Chapter 214: Catching a Turtle in a Jar

The next morning, just as An Nan and Gu Zhiyu got up, Chu Xiaoguai came knocking at their door.

An Nan thought it was Chu Peipei, so when she opened the door and saw who it was, she was a bit surprised.

“Xiaoguai?”

She glanced behind her. “Where’s your mom? Why did you come by yourself?”

Chu Xiaoguai smiled. “Mom hasn’t gotten up yet. I came over on my own.”

She peeked inside. “Didn’t Auntie say before that I should come over and play a few days every week?”

An Nan knew exactly why she was here. She smiled and let her in.

As soon as Chu Xiaoguai entered, she dashed straight for the kitchen. “Brother Gu, are you making breakfast?”

She took an exaggerated deep breath. “It smells so good! I haven’t eaten yet—can I eat with you guys?”

Gu Zhiyu glanced at her. “No.”

“Thank you, Gu—” Chu Xiaoguai started to say, then paused. “Huh?” She thought she’d misheard. “Brother Gu, what did you say?”

Gu Zhiyu picked up the soup he’d just finished making and walked toward the dining room. “I said no.”

Chu Xiaoguai followed him out of the kitchen, looking stunned.

An Nan sat down at the table. “Sorry, Xiaoguai, there’s not enough food. We didn’t know you were coming, so we didn’t make a portion for you.”

Chu Xiaoguai was dumbfounded.

They could easily spare a little from each of their plates and it’d be enough for her, but they were actually telling her there wasn’t enough?

She stood there awkwardly while the two of them started eating with great relish.

An Nan said, “This egg pancake is so good!”

Gu Zhiyu picked up a piece of kimbap and put it on An Nan’s plate. “Try this.”

An Nan popped it into her mouth. “Mm, this is delicious too.”

She took a spoonful of hot soup, then finally turned to say, “Xiaoguai, why are you standing there? Go sit on the sofa. We’ll be done soon.”

Her tone was polite and sincere.

Chu Xiaoguai touched her empty stomach and reluctantly went to the sofa.

The two of them were eating so happily that Chu Xiaoguai’s stomach started growling loudly as she sat on the sofa.

An Nan and Gu Zhiyu ignored her and kept eating.

After a while, just as Chu Xiaoguai was about to leave out of boredom, An Nan put down her chopsticks.

“You clean up. I’ll go keep Xiaoguai company for a bit.”

Chu Xiaoguai immediately sat back down.

Gu Zhiyu started clearing the dishes at a leisurely pace. Chu Xiaoguai could clearly see there was still plenty of food left on the plates.

They’d rather waste it than give her any?

She looked aggrieved. “Brother Gu…”

Gu Zhiyu turned back coldly. “What?”

Chu Xiaoguai was at a loss. He wasn’t like this yesterday. How did everything change overnight?

She could only whimper, “I haven’t eaten yet…”

Gu Zhiyu was impatient. “I know. You’ve said that a lot already.”

An Nan was trying hard not to laugh.

Seeing that playing the victim wasn’t working, Chu Xiaoguai asked directly, “Can I have the leftovers?”

Gu Zhiyu dumped the food into the dog’s bowl. “No. That’s for Fugui.”

Then he asked with a straight face, “Why are you trying to steal food from a dog?”

Chu Xiaoguai was about to explode with anger.

Gu Zhiyu, unfazed, went back to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

Chu Xiaoguai sat on the sofa, unwilling to give up, and whined to An Nan, “Auntie…”

An Nan raised an eyebrow. “Call me sister-in-law.”

Chu Xiaoguai was stunned. “Sister-in-law?”

An Nan pointed to the kitchen. “We’re a couple.”

“If you don’t want to call him Uncle Gu, then you’ll have to call me sister-in-law.”

Chu Xiaoguai opened her mouth, but just couldn’t bring herself to say it.

She couldn’t help glancing at Gu Zhiyu in the kitchen, then asked in surprise, “Auntie, do you guys have a lot of water stored up?”

No one washes dishes anymore these days. Even Chu Peipei, who has plenty of supplies, just wipes things down with bread and calls it a day.

Even if their family was better off, would they really waste water like this?

An Nan gave her a meaningful smile. “Curious, are you?”

Chu Xiaoguai nodded.

An Nan leaned in a little. “Curiosity killed the cat, you know.”

Chu Xiaoguai shivered under her gaze.

Stories about the “she-devil” from the neighbors and the bloodstains in the hallway walls flashed through her mind.

She quickly looked away, flustered.

Staring at the kitchen, she said, “Auntie, I’m really hungry. Can I have something to eat?”

An Nan saw her avoiding her gaze and smirked. “Want food? Go ask your Brother Gu in the kitchen.”

Chu Xiaoguai hesitated. “But Brother Gu doesn’t seem to like me today…”

Her stomach growled again.

If she’d known, she would’ve just eaten at home before coming.

She’d wanted to have breakfast with Brother Gu, but now she was hungry and getting the cold shoulder for no reason.

An Nan smiled. “What do you mean ‘doesn’t like you today’? We’ve never liked you.”

Chu Xiaoguai didn’t get it. “What?”

An Nan was done pretending. “What’s your real name?”

Chu Xiaoguai said, “What real name? I’m Xiaoguai.”

An Nan rolled her eyes. “Drop the act. How old are you really?”

Chu Xiaoguai tensed up. “Nine.”

An Nan shook her head. “Tell the truth.”

Chu Xiaoguai was about to cry. “I am telling the truth.”

An Nan smiled. “You think you’re clever, don’t you? Let me tell you, in this world now, brains don’t matter—fists do.”

She looked her up and down, sizing up her tiny frame.

Chu Xiaoguai felt a chill run from her feet to the top of her head.

Gu Zhiyu finished washing the dishes and came out, his face cold as well.

Facing the pressure from both of them, Chu Xiaoguai sensed danger and tried to leave.

“I’m going home. My mom will worry if she wakes up and can’t find me.”

An Nan raised an eyebrow. Was she trying to threaten her with Chu Peipei? She wasn’t falling for that.

An Nan grabbed Chu Xiaoguai. “I suggest you answer my questions honestly.”

Chu Xiaoguai shrank back, trying to escape.

An Nan pointed at the fridge. “Aren’t you curious why we have so much meat?”

Her expression turned a little sinister. “There are plenty of stubborn people like you in this world. All I have to do is lift a finger, and I’ll have more meat than I can eat.”

She looked Chu Xiaoguai up and down.

The little girl was shaking all over, held tightly in An Nan’s grip.

“W-what do you want? I’m warning you, my mom will be here soon.”

An Nan raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Then I’ll make sure you never see your mom again.”

She turned to Gu Zhiyu. “It’s not unusual for a kid to go missing in the apocalypse, right?”

Gu Zhiyu nodded. “Not unusual.”

Realizing things were going south, Chu Xiaoguai opened her mouth to scream, but Gu Zhiyu punched her hard, leaving her dazed.

An Nan raised an eyebrow. “You’re pretty ruthless with kids, huh?”

Gu Zhiyu said, “I have no manners.”

An Nan smirked, pulling out a bayonet. “My turn!”

As the tip of the blade neared her eye, Chu Xiaoguai screamed in terror, “I’ll talk! I’ll tell you everything!”"