After searching for a while, they still couldn't find Ji Lin'an. However, they saw that many people lived in the wooden houses. Many of them, like the little boy they had just seen, were missing limbs or looked mentally unstable. The adults were fine, except for skin ulcers, their limbs were intact.
The village looked dilapidated and neglected, littered with garbage and reeking of foul odors. I struggled to suppress my nausea. None of the wooden houses were locked; in fact, the doors had no locks at all. A gentle push would reveal the entire interior. The people inside seemed quite accustomed to my presence, showing no sign of annoyance at being a stranger.
After searching for a long time, I saw a wooden cabin that was much cleaner than the others. I walked up and pushed the door open. Inside, I saw a woman. Her clothes didn't look very old; although they had some stains, they were still quite clean. She was sitting blankly on the edge of the bed. There was an unfinished loaf of bread wrapped in a plastic bag on the bedside table. When she heard a sound, she looked up at me. We stared at each other for a moment. Her expression changed, as if she wanted to say something. She opened her mouth, then closed it again and turned her head away from me.
Although I was somewhat curious, the most important thing right now was to find Ji Lin'an. If he gave up signing the contract, he would probably have been dumped here like me.
By sunset, I had searched almost the entire village. The village was square, with 20 wooden houses horizontally and 20 vertically. I was currently in the 14th house of the 20th row. The houses and streets near the corners were a bit cleaner, with only a few pieces of wood debris. I continued searching along the houses, but still couldn't find Ji Lin'an. Only one house remained. With my last hope, I walked towards the house, slowly pushed open the door, and found it empty, with no signs of anyone having lived there. Disappointed, I sat down on the bed.
Did Ji Lin'an sign a contract to sell himself into servitude? I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed, but I was certain that I had indeed left the building that had imprisoned us. But where was I now? Perhaps I could ask someone who lived here.
With my questions in mind, I left the cabin and went to the cabin of a man who seemed normal enough to pass by earlier. I pushed open the door and entered. The man was lying on the bed with his hands behind his head. I stood at the door and greeted him softly, "Hello?"
Although the man on the bed had his eyes closed and didn't move, he clearly paused when he heard my voice. I slowly approached and said, "Hello, excuse me."
The man stretched his hands out from under his head, rolled over, and ignored me. I continued, "Hello, I'd like to ask you something. May I bother you for a moment?"
The man still ignored me. I sighed in frustration and turned to leave the cabin. I took a few steps toward the cabin in front of me and heard a sound behind me, so I immediately turned around. I saw the man from before hiding by the door. The moment I turned around, he pulled his head back. I turned and ran toward the man's door, but before I got there, the man closed the door. I stopped. It seemed that the man was not willing to talk to me.
I turned around and continued my search. I walked to a wooden house and looked inside. There was a middle-aged man inside. I stood at the door and greeted him softly. The man glanced at me and then stood still, twisting his neck. I put on a smile and said, "Uncle, no, brother, may I ask you something?"
The middle-aged man snorted coldly at me and turned away. As I tried to approach, he suddenly turned back and swung his fist at me. Startled, I quickly backed away, but his fist didn't touch me at all. He continued walking towards me, swinging his fist, until I was forced out of the cabin. The man then closed the door behind him. As I came out, I happened to see the man I had just met. Seeing me, the man quickly turned and went back into the cabin.
The people in this town are really strange. I can't figure out why. As it gets dark, I can only hurry back to the wooden house where I woke up. Passing by the house of the young woman I saw before, I decided to go in and try to find her.
The woman paused for a moment after entering the wooden house, then turned her back to me. I jogged a few steps to her and said, "Hey pretty lady, can you talk to me? Can you talk to me? Nobody talks to me. Do you know why?"
The woman glanced at me out of the corner of her eye, her gaze somewhat evasive, quite different from the other two. I immediately reached out and grabbed her arm, shaking it back and forth: "Sister, please pay attention to me, where am I? I woke up and suddenly found myself here, do you know where this is?"
The woman seemed a little awkward and tried to pull her hand away from mine, but I could tell she wasn't resisting me. She didn't try to break free with much force, just gently twisted her arm. I continued my advances, trying to make my eyes a little moist: "Sister, please don't ignore me, can you talk to me? I'm so scared."
The woman turned to look at me, her eyes showing some emotion. She glanced at the doorway, and I immediately blinked to squeeze out the tears from my eyes. When the woman saw me like this, she panicked for a moment, grabbed my phone, and walked towards the corner of the room, glancing at the door every now and then.
The woman whispered in my ear, "You were probably sent out of the Future Building too, weren't you?"
The Future Building—could this be the place where I woke up in the space capsule? It must be. I nodded to the woman, who replied, "Me too."
I asked in surprise, "So you also refused to sign a contract of servitude and be sent away?"
The woman shook her head: "Not entirely. I was also sent out by the Future Building, but I had already signed a contract of servitude. I was sent out before I finished my work."
After she finished speaking, the woman lowered her eyes, a look of sadness in them. I continued to ask, "Then, sister, do you know where this is?"
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