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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter One Hundred: Pan Luo
The underground Air Raid Shelter had no concept of day or night. Only a few people possessed a watch, and its usefulness was extremely limited. There would always be someone asking, "What time is it?" After the question was asked, they would either sleep or eat, but the timing for these activities varied each time. The older individuals in the cave hung a salvaged calendar on the wall; when the watch made a full rotation, they would mark off a day. Unfortunately, all the calendars displayed different dates.
They had no idea what day it was, how long they had been living underground, or how much longer this existence would continue. They could completely abandon their sense of time, but Song Yao and her companions could not.
Every minute and second felt like an agony to them, a despair devoid of hope.
It had been nearly twenty hours since leaving Jiang He. Outside the cave, Jin Zhong and his group had carried the bodies to the surface, dug a pit, and hastily buried them. Most of the corpses were mangled; some were missing arms, others legs, and the scattered limbs could not be matched up completely. This was not even the worst part; what was particularly hard to accept was that some people's "bodies" had turned into a puddle of flesh. Jin Zhong's group had to use Tarpaulin to wrap up that "mess," otherwise they couldn't take it away. Xiaomi and Xiao Wei gathered the remains of the pillar and that girl, their bodies collapsed together, blood and flesh already mingled as one. Dachun took a few young men to retrieve Liang Bao's body from where it fell against the Artemisia Bush; whether intentionally or not, they could not find the fragments of his skull.
The ocean was gone. After abandoning Dachun, he did not return to the cave, and no trace of him was found nearby. Perhaps this frail young man had run away in fear or had fallen victim to a Zombie upon entering the cave. Everyone was exhausted; by the time the pit was dug, dawn was approaching.
Burying bodies and holding funerals were two different matters. Aside from a few women who volunteered to help, no one else moved.
Inside the cave, some injured individuals were dozing off while others groaned softly. Only Pan Luo remained quiet; if one did not press their ear against her mouth to feel her faint breath, they might think this poor girl had already passed away.
Dachun reported honestly about Liang Bao's cause of death and informed his people about Jiang He's group’s whereabouts. Ming Junwei and the others could only sigh deeply, praying that nothing else would go wrong.
During this time, one injured person died—a tall young man who had returned with Jin Zhong to fight against Zombies. He seemed fine while cleaning up the battlefield but suddenly fainted two hours later and fell into a burning feverish coma. Strangely enough, he had no visible wounds on his body, yet his symptoms clearly indicated Infection Virus. Until he painfully succumbed to death, he opened his eyes once more before being pierced through the brain by a dagger.
Song Yao stayed by Pan Luo's side while Ming Junwei, battered and bruised, received medicine from a woman before soon falling into Deep Sleep. Chao Yifan, Xiaomi, and Xiao Wei sat around the bed resting against its edge; before long, they too began to doze off.
Everyone was tired; Song Yao was tired too.
Silence enveloped both inside and outside the cave as someone extinguished several torches, leaving only one at the entrance which added to the night's stillness.
"Girl, give her a quick end." Zheng Er had woken from a few hours of sleep due to pain in his waist and abdomen; he held onto his smoking pipe without closing his eyes again. This thin old man, regarded by Cheng Long as someone capable of ruthlessly eliminating kin for righteousness, now seemed to harbor a hint of compassion in his eyes—perhaps because Song Yao and his daughter were similar in age, stirring a flicker of tenderness within this old fellow.
"She’s not dead." Song Yao replaced Pan Luo's towel again; her high fever showed no signs of abating, and the sheets were already soaked with sweat. Song Yao asked Chao Yifan to find a wooden board to serve as a screen beside Pan Luo's bed to isolate her from other injured individuals before removing her sweat-soaked clothes.
Song Yao wiped the little girl's body with a damp towel, her mind drifting back to the moment she first met Pan Luo.
At that time, the little girl was completely exposed, having faced great hardships, her innocent face filled with fear. Song Yao untied her ropes, draped a coat over her, and brought her back to the group. The little girl was young but perceptive; she quickly adjusted her emotions in the camp and got along well with everyone. She never spoke of her experiences, and even Song Yao rarely saw her sulking like an ordinary girl. They were always busy, and just when they thought they could find some peace, they had to flee again. In just a few months, this timid little girl who had once been at the mercy of others transformed. The fear in her eyes faded; she picked up a knife and gripped a gun, daring to fight alongside the others against zombies and even pointing a gun at the heads of living people before calmly pulling the trigger.
Unbeknownst to them, the underage girl had become an important member of the team. Whether they were out searching for supplies or fighting for their lives during chaotic escapes, she was always present. Everyone naturally began to trust her, subconsciously believing that Pan Luo could handle herself as well. Perhaps because of this, they overlooked that she also needed protection.
The cave was dimly lit, which accentuated Pan Luo's pale body. The wound on her wrist had stopped bleeding; the flesh around it appeared pale, resembling that of a corpse.
As Song Yao wiped Pan Luo's abdomen, she noticed how flat it was—there were no signs of pregnancy yet, but her skin felt hot to the touch. Song Yao couldn't help but let her thoughts wander; this little girl was only 17 years old and had already developed so well. If it weren't for the Cataclysm, she would surely have many suitors surrounding her. Shaking her head with a bitter smile, Song Yao covered Pan Luo's upper body and intended to wipe down her legs.
Lifting the blanket, Song Yao froze.
A pool of fresh blood had seeped from between Pan Luo's legs without anyone noticing; both her pristine legs and the sheets were stained everywhere.
Song Yao's hands trembled slightly. She had initially wanted to call Ming Junwei and the others, but Pan Luo was a girl after all, and Ming Junwei and his companions would likely only be shocked and sigh without knowing what to do. Carefully parting Pan Luo's legs revealed a scene too graphic to describe—blood was everywhere in places that should not be seen. Dipping her fingers into it confirmed it was still warm. This meant that Pan Luo had been bleeding all along without anyone realizing it.
Panicking, Song Yao hurriedly wiped away the blood and covered her with the blanket before rushing out of the cave.
Outside, several young men on night watch noticed her anxious expression and tensed up.
"Where's Aunt?" Song Yao asked urgently.
"She's up top, burning paper for her son," Jin Zhong replied as he approached. "What's wrong? Is that girl in trouble?"
"Can you please go call Aunt for me? I'm begging you!" Song Yao said, sweating profusely. She couldn't determine Pan Luo's condition at that moment. She had seen many people bitten by zombies before; some chose to end their suffering themselves while others struggled for a while before succumbing. Pan Luo had been injured for nearly 24 hours now—she hadn't died but also hadn't awakened—and now she was experiencing severe bleeding, leaving Song Yao completely at a loss.
Seeing that she seemed genuinely distressed, Jin Zhong nodded and hurried off to find Aunt.
Chao Yifan followed them out and asked, "What happened?"
"Luo Luo, she..." Song Yao stammered, unsure how to describe the situation. After a long pause, he simply said, "She's bleeding!"
The dimly lit Air Raid Shelter was illuminated again by torches as Xiaomi and Xiao Wei lifted Pan Luo's mattress, carrying both her and the bed outside.
Other injured individuals voiced their concerns, feeling that dealing with this little girl, who was on the brink of life and death, was too troublesome. They worried that the smell of blood would attract Zombies lurking in the ruins. In this critical moment, Song Yao didn't bother arguing with them; he and a few others hurriedly carried the mattress straight to the laundry cave.
Chao Yifan stayed behind to watch over the unconscious Ming Junwei while Xiaomi and Xiao Wei stood guard at the entrance of the laundry cave. After all, they were young men, and it felt inappropriate for them to be inside.
The woman washed her hands and lit a torch inside the cave. Under the bright light, Pan Luo's small face appeared even paler, her lips devoid of any color. Song Yao uncovered the blanket to reveal a shocking sight—blood everywhere.
"This is terrible," the woman murmured, clearly pained. She sighed as she reached down from an old wooden cabinet to retrieve a large iron box. Opening it revealed various bottles and jars inside.
"Aunt, what exactly is going on?" Song Yao asked anxiously. He was confused about whether this woman was actually a doctor; he had initially thought she was just doing laundry but later realized she also sewed clothes. Now it seemed she had taken on the role of a primary physician.
The woman shook her head and sighed, "How would I know? I'll help you clean up her wounds. You should listen to me and give the child some peace. From what I see, if she's bleeding like this, she might be having a miscarriage."
"What?!" Song Yao felt himself on the verge of breaking down. He had calculated the timing; he first met Pan Luo in mid-August, and now it was late September. If the child was indeed Zhou Huai's, then she must have been pregnant for less than two months... Given this situation, a miscarriage didn't seem impossible at all.
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