**
Another woman was also with a child, feeling a pang of sympathy and a sense of shared suffering. However, thinking about her own need to feed herself and her child, she ultimately said nothing.
After casually eating something, Shen Zhao first moved several tables and chairs to the door, placing them behind the wardrobe to prevent anyone from the neighbor’s room from seeing them if they dropped the kayak and tried to rush in.
He opened the window and used a rope to secure the kayak, slowly lowering it until it made contact with the water’s surface.
The kayak could accommodate about six people. Shen Zhao helped comrade Li Li climb down into it. Once she sat steadily on the kayak, he handed her the supplies he had brought down. Fortunately, the nearby people were not looking towards the window, so no one noticed their transfer.
Once most of the supplies were taken down, Shen Zhao boldly packed the blanket from the bed and lowered it as well, so they could sleep on it at night.
Just as Shen Zhao was preparing to climb out, someone across the way spotted their figures, widened their eyes, and shouted towards them.
“Help! Please take us with you!”
Soon others heard the voice and turned their gazes towards the window.
The same happened in the next room.
“Ah! They have a kayak!”
“What?!”
“Please take us with you! We have food! We can give you half!”
“Take me with you!! Hey! The kayak is big enough; you could take two more people!”
“I’ll give you supplies!! Take me!”
Shen Zhao jumped out of the window, causing the kayak to shake slightly, creating ripples in the water.
Suddenly, there was a crash at the bedroom door.
Shen Zhao untied the rope and paddled the kayak through the dark, murky seawater, heading away in one direction.
Not long after they left, the bedroom door was burst open, and the wardrobe and desk fell to the ground with a dull thud.
A crowd rushed to the window, looking at the two figures in the distance with regret.
If they had known that this mother and child had a kayak, they would have rushed in to steal the supplies long ago, whether to shelter in a nearby high-rise or to escape entirely!
Now they could only watch helplessly as they drifted away.
A sharp-eyed person noticed the supplies piled in the kayak and couldn’t help but feel even more regret.
“They hid so much food! I even asked them if they were hungry!”
“With so much food, why didn’t they share? How can they be so selfish in times of disaster!”
“Too selfish!”
Voices of condemnation filled the air.
Some argued that it was originally their property, and they had received food from the kind-hearted individuals over the past few days. While they had some slight objections to the actions of those who left, they were borrowing someone else’s space and eating their rice, so they remained silent and did not join in the condemnation.
Shen Zhao was unconcerned about the noise behind him as he rowed the kayak with comrade Li Li out of the community.
The seawater, mixed with mud and rain, submerged the once-bustling streets, erasing all traces, leaving only a few high-rise buildings poking above the surface.
The water made navigation difficult.
Debris, broken wood, and even pets like cats and dogs floated on the surface, and it was even possible to see the bloated bodies of humans.
The smell was not pleasant either. Thankfully, it was a chilly autumn day; if it were summer, it would have reeked terribly.
“Son, take a break; let Mom row.”
Hearing this, Shen Zhao did not insist and handed the paddle to comrade Li Li, lying down to rest.
Paddling the kayak in such an environment proved quite exhausting, as they had to watch out for sharp objects nearby to avoid puncturing the kayak while also controlling the direction. Otherwise, they would spin in place.
After two hours of paddling, Shen Zhao had only covered about two kilometers.
It was indeed tiring.
After more than half an hour of rowing, Li Li’s arms began to tremble, and finally, the paddle returned to Shen Zhao’s hands.
“This kayak is really tough to paddle,” she gasped, looking at the endless water surface with a sigh.
Thunder began to rumble, and as the rain grew heavier, Shen Zhao hurriedly paddled. Ahead was an office building; a notification had been issued before the typhoon arrived, so there should be no one inside.
Even if there were, it wouldn’t be many.
Approaching the windows of the office building, Shen Zhao used a hammer to smash the glass, which cracked in response. Cautiously, he knocked away the shards, and the two climbed through the window.
Shen Zhao first checked the interior and, seeing it was empty, breathed a sigh of relief.
Although they could rest on the kayak, it was best to find a place to shelter from the heavy rain.
They just needed to get away from the crowd.
Shen Zhao didn’t know if this counted as the end of the world, but he thought as long as they were alive, that was enough.
For some unknown reason, he felt it was imperative that he must survive.