The Abused Novel Heroine Became a Clingy Sweetheart [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 71

Since the apocalypse began, the phrase Ji Zhou heard most often was the one Duan Fu said: “Why are you so useless.”

Although Shen Jiahang never said it directly, he always told her to try to be obedient and avoid causing trouble.

Ji Zhou gradually came to know and accept her own incompetence.

In this drifting era, she was like a piece of willow fluff drifting in the wind.

She only knew to be pushed forward, but didn’t know why she was walking.

When she was protected by Shen Jiahang, Ji Zhou thought that perhaps her meaning was to repay Shen Jiahang’s kindness with her life in the event of some real danger later on.

Someone like her could probably only let others see a faint spark of light emanating from her in that final moment of fearlessness before death.

But now, another person was telling her.

That she was very important.

That she… was not useless at all.

Every word and sentence was like a turbulent wave, crashing and rolling against the bedrock of her heart.

Ji Zhou unconsciously clenched her fists. She parted her lips, wanting to say something, yet not knowing what to say.

You Ting took her hand again, calmly leading her past the man rolling on the floor.

It wasn’t until they had walked a distance that Ji Zhou withdrew from that dreamlike state.

She turned her head, slightly craning her neck to look at You Ting: “Sister Ting.”

You Ting looked down at her.

The little girl’s eyes were filled with floating uncertainty. After a while, as if confirming something, she asked: “Can I really… do it?”

You Ting said: “As long as you want to, you can definitely do it.”

Ji Zhou was silent for a moment, then slowly curved her lips, two shallow dimples forming on her cheeks.

Her eyes seemed to hold starlight, and she softly said: “I believe in Sister Ting.”

You Ting smiled slightly.

She reached out her other hand and tucked the stray hair from Ji Zhou’s forehead behind her ear.

“No,” You Ting gazed at her, “Believe in yourself.”

Those inky pupils were deep, like they hid a boundless and vast universe, making people involuntarily drawn and mesmerized.

Ji Zhou gently watched their joined hands. She curled the corner of her mouth and nodded in response: “Okay.”

She wanted to become stronger so that she could protect herself in this chaotic world.

And the person she cherished.

“Sister Ting, where are we going now?” Ji Zhou asked.

“To find Ji Man.”

You Ting said: “I bet he’ll burst into tears when he sees us.”

Ji Zhou couldn’t help but bend her eyes, then asked in surprise: “But I don’t know where Brother Ji Man was taken, how can we find him?”

“It’s alright,” You Ting said, “I know.”

She opened her palm. A breeze blew, and a light white current wrapped around the man slumped on the ground, retrieving a card made of special material.

The man struggled to move his fingers, seemingly trying to stop it.

But You Ting merely glanced over, and the man’s body was fixed in place, unable to move.

Let alone action, even the strength to speak seemed to be extinguished.

Since waking up from this coma, You Ting’s power seemed to be getting stronger and stronger.

“What is this?” Ji Zhou asked curiously.

You Ting held the card between her fingers and gestured with her chin towards one direction: “The key to open the door over there.”

At the end of the corridor was a heavy white door.

It was tightly closed, completely sealed, with no space for peeking.

There were no guards in front of the door, as it used the base’s most rigorous security measures.

It could only be opened with a card containing a special chip.

And not many people in the base possessed such a card.

You Ting led Ji Zhou to the large door. The card was placed against the door’s identification system.

The next second, a mechanical voice sounded: “Identification successful, please enter.”

The door slowly rumbled open to both sides. After the two entered, it slowly closed again.

…

…

The spacious room had no lights, only a small window cut into the wall, letting in a little light.

The dim visibility easily made people feel irritated, but Ji Man had grown used to this life.

He lay on the bed, his arm covering his eyes, sinking his vision into complete darkness.

It was quiet all around, with only the sounds he himself made audible.

Accompanying Ji Man’s movements, the chains on his wrists and ankles would make a light clanging sound.

This was the Ji family’s punishment for his unauthorized escape.

After several days, Ji Man had become significantly thinner, his complexion a pale white.

Since he returned, confined to this small room, the frequency with which the Ji family sent people to draw blood had increased.

Several times a day, Ji Man could see a hidden anxiety and unease on their expressionless faces.

They seemed to be rushing because of something, desperately needing to find a solution from his blood.

Although he didn’t know what it was, sometimes looking at the Ji family like this, Ji Man felt a strange sense of joy in his heart.

As if only this could prove… that the Ji family needed him.

That they valued him.

When no one came to disturb him, Ji Man mostly lay on the bed motionless, like a silent statue.

His thoughts drifted, and he couldn’t help but recall many things.

He repeatedly replayed the memories from after he sneaked out of the base in his mind.

That was the only remaining pleasure for Ji Man.

Thinking of You Ting and Ji Zhou, he mumbled softly: “I wonder how those two are doing now. Without my young master’s care, they won’t be bullied, will they?”

When he was locked up, You Ting hadn’t woken up yet.

Outside, there was only the little girl Ji Zhou, and the situation was unclear.

Ji Man negotiated terms with Third Uncle Ji. If he stayed here obediently, the base would accommodate the two girls and give them the best treatment.

It was hard to distinguish truth from falsehood, but in that situation, Ji Man could only choose to believe Third Uncle Ji.

He also couldn’t help but think of what You Ting had once said to him, and he lowered his mouth, laughing at himself mockingly.

“She even said she wouldn’t let me be a caged bird again, well, look now, I can’t even protect myself…”

Before he could finish his muttering complaint, Ji Man suddenly heard footsteps outside the door.

Someone was trying to open his room door.

Ji Man’s brow furrowed into a deep crease. He called out impatiently: “You’ve been here three times today already, and you’re coming again? Even a blood-making machine needs a break!”

The door was pushed open, and light poured into the room, dispelling the darkness.

Two shadows fell onto the floor, stretched into two long strips.

You Ting leaned against the door frame, raising an eyebrow slightly: “What, you don’t want to see us?”

The long-unheard familiar voice fell into his ears, and Ji Man’s whole body instantly stiffened.

Like a spring, he suddenly bounced up from the bed.

He widened his eyes in disbelief, “…Sister?”

His voice was trembling.

The two stood backlit in the doorway, the light outlining familiar contours of their figures.

Ji Man murmured to himself: “I haven’t been locked up so long that I’m hallucinating, have I?”

Ji Zhou couldn’t help but chuckle softly. She called out: “Brother Ji Man, it’s not a hallucination, it’s real. Sister Ting and I came to find you.”

You Ting said: “If you don’t want to come out, I’m closing the door.”

“Don’t!” Ji Man whimpered and was about to run toward the door.

He stopped suddenly after running a few steps.

The restraints on his hands and feet shackled his freedom, the chains clanging.

He looked pitifully at You Ting: “Sister, I can’t get out.”

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