Surviving the Apocalypse with the Young Miss - Chapter 55

Chapter 55: The Drug

The two of them looked over simultaneously—a hickey?!

Yue Yao’s ears turned bright red instantly. “I—I was just guessing randomly!”

Song Ge asked, “What does a hickey look like?”

Tong Xiangyu looked at Song Ge.

Noticing Tong Xiangyu’s gaze, Song Ge looked back and said, “What? Do I look like someone who would know?”

Tong Xiangyu shook her head quickly, then nodded.

Song Ge: “?”

It was ridiculous that the young lady actually followed up with a nod.

Tong Xiangyu said honestly, “The kind of basement you lived in looked like it was full of all sorts of people.”

Song Ge: “I kept to myself.”

“Oh…”

“What about you?” Song Ge asked back.

Song Ge wanted to know if Tong Xiangyu knew what a hickey looked like.

Tong Xiangyu misunderstood, immediately blushing as she said, “Me too, of course! I’ve never had a boy… I’ve never had a partner.” After speaking, she looked away, feeling annoyed with herself: Why did I change my wording to stay gender-neutral on purpose?

Tong Xiangyu stole a glance at Song Ge, only to find that the other girl hadn’t noticed at all. She pouted slightly in dissatisfaction.

Song Ge wasn’t surprised that this top-student lady had never been in love. She turned back to Yue Yao: “What does a hickey look like?”

“Actually, I… I don’t know either…” Yue Yao’s face was flushed with embarrassment. “I just guessed based on your description. Back when I had heatstroke and got sha (skin scraping) on my neck, people at school would always tease me and say it was a hickey.”

If that really was a hickey… Song Ge speculated, “In that case, she slept with someone this afternoon?”

The identity of the partner was obvious—it had to be the man named Zeus. But didn’t Zeus say he was busy? Busy with that in broad daylight?

There were too many suspicious details…

Song Ge still couldn’t figure out what these people were actually after. She felt she must have missed something, so she began to recount everything from the moment they stepped into Taiyun, letting no detail slide.

Seeing Song Ge deep in thought, Yue Yao didn’t dare disturb her, but her mind was full of questions. She sidled over to Tong Xiangyu and whispered to ask what was going on.

Tong Xiangyu kept her voice low. “Song Ge says this place is wrong. Remember to lock your door when you sleep tonight.”

Yue Yao’s eyes widened in fear, and she nodded vigorously.

They reached Building 11. The compound was vast, but only this area was pitch black.

Song Ge walked in front, with Tong Xiangyu and Yue Yao behind her. The sound-activated lights in the stairwell flickered on. Song Ge used the key to open the door and turned on the lights from memory. That afternoon, she had temporarily spotted small cameras in two places: one in a potted plant in the kitchen, and another in a high-placed power socket in the living room.

She absolutely could not look directly at those spots now. These bugs could definitely record audio.

Song Ge suddenly said aloud, “How about we watch some TV? Not sure if it still works.” With that, she picked up the remote on the coffee table and pressed the power button.

The TV didn’t react. Song Ge acted confused.

Yue Yao couldn’t help but smile. “Song Ge, you have to turn on the main switch on the TV first.”

As she spoke, Yue Yao moved to help her, but halfway there, she swayed slightly. It felt like the dizziness of low blood sugar from standing up too fast. She stood still for a moment, and once the feeling passed, she continued to turn on the switch.

This time, when Song Ge pressed the remote, the TV flickered on.

Watching the static on the screen, Yue Yao felt her vision blur. She rubbed her eyes and let out a yawn. “I’m a bit sleepy. You guys watch; I’m going to take a nap.”

Tong Xiangyu looked at Yue Yao. Didn’t she just sleep this afternoon? Why is she tired again? And she was fine on the way back.

Tong Xiangyu felt it was strange. “Yaoyao…”

Before she could ask, Song Ge interrupted. “Yue Yao, I still have something of mine with you.”

Yue Yao turned to look at Song Ge, confused. Do you?

But as Song Ge spoke, she had already strode over and put an arm around Yue Yao’s shoulder. It looked like a casual embrace, but she was helping stabilize Yue Yao’s balance. Yue Yao was swaying, looking as if she might fall asleep at any second. Song Ge said, “I’ll grab it now.”

Seeing Song Ge holding Yue Yao like that, Tong Xiangyu couldn’t help but purse her lips. She took the remote and flicked through the channels—all static.

As Song Ge led Yue Yao into the small room, Tong Xiangyu called out, “Song Ge, the TV is useless!”

Song Ge: “If it’s useless, we won’t watch.”

Song Ge helped Yue Yao onto the bed and immediately picked up the girl’s bag. There was a camera in this bedroom, too. Song Ge couldn’t show any suspicion regarding Yue Yao’s condition; if she did, it would startle the snakes. She simply took an item from the bag, put it in her pocket, and said to Yue Yao, “I took it. Go to sleep.”

“Mhm…” Yue Yao didn’t remember Song Ge leaving anything with her, but since Song Ge said she took it, she didn’t question it. She pulled up the blanket, her eyelids feeling heavy as lead, and fell asleep almost instantly.

Song Ge walked out and closed the door, certain in her heart that Yue Yao had been drugged.

Sitting in the living room, Tong Xiangyu looked up at her. “What did you have in Yaoyao’s bag?”

Song Ge didn’t answer. Instead, she asked, “I remember when you were opening those packages, you found a microphone for singing?”

Tong Xiangyu’s eyes flickered away guiltily. “Mhm, but didn’t you tell me not to bring it? So I didn’t…”

“You brought it.”

“No.”

“I won’t yell at you if you tell the truth.”

Tong Xiangyu debated between asking “Did you peek in my bag?” and “Why wouldn’t you yell at me?” She looked at Song Ge. “Why are you asking all of a sudden? Didn’t you say that thing was completely useless?”

“It’s useful,” Song Ge said. “Like you said—songs are a spiritual sustenance for humanity.”

Tong Xiangyu nodded. “They are!”

Song Ge walked over and turned off the TV static. “Sing something,” Song Ge said. “Give me some spiritual sustenance.”

Tong Xiangyu: “…?”

The “K-Song Giant Egg” microphone was feature-rich; it could not only sing but also record. It came with several well-known backing tracks, enough to record a performance and play it back for self-appreciation.

Song Ge had originally wanted to use the TV audio to mask their conversation, but since the TV was useless, she would use this.

Tong Xiangyu was hesitant when she took the microphone out of her bag. Seeing that Song Ge didn’t look angry, she scrolled through the recorded songs and picked one she was satisfied with to play.

Song Ge took the microphone and turned the volume to the maximum.

Tong Xiangyu was slightly stunned.

Song Ge sat on the bed, looking down as if studying the microphone. She suddenly said, “Do you think I’m overthinking? That there’s actually nothing wrong here?”

Tong Xiangyu was about to look up at her in surprise.

Song Ge cut her off. “Don’t look up.”

Tong Xiangyu immediately understood why Song Ge wanted the music at full volume.

Song Ge said, “Tell me the truth.”

Tong Xiangyu was silent for a moment, then spoke softly and seriously. “Yes. Because even if there are cameras here, they weren’t just installed for us—they’re in every unit. This might just be a protective measure Zeus and the others have for everyone. It’s a sign of responsibility. After all, the virus could break out from the inside; having surveillance makes it safer. As for the mark behind Sister Nana’s ear—even if it is a hickey and not a bug bite, what does that prove?”

Song Ge didn’t speak.

Seeing this, Tong Xiangyu continued in a low voice, “Song Ge, it’s good to be alert, but you can’t always think of things in the worst way. Look at tonight—so many people eating together, the elderly and children, everyone happy and harmonious. They get along so well with Zeus and Nana; how could they be bad people?”

“How could they be bad people?” Song Ge felt like laughing out of anger. “What is your criteria for judging if someone is a bad person?”

Tong Xiangyu thought for a moment. Just as she was about to answer, Song Ge said—

“Do they have to stick a note on their forehead that says ‘I am a bad person’?”

Only then did Tong Xiangyu realize Song Ge was mocking her, not truly asking. She felt a bit piqued!

Song Ge said, “Would people who aren’t bad build an organization and call themselves ‘Leader’ and ‘Deputy Leader’?”

Tong Xiangyu, still sulking, froze at these words.

Song Ge added, “That woman also said ‘The Lord has manifested.’ Manifested what? What kind of ‘Lord’? Is that something a normal person says? Also, every time she talks about how good this place is or how great Zeus is, she prefaces it with a bunch of talk about the state not rescuing us and everyone being abandoned. Is that kind of repetitive brainwashing normal?”

Tong Xiangyu was left speechless by Song Ge’s questions.

“You said there were many elderly and children tonight. But in a base this large, if it’s full of non-productive populations like them, how can it be maintained? Where are the core members of this shelter?”

Tong Xiangyu guessed, “Maybe they’re busy?”

“No, they all came to look at us tonight,” Song Ge said quietly. “During dinner, people kept passing by the side, looking at us in batches. Didn’t you notice?”

Were there?!

Tong Xiangyu hadn’t noticed at all; she had already been struggling just to act normal because of Song Ge’s earlier warnings!

Song Ge: “The only thing is, I don’t know why they took turns looking at us yet.” She frowned. She had been thinking about it the whole way back, but still hadn’t figured it out. “What is certain is that they have no good intentions. It’s not as simple as taking in survivors. If they just wanted to help, they wouldn’t need to send someone to test us.”

At this point, Tong Xiangyu’s reaction was quick. “You mean that little boy?”

Song Ge: “It wasn’t a child. It was likely a man with dwarfism. I realized I can’t remember his specific face because it was always hidden behind his hair. If the conditions here are so good, he shouldn’t look like a wandering beggar—unless it was for a disguise.”

Tong Xiangyu tried to recall and found she couldn’t remember the child’s face either. The realization made her skin crawl!

Song Ge said, “The clues are still scattered. We can only stay alert, cooperate with them, and not startle the snakes.”

Song Ge was certain that if they had insisted on leaving tomorrow, they would already be locked up.

Knowing now that there really was a problem, Tong Xiangyu asked with a heavy heart, “Then what about Yaoyao? She suddenly said she wanted to sleep. Is she unwell?”

“Mhm,” Song Ge said. “She must have been drugged. When I helped her in, she couldn’t even stand straight. She fell asleep the moment she hit the bed.”

Tong Xiangyu gasped. “Was it the meat porridge and the buns?!”

Song Ge: “Possibly. What else did she eat tonight?”

“I didn’t notice…” Tong Xiangyu had been tense the whole evening; she didn’t even remember what she had eaten, let alone Yue Yao. “But if Yaoyao ate drugged food, wouldn’t her body have felt the effects sooner?”

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