Chapter 100
Burgundy carpet, dimly lit corridor. When Zhou Yuli stepped into this corridor again, he felt only cautious fear in his heart.
Just a few minutes ago, Sudi asked Bai Zhou to tell Zhou Yuli to go upstairs for a meeting on the pretext of getting energy supplies.
And special emphasis is placed on: alone.
Rejecting Bai Zhou's request for secret protection, Zhou Yuli returned to the hotel alone.
"Knock knock knock."
When he reached the room, the light from the corner of the corridor could not even illuminate the doorplate. Zhou Yuli stood in front of the door, waiting for the time to knock, as if he looked down and saw a dark and sticky shadow crawling out from under the door.
It wrapped tightly around his feet, making it impossible for him to move back a single step.
“Here I come.”
The door opened and half of Sudi's face was hidden in the shadows.
"Yeah." Zhou Yuli leaned forward and made a not-so-standard bow. The courtesy was in place, but when he looked up, the dark shadow from the side of the door had disappeared.
“……” Zhou Yuli bit his lower lip.
That terrifying voice came from inside the door.
"Come in and lock the door."
Zhou Yuli put one hand on the half-open door handle.
Just push it open gently, walk in, and maybe everything will be over.
But Zhou Yuli knew clearly that Sudi went to so much trouble, was it just to call him back to say a few words?
Taking a deep breath, Zhou Yuli simply lowered his eyes and gently and steadily pushed open the dark door in front of him.
"I'm coming in."
Say hello politely.
The room was dark, but Zhou Yuli could tell where the sofa was based on his memory of where he had been a few minutes ago.
And a dark shadow on the sofa - that was Sudi's position.
There was a dim desk lamp on the coffee table.
Too dim to illuminate any area.
Zhou Yuli looked towards the light source, and his peripheral vision passed over the dark shadow.
"Mr. Sudi, I'm back to get something."
There was a sound in the air, like the rustling of a paper bag. It was tiny, but enough to cause Zhou Yuli's nerves to beat abnormally.
"Zhou... Zhou Yuli, right." The voice came from the darkness. "Let's make a deal."
Zhou Yuli did not answer. Reason told him that he shouldn't speak at this time.
So after a few seconds of silence, the voice spoke again: "Aren't you curious about what the business is?"
Zhou Yuli bit his lip.
In his impression, Sudi was a noble and respectable person, like some European aristocrats, who clung to some useless etiquette and believed that status was determined by bloodline, which was extremely stupid. For Sudi, the so-called bloodline refers to the species of puppets and humans.
His disdain for puppets had seeped into his bones. Pei Zhao had no doubt that every syllable he uttered was deliberately conveying signals of inferiority, making people unsure of how to respond.
Especially when facing him.
“……” Zhou Yuli remained silent.
"It doesn't matter. After all, the item to be traded is in my hands, and you seem interested in it, which makes me look forward to this transaction very much."
...Where on earth did you show any interest?
Zhou Yuli complained silently in his heart. On the surface, he remained motionless, like a statue.
"One 'action' equals one bag of energy." Sudi said bluntly, "You should know how much energy your actions tonight will consume. The average weight of a bag is 500g. Every 100g of energy can support you for about 30 minutes at full power." Sudi paused, and said with a smile, "Have you calculated it?"
"……we need to,"
Zhou Yuli calculated in his mind. Their plan would take three people about seven hours to complete. One bag could last 2.5 hours, so he would need about... 9 bags.
"Nine bags." Zhou Yuli sighed imperceptibly, "What do you mean by 'behavior'?"
"I'm surprised Pei Zhao didn't tell you." Sudi seemed very happy when he heard the number.
He stood up from the darkness and walked into the dim light.
Only then did Zhou Yuli notice that he seemed to be holding something in his hand.
“That’s…!”
Zhou Yuli was shocked when he saw what was exposed to the light.
It was a puppet in pieces. Golden hair, red eyes. Charming and beautiful. The only drawback is that his limbs and body are covered with patches with fine stitching.
"Perform one act and I'll give you a bag." Sudi's slender fingers slid across the puppet's wound. He raised his eyes and looked like he was negotiating with Zhou Yuli. "How about this proposal? Is it a good deal?"
…
Want to run. Want to escape.
But the feet seemed to be entangled in something dark and sticky...rooted to the ground.
Can't move.
Zhou Yuli felt that he had fallen into some kind of trap. His hands and feet were cold, but his mind was clear. He seemed to be able to sense the presence of the wind, which was pulling him down at a rapid speed.
Where will it fall?
Hell?
Amid the deafening wind, he heard his own voice.
"...I," could only be uttered in single syllables.
"Hmm?" said Sodi's voice.
"……good."
It fell, with skeletons all over the ground under its feet. It's hell.
·
When Pei Zhao woke up, the house was silent.
Pei Zhao supported himself on the bed and sat up, looking in the direction of the door. He was silent for a few seconds, but no one pushed the door open.
"Zhou Yuli?" Pei Zhao read out.
No answer.
"Zhou Yuli?" Pei Zhao raised his voice.
There was no sound.
"Zhou..." Pei Zhao was anxious and was about to lift the quilt and get out of bed. At this moment, the door was pushed open.
"Where have you been? You scared me to death... Lan Ji? Why do you look like that?" Pei Zhao turned around, his expression changed from anger to confusion, "Did something unexpected happen?"
Lan Ji's face turned pale, and there was a hint of pity on his usually calm face.
"...Zhou Yuli, something happened?" Pei Zhao immediately guessed, and then confirmed this guess with a trembling voice, "Really?"
…
The sound of wind.
The sound of the wind soon died down.
Zhou Yuli stepped on the carpet almost naked. Several lights were set to hit a certain part of his body.
It is the location of the joint between the upper arm and the forearm.
"The stitches here are the most beautiful. They will crawl onto your skin like a tattoo. They will be very beautiful. Believe me." Sudi stood in front of Zhou Yuli holding a wood file and leisurely sprayed disinfectant alcohol on the surface of the knife.
This really treats him as a puppet...
A sharp wood file could certainly easily cut through human skin, but actually using it to cut him still made Zhou Yuli feel uncomfortable, as if he was being discriminated against by species.
"......Yeah." But now, what right does he have to resist? It was originally just a transaction involving a war situation.
"Don't worry, I will do a good job. I promise that after the repair, except for the beautiful stitches, it will not affect any of your daily activities." Sudi's voice was relaxed and reserved.
The pungent smell of alcohol in the air was soon replaced by a strong smell of blood.
There was no anesthesia, no painkillers, and even under the spotlight, the only thing in sight was the illuminated wound.
The skin and flesh were torn.
The muscle tissue is clearly visible.
"It's so beautiful." Sudi praised the wound.
…It’s not an overly sensitive area, but the pain is still unbearable. Zhou Yuli's face turned pale, and he only asked, "How long will it take me to recover?"
"Cut it open and then sew it up. It will take about thirty minutes for one wound." Sudi had no desire to appreciate the wound. After making sure that the part that needed the stitches was completely separated, Sudi nodded and took the disinfectant in his hand.
Zhou Yuli frowned: "Do you want to use that?" He was already in a lot of pain. If he was disinfected again, I'm afraid... it would exceed the pain threshold he could bear.
"This..." Sudi shook the spray bottle in his hand, "This is a must. As a puppet, it is not necessary, but as a human, of course it is necessary."
...As a human being, it is necessary.
Perhaps it was the pain that made Zhou Yuli unable to think. The resistance suddenly disappeared.
"...Okay." Zhou Yuli stopped struggling.
The spray should be placed about 30 cm away from the wound.
Zhou Yuli looked at the nozzle quietly.
I thought to myself, if I have used it, I am considered a human being...
He closed his eyes slightly.
I am really looking forward to a life where I am treated as an adult.
I miss life as a human being.
The pain came in an instant. Then it became dense and entangled with his tense nerves.
Like scales, I want to tear them off my nerves piece by piece, but there are too many...
There are so many that I feel like I have trypophobia. Scratching randomly, trying to destroy it completely...
"Don't touch it!" A stern warning, and then the wound was covered tightly with soft cloth.
But Zhou Yuli could not hear it.
His hands became stiff from exerting too much force, and he scratched the skin on his body unconsciously. However, he was restrained by great force and lost his fulcrum. Zhou Yuli scratched the ground helplessly.
The tangled scales finally faded away. But they are only hiding temporarily, lurking on the surface of the nerves, and no one knows when they will appear again.
Like some post-traumatic stress syndromes, the body always remembers the pain before the brain does.
Sudi finally bandaged the wound and made sure it stopped bleeding. Then he released his grip and let Zhou Yuli lose his support and fall.
The subsequent pain faded away, and Zhou Yuli fell to the ground twitching.
"I'll ask for the energy to be delivered. You can rest here for a while before leaving." The temptation in Sudi's voice was completely gone.
With a "click", he turned off the spotlight. When the surroundings fell into darkness again, Zhou Yuli closed his eyes heavily.
...It's completely dark.
My body aches.
Sudi was leaning against the bedroom window smoking.
The smell of nicotine filled his nose and mouth as he looked at the distant city sky. It was gray and oppressive, as if it was airtight.
"..." Sudi blew out a smoke ring. The cell phone rang.
Sudi answered: "Yeah. Your people? Here with me. Just a little test... Ha. Don't take it seriously."
Although there was a smile in his voice, there was no expression on his face.
The person on the other end of the phone seemed very angry, so Sudi simply put the phone on the windowsill. After waiting for a minute, he turned on the screen and it showed that the call had been disconnected.
A hint of fatigue appeared on Sudi's face.
He put out his cigarette and buried his head in his arms.
"...How did it become like this?" He turned his head, his beautiful eyes filled with tears, "...A relationship that can stand the test of time is truly a blessing..."
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