bayedsolid Chapter 422 "Infecting the World" - Male Mother (33)
Chapter 422 "Infecting the World" - Male Mother (33)
The corridor was no different from the one they had come through. As if to urge them to leave quickly, nothing strange happened as they walked down the corridor.
The two of them made it into the courtyard without any trouble. It seemed like there was a breeze in the courtyard, but it also seemed like there wasn't a breath of wind at all. In any case, it was different from the usual feeling. Lu Liruan felt that she was getting more and more used to it and could feel these differences.
It seems that as her thinking changed, her perception of these things became clearer and clearer, and she no longer felt the helplessness she had at the beginning.
Lu Liruan told Liao Tingyuan all this. Liao Tingyuan was slightly taken aback, then nodded: "Let's test your mental strength after we get out."
He always said that Lu Liruan's mental strength should be very high, but he couldn't say exactly how high it should be.
What Liao Tingyuan didn't tell Lu Liruan was that he felt from the very beginning that Lu Liruan had a very high level of mental strength.
But judging from the changes Lu Liruan herself described, this is not her limit yet.
Her mental strength has not yet stabilized...
For nearly a week, the market has continued to fluctuate upwards.
Liao Tingyuan couldn't say for sure how high her mental strength would be, or where it would stay.
But now, because there's no way to be sure, Liao Tingyuan hasn't let Lu Liruan know about this.
After all, it might not be what this young girl wants.
It's not too late to make plans after everything has settled down...
There's no need to put too much pressure on her right now, even though it seems...
Liao Tingyuan looked at the little girl who had already left his side, walking ahead with her hands behind her back, even skipping around a bit.
Although she seems to be completely stress-free now~
Lu Liruan was unaware of Liao Tingyuan's thoughts; she simply felt that the evening was coming to an end and wanted to relax a little.
With the mindset that Lu Liruan has honed over the years, she knows that rather than being tense and anxious all the time, it's better to take it one step at a time and just get through each day as it comes.
Being alive today is a bonus!
Approach it with this mindset.
And then there's Liao Tingyuan!
Lu Liruan trusted him so much. Although Lu Liruan herself did not realize that this trust was a bit too blind and optimistic, it did not prevent her from taking a breather and letting herself be timid for a while as long as she was by Liao Tingyuan's side.
Liao Tingyuan would not blame himself for his cowardice, nor would he offer any advice or guidance regarding his timidity and retreat.
Lu Liruan was initially worried that Liao Tingyuan was the kind of person who had high expectations of those around him and would supervise and teach them like a strict teacher, so that she wouldn't hold him back.
But Liao Tingyuan didn't have any of those.
He tolerated his initial cowardice and retreat, because he was not strong enough, so he stepped forward and protected himself without hesitation.
As things piled up, before Lu Liruan even realized it, her body already felt very comfortable and natural being around him.
The two returned to Unit 5. Halfway there, Lu Liruan's heart skipped a beat.
Then I remembered something she had forgotten.
Are those two things still broken into pieces at the doorway?
Thinking back to the stench she smelled earlier that day, Lu Liruan's slightly cheerful mood plummeted.
That smell was so strong that once you smelled it, you never wanted to smell it again.
It wasn't just rotten, foul-smelling, or that pungent smell.
More unbearable than the oppressive, suffocating atmosphere, filled with despair and malice, was the stench that filled the air.
Just smelling it for a short while can make a person feel terrible.
Liao Tingyuan noticed that her pace slowed down. After thinking for a moment, he knew what she was thinking. This girl's thoughts were too easy to guess. The corridor was so dark that Liao Tingyuan didn't even need to see her expression. Just by sensing her movements and the atmosphere, he could guess most of what she was thinking.
"Go up, I'll drag those things down," he said softly, only raising his hand to squeeze Lu Liruan's wrist because he was walking below her.
"It's okay, we can just go out for another day tomorrow!" Lu Liruan pretended not to care.
If it were just one, it would be fine, but with so many piled up there... Lu Liruan herself didn't want to look at it a second time.
How could I possibly force Liao Tingyuan to clean up the place?
Besides, he's still injured; moving such heavy things might reopen his wounds.
"It's okay, I can't stand the smell myself." Liao Tingyuan quickened his pace and stood in front of Lu Liruan: "Anyway, I've already bought everything."
Lu Liruan didn't realize what he was talking about at first.
Then Liao Tingyuan calmly stepped over the bloody mess at the door, went inside, and took out two cheap four-piece bedding sets that he had bought at the supermarket a couple of days ago.
Lu Liruan: ...
I've forgotten all about it.
You even prepared this.
At first, Liao Tingyuan only took the bed sheets, but later he took several more packs of the cheapest four-piece bedding sets.
At the time, Lu Liruan hadn't figured out why she wanted to buy a four-piece bedding set.
But after leaving the supermarket, I forgot to ask him.
Now this question has been answered.
Liao Tingyuan spread the largest bed sheet on the ground, sighed, and used his strength to place the largest piece on it and drag it to the side.
Then he handed Lu Liruan two pillowcases and pointed to the broom and... barbecue tongs that he had taken out of the house and placed aside.
Lu Liruan had no idea where he had found these things.
Then Liao Tingyuan said to her with a slight apology, "I'll take this down first. You can pick up the rest a little, put them in your bag, and then take them down and throw them away."
Lu Liruan: ...
Lu Liruan felt her mind go numb, and her hands mechanically followed Liao Tingyuan's instructions, picking up the pieces of meat from the ground, one by one.
Even while picking them up, Lu Liruan gagged and commented: "The ones I chopped today seem to be a bit smaller than the ones I chopped yesterday."
Lu Liruan felt that she had indeed grown up.
But I also clearly recognize that people should not grow in this direction.
Lu Liruan picked up the last piece.
It was stuffed into the pillowcase, which was already soaked with blood.
Then, just like carrying a regular trash bag, I carried it downstairs...
In the empty corridor, Lu Liruan could hear her own footsteps.
"Da da da--"
Just like when I was in the house and heard Liao Tingyuan's footsteps in the corridor.
In an instant, Lu Liruan had a very strange thought.
That is, she now seems to be from the same world as Liao Tingyuan.
Instead of being separated by the security door of her home, she and Liao Tingyuan were from two very different worlds.
This idea, seemingly unconsciously and subtly, made her feel much better.
But Lu Liruan is in her current situation without even realizing it herself.
Lu Liruan carried her things downstairs, feeling neither fear nor unease.
Surprisingly, perhaps because she had done heavy physical work before going to bed, Lu Liruan slept quite well in bed.
The sky darkened in the latter half of the night. The summer heat dissipated considerably, and Lu Liruan returned home. As soon as she entered, she suddenly felt somewhat lost.
If you think about it carefully, she hasn't been home for several days.
After taking a shower and changing into her pajamas, Lu Liruan pounced on the bed.
I was thinking of setting an alarm, but as soon as the thought crossed my mind, before I could even reach for my phone, I had already completely lost consciousness.
When Lu Liruan opened her eyes again, she heard cicadas chirping outside the window.
Lu Liruan barely managed to turn over, sniffed, and sure enough, she didn't smell that unpleasant odor again today!
This alone made Lu Liruan feel much better.
Even though the sky outside was still gloomy, Lu Liruan still managed to jump out of bed with a somersault!
A few days ago, it seemed that she was being dragged and pulled by this space, forced to move forward.
But after last night, Lu Liruan felt a sense of exploration. Today, she was no longer just waiting to see what would happen in the space, but had something she could do.
This made Lu Liruan feel inexplicably more at ease.
As Lu Liruan was chewing on her toothbrush, pondering what she should do first, Liao Tingyuan sent her a message.
Ask her if she's gotten up or eaten.
Lu Liruan answered no.
Liao Tingyuan replied with a voice message: "Then I'll make enough for two people. Come over when you're done packing."
The background sound is oil sizzling in a pan.
Lu Liruan felt as if she could already see the fried eggs.
These past few days, Lu Liruan has been eating Liao Tingyuan's cooking. She's discovered that not only is his cooking skill excellent, but he also has quite a few creative touches.
That morning, Lu Liruan said she didn't really like eating eggs, whether they were fried or boiled, because they didn't taste like them.
Then Liao Tingyuan thought for a moment, took the plate of poached eggs back to the kitchen, and when he brought it out again a short while later, it turned out to be a plate of sweet and sour poached eggs that looked beautiful.
This was the first time Lu Liruan had ever eaten eggs like this; she never expected there was such a way to cook them!
Seeing her curious expression, Liao Tingyuan couldn't help but smile and teased softly, "I call this a cuisine for pacifying children."
Lu Liruan didn't care whether it was for a child or not; she just thought it tasted good.
“When I was a child, no one ever coaxed me like this…” Lu Liruan said casually while eating.
She didn't have any particular thought when she said that.
When I was little, my family's economic situation wasn't very good, and my parents were both busy with work.
Later, when Lu Liruan was a little older, her father's health began to decline.
By then, Lu Liruan had already learned to cook for her family on her own, so she didn't need anyone to coax her.
And then... needless to say.
When Lu Liruan cooks, her main principle is: don't worry about whether it tastes good or not, as long as you don't starve!
Lu Liruan never complained about this, after all, everyone has their own destiny!
If you weren't born with the right conditions, there's no need to force it. Forcing it will only make you feel worse.
Lu Liruan has a very open-minded view on this matter.
There are others who are worse off than you...
There are people even more unlucky than yourself.
Lu Liruan had no intention of comparing herself to others, but sometimes she would think that way to comfort herself.
Anyway, she's made it through, so when Lu Liruan mentions these things now, it's really just a casual remark, and she doesn't feel any resentment at all.
But when she finished eating the fried egg and looked up at Liao Tingyuan, she noticed a hint of guilt in her expression.
She looked at herself and then looked away...
Lu Liruan was taken aback, not expecting that Liao Tingyuan would care so much about what she had just said.
She was momentarily at a loss. Because almost no one cared so much about or pondered what she had said.
Normally, people seem to just listen to what she says and forget it, but Liao Tingyuan seems to take it to heart.
Then Lu Liruan realized that he seemed to be genuinely interested.
Besides sweet and sour poached eggs, Liao Tingyuan also made her pine nut corn kernels, blueberry yam, and knowing she liked the taste of sweet and sour, he also made sweet and sour fish.
As Lu Liruan tasted the food, she knew that these must be the dishes he had mentioned, the kind of dishes used to coax children.
Lu Liruan bit the tip of her chopsticks, feeling a little embarrassed to pick them up. She wanted to say that it wasn't necessary, but couldn't bring herself to say it.
Liao Tingyuan was afraid that if he said it aloud, he would really quit...
Lu Liruan knew she was being a bit too naive, but she really liked it, really liked... Liao Tingyuan treated her this way, and she didn't want to say that she didn't need to be coaxed.
Lu Liruan, who is over twenty years old, is now completely bewitched by Liao Tingyuan and really feels like a child again.
Lu Liruan went upstairs, and sure enough, the fried eggs today were still sweet and sour.
Seeing that Lu Liruan was eating a little slower, Liao Tingyuan pondered for a moment and said softly, "How about I make tiger-skin eggs for you to try tomorrow? You'll get tired of eating the same thing every few days."
Lu Liruan looked down at her bowl and nodded vaguely.
"Okay, I've never had tiger-skin eggs before either," she said quickly in a muffled voice, trying to hide her embarrassment.
While we were eating, we heard a "whoosh" sound outside; rain was hitting the glass window, making it blurry.
It started raining heavily.
Lu Liruan had originally planned to go downstairs today to see if she could run into that little boy again and try to get some more information out of him.
But judging from this, the little boy won't be playing in the yard anymore.
But that's okay, they have other things to do.
The two sat on the sofa, the air conditioner was on to dehumidify, and the temperature in the room was very comfortable.
The two of them looked at the memo that Liao Tingyuan had written down the night before, one line at a time.
Lu Liruan pointed to the information about the death of the male homeowner's father and mother and said, "Let's check this first. I saw on their death certificates yesterday that they died on the same day, so something must have happened."
The male homeowner's father was named Lu Maian, and his mother was named Li Yuemei.
Lu Liruan took out her phone and started searching for related information on Baidu.
I just wanted to give it a try, but it unexpectedly popped out.
"A major traffic accident resulted in three deaths and seventeen injuries." Lu Liruan frowned as she read aloud the photo.