As the light gradually dimmed, Su Mingde knew that night was approaching.
He moved his numb body, preparing to leave this hellish place.
As the last ray of light disappeared, he struggled to his feet and groped his way back to the bottom of the manhole cover.
I pushed the manhole cover, but it didn't budge.
Su Mingde's heart sank.
Was it locked from the outside?
He used all his strength to push upwards, and the manhole cover finally loosened a little.
Through the crack, he could see that it was pitch black outside, with occasional beams of flashlight sweeping across, but they were quite far away.
Seizing a break during his patrol, Su Mingde suddenly pushed open the manhole cover and quickly climbed out.
The cold air hit me, but it was a hundred times fresher than the sewers.
He breathed deeply, while cautiously observing his surroundings.
After confirming that it was safe, Su Mingde quietly moved towards the tenement building.
As he passed a bungalow, he saw warm light shining from the window, and the scene of a family sitting around the table eating made his throat tighten.
The kitchen window was half-open, and the kitchen knife on the cutting board could be vaguely seen.
A thought flashed through Su Mingde's mind.
He crept closer and reached through the window to steal the kitchen knife.
The cool touch of the metal gave him a sense of security.
Now he has weapons.
"Meijuan."
He murmured the name under his breath, as if reciting a spell.
"I am coming."
In front of the tenement building, Su Mingde stopped and looked up at Liu Meijuan's window.
The light is on, which means someone is home.
His heart raced, his palms sweated, and he had to grip the knife handle even tighter.
The stairwell was dark and quiet, each step feeling like a walk to the judgment seat of fate.
Arriving at Liu Meijuan's door, Su Mingde took a deep breath and raised his trembling hand.
I knocked on the door three times gently.
"Here I am!"
Liu Meijuan's familiar voice came from inside the door.
Su Mingde trembled all over, whether from the cold, hunger, or the impending meeting of the woman he loved most in his life, he didn't know.
Inside the room.
Liu Meijuan, with her five-month pregnant belly, struggled to get up from the sofa.
The sound of firecrackers outside the window had become much less frequent, and the night of the second day of the Lunar New Year was much quieter than that of Lunar New Year's Eve.
She rubbed her aching back and slowly walked towards the door.
It seems like someone knocked on the door just now.
Who is it?
She asked through the door, her voice carrying the weariness typical of pregnant women.
There was no answer, only three soft, rhythmic knocks on the door.
Liu Meijuan frowned and opened the door directly.
The hallway was dimly lit, but she recognized the face instantly.
Su Mingde.
He looked even more haggard than the last time we met, with sunken eyes, chapped lips, and hair that resembled a bird's nest. His entire body reeked of decay.
What terrified Liu Meijuan the most was the ferocious, beast-like glint in his eyes and the kitchen knife he gripped tightly in his right hand.
Liu Meijuan's breathing stopped instantly, and her blood seemed to freeze.
She instinctively took a step back and opened her mouth to scream.
The door was suddenly pushed open, and Su Mingde rushed in like a gust of wind, covering Liu Meijuan's mouth tightly with his left hand and pressing a kitchen knife against her swollen belly with his right.
"Shh!"
Su Mingde's voice was terribly hoarse.
"Don't scream, Meijuan, don't scream. I don't want to hurt you, but if you scream, I won't be able to control myself."
Liu Meijuan's eyes widened, and tears welled up instantly.
She could smell the stench of sewage emanating from Su Mingde, and feel his rapid heartbeat and trembling body.
The coldness of the kitchen knife seeped through her thin maternity clothes and onto her skin, making her goosebumps.
"Blink twice if you understand."
Su Mingde said in a low voice, his tone carrying an unquestionable command.
Liu Meijuan blinked twice quickly, tears sliding down her cheeks and onto Su Mingde's hand.
Su Mingde slowly released his hand from her mouth, but the cleaver remained pressed against her abdomen.
Turn around and slowly walk in. Don't try anything funny, I'm watching you.
Liu Meijuan turned around tremblingly, her hands unconsciously protecting her stomach, and moved step by step toward the living room.
She could feel Su Mingde pressed close behind her, his breath brushing against the back of her neck.
Are you living alone at home?
Su Mingde looked around, his gaze sweeping over the neatly tidied living room, where the unfinished New Year's Eve dinner was still on the dining table.
Liu Meijuan nodded.
"My parents... took the whole family back to my maternal grandparents' house... I'm pregnant and it's inconvenient for me to go... so I'm home alone..."
A twisted smile appeared on Su Mingde's lips.
"Phew, looks like I'm in luck."
He pushed Liu Meijuan to sit on the sofa, while he stood in front of her, waving a kitchen knife in his hand.
"Do you know why I came to find you, Meijuan?"
Liu Meijuan gripped the sofa cover tightly with both hands, her face filled with fear.
"Mingde... listen to me... your imprisonment really has nothing to do with me... I just... just wanted to distance myself from you when you were being investigated..."
"Disassociate yourself?"
Su Mingde sneered.
"Why did I become that deputy section chief? Why did those people target me and make me take the blame for all those messy accounts? Wasn't all of this orchestrated by your father?"
Liu Meijuan's tears flowed uncontrollably.
"No, Mingde, really, I swear, I want to live a good life with you, and my father would never harm you. Please, Mingde, don't hurt me..."
Su Mingde suddenly leaned down, his face almost touching Liu Meijuan's, which startled her so much that she shrank back.
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