Just thinking about this made Lan Jin a little upset.
But as she was brooding, the door of the safe passage slowly made a creaking sound. Then light footsteps grew closer and closer until they stopped right outside her door, followed by some rustling noises.
The sound was so familiar that Lan Jin immediately understood what was happening.
That's right. Someone was trying to pick her door lock.
So why was her house always the first target?
Lan Jin impatiently put down her chopsticks. Just as she was about to get up, she noticed Nana already standing guard at the door. Lan Jin smiled knowingly and whispered, "Nana, work time. What do you want to do?"
Nana gave a sharp nod toward her, then started barking loudly through the door as soon as Lan Jin said "call."
Everyone in Building 12 already knew that Lan Jin kept a dog. But maybe because Nana was usually so quiet, without seeing her, people often forgot there was a dog in her home.
At Nana's bark, the people outside were so startled they fell to the ground with a heavy thud. The tools they had been using to pry the door fell scattered around them. Making such a big noise, the people outside worried about alerting Lan Jin. If the dog was let out, there would be no chance of escape.
The person on the ground didn't dare pause for a second. Turning to run, he shouted back loudly with anger, "Damn dog. One day I'll chop you up and braise you."
Nana, who understood humans very well, got even angrier when he heard this. At first, he was only barking through the door to scare them. Now he pushed open the inner door, climbed onto the outside security door, and barked fiercely at the fleeing people again.
His fierce energy felt like she wanted to tear them apart and eat them whole.
The people outside were truly scared out of their minds. It was only a short hallway, but they stumbled several times running away in panic. Their frantic looks were almost comical.
But without Lan Jin's command, Nana wouldn't open the outer door for real. As for the inner door...
At this moment, Lan Jin really felt this dog's courage was something else.
She snapped sharply, "You're pretty bold. I didn't tell you to open the door, and you just did. Do you always open the door and run out when I'm not home?"
That really didn't happen. When Lan Jin wasn't home, both the child and dog were kept inside the space. Not because she feared something happening in the short time she was gone, but because those two could make the house unlivable. Besides the child, the dog's destructive power was also shocking.
Nana looked aggrieved at Lan Jin's words. He gave a small bark and looked at her with eyes full of complaint, as if to say, "It's that braised dog meat talk's fault. It's not my fault."
Lan Jin didn't actually want him to open the door like that. She squatted down and comforted him, "They say braised dog meat, but that only happens if we let it. You're so tough, why don't you trust yourself? Who dares to braise you? If anyone had that courage, we wouldn't be polite. We'd just eat them whole."
After a few comforting words, Nana calmed down and wasn't as angry as before. But the people in unit 3204, who had been listening behind their door, grew fearful. Who said Lan Jin was easy to bully? She had a dog. Who dared to mess with her?
As for Ling Jiang next door, she had already been standing alert by her door since the safe passage door began to open. Watching the whole thing, she couldn't help but laugh, "Don't talk about her. Nana did great. If you ask me, he shouldn't be locked up. He should have been let out earlier to eat those people whole."
Lan Jin said, "Don't think it's fun and cause trouble. It's not like we don't have dog food. Why should she eat those dirty things?"
Ling Jiang was surprised. She thought Lan Jin didn't want Nana to be too fierce, but it turned out she just didn't want the dog to eat dirty stuff. That was interesting. "That talk you just said would have pissed those people off."
"If those people didn't do this, how could they get mad? They ran away already. How could they hear it? If anything happens downstairs, I blame 3204. They are the only ones in this building not on our side."
The woman in 3204 wanted to argue, but the man behind her pulled her back and warned quietly, "Don't cause trouble. Do you want to die?"
When 3204 made no move, Lan Jin happily closed the door and continued eating her dinner.
...
Unit 3204.
The man warned the woman, "Don't cause trouble. The people opposite us don't look easy to mess with."
"I'm not causing trouble. Is it not okay to speak honestly?" the woman thought the man was being unreasonable.
"Don't try that. I know you. If you told others what you said earlier, these people will hold grudges. But think about it. We live on the same floor. If something really happens, those people won't come to help in time. Besides, if there really is something, they won't help us anyway."
The man clearly understood the building's situation. These people were a loose group and would scatter at the slightest wind. No one cared about anyone's life. He wanted to live longer, so he didn't want his woman causing too much trouble.
The woman didn't believe him. "No, you don't know. If all of us work together, even if we just snatch supplies or steal a kayak and go find food, that's a good thing."
The man was not so optimistic. "Didn't you hear the young guy downstairs? These people can really fight. Besides… well, just listen to me. Remember, you live on the same floor as them. Even if the people downstairs want to save you, it'll be too late."
The man got annoyed and refused to explain more.
No matter what the woman asked, the man pretended to be asleep and said nothing.
...
The noise from Lan Jin's side didn't just alarm their floor. Because Nana barked so loudly, several nearby buildings heard the commotion.
It was late at night, so no one was sleeping. After a while, someone shouted from outside, "Whose dog is that? There's still a dog at this hour? Hey, if you're cooking dog meat, can you give me some?"
"My house has electricity. You can come cook it here."
"My house has water and electricity. Come cook at my place. I just want one piece. Really, just one piece."
...
Nana, who had been calmed earlier, lost his temper again when he heard the shouting outside.
He pushed open the screen door, stood on the balcony, and barked loudly. The strength and fierceness of his voice truly dampened the crowd's enthusiasm for eating dog meat.