Chapter 7
While climbing down from the tower, Pei Zhao kept his back to Zhou Yuli and didn't even glance at him.
The sign above Pei Zhao's head went out at some point, which not only proved that the puppet was not around, but also made the night a little darker.
Pei Zhao was determined to teach Zhou Yuli a lesson. He thought that if he had not suddenly felt upset and woke up in his dream, Zhou Yuli would have been bewitched by the puppet and felt ashamed and angry.
On the way back, Zhou Yuli was still absent-minded. Pei Zhao was half a body length behind him, so he was finally able to avoid his gaze and look at Zhou Yuli.
Pei Zhao didn't reflect often. Even though he realized at certain moments these days whether he had accepted the system, the alien world, and picking up puppets too quickly, he didn't feel the slightest bit of regret in his heart.
Past experiences have taught him that reflection and regret are privileges possessed by those who can control themselves, and people like him do not deserve them.
The group of zombies controlled by the red puppet disappeared, and there were only two of them in the huge central park. There was a sense of loneliness at the end of the world.
Pei Zhao felt a little desolate. The man in front of him was walking slower and slower. In order to keep a distance, he couldn't help but stop and called him, "Zhou Yuli, come here."
Zhou Yuli was lost in self-guilt and took two steps forward before he heard the command. He stood there for a moment and shook his head in self-mockery: "I didn't realize you were calling me."
He smiled reluctantly, trying hard to look in good condition. But if Pei Zhao didn't feel the dull pain in his heart, he would probably just ignore it and let his imagination run wild.
Seeing Zhou Yuli's languid state, Pei Zhao had no choice but to give the order again: "Zhou Yuli, come here."
Zhou Yuli finally moved over.
Pei Zhao sighed. Zhou Yuli did not look like an eighteen-year-old at all. With his cold appearance and aura, he might be a successful person in the world of fame and fortune.
However, this person's personality is completely opposite to his appearance. He likes to complain, is sensitive, and is fragile. This is reflected in his original family, and even more so after he became a puppet.
"Zhou Yuli, it's not smart to indulge yourself blindly. You shouldn't do this." Pei Zhao said sternly, "If you want to solve it, just say it. If you can't solve it, just give up. In this environment, you are in a trance..." Pei Zhao sneered at himself, his eyes moving, "Do you think it's appropriate?"
Pei Zhao is right. Zhou Yuli knew it very well in his heart, but now, he was only thinking about "Is he a human being?" As soon as Pei Zhaofu mentioned the key words, the balance in Zhou Yuli's consciousness exploded, and he immediately retorted: "Smart person? But I'm not even a human being."
Pei Zhao was interrupted, frowned, and looked at Zhou Yuli unhappily.
Zhou Yuli regained his senses a little, but Pei Zhao's piercing gaze made it difficult for him to breathe. I realized later that this person regarded himself as the master, and his attitude towards me was probably clearer than my own understanding of myself.
Little Red Skirt was right. As a puppet, he had to rely on the love of his master to survive.
"I'm sorry." Zhou Yuli apologized quickly, lowered his head slightly, and his empty eyes fell on the tip of Pei Zhao's shoe.
This is the extreme point of the negotiation breakdown. Pei Zhao thought that his heart was still aching badly, and he was already tired and even more upset, but as for Zhou Yuli's problem, Pei Zhao rolled up his sleeves. As his master, he had to solve it.
"Kneel down."
Zhou Yuli was a little surprised. When he heard the command, his eyes lit up for a moment, but only for a moment. The next second he took a step back, knelt on one knee, and his eyes fell back to the ground.
As a puppet, he still needs to rely on others to survive, so what does self-esteem mean to him? He should twist his waist like the wanton men in the third-level movies and enjoy the pleasure under his master——
"Pa." Zhou Yuli was stunned after being hit on the face neither lightly nor heavily.
"Do you like this?" Pei Zhao's voice sounded above his head. In front of Zhou Yuli's eyes, Pei Zhao's slender legs were pressed against his knees as he bowed his head. He said sternly, "Speak."
Zhou Yuli shook his head. No one likes to be treated like this. But he...is not really a human being...
There was a sharp pain in his jaw, and Zhou Yuli's eyes blurred. Long legs half-knelt in front of him, and white and well-proportioned hands pressed against his upper and lower jaws. Pei Zhao looked at him coldly, forcing him to look at him, and repeated once more: "Speak."
"No, I don't like it..." Zhou Yuli felt a little pain and repeated it again with difficulty, "I don't like being treated like this."
"Why didn't you resist when the puppet was humiliating you?" Pei Zhao still didn't let go, but instead used more force, but his bones were soft, so even with great force it didn't hurt. In addition, Zhou Yuli was tolerant of pain, but he felt that the place where Pei Zhao's hand touched was burning hot, and his eyes were sore. "Why didn't you defend yourself?"
Zhou Yuli almost burst into tears. He didn't cry when he found out he was not his parents' biological son; he didn't cry when he gradually turned into a puppet. But now, although it was not that painful, Zhou Yuli shed tears, surrendered, and explained helplessly: "I am just a puppet that feeds on your love. People who have been puppeted are no longer the same species...!"
Pei Zhao pulled up his collar and forced him to look at him.
"Racial discrimination was eliminated as early as the Civil War, but you, who clearly have human thoughts, act like a mindless puppet," Pei Zhao shook his head in disappointment. "Humans are not called human beings because they have something in common, but because they have the ability to think."
Having the ability to think... Zhou Yuli began to understand a little, "Having the ability to think means being a human being..." Yes, Zhou Yuli, who was deeply trapped in the identity dilemma, suddenly realized that he was still thinking about how to treat his master as a puppet, which is something that a human being would think about.
"I..." The broken string in his mind was plucked back, and Zhou Yuli suddenly broke away from the pain. He realized how stupid the thing he had done was, and felt ashamed and angry belatedly.
Pei Zhao saw that his expression had returned to normal and knew that he had figured it out. The good thing is that they are all smart people. There is no need to waste too much time on persuasion. As long as you explain the reason clearly, they will get it done.
But this does not mean that he will let Zhou Yuli off easily. Recognizing oneself as a human being is one thing, recognizing him as a master is another. Pei Zhao admitted that he had no interest in making others bow down to him, but the connection between him and Zhou Yuli was like the majesty of a lion king over the other lions, and he had to take the lead.
So, Pei Zhao raised his hand and patted Zhou Yuli's face a few times, "We should have many opportunities to enter another world together. I don't want to give you special psychological counseling every time I have to deal with difficult people or puppets under extreme conditions."
Zhou Yuli looked at him and moved his lips. Pei Zhao frowned and said, "Speak."
Zhou Yuli slowly moved his other foot back and knelt on the ground. He raised his head, rubbed Pei Zhao's hand with his face, and said seriously: "I know I was wrong, forgive me again, I won't cause you any more trouble."
His eyes were bold, and Pei Zhao saw nothing but his own reflection in them.
Pei Zhao pulled his hand back as if he had been electrocuted, his face slightly red, and threatened fiercely: "...You'd better be."
*
Pei Zhao had said before that he would come back to deal with that family, but before actually returning to the ruins, Pei Zhao first took Zhou Yuli to the corridor.
The corridor was dead silent. The zombies that had been unable to move before were nowhere to be found. But just in case, Zhou Yuli explored the way ahead and asked, "Why did you think of coming back here?"
Pei Zhao was also alert. He played with the lighter in his pocket and replied softly, "I want to prove something."
The two of them soon arrived at the second-to-last floor. Pei Zhao pulled Zhou Yuli to his side, "Shh!"
"What's wrong?" Zhou Yuli asked angrily.
Pei Zhao pointed to the gap from the bottom to the top of the stair handrail, and Zhou Yuli was shocked when he looked over.
A human figure huddled in the narrow stairwell.
The exposed crimson-purple skin on his forehead revealed the man's identity, and above Pei Zhao's head, the three words "puppet master" gradually became clear and lit up.
"That puppet and the zombies she controls?" Zhou Yuli mouthed.
Pei Zhao shook his head and held out his hand to Zhou Yuli, "Do you still have the knife I gave you earlier?"
"Take it." Zhou Yuli immediately took out a knife from his pocket and put it in Pei Zhao's hand.
It was the same knife that had slit his brother's throat.
There was still some blood on the handle that had not been cleaned up and solidified on the blade. Pei Zhao wiped it with his fingertips, and brown blood powder fell off with a rustling sound.
Pei Zhao glanced at Zhou Yuli and said, "Remember to clean it up after use next time."
Zhou Yuli agreed. Seeing Pei Zhao already crouching down and preparing to touch the wall to start, Zhou Yuli pursed his lips and said, "How about... I do it?"
Pei Zhao looked at him strangely, handed the knife to him, and reminded him: "Kill the zombies first, be careful not to get bitten."
Zhou Yuli hummed, and an idea flashed through his mind: If he didn't turn into a zombie after being bitten, wouldn't it prove that he was not a human, but a puppet?
But this thought only flashed through his mind for a moment before it was dispelled. His face was still burning with pain, and he didn't dare to make Pei Zhao angry again.
The stairwell was eerily quiet. There were no residents in the entire building. The door was open and the night wind blew through every floor, bringing with it a rotten smell.
Zhou Yuli held his breath, crouched, and walked up the stairs step by step...
The night is dark. Only the three "puppet masters" above Pei Zhao's head emitted faint light for illumination. After turning the last corner, Zhou Yuli saw the scene clearly.
In the deep and dark corridor, a gray-haired female zombie was staring at him with her empty eyes.
Her hand gently stroked the head of a complete human girl lying on its side in her palm.
The face of the skull was rushing towards him. Then in the dim light, Zhou Yuli could see clearly that the skull had rotted, the eyeballs had fallen out, and the nerves and muscles connected the eye sockets to the eyeballs.
Even so, he still remembered the girl's face clearly.
She looked very similar to the little red dress that bewitched and belittled him. The only difference is that the head looks innocent and pitiful, and the puppet - only evil.
The reason why Zhou Yuli was certain that it was a female zombie was because her hair was too similar to that of an older woman he had seen. The neat short hair is parted to one side and combed close to the scalp to create the shape of the skull.
Zhou Yuli's hands trembled slightly. If it weren't for the crimson skin and the completely zombie-like face, he thought, this should be a very kind and elegant old lady. But why——
Can you retain your nature after becoming a zombie?
Why did she not have any zombie impulse even though she clearly saw him? In her confused eyes, at this moment, there was only the girl's head lying quietly in her hands, without making any sound.
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