Volume 2: Winter’s End
Under the disruptive calamity, individual capabilities always seem so powerless. Qing Mo, in the end, did not close his eyes in death, only hoping to wait for Qu Yan to return. What kind of obsession is this? Shu Xun’s understanding of so-called love is not profound. He just feels that all love is like that of his father and mother—warm and enduring, accompanying each other for eternity. This is the first time Shu Xun intuitively realizes that the word “love” is complex, making it impossible to make accurate judgments and intense enough to forget life and death.
In the live stream room:
“If this isn’t a real background, I almost suspect it’s a well-crafted story.”
“I would prefer this world to be unreal now. If this is just a glimpse of the end, how much sadness is still hidden in this world?”
“I also want to know, where did Qu Yan go? Speculating logically, Qu Yan must have gone to Micro City. Ye Qian and Dumpling will also go to Micro City next, hoping to find Qu Yan, even if it’s just a corpse they find.”
“Does Qu Yan really exist? There is no trace of him in the villa. Even if Ye Qian and Dumpling find a corpse, how can they determine if it’s Qu Yan?”
“In the notes, Qing Mo wrote that everyone around disappeared like that red-eyed rabbit Dumpling mentioned, all disappeared. I even have a chilling speculation, is the rabbit that attacked Dumpling the soap that Qing Mo raised?”
“The upstairs imagination is really slick. Soap is already dead, how could it still be alive? I now only hope that God Ye and Dumpling go to Micro City and see if they can find Qu Yan.”
“I have an even more chilling guess. Did Qing Mo eat soap and the surrounding residents? Otherwise, how come only he is left, and he even wrote in the notes, ‘It’s not my fault’? After all, the side effects of the stimulant are quite strong, and even Qu Yan might be an illusion.”
In the livestream room, some were expressing regret, others were speculating on the truth. A notebook showed them a world inching towards its end, yet it failed to provide answers, stirring more questions and conjectures.
In the villa, Shu Xun had already closed the notebook, turned to look at the frozen world outside, and decided to wait for the temperature to ease a bit before putting the notebook back on Qing Mo’s body. At the same time, he began contemplating the questions and clues that the notebook had brought them.
Shu Xun, out of habit, was pulling his hair, strolling around on Ye Qian’s legs, his little head spinning rapidly. Sometimes it seemed like he figured something out, nodding seriously, and other times he shook his head in confusion, wearing a deep, thoughtful expression.
Ye Qian sat motionless, his gaze slowly following Shu Xun’s movements. Shu Xun remained silent, and Ye Qian didn’t urge him to speak, allowing the little dumpling to stroll on his legs.
Finally, Shu Xun let out a soft “ah,” and his big eyes immediately filled with gloss, evidently having figured something out. Ye Qian silently observed. Shu Xun walked to Ye Qian’s knee, and sat cross-legged, adopting a posture that suggested an intention for an intimate talk. Ye Qian continued with his calm, poker-faced expression.
Thus, in the empty villa, a childish yet earnest analytical voice echoed.
“Firstly, the crucial point to establish is whether Qu Yan truly exists because only when Qu Yan is a genuine presence does the record in this notebook hold reference value. In my judgment, Qu Yan does exist because his appearance in the notebook predates Qing Mo’s consumption of the medication by far. So, all those recordings of cozy daily life and post-marriage experiences are real. However, this leads to the first question: why is there no trace of Qu Yan in the villa?”
“There are two answers. One, Qu Yan voluntarily left Qing Mo, and everything afterward is Qing Mo’s escapist fantasy. Two, as recorded in the notebook, Qu Yan left involuntarily but couldn’t return in time. When Qu Yan returned, Qing Mo was already dead, and for some reason, Qu Yan erased any trace of his existence. I believe the second possibility is more likely because this villa is too clean. With Qing Mo’s obsession, if Qu Yan left, there would have been some lingering sentiment. The current pristine state of the villa suggests that only someone who understands Qing Mo and the villa extremely well could leave no trace. This person, aside from Qu Yan, has no other possibilities. After discovering his own abnormality, Qing Mo obviously became highly averse to the outside world, even refusing to leave with Qu Yan but choosing to stay in the villa. For him, this villa was a protective shell, rejecting everyone except Qu Yan.”
The little bundle spoke seriously, explaining coherently and logically, presenting reasonable speculations. Ye Qian watched him intently without turning his eyes away.
“Secondly, it’s about Qing Mo himself. He should have realized his abnormality or uniqueness, even suspecting a mental issue at one point. That’s the messy note filled with negative emotions in the notebook. Why the stimulant could help Qing Mo overcome this issue is still unclear to me, as well as the disappearance of those residents…”
In the livestream room, expressions of shock filled the screen.
“God Ye! Quickly give a checkup to little dumpling; little dumpling might have been possessed by something strange!”
“Hurry, check! Check! Little Dumpling must have been invaded by this eerie end-of-the-world scenario!”
“I might have watched a fake live stream! Can someone tell me if this meticulous and clear-minded dumpling is the same person who just struggled to open a bottle cap?”
“Did little dumpling activate some weird function?”
“Can I say that I haven’t thought of all these things little dumpling came up with? Instantly feel so weak!”
“Haha, do you remember how Shu Xun initially acknowledged Ye Qian and introduced himself?”
“I remember! Little Dumpling said he has a good sense of direction, rarely gets lost as long as he’s seen a map, claims to have good perception and luck, and then says his analytical abilities can be considered passable…”
“Hey hey hey, analytical abilities that can be considered passable have reached this level now?”
“I thought of what Little Dumpling said, but it’s not that delightful to synchronize with Little Dumpling.”
“Same with the person upstairs, just still amazed at Shu Xun’s logical analysis and observation skills.”
“Ye Qian really struck gold with Little Dumpling. Not only does he come with a navigation function, but he also possesses intelligent analytical abilities. Most importantly, he unconsciously acts cute every day, effectively alleviating the negative emotions brought by the end-of-the-world scenario. Just like now, sitting on the knee, speaking in a cute voice, yet having the appearance of someone guiding the world. Haha!”
In the villa, Shu Xun’s analysis and speculations continued for nearly an hour. This hour has completely changed countless viewers’ perceptions of this Little Dumpling. In today’s era, the intelligence of minors is not much weaker than that of adults, but they lack knowledge and practical experience of the world. Even if exceptionally bright, it’s rare to have such clear logical thinking abilities.
Several hundred years ago, there was a series of reforms in the cosmic regulations protecting minors. At that time, as society matured, protection sometimes became a form of indirect discrimination. Consequently, the regulatory changes provided minors with a broader space. However, when a Little Dumpling who wasn’t even a year old articulately expressed thoughts that many adults hadn’t considered, it still brought them tremendous shock.
On this note, Shu Xun finally finished explaining his thoughts. He licked his lips, seeming a bit thirsty. Just as he was thinking about it, a can of beverage was handed to Shu Xun. The drink was already opened, and even the straw was inserted. Shu Xun immediately reached out, cradled it, and happily started drinking.
“Woof woof woof woof! It’s starting again! It’s starting to act cute again! Every time this happens, I feel like howling!”
“Is the person upstairs also awakened with wolf bloodline? Does the wolf bloodline have no resistance to cute things? But this little satisfied expression with narrowed big eyes is indeed too cute!”
“When did my God Ye become so considerate? It feels like God Ye is truly smitten. Maybe in future games, God Ye will have a fixed teammate. I wonder how Bai Ya feels about it. Haha, looking forward to the scene when God Ye introduces Little Dumpling to Bai Ya.”
“Forgot about it if the person upstairs doesn’t mention it. What about that pitiful one who God Ye always kicks away with one foot? Is there a livestream with Bai Ya? Where is Bai Ya’s spawn point?”
“Bai Ya was born on another continent. It seems like it will be a long time before they meet. What a pity!”
“Screen recording! Screen recording! I’ll show this to Bai Ya in the future! Haha, tell him that ‘Even I, God Ye, can be so considerate’.”
Shu Xun, satisfied, drank from the beverage can, while Ye Qian remained still in his original position. Only after Shu Xun had his fill did he put down the can he was holding. Ye Qian didn’t voice any objections, indicating that his speculation was essentially in line with Shu Xun’s. “Let’s sleep. According to the notebook, the low temperature after this blue light will continue for a while before warming up.”
Shu Xun scratched his little head, wanting to say that he wasn’t actually tired. However, it was rare for Ye Qian to speak, and there was nothing else to do. So, he nodded his little head and walked back to the glove, took off his tiny clothes, organized himself, and then crawled into the warm glove. Shu Xun, who wasn’t sleepy at all, thought it would take a long time before he could fall asleep. However, in reality, the quiet environment and the warm nest quickly led him into dreamland.
As for Ye Qian, he sat motionless in the same place for a while, then stood up and once again stood still.
In the live stream:
“What is Ye Qian doing?”
“He might have thought of some important clues. Ye Qian’s logical reasoning skills are not weak!”
“God Ye is truly God Ye; it feels like he has a powerful presence even when just standing there.”
“…”
In reality, Ye Qian’s series of actions were very simple: steady as a mountain, steady as a mountain, steady as a mountain, legs numb, standing for a while…
If the audience knew the truth, they might collapse. Who would have thought that Ye Qian, with top-notch physical and mental strength, would one day have numb legs? Who could have imagined that while Shu Xun was leisurely strolling on the legs that had been expressionless for thousands of years, Ye Qian was actually mentally focused, muscles tense, just to remain motionless and avoid contemplating the problem as the little dumpling stumbled around?
