Chapter 18: Chinese Pork Jerky (Bakwa)
Chinese Pork Jerky (Bakwa)
Zhang Xiao Qiang was standing on the grill, watching over the group of zombies. He felt resentment. He was resenting himself for not seeing the sign on the internet café. Resenting himself for choosing to go down this street. Even going to the development zone with a death wish is better than being here, waiting to die! He resented himself for not making an offering to his parents before leaving and now he isn’t blessed. He even hated that no one was coming to save him!
After thinking for a while Zhang Xiao Qiang started to regret. He regretted not just going home but also not trying to directly go pass the truck that was blocking the road. Getting over the truck would have been easier than hanging here in mid air! He regretted that he didn’t save 2 gas bombs from yesterday, even though he didn’t make that many to start with.
Zhang Xiao Qiang just continued to stand on the grill with the feeling of resentment in one moment and regret in another. Below him the D2 was loudly clamouring towards him.
“dong!dong!!dong!!!”
The window behind the grill was being hit. A figure was shaking the window from behind it. “Zombie!!!” Zhang Xiao Qiang started getting tense again. “Why would I say it again???” He couldn’t load his sniper crossbow now. He wasn’t properly holding onto his spear, “Would I have to fight it with my knife???” Unfortunately, because of the grill, Zhang Xiao Qiang couldn’t kill it, but it could hurt Zhang Xiao Qiang. If they were to fight, Zhang Xiao Qiang would be on the losing end.
Zhang Xiao Qiang thought back to when he saw <>. A person fell into a hole and grabbed onto a vine. Below him was a bottomless pit. There was a viper next to him ready to bite him and a rat was at the root of the vine gnawing away. He also wanted to collect the honey on the vine leaves.
“Act recklessly” This was Zhang Xiao Qiang’s evaluation, after returning to his current situation. Other than there not being a mouse, there’s also no honey to gather. “Today I’ve escaped death a number of times. Is this where it will catch up to me? S zombies didn’t catch me, the D2 didn’t kill me but now just a mere cannon fodder will be the death of me???”
In the very last moment, Zhang Xiao Qiang felt peace. So many things happened today. So many adventures have made him mentally and physically tired. “If it’s over a little earlier that would be good too” he said quietly.
“dong, dong,”
The impact sounds continued to ring out. The glass was going to break at any time. “This zombie had never eaten flesh and had never been rained on. It must just be a low level one!!” Zhang Xiao Qiang lamented, if it was a zombie that has eaten flesh then this would have been over already and he wouldn’t continue to suffer.
“God! You keep messing with me! I’m not afraid of you. Follow the story and send a mouse.” waiting to die has made Zhang Xiao Qiang start to shout hysterically, making sounds that are at the same level of the D2.
“Come out quickly, mouse. Come out and big brother will give you a hug” Zhang Xiao Qiang was nervously humming a song, looking about for a mouse. The mouse in the story was gnawing at the vine above his head so Zhang Xiao Qiang looked up in search for a mouse.
“hahaahhahahaha!!!” Zhang Xiao Qiang laughed madly. Before dying he was going to entertain himself and it turns out he found the honey.
On the grill there was a large shading canopy that was blocking his vision. It’s been there for quite a while and the winds by the river were quite strong so there was a thin hole in the canopy.
Zhang Xiao Qiang climbed above to the top of the fence. He pulled out the sabre toothed knife and started cutting. The PC fibres were falling around him and not long after, there was a hole big enough to fit a person. Above it were more rows of the steel grill. There was a person height of distance between the sets of grills. If he was careful, surely he would be able to climb up. “I’m not afraid of being burnt by fire.” And once again, Zhang Xiao Qiang had escaped death and he started to ease up.
He climbed one layer at a time, cutting through each layer of canopy. After climbing 7 floors, he was about to reach the top.
“daaammiitttt!!!”
In saying that, one window was opened, and then another window was closed. As a result Zhang Xiao Qiang was on the grill at the highest level.
Zhang Xiao Qiang was sure that the head of the household was a different person. This was an independent person. A person who was out of taste. A person who was a good comrade of the country’s steel industry. A good subordinate, a good citizen.
“TMD. Incredibly, even though it was a stainless steel canopy, he owner was able to carry it out.”
Zhang Xiao Qiang used the knife, “dang dang”, even with the back of the knife, it wouldn’t budge.
From here looking down, the group of zombies looked like ants crowded together. Looking up, the cold steel made his teeth tingle. Hanging on the 7th floor and on the 2nd floor were not the same. The wind in the higher levels was stronger! It was making humming sounds. Zhang Xiao Qiang was just sadly thinking about “if he just added salt and hung for another 2 days, he would become pork jerky!”
Zhang Xiao Qiang continually tried to cut it with his knife, cutting, cutting, cutting, but that piece of metal was newly installed. His hands were getting increasingly stiff. The wind was also getting stronger and he was also getting colder! Zhang Xiao Qiang knew he had to leave before dark because by the next morning, he would be a dry wax corpse.
The steel’s toughness was too high. The knife was no use. Zhang Xiao Qiang put the knife away and took out his hammer and started to desperately bang it.
“bang, bang!”
Every time he hit it, it bent a little, then it would bounce back. After 99 times, on the last 1 he shivered. Could it be that he would die because of this cold! Zhang Xiao Qiang was stupidly looking at the steel.
The sky began to darken. The city in the winter is not too cold, but at night it was below 0 degrees. Zhang Xiao Qiang was hanging in the air with nothing to block the wind. The one blanket he had, he threw away to the zombies. He was hit hard. He had overcame so many dangers. Zhang Xiao Qiang couldn’t believe he couldn’t get through this little bit!
“dang, dang, dang!!”
The sound of the metal being hit echoed in the silent city. Zhang Xiao Qiang heard the sound back in his ear after it echoed. Zhang Xiao Qiang was acting as if he didn’t feel anything. He couldn’t feel anything. In his eyes was only this damn steel plate.
“pu…”
He didn’t hit the steel, but started to hit the cement wall instead. A small piece of cement residue hit his face. He narrowed his eyes, aiming at the small pit in the cement wall. “ Should I hit a hole in the concrete wall???” Zhang Xiao Qiang shook his head, it was better than continuing the hit the steel plate!
Zhang Xiao Qiang continued to swing the hammer. After reaching the steel plate he stopped, “Cement wall? Steel plate? Is the steel plate nailed to the cement wall?” “HA” Zhang Xiao Qiang exclaimed. He was no longer using the hammer to pound the steel plate, but used it to hit where the steel plate and cement wall were connected. A screw in the wall that nailed the steel plate was loose. Zhang Xiao Qiang continuously hit it. His hands were beginning to ache and he was also starting to get hungry. He just continued to mechanically hit it, numbly hitting it.
The screw got looser and looser. The sky was also getting darker and darker. Between the sky and Earth, there was twilight which was illuminating the world. “siiilaaaaa”
The steel plate had finally been disconnected. It swung down and crashed into the level below. Zhang Xiao Qiang shivered as he put the hammer back into his bag. After continually hitting the cement wall and with the reflective force going back into his hand, he couldn’t open his hands anymore.
Zhang Xiao Qiang used his left hand and right elbow. He was struggling to get onto the roof. Once he was up, he lied on the ground. There were too many experiences today.