It wasn't long before the footsteps moved right to the stairwell door.
My eyes were locked onto the stairwell, and I couldn't help but feel a bit nervous.
Just as the door to the stairwell opened, I heard Chen Pu's voice:
"Sis, what's going on with Rongrong? It's nothing serious, right?"
Then came Xu Shu's reply:
"Nothing serious, she just got scared."
At the same time, I saw clearly that it was only Chen Pu, Jun Di, and Xu Shu who had come, and I couldn't help but let out a deep breath of relief.
Xu Shu clearly hadn't expected to see me here.
Right after replying to Chen Pu, she turned and saw me, her steps faltered slightly, then she quickly walked over:
"Chen Yang? What are you doing here?"
I smiled and pointed toward the door where Rongrong was locked inside.
"Just came to check on Rongrong."
Xu Shu glanced in the direction I pointed, let out a small sigh, then looked back at me and said:
"This child, what on earth is going on? Why would she suddenly…"
She trailed off mid-sentence, sneaking a glance at Chen Pu who was standing nearby.
I sighed as well and replied,
"She probably just got scared. It's likely nothing serious. Give her a couple of days to settle down and she should be fine."
Xu Shu looked at me for a moment, then as if remembering something, said:
"Where'd you run off to this afternoon? I was looking all over for you and couldn't find you."
I waved my hand and said, "Just went for a walk around the courtyard. Didn't we run into that old man with the kid a few days ago? I happened to run into him again and ended up chatting with him for a while. Why? Were you looking for me for something?"
"Oh, it's nothing important. Xiao Xue woke up, and I thought we could go keep her company for a bit."
I was surprised. "She's awake? Then let's go now."
Hearing that, Xu Shu glanced at Jun Di and Chen Pu, then at the door to the room where Rongrong was locked inside.
She turned back to them and said,
"Looks like we won't be seeing her for now—someone's still keeping watch. Let's not all crowd in and agitate the child any further. We don't want to scare her again. Let's wait till tomorrow and see if we can go in then."
Jun Di nodded in agreement, then looked at the door and said to the two of us,
"Alright then, I'll come back tomorrow. I'll go check on Xiao Xue."
Then he dragged the reluctant Chen Pu back upstairs.
After they left, I greeted Nan An and then followed Xu Shu upstairs.
Just as we entered the stairwell, Xu Shu, who had been frowning as if deep in thought, suddenly stopped and turned to look at me.
I glanced down at myself and asked curiously,
"What is it?"
Xu Shu hesitated for a long moment before softly asking,
"Have you encountered something like this before?"
I was taken aback, not quite understanding what she meant.
"What do you mean, something like this?"
Xu Shu gave me a look, then without another word walked up to me and grabbed the arm with my wound.
"This injury—there's no way it's from being bitten by a walker, right? You noticed something was wrong with Rongrong even before she moved. I thought about it, and unless you've seen something like this before, there's no way you'd suddenly speak up and warn Xiao Xue for no reason."
I stared at Xu Shu in surprise, feeling deeply puzzled.
When did she find out I was injured?
Seeing that I wasn't responding, Xu Shu simply rolled up the sleeve of my shirt, stopping only when the mostly-healed wound was exposed.
Her expression shifted slightly, and she continued,
"I noticed something was off about the way you moved during the first couple of days we met. Then when we moved into that little building, you hid in the bathroom for a long time. When I went in afterward, I saw blood on the floor. And during those days, the movement in your arm was even stiffer. I originally thought something had happened to you, but you didn't seem to show any real changes, so I just couldn't figure it out."
After hearing her explanation, I was stunned for a moment, then broke into a grin and said,
"Well, now you know, don't you? You guessed right—I was bitten too. By a student. Her condition was almost exactly the same as Rongrong's."
"A student? That happen when you were hiding at the beginning?"
I pulled my arm back and rolled my sleeve down, then casually slung an arm around Xu Shu's shoulder.
"Alright, none of that matters anymore. That was a long time ago. The important thing is that I didn't turn into a walker. Isn't that a good thing? With my case as a reference, at least we can be sure that both Xiao Xue and Rongrong aren't facing anything irreversible."
Xu Shu tilted her head and looked at me for a couple of seconds, then let out a heavy sigh and said with a wry smile,
"You're always like this. Why not just say things outright? Always thinking too much but refusing to let others share the burden—that's the hardest way to live."
I chuckled and turned her face to look forward.
"Alright, Miss Bigshot, how about we save the lecture for later and go check on Xiao Xue first, yeah?"
Xu Shu was amused by my unserious tone and let out a laugh.
She could tell I didn't want to dwell on the topic, so she let it go and stopped pressing.
The two of us slowly made our way up to the third floor, to the room where Xiao Xue was resting.
But the moment we stepped into the room, both our previously smiling faces instantly sensed that something was off.
The atmosphere had changed, and we fell silent.
The room was filled with people.
Chen Pu and Jun Di had arrived before us and were standing near the door, staring from a distance at Shen Xue, who lay on the bed.
Shen Feng stood beside her, his face full of worry and exhaustion.
Suo Tian was crouched at the bedside, tending to the wound on Shen Xue's arm with something unknown.
The middle-aged man was also crouching beside Suo Tian, occasionally leaning over to say a few words to him.
The bearded man, unusually quiet for once, was also craning his neck to get a good look at Xiao Xue's arm from all angles.
Chen Pu was the first to notice Xu Shu and me.
He quickly made a "quiet" gesture and walked over toward the door.
"What's going on?" Xu Shu asked in a hushed voice.
Chen Pu shook his head and replied, "Not sure. I just got here too. But it looks like something might be wrong with Shen Xue."
Xu Shu's brows furrowed deeply as she turned to glance at me.
I gave her a look that said stay calm, then stepped further into the room.
The people gathered around Xiao Xue glanced over when they heard my footsteps.
Shen Feng, who had looked like a statue until then, showed a slight movement in his stiff expression when he saw me.
I could tell he was trying to put on a more natural expression to talk to me, but after a long while, he still couldn't manage it.
I walked up and patted his arm.
"Don't worry. It'll be okay."
Shen Feng's bloodshot eyes met mine for a moment, and he gave a slight nod.
Then he reached out and patted me on the shoulder in return — his way of acknowledging my words.
After Suo Tian finished whatever treatment he was doing, he wrapped layer upon layer of bandages around Xiao Xue's arm before finally standing up.
He glanced at me, then shifted his gaze to Shen Feng and walked over.
"The wound is fine. It'll heal naturally. But the fever is very high, and we don't yet know why. You should prepare yourself mentally."
His tone was calm, but Shen Feng trembled violently at the last sentence.
He staggered two steps backward as if the ground beneath him had disappeared.
I quickly stepped in to steady him, asking with concern,
"Are you alright?"
Shen Feng didn't even acknowledge my question.
He just stood there, staring blankly at Suo Tian.
After a long pause, he finally spoke, his lips trembling,
"W-What do you mean… prepare myself mentally? Prepare for what?"
Suo Tian didn't answer.
He wiped the blood off his hands with a towel and simply said,
"Check her temperature every thirty minutes. Whether it goes up or down, let me know."
Then he turned and left the room.
After Suo Tian left, the bearded man and the middle-aged man followed him out, leaving only three or four armed black-clad men standing silently in the corners of the room.
I knew they were here "just in case."
Even though Xiao Xue's current treatment was far better than what I got after being bitten, she was still being regarded as a "potential threat."
Shen Feng stood there silently for a long time.
I turned back and motioned for Xu Shu, Chen Pu, and Jun Di to come take care of Shen Feng and Xiao Xue.
Then I turned and headed upstairs.
There were some things I needed to talk to Suo Tian about—properly.
When I reached the door to the sixth-floor room, I heard the bearded man's voice coming from the living room.
"Boss? Shouldn't we do something about that girl and the little one? Keeping them close like this doesn't feel right."
My heart instantly sank…
I quickly shrank back beside the door, held my breath, and focused on listening for Suo Tian's reply from inside.
I was particularly sensitive to the word "do something about" that came out of the bearded man's mouth.
"No need to bother for now. They can't stir up much trouble. Just assign a few people to keep an eye on them. If anything happens—deal with it immediately."
This middle-aged man, who always looked so refined, was actually even more ruthless than the bearded guy when it came to action.
I tried to peek in and catch a glimpse of Suo Tian's expression, but just then, the bearded man happened to turn around and spotted me.
Maybe it was because he trusted the relationship between me and Suo Tian—he didn't speak as rudely as before when he saw me, but he wasn't exactly friendly either.
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