Chapter Thirteen Excluded Evening

  February 9, 2012, New Year's Eve

  The most important festival for Chinese people, all walks of life will be on holiday on this day, only some soldiers are lonely at the border station.

  The arrival of the end of the world, there are no more leisurely people, nor are there warriors guarding the borders. The zombies don't care if it's their most important holiday in life, they still wander around everywhere.

  That day Wu Xiaotian also stopped exercising.

  After sweeping all the houses, Wu Xiaotian came to his parents' bedroom and took out the door gods and couplets that his parents had asked someone to paint. He made some rice paste with rice flour, took the couplets and pasted them on the front gate of their own house.

  Thinking of how every year in the past it was mother who put up couplets with me, and father only showed off his culinary skills on New Year's Eve, I couldn't help but sigh.

  Wu Xiaotian had originally wanted to get some firecrackers to set off, but thinking that this was the end of the world, he could only give up.

  In the process of sticking door gods and couplets, as long as a zombie rushed towards Wu Xiaotian, it was beheaded by Wu Xiaotian with one knife. In total, more than 20 zombies were killed, none of them could survive the second knife.

  Looking at the festive door gods, these two ancient generals have been standing in front of ordinary people's homes for years. But now what they are guarding inside is no longer ordinary people, but man-eating monsters.

  Back in the house, I released the last of the tap water from the water tower and took a refreshing bath, washing away all the bad luck of the past year.

  From the supplies, take out vacuum-packed chicken, beef, duck meat, etc., and pour some canned goods into a bowl. A sumptuous dinner in the doomsday scenario is ready. Although there was only Wu Xiaotian at home, he still set up a full table with bowls and chopsticks.

  Sitting alone in front of the dinner table, staring at those bowls and chopsticks. My thoughts drifted back to the past.

  When he was a kid, Wu Xiaotian was mischievous and always caused trouble during Chinese New Year. Either he would use toy guns to shoot at his friends' faces or set off firecrackers that would shatter the neighbors' windows. After being scolded by his strict father, he would follow his mother to paste couplets on the door and stick up paper cutouts of door gods. Then he would return home to see relatives who had already arrived and shout with joy.

  After finishing the New Year's greetings, I took a small amount of lucky money and went crazy with my cousin Wu Xiaolong.

  By dusk, they would be pulled back home by Wu Xiaolong. Then their father took out two large strings of firecrackers hung on bamboo poles and had Wu Xiaotian and Wu Xiaolong each carry one. After the father lit the firecrackers, he watched with the relatives to see Wu Xiaotian and Wu Xiaolong's reactions.

  After the crackling sound of firecrackers, mother brought out two long incense sticks and some pork and beef, and began to worship heaven and ancestors with the elders.

  After the worship of heaven and ancestors, the whole family began to have a reunion dinner. Outside, firecrackers were crackling, while at home, elders were clinking cups together on the dinner table. The younger generation was leaning over their bowls of food, drinking wine, but their minds were on those drinks that they couldn't normally get away with.

  After finishing the New Year's Eve dinner, the whole family sat on the sofa, discussing today's gains and losses. Wu Xiaotian and other younger generations were eagerly waiting for the opportunity to set off firecrackers. After the "Spring Festival Gala" started, Uncle brought back a big pile of fireworks, making the younger ones jump with joy.

  After all the younger ones had finished making a fuss, they sat together in front of the TV watching. Until the younger ones couldn't resist their sleepiness and fell asleep, the adults started cleaning up.

  But now, the dinner table only has empty bowls and chopsticks. Thinking of my late uncle being burned by the raging flames. My heart is filled with sorrow, and tears fall uncontrollably.

  A man has tears but does not easily shed them, only because he hasn't yet reached the point of heartbreak.

  Wiping away tears from the corners of their eyes, they carried some meat to the rooftop and began the Wu family's traditional ritual of offering sacrifices to heaven and ancestors.

  After finishing a person's New Year's Eve dinner, I came to the living room and casually found a disc of "Spring Festival Gala" and put it in.

  Holding the repaired phone in his hand, he looked forward to a friend's call or a text message, even if it was just a service provider's message. The sound coming from the TV did not attract Wu Xiaotian's attention, what he cared about was the vibration of the phone.

  "Third Uncle and Third Aunt are safe, don't worry."

  Laughing crazily, as if holding the most precious thing in the world, Wu Xiao Tian hugged his mobile phone. He was overjoyed, just like a kid who had finally gotten the long-awaited candy.

  "My father, mother, and elder brother are all fine, they're all fine." The last sentence, Wu Xiaotian shouted out with the loudest voice he had ever used since birth. "I want to go north, I want to go north" He gripped his phone tightly, screaming in his heart.

  Crazy Wu Xiaotian finally calmed down.

  Carefully calculating, what is the probability of his own success in going north now? The result made Wu Xiaotian extremely disappointed. The distance from Chun City to Yanjing is at least tens of thousands of miles (exaggerated, actually 2080 kilometers). Even if you take a special express train, it will take at least one and a half days. Not to mention that there are countless zombies on the way to Yanjing, and the difficulty is no less than Master Tang's journey to the west.

  But Wu Xiaotian received the best New Year's gift in 22 years, just a short message.

  Wu Xiaotian picked up his phone and was about to dial back, but all he got was the endless "The area you are in is not within our service zone" or just a busy tone. He felt like smashing the phone, but couldn't bear to part with the text messages on it, so he gave up.

  Sitting on the bench, my mind is filled with various routes to head north, but none of them are easy. For example, taking a straight route north, not to mention other things, just the two major rivers Yangtze and Yellow Rivers pose a huge problem right in front of me. Next comes the issue of zombies, and then there's going by sea - never mind not being able to find a boat, even if I found one, Wu Xiaotian wouldn't know how to operate it. The easiest way would be by plane, but there are no pilots. Am I supposed to catch a zombie pilot to help me fly the plane? It'd be great if it didn't eat me.

  But Wu Xiaotian was not discouraged, because he knew that roads are dead but people are alive, and there will always be a way to go north.

  After watching the "Spring Festival Gala" with a headache, I started doing what Wu Xiaotian had to do every year since he was 18 years old, which is to stay up all night.

  It was originally Wu Xiaotian and Wu Xiaolong who were keeping vigil together, but this year only Wu Xiaotian is left.

  Arriving at the rooftop, gone were the countless firecracker sounds, gone were the gigantic fireworks sponsored by various entrepreneurs. There was only a single crescent moon, lonely and suspended in the sky. Just like Wu Xiaotian, without any stars to accompany him.

  The sky without industrial pollution is so beautiful, with only a wheel of residual moonlight shining on the earth.

  But there is no elegant person on earth who appreciates the moon anymore.

  Wu Xiaotian brought a bottle of red wine and sat at the highest point on the rooftop, slowly savoring it.

  January, one person, a glass of wine, formed this desolate yet beautiful picture.