Chapter 29

Usually, Lin Tu cooked with the doors and windows shut and the range hood running, hiding any hint of it as much as possible. Today, though, she deliberately opened the windows to let the breeze in, and it didn't disappoint. A gentle wind carried the aroma of her cooking across the entire compound.

It wasn't that Lin Tu had done it on purpose... well, not entirely. Her main reason for opening the windows was actually to work on the dandelion defense system.

She clung to the faint hope that the city was large, and the southwest wind wouldn't blow that patch of dandelions precisely to her location. If she was lucky, only a few would drift over—within acceptable limits.

If she was unlucky... Lin Tu recalled the day when dandelions had blanketed the sky, nearly swallowing it whole, and decided she had to prepare for the worst no matter what.

The ramshackle house was the foundation of her retirement; she needed to protect her Shelter.

With the last stir-fried cabbage still to cook, the stewed beef and mung bean soup still needed a little time. Lin Tu used the break to step out and visit units 102, 202, and 301, unscrewing the shower hoses and plastic pipes from all three households. These ownerless homes had already been through the biosafety command post and Li Tong's inspections, their doors left wide open—easy enough to slip into.

When she brought the showerheads home, she found Yuan Que sitting on the steps outside her door.

"They've come looking for you," Yuan Que said, pointing toward the window in the stairwell. Only then did Lin Tu notice Li Tong and the others gathered at the entrance to the building. "Too bad you locked the door—they can't get in now."

Lin Tu glanced outside and gave an "oh," not particularly concerned.

As she was about to head inside, Yuan Que called out again. "Can I trade you for some food?" He held up two big bags of dried meat he'd just retrieved from his place, looking a little shy. "I don't need much—half a bowl is enough. I just want to... eat it in front of them."

It was a rather sneaky idea, but it aligned with some of Lin Tu's own thoughts. If she weren't busy guarding against the dandelions, she might have done something just as petty.

Lin Tu stared at him silently for a moment. "No need to trade. I'll just give it to you."

She went inside, grabbed a lunchbox, and filled the largest compartment to the brim with rice. She'd made so many dishes that the remaining compartments couldn't hold them all, so Lin Tu squeezed the salt-and-pepper shrimp and stir-fried cabbage together, ladled the curry beef directly over the rice, and wedged a thousand-year egg, quartered, into the last small compartment.

To finish it off, Lin Tu took out two more containers—one with a small slice of cake, the other filled with mung bean soup.

The steaming lunchbox gave off a tantalizing aroma. When Yuan Que opened it and took a look, his shock was plain to see. Compared to the plain boiled rabbit jerky that had already made those people want to break down the door, this was like something kept in the deepest vault of a bank.

For a moment, Yuan Que almost couldn't bear to eat it. He could already imagine—without even having to say a word—that Li Tong and his crew would be clawing at their chests in agony.

After handing everything to Yuan Que, Lin Tu warned, "Don't go too far. It's not safe out there."

She meant the dandelions could appear at any moment, but Yuan Que misinterpreted her, thinking she meant he might get beaten up for this stunt. A rare, eager smile spread across his face.

"I will."

He forced the two bags of dried meat into Lin Tu's hands as thanks, and once he left, she sat down to eat.

The curry beef was fall-apart tender, sticky sauce clinging to the translucent potatoes and the shredded beef; the grilled chicken wings had crispy skin with dried, glistening glaze; the stir-fried cabbage and salt-and-pepper shrimp were one moist, one dry, soft and crunchy in perfect complement—paired with steaming white rice, it was pure bliss.

Lin Tu ate her fill with gusto, and since she'd given some to Yuan Que, not a single bite was left over.

After tossing the dishes into the dishwasher, she got ready to begin the defense project.

She tied a rope around herself to the window frame and climbed out nimbly.

As soon as she was out the window, she heard arguing outside.

Looking down, she saw Li Tong and the others red-faced in front of Yuan Que. No matter whether they tried to grab it by force or soften him up, Yuan Que just leisurely ate from the lunchbox that had barely diminished after all this time, occasionally interjecting with an "Oh, then I'll go call Sister Lin" or "Then you can go find it yourselves," shutting down every attempt.

Watching Li Tong and his crew, frantic and helpless, and Yuan Que sitting across from them, soaking up all their rage with a smug look on his face, Lin Tu raised an eyebrow. There was a long road ahead. If they still coveted other people's things, they could only watch her eat and drink well.

She turned her gaze back to the rooftop and began planning the defense construction.

Her plan was to connect the pipes into a ring, hang it from the eaves, and then use a single flexible hose to connect the ring to the faucet.

That way, water could be delivered up to the exterior walls. She intended to poke several holes in the ring pipe, turning it into a sort of sprinkler to keep the outer walls damp and ward off the dandelions.

No sooner said than done—Lin Tu immediately started connecting the pipes and preparing the ropes.

But it was a big job, and by evening she still wasn't done.

Downstairs, Li Tong and his crew hadn't given up. Lin Tu let out a cold laugh and went back inside to sleep, ignoring them.

"Wake me if anything happens." After instructing the Butler, she fell into a deep sleep.

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Lin Tu was roused by the Butler.

"Wake up! Wake up!"

Lin Tu's eyes flew open, and she was instantly alert. She scrambled out of bed, and the first thing she did was pull back the curtains and look outside. The compound railings—bare just yesterday—along with the streets beyond and the hotel across the way, were now covered in patches like black mold, mottled and filthy.

Lin Tu gazed into the distance and felt as if the whole world had gone moldy. The dandelions had been blown over in force at some point—she hadn't even noticed!

"Any damage to the house?" she asked, washing up quickly as she filled the portable shower with water.

"Minimal damage—not enough to warrant waking you early," the Butler replied, watching her get ready to go out with some concern. "But do you really need to go clean it up?"

"I have to," Lin Tu said, planning to use the portable shower's spray head to rinse the exterior and clear away the existing dandelions before continuing last night's big project.

"This is just a small patch," she explained, switching on the infinite radio and telling the Butler to log any useful messages. "If a bigger patch gets blown over and the defense system isn't finished by then, that would be truly disastrous."

In fact, it was entirely possible. The wind could shift at any moment, and with just a bit of bad luck, that massive swarm she'd seen could pass right over her home.

Once the water was filled, Lin Tu began gearing up. To keep the dandelions from piercing her skin, she first put on thick long sleeves and pants, then layered yellow rubber gloves and rubber shoes over them, securing everything with rubber bands to completely seal off her limbs from the outside. Finally, she pulled on a sun-protective hooded mesh mask, covering her entire body head to toe.

It was safe, but stifling. Especially since the weather had turned inexplicably clear, blazing hot even at seven in the morning.

The moment she stepped out the door, a wave of scorching air hit her, and inside her airtight gear, it felt even more sweltering. But she gritted her teeth and pressed forward, quickly making her way downstairs.

The ground floor was eerily quiet. Li Tong and his crew had left long ago last night. The whole world, including sound, seemed smothered by the dandelions, leaving only waves of heat hanging in the air.

Dandelions covered the handrails and manhole covers near the entrance. Lin Tu first used the showerhead to clear the area around her door, then carved out a path encircling the building.

She walked along the freshly cleared path to inspect the damage. Fortunately, as the Butler had said, only a few small patches were clinging to the walls—nothing too hard to clean.

Halfway through, Lin Tu went back inside to refill the water a few times, and Yuan Que spotted her and came to help. Yuan Que carried the bucket, Lin Tu did the watering, and the work sped up considerably. Soon, only the last traces of dandelions remained around the house.

"So hungry, so hungry... I want to eat, I want to eat..."

Just then, a buzzing sound came from the distance. If one listened closely, they might make out those exact words.

Lin Tu instinctively drew her knife and looked warily in that direction. Her gut told her that buzzing was not normal.

"Sister Lin!" At that moment, a few people ran out from that area, led by none other than Li Tong.

He was beaming, brows raised, eyes shining with excitement as he looked at Lin Tu.

"Sister Lin!" He trotted over. "Finally got you! Please, just give me a little something to eat! I'll be so grateful!"

His voice was unnaturally high-pitched, like a child throwing a tantrum for something he wanted, grating enough to make anyone uncomfortable.

Yuan Que was about to mock him when he saw Lin Tu raise the showerhead in her hand—

"Stop!"

Yuan Que: "..." You'd think she was holding a gun, the way she said it.

He was about to remind her that someone as shameless as Li Tong wouldn't stop just because she said so.

But when he looked up, he saw Li Tong actually frozen in place, and the few people behind him, all as if hit by a pause button. They stared at the dripping showerhead in Lin Tu's hand, a nameless terror flickering in their eyes.

"Sister Lin..." A strange buzzing escaped Li Tong's throat, not from his vocal cords but as if countless tiny things were vibrating together.

"Sister Lin~" Yuan Que mimicked his tone and immediately started mocking. "Thirsty and mutated, huh? Want me to get you some water, so you don't lose your humanity? Oh wait, you already have." He offered up the water bottle in his arms, and that gesture alone startled the group.

Their terror deepened, and they turned and ran.

"Don't run! Stop!" Lin Tu tossed aside the showerhead, grabbed a bottle of water, and shot off like an arrow.

After a moment's hesitation, Yuan Que chased after her. "Wait for me!"

Lin Tu had used a boost card, so she was faster than an average person, but even so, she couldn't catch Li Tong right away. Not because he was fast, but because... he was running with reckless abandon. She clearly saw him trip over a protruding manhole cover, his ankle twisting badly, yet he kept fleeing as if nothing had happened.

A stronger sense of dread surged through Lin Tu.

It quickly became reality. As she chased Li Tong and his crew around a residential building, she made a sharp ninety-degree turn and found herself in the open area where construction debris was piled.

What she saw made her skid to a halt, and Yuan Que, right behind her, nearly crashed into her.

He looked up, and his heart rate spiked involuntarily.

There, sprawled across the debris, were dozens of people, twisted and contorted. Under the blazing sun, they clung to the scattered rubble like leeches.

Sensing Lin Tu and Yuan Que's arrival, they all raised their heads in unison, and in their still-open mouths, dense dandelion fluff was clearly visible.