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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 208: The Cuckoo's Call Still Carries the Cold Moonlight
As they reminisced about the past in the room, the graduate student was frantically preparing for the next episode preview. Zeng Yadong and two Soldiers followed him as he left the Belfry, but instead of rushing back, he hurriedly dashed into the Gold Shop across the street.
"Wait for me!" The graduate student shouted as he ran out, only to turn back halfway and pull Zeng Yadong along with him.
"What are you going for?" Zeng Yadong asked, puzzled. It was already dark; what could he possibly want at the Gold Shop?
"You... you help me pick a ring. You're a woman, your taste should be better than mine," the graduate student said, revealing a shy demeanor reminiscent of his usual self. Zeng Yadong guessed what was going on and couldn't bear to refuse, so she reluctantly went along with him.
The three golden characters of "Lao Fengxiang" swayed precariously; this century-old shop, battered by wind and rain, finally welcomed a customer again—though this customer had no intention of paying. The two Soldiers followed them outside, standing under the eaves to avoid the rain while the graduate student and Zeng Yadong entered the shop with flashlights in hand, resembling thieves on their first heist.
They were fortunate that there were no Zombies inside; all that remained were decaying corpses that posed no threat. However, they were unfortunate in that the display cases were in disarray, and all the jewelry had been swept away.
The graduate student stared wide-eyed and gasped. He never expected the Gold Shop would be looted. Skeptical of fate, he dashed around the store several times, lifting every counter to check carefully. In every instance, without exception, not only had the Glass Display Cases been ransacked, but even locked storage cabinets had been smashed open with blunt instruments, leaving their contents pillaged.
"Damn!" The graduate student cursed for the first time in his life, his arm trembling as he gripped the flashlight.
Zeng Yadong understood his frustration and comforted him, "Don't be upset; there are definitely other Gold Shops. Let's go pick up someone first, and later I'll help you get a big diamond ring."
The graduate student's face fell further as he lamented, "What does it matter? They’ve taken everything for living expenses; what can jewelry do?!"
"Order has collapsed; it's inevitable. I've even seen banks being looted," Zeng Yadong replied. She wasn't just comforting him with empty words; she had indeed witnessed a cooperative credit union's vault being destroyed in Shanxi once. A large hole had been left in the wall, and all the safes had vanished without a trace. At that time, they too were baffled—what use was money now? Would anyone still sell you food and drink in this world?
"Ugh, I was supposed to surprise her today; what bad luck," the graduate student sighed dejectedly as he hung his head and walked toward the door. Zeng Yadong leaned against a display case watching his forlorn figure with a twinge of sympathy. In this apocalyptic world where human emotions had grown cold, it was rare to witness something joyful. Being a woman herself, she could empathize with the graduate student's intentions and couldn't bear to see his proposal plans fall apart.
"Wait." Zeng Yadong's brow relaxed as an idea struck her. Without waiting for the graduate student to ask, she vaulted over the display case and quickly approached a decaying corpse lying on the marble floor. The body was shriveled and blackened; some of its foul odor had been dispersed by the wind and rain. Zeng Yadong shone her flashlight on it—clearly a woman dressed in professional attire. Holding onto a glimmer of hope, she pulled at one of its arms that was pinned beneath it. The woman had been dead for quite some time; she had been wearing short sleeves during summer when she died, and her flesh had adhered to the floor. With some effort, Zeng Yadong managed to detach half an arm from its position, revealing blackened muscle beneath.
Zeng Yadong silently apologized as she pried open the fingers of the curled hand. The light from her flashlight illuminated a Silver Flower Ring nestled between its fingers, casting a faint glow. She breathed a sigh of relief; although it wasn't a wedding ring, it was certainly better than nothing. The fingers were already shriveled up, making it easy to remove the ring. After wiping it clean with her sleeve and thanking the deceased woman softly, Zeng Yadong returned to the counter and slipped the ring into the graduate student's palm.
"This..." The graduate student was overjoyed, hurriedly leaning in to examine it closely, exclaiming, "Is it platinum?"
Zeng Yadong rolled his eyes, thinking to himself that it was surprising for a graduate student not to recognize this. The ring was merely decorative; the female shop assistant was likely young and wore it just for looks. It was probably silver at best... Though he grumbled internally, he feared voicing it would dampen the student's spirits. So he clapped his hands and pulled him away from the Gold Shop, saying, "Don't get hung up on whether it's gold or silver. With your intentions, even if you proposed with a needle, that girl would probably be overjoyed."
"Hehehe, true enough. It's quite beautiful." The graduate student polished the ring repeatedly, feeling it wasn't secure enough in his palm. He then stuffed his fist into his pocket, which made Zeng Yadong both amused and exasperated.
&&&&&&&
Raindrops fell through the gaps between the solar water heater, landing on the skin of the two individuals beneath the support frame. The crystalline droplets shattered into several pieces, blending with their smooth skin like jade.
Song Yao curled up like a cat in Jiang He's embrace, her slender fingers tracing circles on his chest. Her cheeks still flushed with a lingering redness, her sultry eyes half-lidded as she softly hummed. Jiang He rested his head on his arm, staring intently at the beauty in his arms. Feeling the warmth radiating from her body made him feel a bit restless. He couldn't help but sneakily reach out and gently caress the curves of Song Yao's fair skin.
Song Yao stretched lazily and swatted away his wandering hand, scolding him playfully, "We should head back, you rogue."
"Yao Yao," Jiang He said with a cheeky grin, "I must say, your taste is quite impressive!" He continued to tease her, "You called me that when we first met." Clearly unable to resist Jiang He's shamelessness, Song Yao let him be as she recalled their first encounter and couldn't help but smile.
"Maybe we shouldn't have left the bar," Song Yao sighed softly to herself. "Who knows what could have happened?"
"There are no 'what ifs.' What’s meant to happen will happen," Jiang He said dismissively, gazing through the gaps in the solar panels at the heavy sky above. He comforted her, "Stop overthinking it."
"Mm." Song Yao nodded and pressed her face against his chest. They sat in silence for a moment; the wind howled coldly around them while occasional splashes disturbed the water below. Song Yao shot him an annoyed glance before closing her eyes to savor this moment of warmth. After a while, unable to tolerate it any longer, she opened her eyes and whispered, " Jiang He..."
"Mm?"
"Take your hand away."
"……"
Afterward, the mountains remained mountains, and the waters remained waters. The surroundings were silent, and the scars of the past lingered.
The two of them picked up their scattered clothes, wrung out their wet garments, and put them back on. Jiang He suddenly remembered something and hurriedly checked his pocket, letting out a sigh of relief when he found that An Zheng's item was still there. Song Yao's hair had grown longer and was damply tied back, with several noticeable red marks on her neck that sparked the imagination. Her fitted shirt was torn and tattered, but fortunately, there were many soaked clothes hanging on the drying rack. They selected a few pieces that barely fit and jumped back into the room through the emergency exit.
In the first-floor hall, snoring filled the air as many soldiers succumbed to fatigue, either sitting or lying down in sleep. Wang Zhongyu sat by the door with bloodshot eyes, resembling a rabbit as he peered through the curtain's gap to observe the outside. When he saw the two return drenched, he said nothing more than a silent smile and a nod of greeting.
Summer Rain had fallen asleep next to Luci, who was lost in thought while staring at the flickering fire. Upon seeing them return, Luci couldn't help but tease, "That was quite a commotion earlier."
"Huh?" Jiang He was taken aback, wondering if they could hear it even through two layers of load-bearing walls.
"I meant the thunder," Luci squinted playfully and grinned. "Did you not hear it?"
Song Yao's face flushed as she laughed and scolded Jiang He lightly, pushing him toward the soldiers before removing her wet clothes to dry by the fire. Looking out at the pitch-black night, the earlier joy gradually faded away, replaced by a subtle worry that crept into her heart.
"Looks like we won't be going back tonight," Luci observed her unease and added, "Old Wang said they should also find a place to rest over there. The rain is too heavy; traveling at night might cause problems."
"Yeah, that's true. It's been a long time since we've had a proper rest," Song Yao replied as she brushed her hair aside. Noticing a hint of sorrow in Luci's eyes, she couldn't help but ask, "Are you okay?"
Luci shrugged noncommittally and sighed, "It shouldn't get any worse... Yao Yao, do you have any plans?"
"None," Song Yao tilted her head in thought before saying, "I'll follow Jiang He wherever he goes."
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