Chapter 92: Chapter 92: Post-Catastrophe Banquet (Part 2)
His fingers gently tapped the table, as Hu Xiaodong scanned each person with sharp eyes.
They were eyes hidden with bloodshot lines, from which Tang Xiaoquan read a trace of loneliness and sadness.
"Hmm, ahem!" Clearing his throat softly, Hu Xiaodong slowly stood up, raised the glass in his hand, and said with a low voice: "Since everyone wants me to say a few words, I’ll say a few words."
"Wu Chao is right, we Chinese value feelings when drinking, so this first glass is for..."
His voice suddenly trembled, and Hu Xiaodong couldn’t suppress a sob. Although he tried hard to control his emotions, the sudden pain still caused a few tears to fall from his eyes.
As he spoke up to this point, the living room fell silent, and even Wang Qiang, who was opening a can, sensibly stopped what he was doing.
Perhaps guessing what Hu Xiaodong wanted to say, Tang Xiaoquan pondered briefly then stood up.
"Although I haven’t known everyone for long, if it hadn’t been for everyone and Brother Hu’s help, I, Qiangzi, and Acheng might have already become one of those beasts outside. So... for Lin Bo and Huzi’s death... I..."
"To Lin Bo!" Wu Chao’s hoarse voice rang out, and as his voice fell, Wen Quanxin, Acheng, and Wang Qiang also raised their glasses and stood up.
"To Huzi and Huzi’s mom!"
"To Huang Yaru!"
"To my dad and my uncle!"
Six men, six hands, tilted their glasses in unison, pouring from left to right.
The liquor fell freely from the tilted glasses, carrying the mourning of the living, fell to the ground, and dispersed unseen.
They sat down and refilled their glasses, Hu Xiaodong continued to drink several mouthfuls of strong liquor with his head raised.
No wonder people often say that using alcohol to drown one’s sorrows only makes them worse, this is undeniably true. At least for Hu Xiaodong, the bleak feeling grew more intense as the strong liquor entered his stomach.
"Not going home without getting drunk!" Wu Chao clinked glasses with Wang Qiang, and between their entwined glasses, they drank one glass after another, everyone except the weak drinker Acheng and the worried Tang Xiaoquan drank freely and without pause.
They drank with wild abandon and joy, but the gloom that filled each of their hearts was so melancholy and desolate.
It was an hour past noon before they finished eating and drinking. The chaotic scene of empty shells and spilled soup, along with strewn and toppled bottles, demonstrated the unrivaled appetite of the survivors.
Wang Qiang was completely drunk, the reaction to overindulging in alcohol left him dazed and smiling foolishly, while Wen Quanxin and Wu Chao lazily sprawled at opposite ends of the table, engaged in a sporadic chat that made it impossibly unclear what those two were talking about.
In contrast, Hu Xiaodong seemed like a beast long accustomed to sleepless nights, as soon as he put down his glass, he immediately lay on the sofa and started snoring.
Acheng was not used to the overwhelming smell of alcohol in the air, the strong aroma made him dizzy just by smelling it, and his stomach churned. He utterly couldn’t understand why his brothers would torment themselves like this; if it were him, he’d rather drink a few more glasses of plain water than suffer such misery.
With a furrowed brow, Tang Xiaoquan glanced around the room, looking at his brothers’ drunken behavior, and couldn’t help but feel a twinge of emotion.
Recollecting the last time they drank excessively to the point of delirium can be traced back to their graduation class dinner, where everyone drank freely like today, and felt the same gut-wrenching pain of parting.
However, within just a few short months, things had changed so dramatically. Who could have imagined a sudden catastrophe would bring humankind, once the masters of Earth, to the low end of the food chain in an instant...
Dear former classmates, I wonder how you all are doing? I hope you all manage to survive this damned apocalypse!
Gathering his thoughts, Tang Xiaoquan refocused his gaze on reality.
Perhaps it was the exhaustion, or the effect of alcohol kicking in, but soon, the three who had been chatting nonsense — Wang, Wu, and Wen — each fell into their own sweet dreams.
Suddenly, snores filled the air like a symphony of fate that, when combined with the occasional hiss from the lower floor, truly resembled a celestial orchestration that would make anyone want to rush forward and kick the three "performers" in anger.
Clearing the "battlefield" obviously wasn’t appropriate now, as it was rare for a few people to enjoy a peaceful sleep. Tang Xiaoquan didn’t want to disturb their dreams with his actions.
He motioned for Du Jincheng to come over, and the two of them tiptoed out of the living room. Once outside, Acheng jestingly took a deep breath, "Oh~ Brother Quan, why didn’t you drink with Brother Qiang and the others?"
Reflecting on the scene earlier, where Tang Xiaoquan repeatedly used his intolerance to alcohol as an excuse to refuse drinks, Acheng couldn’t help but feel a twinge of curiosity.
Shaking his head helplessly, Tang Xiaoquan also remembered the embarrassing scene earlier, where he was criticized by everyone for not being bold enough to join in drinking, but...
This is ultimately the apocalypse! You never know when danger will befall you, so keeping a clear head and vigilant mindset is key to survival.
So, it wasn’t that Tang Xiaoquan didn’t want to drink. After experiencing so much hardship, he too felt weary, sad, and fatigued.
Considering his parents and sister of unknown fate, how could he not wish to join in the carefree drink, then forget everything and fall asleep?
But if everyone fell asleep, who would be responsible for the team’s safety? If everyone slept, who would stand watch at night?
So, these things had to be done by someone. Although Tang Xiaoquan didn’t see himself as someone important needing to stand out, for survival’s sake, he constantly reminded himself to adhere to the Law of Survival!
"Haha, Acheng, the only thing I can tell you is that tonight’s watch duty falls to you and me!" with a meaningful chuckle, Tang Xiaoquan patted Acheng on the shoulder and continued, "Come, let’s go see if we can find anything useful in the storage room!"
Moving into the storage room, the two split up to search.
Although the storage room wasn’t large, the owner had utilized the space quite effectively. Judging from the arrangement of clothes, Tang Xiaoquan could almost deduce that the room’s owner was someone who valued organization, or at least cared a lot about their living environment.
Casually lifting the curtain on the wall revealed a cupboard behind it.
Without thinking much, Tang Xiaoquan reached out to open the closed cabinet doors, and as they gradually swung open, the smile at the corner of his mouth grew wider and wider...