The door closed, and the man did not see the murderous intent in Qiao Qingqing's eyes. She lowered her eyes, squatted down, picked up the backpack, and returned it to Shao's mother and Shao Shengfei.
"What kind of world is this? Qingqing, when Captain Yue and the others come back, we have to tell them about this. This is too much!"
"I know, Mom." Qiao Qingqing responded, but Lin Cheng's face seemed to still appear in her mind.
When she saw that face, certain scenes in Qiao Qingqing's memory were triggered.
Lin Cheng, Lin Mingyong's nephew, was only three years old when Qiao Qingqing was only seven years old when Lin Mingyong and Qiao Songzhi divorced. After not seeing each other for more than 20 years, Lin Cheng naturally didn't know Qiao Qingqing, and Qiao Qingqing shouldn't have known him, but the person who found her in her previous life was Lin Cheng, and it was Lin Cheng who sent her to meet Lin Mingyong.
She heard Lin Mingyong's plot against her, and Lin Mingyong's chat partner was also Lin Cheng. From their chat, Qiao Qingqing learned that Lin Cheng had married a wife who worked at the household registration office under Lin Mingyong's arrangement. His wife's position was not high, but she had access to household registration information. When Lin Mingyong came up with the idea of finding her daughter to use, it was Lin Cheng who helped him find her location.
Qiao Qingqing hated Lin Mingyong, but the fly insisted on hovering in front of her. How could she feel comfortable if she didn't respond?
The bottle of water with only one sip left was Qiao Qingqing's revenge.
Lin Mingyong said that Lin Dejun's health was like his mother's, she was useless, and Lin Weini was unreliable. Now the only ones he could rely on were his daughter and his nephew Lin Cheng.
"From now on, you are siblings, do you understand?"
At that time, Lin Mingyong looked relieved, while Lin Cheng looked reserved and proud. When he carried Lin Mingyong on his back, his gaze on her made her feel uneasy. When she turned around, he showed a look of disgust and avoided her face. Those scenes still make people uncomfortable when they think about them now.
Lin Cheng followed Brother Yao and the others to search everywhere, but they found nothing. Are those people in the market management office really good officials with clean hands? They risked offending Lao Yue and the others, but ended up with nothing. Brother Yao and the others were in a bad mood.
"What should I do? I haven't had anything to eat since this morning. Am I going to be hungry for the rest of the day?"
Brother Yao was upset: "Old Yue and the others will definitely find a way. I told you a long time ago that we don't need to worry about those people since they are so badly injured. What happened? Old Yue and the others didn't listen. Now, all that food has gone to waste. People who are supposed to die will still die. It's just a matter of dying sooner or later. What a waste of food!"
"I'm really hungry."
“…”
Only Lin Cheng was proud of himself. At least he got a sip of water! He found an opportunity to secretly drink the remaining water in the bottle. When he took a sip, he felt that the water was a little sour, but he didn't care. After swallowing, he felt a little stinging in his esophagus, but he still didn't pay attention to it, thinking that he had been dehydrated for too long and his throat was dry. He cleared his throat, put away the empty bottle, put his hands behind his back and walked out as if nothing had happened.
A few hours later he felt a stomachache and went to the toilet but couldn't defecate.
"You may be hungry. Come out quickly. I need to pee!" Someone knocked on the door outside, and Lin Cheng had to pull up his pants in disappointment.
Qiao Qingqing didn't pay special attention to Lin Cheng. She added two drops of rain water into the water bottle. If he drank that water, he would suffer later. At best, his intestines would be pierced and his stomach would be broken!
After telling Lao Yue about this, Qiao Qingqing let it go.
Lao Yue and his group of twenty people were already overwhelmed by the hundreds of survivors in the building. If Lao Yue had not retired from the army and was still equipped with a gun, the building would have collapsed long ago.
Everyone was hungry, and hunger made many people so weak that they didn't even have the energy to argue.
"Uncle Yue, Xiao Chao downstairs said that the room where the body was kept seemed to have been opened, and there were several more footprints."
Lao Yue was shocked: "What do you mean?"
The colleague who reported the incident turned pale and repeated himself in embarrassment: "Xiao Chao said that there were several bloody footprints in that room, which were not there yesterday. He asked other people and they all said that no one had been in there. No one died of illness today, and no one had opened that door. Also, the bodies seemed to have been moved, and some of them were missing a little bit, as if they had been cut with a knife..."
A chill rushed from the soles of his feet to his forehead, causing Lao Yue to stop breathing.
"What should I do, Uncle Yue?"
"…pretend not to know."
"Uncle Yue?!"
Lao Yue shook his head slowly: "If someone really went to steal the body... then that person, or that group of people, has crossed a line. Their current psychological state is a time bomb and cannot be stimulated. There are so many people here... Pretend not to know first, secretly check who did it, and write it down!"
"well."
In the neighborhood, Shao Shengan gave the last bottle of water to Qiao Songzhi. Qiao Songzhi took medicine in time after the fever and replenished a lot of water. The fever finally subsided completely, but the body was still weak and not very energetic. Shao Shengan was already preparing for the plan to go home when the rain stopped - although the rain did not stop on the sixth day, Shao Shengan believed that Qingqing's experience in the previous life was of reference value, and the acid rain would definitely stop at some point. He just needed to wait for the opportunity and be prepared before the opportunity came.
Whenever Shao Shengan had a chance, he would go around looking for wood and nails… He could find the former, but he would not force himself to find the latter. He spent an apple to exchange a chair with the shop owner, and then he dismantled the chair, stacked it up, and made himself a few pairs of "external height-enhancing shoes". Without nails, he used torn clothes to tie wooden insoles to his shoes and practice walking.
"Mom, you don't have to practice. I'll carry you."
Seeing Qiao Songzhi also tying wooden mats to her shoes, Shao Shengan hurriedly stopped her. He was really afraid that his mother-in-law would fall down in this state! If she fell down at this time, it would not be as simple as scratching her skin. There was water on the road. If she fell face first, the consequences would be disastrous. He did not dare to take the risk.
"You carry me? That's too heavy."
"Mom, listen to me analyze it for you."
After Shao Shengan finished his analysis, Qiao Songzhi still shook his head: "Why don't we support each other and walk together? It's really tiring for you to carry me. This mat is so thick, it's hard for you to walk by yourself. How can you walk with me on your back?"
Seeing Qiao Songzhi's insistence, Shao Shengan had no choice but to agree. He decided to wait until his mother-in-law could no longer walk and then carry her on his back.
The people who were taking shelter with him saw him making preparations. Some followed his lead, some laughed at him, and some remained indifferent, looking out the window waiting for rescue.
The rescue had actually begun long ago, but the base was too large, and the destructive power of acid rain was so amazing that the tires of ordinary vehicles would be corroded within a kilometer, and the degree of wear and tear was even worse than driving on asphalt roads in hot weather at that time! The rescue team tried every possible means, and finally a tank was dispatched from Yeshan... Unfortunately, after six days, the rescue progress was still slow, and the place where Shao Shengan and Qiao Qingqing were located was not rescued for the time being.
Qiao Qingqing also started making thick insoles. She had everything in her space and used nails to firmly fix the insoles to the soles of shoes, so that Shao's mother and Shao Shengfei could learn to walk.
"Like in the TV series, the one I used to like very much, the people in it walked like this, right?" Shao's mother still found it novel.
This optimistic attitude is particularly good. Qiao Qingqing smiled and nodded: "That's right, but our mat is wider and bigger, and it's easier to walk on than the ones in TV dramas. Mom, you should be careful."
"Look, sister! I learned it!" Shao Shengfei showed his first happy smile in these few days.
"Brother is really smart."
Shao Shengfei was even happier and took a few quick steps, walking very steadily.
"Brother, let's not walk so fast. We'll go home when the rain stops. Walk slowly on the road and don't step on the water on the ground, okay? It will hurt if the water splashes on your body."
Shao Shengfei pointed at her hand and her mother's face: "Does it hurt like this?"
"yes."
He pursed his lips and nodded heavily: "Then I will walk slowly, I will be obedient."
On the seventh day of acid rain, the rain finally stopped.
The rain stopped at night. Someone had been awake all night and when he found the rain had stopped he screamed in surprise, and Qiao Qingqing was woken up.
"The rain has really stopped, Qingqing!" Shao's mother opened the curtains and cheered excitedly.
More cheers came from all the buildings, and many people walked out of the buildings and jumped back screaming. The tables and chairs in the building were completely destroyed and were all demolished.
Listening to the banging noise outside, Qiao Qingqing said to Shao's mother:
"Mom, go back to sleep. We'll leave in the morning. It's too dark now. It would be troublesome if someone knocks us down. Besides, water might be dripping from the eaves now."
Shao Shengan and Qiao Qingqing said the same thing, and the next day, at dawn, both sides set out at about the same time. Shao Shengan firmly supported Qiao Songzhi, and the two walked slowly forward. Qiao Qingqing and the other two also went downstairs. She saw Lao Yue and his men had arrested several people. Lao Yue put his gun back into the holster, turned around and saw Qiao Qingqing and his men, and nodded to her.
Shao Shengfei held the two bicycles in one hand and packed the knitted goods into three backpacks. They walked steadily towards the Ping'an community.
On the way, they saw many horrific scenes. Those who died in the acid rain could no longer be seen as human beings. They were just a mass of black, curled up bones and flesh. At first, Shao's mother didn't recognize what it was, but she saw so many along the way that she suddenly realized something. When she looked back, she felt her blood run cold.
"Mom, be careful not to fall." Qiao Qingqing held her steadily.
Mother Shao's throat was choked with sobs. She opened her mouth but could not speak. Tears of fear and sadness filled her eyes. She did not know those people, but looking at those corpses, she felt sad and upset for the pain they had suffered. If, if they had not escaped into the building in time that day, would they have been as miserable as them?
Shao Shengfei didn't recognize it either, and wondered: "What is that?"
Qiao Qingqing coaxed him: "That's the luggage that some people left behind when they were in a hurry to go home."
"Oh, so they went home?"
Qiao Qingqing nodded affirmatively: "I'm home, I'm already home." So all the suffering and pain will remain in the body, and they will never suffer again.
Shao Shengfei was very happy for them: "Then let's go home too!"
Shao's mother tilted her head and burst into tears.
After the rain stopped, Lu Ping couldn't wait to go home. Shao's father also stood nervously at the entrance of the community in his own high-heeled shoes, craning his neck to look at the way he was coming.
Many residents returned home, hugged their families and cried, telling each other about the fear and joy of surviving the disaster. Looking at them, Shao's father became more anxious, and finally, a familiar person appeared in his sight.
His eyes lit up: "Sheng An! Sheng An! Mother-in-law! Hey! Mother-in-law! Sheng An!"
"Dad! We're back!"
Qiao Songzhi, who was lying on Shao Shengan's back, raised his head and waved at him.
After sending Qiao Songzhi home, Shao Shengan and his father rushed towards the market. Step by step, Shao Shengan felt both expectant and anxious.
Until he reunited with Qiao Qingqing and her group, tears welled up in the eyes of both of them.
"Brother! Dad!! Mom and sister, look! That's my brother and dad!"
"Sheng An, Qing Qing, did you see that? That's Sheng An! Hey, old man! Old man!"
"Old woman! Hahaha! Sheng An and I are here to pick you up! Qingqing! Your mother is at home! Just stand where you are, Sheng An and I are here to pick you up!"
When family members are reunited, how can you bear to stay where you are?
Even if there was a knife on the ground, it couldn't stop them from getting closer to each other.
Qiao Qingqing waved to Shao Shengan with a smile as beautiful as a flower.
After the end of the world, the longest separation of a family finally ended.
The two sides finally reunited. Shao Shengan took over the backpacks of Qiao Qingqing and Shao's mother. Shao's father took the two bicycles from Shao Shengfei and patted his eldest son's head happily, which made his eldest son laugh foolishly.
"Let's go. There's a lot of water ahead. Follow me. I'll take you another way home."
The sixth floor of Building 20, Ping'an Community.
At this time, the kitchen window was wide open, and the smoke from the burning wood was billowing out. Shao's father boiled a pot of water, picked up the pot and poured the water into a bucket, then took it out and placed it outside the toilet.
"Wife, the hot water is outside. If it's not enough, add some yourself."
"knew!"
In the living room, Qiao Songzhi was wiping the hair of Shao Shengfei who had just taken a shower. Shao Shengfei lowered his head but kept talking: "...Sister will swoosh! Grab the bad guy's hand, and the bad guy will scream, and then he won't dare to bully sister anymore!"
Father Shao laughed, went out to the seventh floor, and knocked on the door: "Is there enough hot water?"
Shao Shengan shouted: "Dad, come in, there is enough hot water."
"That's enough. I won't go in. I'm cooking. You guys come down to eat later!" After saying that, he went downstairs.
In Room 701, Qiao Qingqing came out of the shower and felt much more relaxed.
"There's still half a bucket of hot water. I'll boil some more for you—"
Shao Shengan grabbed his clothes and went into the bathroom: "No, half a bucket of hot water and some cold water, that's enough for me."
Qiao Qingqing sat on the sofa and wiped her hair. When her hair was half dry, Shao Shengan came out of the shower. He sat beside her, hugged her waist and rested his head on her shoulder.
"Don't even wipe your hair." Qiao Qingqing put the towel on his head and rubbed it casually.
"No need to wipe it, it will be dry in such a short time."
She continued to wipe his hair, and the couple didn't say anything, enjoying this moment of quiet reunion.
Until there was another knock on the door, it was Shao Shengfei calling them downstairs for dinner.
The meals cooked by Mr. Shao have always been characterized by their rough style. Simply put, the portions are large and filling, but the appearance and taste are not guaranteed. This time he performed beyond expectations, with a larger portion and a more filling taste.
Qiao Songzhi looked at the large bowl in front of her, which was filled with rice, piled with large chunks of curry potatoes and uncut mushrooms. She was embarrassed: "I can't finish it."
"Eat, mother-in-law. If it's not enough, there's more in the pot. You've suffered a lot out there, so you need to eat more to make up for it."
Qiao Songzhi has never had a big appetite. Shao Shengan smiled and transferred half of the food in Qiao Songzhi's bowl to his own bowl. Qiao Songzhi then breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hey Sheng An, you don't have enough to eat what's in the pot, how can you eat your mother-in-law's food?"
Shao's mother stuffed a big potato into his mouth and said, "Eat it quickly!"
Mr. Shao choked so much that it took him a long time to chew and swallow it.
Apart from anything else, after eating compressed biscuits for a week, being able to eat a potato and mushroom rice bowl really makes people feel a sense of happiness.
No one said they wanted to eat meat. Everyone liked vegetarian food. It was not that there was no meat in the kitchen. These days, Shao's father and Lu Ping were at home and just cooked some sweet potato rice. They were not in the mood to cook meat. Just now, he wanted to make potatoes stewed with luncheon meat, but Shao's mother felt sick when she saw it and told him not to add luncheon meat. She explained a few words to Shao's father, and Shao's father understood and quickly put the canned meat back.
After eating, everyone felt tired, so they went back to their rooms to catch up on some sleep.
Qiao Qingqing could hardly fall asleep in an unsafe environment. She was half asleep and half awake the whole night, and would wake up instantly at the slightest movement. After returning home, in a safe and familiar environment, with Shao Shengan's body temperature and breathing by her side, she fell into a deep sleep. When Shao Shengan woke up from his nap and came back after having dinner downstairs, she was still asleep.
Looking at the small pits on her face caused by acid rain, Shao Shengan touched them with heartache and took out ointment to apply to her.
Qiao Qingqing slept soundly and woke up in the middle of the night. When she woke up, Shao Shengan was asleep. Her stomach was growling with hunger, so she got out of bed carefully and went to the kitchen for a midnight snack.
Still wounded, Qiao Qingqing wanted to eat some heavy-tasting food, but she tried to avoid it. She only took out a tray of steamed dumplings and a bowl of white porridge from the space, and ate all the steamed dumplings with the white porridge. After eating, she went back to her room to continue sleeping, and was awakened by the sad crying just as she fell asleep.
Shao Shengan hugged her and patted her gently, but she could no longer fall asleep.
"I slept too much during the day." She said softly.
"How about watching TV?"
"No need to look." Qiao Qingqing hugged him.
There were also cries from the other direction. How many separations and deaths has this acid rain brought?
She recalled the scenes she saw in the building. Some people ran into the building without any skin on their bodies. They looked like skinned frogs, which was shocking. With such injuries, they would not die immediately, but living would be more painful than death. Qiao Qingqing was so afraid that her mother and husband would also become like that in a place she could not see. It was not until they met again yesterday that her heart, which was always hanging in the air, finally settled down.
"Can't sleep?"
"It's almost time to fall asleep, go to sleep."
"If you don't sleep, I won't sleep either."
"You're competing with me."
"No, I just want to sleep with you."
The two of them chatted like children, which was strange. After chatting for a few sentences, Qiao Qingqing felt sleepy again. Her voice became quieter and quieter, and finally she fell asleep. Shao Shengan pulled her into his arms and fell asleep too.
It was around nine in the morning when they woke up again. After washing up, the couple went downstairs. Chi Yuxiu opened the door and greeted them. She smiled immediately: "I heard some noises in your house yesterday. I'm glad that you all are back safely."
"Thank you. Are you and Aunt Pei okay?"
"That's great. We don't usually go out. Oh, by the way, this is for you. Take it and eat it."
Chi Yuxiu gave them two cans of fruit, and her concern was touching.
Qiao Qingqing did not refuse, thanked her, and planned to return the gift.
"Has Mr. Pei come back?"
"No." Chi Yuxiu was naturally worried about her husband, but she understood that her husband was much safer at the station than at home. "This time, he will definitely have to work overtime." She was used to it. Last time there was heavy fog, her husband didn't come back for a long time.
"It must be safe in the institute. You and Aunt Pei should be well at home. When he comes back, the family will be reunited."
"Thank you for your good words. We are all fine. I will go back now and we will talk later."
When they got down to the sixth floor, they found that they had indeed left breakfast for them. The breakfast was the pickled vegetable and dried bean curd porridge made by Qiao Songzhi, which had already cooled down. Qiao Songzhi wanted to heat it up for them, but Shao Shengan waved his hand and said, "No, it's just right this way."
Shao's mother sat on the sofa mending clothes. Except for Shao Shengfei, everyone's clothes were burned that day and had holes all over them.
"Even though they may not look good after being mended, the clothes are still of good quality. If you young people don't want to wear them, let us wear them. We are old and can wear anything." Shao's mother smiled and said, "Are your clothes dry? If they are, take them down and I will mend them."
"No, I'll make it up later." Shao Shengan looked around the house, "Where's my brother?"
"Your brother has a slight fever and is sleeping in the room." Mother Shao's face showed worry.
"Brother, do you have a fever? Let me take a look." Qiao Qingqing put down the bowl.
"It's okay, it's just a low-grade fever. I just took it, 37.7, not high. I gave him some medicine. Qingqing, eat your breakfast first."
"I'll go take a look first."
Qiao Qingqing went to the master bedroom. Shao's father was sitting on the floor folding clothes. When he saw her come in, he asked softly, "Are you here to see Feifei? He's fine."
The big Shao Shengfei huddled on the edge of the bed, covered with a thick quilt. She pulled his hand out to feel his pulse, then gently placed her fingers on his neck.
"It's not a serious problem. Brother, this is caused by being frightened. He suddenly relaxed after returning home and it came out. I'll boil some Chinese medicine for him."
"Hey, okay."
Qiao Qingqing didn't expect that Shao Shengfei, who had been behaving well these days, had so much fear in his heart. This was her negligence.
"Don't blame yourself. Big brother always thinks of himself as the big brother." While boiling the medicine, Shao Shengan sat on a small stool and added firewood to the coal stove. He said softly, "He is trying his best to be a big brother. He also wants to protect us."
Qiao Qingqing understood, so no matter how scared he was, he didn't dare show it during these days. Only when he returned home and was safe did he suddenly lose his temper and fall ill.
Shao Shengfei was woken up to take medicine. He drank the warm medicine in one gulp and looked at Shao Shengan eagerly. Shao Shengan took out a White Rabbit candy and stuffed it into his mouth. He squinted his eyes and showed a happy expression.
"Brother, please get well soon. Let's watch the little frog looking for its mother together, okay?"
Shao Shengfei always agreed to whatever his gentle sister said. He promised: "I will get better soon and play with you then."
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