The car was moving at a steady pace on the avenue, and the tail of the car was silent. Even Wang Qiang and Wen Quanxin, who were usually talkative, leaned against the railing, panting heavily.

Indeed! They were exhausted! The fight, desperately racing against time, had pushed them to their physical limits.

Especially the final vehicle defense battle, with zombies swarming continuously, each one invisibly sapping their strength.

Old Lin slowly took a pack of cigarettes out from his pocket, the cigarette case itself had become crumpled due to the intensity of the battle, and most of the cigarettes inside were damaged.

But this didn't stop him from smoking. After all, nothing beats enjoying a cigarette after a great battle for a pleasant and comfortable feeling.

Taking out a cigarette, Old Lin casually tossed the cigarette pack to Wang Qiang because he knew, although these young folks weren't very old, they were true smokers with quite a big addiction.

Sure enough, after receiving Old Lin's tossed cigarette pack, Wang Qiang, Wu Chao, and Wen Quanxin unapologetically took a cigarette each and lit them with the lighters scavenged from the City Management Bureau.

After a hearty session of puffing and smoking, everyone's weary spirits gradually eased.

Tang Xiaoquan didn't smoke. First, there weren't many cigarettes left in the pack; second, he had resolved to quit smoking.

He stood up on his own and took his backpack, which was also scavenged from the City Management Bureau, containing a small amount of supply reserves.

Tang Xiaoquan felt the only four remaining bottles of mineral water, leaving one and distributed the rest to everyone.

"Hu, how do you feel? Is your leg okay?" Flicking away his cigarette butt, Wu Chao twisted open the cap of his mineral water bottle and handed it over.

Hu Xiaodong managed a slight smile: "It's fine, Old Lin's handiwork is pretty good, I'm feeling all right."

Old Lin felt a bit embarrassed hearing this, to be honest, he knew his stitching skill was no better than a dog's paddle.

Yet despite this, it was the best he could do. Although the appearance wasn't quite satisfactory, the purpose of stitching the wound was achieved overall.

"Hahaha, Hu, Lin is bound to steal Wei Yang's job this time with his skills!" Wen Quanxin, known for his mischievousness, didn't miss the chance to tease.

And with this jest, the previously dull atmosphere in the back of the car became lively once again.

Tang Xiaoquan watched his joyful, joking companions, the exhaustion of the past few days seemed to lighten somewhat.

He slowly drank the clear water in his hand, yet his thoughts wandered to "Zhongkun Textile," a hundred miles away, and that beautiful and fresh figure gradually became clear in his mind. Even Tang Xiaoquan himself didn't know why he thought of her at this moment.

"Hey? Quan! What's up? What are you thinking about?" Wang Qiang asked suddenly.

To be honest, his question was purely instinctive, without any particular intention.

But to Tang Xiaoquan, who was "guilty-minded," it felt like a pin prick, making him jolt: "Ah? I wasn't doing anything. Not thinking about anything. Haha, what could I think about? You're overthinking!"

Even a fool could see Tang Xiaoquan wasn't quite normal by this point, and the experienced Lin Junfu exchanged a knowing glance with Hu Xiaodong, both having an understanding smile, realizing each other's thoughts.

And so, everyone headed toward the base camp with laughter, yesterday's issues faded into the progressively uplifting mood.

The word "home" had never been more anticipated by all survivors like it was now. Although this mission hadn't fulfilled the expected tasks, as long as home still exists and they are alive, there's always a chance to start over.

Familiar scenes passed by one after another, and soon after a bumpy journey, the City Management vehicle finally drove onto the familiar country road.

And once on this road, the survivors knew that "Zhongkun Textile" wasn't far away.

"I wonder how Factory Director Wang is feeling right now?" Wang Qiang mischievously looked at Old Lin.

Old Lin knew what he meant, and laughed in response: "Don't know about anything else, but Old Wang's face must look pretty unpleasant."

"Haha, let's hope when he sees us later, he won't kick us!"

With that, another burst of laughter erupted, and as this playful act ended, the familiar white-blue roof of Zhongkun Textile finally came into everyone's view.

Joy! Unrestrainable joy! Even the older Old Lin couldn't contain his excitement at this moment.

To know, once he had longed to leave the base, this place that drained him mentally and physically.

Even though leaving the factory this time was only just over two days ago.

But now, he was desperate to return to the base, this dramatic change in thinking was enough to reflect the cruelty of the apocalypse.

The car continued to move for a while, and the outline of Zhongkun Textile gradually became clearer. Logically, at this point, the survivors' joy should be even more intense, but what was the reality?

Tang Xiaoquan's brow furrowed involuntarily, the remaining companions mostly held serious expressions.

What exactly happened? What could have caused the originally excited and thrilled survivors to suddenly do a 180-degree turn?

The atmosphere in the back of the car turned slightly eerie; no one spoke, and everyone solemnly stared ahead of the vehicle.

In their eyes, the factory's front gate, supposed to be shut tight, was leaning to one side, and judging by its damaged appearance, it didn't seem like it was caused by zombies. Could it be...?

An ominous premonition spread throughout the survivors' hearts, Old Lin and Tang Xiaoquan glanced at each other.

Without a doubt, looking at the current situation, the factory was definitely attacked, and what's more depressing, the gate was breached.

That being said, even if the interior of the factory wasn't entirely overrun, casualties were inevitable.

The vehicle stopped about 10 meters from the factory, then Old Zhao nervously poked his head out, immediately asking:

"Hey, everyone sees the situation ahead, right? Should we just charge in, or send someone to scout?"

Clearly, Old Zhao's question was crucial given the current circumstances. After all, what's inside the factory is still unknown. What exactly did Old Wang and the others experience, nobody knew.

So after a brief consideration, Tang Xiaoquan decisively suggested: "Here's what we'll do, Lin Junfu, Dazhuang, Qiang, you three go in first to check the factory situation. The rest stay outside on guard. Uncle Zhao, keep the car from shutting off. If anything abnormal happens, we drive in immediately to support!"

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