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墨書 Inktalez
"Dear viewers, we have a special news report. The national medical authority has recently announced that China has entered a yellow alert status. The X Virus is an unknown infectious virus that spreads through saliva. The initial symptoms include dizziness and vomiting, and in severe cases, it can lead to coma. Patients develop blisters resembling 'chickenpox' all over their bodies. Viewers, please take necessary precautions."
On October 23, 2012, the Central China government finally publicly acknowledged the existence of the X Virus after being unable to control the situation. At that time, people did not realize that this so-called infectious disease was the beginning of devastation.
Li Yan was holding Li Ming while eating an apple. Li Ming tilted his little head, watching the news anchor with his mouth agape, then suddenly burst into giggles as he turned to Li Yan. "Brother, she talks like a little fish, doesn’t she?"
"Yes, our Mingming is really smart," Li Yan said, kissing the child and feeding him pieces of apple. Li Yan picked up the phone and called Eva to announce that the company would suspend work. Since a warning had been issued, it was likely that the number of infections had become too high to conceal. Li Yan understood the policies of Huaguo very well.
Standing up with the child in her arms, Li Yan pinched his chubby bottom playfully. "Mingming, how about we go stay at our hometown for a few days?" Li Yan remembered that during the peak of the outbreak, cities were hit hardest due to their high population density, making transmission rates far greater than in rural areas.
Although there had not yet been a large-scale outbreak of the virus and they did not fully understand what X Virus was, Li Yan recalled how most people initially chose to wait and see. However, later on, city dwellers wanted to go to rural areas, but the procedures were more complicated than entering a prison.
After arranging matters for the company, Li Yan quickly packed their bags. There wasn't much to take; most of their belongings were left in storage. Among all their things, Li Ming's toys took up the most space. He looked at his dinosaur model and then at his Ultraman model; each was a treasured possession. Li Ming was torn between whether to take both or just one.
Their grandfather had left them an Old House in the countryside, but due to economic development trends, Li Yan had not returned there for years.
Li Yan drove back to their hometown with Li Ming after several years away; she wondered how things had changed.
Zhangjia Village was quite far from A Province, requiring a three-hour drive. It could be considered a large village, with the nearest town an hour away. Li Yan set off from home at nine in the morning and arrived at Zhangjia Village around one in the afternoon. Li Ming happily munched on Teddy Bear Cookies, making crunching sounds as he pressed his little face against the window to look at small ducks and geese outside.
Li Yan shook her head and smiled; wasn’t he worried about getting dirty? She noticed that the box of Teddy Bear Cookies was covered in fingerprints, but the child seemed to be enjoying himself.
Her grandfather's house was located on the edge of the village—a traditional courtyard home. The Zhang Family only had one daughter back then; her parents wanted her to marry someday. So they focused on making their home brighter and more appealing for her sake. They specifically used a local type of Old Brick when building; these bricks were made from locally sourced blue stone and were said to be worth three regular bricks each. Moreover, Azure Brick was genuine stone that was quarried piece by piece.
Additionally, since Li Yan's grandfather knew how to treat people well, he often gave benefits to those workers during construction; their house was truly solidly built. Her grandfather once joked that even if Little Japan used artillery, they might not be able to blow it apart.
When Li Yan returned, the village was quite silent. Over the past few years, those who could had gone out to work, leaving behind mostly the elderly, women, and children. With the hot weather, Li Yan drove into the village and surprisingly did not encounter a single person.
The houses had not been lived in for several years. Upon entering, all he saw was dust—there were no cleaning companies to be found here like in the city. The only option was to rely on himself. Fortunately, the little one was quite aware of the need for labor and worked hard, even if there were not many results.
There were a total of five rooms: one kitchen, one bathroom, one that used to be his mother's room, a living room, and a master bedroom. In the center of the courtyard was a well that had become almost useless after being neglected for too long. Li Ming's little friend took it upon himself to fill a small basin with water from the space and energetically directed Li Yan. "Brother, clean up quickly."
"Wow, our little Mingming is really diligent; he knows how to clean the house by himself. Alright then, I'll watch you clean," Li Yan teased his little companion and leisurely sat down on the floor, putting aside the cloth.
Li Ming grew anxious; he was now the foreman, and television said foremen were big shots. "Brother, let's do it together; Mingming will wash the cloth for you."
"Then give your brother a kiss; otherwise, I won't get up," Li Yan said playfully, deliberately tilting his head to encourage a kiss.
Li Ming pouted in frustration but disliked having a dirty house. Weighing between supervising and having a clean house, he decided that being a supervisor was honorable and having a place to live was happiness. So he relented. "Just one."
"Okay, just one." Li Yan tilted his head back with his eyes half-closed.
Soon enough, a soft sensation approached him. Li Yan took the opportunity to wrap his arms around that delicate little body and playfully stuck his tongue out to catch the other’s tender tongue in a playful tussle until Li Ming could hardly breathe before letting go. "My Mingming is really sweet."
"Not sweet! Brother, you said just one!" Li Ming glared at him angrily; his brother always took advantage of him.
"Yes, I didn't kiss you twice; isn't that right?" Li Yan clearly had some deceit in his words, knowing that children were easily fooled.
Li Ming thought seriously for a moment; it seemed like it was just one kiss, but that one lasted for such a long time—much longer than two kisses would have taken. However, since he had promised his brother a kiss, he felt frustrated but had nowhere to vent it and ran off with the cloth to the living room.
"Who are you? You’re trespassing!" Just as Li Ming entered the room, more than ten men and women came in from outside. Leading them was a thin man who looked rather sinister; he appeared to be in his thirties but gave off an unsettling vibe.
"How strange, do I need to notify outsiders when I enter my own home?" Li Yan stood up, coldly looking at the group of unfriendly visitors.
The men and women present exchanged glances upon hearing Li Yan's words. What was going on? Everyone knew this house belonged to Old Zhang, who had passed away five years ago in A Province, and it was rumored he had died a few years back. This house was currently unowned. If it weren't for several families eyeing the property, the village chief would have decided who to give it to by now; otherwise, it would have had an owner long ago.
"Who are you? On what basis do you claim this house is yours? Everyone, let's throw this fraud out!" A man clearly instigated trouble.
"Ge, Mingming has already cleaned up." Li Ming's face was dark as he ran out with a piece of cloth from the house. His pale, almost translucent little face looked especially cute like a little golden boy. Seeing a large group of people surrounding his home frightened him, and he hid behind Li Yan, revealing bright eyes that blinked with fear.
"Mingming, don't worry. We have a pack of big bad wolves in our house; I'll take care of it soon," Li Yan patted Li Ming's back and turned around, his expression instantly turning cold and confident. "This house belongs to my grandfather, Zhang Quan. Of course, I also have the property deed for this place. If you don't believe me, I can call the police and let them handle it."
Villagers were not like city folks who would call the police at the drop of a hat; in rural areas, calling the police was a serious matter. Once you entered the police station, there was hardly any good outcome. Li Yan's words clearly had an effect; many people began to show signs of retreat. After all, Zhang Quan had a daughter; if these two claimed to be his grandchildren, it could make sense.
"Villagers, don't listen to him! I've never heard of Old Zhang having grandchildren; they must be trying to seize this house!" The man said as he charged forward with a broom.
The situation escalated quickly; everyone saw Zhang Liang rush over and then fall to the ground, howling in pain. Li Yan stepped on Zhang Liang's face with an imposing presence that made others feel pressured. He directly called 110 and reported the address in front of everyone.
Now no one dared to move, not even Zhang Liang. He had only wanted to drive them away; just a few days ago, he had given Old Village Chief a gift of Su Yan, who indicated that he would get the house soon. Now this was turning into a problem. Zhang Liang glared at Li Yan; he couldn't let this opportunity slip away.
"Oh no, they're killing me! They're killing me!" Seeing he couldn't win against Li Yan, Zhang Liang immediately started throwing a tantrum. He cried with tears and snot running down his face; for the sake of this house, such sacrifices seemed trivial. "Everyone is watching me, Zhang Liang, getting beaten up! If they dare hit me, they're hitting someone from the Zhang Family! Oh no, my head hurts; my bones ache... I'm being murdered!!"
"Everyone shut up!!"
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