"Oh?"
In another corner of the basketball court; Chen He, Shangguan Bing Xue, Gao Min, Li Na, and Fan Wu were sitting chatting quietly while waiting for the food to be ready.
"Yijun said she was only going to thank him but apparently she stayed chatting... And seeing how she is currently smiling despite the situation we are in it looks like she is having fun." Chen He said casually as he looked towards the corner where Bai Zemin and Wu Yijun were sitting together.
Gao Min, Li Na, and Fan Wu looked at each other with complicated eyes. The three of them had heard the rumors about Bai Zemin's actions during the day but the difference was that they knew the reality of the matters after Shangguan Bing Xue and Chen He told them the truth. Still, it was difficult for them, who had not seen human cruelty yet, to understand how someone could do such a thing.
Of course, it was only a matter of time before they learned that not only zombies and animals had turned into wild creatures.
Shangguan Bing Xue frowned slightly as she gazed at the scene of the two people chatting and a moment later she sighed, "I hope Yujin isn't playing around as she did in the past... I don't think Bai Zemin is a person to play with."
Chen He chuckled and said with a touch of speculation, "Who knows, maybe the two of them will end up together? While Bai Zemin's personal background may not be anything special, his personal strength in this world is enough to be respected. Even Yijun's family might accept him, don't you think?"
"... Who knows." Shangguan Bing Xue replied without much apparent interest and closed her eyes.
Meanwhile, Chen He was secretly overjoyed. Wu Yijun was a beautiful, charming, and intelligent woman; he didn't think any healthy man could resist her for too long as long as she wanted him to.
That way, his worries about the woman he loved would not be necessary.
...
Dinner was served and consisted of rice with sautéed vegetables as well as a piece of meat. However, the differences, dealings, preferences, and rules established by the group showed up immediately.
In a slightly secluded corner of the basketball court, a group of about five friends had gathered and were currently looking at the food in their hands with a hint of discomfort.
"Why can they eat meat but we can only eat rice?" A student complained as he mashed the white rice in his bowl with his chopsticks.
These people's food bowls consisted of pure white rice and nothing else. There wasn't even a vegetable in their bowls, let alone precious, nutrient-rich meat.
"Isn't it all because of that stupid rule?" Another scoffed as he put the white rice into his mouth and chewed without much desire. "That Bai Zemin guy already said it, those who aren't willing to go out to fight or look for food can only settle with leftovers."
"Going out to fight those zombies? Only a stupid person would do something so risky." Another student who was almost six feet tall couldn't help but curse as he said, "Since there are some retards playing super heroes then let them be. Who in their right mind would leave the comfort and convenience of this place to go looking for food too?"
"Xiong Wang is right." A glasses-wearing, cold-eyed student who had remained silent pointed out, "Bai Zemin is too full of himself. But people are unlikely to tolerate this kind of difference for too long."
The group of friends looked around and realized that there were indeed several people who were receiving the same treatment as them unhappy with the difference in food distribution. This discontent was only growing more and more with the scornful looks the people eating white rice were receiving from those who had vegetables and a piece of meat in their bowls.
Although the food was now not especially scarce and was enough to feed the group of now over four hundred survivors for two weeks if they were wasteful and for a month if they were careful, the rule that Bai Zemin had suggested forcibly implementing still took place. Therefore, before distributing the food, each person was questioned as to whether they were willing to do logistical work to support those who were actively fighting on the front lines.
Those who were willing to work could eat better food and even satiate themselves, unlike those who were not willing to leave the safety of the gymnasium.
Of course, those who fought could eat the best food available and could eat at will as well as control supplies.
For example; Gao Min, Li Na, Fan Wu, and Wu Yijun currently brought nothing special to the group, however, with the support of Chen He and Shangguan Bing Xue all four could enjoy the treatment of one person who did work.
Such differences in treatment naturally caused a small commotion among the survivors as it was the first time such a thing had happened since the beginning of the apocalypse.
"If you don't want to eat don't eat, stop talking big."
A female voice interrupted the group of complaining friends.
When they turned around they saw two girls looking at them coldly and carrying a bowl of white rice in their hands.
"You girls are also just eating white rice but you support that guy?" The student who had spoken first looked at them as if they were crazy.
"We were saved from the female dormitory by big brother Bai, big sister Shangguan, big brother Chen, and big brother Peng. Unlike you, the two of us know the meaning of not biting the hand that feeds us." The same girl looked at them in disgust.
"Nice tone you got there for a coward!" The glasses-wearing student snorted and raised his voice.
The girl was about to get angry when her friend pulled her arm gently and stopped her.
The second girl looked at the group of five and sneered coldly, "You guys really don't know what's good. If you guys knew how scary it is to feel hungry for almost a whole week I'm sure you'd be crawling like dogs to beg for a bowl of white rice like the one you're disdaining right now."
The first girl's name was Ling Ming and the second girl's name was Xiao Rong. Both were freshmen and in the past, they also had their share of suitors as they were quite pretty. However, when the world changed, they were stuck on the third floor of the female dormitory, and when they called for help through the window during the first day all those men who swore to protect them fled like chickens.
After starving for almost a whole week and having realized that beauty and empty words were no longer as important as actions and true strength, Ling Ming and Xiao Rong had matured a lot to the point that even as new students they were wiser than this group of third-year male students.
The argument slowly began to get out of hand to the point where more people began to join the fray and the voices that were previously a whisper now began to turn into shouts of anger and shaming.