Volume 1: Days Moving Bricks at the Construction Site
Deafness
I am deaf! And I’ve also become strong!
Xiaolou is not someone with an iron heart. She comforts Shen Maomao: “The game won’t necessarily end in death; isn’t there still one chance of survival out of ten?”
Shen Maomao: “Then how can I survive?”
Xiaolou smiles slightly: “How would I know?”
Shen Maomao: “…”
As expected, it’s better to die first as a sign of respect.
Shen Maomao’s mind raced.
Xiaolou is truly a mysterious person. She seems very ordinary, with a somewhat naive personality, always appearing as if nothing matters to her. But her courage is remarkable; she remains completely calm in the face of danger and dares to save someone with a quick reaction… Based on this, she either has a deep understanding of the game and knows all its rules—though this is unlikely, as the dungeons are random—or she has some means of self-preservation.
Therefore, Shen Maomao needs to find a way to impress Xiaolou, so she can help her…
Everyone ate quickly, and there was still more than half an hour of rest time after the meal.
Yan Nan took over all the work in the kitchen by force, and Shen Maomao suspected she was worried that doing less might result in being singled out by the foreman for extra work. After all, even though the foreman didn’t choose anyone yesterday, today might be different.
After finishing the meal, for the first time with nothing to do, she followed closely behind Xiaolou, racking her brains to think of a way to persuade her.
Golden Retriever followed beside the two of them, like a knight guarding two princesses…
Hmm… it should be waiting for the two female knights to guard the prince instead.
He nervously asked the two: “Elder sisters, have you found a way to leave?” As he asked, he looked around, like an undercover agent meeting with an informant.
The two women answered in unison: “No.”
Golden Retriever’s entire shoulders slumped: “I want to go home… I miss my foie gras and red wine, my open-air swimming pool, my Porsche… Once I get out, I will certainly be a good person QAQ, I will never be a playboy again wuwuwu…”
Shen Maomao: “??”
Xiaolou: “??”
F*ck, is this person here to show off his wealth?
Both of them simultaneously gave him a look of hostility towards capitalism, causing Golden Retriever to step back two steps: “Why are you all looking at me like that?”
Xiaolou said, “Don’t follow us; we’re going to take a bath.”
Shen Maomao: “Eh?”
“I want to, too!” Golden Retriever said, genuinely envious.
Xiaolou: “Go by yourself.”
Golden Retriever: “QAQ I’m afraid!” He said very confidently!
Xiaolou disdainfully replied, “In broad daylight, what ghost are you afraid of?”
Golden Retriever: Just afraid of ghosts…
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But no matter how afraid he was, he couldn’t bathe with two girls, so he could only watch with tears as the two returned to the women’s dormitory, grabbed their towels and soap, and headed to the bathhouse.
In a construction site, the one thing that cannot be missing is the bathhouse. After a whole day of dusty work, the workers naturally need a good bath after their shift.
The bathroom is not far from the women’s dormitory, with separate bathhouses for males and females.
At this moment, the entire bathroom is empty, with a thick layer of dust on the floor and echoes that are particularly loud. Inside, compared to outside, it is even colder. Shen Maomao, wearing short sleeves, constantly feels a cold wind swirling around her arms.
Xiaolou leads the way, lifting the curtain marked “female,” turning a corner to enter the clothes-storing compartment, with Shen Maomao closely following.
The environment inside is very basic; the floor is cement, and there are no cabinets, only a few black leather benches, which are extremely dirty. The compartment and bathhouse are separated by a transparent glass door. Looking in from outside, you can see three faucets on each side, a total of nine, each without a showerhead, just a simple pipe. The bathhouse floor is also cement, but with two drainage channels where dirty water flows outside and then into the sewer through pipes.
Xiaolou pushed the door open and entered, going to the first faucet, and tentatively turned it on. A “buzzing” sound came from above, and the water pipe emitted a few hissing sounds, then a large amount of orange-red water gushed out, carrying a metallic smell of copper and iron.
“F*ck…” Shen Maomao couldn’t help but step back: “This can’t be blood, right??”
“Of course not,” Xiaolou said, puzzled. “Don’t you know iron can rust?”
Shen Maomao: “…” I know, but in this situation, it’s too perfectly in line with natural laws…
After the rusty water flowed for a while, clear water finally came out. Shen Maomao reached out to touch it; the water temperature was a bit low but still within an acceptable range.
Xiaolou said, “The hot water should be solar-powered. There’s no sun today; otherwise, we could have a hot bath.”
Shen Maomao wasn’t that picky; being able to wash at all was good enough.
She went out and used paper to wipe a clean spot, then took off her clothes and placed them on top, wearing slippers and rubbing her arms as she went to another faucet to let the water flow.
Xiaolou also took off her clothes and stood beside her, the two of them openly facing each other, allowing the clear water to wash over their bodies.
The entire bathroom had only the two of them, making it the perfect place for a conversation.
Shen Maomao had already thought of a reason that could persuade Xiaolou to protect her. At this moment, with time, place, and people all in harmony, she no longer hesitated and said, “Sister Lou, the foreman asked us to find 140 jin of meat, and Yan Nan is preparing to do something with the corpse…”
Xiaolou paused her action of rubbing soap on herself, then smoothly continued, “She really isn’t afraid of retribution.”
Shen Maomao said, “We’re already trapped in the game, what retribution is there to fear?”
Xiaolou glanced at her, “Then why don’t you agree?”
“First, I believe we should have the most basic respect for the dead. Here, we have a taboo against dying without a complete body, and using someone’s corpse is too lacking in virtue; I can’t do it,” Shen Maomao’s expression was somewhat grim. “Second… Sister Lou, did you also not realize that this meat is for people to eat…”
From the first day they entered the game, the foreman had not eaten anything. So the meat brought back definitely wasn’t for the foreman; it could only be made for the workers to eat!!
The foreman said he wanted 140 jin of meat. On the construction site, two people were missing, and one was dead. Xuehua and Glasses were relatively thin and couldn’t possibly weigh 140 jin, but the slightly chubby Ding Hou definitely looked like he was enough…
It was too coincidental; Shen Maomao even felt that this was a trap set by the foreman for them.
That was human meat… and from a dead person…
Just thinking about that scene made her feel nauseous.
Xiaolou finally realized this too, and her hand movements sped up as she said to Shen Maomao, “Quickly wash, and once we’re done, go out immediately to buy meat!”
Shen Maomao felt relieved.
Just to be able to eat normal meat, Xiaolou had to protect her!
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After bathing, Xiaolou led her to the building where the foreman lived.
“Yesterday, I saw cash in the foreman’s room. In a moment, I’ll distract the foreman, and you rush in to take the money, as much as you can,” Xiaolou said seriously. “Once you get it, leave immediately, I can’t distract him for long.”
Shen Maomao worried, “Can this really work?”
Xiaolou replied, “It has to work, even if it can’t, it must, because I don’t want to eat human meat.”
Shen Maomao: “…” That’s honest.
“This tool can temporarily amplify physical strength and endurance, but the side effects are significant. After you leave, take it with you, and if you encounter danger, use it immediately.”
A small red ball was thrown into her hand, and Xiaolou considerately explained its use: “When the time comes, just crush it.”
Shen Maomao was moved to tears: “Thank you, Sister Lou!”
“Get ready,” Xiaolou said, putting on her work clothes and covering her face with Shen Maomao’s work clothes, then she walked into the building.
Shen Maomao hid behind a pile of construction materials, secretly watching the entrance of the building.
One minute later, Xiaolou, wrapped very tightly, quickly rushed out of the building, circled around the construction materials, and ran far away. The somewhat plump foreman was not slow either, closely following behind Xiaolou.
Seeing that they had gone far, Shen Maomao gritted her teeth and rushed into the building, thumping up to the third floor, and pushed open the door to room 301.
The foreman likely rushed out from the room on the right side of the living room in 301. Looking inside from the doorway, the room was indeed as Xiaolou described, plastered with densely packed yellow-background red-character talisman papers, one on top of another, enough to make someone with a fear of dense patterns feel overwhelmed.
Such a room looked very oppressive, but Shen Maomao had no time to be afraid. She entered the room and quickly searched, finding 500 yuan under the foreman’s pillow.
After getting the money, she immediately left the building, and after exiting the unit door, she began to run frantically forward.
She didn’t stop running until she rushed out of the construction site gate in one breath.
Normally, this gate is locked, but today it was opened for the procurement task.
The activity area of the construction site is very small; the space outside looks vast, yet it makes Shen Maomao feel more oppressive than the inside of the construction site.
The world inside the gate is confinement, but the world outside the gate does not necessarily represent freedom.
On the first day of the game, an aunt who didn’t enter was found dead in a pool the next day; she seemed to see her own ending.
Outside the construction site, there was no one, and the cold wind blew through the desolate road. As far as the eye could see, everything was so unfamiliar. She walked to the road sign in front of the construction site and looked up at the words written on it.
To the left is a scenic area, to the right is the city center.
There wasn’t even a car on the street, so Shen Maomao could only rely on her two legs to walk. After about an hour, she finally saw the shadow of a commercial street.
Just like the entrance to the construction site, the commercial street also had no people.
The entire world seemed to have only Shen Maomao left as a human, but she wasn’t happy; instead, she felt even more panicked.
If there are no people, does she have to carry the meat she bought back by herself? Who can bear that?
She is such a delicate little girl!!
The mall’s revolving door was still automatically turning, with bright lights inside and full air conditioning. The gold and diamonds on the jewelry counter sparkled with alluring light.
Shen Maomao, without turning her eyes, passed by these crime-inducing jewels and headed straight for the basement floor.
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Normally, the basement floor of a large mall is a supermarket offering daily necessities and various foods. The abundance of goods almost dazzled her eyes.
It’s too abnormal…
It’s too quiet…
Shen Maomao felt a bit panicked.
When outside, she could still hear the sound of the wind and bird calls, but when inside the building, except for the sounds she made, no other sounds could be heard.
In extremely quiet environments, people will become nervous, uneasy, and restless…
After being in this environment for a long time, her breathing and footsteps were infinitely magnified, and her ears became extremely sensitive, to the point where she could even hear the sound of blood flowing through her heart…
In this highly tense situation, a sudden loud noise came from inside the supermarket, like a thunderous explosion next to Shen Maomao’s ear, leaving her ears with intense ringing and her vision with a burst of dizziness…
She suddenly knelt on the ground, with two bright red traces flowing from her ears.
When she finally regained her senses and the buzzing in her ears stopped, she found herself unable to hear any sound.
——She had lost her hearing!
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