Chapter One: Return from Death

Lin Qingqing believed that at this moment, she must already be dead, for when she had resolved to slice open her wrist and sever her artery, she had not intended to survive. There was no one else at home, and last night, it was impossible for anyone to have saved her.

...

So, what was happening now? Could it be that the dead retain consciousness?

Stunned, Lin Qingqing lay on her bed for a long while, unable to process what was happening. “Is the sunlight shining on my face nothing but an illusion?”

“So, am I in heaven? Or is this hell?”

She parted her lips, feeling her throat parched, but no one answered her. The silence around her was unnerving.

The next moment, she squeezed her eyes shut, and only after some time, when she was certain she was still conscious, did she cautiously open them again.

Looking around, the bed was still the same bed, the wall the same wall, even the curtains by the window and the doll in the corner of the vanity remained as they were.

“I didn’t die. I really didn’t die!”

Having confirmed she was still among the living, Lin Qingqing found herself confused. What now? Should she try again?

She remembered last night, when she had mustered every ounce of courage to raise the blade, feeling invincible then.

But now, that courage was spent, the shadow of death still lingering, and she knew it would be a long time before she could summon such resolve again.

With a sigh, Lin Qingqing turned her head to gaze at her left wrist, where two deep wounds, almost to the bone, lay. The blood around them was dark and thick, staining the bedsheet crimson.

She wanted to lift her arm to inspect the injuries more closely, but after two attempts, she failed.

Her limbs felt as heavy as if weighed down by a thousand pounds, her body like an old machine left idle for too long, threatening to fall apart with every movement.

After a long while, the “old machine” that was Lin Qingqing slowly managed to sit upright, then, exerting considerable effort, she moved her legs from the bed to the floor. Even these simple actions were arduous; she panted heavily, certain she would need more time to gather the strength to stand.

“Is this what it feels like to be eighty or ninety, frail and decrepit? If my future is like this, there’s no need for suicide—I might well not survive.”

Lin Qingqing thought with a touch of self-mockery: Is this the punishment for choosing death?

“Forget it. Why overthink?”

Unable to move for now, Lin Qingqing sat quietly on the edge of the bed.

It was midday, and the winter sunlight, warm but gentle, streamed in through the glass, bathing her in a comforting glow. Lin Qingqing emptied her mind and closed her eyes in enjoyment.

...

“Ah—help! Someone, please save me!”

As she drifted, a shrill female voice suddenly pierced the air outside her window.

The abrupt, grating scream shattered the prior tranquility, and Lin Qingqing frowned, shaking her head irritably.

“Probably a robbery or domestic violence. Just bear it; security will handle it soon.”

She was in poor spirits and physical pain, so she ignored the commotion, letting the woman’s screams continue unabated.

Yet, after waiting for some time, nothing else happened. The woman’s piercing cries gradually devolved into wailing and incoherent curses.

Lin Qingqing couldn’t make out the words. She was practically a wreck herself, lacking even the strength to watch the spectacle.

Eventually, the wails faded, and peace returned.

“Phew—so noisy!”

She had just exhaled when another scream erupted.

This time, it was a man, much louder than the previous woman. Lin Qingqing turned her head, suspecting the screaming man was her neighbor next door.

Her building had only one adjacent neighbor: a newlywed couple who had moved in half a year ago.

They were rarely home during the day, but at night, she would hear all sorts of sounds from their apartment—sometimes guitar and singing, sometimes arguments, sometimes ambiguous noises.

Lin Qingqing didn’t mind; her own home was too quiet, and occasionally, a bit of liveliness from next door was welcome.

“Did his wife catch him with his secret stash and beat him up?” Lin Qingqing thought mischievously.

She was used to their quarrels, but today was different. The man’s scream was laced with a terror so intense his voice trembled.

Lin Qingqing felt uneasy; her heart began to race, a sense of death’s shadow looming. She couldn’t pinpoint the cause, but it was a familiar sensation—she’d just endured it last night.

The wall connecting her apartment to theirs was at the far end of her bedroom. Lin Qingqing thought for a moment, then managed to stand, steadying her dizzy head, and shuffled toward the wall to listen more closely.

But as she passed the window, she remembered the earlier woman’s scream.

“Did security handle it?” Lin Qingqing wondered, glancing out instinctively.

??? Wait, what is that?

On the lawn below, three figures crouched like dogs, their heads bobbing as if eating—not engaged in some furtive mischief, but actually... feeding.

Feeding?

Lin Qingqing suddenly realized something. She pressed her face to the glass, eyes wide, staring intently.

These three “feeders” looked bizarre—gaunt bodies, stiff movements, skin a strange bluish-gray. Even their “food” looked like a person.

Such an eerie, yet oddly familiar scene made Lin Qingqing recall a creature often seen in horror films—zombies!

“Could these be zombies? Zombie apocalypse? No way!” she muttered.

“Ah—!” The man next door screamed again.

“Ah—!” Lin Qingqing, terrified, screamed as well.

The man's cries and the sound of furniture crashing together jolted Lin Qingqing fully awake.

She swallowed hard, her mind conjuring the scene unfolding next door:

Morning. The man opens his eyes to find his wife turned into a zombie. Her once lovely face now hideous, ferocious, rotten, jaws agape, eager to devour him.

...

She had no reason, no emotion, no memory—he was no longer her beloved, but food.

No time for heartbreak, no chance to grieve, and no way to stop her. He could only flee, scream, or resist.

The outcome was inevitable: he would kill her, she would eat him, or he would become a zombie too, joining her as a pair of undead lovers...

Lin Qingqing blinked, frozen in place, quietly awaiting the neighbor’s fate.

Time ticked by...

When silence finally fell next door, she thought she heard the crunching sound of bones being chewed.

Shivering violently, Lin Qingqing hugged her head and collapsed to the floor.

“How many people outside have turned into zombies?”

“What should I do?”

“Is there anyone who can save me...”

She gasped for air, her mind a tangled mess.

She could hardly fathom what had happened today—the apocalypse, once imagined by humanity, had arrived without warning? What about the government? The military? Were they still there?

Thinking of the authorities, she hurriedly found her fallen phone beneath the bed.

“Yes! Call for help. No matter what, the police are always the right choice.”

“110, 120, 119, 10086...?”

“What else?”

Lin Qingqing dialed every number she knew—emergency hotlines, and a few close friends.

“Beep... Beep...”

“Beep... Beep...”

Though she had braced herself, the endless busy signals chilled her to the core.

“Have they all turned into zombies?” Lin Qingqing’s heart sank to the very bottom.

She didn’t know whom else to call. Thinking it over, she shakily dialed a familiar yet distant number.

“Beep... Beep... Beep...”

“Hello?”

“...Dad?”