The two guards at the door initially tried to block Xu Shu and me, but just then, the bearded man happened to come out of the room.
He glanced at us and waved his hand. "Let them in."
We quickly thanked him and stepped into the room.
As soon as we entered the living room, an unpleasant stench hit us.
Xu Shu immediately gasped sharply and took two quick steps back.
Following her gaze, I looked ahead—and a wave of nausea instantly surged through me.
A large puddle of yellowish-brown vomit was splattered across the floor, sticky and congealed.
It looked like Xu Shu had accidentally stepped on the edge of it just now, causing it to splatter in a sickening way across the surrounding area.
After that wave of nausea, I also stepped back a couple of paces, turned my head away, and walked around it toward the bedroom.
That's where Zheng Rongrong's crying was coming from.
Inside, the floor was a mess, with things strewn all over.
Suo Tian was currently sitting on the floor, and Rongrong was curled up in his arms, her two dirty little hands clinging tightly around his neck as she sobbed uncontrollably, nearly gasping for breath between cries.
The middle-aged man squatted nearby, frowning deeply as he stared intently at Rongrong, seemingly lost in thought.
I stood by the door and watched for a while, feeling a bit puzzled.
Just a couple of days ago, Rongrong had gone into a frenzy and bitten Xiao Xue, which got her locked up in here.
No one had checked in on her since then.
And now, she suddenly seemed… normal again?
But with what happened to Xiao Xue still fresh in my mind, I couldn't help but feel uneasy as I watched Rongrong bury her face into Suo Tian's neck.
My heart thumped anxiously, worried that she might suddenly snap and bite him at any moment.
Hearing my footsteps, Suo Tian turned slightly and glanced at me.
I gestured with my hand, signaling him not to startle her, and then quietly made my way over.
As I crouched down beside Rongrong, a sour, pungent stench immediately hit my nose.
I looked her over carefully and saw traces of vomit on the front of her clothes.
That sharp smell must've been coming from the residue.
The mess out in the living room was probably her doing, too.
Suo Tian didn't seem to mind any of it.
He just let Rongrong cling to him tightly.
The little girl was crying at the top of her lungs, her voice hoarse and exhausted, as if she were releasing some kind of deep, pent-up anguish.
I let out a sigh and reached out, intending to take Rongrong into my own arms.
After all, sometimes when it comes to comforting a child, the natural maternal presence of a woman can have a more soothing effect.
To be honest, I still felt a bit resistant toward Rongrong deep down.
After all, after witnessing her and Zhao Qiuting's sudden outbursts twice, it was impossible not to be left with some psychological shadow.
But seeing the way she was crying now—almost to the point of being unable to breathe—an overwhelming mix of pity and inner conflict welled up inside me.
The moment I touched her, Rongrong's body jolted violently, and her cries instantly turned into a shriek.
She whipped her head around, her face filled with panic.
But when she saw it was me, she froze for a second, then burst into an even louder sob.
Through her tears, she called out faintly, "Auntie," and reached out both hands toward me, waiting to be held.
My heart ached even more at the sight.
I reached out and gently took her into my arms.
Back when she was with us, Rongrong had always been well-fed, a bit chubby even.
But after everything she'd been through these past couple of days, she now felt noticeably thinner in my arms.
Thinking carefully, I realized that during the last two days, no one had brought her any food.
I instinctively held her a little tighter, regret welling up in my heart—How did I not think about the fact that she's been locked up in here without anything to eat?
"Chen Yang?" Just as I was silently regretting things, Xu Shu's voice came from beside the door.
I looked in her direction and saw that Yangyang, Chen Pu, and Jun Di were all standing at the doorway to the bedroom.
Everyone's expressions looked strange, and their eyes held a mixture of suspicion and unease as they stared at Rongrong.
When Yangyang had first seen me earlier, he specifically asked about Rongrong's condition.
But someone must have already filled him in on what happened—how Xiao Xue had died from being bitten by Rongrong.
He still seemed unable to accept it.
The way he was looking at her now even carried a hint of fright.
My heart tightened.
I instinctively held Rongrong a little closer in my arms.
After all, she was still just a child.
Yes, Xiao Xue's death was directly related to her, but it wasn't something she had wanted.
She was so young and had been through more than even adults could handle.
And then, after losing control, she was thrown alone into that dark box… The terrible outcome that followed was the result of a series of tragic coincidences.
As that thought crossed my mind, I looked down at Rongrong.
Did she even remember biting Xiao Xue?
"Sis, why are you holding her? Let go of her!" Yangyang, who had stood frozen at the doorway for a while, finally seemed to snap out of it.
He stepped forward quickly, trying to pull Rongrong away from me—but Suo Tian stood up and stopped him with a firm arm.
"Brother Suo Tian?" Yangyang looked at him, his eyes questioning.
Suo Tian shook his head slightly and said in a low voice, "She's still just a child."
After hearing Suo Tian's words, Yangyang turned back to look at Rongrong.
He frowned and stayed silent, but his expression made it clear—Suo Tian's "she's still just a child" hadn't changed his view of her one bit.
The others at the door followed Yangyang inside.
Xu Shu, probably softened by Rongrong's crying, crouched down beside me and gently patted her back to comfort her.
Chen Pu, being younger, simply stared at Rongrong with a curious and confused expression, his eyes filled with innocent wonder.
Jun Di stood farther away.
I paid special attention to his expression, since everyone had seen the subtle feelings between him and Xiao Xue before.
If he showed any strong resentment toward Rongrong now, we'd have to be cautious about their interactions in the future.
Thankfully, there wasn't much emotion showing on his face.
When he noticed me looking his way, he just gave me a stiff, forced smile to signal that he was fine.
"Brother Suo Tian, what's going on exactly? Weren't we told that she was… cough… you know, not right in the head? But she doesn't look like there's anything wrong with her now," Yangyang said, glancing at Rongrong a couple more times before turning his gaze back to Suo Tian.
Hearing that, I looked at Yangyang.
I wasn't sure if it was just my imagination, but it felt like he had matured quite a bit after being separated from me these past few days.
Suo Tian glanced at Rongrong, who was still sobbing her heart out, and replied, "Not sure."
Then he turned to the middle-aged man who had been standing silently nearby and asked, "Uncle Zheng, what's your take on this?"
It was the first time I'd ever heard Suo Tian use an honorific when addressing someone, and I couldn't help but give the man another curious look.
The middle-aged man seemed a bit surprised to be addressed so respectfully by Suo Tian.
He paused for a moment, then quickly responded, "Judging from the current situation, it seems like her mental state has somewhat stabilized. But we can't say for certain—only time and observation will tell."
"Mm." Suo Tian nodded.
"Then… is it possible she might suddenly go back to how she was before and… bite someone again?" Xu Shu asked.
She clearly hesitated before saying the last two words, and cast a glance at Rongrong.
"That's hard to say," the man replied.
"Mental issues can be extremely unpredictable. We'll need to wait until we get back to headquarters and have—"
He suddenly cut himself off mid-sentence, as if something had just occurred to him, and quickly looked over at Suo Tian.
I caught the word "headquarters" that the middle-aged man had just let slip and quickly shifted my gaze toward Suo Tian.
But he only gave the man a faint glance before continuing, "Even before this, mental issues were never something that could be completely cured. If Rongrong's condition was triggered by a sudden shock, then it likely won't happen again. But if it wasn't sudden—then it could be unpredictable and recurring without end."
"Then how can we tell if it was sudden or not?" Yangyang followed up immediately.
The middle-aged man, seemingly aware that he had just said something he shouldn't have, cleared his throat before replying, "There's no way to know for sure. We can only observe over time."
My mind kept turning over that word "headquarters"—just what exactly was he referring to?
But judging by Suo Tian's demeanor, it was obvious he had no intention of explaining.
Left with no choice, I could only keep my questions to myself and go on guessing.
"So what you're saying," Yangyang said, glancing at Rongrong again, "is that for now, her condition is going to remain uncertain?"
"Correct."
"Then does that mean we'll have to keep her locked up in this room?" Xu Shu asked.
But just as the words left her mouth, Rongrong, who had been crying against my chest the entire time, suddenly lifted her head.
Her tear-streaked face turned toward Xu Shu, her lips trembling in deep distress.
She looked utterly pitiful.
After choking on her sobs for a while, she finally managed to stammer out a broken sentence:
"I… I shouldn't have bitten Sister Xiao Xue… sob sob Please don't lock me up in the dark room again… sob sob I want to… tell Sister Xiao Xue… that I'm sorry…"
My heart jolted in shock—she actually remembered?
Maybe it was because she was crying while speaking, but by the end, Rongrong started choking on her own saliva.
She immediately began coughing violently, with dry heaves mixed in, and within a few seconds, her face turned completely red from the strain.
Xu Shu and I quickly reached out to pat her back and help her catch her breath.
After a while, Rongrong finally let out another sob, signaling that she could breathe again.
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