The afternoon's harrowing experience left Fu Shiwu famished. He skipped bathing and changing clothes, tearing open two packets of instant noodles in the kitchen, cracking two eggs into them, and wolfing them down.
After a quick shower and a change into a light-colored striped shirt, Fu Shiwu left his home. Carefully maneuvering around the body lying on the ground, he pressed Tang Xuhai's doorbell.
Tang Xuhai, icing his right calf with a cold pack, heard the doorbell. He rose, pausing to put weight on his right leg before casually walking to the door upon hearing Fu Shiwu's skittish movements and seeing him glance nervously at the body behind.
"What's up?" Tang Xuhai queried. "Are you that scared? The person's dead; they won't rise from the dead."
The feelings of an ordinary person couldn't compare to someone seasoned like Tang Xuhai. While Fu Shiwu found the corpse frightening, Tang Xuhai remained more cautious of the living.
Struggling to speak amidst the discomfort, Fu Shiwu managed, "Thank you for saving me earlier..."
"If it's just gratitude, no need," Tang Xuhai replied, arching an eyebrow, leaning askew and resting an arm on the door frame. "Consider it a random act of kindness."
Fu Shiwu suppressed a frown. "...Thank you, anyway. Also..." He took a deep breath, forcing out the rest, "Shouldn't we do something about that body in the corridor? What if someone opens the door and gets a scare?"
As he spoke, the stench of blood nearly choked him.
"Do you think everyone's as scared as you?" Tang Xuhai scoffed, muttering, "Making a fuss over nothing."
No one had come out despite the commotion earlier. At this point, everyone prioritized self-preservation.
"We can't just leave it here. In this heat, the body will decay soon, potentially causing an epidemic if ignored," Fu Shiwu insisted, then deflated. "Besides, this man followed me to this floor..."
"You're quite responsible," Tang Xuhai lazily raised an eyebrow. "So, clean it up yourself."
Fu Shiwu was speechless. If he dared to move the body alone, why bother seeking help from this incompatible guy?!
What a malicious mind! He could see it clearly.
Tang Xuhai amusedly watched Fu Shiwu's tormented face.
Fu Shiwu squeezed out, after a struggle, "Please, help me."
Tang Xuhai grinned mischievously. "Beg me, and I'll come with you."
Fu Shiwu flushed red, his glasses reflecting an intense glare aimed at Tang Xuhai.
Such a glance, even bolstered by this artistic style, didn’t faze Tang Xuhai. He even leaned against the door, shaking his leg.
Gasping for breath, Fu Shiwu mumbled, "...Please."
Tang Xuhai found great joy in teasing others. Satisfied, he stood straight, closed the door, and joined Fu Shiwu to move the body.
"Where do you plan to take it?" Tang Xuhai inquired.
"The 20th floor," Fu Shiwu hesitated, "Most of the people there should be dead. If we put the body where no one goes, it won't scare anyone."
"Hmm," Tang Xuhai remained noncommittal.
With Tang Xuhai taking the shoulders and Fu Shiwu the feet, they ascended the emergency exit.
"Have you considered how many people might be dead in places you can't see in this building?" Tang Xuhai's forehead dripped with sweat, yet his voice remained calm.
Walking ahead, Fu Shiwu couldn't see his current state. "According to this person, quite a few."
"Do you think just dealing with this one corpse will stop all the others from decaying and breeding disease?" Tang Xuhai questioned.
Fu Shiwu paused. "I don't know. I can only do what I can now."
Tang Xuhai fell silent. Together, they slowly carried the body to the 20th floor and placed it inside the garbage chute Fu Shiwu had found.
"Covering up the truth," Tang Xuhai remarked, raising an eyebrow at Fu Shiwu.
Fu Shiwu felt frustrated, turning away and leaving.
Tang Xuhai leisurely descended the stairs, noticing Fu Shiwu waiting at the corridor entrance.
Tang Xuhai gave him a quizzical look. Fu Shiwu moved his mouth, his voice barely audible, "Thank you for everything today." Then he hurried back into his home.
Tang Xuhai watched him dash off like a rabbit, murmuring, "Civilized... so polite."
Shaking his head, he returned home, refilling the ice pack from the refrigerator and continuing the cold compress.
The next day, Wang Ziping and Liào Kē showed up at the door.
Both looked worse for wear.
"How did you find my place?" Fu Shiwu was astonished.
Visitors were a rarity. Fu Shiwu hurriedly welcomed the two visitors inside.
"You don't need to fuss," Wang Ziping's face remained pallid.
"Are you okay? The guy yesterday said you weren't injured, so we didn't come up to check on you," said Wang Ziping, with fewer injuries showing on him. It seemed his down jacket had done wonders.
"I'm fine, just had a close call, luckily Tang Xuhai saved me," Fu Shiwu said, still shaken.
Wang Ziping nodded, his visit not solely for checking on him: "I'm cross-checking the residents of this building. Do you want to join?"
He and Liào Kē had also dealt with bodies but moved them to the 3rd floor. Wang Ziping felt unsettled and angry. A lunatic named Guān Liángbǐ wasn't even the worst. He had started a night-long investigation, discovering that among the five, only the one in camouflage was an original resident; the other four were his shady associates. Even the camo-clad man wasn't decent, involved in high-interest loans. The four worked under him.
On the day of the incident, they somehow gathered and got isolated inside the building.
"We can't allow such dangerous elements in this building!" Wang Ziping appeared stirred, considering a thorough inspection of all residents. "Who knows who else is waiting to stab us in the back!"
"Yes!" Liào Kē also gritted his teeth. "We need to ensure there's not a single danger here!"
Fu Shiwu adjusted his glasses, furrowing his brow. "...Is it necessary? Weren't we thinking of leaving here from the 3rd floor?"
Wang Ziping sneered, "Leaving won't solve everything. Did you watch the news yesterday?"
Fu Shiwu nodded.
"With the chaos outside, the idea is to ensure our easy access, not necessarily leave here for somewhere else. Where else is safer than home? Although the main door on the ground floor is sealed and there are anti-theft bars on the lower two floors, this is the best protection," Liào Kē stated.
Fu Shiwu fell silent.
"But with so many bodies in this building..." he hesitated.
"That's easy, we'll contact the government later to get them to remove the bodies," Wang Ziping stated matter-of-factly.
Fu Shiwu felt it wasn't that simple. With even the original guards reassigned for maintaining public order, who would have the manpower to clean their building?
Fu Shiwu declined Wang Ziping's invitation. At that time, he had the courage to pick up a watermelon knife, driven by indignation. However, managing this with someone like Wang Ziping, who took on the role of managing the building, didn't seem feasible.
Wang Ziping wasn't disappointed by the refusal. In his opinion, Fu Shiwu was too weak. If he hadn't failed to dig up Tang Xuhai, he wouldn't have bothered calling Fu Shiwu again.
In any setting and at any time, there were always people eager to take the lead in a crowd. Fu Shiwu closed the door, sighing.
Despite the futility of Wang Ziping's investigation, he at least compiled that apart from the 3rd floor completely annihilated by Guān Liángbǐ, there were also casualties on the 20th and 27th floors caused by the camouflage man's silent and treacherous acts. Additionally, on the 23rd floor, men and elderly individuals were killed, and the remaining women faced brutal assaults.
In the camouflage man's apartment on the 15th floor, they found a large stash of jewelry and cash.
Guān Liángbǐ remained elusive; his whereabouts were still unknown.
As Fu Shiwu had anticipated, Wang Ziping attempted to contact relevant authorities to report their situation, but the phones were always busy, impossible to connect.
On the seventh night, the red haze seemed to suddenly disappear.
The entire online world erupted in celebration; this unlucky phenomenon had finally ended!
In just these seven days, 12% of the world's population had succumbed to the contaminated red haze, a terrifying statistic.
The ongoing sicknesses were still untreated.
But the phenomenon had ended, and the nightmare was finally over!
Just as Fu Shiwu and others breathed a sigh of relief, thinking they would finally address the dead in their building—frankly, the stench was unbearable!—an unexpected incident occurred.
The water in the pipes had turned bad!
It was understandable; the red haze had contaminated the air, and when it rained, it brought the pollutants to the ground. The reservoirs, directly in contact with the air, were heavily polluted!
Those who drank this water naturally suffered from high fever, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Fortunately, medical research indicated that this sickness was caused by pollutants entering the body and didn't spread. Wearing a gas mask, drinking sealed mineral water, or multi-filtered pure water prevented contamination and illness.
When this research was released, the whole world breathed a sigh of relief.
In the Tianjing Gardens building where Fu Shiwu lived, people once again congregated on the third floor. Although the rooms on this floor were full of bodies, they had to pass through these rooms to get out.
Not every household had water purifiers, and those who drank bottled water had long run out of directly consumable water.
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