Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 377: Chapter 367: A Dangerous Team

Aunt Hua had really picked the right team. As it turned out, the Zhao Brothers’ destination was the exact same food factory.

The mission the Zhao Brothers had accepted this time was to find the beloved son of a VIP. This VIP was said to be the second-in-command of the last remaining army, with an immeasurable amount of food and soldiers at his command.

Although the world no longer had a unified order, it had fractured, with everyone carving out their own kingdoms. There were always some who lived differently from ordinary people, wielding greater power.

Naturally, a mission from a man like that wasn’t entrusted solely to the Zhao Brothers. To increase the chances of finding the boy, the VIP had hired hundreds of similar small teams that scoured the streets and alleys. Each team was given a basic fee, but if the child was found, the reward was a sum that ordinary people couldn’t even dream of.

The three Zhao brothers had always taken on search missions, so they naturally felt they were in their element.

After some analysis, they concluded that the boy was most likely at the food factory. By conducting a grid search along the route, their chances of finding him would be even higher.

What a coincidence. Aunt Hua, Tang Mo, and the three Zhao brothers—all of them had hit the road to find someone.

As for the others in the group, most shared a single goal: to survive.

The food of those trapped at home would eventually run out. Out here, there was at least a glimmer of hope.

In truth, many didn’t know where they were going. They hadn’t joined the team to reach a specific destination, but simply for a better chance at finding food on the road.

A food factory sounded like a great place, so naturally, no one objected.

When would these days ever end? Where was the end of their road? No one knew.

The team led by Zhao Huan was just as Aunt Hua had surmised. Everyone in the group was treated as an equal. Men and women, young and old, weak and infirm—all were treated the same, with no bullying to be found.

Tang Mo even saw Zhao Huan secretly slip a few cookies to a lonely old man in the group when he thought no one was looking.

They were truly a team with a conscience.

But good teams and good leaders like this were a rarity. In the apocalypse, most people had torn off their masks to reveal their selfish, cold, and cruel true selves.

While on the move, Tang Mo’s group encountered one such team.

It was a smaller group than the Zhao Brothers’ party.

On one occasion, after they had tossed out bait as usual and passed through a swarm of Meat Dragons, they noticed about twenty people swiftly following in their wake.

This kind of behavior was a major taboo these days. After all, tailgating someone without contributing any food was guaranteed to piss off the group that had just tossed out bait.

”What the hell are you doing? Find your own path. Stop tailing us.”

After the group of twenty-odd people had followed them through several more Meat Dragon swarms, Zhao Tian finally blew his top.

They wouldn’t have minded once or twice, but this was happening every time, and it was just plain wrong. Anyone would be fed up; it wasn’t like their bait grew on trees.

”Sorry, brother. Look, our group is mostly women and kids. We had no other choice but to follow you. Please, don’t be angry.”

The opposing leader, a wiry man in his thirties, was a smooth talker. He could tell from Zhao Tian’s burly frame that he wouldn’t be able to handle him if he got truly angry, so he rushed over and offered him a cigarette.

Cigarettes were a rare luxury these days.

That might be true for others, but for the Zhao brothers, who had just cleaned out a convenience store, one or two cigarettes were nothing to get excited about.

”Cut the crap. Either get lost, or hand over your share and we’ll travel together.”

Zhao Tian slapped the man’s hand away. It was common for two groups to pool their food and travel together for a while; after all, it was the most efficient use of resources.

As his hand was slapped away, a flicker of malice flashed in the man’s eyes. It was gone in an instant, but not before Tang Mo caught it.

”We’ll contribute.”

Traveling alone was a huge strain on a group of over twenty people. Following a larger team to get through quickly would save a lot more food in the long run. The man was smart enough to do that math.

”Pay up for the last two times you tailed us, too. There’s no such thing as a free ride.”

Zhao Huan clearly had a poor impression of the man as well. If he wanted to cooperate, he’d have to pay back the advantage he’d already taken.

”Fine.”

In truth, the cooperation was also a good thing for the Zhao Brothers.

After all, one piece of their improved bait lasted for twenty minutes, but it took them far less time to pass through. The rest was just wasted.

The man, Zhang Li, had a group of over twenty people, and they paid for their passage by covering thirty percent of the bait’s cost. This meant that every time they passed a Meat Dragon swarm, Zhang Li had to give them a certain amount of food. For the Zhao Brothers, it was pure profit.

In reality, both Zhao Tian and Zhao Yu despised the man and didn’t want to travel with him at all. If not for the considerable amount of food they were getting, they wouldn’t even want to spare Zhang Li a second glance.

It was no wonder Zhao Tian and Zhao Yu had a bad feeling about Zhang Li. More than half of his group of twenty-plus people were women and children.

The few young men were clearly Zhang Li’s henchmen. Who knows what shady business they were into before, but every one of them looked like a street thug.

The seven or eight children were herded along at the rear by two men, all of them shivering with fear.

The women walked in the middle, all of them looking miserable and listless. It was clearly not a normal group.

After they started traveling together, the women in Zhao Huan’s group all grew wary. They kept to themselves, making themselves small, afraid of attracting attention and inviting trouble.

In truth, anyone with eyes could see what was going on with a group configured like Zhang Li’s.

Though they called it a team, it had clearly become a harem for those few men.

Teams like this were a dime a dozen in the apocalypse. The ugliness of human nature was on full display now that order had collapsed. The three Zhao brothers looked down on it, but they knew they had their own limits. They simply didn’t have the power to interfere in such matters.

All they could do was focus on their own group and, aside from silently scorning those villains, do nothing else.

Qiao Jin’s appearance was particularly eye-catching in this crowd. Slender and frail-looking, she had a way of inspiring a sense of possessiveness in others.

Tang Mo felt their lecherous gazes on her and couldn’t help but sneer inwardly.

’I almost wish they were a little bolder,’ she thought. ’This trip has been dull, and I wouldn’t mind getting involved in other people’s business.’