Ch28 - No Way, He's My Dad
"Yaya, Yaya."
Liu Jie tossed the empty instant noodle packet out the window before returning to shake Li Xiaoya awake.
"Brother Jie, what is it?"
Having finally drifted off, Li Xiaoya was abruptly roused. Irritation flashed through her mind, though her expression remained composed.
"Look at this!" Liu Jie thrust two packets of instant noodles toward her.
Li Xiaoya's eyes lit up at the sight of the noodles. She greedily clutched both packets to her chest.
"Brother Jie, where did you get these?"
"Shh!"
Liu Jie motioned for her to lower her voice, then quietly walked over and locked the door from the inside.
Li Xiaoya then spotted the note pinned to the quilt, disbelief washing over her.
"This..."
"These two packs of instant noodles were delivered by this drone." Liu Jie flipped the note over.
"If you agree, write a note and release the drone."
"Yaya, what should we do now?"
Liu Jie was tempted. He hadn't had a proper meal in days and didn't want to go hungry any longer.
This note was a lifesaver for his empty stomach.
If he could persuade Li Xiaoya, not only would he avoid being sent to the Fat Man, but he could also fill his belly.
So for Liu Jie, making this happen was essential.
Li Xiaoya clutched the instant noodles tightly, shaking her head fiercely.
"I... I can't. I can't do this."
"He's my father!"
Li Xiaoya still valued their father-daughter bond and flatly refused to agree.
Truthfully, Liu Jie had initially planned to keep both packets of noodles for himself. But then he realized Li Shanyang was a middle-aged man-he couldn't possibly move him alone.
Moreover, Li Shanyang and his two companions shared a deep bond. Liu Jie knew he couldn't quietly slip Li Shanyang away. That's why he decided to win Li Xiaoya over.
Holding Li Xiaoya close, Liu Jie patted her back soothingly.
"Alright, alright. If you don't want to, you don't have to. We won't eat them."
Once Li Xiaoya had calmed down, Liu Jie began tempting her with words.
"When I was at that fat guy's place, I saw he'd stockpiled a whole room full of snacks-chicken feet, potato chips, Latiao..."
"Who knows when this rain will stop..."
Hearing the names of the snacks Liu Jie mentioned, images of eating them flooded Li Xiaoya's mind, impossible to shake off. She couldn't help but start to drool.
She hadn't had a proper meal in seven days, often waking up in the middle of the night from hunger.
Seeing signs of her wavering, Liu Jie decided to press further.
"Yaya, it'll be fine. Look, I stayed at the fat guy's place for two days, didn't I?"
"I just laid around for two days after coming back, and my body was fine. Uncle will definitely be okay."
"Once the storm ends, we'll figure out how to get the money from Meng Ci. Then we can properly compensate Uncle."
Li Xiaoya's mind was in turmoil, unsure what to do.
Liu Jie knew when to stop, so he promptly dropped the subject.
"It doesn't specify when we have to send Uncle over, Yaya."
"Why don't we agree for now, keep that fat guy calm, and prevent him from going elsewhere?"
"Then, if we really can't find any other way to get food later, we'll send Uncle over?"
Li Xiaoya hesitated this time, but finally nodded.
"But Brother Jie, you must promise."
"We can't send Dad over unless it's absolutely necessary."
"Fine, whatever you say."
Liu Jie agreed. He figured once Li Xiaoya got hungry enough, she'd easily agree.
The two rummaged through the room for ages but couldn't find a usable pen.
In the end, Li Xiaoya reluctantly pulled out her eyebrow pencil and scribbled a single character 一"好"(good)-on a scrap of paper. Liu Jie tucked the note into a plastic bag, attached it to the drone, and tossed it out.
Meng Ci kept a close watch on the situation here, swiftly maneuvering the drone into flight.
Noticing the two constantly monitoring the drone's movements, Meng Ci steered it toward the direction where the Fat Man was located.
Only after they were out of sight did he guide it back to the house.
Their actions and words, captured by surveillance, had already provided Meng Ci with the answers he sought. So, after retrieving the drone, he didn't bother reading the note and went about other tasks.
With the tap water about to run out, Meng Ci filled every container in the house with water.
The next morning, he rose at eight o'clock as usual.
After a day and night of torrential rain, floodwaters had completely submerged the first-floor windows.
The book described how these floods would eventually reach the fourth floor.
Since Jinshang Jiayuan was a newly built community, aside from the flooded first floor, the rest remained largely unaffected.
However, some older neighborhoods, neglected and dilapidated, couldn't escape the danger of collapse. Entire buildings crumbled in an instant, along with their residents.
Meng Ci sighed.
Before natural disasters, humanity truly felt insignificant.
Torrential rains drowned the land, acid rain corroded buildings, heavy snow froze the earth...
Even Meng Ci, who had stockpiled so much, still lacked the confidence to survive the apocalypse.
He dreaded the day he might meet an untimely end.
Sometimes he even dreamt that his storage space vanished along with all its food, leaving him to starve to death.
Or that when people could find no sustenance, they would capture him and slice his flesh piece by piece.
He even dreamt he was the Meng Ci from the book, pinned beneath the Fat Man...
Knowing what the future held only deepened his terror.
Sometimes Meng Ci wished he never had the spatial pocket, never knew what was coming.
Like these residents, who believed this was just an ordinary downpour-something that would pass.
But none of that was possible. So he could only prepare for the worst before the truly terrible weather arrived.
Downstairs, the residents collecting food seemed to understand the army wouldn't pity them if they said no rations, they meant it. Today was quieter than yesterday.
As he stepped outside, Shen Que emerged just in time, falling into step behind Meng Ci.
"Didn't sleep well last night?" Shen Que asked.
Meng Ci nodded. "Had nightmares."
"It's fine. Dreams are the opposite of reality."
Surprisingly, Shen Que-usually cold and distant-actually offered comfort.
"Mhm." Meng Ci yawned.
With yesterday's experience of the army leaving on time, people queued eagerly today. By the time the two of them arrived, they were already at the back of the line.
"Sir, you must stand up for us!"
Tall figures, Meng Ci and Shen Que could clearly see the commotion ahead even from the back of the line.
Several people who hadn't received rations yesterday had stormed into the house. Not only had they beaten someone, but they'd also stolen food from that family. Now, the family's elderly grandmother, gasping for breath, leaned against the window, pitifully voicing her grievances.
"My mother was beaten like this by a gang of thugs yesterday! They even stole our food! Is there no justice in this world?"
"Do you know who attacked you?" the soldier asked.
The assault had been so sudden yesterday that the man could only vaguely recall a few faces, and their home surveillance had been destroyed.
Seeing the man's hesitation, the soldier said, "Preserve the evidence. Once the storm passes, the authorities will handle it."
People behind them urged them to leave quickly. Fearing another beating, the man reluctantly accepted the food and departed.
Soon after, the officer's loudspeaker blared outside, urging everyone to coexist peacefully.