Chapter 2
"Hello, are you Ms. Chen Nan? We have received a notification that your health data is slightly abnormal. Please come with me."
The tall man standing at the door showed only a slight change in his eyes before calming down and speaking in a measured tone.
"I--"
Chen Nan, still bent over, hadn't straightened her back when Chen Dong, who had rushed over after receiving the news, suddenly rushed over excitedly and grabbed the sleeve of the young supernatural police officer's special police uniform: "Officer, was my Nan Nan caught and infected that day? No, she said she wasn't caught or bitten when she came back that day. She even spent half a day at the Fourth Hospital and had a full check-up. If she had any wounds, she would have been locked up long ago. She—"
With his parents gone, and most of his relatives and friends still in his hometown, he doesn't even know if they're still alive. Chen Nan, his stepsister who practically grew up with him, is practically Chen Dong's only remaining relative.
I can't imagine the scene where she gets infected, turns into a disgusting cockroach monster, and then gets shot in the head by a superpowered police officer.
As Chen Dong was speaking, he suddenly collapsed, his body going limp.
"Brother Dong!!"
"Boss!!"
With such a commotion, several heavily made-up and exquisitely dressed young women rushed out of the room, which was over 100 square meters and divided into several small rooms. They hurriedly helped their limp boss, and after exchanging a few words and understanding what had happened, they looked at Chen Nan inside, their eyes filled with fear, panic, and undisguised regret and sadness.
"Waaah, what Nannan said that day was true! She really went out that day!"
"She's so young, could there be a mistake?"
"Waaah, this world is so unsafe, even the capital's safe zone is like this. Everyone should try not to go out and stay home as much as possible from now on!"
"I want to stay at home all the time, but is reality allowing it? We're not really rich or powerful. If we stay indoors all the time, who will give us money? Who will feed and water us?"
"Yes, there's also rent and mortgage."
"Oh, poor anchor."
"According to the calculations, she will mutate or transform in another twenty-seven days, right?"
"With her physical condition, how could she possibly transform?"
"Yes, the conversion rate is getting lower and lower every year. Most of the converts are still young adult males with excellent physical condition. Someone like her, just wait to mutate into a giant cockroach."
"I can't imagine what my little Nannan would look like as a cockroach!"
"What's unimaginable? Just open your phone and search online; there are tons of videos and photos of sudden mutations."
"well!"
From the moment Chen Nan's door was suddenly opened, the computer screen behind her kept flashing.
When Chen Nan suddenly saw the so-called supernatural police officers outside, she was initially a little confused. But once she understood what they were saying, even though she was panicked, she wasn't too afraid.
But then, seeing the sudden despair on her cheap older brother's face, and the way the girls on the ground instinctively dragged the weak-legged Chen Dong backward as she approached, Chen Nan finally belatedly realized the conversion rate of less than one in a thousand in this world. Her face slowly turned pale.
"There are protective suits and gloves here, please put them on yourself."
When Chen Nan was about a meter away from the door, the man who had been grabbed by Chen Dong looked down at his arm, and then raised his hand and a small medical kit with a cross mark appeared out of thin air in his palm.
Chen Nan was startled by the thing that suddenly appeared in his palm. Everyone who was already three meters away looked on with envy and jealousy after seeing his action.
"Thanks!"
From the moment the other person suddenly appeared and said they wanted to take her away, Chen Nan knew what was happening. She cautiously raised her hand, but at that moment, the other person lightly flicked their wrist and threw the thing directly at her.
She understood that the other party was being cautious and didn't dare to touch her at all, and she didn't know why she was so unlucky.
Thinking of the terrifying black creatures in the original owner's memories, Chen Nan's hands trembled uncontrollably as she took the items and opened the blue protective suit inside.
She didn't really want to show fear in front of these people from the future in this strange world. But unfortunately, her twenty-five years in her previous life had been too comfortable and peaceful. In her previous life, she was terrified of even cockroaches the size of a finger. Now, in a city where cockroach monsters could suddenly appear, how could she not be afraid? Moreover, looking at the current scene, it seemed she might become one of those terrifying and disgusting cockroach monsters herself.
"vomit!"
The thought of herself gradually turning into a cockroach made Chen Nan tremble and her stomach churn violently.
I'm all better!
The protective suit wasn't heavy, and no matter how slowly I put it on, I finally managed to get it on.
"Okay, let's go then."
As they were talking, Tang Ke stepped forward and put a chained handcuff on Chen Nan's leather-gloved wrist.
The coldness and slight weight of the metal, along with the long, thin chain that the handcuffs ultimately attached to the other person's hand, all made Chen Nan feel uncomfortable.
But from the original owner's memories, she knew this was standard procedure, so even though she felt uncomfortable, Chen Nan lowered her head and was pulled forward by the other party.
"This place will be under lockdown for a month starting today. A doctor will come to check on you and implant health chips later. Just wait here. Also, don't go near her room. Let the professionals clean up and tidy everything up."
As they left one after the other, the female colleagues who had worked with the original owner for three or four years instinctively backed away. Even Chen Dong, who had just been heartbroken, suddenly found his strength and hurriedly said yes while instinctively shrinking back.
I'm leaving!
She didn't know why she was so unlucky, or if she would really mutate. With a sob in her voice, she told the original owner's adoptive brother, and then Chen Nan followed Tang Ke, who was leading her, out the door.
Chen Nan didn't really want to use the word "lead," but the other person was wearing a black, form-fitting police uniform made of a special material. The way they were two meters apart, pulling her with a thin metal chain, made that word come to mind.
The two of them walked down the sixth floor of the dilapidated apartment building, the dim lights of the old building flickering above their heads.
Where they passed, countless men, women, and children from the surrounding area peeked out of their houses. Some looked on with pity, while others' eyes were filled with panic and fear. When these people looked at them, they would even instinctively cover the mouths and noses of their children and close relatives, afraid that if the infected people, completely covered in masks, looked up and made eye contact, they would be unfortunate enough to be infected. Of course, there were also young people who boldly took photos and videos with their phones.
But regardless of everyone's attitude, everyone tacitly avoided getting really close.
When Chen Nan and the others went down, everyone watching nearby subconsciously kept a distance of four or five meters from them.
For over a century, the country has consistently maintained a safe distance of three meters, so everyone subconsciously keeps at least three meters away when watching something happening. This is to prevent infected individuals, even if they are wrapped up, from suddenly going berserk or mutating on the street.
"Go in!"
As Chen Nan, completely covered except for her face, was being directed by a man with a name tag that read "Tang Ke" on his chest, to get into the back of the police car.
Just then, a loud banging came from the upstairs window, followed by a heart-wrenching voice: "Chen Nan, you better live up to your potential! You have to come back safely in a month! If you don't come back, if you—"
The slightly overweight man who had been glaring at her earlier was still standing there, looking menacing.
But the moment she turned to look at him, Chen Nan burst into tears.
"Um!"
With a sob in her voice, she entered the back of the police car. Once inside, in that completely enclosed space, Chen Nan covered her face with her hands and couldn't help but sob softly.
While crying, Chen Nan even had the urge to raise her hand and take off the hood of her protective suit from her face.
But looking at the two policemen driving cautiously in front of them, and then at the two policemen following behind them after they started driving, I realized they were also driving cautiously.
Thinking back to the original owner's memories, the media reports about the various dangers faced by superpowered and ordinary police officers at work, and the tens of thousands of cases nationwide each year of superpowered and ordinary police officers encountering various dangers when apprehending and transferring infected individuals.
After thinking it over and over, Chen Nan, as a fully grown adult, quickly calmed down and looked outside.
"She seems to be in a very stable emotional state."
In the car, completely isolated from the sound and air behind them, driver Chen Xing said this to his longtime partner Tang Ke.
"Um!"
Reaching into his personal space, Tang Ke took out a bottle of hand sanitizer spray, softly hummed in agreement, and then carefully sprayed the spray onto his bare hands, as well as the sleeves of his specially made leather police uniform.
"Sigh, I hope this is the first one today. If it's another one, I really can't take it anymore."
Judging from his movements, it seemed someone had accidentally touched the space-age ability user's wrist. The driver smiled indifferently, then subconsciously resumed chatting with Tang Ke.
The so-called "chatting" was actually just Chen Xing talking non-stop, while Tang Ke, who had been his partner the longest, subconsciously hummed in agreement.
The car sped through the low-lying slums outside Beijing in the darkness, finally entering the city's magnificent and exceptionally prosperous economic and political center.
Just as Chen Nan, who had been gazing outside, thought they would eventually enter a government building or hospital in this bustling area, the car sped through the area and headed towards a completely unknown place, a special area that was entirely unfamiliar to Chen Nan, even to the original owner of this body.
Feeling somewhat frightened, and looking at the increasingly remote environment, Chen Nan even had a feeling that these people might take her away and secretly deal with her.
But due to her long-standing trust in the police and her general understanding of this post-apocalyptic world being rebuilt, Chen Nan forced herself to remain calm despite her fear.
Finally, they parked their car in a special area far from the safe zone outside Beijing. In the past, Chen Nan would have thought this place was a newly built industrial park, but now she knew it was a special prison where people like her, who were infected with the virus, were held.
The alarm bells had been ringing non-stop since they entered, and as soon as they went down, more than a dozen people in white protective suits quickly ran down to take over.
Someone went ahead to inquire about and hand over the group to Tang Ke and the others, while someone else came over to untie Chen Nan, who had just gotten off the bus.
Once their identities were quickly confirmed, they were led into a specific square room.
As soon as you enter, countless streams of water and mist spray out from all around.
These things can be found online and in the original owner's memories.
After undergoing three rounds of disinfection, Tang Ke and driver Chen Xing, who had finally removed their special leather suits for superhumans, exited from the other end.
Chen Nan, dressed in wet clothes, entered another room. Guided by the overhead announcement, she took off all her belongings and changed into all the clothes prepared by the staff in the corner.
In a place with surveillance and broadcasts, taking off all your clothes and changing into a blue and white checkered outfit similar to a hospital gown prepared by someone else might make some people unhappy or even resistant and uncooperative.
But wanting to survive, Chen Nan, who had actually experienced the country's epidemic prevention and control measures in her previous life, cooperated with unprecedented efforts.
She pulled aside the screen next to her, briefly covering the clothes, and then quickly put away all her clothes. Following instructions, she threw all her dirty clothes into the changing basket next to her.
Almost as soon as she placed the clothes in the designated spot, the basket there quickly disappeared downwards.
"Very good, now stand by the door on the right. We will take you directly to your room with the elevator. There are books, a TV, and a computer without internet access. You can use everything you need. For the next month, someone will bring you three meals a day, as well as some snacks and fruit. All you need to do is try to keep your emotions stable. After a month, once we are sure that your body is completely normal, we will let you leave."
Perhaps because she was cooperating, the male voice on the loudspeaker sounded a bit gentler.
"Thank you, I understand."
As Chen Nan grew calmer, she responded softly, then stood at the elevator entrance on the right and subconsciously grabbed the elevator handrail next to her.
The specially designed elevator descended rapidly at this point, and after descending to about the seventh or eighth floor, the elevator began to glide to the left.
After sliding for about several tens of meters, Chen Nan felt that the elevator seemed to be rising again.
Chen Nan had never ridden in an elevator like this before.
But this world is, after all, a hundred years from now. This is 2112 in Liguo, not 2025 in China as she remembered it.
With a soft sigh, Chen Nan, completely confused, stopped bothering to record the elevator route.
Three minutes later, after following the instructions to enter a simple white one-bedroom, one-living room, one-bathroom room, Chen Nan, wearing plastic slippers and a blue and white checkered hospital gown, turned to look at the door that had automatically closed after she entered and began to slowly observe the room.
*
Are there any abnormalities in her physical data?
After Chen Nan carefully observed the small 30-square-meter room and finally sat blankly by the large white bed, Tang Ke, who had just changed his clothes and was wearing a gray tracksuit, entered the data analysis room on the third basement floor.
"Aside from being a little nervous at the beginning, all the data was normal afterward. She was the most emotionally stable among the fifty people who came in today."
The data analysis room was mostly filled with ordinary doctors and police clerks, until they saw that it was Tang Ke from the Institute of Supernatural Abilities who had entered.
Although Tang Ke was a special, marginal figure within the organization of superpowered individuals, he was still someone they could only aspire to but never reach. Therefore, everyone treated him with normal respect and courtesy.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
