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MTL - How to Feed an Abyss!-Chapter 15 nightmare
The pitch-black flock of birds, the shrill calls, the bursting flames, and the smell of rancidity and burning in the air.
Finally, the infected birds gave up their offensive and disappeared into the darkness with their severed limbs and feathers. The aircraft and armed helicopter adjusted their formation and began to return.
There was a burst of cheers from the command center.
This battle came suddenly. The monitors of No. 4 Abyss caught the abnormality of the distortion value and gave a timely warning. They gave Gleaming City the crucial 3 minutes of preparation time. Lu Tinghan, as always, fought a very beautiful battle .
Lu Tinghan took down the military optical brain and gave up the front-line command.
His temples were slightly damp with sweat, and he returned to the office alone amidst overwhelming applause.
Turning on a desk lamp, Lu Tinghan stood in front of the window, the slightly dim light fell on his side, casting his face in half-brightness.
He didn't have the joy of victory, as if the cheers weren't for him. He looked into the distance, his gaze seemed to pass through the city wall, and he saw flocks of frightened birds, the boundless wasteland, the wreckage of a burned helicopter lying in the plaster, its only remaining rotor pointing to the sky, like a tombstone under the night. In the far distance, the values on the monitoring panel were jumping, the giant searchlights were suddenly turned on, and the abyss watchers put on protective masks and walked in the whirling, rust-smelling infection gust.
He just stared at it for a long time.
Until the door was knocked, the adjutant knocked on the door and came in, bringing the latest report.
Lu Tinghan took the report, went back to the table and said, "Help me get the things on that table."
The adjutant responded.
Those things are not confidential, more like personal items, all random notes and drafts. The adjutant stacked them together, his eyes suddenly stopped.
The sketchbook just turned to the latest page—a beautiful boy with a strange appearance was drawn on it, with devil horns on his head and black scales at the corners of his eyes.
Lu Tinghan's drawing skills are very good, the youth is vivid on paper. The adjutant felt that he was looking at him intently, in a strange manner, calm and gentle, almost detached.
It's hard to describe what kind of feeling this is, and it's also hard to tell whether he is the savior in the ivory tower or a demon from hell. It's as if he is attached to your ear, saying that I like you so much, but we can only be together forever.
It was obviously just a sketch, but the adjutant seemed to be stunned, and he could only look away after a few seconds.
Who is this drawing? he thought.
Averting his gaze, he saw curved lines on the draft paper again. There were two or three of them. He couldn't tell what it was. It was a bit like... a knotted rope? Knotted tail?
He quickly put the idea behind him, laughing to himself at the whims of the day.
It is impossible for General Lu to draw a knotted tail, so he drew it two or three times.
The adjutant tidied up the things and handed them to Lu Tinghan. The sketchbook was placed on the top, the handsome young man was eye-catching, he couldn't hold back his curiosity and asked: "Admiral, this is...?"
Lu Tinghan glanced at the sketchbook, paused for a moment, and answered lightly: "A domesticated little devil."
adjutant:?
He didn't understand, but Lu Tinghan had already got up, put on his coat, and strode out.
…
The battle lasted for nearly 5 hours, plus the follow-up rectification time, it was already 1:00 in the morning when Lu Tinghan got into the car.
He sent Shi Yuan a message and asked him how he was doing.
Shi Yuan didn't reply, maybe he went home early and fell asleep. Lu Tinghan wasn't worried that something would happen to him, the shelters were perfect, and the patrols would guide civilians to safe places, not to mention the flock of birds didn't approach the city at all.
However, he intuitively felt something was wrong.
As the car rounded the corner, the oddity reached its peak, and he said, "Stop."
When the car stopped, Lu Tinghan opened the door and stepped into a small alley 30 meters away.
He didn't know why he did it, but he felt he had to.
Someone is waiting for him.
The alley was dilapidated and narrow, and it was a dead end with a red brick wall at the end. Lu Tinghan stood in front of the wall, a thick and long tail hanging down in front of him, the black scales had a metallic color.
He followed his tail and looked up, and Shi Yuan was lying on the top of the wall, soundly asleep.
Lu Tinghan: "...?"
As soon as he finished talking about Shiyuan on the front foot, Shiyuan was a domesticated little devil, but Shiyuan on the back foot was refreshed in the wild, still in a completely incomprehensible place.
His perfect expression that didn't change color even in the fierce battle all day finally cracked a gap, and the center of his brows twitched slightly: "Shi Yuan."
Shi Yuan slept very peacefully and soundly.
Lu Tinghan raised his volume: "Shi Yuan! Wake up!"
Shi Yuan didn't respond.
Footsteps came from outside the alley, and a female voice said, "Hey, why do I seem to hear the general's voice?"
The other is a male voice: "Where did you hear that? You must be hallucinating from exhaustion."
There are no civilians on the street at this point, and it is estimated that they are soldiers who have finished their shifts.
The female voice hesitated: "It seems to be in that alley..."
"Hahahahaha how is that possible!" the man laughed out loud, "This point? This dark alley? General Lu squatted here with his head caught in the door hahahaha!"
Lu Tinghan: "..."
The woman was instantly convinced, and the two left with a smile.
Lu Tinghan, whose head was pinched by the door, stretched out his hand, grabbed Shi Yuan's tail and shook it: "Shi Yuan, get up."
This time Shi Yuan had a reaction, and replied in a daze: "...huh?"
"Get up." Lu Tinghan said.
Shi Yuan woke up, turned over on the wall, and fell down. Lu Tinghan subconsciously reached out to catch him, but Shi Yuan's tail gave Shi Yuan a strong balance ability, he turned around in the air, and threw himself into Lu Tinghan's arms firmly.
Lu Tinghan has many questions. He wants to ask why you are here, and did you comply with the "City Regulations" and go to the evacuation site in time? He wanted to say, now that the warning time has passed and it is already a curfew, you should have gone home long ago, otherwise you will be severely punished if you are discovered by the patrol.
Lu Tinghan: "Shiyuan."
Shi Yuan said: "You found me again." He looked up at Lu Tinghan, his cheeks and neck were lined with Lu Tinghan's black military uniform and the rich late night, so white that it was almost transparent. He smiled and said, "You can find me every time."
Lu Tinghan didn't know where this "every time" came from, but Shi Yuan was really happy, his tail was waving happily in the air. He hugged Lu Tinghan's waist, and buried his head in his chest - he seemed to be always a warm ball, with soft black hair rubbing against Lu Tinghan's chin.
Shi Yuan asked again: "What did you want to say just now?"
"...It's nothing." Lu Tinghan patted his head, "Let's go home."
The night is dark, only the emergency lights on the street are on, the whole world is dim, and the buildings on the side of the road are all pitch-black. I don't know if it is an illusion, but it is a little more depressing than before. Shi Yuan didn't care about these things, and followed Lu Tinghan back to the car, feeling sleepy and full of joy.
The driver was also surprised for a moment when he saw the general pick up someone back in the blink of an eye. But he had good professionalism, kept silent, and the car started, gliding silently through the night.
Lu Tinghan's home is not far from here, only a 10-minute drive away.
Lu Tinghan asked in the car: "What happened today, why did you come to me all of a sudden?"
Shi Yuan told him that the troupe wanted him to play the God of Salvation, and struggled: "I can't play this role, it's not suitable for me."
Lu Tinghan said: "Try it first, maybe you can act well, how can you say it's inappropriate if you haven't acted yet. Why do you think so?"
Shi Yuan felt guilty for a while, but he didn't dare to tell the real reason. The seat was very spacious, so he insisted on squeezing together with Lu Tinghan and said, "I want to touch my head."
The headlights pierced the boundless darkness, and there was silence everywhere. In the warm car, Shi Yuan got Momo as he wished, narrowed his eyes slightly, and asked another question that he had been struggling with all night: "Lu Tinghan, I want to know, why do you want to be an abyss watcher?" ?”
Lu Tinghan didn't answer.
Shi Yuan asked again: "Why?"
Lu Tinghan remained calm, and suddenly accelerated the movements of his hands, rubbing Shi Yuan's hair in a mess. The effect was outstanding, and Shi Yuan really forgot about it immediately, and made a satisfied voice: "Hululu."
That's how it got fooled.
They went home, turned on the lights, and the house was full of light. When Shi Yuan hung up his coat, Po Tong had already brought two cups of warm water, put them on the table, and returned to the stairs silently.
Lu Tinghan picked up his water glass and stood by the table with his cuffs rolled up, revealing his tight and smooth forearm lines. He leaned against the table a little lazily, until then he asked, "Why are you in that place?"
"I'm waiting for you." Shi Yuan said.
Lu Tinghan was silent for two seconds: "You know the whole city is on alert, right?"
"I know," Shi Yuan replied, "but I don't want to go to the shelter."
"why?"
"Because I'm waiting for you."
Lu Tinghan: "..." He said, "Shi Yuan, come here."
Shi Yuan woke up for a moment: "What are you going to do?"
Lu Tinghan said, "Touch your head."
Shi Yuan passed happily. Lu Tinghan "slapped" and flicked his head.
Shi Yuan covered his forehead: "Ah, you lied to me! Why are you hitting me again?"
Lu Tinghan said, "Have you read "City Code"?"
That thing was sent to Shi Yuan's mobile phone on the first day he entered the city. It was nearly a hundred pages long and introduced the rules and regulations in detail. Shi Yuan was busy studying the script, and fell asleep after reading two pages in time - not long ago, he couldn't even recognize a "mobile phone", those rules and regulations were too abstract for him.
Shi Yuan said with a guilty conscience: "Looked a bit."
"Article 133 of the City Code: 'When a warning of level iii and above is received, residents shall obey the arrangement and return home or go to a place of refuge until the warning is over'. Article 201: 'During the curfew period, all residents are not required Go out'." Lu Tinghan said, "You have violated two rules, and if the circumstances are serious, you may be detained."
Shi Yuan asked, "Is my situation serious?"
In fact, Shiyuan's behavior is far from being "serious". Even if he is caught by a patrol team, he will be reprimanded and fined at most. But Lu Tinghan felt the need to emphasize the importance of obeying the law, and replied, "It's a little serious."
"Oh." Shi Yuan thought for a while, and decided to bribe the general, "I'll touch my tail for you, so don't detain me."
Lu Tinghan: "Don't be cute and pass the test. This is a very dangerous thing. Promise me that you will go to the place you should go next time. This is for your own good."
"Okay," Shi Yuan said, "I will remember."
"real?"
"real."
"Where are you going next time you hear the alarm?"
"refuge."
Lu Tinghan nodded, turned around and went upstairs, took two steps and turned around and said, "Don't wait for me foolishly."
"But you can always find me." Shi Yuan was still very happy, "You are amazing."
Lu Tinghan raised his eyebrows.
Shi Yuan asked again: "Will you have nightmares tonight?"
Lu Tinghan: "No."
"Okay, then I wish you a sweet dream."
Lu Tinghan said, "You too." He went up the steps, the lights on the second floor were not turned on, and his figure was hidden in the hazy darkness.
The next day was still a morning when I couldn't see Lu Tinghan.
Instead of going to work in the theater on Sunday, Shi Yuan ate bread and fried eggs, and started to learn how to use a mobile phone again—as a person who started from scratch, he has made rapid progress, and now he can play simple games.
At noon, Potong started cooking. The meat is very rare, and the general's family will not worry about it. He slices the pork into strips, cooks a pot of lean meat porridge with shredded **** and mushrooms, and brings it to the table.
"Thank you," Shi Yuan said, "Do you want to eat?"
Po Tong silently turned around and returned to Rotten's side.
The pot of porridge was steaming hot, neither thick nor thin, and every grain of rice was soaked in the fragrance of meat. While eating, Shi Yuan turned on the mobile phone radio station, and chose a channel at random.
A sweet female voice came out: 【...Many citizens are worried, is the peak of infection coming soon? How is the military situation? For this reason, various opinions have come out, Mr. Afeng, what do you think? 】
Male voice: [The peak period of infection should be based on the data. Before the official decision is made, don't worry too much. Just five years ago, there was also a riot of birds in the summer, and they migrated in large numbers, and nothing happened in the end. 】
Shi Yuan picked up the bowl and drank a big mouthful of porridge, his whole body was full of enthusiasm.
Female voice: [There is another question that everyone is very concerned about, that is, how is the current battle going? How is our defense? 】
The male voice was unhurried: [For this, the military report shall prevail. I still hold the same point of view, there is no need to be nervous, as we all know that there are three outposts outside of Gleaming City, which are heavily guarded and impregnable, as the saying goes, you can kill mosquitoes when they fly by. As long as the outpost remains, the city is safe. 】
[As for our early warning system, I believe everyone knows that it was founded by Professor Yu Qingmei. The abyss monitors use it to monitor the changes in the abyss and give timely warnings—just like the previous earthquake warning, even if it was only 30 seconds in advance, the situation is very different. What's more, the abyss warning is not what it used to be, and it can basically be more than two minutes in advance. 】
He smiled: [Besides, it is no problem to have Admiral Lu Tinghan personally come to the front line of Gleaming City to defend against the ordinary offensive of infected creatures. 】
The female voice was a little brisk: [I have to mention here, General Lu's mother is Professor Yu, as the so-called famous family, the whole family has made great achievements, but it's just, it's a pity...]
They also discussed how to strengthen the windows and what precautions should be taken to guard against birds.
Shi Yuan felt bored and switched to another station. There are very few channels that can be listened to, and there are only five or six exchanges. He finally listened to music—this sonata is a work before the end of the world, performed by the "Piano Prodigy" and "The Queen of Violin", and now the two The musicians have returned to dust, and Shi Yuan slept soundly in their magnificent music.
That day Lu Tinghan went home before the curfew.
He went to the balcony on the second floor and stood by the railing, as if he was waiting for something.
Shi Yuan also followed and stayed by his side. The temperature difference between day and night here is large, the sun is shining brightly in the morning, and now the night wind is blowing, as if it wants to blow the cold into the bones.
Shi Yuan asked, "What are you doing?"
"Waiting for the bell." Lu Tinghan said. He glanced at Shi Yuan's thin home clothes, took off his coat, and put it on Shi Yuan's shoulders.
The size of his clothes was not suitable for Shi Yuan, especially this thick long windbreaker, which completely submerged Shi Yuan into a ball. Lu Tinghan's expression remained unchanged, and he stretched out his hand again, pulled up the windbreaker hat, and covered Shi Yuan's head - half of Shi Yuan's face was directly covered, and he couldn't see anything.
Shi Yuan: "Ah."
He tugged at it for a while before he put it back on and said, "I never wear a hat."
"Why?" Lu Tinghan asked.
"Look," Shi Yuan said, "I cut two holes in your hat."
Lu Tinghan took a closer look, and sure enough there were two holes in the hat, which were pierced by Shi Yuan's devil horns.
Lu Tinghan: "..."
Shi Yuan asked, "How much is this dress? Should I compensate you?"
Lu Tinghan put the hat back on him again: "It's very expensive, I can't afford to sell you."
It took Shi Yuan a little more time to put back the hat that was hooked up with the devil's horn. This time, he finally realized that Lu Tinghan did it on purpose. Before Lu Tinghan could make a move next time, he turned around and hugged him tightly, and buried him in his arms.
Now Lu Tinghan couldn't cover his hat anymore.
He let Shi Yuan hug him, and the two were so close that even the cold didn't dare to get close to them. Soon it was time for the curfew. What was different from usual was that in addition to the sound of the whistle, there was also a loud bell ringing in the distance.
It rang three times in total, echoing above the city, and it lasted for a long time.
Shi Yuan turned his head in Lu Tinghan's arms and looked towards the city: "Why did you ring the bell?"
"Death knell." Lu Tinghan replied, "Three soldiers were sacrificed yesterday."
"It turned out to be like this." Shi Yuan said.
The wind was howling, and they stood silently for a while, Lu Tinghan rubbed Shi Yuan's head: "Go to sleep."
Shi Yuan asked again: "Will you have nightmares today?"
Lu Tinghan said, "Why do you keep thinking about this problem?"
Every night, Shi Yuan asked again.
Shi Yuan: "Because nightmares are really scary, and I really want to sleep with you too. It's still so cold tonight, and it will be much warmer to sleep together."
"You know I won't agree." Lu Tinghan said.
Shi Yuan opened his eyes wide: "Is it really not possible?"
Lu Tinghan replied: "No. Shi Yuan, this is a social distance that should be maintained. Most people don't sleep together."
Shi Yuan really wanted to say, it doesn't matter, because you are not ordinary, and I am not human, neither of us has anything to do with "ordinary people". But he didn't dare to say it, he could only leave Lu Tinghan reluctantly, and went back to his room by himself.
Lu Tinghan stayed in the sun for a long time again.
During the curfew, the electricity and hot water will be cut off. In the whole city, only the emergency lights on the streets and the searchlights on the city walls are still on. Doors and windows are locked tightly, like people who are silent.
A private message pops up on the phone.
Teacher Su: [Can we chat later? 】
Lu Tinghan replied: [OK]
He turned and went back inside.
Only a hallway light on the second floor was on in the house—it wasn't bright either, the surroundings were hazy and dim, and the bedroom at the end of the hallway was even darker. Every time I walk here, it's like stepping into the boundless darkness step by step.
But this time the difference is that the darkness has come to an end...
And it's a knotted tail.
Since Lu Tinghan met Shi Yuan, the number of doubts exceeded the sum of the past.
He slowed down: "Shi Yuan? Why haven't you slept yet?"
The knotted tail flicked slightly, Shi Yuan turned his head when he heard the sound in the darkness, took two steps forward and stood under the light. His black hair was a little messy, and his feet were bare, as if he had just gotten off the bed.
Lu Tinghan said: "How can you get your tail knotted while sleeping? Come here, and I'll untie it for you."
Shi Yuan remained silent.
Lu Tinghan asked: "What's the matter?"
Shi Yuan said: "I did a bad thing. I didn't turn on the light when I just returned to the room, and I tripped over the hanger."
"There's nothing wrong with it, as long as you're not injured." Lu Tinghan said.
"I fell forward," Shi Yuan explained, "All the clothes you hung up were scratched by my corners." He emphasized, "All are rotten."
Lu Tinghan: "..."
He looked downstairs and vaguely saw some cotton wool and rags on the floor. He had the inexplicable illusion that the house had been torn down by pets.
Shi Yuan said: "I wanted to find you, but I thought you were asleep, so I went to bed. Then I had a nightmare. I dreamed that you sold me to lose money. You sold me for 300 yuan."
"How is that possible." Lu Tinghan said, "Why did it only sell for 300? My eloquence is not that bad."
Shi Yuan's eyes widened: "Why do you only care about this!"
Lu Tinghan immediately changed the subject: "And then?"
As expected, Shi Yuan was distracted, and continued: "Then I dreamed of a lot of people, a sea of people, all looking at me. I woke up from the fright, and my tail was tied to death."
"I'll help you." Lu Tinghan said.
Shi Yuan didn't answer, but raised his head to look at him, his eyes were extremely dark.
Most of the time his eyes are black and bright, like lacquer spots, shining, beautiful and pleasing, just like Shi Yuan himself. But the first time Lu Tinghan saw it, he thought of the abyss. Everything would eventually sink into it, annihilated, vanished, and turned into nothingness. It shouldn't reflect anyone's figure.
But now...
He hit it off right away, Shi Yuan's eyes were full of him. They had known each other before the more distant ages.
Shi Yuan whispered: "The nightmare is really scary. Lu Tinghan, can I sleep with you tonight?"