bookpower Chapter 108: 108 This is Fate
Chapter 108: 108 This is Fate
Chapter 108: Chapter 108 This is Fate
“I do mind.”
Jiang Yan finished speaking, then gave her a look that was both mocking and amused.
Her question made Jiang Yan feel strangely sentimental and somewhat amused, but of course, she couldn’t easily reveal her true emotions.
Wen Wanli’s eyes suddenly reddened, and she bit her lip, which was covered in scabs, as she said anxiously,
“Then, please don’t kill us. They said you have a gun and that you shoot people when you’re upset... We live next door and won’t make you unhappy...”
Jiang Yan: “...” Was she really that terrifying?
...
Moreover, although the other person appeared to be about her age, her speech and behavior were somewhat similar to that of an eight or nine-year-old child who had done something wrong.
Considering the wounds on her body, Jiang Yan couldn’t help but feel a moment of doubt.
But she didn’t want to delve too deeply into a conversation with her and simply said “okay” before continuing to walk downstairs.
Wen Wanli’s lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say something more, but then the sound of a door “creaking” from upstairs interrupted her.
The sound came from, probably, room 3203.
Heavy footsteps approached the fire escape.
A flicker of panic crossed Wen Wanli’s eyes. After nodding to Jiang Yan as a way to say goodbye, she quickly walked upstairs, carrying her things.
As they passed by each other, Jiang Yan casually glanced at the items in her hands.
They were some boxed instant noodles, a children’s book covered in mud, and what seemed like half a pack of the cheapest cigarettes.
On the other side, Wen Wanli had already hurried to the fire escape entrance.
“Yo! Wife, you’re back! Here, let me help you carry that!” It was Wang Jin’s voice.
He sounded gentle and considerate, which seemed unrelated to domestic violence.
There was no response from Wen Wanli.
“Bang!” The door of room 3203 shut heavily.
Jiang Yan frowned slightly and continued walking down.
From the 31st floor onward, people occasionally carried bags of luggage downstairs.
Mostly young people.
But not many in number.
Some elderly also came out to see them off.
Some people recognized Jiang Yan, others did not.
However, everyone’s focus was mostly on the cruise ship arriving soon, so they didn’t pay much attention to her.
The ID verification and boarding window were on the 18th floor. Jiang Yan planned to go to the 20th floor but unexpectedly, the way was blocked at the 21st floor.
Although the ship wouldn’t arrive until noon, people had already lined up early.
Many who hadn’t boarded in the morning hadn’t left. They had stayed there, desperately clinging to their spots.
“I don’t know. I saw Xiao Zhang and his wife waiting downstairs all morning, they said their legs were about to break.”
“Yeah, I went downstairs earlier and heard them say they were holding their pee, afraid to leave in case their spots got taken.”
“Hopefully the ship will come. If it does, we can move into room 2204.”
“Right, right, if we can’t board the ship, all our plans to move into 2204 will be ruined. Maybe we should ask them to let us stay there too?”
“Spit, spit, spit, don’t speak ill, just wait calmly and see.”
The people in the hallway were those not going to the official base.
However, everyone was quite interested in whether the cruise ship would arrive.
On one hand, if the ship came, some people in the houses would go to the base, and they could legitimately move in.
On another hand, if the ship came, it would also signify that the official promises were reliable or the authorities were capable.
Put simply, the ship’s arrival, despite the heavy rain, meant that the officials hadn’t abandoned them, standing firm like a stabilizing sea anchor.
In a word, it was a manifestation of confidence.
But now, the ship hasn’t arrived.
Some people were obviously beginning to panic inside.
“I’m waiting for the ship, she doesn’t understand...” someone began to sing.
“Look, we’re better off just eating, sleeping, and singing as we please. Those people downstairs, they’re just starving as they wait for a deity!”
“That’s true, it’s quite possible that some people in the corridors, if the ship doesn’t arrive, might come back to find their spots gone, haha!”
The crowd also had its share of schadenfreude.
“...”
Jiang Yan crossed her arms and stood at the window for a long time.
She had a bad premonition: the ship, most likely, was not going to come.
*
An hour passed.
The ship still hadn’t arrived.
The hope and confidence that everyone had managed to muster early this morning rapidly sank.
Notable unrest could be heard coming from downstairs.
“Maybe we should head to the base ourselves!”
“With this heavy rain, the road is barely visible, how would we get there?”
“Yeah, it’s like launching a rubber boat into the ocean. If anything goes wrong in the middle, the boat is done!”
“Damn! If only we had stayed near the Twin Towers!”
“Yeah, those people there, they are lucky!”
“Life seldom gives foresight, such is fate!”