"There's a saying in our village."

"When a whore steps ashore, she's the most loyal."

"I'm like that too, Biaozi. It's precisely because I've seen the crises of the wasteland that I know how lucky I am to follow you, Master Mang."

"Master Mang!"

"If you could give me another chance, see my performance in the future. If there's even a trace of dissatisfaction from you, you don't have to lift a finger, just say the word, and I'll end myself."

Having said that,

Biaozi buried his head on the floor, his body trembling as he awaited the final judgment. He always feared that this thunder would strike, yet he never thought it would truly happen one day.

After a long while,

Chen Mang, lying on the chair, casually flicked his spent cigarette into a nearby cola can, and said in a calm voice,

"The person in your hand, he's called Hei Hao, right?"

"I don't quite like him."

"Take care of it."

Biaozi's body stiffened suddenly, then he knocked his head heavily on the floor three times. With eyes reddened, he stood up from the ground. His face, stained with tear marks, hoarsely said, "Master Mang, watch my performance in the future."

Having said this, he slowly exited the train compartment.

...

Outside the train compartment,

Hei Hao, controlled by two thugs and kneeling on the ground, looked toward the dark muzzle of the gun in front of him, his eyes filled with fear. He struggled fiercely, desperately screaming at Old Pig, "There's a mistake, you've definitely made a mistake! It's Biaozi you want to kill, not me!!"

"I've done a good deed by reporting!"

"If you kill me, who will dare to report in the future?!"

"You can't kill me! You can't kill me!"

"..."

Old Pig sighed lightly as he looked at the struggling Hei Hao. He had warned Hei Hao a few days ago, but it seemed Hei Hao hadn't listened and had instead found himself at a dead-end.

Hei Hao had a bit too much faith in the rules.

Logically speaking, the one who should die is indeed Biaozi.

Hei Hao still hadn't figured it out. Although there's an unspoken rule on the wasteland, the real decision-maker in each train is still the Train Captain. Whatever the Train Captain says goes. This isn't before Doomsday, where everything is done according to the rules and regulations.

To seek death himself, he couldn't blame anyone else.

"Hei Hao."

Biaozi, with reddened eyes, walked up to Hei Hao with the Soaring Dragon Assault Rifle, the gun muzzle pressed against Hei Hao's head, and spoke each word distinctly, "Or should I call you Heiwa, which was your childhood nickname in the village. Later, when everyone left, you got the nickname Hei Hao because you often liked to steal chickens."

"Over the years, I haven't treated you poorly. It's your own fault that we brothers have ended up like this."

"Biaozi, oh no, Biao, Biao!"

Seeing that nobody was speaking up for him, a flash of desperation appeared in Hei Hao's eyes as he spoke with a sob, "Give me a chance, spare my life, okay? I'll definitely listen to you from now on, I won't dare anymore, I really won't dare anymore."

"Er Gou, we all came from the village together, say something for me!"

"I can't."

Er Gou, who wasn't good with words, shook his head, speaking in a muffled voice with an unpleasant expression, "You even reported your own people. If this were in the village, your family's name would be ruined, with people talking behind your back every day."

Biaozi squatted down, pulling a cigarette from his pocket and putting it into his mouth. After a deep drag, he placed the cigarette butt into Hei Hao's mouth, gently patting his cheek and softly speaking,

"This is called the death cigarette."

"Smoke the death cigarette, and then go on your way. That's the procedure."

"Since we were brothers, I'll see you off myself."

The next moment—

Before Hei Hao could say anything more.

"Tat-tat-tat."

The harsh gunfire suddenly erupted. Amid the clanging mining sounds, it wasn't obvious. On the other side of the train, the slaves didn't even know what was happening here.

"Tch."

Old Pig, standing aside, clicked his tongue as he looked at Hei Hao lying in a pool of blood, "A few days ago, your hands were shaking killing your own mother idols, but now killing your former brothers, why is your hand so steady?"

"Pig Train Captain."

Biaozi forced a bitter smile, "Stop mocking me. That day, I was just talking nonsense, purely scared, worrying that if I exploded, I'd end up like that."

"Alright, alright."

Old Pig couldn't help but laugh, patting Biaozi on the back, "Go adjust your mood. I know you don't feel good right now, after all, you were brothers once. But you kind of had a lucky break out of misfortune this time."

"I'll find a place to bury him."

"Alright."

...

Inside Train Carriage No. 5, Ji Chuchu sat by the window, clearly witnessing the scene. Her face, however, showed little emotion. She just hummed softly as she combed her hair. Since the arrival of Doomsday, she had seen such things too many times.

She was almost used to it.

"Chuchu."

A girl next to her, full of gossip, leaned in cautiously, "That day when Master Mang called you in alone, did he touch you?"

Several young girls around perked their ears immediately.

Although Ji Chuchu was treated as a first-level slave, she could live in the thugs' carriage, while the few girls beside her were small celebrities, just not as popular as her. Although they couldn't live in the thugs' carriage, they could occasionally come over to visit.

"He did."

Ji Chuchu stuck out her tongue and smiled, "Master Mang was quite satisfied."

"Huh?"

The girl who asked out of curiosity was a little dumbfounded, "If he touched you, why didn't he take you in? Then you'd be the second-in-command of this train, and we could enjoy some luck with you. This train is much better than the one we used to be on."

"Master Mang asked me how many men I've been with, and I told him the truth. He probably thinks I'm too used."

Ji Chuchu wasn't embarrassed about it, using extremely blunt language.

"You're silly."

The girl looked frustrated and said, "If you had said you were a virgin, maybe Master Mang would have taken you in."

"A virgin?"

Ji Chuchu picked up the mirror next to her, looked at her reflection inside, admired her appearance for a while, then turned her head and laughed, "Even if I were pure before Doomsday, after a year in the apocalypse, what are the odds I'm a virgin?"

"Even if I say it, Master Mang has to believe it."

"Besides..."

"Even if I was taken in from the start, my first move would definitely be to distance myself from you, to sever any ties. Palace schemes in a harem is a major taboo. By then, I'd surely be staying in the train compartment, wholeheartedly serving Master Mang without a moment to spare for you all."

"Chuchu." The few girls around pretended to wipe away tears, "You're so heartless."

"If you're not ruthless, you can't secure the top spot."

Ji Chuchu looked outside the window at the men dumping bodies into the underground river, squinting and smiling without saying a word. She initially fantasized about such a scene. Later, when she saw that Master Mang had no intention of this kind, she decided to change her approach.

No matter how ruthless men are,

They still need a sliver of gentle consolation.

All she needed to do was provide this bit of consolation to live well on the train. That was the capital her appearance gave her. She never quite understood why some beautiful women would resist relying on their looks to survive.

Beautiful women not relying on their looks is like the rich second-generation insisting on starting from scratch.

Overemphasizing proving oneself to others would just waste the capital one ought to have.

...

Inside the train compartment,

Chen Mang didn't pay much attention to this small episode. Only after finishing another complete movie, he leaned back on the chair, satisfied that no one had disturbed him this time.

In the apocalypse, having such a relaxed moment wasn't easy.

Satisfaction.

Just then—

The "Train Radio" suddenly beeped, someone was messaging him privately. After receiving the "Oxygen Machine," he had removed the part about needing the oxygen machine, keeping it pinned for a long time.

Pinning it once could last about ten minutes.

He let the "Train Assistance AI" help him schedule and pin new messages regularly. Finally, after watching two movies, someone privately messaged him again.

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