bad seeds - Chapter 18
"I think you're the one who wants to see her, right? I'll write down her phone number for you."
"Stop it, I already have enough of a headache!"
...
That night, as I lay half-reclined in bed reading my journal, "Na Duo's Notebook," I suddenly wondered if I should call Ye Tong. However, I ultimately decided against it. After all, as the impact of the "bad seed" incident gradually faded, neither of us wanted to bring up that experience that had kept us up at night.
However, the unfinished story must continue to be written—even though it may one day put us in a dangerous situation.
Let's rewind to one year, one month, and fourteen days ago.
At the site where the spacecraft was discovered, in the camp, is tent number three.
"How long have you known Liang Yingwu?"
"Let me count," I said, chewing my food. "Starting from high school, three years plus four years... it must be thirteen or fourteen years."
Do you know him?
“I used to know him best, but now I can’t say for sure. But he hasn’t changed much; he’s still the same.”
Do you consider him a friend?
“Of course.” — Her question was a little strange.
"So, is he cautious in his actions?"
“Quite cautious!” I said. “What exactly do you want to know?”
"I just want to know..." Ye Tong's face was a little pale, which made her dark circles under her eyes even more obvious, "The Neolithic site, the spaceship left behind by the prehistoric civilization, and the 'Matrix'—each of these is top-secret. Why would he let two people who have no connection with the 'X Organization' know so much about them?"
I'm starting to understand what she's worried about.
"Hehe, maybe he really needs our help."
"Do you really think so? Once he gets the parchment, we'll be of no use to him anymore."
"Don't be silly. So many people saw us with him. What could happen?"
“Those staff members are either affiliated with ‘Agency X’ or secret military departments. Do you think they are all compassionate people? You know, it’s easy for two journalists like us to disappear in the Gobi Desert!”
I stopped chewing and slowly swallowed the mixture of rice and pork chop in my mouth, bit by bit. Then, in a clear and solemn tone, I said to Ye Tong, "Liang Yingwu is my friend. I trust him. He won't do anything to harm us!"
"I hope I'm just guessing." Ye Tong timely put away her tense expression and put on a smile, which made her face look a little more lively.
"Let's eat something. The pork chop is pretty good." I held up the bowl of food in my hand.
...
After two days of doing nothing and losing our freedom, Ye Tong and I experienced what it's like to be a prisoner. It's hard to imagine how those prisoners who have to serve ten or twenty years in prison endure that period—perhaps as it is said in "The Shawshank Redemption"—"They've all been formatted."
Ye Tong began to complain loudly, verbally abuse the guards, insult Liang Yingwu's mother, and utter other vulgarities that a girl would find difficult to say. At one point, she even tried to attack and kidnap the staff member who brought us food—I really don't know what she was thinking, just a day before she was terrified that Liang Yingwu would kill her.
She is the best example of a woman's fickleness.
Fortunately, this situation did not last long.
On the fourth day, right after breakfast, the staff hurriedly notified us to go to tent number one, where the command post was located, because Liang Yingwu had something urgent to discuss with me.
After three days of being under house arrest, we were finally able to step out of this damn tent.
However, this joy lasted only a moment, and what awaited us was not good news.
Outside tent number one, I seemed to hear a heated argument going on inside. When Ye Tong and I entered tent number one, Liang Yingwu, Lao He, another commander whose name I did not know, and the other three researchers fell silent.
Liang Yingwu whispered a few words to a few others, and I vaguely heard something like, "They are my friends..." Those words angered me. I had never forgotten the bond of friendship, yet he treated us like we were under house arrest.
The others all came out of the tent.
Liang Yingwu, Ye Tong, and I were left alone in the tent again.
Ye Tong was almost furious enough to rush forward and slap Liang Yingwu, but we hadn't forgotten "who really calls the shots" here—it seemed the situation had taken another turn, and a bad one at that. Liang Yingwu was completely gone.
He had been so aggressive four days ago, but now he looked somewhat haggard.
He gestured for us to sit down.
“I’m sorry,” Liang Yingwu said. It was the first time I’d heard his voice sound so weak and powerless. “I think I must apologize to you. You were right, my assessment was completely wrong.”
"What happened?" I asked.
"The 'mother body' has once again spiraled out of control. Its enrichment capacity has increased to 120 times its previous level and is still rising. We simply cannot maintain prolonged radioactive irradiation of it. In that cave, the 'nucleus's' ability to enrich metals, especially iron, is astonishing. A gamma-ray generator broke down in just two hours. Now, large amounts of dark red flocculent precipitates have appeared in Lake Tosu, which is ferric hydroxide. Lake Kruk has also been affected, and the organisms in the lake are beginning to die in large numbers. I just received a report that crops have also withered at the Delingha Farm. Metals and metal salts from the entire Gobi Desert are concentrating here!"
"..."
"The worst part is that the 'mother body' is splitting apart!"
"What did you say?" I almost jumped out of my chair.
"It is splitting, and the branches are spreading in all directions, breaking away from the 'mother body' to become independent individuals. It is reproducing!"
“‘Your descendants must obey this decree. If you disobey it, the land will no longer be land, and your family will perish…’” I slowly sat back down in my chair.
"You can say whatever you want now." Liang Yingwu looked inexplicably tired.
"Then why did you call us here?" Ye Tong said sternly.
“I don’t know.” Liang Yingwu shook his head. “My first thought was to restore your freedom. I have to make up for the inconvenience I caused. I’m sorry, my mind is very confused right now.”