Lin Bai was not good at sweet talk or romantic declarations, but he always managed to say heartfelt words that made Chen Qingqing feel warm.
Perhaps that was the greatest meaning of having a family.
After they finished eating, they held a brief discussion.
The zombie virus had already appeared in the hotel, but the source of the infection was still unclear. The virus might also have an incubation period, and the number of infected people was currently unknown.
After discussing it, the two decided that Lin Bai would stay in the room to look after the children while Chen Qingqing went out to find out what was happening.
By the time Chen Qingqing left the room, it was already evening. She went down to the lobby, where a group of employees stood by the entrance, talking about something.
The employee known as Brother Li was the first to notice her. He led the others over.
“How is he?” Chen Qingqing asked.
“He’s already at the hospital. They said we don’t need to follow up any further,” one of them replied.
The employee called Brother Li continued, “The police came by earlier to ask me about what happened. After hearing about the guest’s condition, they said I handled it correctly.”
“…Thank you.” Brother Li’s expression was somewhat strange.
Chen Qingqing ignored his expression and accepted his thanks without the slightest hesitation.
“You’d better search his room. It would be best if you could find the source of his infection.”
One person suddenly spoke up. “That guest went out today. When he came back, his behavior was a little strange. We were worried, so we went to check whether he needed help.”
He had probably been infected by zombies outside and then transformed after returning to his room.
As long as he hadn’t been infected in the hotel, that was good enough.
Having obtained the information she wanted, Chen Qingqing turned to leave. Brother Li suddenly called out, “Wait!”
Chen Qingqing stopped. “What is it?”
Brother Li sized her up. “You seem to know quite a bit. You were the one who bandaged Sister Fang’s wound too, weren’t you? Why don’t you tell us exactly what’s going on?”
Chen Qingqing began to feel irritated.
Who did he think he was, speaking to her in that tone as if he were ordering her around?
“Do I have any reason to tell you?” Chen Qingqing shot him a cold glance.
Brother Li suddenly gave a mocking laugh. “I’m not asking you to do it for nothing. I’ll upgrade your room.”
“You’re staying in a discounted family room that costs 399 yuan a night. I’ll upgrade you to a superior family room with a living room. The original price is over a thousand yuan.”
Chen Qingqing laughed as well. “You think we can’t afford it?”
“Don’t be so stubborn.”
Brother Li raised his eyebrows. “If you could afford it, you wouldn’t have come here on vacation at a time like this and booked a discounted room, would you?”
“What, you don’t even know your own family’s financial situation? How many years ago did your husband buy that car? It only cost a little over a hundred thousand yuan, right? The body’s covered in several long scratches, too.”
“You’ve probably spent an entire month’s salary just coming here for a few days of vacation, haven’t you?”
Chen Qingqing found it laughable. But then she thought about how the things they were so proud of would soon be worthless, and she couldn’t be bothered to argue with him.
The Apocalypse was already here. Who would care about things that were about to become nothing more than scraps of paper?
She turned and walked away, completely unmoved by the man’s provocation. Her indifferent attitude, however, made the man anxious. With so many people watching, he couldn’t very well call her back, so he could only shout angrily, “If you’re poor, then act poor! Why pretend to be so high and mighty?”
Lin Bai had chosen Room 203 for two reasons. First, it was on the second floor, making it convenient to go up and down. Second, it had enormous floor-to-ceiling windows and a broad view.
Although Lin Bai earned a million yuan a year, he never spent money on himself. Whenever he returned from a business trip, he bought delicious food and fun things for Chen Qingqing and the children. He deposited his entire salary into the family savings account and never spent it recklessly.
He didn’t smoke or drink, and he didn’t even buy clothes under normal circumstances.
If Chen Qingqing didn’t take him shopping at the mall every so often, he could wear the same outfit until it fell apart.
When it came to the clothes and shoes Chen Qingqing and the two children bought, they never pursued expensive luxury brands either. As long as something was comfortable, that was enough.
As for the car, the two of them had bought it when they got married. It carried precious memories of their entire family.
All of them were sentimental people. Xiaohuan had even given the car a name—Xiaobai.
Although Xiaobai had quite a few minor problems, none of them had ever considered replacing it.
Who could have imagined that the Chen Qingqing family’s ordinary lifestyle—one that didn’t follow consumer trends or indulge in extravagance—would look nothing but shabby and miserly in the other man’s eyes?
Chen Qingqing left without even looking back, which infuriated Brother Li.
The other employees tried to placate him all at once. “Brother Li, don’t be angry. People this poor are always so arrogant, acting like they’re something special.”
Brother Li gave a cold laugh and signaled to the man beside him. “Go cut off the water and electricity to Room 203.”
“Let her keep pretending. Let’s see how long she can keep it up!”
A woman spoke timidly. “T-That’s not very appropriate, is it?”
Brother Li shot her a murderous look, then glanced at the torn sleeve where she had been grabbed and cursed, “You’re really an ungrateful wretch. Have you already forgotten who saved you just now?”
“Trying to play the good person at a time like this?”
“If you can do the job, then do it. If you can’t, get lost!”
Brother Li’s eyes shifted. “Better yet, leave together with Liu Fang. Who knows? The two of you might both get infected!”
The woman opened and closed her lips. After stammering for a while, she still didn’t dare say anything else.
Once everyone had dispersed, the woman silently walked toward the changing room.
She hesitated outside the door for a long time. Finally, she pushed it open and looked at the person inside who had just hung up the phone.
“…Sister Fang.”
Xiaoling turned around and flashed a broad smile, hurriedly beckoning her over.
“How are you? I must’ve frightened you today. Does your arm still hurt?”
Xiaoling slowly walked over to her and rubbed her own arm before shaking her head. “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”
She bit her lip. “Sister Fang, thank you for helping me today. Otherwise, I would definitely have been the one who got bitten.”
Only then had Brother Li’s words made her realize that Sister Fang had taken the bite meant for her.
“Oh, it was nothing. I’ve got tough skin and thick flesh. What’s one bite?” Sister Fang said cheerfully.
Xiaoling looked at the bandaged arm, feeling somewhat nervous. “Sister Fang, will you get infected?”
Sister Fang smiled warmly. “That guest said the chances of my getting infected are very low. Don’t you dare blame yourself over this.”
“There are still plenty of good people in the world. That guest gave me medicine and explained so many things to me. I really met a benefactor!”
“She’s really that kind?”
“Of course! If you had been the one bitten, she would have helped you too!”
Xiaoling gazed at Sister Fang and made up her mind. She grabbed her hand.
“Sister Fang, go tell the guest in Room 203. Brother Li and the others are going to cut off the water and electricity to Room 203!”
“Brother Li… You know what he’s like. As soon as he became temporary manager, he dismissed Xiaowang.”
And all Xiaowang had done was refuse to cover Brother Li’s shift once.
Brother Li’s vindictiveness was no small matter.
Cutting off the water and electricity was probably only the first step.
Sister Fang grew anxious when she heard this. “That won’t do. I-I’ll go tell the guest. If necessary, I’ll file a complaint with the general manager!”
In any case, they absolutely couldn’t let a good person be bullied by him like this.