Ch42 Shen Que, Will You Join Me?
"Since you're just starting, punch slower but with more power."
"Keep your breathing steady and focus directly on your target!"
Meng Ci brought out the upright punching bag from home and began striking it under Shen Que's guidance.
"Raise your hands higher, keep your elbows tucked in."
Since it was Meng Ci's first time training, Shen Que had him practice for half an hour.
Meng Ci understood the importance of gradual progress and began stretching exercises.
Due to the damp weather, they stayed outside until past five o'clock before the cement finally set.
The rebar had already been placed; now they only needed to pour the cement inside.
Once the walls were set, Shen Que began installing the security doors.
There were two doors, facing opposite directions-one swung outward, the other inward.
One security door, equipped with a key lock, was installed on the Inside.
For the other security door, Shen Que dismantled a lock from his own home, replaced the lock cylinder, and installed it on the outside. Shen Que also relocated the alarm system, mounting it above the newly built wall.
This higher placement also protected it from potential damage.
Worried the walls might be vandalized again overnight, Shen Que and Meng Ci agreed to take turns watching-one covering the first half of the night, the other the second half.
To prevent Shen Que from staying up all night, Meng Ci volunteered to take the first shift.
Seeing Meng Ci insist, Shen Que reluctantly agreed.
Meng Ci hauled a beanbag chair from the house and placed it in the corner, then fetched a thick. quilt.
He brought out a folding table laden with the sunflower seeds and Latiao they'd shared earlier.
He also added a fully charged power bank from Shen Que.
Meng Ci was living quite comfortably, hardly like the apocalypse.
"Are you here on vacation or guard duty?"
Shen Que rarely joked around, so Meng Ci naturally bantered back.
"I call this finding joy in hardship!"
Meng Ci stretched out
comfortably on the beanbag chair and added, "I have another sofa in my room."
"If you're jealous, we can share!"
"Or we could lie together-this sofa's big enough!"
Shen Que shook his head. "No thanks!"
"Get some rest early. I'll come switch shifts with you later."
With that, he walked toward the two security doors.
Meng Ci called after him regretfully, "Shen Que, are you just too shy?"
"It's fine. We're both men-what's there to be shy about?"
Meng Ci's words were met with the cold clang of the security door shutting twice.
Meng Ci sighed. He really couldn't take a hint.
Still, Meng Ci harbored a bit of hope-not for anything naughty, but to feel those abs.
As dusk fell, Meng Ci slipped on his headphones, placed a tablet on the table, and started watching a TV show.
He held his phone, playing a little game.
Honestly, lying here felt no different than being inside.
The only downside was the occasional gust of wind whistling through.
If Meng Ci weren't so bold, he might have been scared off.
By past ten o'clock, Meng Ci started yawning. He tucked his phone under the covers, buried his chin in the blankets, and drifted off to sleep.
Since the downpour, Meng Ci had been going to bed around ten most nights unless something came up. Rarely staying up late, he felt his skin had even improved.
"Are we really going to tear down the wall?"
"Of course we are. If we wait for the cement to set, we'll have even less chance of getting food."
"They're so fierce! What if they find us?"
"So what if they do? They can't do anything to us!"
"Yeah, but..."
Though they tried to keep their voices low, the sounds carried distinctly in the silent night.
The power outage must have lasted too long-none of them had brought any lighting, so they groped their way forward.
Fortunately, Meng Ci lay tucked in the corner, safe from being stepped on.
"Squeak-"
The moment they entered the alarm's detection range, it immediately sounded.
Startled by the sudden noise, the group huddled together.
"So... should we still push?"
"Push. We're already here-not pushing would be ridiculous."
"Exactly. With our numbers, if we all push together, we can knock it down when they come out."
They groped their way toward the wall they'd built.
"Is that so?"
Meng Ci held a flashlight in his left hand, shining it directly at the group.
There were five of them, men and women. Meng Ci was certain he'd never seen them before and had no conflicts with them.
He couldn't fathom why they'd want to antagonize them.
The group huddled together again, but upon seeing Meng Ci alone, they instantly grew brazen.
"Since you're here by yourself, just open the door and hand over the food!"
"Otherwise, with all of us here, one punch each will make sure you don't live to see tomorrow."
"What if I refuse?"
Meng Ci held the knife in his right hand up to the flashlight beam and raised an eyebrow.
Seeing the blade, the group naturally flinched with fear.
They'd come only to push down the wall, with no other intentions, so they carried no weapons.
"Bang!"
The security door swung open. Shen Que emerged, flashlight and butcher's knife in hand..
The men swallowed hard simultaneously and quickly cowered against the wall.
"Who damaged the wall we built last night?"
The narrow passageway was now brightly lit, Shen Que's face twisted in fury.
The men shook their heads frantically, refusing to admit guilt.
"Not admitting it?"
Shen Que took a large step forward, making their legs tremble.
"Then don't blame me for being impolite." As he spoke, he waved the slaughter knife in front of them.
"This blade of mine-no matter how big the pig, how thick its fat -one cut, and it stops breathing."
"Want to test it?"
With that, Shen Que stopped the knife inches from a man's throat.
"You pushed it?"
The men tried to flee, but Meng Ci blocked their escape route with his own knife, leaving no way out.
"He... he was the one who pushed." The man's nerves gave out, and he quickly named his accomplice.
Seeing his partner betrayed, and Shen Que's blade swiftly moving to the others throat, the men began accusing each other.
"It wasn't me! It wasn't me!"
"Brother, don't listen to his lies!"