Lin Sanjiu had underestimated the fat man's stamina and overestimated the solidity of the shoelaces.
The moment Schmidt pushed the door open, she jumped up from behind the door and wrapped the rope made of shoelaces tightly around his neck. In the blink of an eye, the shoelaces had sunk into his thick neck. Shocked, Schmidt struggled with all his might. He hit Lin Sanjiu's face and shoulders a few times.
Lin Sanjiu did not dare to let her guard down. She endured his attacks and gripped her shoelace tightly, trying her best to tighten his throat. However, Schmidt was tall and fat, like a crazed walrus. Lin Sanjiu's slender body couldn't hold him down at all. She suddenly loosened her grip, and the shoelace slipped out of the knot she was tying.
Schmidt fell to the ground, panting heavily. His face had turned purplish red.
His eyeballs looked as if they were about to pop out of their sockets. "It's you! You … You … "Before he could finish his sentence, he snapped out of his daze. He turned around and pounced at the door." Come — "
Before he could shout for help, Lin Sanjiu grabbed the shoes that she had taken out earlier and pounced on him. She shoved the shoes into his mouth and shoved them into his mouth. Schmidt swallowed the latter half of his sentence. Not to be outdone, he started kicking and punching Lin Sanjiu. His punches were not light. Lin Sanjiu found it funny that the most strenuous fight she had ever had was with an ordinary man who weighed more than 100 pounds.
Even though she had extraordinary stamina, she was drenched in sweat after a few seconds of fighting. Even though Lin Sanjiu was no match for him in terms of strength, her years of experience in combat made her far superior to Schmidt's. Lin Sanjiu deliberately took a punch from him and staggered backward. As expected, Schmidt seized the opportunity and staggered toward the door. He shouted, "Quick, quick —"
Just as he finished speaking, a muffled sound came from the back of his head. A wooden chair broke into several pieces and fell to the ground with a clatter.
The fat man, who weighed more than 100 pounds, fell to the ground with a loud thud. His eyeballs rolled upward. He had not lost consciousness, but the excruciating pain had rendered him unable to make a sound.
Lin Sanjiu found a chair leg with a sharp stub and placed it on Schmidt's artery.
Before she could speak, a serious female voice in the house suddenly startled her. "Attention, fellow townsman Smith Gwynn, you have not confirmed your registration within the stipulated time. You have thirty seconds left … "
While Lin Sanjiu was still searching for the source of the voice, Smith struggled to get up from the broken chair leg in her hand. She stood up and took two steps back. The fat man in blue did not even look at her. Somehow, he managed to find the strength to move to the corner of the wall. He opened a small black box on the wall.
"Schmidt Gwynne," he gasped. "Confirm, report in."
There was a flash of light in the small black box, illuminating his face. In a split second, there was no sound. The blue-clothed fat man let out a heavy sigh, closed it, and fell to the ground again.
When the shadow cast by Lin Sanjiu shrouded his face, Schmidt Gavin opened his eyes after some time.
"Let's talk," Lin Sanjiu said as she poked the sharp stub into his fleshy skin. "If you do anything that I don't like, this wooden stake will be inserted into your artery. Do you understand? "
Schmidt's face contorted. For a moment, Lin Sanjiu could not tell whether it was hatred or fear on his face.
"You are finished," he gasped. "Even if you kill me, you will be caught."
"Oh? What do you mean? "
"Did you sneak out after confirming your registration?" He sneered. "It's useless. We have to confirm your registration every ten minutes. Once the organization finds out that you have violated the rules, you … You won't be able to leave Peanut Town … "
Lin Sanjiu shrugged. "I didn't confirm my registration."
When she saw that the fat man did not seem to understand her words, she said softly, "I didn't go back."
"That's impossible," the fat man denied immediately. Then, he seemed to have thought of something, and he hesitated. He stared at Lin Sanjiu and asked hesitantly, "How … How come your neighbors didn't see you?"
"What neighbors?"
Schmidt was even more incredulous. It was as if Lin Sanjiu was an alien. "After a morning stroll, all the neighbors who live in the same block will go home together. They should be watching you! They didn't do their job well! I'm going to report them! "
"Don't be angry just yet," she said as the wooden stake sank deeper into his skin. "That black mountain had advanced so far into the town center. The house and the block that was assigned to me had already been crushed into ruins."
"But … But …" Schmidt stammered. He looked around as if he was looking for someone who could tell him what to do. "That was twenty to thirty years ago," Lin Sanjiu said.
Lin Sanjiu was not surprised. She nodded noncommittally, "So, do you know that the black mountain has crushed a large number of houses in the past?"
Shmi snorted through his nose. "Show some respect. Don't call me that carelessly! That is the pride of Peanut Town since ancient times. It is a sacred mountain that has protected us for thousands of years! "
Judging from his age, he was already in his teens when the black mountain invaded Peanut Town. However, Smith seemed to believe that Black Mountain 'existed since ancient times' with all his heart and soul. His conviction was airtight and there was no room for anyone to argue with him.
"There were people in those houses, right?" Lin Sanjiu said softly. "I saw it turn a whole block of people into meat paste."
"That was a long time ago." Smith frowned. "You're right. During the migration, due to the limited conditions at that time, a few people were accidentally crushed to death. However, the sacred mountain can only protect us, take care of us, and lead us when it is in the center of the town. Everything that happened in the past was for the welfare of the entire town, so you can't deny it. In order to reach the center of the town, some people must have died. However, you don't understand. This is an inevitable trend in history. "
He spoke so fluently that Lin Sanjiu felt as if he had rehearsed it many times.
Lin Sanjiu was stunned for a moment, but he coughed and rolled his eyes, "If you are so fixated on the past, you won't be able to see the progress we have made over the years! Let me tell you, I am the author of the textbooks for Peanut Town Elementary School. I advise you to start with elementary school textbooks! "
As he spoke, Lin Sanjiu realized that Schmidt's voice had gotten louder. His voice had even reached the corridor outside. She quickly jabbed the wooden pillar and ordered him to shut up. Then, she crouched down and peeked through the round hole beside the door.
Lin Sanjiu shuddered involuntarily.
Her line of sight was level with the round hole on the opposite side of the corridor. In the dark hole, a pair of large, round eyes were staring unblinkingly in the direction of Shi Mi's house.
Lin Sanjiu shrunk her body a little. After making sure that the neighbors did not see her, she quickly scanned the corridor ahead. At first glance, she could only see a limited number of things, but she was able to leave a deep and clear impression. On the doors in the corridor, in the black holes on the doors, there were the eyes of the neighbors floating in them.
In this dilapidated residential building, the sound of the fight must have spread far and wide, so the neighbors on this floor must have heard it. However, no one came out to question the situation, no one came out to help Smith, and no one called for others to capture Lin Sanjiu. They just knelt quietly behind the door and peeped through the hole in the door. They were waiting for the next time to report the situation in the building to their superiors.
"How long until the next report?" Lin Sanjiu turned around and asked.
"About six or seven minutes." Schmidt was still lying on the ground. His face was pale when he moved, but he looked a little smug. "You finally realized that you are trapped in a cage. You can't escape even if you have wings."
Lin Sanjiu found it hard to understand what he had just said.
"Cage?" Lin Sanjiu found the man's words ridiculous. "Are you saying that I am trapped in a cage? Why don't you see what kind of life you are living? "
"What kind of life?" Schmidt glared at her. "A life of abundance! You can have anything you want! A happy and peaceful life for all! "
"When I first came to Peanut Town, I saw a woman walking her dog." Lin Sanjiu tilted her head and studied him for a while. Then, she stood up with the wooden stake in her hand. "Can you go out without permission now?"
"You don't understand," Schmidt pressed his hand on his head. The blow just now had caused him to bleed a lot. "It's very dangerous out there. If the town hall doesn't keep an eye on it and let people go out as they please, I don't know what will happen. Peanut Town is already a very safe place. You haven't seen the outside world yet! "
"Isn't Peanut Town on lockdown? Have you seen it before? "
"Of course. It's often shown on the TV." Schmidt moved to a corner and sat down. He watched as Lin Sanjiu rummaged through all the primary school textbooks that he had kept neatly. He seemed to think that Lin Sanjiu was doomed, so he didn't resist. He just smiled quietly, "There is no one to manage the places outside. There are no spiritual mountains. Murder, robbery, terrorist attacks … It's all because there isn't a superior management system like ours."
"Alright, I still have one more question."
Lin Sanjiu did not turn her head around. She was calculating the time she had left while she flipped through the colorful primary school textbooks in her hands. "Why do they force you to eat so much? It's like they are rearing pigs. What will happen to you if you get too fat? "
The fat man who was leaning against the wall was stunned for a moment. Then, he burst into laughter.
"They want us to eat more for our health. What are you thinking?" As he laughed, his eyebrows twitched. "Do you think the Sacred Mountain and Mayor Orlean want to eat our meat? Two days ago, an old lady died in our building. They buried her in the cemetery! I've lived here for so many years, and I've never seen anyone killed for meat because they were fat! "
His wound hurt so much that he had to stop, panting.
"Besides, all the food is distributed by the town hall. We can't finish it even if we want to. Tell me, if Mayor Orlean wants to eat meat, he can just eat the food distributed by himself. Why does he have to go through all this trouble? "
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