The Art of Playing Innocent - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Pei Ruoling had majored in interior design in college. She had excellent talent, and after four years of study and taking on various projects, she was now quite well-known in the industry.

This time, she called an agent. Usually, she would slowly find buyers for her drafts to get a good price, but now she had to sell them off quickly to get the money as soon as possible.

After giving a few simple instructions, Pei Ruoling sent the design drafts via email. In less than three minutes, a transfer notification appeared on her phone.

She had a lot of design drafts stockpiled, and now she had given all of them to the agent. Given her reputation, the agent paid very readily and even looked forward to their next collaboration.

Pei Ruoling followed Zuo Xun to the cafeteria and had a feast. In her past life, she had rarely eaten such fresh and delicious food, so she couldn’t help but eat a lot.

Zuo Xun didn’t understand her ravenous eating style and asked, “Ruoling, who were you on the phone with just now? Why did you sell off all your drafts at once?”

Only then did Pei Ruoling remember that she hadn’t told her friend about this. As they walked out of the cafeteria, she thought for a moment before speaking.

“A-Xun, I have to do something important recently. You have to believe that I have a good reason for doing this.”

Zuo Xun looked at her in confusion and gripped the roasted sweet potato in her hand tightly. “Ruoling, are you crazy? What are you up to? You even dare to skip Professor Wang’s class. Don’t tell me you’re in a relationship?”

Pei Ruoling pushed her hand away from her forehead. “No. Not just me, you have to come with me. Let’s go look at cars today.”

Zuo Xun followed Pei Ruoling with a confused look, murmuring, “I knew a blockhead like you wouldn’t be in a relationship. What, wait? What did you say? We’re going to look at cars?? You crazy girl, when did you get so rich? I don’t even have a driver’s license yet!”

Pei Ruoling and Zuo Xun ate their roasted sweet potatoes on the way to the car dealership. Her idea wasn’t to buy a car but to rent one directly.

The best choice would be an SUV, which had good performance and a large capacity. It only needed to fit the two of them.

Renting a car was a common thing. As long as you had a driver’s license and money, everything was easy.

Pei Ruoling drove the car directly to a 4S shop for modifications. After reinforcing the body, she had the windows tinted black so that people couldn’t see what was inside.

These two days should be just enough time. Next, it was time for a major shopping trip.

Zuo Xun ran around with Pei Ruoling, and she couldn’t even finish her warm sweet potato.

As the streetlights came on, the two of them finally had some downtime. They carried large bags of groceries and climbed the stairs tiredly.

After moving the last bag into the dorm, Zuo Xun collapsed on her bed. “You’re crazy, and I’m crazy too.”

Pei Ruoling smiled and touched her thermos with a sense of nostalgia. Zuo Xun had bought it for her. At the time, she was in such a hurry that she barely took anything with her.

Seeing her being silent, Zuo Xun sat up to see what Pei Ruoling was doing and saw her sitting attentively by the bed, a cold look on her face.

She felt that the person in front of her seemed to be different from before, ever since she woke up in the afternoon, but she couldn’t say exactly where the difference was.

“Ruoling, what’s wrong with you? Is there something you can’t tell me?”

Pei Ruoling put her phone in front of Zuo Xun, the screen stopped on an inconspicuous trending topic.

The trending topic had no other content, except that a new type of virus spread through the air and would spread globally in two days.

This virus had a genetic-based attack and could directly alter the human body’s structure. Infected people would first develop a fever, followed by a series of changes.

Zuo Xun broke out in a cold sweat, but the trending topic was quickly taken down, and the blogger who posted it was immediately banned. She had just finished reading the last sentence, which said it was a joke, but the content felt incredibly real.

The comments below were also turned off. Zuo Xun picked up her phone and searched for similar topics, but found nothing in real-time.

She looked up and said lightheartedly, “This must be a joke, but it sounds pretty real.”

Her smile froze halfway because she saw that Pei Ruoling’s face had completely turned cold.

Zuo Xun stammered, “C… could it be real?”

Pei Ruoling nodded solemnly.

Zuo Xun immediately exploded. “So that’s why you sold all your design drafts, skipped class, and stockpiled things?”

Pei Ruoling nodded again, and Zuo Xun, holding her phone, sat down on the bed.

If there was anyone in this world who would unconditionally believe her, it could only be Zuo Xun.

And Zuo Xun was now in the midst of an intense internal struggle. But after a moment, she figured it out. “Okay, you know I never argue with you. But if you want to play this doomsday game, I’ll play along.”

Pei Ruoling smiled. She knew that Zuo Xun didn’t completely believe her yet, but her heart had already started to waver. As soon as these two days passed, she would know that she hadn’t lied.

Today, the two of them finished buying all the fuel, then went on to buy rice, various foods, and daily necessities from the supermarket.

These were all very important things in the future. The amount she had stockpiled was enough for the two of them to eat for a long time. As long as they survived this period, after the walls were built, they could live more comfortably after the doomsday arrived.

Because Pei Ruoling had only been active in the lower class before, she knew nothing about the specific matters of the upper-class people. Her understanding was based on hearsay, so all she could do now was this.

The first place they had to leave was the school. At the beginning of the infection, these densely populated places would become a living hell.

The best way was to go to a rural area, prepare supplies, and protect Zuo Xun and herself.

A clear plan was forming in Pei Ruoling’s mind. The only thing she had to do now was to carry out this plan systematically.

The two of them prepared everything and slept in the dorm. Nothing out of the ordinary happened when they woke up the next day.

Zuo Xun looked at the campus, which was the same as usual, and stared at Pei Ruoling suspiciously for a while, but she didn’t say anything.

The modified car was being rushed and should be ready tonight. To avoid attracting attention, Pei Ruoling found an inconspicuous place to park it. When they went out, they shouldn’t be noticed.

The car was filled with various supplies. The back seats were removed to make room for all the stuff, and it was packed to the brim.

The front seats were for the two of them. The front row, except for the driver’s seat, was also filled with various items. Zuo Xun kept yelling that she was going crazy, and that they would surely be stopped by the traffic police.

Pei Ruoling smiled and stuffed some snacks into her mouth, stopping her from talking.

Professor Wang found that Pei Ruoling and Zuo Xun had not attended class today and called them three times. Zuo Xun was afraid of this strict professor and had no choice but to answer the phone.

She then said to Pei Ruoling with a tearful face, “What should we do? Professor Wang said we’re both going to fail the course!”

Pei Ruoling shrugged indifferently and bought a lot of food with her, preparing for a good meal in the dorm today. From tomorrow on, they probably wouldn’t be able to use an electric cooker. They had to make the most of their last moments of comfort.

Zuo Xun ate the lamb rolls she had bought in between her sobs. She turned around and saw Pei Ruoling pulling out a package and handing it to her.

She even took out a glinting Swiss Army knife from inside. “Wow, Ruoling, are you for real?”

Pei Ruoling glanced at her and said, “From tomorrow on, you have to protect yourself. Go to bed early today.”

Zuo Xun was so intimidated by her gaze that she grabbed the package she was given. When she turned, she saw Pei Ruoling lifting dumbbells.

She comforted herself, As long as I get through today, all this will be over tomorrow. If I just go and beg Professor Wang, I shouldn’t fail the course at the end of the semester.

Pei Ruoling lay on the narrow bed. She didn’t have to think to know what Zuo Xun was thinking.

She savored the smell of laundry detergent on the blanket, because she might never be able to sleep so peacefully again.

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