CHAPTER 2.1: JI CHUANCHENG
The glaring rays of sunlight ruthlessly shone down upon the earth, and due to the high temperature, the asphalt road became loose and viscous, seeming as though it was a pool of black water that was poured onto the smooth ground. Since the sudden change on that day, the entire B City no longer possessed their former prosperity.
No one dared to go out, in case they became exposed to the so-called abnormal sunlight, therefore the entire street was unimaginably tranquil and serene. There was only the cool breeze passing through the skyscrapers, causing the mess of rubbish on the ground to fly about in disarray.
Jing Xia drove the car, as they travelled along a main road. Since it had not been cleaned for many days, the surface of the road had accumulated a thick layer of dust, and when each car passed by, a cloud of dust would rise up behind them. There were many broken branches, poles, chairs and wooden sticks that seemed as though they were the remains of a pilfering, along with all kinds of strange and disorderly things randomly discarded on the road. There were even a few places on the road that had exhibited traces of suspicious red marks that seemed faintly like dried blood.
"Young Master... it had actually became like this outside?!" Steward Wang who was sitting in the passenger seat exclaimed with amazement: "H-h-how ... how could it become this chaotic? The supermarket that we just passed seemed to have been..."
"For the sake of food.” Jing Xia’s eyes expressionlessly gazed towards the front, driving the car eastwards. The morning sun slowly rose up in front of the windshield, its dazzling rays of light causing him to squint his eyes, saying: "Grandpa Wang, how long had it been since the higher-ups ordered that no one must go out?"
"Probably... around four weeks."
Seeming as though he completely did not care about the flashing traffic lights at the intersection, Jing Xia twisted the steering wheel to make a turn, and continued to say: "During this kind of summer, the shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables is not long, so now everyone's main food source is preservable food. Moreover, since most of the electromagnetic waves have disappeared, the water and power supplies have been completely cut off. Then tell me, in order to remain indoors to avoid the sunlight, while also obtaining resources, what should they eat?"
Steward Wang was shocked by his words. Although he was nearly sixty years old, since he had been working in the Jing Family for so many years, then he definitely would not be a muddle-headed old man. However, after pondering for a long while, this vigorous old man replied: "It is better to have ready-to-eat products. As for the water source, I am afraid we can probably only drink pure water right?"
Jing Xia nodded: "Yes. Therefore, at the beginning of this change, the government will definitely not say that this anomaly is excessively serious nor that it will last a long time in order to placate the people. Thus, the ordinary people will at most, have started to hoard a portion of food, but to have close to nearly a month’s worth of food supplies for a family of three… I am afraid that only a few people would have such a plan."
After listening to this, Steward Wang nodded : "That’s right."
“So... now Grandpa Wang, you should understand."
Just as he finished saying this sentence, Steward Wang immediately understood. He silently bowed his head and stopped talking. He had previously experienced the vicissitudes of life with the late Elder Jing so he naturally understood Jing Xia’s words’ meanings. The streets have been chaotic, seeming as though it had just experienced a battle. Perhaps, a brutal battle had really occurred recently.
However, he had never thought that the young master could analyze these matters with such calmness.
Despite being only twenty-four years old and having only just entered the company, the young master did not look like the arrogant and brash youth from the past. Instead, he seemed like he had matured overnight, being able to systematically analyze the incident and was no longer impulsive over trivialities.
He remembered that just yesterday, the young master had angrily threw a can out of the window and vowed never to touch these canned foods again. In the end, what had changed him... and when all is said and done...
"What?" feeling the stare of Steward Wang, Jing Xia turned to look over. With a slight smile on his lips, Jing Xia said: "Going to the Ji Residence is really quite far, but fortunately Ji Chuancheng is not in the military compound, so it is still closer. If you are tired, Grandpa Wang, you can first rest for a while."
Wang Guanjia nodded, and then he urged him again before going to sleep.
Jing Xia looked as though he did not care in the slightest, keeping his gaze towards the front like before and seeming as though he was driving attentively. However, his peripheral vision quietly rested on the old man by his side, and only when he discovered that the other's breathing had steadied, did he then move away his line of sight. Faintly wrinkling his brows, Jing Xia sighed in his heart: his current transformation was probably very different from the previous him, however, he did not have the time nor energy to disguise himself.
In this period, when he did not know when there will be another person dead from the sickness, he must use every minute and every second available to find Ji Chuancheng. To tell him about everything that will occur in the future, to tell him about the man who will become leader of mankind after a few successive beast tides in the future. As for Grandpa Wang... his age is already old, even if he knows this, he can only add to the worries and cannot come up with solutions.
Therefore, the most urgent task now is to —--
Find Ji Chuancheng.
The silver car was lightning fast as it drove down the street without a single soul in sight, the constant moving car became the only life on that deathly still road, incessantly moving. Seeing this, the person secretly hiding behind the thick curtains in their own house, watching the car sweeping past his front door, would only say this sentence—--
Looking for death.
That's right. At this moment when everyone believes that sunlight is the most dreadful weapon, Jing Xia’s current move undoubtedly seemed as though he was looking for death.
However, they did not find that—--
Many strange changes had occurred to the green verge on both sides of the road over the course of one month. There seemed to be no pattern to this change. Some vegetation remained lush and green, while some potted flowers had withered and became yellow. This scene was extremely strange, so that even in the same cluster of flowers, there is a section which is becoming more prosperous, a section which is declining, along with a section that is normal without any change.
Life was changing silently.
No one dared to go out, in case they became exposed to the so-called abnormal sunlight, therefore the entire street was unimaginably tranquil and serene. There was only the cool breeze passing through the skyscrapers, causing the mess of rubbish on the ground to fly about in disarray.
Jing Xia drove the car, as they travelled along a main road. Since it had not been cleaned for many days, the surface of the road had accumulated a thick layer of dust, and when each car passed by, a cloud of dust would rise up behind them. There were many broken branches, poles, chairs and wooden sticks that seemed as though they were the remains of a pilfering, along with all kinds of strange and disorderly things randomly discarded on the road. There were even a few places on the road that had exhibited traces of suspicious red marks that seemed faintly like dried blood.
"Young Master... it had actually became like this outside?!" Steward Wang who was sitting in the passenger seat exclaimed with amazement: "H-h-how ... how could it become this chaotic? The supermarket that we just passed seemed to have been..."
"For the sake of food.” Jing Xia’s eyes expressionlessly gazed towards the front, driving the car eastwards. The morning sun slowly rose up in front of the windshield, its dazzling rays of light causing him to squint his eyes, saying: "Grandpa Wang, how long had it been since the higher-ups ordered that no one must go out?"
"Probably... around four weeks."
Seeming as though he completely did not care about the flashing traffic lights at the intersection, Jing Xia twisted the steering wheel to make a turn, and continued to say: "During this kind of summer, the shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables is not long, so now everyone's main food source is preservable food. Moreover, since most of the electromagnetic waves have disappeared, the water and power supplies have been completely cut off. Then tell me, in order to remain indoors to avoid the sunlight, while also obtaining resources, what should they eat?"
Steward Wang was shocked by his words. Although he was nearly sixty years old, since he had been working in the Jing Family for so many years, then he definitely would not be a muddle-headed old man. However, after pondering for a long while, this vigorous old man replied: "It is better to have ready-to-eat products. As for the water source, I am afraid we can probably only drink pure water right?"
Jing Xia nodded: "Yes. Therefore, at the beginning of this change, the government will definitely not say that this anomaly is excessively serious nor that it will last a long time in order to placate the people. Thus, the ordinary people will at most, have started to hoard a portion of food, but to have close to nearly a month’s worth of food supplies for a family of three… I am afraid that only a few people would have such a plan."
After listening to this, Steward Wang nodded : "That’s right."
“So... now Grandpa Wang, you should understand."
Just as he finished saying this sentence, Steward Wang immediately understood. He silently bowed his head and stopped talking. He had previously experienced the vicissitudes of life with the late Elder Jing so he naturally understood Jing Xia’s words’ meanings. The streets have been chaotic, seeming as though it had just experienced a battle. Perhaps, a brutal battle had really occurred recently.
However, he had never thought that the young master could analyze these matters with such calmness.
Despite being only twenty-four years old and having only just entered the company, the young master did not look like the arrogant and brash youth from the past. Instead, he seemed like he had matured overnight, being able to systematically analyze the incident and was no longer impulsive over trivialities.
He remembered that just yesterday, the young master had angrily threw a can out of the window and vowed never to touch these canned foods again. In the end, what had changed him... and when all is said and done...
"What?" feeling the stare of Steward Wang, Jing Xia turned to look over. With a slight smile on his lips, Jing Xia said: "Going to the Ji Residence is really quite far, but fortunately Ji Chuancheng is not in the military compound, so it is still closer. If you are tired, Grandpa Wang, you can first rest for a while."
Wang Guanjia nodded, and then he urged him again before going to sleep.
Jing Xia looked as though he did not care in the slightest, keeping his gaze towards the front like before and seeming as though he was driving attentively. However, his peripheral vision quietly rested on the old man by his side, and only when he discovered that the other's breathing had steadied, did he then move away his line of sight. Faintly wrinkling his brows, Jing Xia sighed in his heart: his current transformation was probably very different from the previous him, however, he did not have the time nor energy to disguise himself.
In this period, when he did not know when there will be another person dead from the sickness, he must use every minute and every second available to find Ji Chuancheng. To tell him about everything that will occur in the future, to tell him about the man who will become leader of mankind after a few successive beast tides in the future. As for Grandpa Wang... his age is already old, even if he knows this, he can only add to the worries and cannot come up with solutions.
Therefore, the most urgent task now is to —--
Find Ji Chuancheng.
The silver car was lightning fast as it drove down the street without a single soul in sight, the constant moving car became the only life on that deathly still road, incessantly moving. Seeing this, the person secretly hiding behind the thick curtains in their own house, watching the car sweeping past his front door, would only say this sentence—--
Looking for death.
That's right. At this moment when everyone believes that sunlight is the most dreadful weapon, Jing Xia’s current move undoubtedly seemed as though he was looking for death.
However, they did not find that—--
Many strange changes had occurred to the green verge on both sides of the road over the course of one month. There seemed to be no pattern to this change. Some vegetation remained lush and green, while some potted flowers had withered and became yellow. This scene was extremely strange, so that even in the same cluster of flowers, there is a section which is becoming more prosperous, a section which is declining, along with a section that is normal without any change.
Life was changing silently.