ATDIWR Chapter 28
by VolareJi An gave a thumbs up, “Yes.”
Ji An repeated the process, driving away the remaining Power Users. A few people who were just watching the fun saw everyone else leave and felt there was no point in staying, so they eventually left too.
Ji An hadn’t been to the shop for a long time, and a batch of jade stones had accumulated. He didn’t take them away but simply sat down to check them one by one.
The result was quite good; nearly twenty were usable, which meant another considerable income.
Ji An transferred the credits to Tang Ning. That way, when the sellers came, she could directly transfer the credits to them.
Ji An stayed at the shop until past ten o’clock. After the shop closed, he helped Tang Ning and Zheng Yan tidy up before preparing to leave.
“Sir, I apologize, the shop is already closed,” Zheng Yan said hastily as she finished cleaning and looked up to see a tall, handsome man standing at the door.
“Waiting for someone,” the man said concisely.
Ji An found the voice somewhat familiar and looked up. When he saw who it was, he was startled, “Gu Jinsheng, why are you here?”
Ever since the two returned to The Base, Gu Jinsheng had become busy. Although they lived under the same roof, Ji An hadn’t encountered him at home.
Why would he suddenly appear at his shop out of the blue today?
Gu Jinsheng’s handsome face, like an immortal banished to the mortal world, remained expressionless, and his sharply defined jawline was still as prominent as ever. But Ji An somehow felt that when Gu Jinsheng saw him, his whole demeanor softened.
Gu Jinsheng’s voice was always like a pre-set computer tone, neither high nor low, very magnetic, and likewise without much emotional fluctuation. But the volume was just right, making it pleasant to listen to.
“Picking you up,” Gu Jinsheng’s eyes fell on the pile of jade stones that Ji An hadn’t put into his spatial storage yet, serving as an explanation.
Now everyone in The Base knew that jade stones could turn waste into treasure, offering a three hundred percent profit. Some people would go crazy and take risks. Gu Jinsheng was worried about Ji An’s safety, so he specifically came to pick him up.
That feeling, Ji An couldn’t quite describe it. It was like a wisp of coolness in the scorching heat, like a touch of warmth in the cold winter, like a breeze blowing through the forest, a twinkling spot of light – it just felt comforting to his heart.
Everyone longed for a happy family, for sweet love, perhaps because they were infatuated with this feeling.
Ji An packed his things and left with Gu Jinsheng, discovering that Gu Jinsheng had driven over himself. Being able to drive one’s own car at this time was also a symbol of status.
Tang Ning lived nearby, so they dropped her off first, then detoured to drop off Zheng Yan.
After dropping them off, Gu Jinsheng didn’t immediately start the car but asked, “Interested in taking a walk?”
The evening breeze was gentle, and the air was pleasant. Suddenly, Ji An felt like taking a walk.
The two got out of the car, and Gu Jinsheng casually stored the car in his spatial dimension. Ji An saw this and chuckled, “Is this how you use your spatial ability?”
“It’s very convenient,” Gu Jinsheng said.
Ji An imagined that before The Apocalypse, many wealthy people might have been willing to buy such a portable parking space so they wouldn’t have trouble finding a parking spot.
Then Ji An was amused by his own thought. Ji An noticed Gu Jinsheng was only wearing a red string around his neck. What was at the end of the red string was hidden under his clothes. But Ji An was sure it wasn’t the spatial necklace he had sold him; that necklace was large, composed of several gemstones, and couldn’t be that small. Even if it were under his clothes, it would definitely show.
Gu Jinsheng noticed Ji An’s confusion and proactively pulled the necklace out from under his clothes. Only a single gemstone remained on the red string.
“The others were snatched by family members,” Gu Jinsheng’s voice was as flat as ever.
But Ji An seemed to hear many emotions in this flatness, as if Gu Jinsheng was feeling wronged and complaining to him.
Good heavens, Ji An suddenly felt a bit scared. He was actually imagining so many emotions from a simple statement. This was very unusual.
Suddenly, Gu Jinsheng stepped forward, wrapped an arm around his waist, and pulled him into his arms. Ji An heavily fell into Gu Jinsheng’s warm embrace, surrounded by his unique, special sandalwood scent.
Gu Jinsheng’s magnetic, sexy voice sounded close to Ji An’s ear, “You’re distracted.”
The ambiguous atmosphere that had just begun to form was shattered by a timid child’s voice.
“I’m sorry, sirs, I didn’t mean to.” A frightened and childish voice sounded from below his feet. Ji An then realized that while he was distracted, this child had bumped into him, and Gu Jinsheng had reacted quickly, pulling him away.
Ji An emerged from Gu Jinsheng’s embrace and noticed the little boy’s tattered and loose clothes.
The ragged clothes barely covered the little boy. He was dirty all over, probably enough to scrub off two pounds of grime, especially the little boy’s face, which was particularly, particularly dirty.
He was so thin that his ribs were clearly visible, like a skeletal figure walking in the dark night.
The little boy looked frightened, afraid that Ji An would hold him accountable and also afraid of someone behind Ji An, constantly looking back in that direction.
Ji An followed the little boy’s gaze and saw only a figure similarly dressed in rags and bone-thin, fleeing in a hurry.
Probably an adult vagrant from nearby.
Seeing the adult vagrant run away, the little boy seemed to let out a big sigh of relief, finally putting his full attention on Ji An.
Because he was so thin, his eyes were particularly large and protruding, like the big eyes of the little grey aliens in sci-fi movies. When he stared intently, it was a bit unnerving.
“Two sirs, I’m sorry.” The little boy sincerely bowed to Ji An and Gu Jinsheng. His back was so bent that his nose almost touched his toes, as if he was afraid that bowing even a little less would lead to being held accountable a little more.
“I didn’t mean to. I was being chased too quickly just now and didn’t see you two.”
Ji An wasn’t a saint, but seeing such a young child, so small yet already knowing what it meant to be servile and humble to the bone, he still felt very uncomfortable.
He proactively walked over, wanting to help the little boy up, but it only scared the little boy into falling backward. He fell heavily to the ground, not daring to run, not daring to hide, not even daring to beg for mercy. He just shivered, holding his head, waiting for the imminent beating, as if he had experienced this countless times and had become so accustomed to it that his body had developed a conditioned reflex.
Fate seemed to have taught this child too early what it meant to accept one’s lot, what it meant to endure, what it meant for life to be like grass!
Ji An’s heart was fiercely, fiercely pricked. The child’s trembling figure pierced through the ancient mist and gradually overlapped with the figure of a similarly young, helpless little boy in his memory. Equally emaciated, equally anxious, equally not favored by fate, yet struggling desperately to survive in this cruelest of human worlds.
Others were living, they were just trying their best to live, to live until the next second was enough, to live until tomorrow’s sun rose was enough, as long as they could live and take that humble breath was enough.
Ji An silently withdrew his hand and said nothing, only taking out a bag of compressed biscuits and a bottle of clean drinking water from his spatial dimension and handing them to the little boy.
This stuff was filling. This small bag, if rationed, would be enough for the child to eat for several days.
The little boy didn’t receive the expected rain of fists, nor did he dare to release the arms holding his head. He just timidly peeked out from the tiny gaps, slowly opening his eyes, cautiously observing the outside world.
Under the light of the twin moons, a hand that seemed to glow with sacred light, clean as jade, held two things. It was food!
As soon as the little boy seemed to recognize what it was, he forgot everything. He didn’t remember fear, he didn’t remember panic, he just wanted to eat. As if being able to eat even one bite was worth it, even if the person in front of him was a devil crawled out of hell.
He scrambled up, moving so fast it was almost a blur, snatching the food as if robbing.
But after the little boy got the food, he didn’t start gulping it down like Ji An expected. Instead, he plopped down on his knees heavily, kowtowing fiercely three times with loud thuds.
As if afraid Ji An would regret it and take it back, he shot away like lightning, disappearing without a trace.
It wasn’t strange that the little boy had such thoughts. After The Apocalypse, it was hard for everyone to survive, and people could barely take care of themselves, having no extra sympathy to spare for others.
What was most common on the streets now were homeless people who couldn’t afford food and hadn’t awakened abilities, more numerous than rats. Or perhaps the rats had starved to death.
“This is West City, the public safety has always been good. Those vagrants and child beggars usually don’t dare to come here. They were likely scared away, and that child beggar just escaped here,” Gu Jinsheng’s voice was without sorrow or joy, showing no emotion.
Ji An nodded faintly, “Let’s follow him.”
Gu Jinsheng said nothing, silently following beside Ji An, just accompanying him as they moved through the night.
The little boy’s squatting place was far from here, likely just as Gu Jinsheng guessed, he was chased by adult vagrants. They followed from dusk until dawn. As the first ray of sunlight fell at dawn, the little boy finally reached a dilapidated shack with a leaking roof.
Many vagrants were gathered nearby, all dirty and emitting pungent odors. Flies and mosquitoes buzzed around their heads, and they didn’t bother to swat them away, like corpses that had stopped breathing.
However, when they saw the little boy return with food, they all pounced like zombies, snatching everything from his hands.
The little boy struggled desperately and was knocked to the ground by an adult vagrant’s punch, immediately bruising one eye. After a while, he climbed up slowly, limped into the broken shack, and went over to a few little beggars huddled together.
“Little Stone brother, are you okay?” A similarly ragged, dirty, and emaciated little beggar ran over. He checked Little Stone up and down and breathed a sigh of relief when he found he hadn’t sustained any serious injuries.
He didn’t blame him for not hiding the food in a safe place before calling them to eat. Instead, he knew it would be snatched but still brought it back.
Little Stone didn’t speak, just shook his head at the little beggar who ran over, then walked over, and the children huddled together.
The adult vagrants outside paid no attention to this side. They were currently fighting in a chaotic mess, just for a bite to eat.
Little Stone slowly moved towards the little girl lying on the ground, dying, surrounded by the other children. With the children shielding him, he lowered his head and fed the water he had been holding in his mouth since entering the door into the little girl’s mouth. There were also some rehydrated biscuits in the water.
The little girl felt the source of life in her mouth, and a sudden burst of light erupted in her dull eyes, astonishingly bright, as if this bit of water was enough to keep her alive.
The children gathered around saw this. They didn’t make a sound, they weren’t jealous. Although they were craving it, they secretly swallowed saliva, but their eyes held joy that the little girl could continue to live.
“Little Stone brother, if Little Rose eats, she won’t die, right? She can keep living?” A beggar asked Little Stone with hope, as if Little Stone’s words were a prophecy, and if he nodded, Little Rose would truly continue to live.
The other little beggars also looked at Little Stone with anticipation. Little Stone heavily nodded his head amidst a chorus of hopeful eyes.
“Yes, Little Rose will live.”
That’s great!
If the situation allowed, these little beggars would really want to laugh out loud and dance their dance, which wasn’t really a dance, learned from who knows where.
Little Stone then pulled out a piece of compressed biscuit from his dirty, leaky shoe and divided it among the children.
“Eat quickly, don’t talk.”
The little beggars didn’t mind that it was pulled from Little Stone’s dirty feet, which God knows how long they hadn’t been washed and emitted a foul smell. One by one, they took it and wolfed it down.
There wasn’t much biscuit to begin with, and when divided like this, each person only got a taste. But even so, these little beggars were already very satisfied.
Their vitality was extremely tenacious, stronger than weeds. With just a little food and water, they could live for one more day.
Little Stone broke off some biscuit crumbs and fed them into the little girl’s mouth bit by bit.
“I hid water outside at our secret base. You guys go drink it one by one later, don’t get discovered,” Little Stone instructed softly.
It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought of hiding the food and water, but the children who could move could go eat, but what about Little Rose who was lying on the ground unable to move?
She had to eat and drink. Even if he hid it, he would definitely be discovered by those vagrants. They knew Little Rose was dying and that he wouldn’t return until he found food. They would constantly watch him.
It was better to give up a small piece. Those vagrants would fight for that, their attention would be diverted, and he could feed things to Little Rose.
These children were very obedient, sneaking out one by one to drink water. But they were still too young. Despite being cautious, they were still discovered by the adult vagrants who were much smarter than them.
A vagrant grabbed the immobile Little Rose and threatened fiercely, “Speak, did you hide things outside? Tell me where it is quickly, or I’ll strangle her!”
The old vagrant was ferocious, looking like an evil spirit, his appearance terrifying. The little beggars were scared and trembled, huddling together, hiding behind Little Stone in panic.
Little Stone wasn’t afraid of him. He only hated that he was too young, hated that even with the mindset of dying together, he couldn’t really do anything to the old vagrant.