Liang Wan emerged from the pool, the water here was frighteningly clean, clearly indicating the use of very rudimentary yet effective water filtration equipment. She dried her body with her own clothes; although it would carry some sweat smell, there was simply nothing else she could use. Her body temperature did not continue to rise, and though her head felt a bit dizzy, she felt she could still hold on.

She washed all her clothes in the pool and hung them up to dry. After everything was done, she sat on a wooden lounge chair, leaning back, completely naked. Although she knew the chances of someone appearing around her were very slim, she still felt extremely uncomfortable.

She tightly closed her legs, her hands covering her chest, curling up on the chair. The warm breeze coming from the ventilation quickly dried her wet clothes and the moisture on her body. It felt warm and cozy, and she began to feel drowsy, but she dared not fall asleep. Every time she felt sleepy, she forced herself to stay awake.

The tattoos on her body appeared and disappeared, a significant mystery for her family. She had once doubted whether she was her parents’ biological child and wondered if she had come from an orphanage. It seemed plausible that her parents might be unaware of the tattoo hidden on her body. This was also the reason she had always wanted to study medicine; she hoped to understand what was going on. However, the truth was that she was just an ordinary girl.

No one knew when this tattoo had been inked. Such a complex pattern was not a birthmark. The first time she saw this pattern was during high school when she had a high fever. She had thought about running to sweat it out, hoping to bring down her fever quickly because there was a debate competition the next day involving a boy she liked. That day, she fainted in her bathroom, and her mother saw the tattoo.

She had no way to explain it, but her parents’ distrust troubled her even more, stemming from the question of where this tattoo had come from. This tattoo, which disappeared with temperature changes, was not an ordinary tattoo; it must represent something of different significance.

There were no lights, but the light in this place, reflected off the walls, made the actual space seem much larger. Liang Wan hugged her arms, thinking about many things—why she had come here, and how her life might be different if she didn’t care about these things.

Perhaps she would have been married long ago, lying in the arms of some man, just having shared a tender moment, without worrying about the surrounding darkness, the oil lamp running out of wick, whether the water here was toxic or clean, or if something would suddenly appear in the dark. Life would be incredibly simple.

This tattoo pushed her toward a direction she did not want to take at every critical moment in her life, forcing her repeatedly into a life she could not control. It was exhausting, yet she still wanted to know where her future lay.

She knew she was just scared, and pondering these things was merely trying to find reasons for her current actions. But to be honest, it was really hard. At that moment, she wanted to cry, but she held it back. She felt that crying when no one was around was just a way to vent her emotions and expend energy.

Time passed little by little, and her body temperature rose higher. The tattoo became more pronounced, and the warm breeze could no longer make her feel warm.

The clothes dried quickly, and she gave up on wearing underwear, putting on her outer jacket directly. Tightening the jacket revealed her curves. She ran her hands over her body, not denying that she was a very attractive woman with a great figure—full where it should be full, slim where it should be slim, sure to make many men’s hearts race. If she were to quietly die like this, it would be a huge irony.

After walking for a while, she stretched her limbs in the darkness, posing in various ways, watching the shadows cast on the wall by the light. She aimlessly did a few more poses, feeling utterly bored.

The layout was in her bag, and she spread it out on the table, finding the map of this area. She located her room and was surprised to discover that it was very close to the central area. Could she possibly reach there alone? And what would be the purpose of getting there?

She fell into deep thought, understanding her purpose, but not quite comprehending the role of her piece in the eyes of others. Was this so-called situation, constrained by various forces, truly out of control, or was it still under the control of those people?

The previous violent explosion made her hesitant to act rashly. At that time, a roaring sound came from the pipes, shaking the entire space, and concrete pieces fell from above. She had no idea what had happened.

Now, a long time had passed, and no one had come to find her. The longer she waited, the more she feared her mindset might become distorted.

She studied her surroundings and found no reliable way out. So, she shouldered her backpack and walked out of the room. Just as she was about to step outside, she suddenly heard someone singing:

“We are a bunch of green pepper fried rice, green pepper fried rice is especially fragrant, do you know? We are in the desert, and there’s no green pepper fried rice in the desert, how can we live like this? So you should thank me, because I brought you fried rice, even though there are only two and a half boxes, but it’s better than nothing. Come, come, come, we are the green pepper fried rice gang. Come, come, come, we love to eat green pepper fried rice. Come, come, come, do you hear? Although you are also green, you don’t have green peppers like me. La la la, so green pepper fried rice is for you to eat, for you to eat, for you to eat. We are the green pepper fried rice gang, we are good friends of green peppers, of course, we also love white rice, but it’s best when mixed together. Oh, I almost forgot the shredded meat, I almost forgot the shredded meat, YOU JUMP, I JUMP, YOU JUMP, I JUMP. Shredded meat, shredded meat, la la la la…”

She opened the door and saw Black Glasses leaning against the door with Su Wan, both covered in blood, one of Black Glasses’ lenses shattered, singing there.

Liang Wan let them in.

“How did you find me?” Liang Wan asked in confusion. “What happened?”

“Today’s middle school students are too rebellious; the country should think of a way,” Black Glasses said. “I was blasted away by at least two kilograms of C4 in an extremely confined space. I found you because of the light; your door wasn’t closed tightly, and that little light was blinding in the darkness.”

Su Wan was bleeding from his ears and still in a state of unconsciousness. Black Glasses dragged him in front of Liang Wan: “See if this guy can still be saved.”

Liang Wan lifted Su Wan’s eyelid and looked at the vomit on him, saying, “If there are no intracranial injuries, it’s very likely a concussion. What are you doing singing here?”
“I’ll tell you when I get the chance,” said the man in the black glasses.
Liang Wan came to check on him, but he stopped her. The man in the black glasses lit a cigarette and said to her, “We’re going to lose; Li Cu is going to die.”