Chapter 16: Cleaning the School Alleyway (2)

Li Qiang found this method effective and shouted, “Everyone, head up to the southern wall!” He held out until the very end, pulled up by the people atop the wall. But, in a moment of panic, one person on the wall lost their grip and fell, dragging another down with them. The zombies surged forward; there were screams at first, then everything fell silent.

Both sides had zombies crowded atop overturned cars in the alley. The zombies in the courtyard, though numerous, only managed to pile up to about half the height of a car and failed to reach the roof.

Li Fengyi called out, “My group, move north!”

Li Qiang heard him and responded, “My group, head south!”

The zombies in the alley split into two groups, trailing after the people on the wall, stretching their arms upward as if begging their idols for autographs at a concert. The wall was tall, and the steel pipes could only strike the zombies’ arms. Zombies felt no pain, so after a few strikes, the effort seemed pointless.

Li Qiang’s side had more people, and thus more zombies—nearly two hundred chasing after them. Li Fengyi’s side had fewer people, with only eighty or ninety zombies. Their previous chaotic assault had killed almost a hundred.

Though all this transpired in just half an hour, everyone was exhausted, their arms aching. They dared not linger in one place. The wall, built in the 1990s, was sturdy, but no one wanted to risk zombies pushing it down. The wall atop the alley wasn’t very long—about fifty or sixty meters—so Li Fengyi and Li Qiang led people back and forth. Zombies would charge forward, only to find the humans retreating, then spin around and chase after them again, colliding endlessly, creating utter chaos.

After some time, the ache in their arms eased. Li Fengyi and his group were moving south atop the wall, zombies close behind. Li Fengyi shouted to those behind him, “The three at the back, head north to the vegetable stall, form a line, and kill zombies! We’ll keep them distracted!”

The three at the rear turned and moved north. The zombies at the back, having just spun around, were knocked down and struggled to get up.

Soon, only two of the three returned. One positioned the steel tripod from the vegetable stall in front of them, while the other swung a steel pipe, cursing loudly, “Damn it, Jiang Jiangqian, you coward!”

The horde of zombies, drawn by Li Fengyi and his group on the wall, moved south. The two behind launched their attack. When only twenty or thirty zombies remained, Li Fengyi and his group also swung their pipes from the wall to draw attention, and quickly, all the remaining zombies on their side were killed.

“Wait a bit longer, we’ll join you soon!” Li Fengyi saw Li Qiang and his group still dodging like fans avoiding their idol, and called out, “Everyone here, head to the vegetable stall, tidy up the supplies.”

At the vegetable stall, Jiang Jiangqian, like a mouse spotting a cat, squeezed into the deepest stall beneath a pile of pumpkins, his backside sticking out, trembling uncontrollably.

Li Fengyi recognized the figure—it was the man with glasses, a native of Guizhou, once an electronics engineer in Shenzhen, who had come to Beijing for a meetup, only to find himself caught up in the apocalypse.

Earlier, everyone had formed a human wall to trap the zombies in the alley, which wasn’t wide. Those at the back pushed hard against the backs of those in front, retreating step by step. In a dozen steps, they would reach two waist-high cement blocks placed in the street, there to block vehicles because of the elementary school in the alley, leaving just enough space for a three-wheeled cart.

As everyone pondered their next move, a person in bright red clothing in the third row suddenly bolted, shouting as he ran. He dropped the door he’d been carrying. In fear, people often shout to steel themselves, but his cry was unique: “Mother, the zombies are eating me!” The other person carrying a door panicked and fled as well. The man had just been dragged from under a car by zombies and eaten. Jiang Jiangqian followed Li Fengyi and escaped to the wall.

Once in a safe spot, he refused to join the others in rescuing people, nor dared to leave on his own, so he hid under the vegetable stall.

A foul stench wafted out, and Jiang Jiangqian’s trousers slowly darkened and dampened...

He’d heard noises and thought the zombies had returned to eat him, so frightened he lost control of his bladder and bowels.

Li Fengyi ignored him. For now, he didn’t count Jiang Jiangqian among them. Including Li Fengyi, there were four people: the man in a black shirt with the steel tripod, the one in purple at the front, Li Fengyi and the brown-shirted man swinging pipes, standing behind the steel tripod.

Everyone was usually busy and barely knew their neighbors. After a day or two, they’d only just become acquainted, unable to recall each other’s names.

Li Fengyi glanced down the alley at Li Qiang’s group, who were still moving and temporarily safe. That side had more zombies and would take longer to clear. “Let’s rest a bit, eat something to recover, then finish the job in one go.”

The men in black, purple, and brown shirts carried their steel tripods and pipes to the vegetable stall, grabbed tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes to eat together. The stall was run by three vendors, with the northernmost being a fruit stand. Everyone ate a few apples to replenish fluids.

When they finished eating, Li Fengyi nodded, “Steel tripods!” Black and purple shirts moved to the front, while Li Fengyi and brown shirt took their positions. Li Fengyi led the group to attack Li Qiang’s side.

About seventy or eighty meters away from Li Qiang, they were nearing the zombie horde. Li Fengyi shouted, “Li Qiang, lead your people south!”

Li Qiang responded without hesitation, turning and moving south, calling out, “Move slowly this time!”

Li Fengyi and his group launched a rear assault, catching the zombies off guard and knocking them down in rows. After felling about fifty, Li Fengyi’s arms began to ache. Li Qiang reached the southern entrance of the alley, and Li Fengyi called, “Li Qiang, jump onto the cars blocking the alley! We’ll rest before continuing!”

He watched as Li Qiang and his group leaped onto the two rows of cars at the alley’s entrance. Li Fengyi and his group turned and ran north, reaching the vegetable stall. About twenty zombies followed. They reformed their line, this time letting black and purple shirts handle the pipes, while Li Fengyi and brown shirt took up the steel tripods. The fight was quickly over.

After another rest, Li Fengyi saw Li Qiang lead his group back to the southern wall, but he’d also sent two people to the northern wall, splitting the zombie horde into a large and a small group.

“Let’s finish this!” Li Fengyi and Li Qiang coordinated again, weaving back and forth. After another half hour, they finally wiped out all the zombies in the alley.

Everyone gathered at the community vegetable stall for a brief rest, determined to press on and eradicate every last zombie in the alley.