Chapter 93: A Consensus
As Song Yuqing and Liu Xiaona stood in the study discussing their return to the supermarket, they suddenly realized they had completely missed Zhang Yimiao’s scheduled departure for Base Zero. Song Yuqing felt a prick of regret; if they had been on time, they could have bypassed the squad’s brutal overland journey entirely by escorting them directly through her pocket dimension.
Liu Xiaona pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a heavy sigh. “It’s already evening, Manager. It’s way too late. They’ve probably been on the road for hours.”
Before Song Yuqing could reply, the study door swung open.
Song Yuqing spun around, her eyes widening in surprise.
The old man was standing in the doorway, looking intensely anxious—like a small child who had lost his family in a crowded market.
“Oh,” the old man mumbled, looking a bit self-conscious. “I thought you’d already left.”
He had clearly assumed they were hiding out in the study to quietly slip into the pocket dimension, abandoning the base while no one was paying attention.
“Of course not,” Song Yuqing said gently. “Even if I’m planning to leave, I’d never just vanish without saying goodbye to you first.”
The old man fell silent for a moment, shifting his weight. “So… when do you actually plan to head back?”
“We’re just waiting on Little Meat Bun.”
At those words, a profound wave of melancholy washed over the old man’s face. The sorrow in his eyes was blindingly obvious, though he tried his best to mask it beneath a tight smile. “I see.”
Staring at his downturned expression, Song Yuqing was suddenly reminded of an old friend. Liu Xiaona clearly felt the same familial connection, leaning in to nudge her manager with a sharp elbow.
“Doesn’t he look exactly like Shen She?” she whispered. “Are we sure he isn’t Shen She’s long-lost grandfather?”
Song Yuqing didn’t know if Shen She even had a grandfather, but looking around, this old man was undeniably alone. There weren’t any family photographs anywhere in the study, nor was there a single trace of another human soul sharing his living space.
Stepping forward, Song Yuqing reached into her inventory, pulled out a premium biscuit, and pressed it firmly into his weathered palm. “Consider it a gift. Thank you for being such an incredible host today.”
The old man pursed his lips, offering a small, solemn nod as he accepted the token. The loneliness radiating from him was palpable enough to touch.
Song Yuqing and Liu Xiaona traded a quiet, empathetic look. It was heartbreakingly clear that the old man was simply starved for company, desperate to be tethered to other human beings in a world that had gone cold.
“Don’t look so sad,” Song Yuqing said, offering him a playful wink. “We’ll definitely come back to visit you soon. After all, we still owe you a grand-prize trip to a parallel reality! Besides, you’re always welcome to pop through the terminal and visit us at God’s Supermarket whenever you want.”
“Yes,” the old man agreed quietly. “I’d like that.”
He was a permanent test subject for Base Zero, and there was no telling what his condition would be the next time their paths crossed.
Right on cue, the front door rattled as Little Meat Bun burst back into the apartment, practically beaming with joy. The elite espers at Base Zero had proven to be absolute model fans. They had advertised a day of intense playtime, but in reality, they had simply ushered him into the subterranean bamboo grove, showered him with fresh shoots, and squatted in a neat circle around him, watching him chew with literal stars in their eyes.
A few had initially reached out to pinch his chubby cheeks, but the moment they detected the slightest hint of resistance from the panda, they had strictly reined in their desires out of pure respect.
As the old saying goes: If the panda is happy, the fans are happy.
It was finally time to depart. Song Yuqing pulled out a fresh stack of provisions from her space and struck a quick deal with the chubby technician, arranging for him to clean up the living room buffet line once the guests finished eating. After exchanging a few final, warm words with the old man, she took Liu Xiaona, Gaha, and Little Meat Bun by the hand and stepped back through the dimensional threshold, returning to the comfort of their own storefront.
“Until next time,” the old man whispered to the empty air. Watching the shimmering portal snap shut, he let out a low, weary sigh, his expression darkening as the loneliness reclaimed the quiet apartment.
The moment the lights flared back to life inside God’s Supermarket, a figure sprang up from beneath the front window.
It was Zhang Hua. He had been crouching on the porch for hours, chin resting in his hands as he stared blankly at the winter sky, desperately waiting for either Song Yuqing or Liu Xiaona to reappear. In his entire time living near the alley, he had never seen the supermarket close its doors for a full day.
Excitedly, he began aggressively pounding on the glass windowpane. “You guys are finally open!!! Where on earth have you been all day?!”
“We just got caught up in some retail logistics~” Liu Xiaona chimed, unlocking the front doors to let him slip inside.
“Man, you seriously gave me a heart attack!” Zhang Hua gasped, slumping into a chair by the window as his racing pulse finally began to settle.
Song Yuqing casually tossed a piece of candy across the counter to him. “What are you so panicked about? We’re not going to pull stakes and run away.”
Caught red-handed in his own paranoia, Zhang Hua rubbed the back of his neck, his face flushing with embarrassment. “No, I… I didn’t mean it like that.”
He absolutely had meant it like that. Every hour the storefront remained dark, he had fought down a rising panic, calming himself only by remembering that the heavily stocked shelves were still visible through the glass.
“Where are Zhang Yimiao and her crew?” Song Yuqing asked. “Are they still setting up camp next door?”
“They left earlier this afternoon,” Zhang Hua replied, throwing her a slightly resentful look. “The Base Zero squad wanted to purchase a massive haul of travel rations for the trek back, but since the doors were locked, they had to move out empty-handed.” He paused, letting out a heavy sigh. “Yimiao told me to pass along a message to you: We’ll meet again if fortune smiles.“
Unable to wait around for the store to reopen, Zhang Yimiao had officially mobilized her forces after lunch, taking a substantial portion of Base 27’s water-type mutants along with her.
Song Yuqing instantly understood the source of his subtle resentment. No wonder Zhang Hua was throwing shifty glances her way; he felt like the high-profile guests she had introduced had completely poached his neighborhood’s core defensive line.
“Wait, if everyone else cleared out, why didn’t you follow them to Base Zero?” she asked.
“Please. Even an elite superpower stronghold like Base Zero had to travel across the country just to locate God’s Supermarket,” Zhang Hua shrugged, his eyebrows lifting confidently. “I know how to read a map.”
He had weighed his options perfectly. He and the remaining water-type mutants bunking next door had already formed a pact to stay put and build their futures right alongside the supermarket. With access to premium food and clean water, they had absolutely nothing to worry about.
No administrative red tape, no base regulations. Nobody could dictate their lives here.
“So…” Song Yuqing touched her chin, her eyes narrowing as she processed the implications. “You’re planning to establish a localized survival base of your own right here?”
Zhang Hua chuckled, waving his hand. “Nah, nothing that formal. We don’t need a base layout or a flag. We just need a consensus to keep us anchored here.”
“A what?” Liu Xiaona asked, scratching her ear.
“A consensus.”
“What kind of consensus?”
“To hold on for dear life to God’s Supermarket’s coat-tails and live the good life,” Zhang Hua stated with absolute seriousness, his eyes sparkling with resolve.
Song Yuqing fell silent, genuinely taken aback by the sheer faith they had placed in her establishment.
Beside her, Liu Xiaona beamed. “Well, aren’t you guys a bunch of geniuses!”
“Exactly how many of you stayed behind?” Song Yuqing asked, a faint glimmer of anticipation rising in her chest.
“Ten of us total,” Zhang Hua smiled, holding up both hands with outspread fingers.
“Gaha!” Watching from the sidelines, the little gargoyle clapped her claws together happily. She didn’t entirely comprehend the logistics, but the sudden silence behind the counter felt like it needed a rhythmic punctuation mark.
Liu Xiaona scratched her head, her smile widening. “Hey, this is awesome. God’s Supermarket has permanent neighbors now. I love it.”
“Where is the rest of the crew right now?”
“Asleep,” Zhang Hua laughed. “We were just waiting for the store lights to come back on so we could verify you were back. First thing tomorrow morning, we’re going out to hunt zombies and salvage some clean mattresses!”
Now that they were officially settling down for the long haul, they needed to clean up their living quarters and maximize their personal comfort.
Song Yuqing’s brow furrowed. If her instincts regarding Chen Ke’s evacuation were correct, the upcoming scavenging hunt was going to hit a major snag. “Yimiao’s entire coalition swept the sector yesterday. There shouldn’t be a single mutant left within the immediate grid.”
Zhang Hua’s smile froze, his voice catching in his throat.
“Gaha…” Gaha nodded in confirmation. As a registered member of the undead herself, she could easily perceive that the ambient mutant energy surrounding Chen Town was completely bottomed out.
“So… uh…” Zhang Hua rubbed his nose awkwardly. “Does that mean we have to venture further past the city limits to hunt?”
“Go out and try your luck tomorrow morning anyway,” Song Yuqing offered gently. “If you come back empty-handed because the sector is genuinely cleared, I’ll let you purchase your mattresses on store credit.”
Zhang Hua’s eyes practically shone with gratitude, and he nodded frantically. “Thank you, Manager!”
The second he stepped out the front doors, Liu Xiaona eagerly tugged on Song Yuqing’s sleeve, her eyes darting toward the ceiling. “Hey, Manager… should we head up to the third floor and check out the cinema?”
“Let the future give us a hint?”
