Lin and Thomas walked in with their flashlights, one in front of the other. The air raid shelter seemed to be quite deep; after walking about twenty or thirty meters, they unexpectedly encountered a turn. On the right wall, there was a sign nailed up with wooden boards, painted in red with the words "Important Facility, Please Do Not Enter." The paint was chipped, indicating it had been there for many years.
"Uh? Lin Ge, we won't have discovered some underground nuclear facility, will we? Or some secret base?" Thomas Xu took a couple of steps forward, stretching his neck to peek inside. His voice echoed long in the tunnel, sounding quite strange, and there were some vague slogans from the Great Leap Forward period on the walls, easily evoking thoughts of some secret products from the war period.
Jack smiled faintly, completely ignoring the cold joke made by Thomas Xu. The two walked forward for about ten meters, and immediately in front of them appeared a large iron gate, rusty and covered in spots, with a wooden sign still reading "Collective Property, Stealing Means Jail!"
Thomas Xu first excitedly shone his flashlight into the iron gate, but as soon as he saw what was inside, he immediately scoffed loudly, saying, "Damn, I thought it was something special, but it's just mushrooms! Why make it so mysterious? Who would steal this junk!"
But it was indeed mushrooms, because behind that rusty iron gate were neatly arranged small burlap sacks, each filled with dirt, and in the dirt were countless dried mushrooms that had long since withered, all leaning at odd angles on top. It seemed that this air raid shelter had long been repurposed into a mushroom production base.
"Old Gao just said he was worried about not having enough food. With so many dried mushrooms, we could eat well for several months!" Jack smiled with satisfaction, but when he glanced at Thomas Xu beside him, he found him looking completely dejected.
"The thing I hate eating the most is mushrooms. They have such a weird taste. If I have to eat this every day, I'd rather starve!" Thomas Xu immediately frowned, reaching out to pull open the large iron gate, only to find it was firmly locked with a sturdy black padlock.
"Why is it locked again? Am I just having bad luck lately? Why is every door I encounter locked?" Thomas Xu angrily kicked the iron gate, which emitted a loud "buzz" sound. Not only did it not budge, but it also left Thomas Xu covered in dust.
"Don't be so rash!" Jack patted Thomas Xu on the shoulder, signaling him to step aside. He then slowly shone the flashlight behind Thomas Xu, revealing two skeletons that had collapsed in the corner. The bones were relatively intact but covered in a thick layer of dust, not looking like they had been bitten to death by a living corpse.
Jack bent down and rummaged through the two skeletons, quickly finding a small bunch of keys in the pocket of one of the skeletons. He tossed them to Thomas Xu and said, "Give it a try!"
"Click~"
It wasn't until Thomas Xu tried the last key that the iron gate finally opened, which led to another round of angry curses from Thomas Xu, who shouted that he was having the worst luck. He charged straight into the pile of mushrooms, stomping on them several times to vent his frustration.
When the others gradually entered this mushroom base, they did not feel much excitement. All of them were extremely tired and leaned against the wall to rest. Before long, several of them began to snore softly, clearly having fallen asleep from exhaustion.
Thomas Xu, who had almost exhausted the mushrooms, finally did something good. He discovered an antique kerosene lamp on a Thomas wooden table at the back. With a gentle flick of a lighter, the wick ignited, and the lamp emitted a smoky Marcus glow, illuminating the nearly pitch-black air raid shelter with a dim light.
"Honey, are you tired? Hurry up and eat something!" Bai Ru, leaning against Jack, looked at the fatigue on his face with concern. She didn't know that the pain was caused by the corpse poison in Jack's arm; she thought he was just extremely tired, so she quickly took out a piece of food from her waist pouch and carefully handed him a bottle of mineral water.
"I'm not hungry; you should keep it for yourself. I'll just have some water!" Jack shook his head with a smile, only taking the mineral water from Bai Ru's hand, twisting the cap off and taking a sip.
"Sister Ru, do you have any food left?" At this moment, Thomas Xu walked over and squatted beside Bai Ru, softly saying, "I didn't bring any food up, just water. I wanted to ask for some for my sister-in-law!"
"Then give this to Lu Jia. She's pregnant and needs to eat more high-calorie food!" Bai Ru generously handed him the piece of food and teasingly asked, "Did you do something to upset your sister-in-law? She seems to not want to talk to you at all!"
"No, not at all!" Thomas Xu forced a stiff smile but didn't dare to explain too much. He took the food and hurried over to Lu Jia, who was leaning against the wall.
"Sister-in-law, come eat something!" Thomas Xu slowly walked to Lu Jia's side. Lu Jia was lowering her head, talking to Wei Lianfang in a secluded corner. When Wei Lianfang saw Thomas Xu approaching, she immediately took the hint and walked away. Lu Jia glanced at Thomas Xu with a complex expression, hesitated for a moment, but still lowered her head and softly said, "You should sit down and rest for a while too!"
"Oh!" Seeing Lu Jia's concern for him, Thomas Xu happily nodded and sat down beside her. He eagerly peeled half of the food and handed it to Lu Jia, smiling as he said, "Sister-in-law, you should eat quickly. Once you finish, the baby can grow up healthy and chubby!"
Lu Jia took the food in her hand and delicately took a small bite. After chewing for a while, she looked at the smiling Thomas Xu beside her, then focused her gaze on the food in her hand, and asked in a very plain tone, "A Xu… do you think I'm a promiscuous woman?"
"What? Sister-in-law, you…" Thomas Xu's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly said, "Sister-in-law, why would you say that about yourself? You're not promiscuous at all! In my eyes, you are the most perfect goddess; no woman can compare to you!"
"A goddess?" Lu Jia scoffed with a laugh, shook her head, and sighed deeply. She held her legs with both hands, burying her head deep into her knees, and said in a muffled voice, "But why do I feel like a slut? Last night, you didn't force me at first, and I actually just struggled a bit before giving in. If it weren't for the fact that the baby kicked me in the tent, we would have… we would have… what else could this be but being a slut? Even the baby in my belly looks down on me!"
"Please, sister-in-law, don't say that! It's all my fault, I'm the bastard, I'm the beast! But no matter what, you shouldn't blame yourself; doing so will scare me!" Thomas Xu looked anxiously at Lu Jia's thin back. He wanted to reach out and comfort her, but was afraid she would misunderstand. He irritably tugged at his hair, messing it up like a bird's nest in just a few moments.
"But if I hadn't reacted at first, you wouldn't have dragged me along, would you?" Lu Jia suddenly straightened up. When she raised her head, her pale face was already streaked with tears. She looked directly at Thomas Xu and said sadly, "I always thought I was a loyal woman, believing that even if Gao Hai died, I could remain faithful to him for a lifetime. But I realized I was wrong, really wrong. I easily succumbed to your provocation, and with a good man like Gao Hai, a shameless woman like me shouldn't even exist in this world!"
"No, sister-in-law, you're not wrong; it's all my fault. I was really wrong. You can hit me or scold me, but please don't blame yourself like this!" Thomas Xu looked at Lu Jia with pleading eyes, tears glistening in his own.
"Why… why… why do you have to treat me like this?" Lu Jia suddenly went mad and started to hit Thomas Xu. She was indeed using her strength; even Thomas Xu's sturdy body was making a "thud" sound from her blows. Finally, in a fit of hysteria, Lu Jia slapped Thomas Xu's face. After doing so, she was stunned, staring blankly at her own hand, and then burst into tears, hugging her knees and crying out, "With so many women, why did you have to provoke me? You know I'm a disloyal slut, don't you?"
"Sister-in-law…" Thomas Xu looked at Lu Jia's trembling body. He didn't touch his stinging face but gently wrapped his arms around her back, softly patting her, and said slowly, "Sister-in-law, don't cry; it's not good for the baby! If you think about it calmly, you'll realize that we didn't really do anything wrong that day. I had quite a bit to drink, and you did too. If there's any fault, it's just that the alcohol brought out our true natures. You're human, not a wooden doll; everyone has needs, and you're no exception. Besides, didn't you notice that you were just dazed by my kiss? Once you came to your senses, didn't you immediately reject me? So, some physical instincts don't mean anything; they're just part of our nature given by heaven. As long as we learn to restrain ourselves, it's fine! And sister-in-law… it seems we didn't really do anything shameful, right? I think you're wronging me and yourself!"
"Sigh~" After a long silence, Lu Jia seemed to calm down a lot. She sighed softly, slowly straightened her head, and stared blankly at the wall opposite her, saying, "I actually understand what you're saying, and I've even thought about it. But Gao Hai's death really affected me deeply. If it weren't for the child, I wouldn't have had the courage to live on. Yet, just before Gao Hai's seventh day, I almost made a huge mistake with you, so… this has become a knot in my heart!"
"Having a knot in your heart isn't scary; the key is being able to untie it!" Thomas Xu patted Lu Jia's back, took his hand away, picked up the leg piece that Lu Jia had knocked to the ground, bent down to grab a half bottle of mineral water, carefully rinsed off the dust, and after shaking off the water droplets, smiled at Lu Jia and asked, "Sister-in-law, do you want to eat some more?"
Lu Jia turned her head and didn't look at the leg piece but instead looked apologetically at Thomas Xu's red cheeks. She slowly reached out her hand and gently stroked it, full of concern, saying, "Did I hurt you? I'm sorry; I shouldn't have gone crazy!"
"It's okay, it doesn't hurt at all. Sister-in-law, even if you slap me a few more times, I'll be fine!" Thomas Xu smiled nonchalantly, looking very happy.
"Axu, could you... could you accompany me to the front for a moment?" Lu Jia suddenly fidgeted and pointed to the dark tunnel outside. Then, seeing Thomas Xu's confused expression, she blushed and whispered, "I... I need to go to the bathroom, but I'm afraid of the dark!"
"Oh, oh, oh, okay, okay!" Thomas Xu immediately nodded like a woodpecker, took out his flashlight, and helped Lu Jia, who was sitting on the ground, to her feet.
"You can turn off the flashlight, but…"
Walking alongside Thomas Xu in the tunnel for about twenty meters, Lu Jia stopped next to a recessed wall, pointed to the path they had come from, and said shyly, "Could you stand over there and smoke? If I can see your cigarette butt, I won't be scared!"
"Perfect, I want to smoke one too!" Thomas Xu nodded with a smile. To ease Lu Jia's fear, he handed her the flashlight again and said while walking back, "I'll stand here with my back to you; you don't have to be afraid with me around!"
"Hmm!" Lu Jia nodded with a flushed face, took a few steps back, lifted her skirt, and slowly squatted down.
With his back to Lu Jia, Thomas Xu leaned against the wall and casually smoked, but his mind was in turmoil. The once flavorful Zhonghua cigarettes now seemed dull and tasteless, and they even felt a bit bitter in his mouth.
He didn't know why. Logically speaking, Lu Jia was just the widow of a good man; even if he had entrusted her to him before dying, there was no need for him to care for her as if she were family. Even with his own sister-in-law, ensuring she was well-fed and clothed would suffice as a younger brother's responsibility. Yet, he found himself treating Lu Jia in a way that felt somewhat inappropriate, which was not how one should behave towards a man's wife!
Could it be that he had developed feelings for Lu Jia? The thought made Thomas Xu's scalp tingle, and he immediately slapped himself hard, cursing himself as a big fool, trying to extinguish the thought that had just arisen.
"Ah Xu, what's wrong with you?" Lu Jia's puzzled voice came from behind.
"Oh, um… it seems there are mosquitoes in this cave!" Thomas Xu quickly made up an excuse.
"Oh! A-Xu... could you turn a bit? I can't see your cigarette butt, and I'm a little scared!" Lu Jia's timid voice rang out again.
"Sure!" Thomas Xu turned without hesitation, taking deep puffs of his cigarette. Soon, the previously silent Lu Jia let out a sound like a babbling brook, and Thomas Xu's heart tightened. A strange feeling crept up on him, and his uncontrollable heart began to race rapidly, thumping loudly.
Lu Jia must have been holding it in for a while; the babbling sound continued for more than half a minute before it finally ceased. Thomas Xu's heart had been racing anxiously for that entire time. After the disorienting sound faded, there was another rustling noise. Lu Jia, finally turning on her flashlight, walked over from Thomas Xu's side. She probably realized that he had heard the embarrassing sound, and with her blushing face lowered, she hummed to Thomas Xu, "Let's go!"
"Sister-in-law, put this on. You look like you're cold!" Thomas Xu took the flashlight but noticed that Lu Jia's arms were covered in tiny goosebumps. He didn't know if it was due to the tension and shyness or if she was actually cold, so he quickly took off his long-sleeved shirt and draped it over her. He himself was fine wearing just a black tank top.
"Thank you!" Lu Jia shyly hummed again but didn't explain that she wasn't cold. However, feeling the residual warmth of Thomas Xu's body on the shirt, a strange tingling sensation quietly crept into her heart.