Chapter 515: Torrential Rain
Chapter 515: Torrential Rain
An Ran nodded, looking at Zhan Lian—now acting like a full-fledged parenting expert—with genuine admiration.
She pointed ahead. “We’re here. Let’s stop there.”
After leaving Huang County, they’d traveled a long stretch of deserted national highway. Zhan Lian led the way off the main road and into a small village.
Behind them trailed the Fatty’s long convoy.
The path was smooth enough, bordered by empty rice paddies. Here and there, small country villas stood quietly among the fields—modest, but more than adequate for the 500 elderly, infirm, sick, and pregnant women to rest in.
By now, the sky had sunk under a blanket of dark clouds. Thunder grumbled overhead. Children cried, women called out, and men hurried to gather the vulnerable into shelter.
“Fatty! Fatty!” Zhan Lian pulled his bulletproof RV-like vehicle alongside the Fatty and shouted over the wind: “Don’t let the old and young spread out too much! If something happens, we won’t be able to retreat fast enough.”
“Got it!” the Fatty bellowed back, his bulk quivering in the gusts. He waved orders for everyone to move the elderly, sick, disabled, and pregnant women into the nearest houses.
Zhan Lian then steered toward a small roadside temple. He backed his bulletproof vehicle into position, side-by-side with Yun Tao’s truck, blocking the entrance. Then he climbed into the trunk and told An Ran to bring Doll out.
The temple was surprisingly well-maintained. The deity enshrined inside appeared to be the Dragon King, crowned with horns and draped in a once-metalic robe now dulled with grime. Dust lay thick over the altar.
An Ran finished feeding Doll in the car, then stepped inside the temple.
The doors and windows were still intact. Aside from a few cracks letting in drafts, it was a reasonably safe shelter.
Zhan Lian had already inspected every corner, even patching a broken wall with steel plates. Soon after, he brought in Zhang Boxun, Liang Ziyu, Zhao Ru, and Hengheng. Then, together with Yun Tao and Luo Feifan, he set out to scout the surroundings.
Liang Ziyu and Zhao Ru spread quilts on the floor and laid Zhang Boxun down. A fire was lit in the center of the temple, its warmth filling the space.
After a while, Zhang Boxun awoke, sat up silently, and stared at the flames without saying a word.
An Ran placed a small pot on the fire to boil water for Doll. Following Zhan Lian’s earlier instructions, she rummaged in the trunk of the bulletproof car and found a box of plain rice cereal with added iron. She poured a small spoonful into a purple baby bowl and held it up to the child’s mouth.
Then came the rain—no light drizzle, but a sudden, pounding downpour. An Ran glanced up. The temperature dropped sharply, the air turning cold enough to bite.
She looked back to see Doll open her mouth wide for another bite, her cheeks puffed into a third chin. Smiling, An Ran scolded, “You need to lose weight! No more or you’ll get so fat you won’t be able to get married!”
Doll, of course, understood none of it. She only found her mother’s stern face amusing, giggling like one of those plump children in New Year paintings—round, rosy, and irresistibly adorable.