"What? I'm just asking, is there anyone else who wants chicken? You? And you? What, if I don't give it to you, you're going to snatch it by force? Come on then, try it!"
"The chicken's killing people, help!"
"You bastards just stand there and watch instead of helping. Get in here!" The onlookers all retreated a full step. They were only assigned here to sleep, not to fight.
Jing Shu heard Grandma Jing cursing and rushed over with Wu You'ai after jumping off the shark submarine. A crowd from the community swarmed after them, eager for drama. One look and Jing Shu realized these were the villa people.
Pushing through, Jing Shu saw Grandma Jing planted with hands on hips, towering with fury over five men sprawled on the floor and howling. They had dared to lay hands on Grandma Jing's darling, no wonder she exploded.
Right then, Xiao Dou stood on one fellow's chest and pecked his mouth without mercy. Even when blood spattered, Xiao Dou did not stop. Xiao Dou aimed for the lips every time.
Gasps rippled around them. Whispers buzzed, and the crowd's eyes turned wary when they looked at Jing Shu's family.
Jing An stood to one side like a bodyguard, flashlight steady, shielding his mother. Grandpa Jing and Su Lanzhi had already raised crossbows. After half a year of riots, nobody in the family was a sheep anymore. They were not afraid of numbers.
If anyone else wanted trouble, as soon as a finger twitched, they would take that person down. Jing Shu had drilled that into them over and over.
Jing Shu exhaled. Looked like she was a little late. The situation was already handled.
Just then, flashlights swung over and more people shoved in.
"Make way, make way! What's going on? Who dares cause trouble in a shelter? Zhou Dasheng, where's Zhou Dasheng? Weren't you supposed to talk to the visiting officer here and ask them to give up some space?"
The leader was a very young man with a square face and a mouth that took up half his face when he opened it.
Jing Shu narrowed her eyes. She knew that face.
Back in high school he borrowed ten yuan of class fees and never paid it back. At graduation, she hunted him down and beat him, warning him never to cross paths again. If he did, every time she saw him, she would beat him until he repaid the debt.
His name was Zhou Dafu. He never dared show up at class gatherings. Five years later, in the apocalypse, he had somehow climbed his way up?
"Brother Dafu, over here, save us! Murder! This chicken is killing people!"
"@#￥% mmph… mmph!" The man under Xiao Dou's beak could barely make sounds through his shredded mouth.
"What happened? What kind of chicken can beat five of you?"
Zhou Dafu bared yellowed teeth, eyeing Xiao Dou, who was still strutting. Zhou Dafu's eyes lit up and his saliva nearly dripped.
Those sturdy drumsticks. Those perfect wings. That full, quivering breast. Those thick claws. It would taste incredible.
The men on the ground groaned. A short one sprang up and hid behind Zhou Dafu. "Brother Dafu, we just wanted to get some wild meat for Brother Daheng. This family is unreasonable. They sicced the chicken on us on purpose."
Zhou Dafu swallowed and nodded as if convinced. "A beast that injures people is the same as a person who injures people. Arrest it first. I'll take them to the station and ask how to handle it. You guys, move."
Before Zhou Dasheng could stop him, seven men behind Zhou Dafu, starved for a year and crazed at the sight of meat, charged as one.
Zhou Dasheng covered his eyes. "Brother Dafu, this chicken isn't like other chickens."
"Aren't all chickens the same?"
Zhou Dafu had just finished speaking when Xiao Dou went off like a bouncing cannonball. Xiao Dou was a nimble heavyweight. Jing Shu had no idea what Xiao Dou's beak was made of, but in less than ten seconds all seven were on the floor, rolling and wailing.
Another collective hiss from the spectators. This chicken's combat power was terrifying.
Grandma Jing stood akimbo. "I hate sanctimonious hypocrites. I'm standing right here. Let's see who dares steal this chicken. The law still exists." Mainly, Xiao Dou was simply too fierce.
Zhou Dafu clenched his jaw. A few crossbows were already aimed at him, and there was an electric vehicle behind the family. That alone said this wasn't an ordinary household.
Only then did he realize he had kicked an iron plate today. But thinking of his cousin Zhou Daheng, he gritted his teeth. Zhou Daheng was not someone these country bumpkins could afford to offend.
No matter what, Zhou Dafu had to get Xiao Dou to present to Cousin Zhou Daheng. Lately Zhou Daheng had said he was sick of the dry, stringy chickens from the Livestock Breeding Center. He wanted real wild flavor.
Zhou Dafu pulled a gun from his jacket. "Assaulting law enforcement carries consequences you cannot afford. This chicken broke the rules of the Hongshan Ecological Park. I have the authority—"
He abruptly fell silent.
A black gun muzzle was pressed to his temple. He turned his head like a wind-up toy. All he could see was a figure wrapped tight in a raincoat.
"Zhou Dafu, you still owe me ten yuan. I told you not to run into me again. If you did, I would beat you every time I saw you until you paid up. Do you remember?"
That voice.
Zhou Dafu's face crumpled like he might cry. "You, you're Jing Shu?"
Back in school, Zhou Dafu had borrowed money from many classmates, but Jing Shu had been the jinx who chased he without rest. She especially liked kicking below the belt. He had hidden for years. How had they met again?
"That's right. Ten yuan. Today, pay with your life," Jing Shu said, her voice going cold.
"K-kidding, right? It's just ten yuan. I'll pay you one hundred in virtual credits. Put the gun down." When Zhou Dafu shifted, the icy touch at his temple told him this was no toy. He was not stupid enough to gamble with his life.
"This chicken is mine. What do you say?" Jing Shu asked.
Right on cue, Xiao Dou let out a proud cluck.
Zhou Dafu opened and closed his mouth and finally understood.
"Where's the visiting officer for your community? I only came to ask for a little space so I could settle a few people. This cave is big and wide, and only a handful of you are using it. Isn't that a waste? We have hundreds in Cave 6, packed like sardines."
Zhou Dafu tried to change the subject. At least if a person in charge came, the situation might be easier to manipulate.
"I am," Wu You'ai said, voice cool. "No. Leave."
"…" So it was all one family.
Zhou Dafu felt his face burn. Usually he played big man in front of these people. Today he was slapped in the face, plain as day. Fine. He would go get Brother Daheng.
"Okay. Okay, I'll go."
"Wait. Does this gun look like the ten yuan you owe me?"
"It does. It absolutely does. Consider it paid."
Zhou Dafu slunk off with Zhou Dasheng and their groaning crew. He had never imagined he would fail to get chicken and lose a gun to boot. That gun had been a reward from Cousin Zhou Daheng. Now it was gone.
One straggler was too slow. Xiao Dou chased him down and pecked him a few more times. Screams echoed through the cave.
Only when everyone had cleared out did Jing Shu ask, "How are sleeping spots assigned?"
People from the community immediately gave up more than half the space, stubbornly insisting on keeping at least a hundred meters between themselves and the villa family.