Chen Nian’s Gamble

In 2137, the⁠​‍‌‍‍‍⁠‌​​‌​⁠‍​​‌⁠‌‌‍‌​ orphanage had not yet undergone mutation.

A new face appeared in the cafeteria. Chen Nian noticed her name stitched onto her clothes: Sisi.

She was thin and silent, taking her food and sitting in a corner. She meticulously scraped every pea from her bowl with a spoon. Just as she swallowed the last bite, one of the older kids collecting “protection food” slammed a fist onto her table.

Chen Nian spoke up. “Her share’s with me.”

He used his spoon to split his bowl of peas in half and pushed the entire bowl toward the older kid. “Hers and mine. Is that okay?”

After leaving the cafeteria, Sisi followed Chen Nian. She trailed behind him, hesitant but silent. By the next day, Chen Nian couldn’t take it anymore and explained, “My sister’s name was Chen Si. She was disposed of after her mutation. I helped you because your name reminded me of her. Don’t follow me anymore. Sticking together as newcomers will only make you more of a target.”

Sisi listened quietly. Then, she pulled out a damp piece of newspaper wrapped around a handful of peas.

“I saved these from last night’s dinner to give back to you,” she said.

Before Chen Nian could react, she added, “I know how survival works here, but I really don’t want to live a life where I can only eat half my food. Don’t help me again.”

Her voice was cautious, as if afraid of offending him. After speaking, she squinted and gave him a small smile—fake and strained, like a devil trying hard to appear friendly.

At lunch, she defiantly crunched her way through an entire ration biscuit under everyone’s gaze.

When the same older kid slammed his fist on her table again, she calmly set down her bowl, leapt up like a nimble cat, and punched him square in the face.

The loud thud left Chen Nian staring at her in shock for a full ten seconds.

Not just him—the entire cafeteria froze.

The “little cat” landed silently, leaving the older kid with a bloody nose and scratches from her sharp nails.

“Stay away from me,” she said with a squinted grin. “I’m still in the mutation observation period, you know.”

She picked up the bag of rations from the ground and walked away.

Chen Nian thought she might share the biscuits with everyone later. But instead, she spent the afternoon in the reading room, flipping through every newspaper and finishing off all the biscuits herself.

That night, Chen Nian discovered she slept in the room next to his—because she spent the entire night hiccupping from indigestion, keeping everyone awake.

Sisi’s appetite was insatiable. For a long time, Chen Nian worried she’d become the next food-hoarding bully. But at some point, he stopped handing over his share of the rations—or rather, started giving half of it to Sisi.

None of the bullies objected.

Sharing rations became routine. Eventually, they ate together, then started walking to the reading room as a pair. Sisi was fascinated by human society. She memorized every newspaper she read, dreaming of returning to the city.

She told Chen Nian, “Before my family mutated, I’d just transferred to a decent school after escaping a trashy one. I was aiming for the Main City, hoping to bring my family there for a good life. That dream’s gone now, but I can still live well on my own. Maybe I’ll even raise a few genetically pure, mutation-free cats.”

In 2138, during a health check-up, Sisi said, “That white-haired, gold-eyed kid before you is a monster. They say he sleeps ten months a year—stay away from him.”

Later, he unfortunately came into contact with the monster’s blood. Sisi was horrified. She removed the sterilized gauze that the management teacher had covered him with, knelt down and tore open the small piece of broken skin with her teeth. The blood she sucked out showed no signs of contamination.

Chen Nian suspected that she was playing a trick on him. He wanted to wipe the blood off the corner of her mouth, but before he stretched out his finger, she suddenly knelt between his legs, leaned forward and kissed him on the lips.

“I sucked your dirty blood.” Sisi said, “If we are to be distorted, we will be distorted together. If we are to die, we will die together.”

“You can leave together in the future, the time should be about the same.” Bai Jing said with a smile while sitting in the reading room.

Bai Jing was his only friend, who had moved to District D a long time ago. They didn’t see each other often, but they had a good relationship. Bai Jing was older than most people. He seemed to be born with a sense of responsibility, so many children regarded him as an older brother.

Chen Nian nodded, “Well, if I finish the observation period first, I will stay a little longer to wait for her.”

Bai Jing smiled and said, “You kid.”

Chen Nian asked, “Brother Jing is about to finish the observation period, right?”

“Yeah.” Bai Jing paused, “But I may not leave.”

“Why?”

“I want to apply to stay here as a staff member.” Bai Jing smiled and sighed, “In addition to you, there are several other guys who are causing me trouble. I will leave after your observation period is over. It’s good to stay here. I don’t have to worry about food and drink, and I can save some money.”

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When Chen Nian woke up, the candle was held in his palm. He didn’t know if it was because he held it for too long, but the candle seemed to solidify into his body.

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The equipment showed that Sisi’s gene entropy had exceeded 1,000, and her mental power was fortunately stable in the safe range, but she seemed to have an accident during the mutation process. The body could not withstand the impact of the mutation and fell into a coma. Although she was still alive, she was gradually dying.

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The price is burning itself.

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Chen Nian had no idea that his memory was being read, and looked at him in confusion, “Why are you distracted?”

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He paused, “If you can stop the snowstorm here and let time flow again, please take her to the Main City. She is a good person, I promise.”

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The boy in Chen Nian’s memory flashed before An Yu’s eyes.

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Chen Nian smiled, closed his eyes and said firmly: “When there are no more people on this floor that Brother Jing wants to protect, we can go to the next floor.”

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Qin Zhilu reappeared in this space, Slade was frightened and pale, and Chen Nian was so surprised that he couldn’t speak for a long time.

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He took off the old white gloves and gently stroked the gun body with his fingertips.

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The faint flickering candlelight in the darkness illuminated the pair of black eyes that were as calm as ever.

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“Thank you for reminding us. We will.”

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“I believe it.” He said softly, looking deeply at An Yu, “I suddenly can’t sense your presence again. Maybe I’m really running out of energy. It seems that you came at the right time.”

He closed his eyes again and said softly, “Please look over her when she wakes up in my stead. Thank you.”

After the gunshot, Qin Zhilu looked around Chen Nian’s wound for a long time and confirmed that he was dead.

He put away the candle he took from Chen Nian’s hand and put on his gloves again. The blood on his hands seeped out from behind the cloth, leaving a large, glaring blood stain.

Slade had turned his head away long ago, and only An Yu kept watching his Commander.

He remembered what Zhu Tao said in District 53, one button for more than two million lives, Qin Zhilu never hesitated back then.

Qin Zhilu put away his gun and said, “You were distracted for a long time when you looked at him, which reminded me of the night when I wrote the report for you. You suddenly came to me and stared at me for a long time.”

An Yu was stunned and was about to explain when Qin Zhilu glanced at him and said calmly, “If your second ability is related to reading memories, you should write down what you saw in the report later.”

He paused and said, “Or you can explain it to me in detail. Your writing is too bad.”

He looked normal and there was no fluctuation.

An Yu was not surprised that his ability was guessed. After all, the Commander seemed to always be able to see through everything.

He just felt that under the Commander’s calmness, a silent and huge emotion was shrouding him, pressing down on that upright figure.

As if subconsciously, he asked softly, “Is the trigger today heavier than the button back then?”

Qin Zhilu paused for a moment.

He turned around and stared into An Yu’s eyes for a long time before asking, “Do you think I’m scary?”

“I just think the sound of gunfire is scary.” An Yu said.

He was silent for a while and then said, “Actually, I can do it too.”

Qin Zhilu seemed to smile lightly, “I know you can. You didn’t hesitate at all when you killed Ling Qiu.”

“Then do you think I…”

“No.”

“Once the button is pressed, the only one who really suffers is the person who presses the button. As someone under my supervision, you must learn to resolutely kill your companions when necessary.”

Qin Zhilu paused, raised his left hand without blood, and gently patted An Yu’s head.

Although his voice seemed deeper than usual, his movements were somewhat gentle, like it was an illusion.

“No matter what happens, no matter who you face——” Qin Zhilu looked into his eyes and said slowly: “Never forget your determination to kill Ling Qiu with your own hands that day.”

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[Broken Snowflakes] Chen Nian (2/3) I wish the snowstorm would stop

At the moment of making the decision, I felt relieved.

In fact, I am not sure whether the monster with white hair and golden eyes is the one I should wait for.

But now, it is indeed the time to go all-in.

The man in the black windbreaker who suddenly appeared. I have seen him before in the newspaper.

Sisi once said that he is the last line of defense for mankind.

Since Sisi admires him, I choose to believe him too.

Before he shot, I did not look at her again.

Although I was relieved enough and had enough faith.

But I know that if I look at it for a little longer, I will be reluctant.

I hope that this snowstorm will stop before the candle is completely extinguished.