At dusk, the scorching sun that had baked all day finally slowly faded away.

As the last trace of twilight disappeared, the silent City Management Bureau was soon plunged into darkness.

Tang Xiaoquan timely lit a brazier, and the rising flames reflected a few faces bathed in red.

The survivors wore indifferent expressions; no one wanted to speak, just sitting there dumbfounded, as if they had lost their souls.

Tang Xiaoquan also felt helpless about this.

There was nothing he could do since Hu Xiaodong's condition remained worrying. Although his breathing, thanks to everyone's combined efforts, was no longer as rapid as before, his consciousness...

With a frustrated shake of his head, Tang Xiaoquan stood up. The oppressive atmosphere made him uncomfortable, and he went to the stairway, where Old Zhao and Old Lin were silently smoking.

"Want one?" Upon seeing the figure in the dark, Zhao Yunhai immediately offered the cigarette pack obtained in the afternoon to the figure.

Seeing the offered cigarette pack, Tang Xiaoquan hesitated for a moment but eventually took one out.

He didn't light it, though, just slowly placed it at the corner of his lips.

As for why he didn't light it, the reason was actually very simple, summed up in two words: Quit!

After all, resources were scarce in the apocalypse, medical equipment was lacking, and no one knew how long this would last.

Tang Xiaoquan didn't want this "luxurious" habit to bring unforeseen disasters to him in the future.

Old Zhao and Old Lin didn't mind the young man's somewhat unusual behavior.

Old Lin exhaled a smoke ring and lightly asked, "So, how is Xiao Hu? Has he woken up?"

Tang Xiaoquan shook his head silently, sniffed the cigarette in his hand, and then sighed, "Ah~ He hasn't woken up yet, but the fever seems to have gone down!"

Perhaps not wanting to put too much pressure on others, after hearing Tang Xiaoquan's somewhat powerless response, Lin Junfu nodded slightly and affirmed, "Hmm, it's good that the fever's gone down, which means Xiao Hu's body is recovering. It's just a pity we can't give him an IV right now."

Lin Junfu thought for a while after that and then said, "So who's responsible for cooling Xiao Hu down now?"

"Chaozi and Xiaowen!" Tang Xiaoquan answered truthfully.

"Well, you... So, Xiao Tang, have them use a spoon to feed Xiao Hu some water and see how he reacts. If he can swallow on his own, use this method to keep him hydrated." After saying this, Lin Junfu seemed to think it was inappropriate since Wang Qiang, although good-hearted, was somewhat rough due to his personality.

To be safe, Lin Junfu decided to extinguish the cigarette butt, stood up, and said, "I'd better do it myself. Let's go! Let's go over there!"

Leaving Old Zhao to watch over the entrance, Lin Junfu led Tang Xiaoquan back to the ward.

You really have to say, Old Lin's method seems a bit "peculiar," but the actual effect is quite good. At least Hu Xiaodong, who had been "burning" for nearly a day, finally had the chance to enjoy the "grace" of clear water.

This, for someone like him who was suffering from a continuous high fever and severe dehydration, was undoubtedly crucial.

"Alright! Everyone saw that, right? Just use this method to give Xiao Hu water tonight. Let's work hard a bit, two people per shift, each shift half an hour. I believe if we persist through the night, Xiao Hu should wake up!"

"That's right! He definitely can!" Almost overlapping with Old Lin's words, Tang Xiaoquan echoed in agreement.

Of course, he wasn't entirely confident about "Hu Xiaodong waking up," but rather, he wanted to boost his group's morale.

After all, in the long night, anything could happen.

They needed to maintain enough vigilance and combat power to deal with any possible unexpected events.

Time passed slowly in this tedious wait, during which Old Zhao managed dinner for everyone.

Unlike noon, dinner mainly consisted of noodles. Of course, when saying noodles, it was just two packets of instant noodles found earlier.

However, most of the survivors were primarily worried about Hu Xiaodong's condition and had little appetite.

So, after a simple division, this tasteless dinner ended hastily.

At night, the bright moon hung in the sky, its silver light spreading on the ground, giving the city that had been baked all day a chance to breathe. The gradually dissipating heat also made the survivors in the City Management Bureau feel a bit of chill.

Tang Xiaoquan, along with Old Lin, delved back into the first floor to check the situation outside. Perhaps it was because they hadn't seen any "prey" for half a day, those originally "irritable and violent" creatures were now unusually calm.

Of course, this "calm" is relative. At least compared to their "passionate percussion" in the morning, the current "little commotions" could definitely be called "extremely gentle."

After inspecting the entrance, Tang Xiaoquan returned to the second floor. He didn't return to the group directly but instead walked to the end of the corridor.

He needed to find a quiet place to carefully consider the next plan.

After all, resources at the City Management Bureau were extremely limited, especially water. Even with 8 people being as frugal as possible, the daily consumption was still considerable.

If they didn't come up with a method to escape quickly, dying of thirst seemed inevitable.

Gradually slowing his pace, as the light continued to dim, Tang Xiaoquan's thoughts also became clearer.

Without a doubt, to get out of the City Management Bureau, they must get through the zombie horde.

And to do so, the survivors had only two options.

First, confront the enemy head-on.

Second, take a roundabout approach.

As for confronting the enemy directly, Tang Xiaoquan didn't even consider it before dismissing it.

What a joke, there were at least a hundred zombies gathered outside the City Management Bureau right now. Even if they stood still and let you hack them one by one, it would take you no less than several dozen minutes to finish them off.

So, since the first method wouldn't work, the only option was the second one.

The so-called "roundabout approach" basically meant using distraction to move the zombies away.

But Tang Xiaoquan thought again about today's afternoon when he and Old Zhao observed the surrounding terrain of the City Management Bureau.

This place was surrounded by guardrails, presumably designed by the authorities to "protect the stability and safety of the law enforcement agency."

But now, the guardrails that originally functioned as protection had become a nightmare for the trapped survivors.

It seemed that creating a sound to divert the zombies was not going to work.

Thinking of the clustered, tightly packed horde within the guardrails, Tang Xiaoquan's brow furrowed even tighter.

First method won't work, second method won't work either, what now?

With no options left, Tang Xiaoquan turned his gaze toward the firelight not far behind him. Clearly, with the situation as it was, they had to rely on everyone's wisdom.

Realizing this, Tang Xiaoquan didn't hesitate anymore. He turned to leave, ready to head back to his companions.

But before he could take a step, he faintly heard a strange sound coming from the end of the darkness...

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