Chapter 49: Change Change Change
Chapter 49: Change Change Change
Looking at Anran, it is clear that despite her hunger and frustration, she is ready to venture down to the fourth floor.
She has to go down; after all, the fifth floor is just for newborns who only need milk, but the fourth floor is the obstetrics ward. Whether it is the mothers before or after childbirth, they need proper nutrition for their babies to thrive. Anran knows that the floor below will have plenty of food and drink available for her.
Her hair is disheveled, and her face and hands are dirty, making her look as if a layer of dark red blood is crusted on her exposed skin. Her clothes and pants look as though they have been soaked in blood.
At that moment, Anran sits on the small bed, holding the wilted flower basket and staring blankly at the Powdered Snow Mountain in her hands. She isn’t quite sure what is happening to her, but she vaguely feels that the flower's revival might somehow be connected to her, which is why she turned back to retrieve the basket and flower after running halfway.
Could she bring flowers back to life?
She sets down the Powdered Snow Mountain and pulls out a completely wilted bellflower from the basket. Glancing at her hands, she experimentally calls out, “Change, change, change!”
The bellflower, which has already breathed its last, completely ignores her. It doesn’t even lift a leaf! The wilted flower hangs its head as if mocking Anran's childishness.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, she places the wilted bellflower next to the Powdered Snow Mountain, rubs her painfully empty stomach, and lies back on the single bed. She thinks she should take a quick nap while Doll and Chen Jiao’s son are still asleep to recharge her energy to be able to continue to fight zombies on the fourth floor.
Her pockets are half full of diamonds, and a few of them jump out as Anran moves, landing on the bed. She wearily picks them up, holding them in her palm and slowly closing her eyes.
She begins to dream again, this time about the night of her blind date. Zhan Lian has taken her out for roast chicken. It is probably his first time going out with a girl; he likely doesn’t have any female friends before this. The matchmaker hasn’t given him any guidance either, so he orders four roast chickens based on his own appetite—two for himself and two for Anran.
Anran keeps eating until she is stuffed, feeling like her stomach is about to burst. It seems like those two roast chickens haven’t even been touched. Anran starts to cry, thinking she might never finish those chickens, while Zhan Lian has already finished his.
He looks up, furrowing his brow, and with his rough fingers, wipes away her tears, saying, “If you don’t like me, you don’t have to cry.”
No, she is crying because she can’t finish the roast chicken!
Anran can’t remember if she has said that out loud. In her dream, she just keeps crying. Suddenly, she opens her eyes and sits up. Doll and Chen Jiao’s son are both crying. Shaking her groggy head, she raises her hand and scatters a handful of what looks like lime powder.
Curious, she looks at her hand, now covered in white powder. Where did this come from?
Then she snaps back to reality, picks up Doll from the basket, lifts her dirty clothes, and starts to feed her. She also takes out a bottle of milk that she prepared earlier and stuffs it into Chen Jiao’s son’s mouth.