracing their features with his eyes.
The hallway’s fluorescent bulb cast its glow across their faces, illuminating even the fine fuzz on their skin.
Outside the window, all was still save for the rain—no other sounds broke the quiet.
The family of three huddled together in the same hush, none of them speaking.
Some time later, Lin Zao snapped out of it and thumped Fu Cheng’s chest.
“So noisy!”
Fu Cheng blinked in surprise, then clutched at his heart with an aggrieved pout.
It wasn’t on purpose—his heart was just doing its thing.
Wronged again, Little Zao!
Lin Zao turned back to Lin Xiaobao. “Little Bao, you sleepy? Want to nap a bit?”
“Nope.” Lin Xiaobao shook his head, utterly serious. “Just a little bored, but not sleepy at all.”
“Fair enough.” Lin Zao thought for a moment. “Let’s kill the stair lights? Too bright—it’s giving me a headache.”
Plus, the glare would tip off anyone outside exactly where they were. Not safe.
“Sure.” Lin Xiaobao planted his feet on the floor, pushed off hard, and stood up from Big Daddy’s lap. “I’ll do it!”
Finally, something to do!
He scampered to the switch, stretched up on tiptoes, and prodded it down with the butt of his magic gun.
