CH 37

Chapter 37 – Esophagus 9

Zhang DunDun was very satisfied with the current situation.

Under his leadership, his teammates gathered all the food in the monastery and they were now all in his hands. Although it was just a few bags of milk powder, it wasn’t a small achievement.

He discovered that the nun deliberately refused to feed them. If this continues, then these three to five year olds will not last for three days. The milk powder hidden everywhere was obviously a precious supply item. With milk powder, they can maintain their physical strength and whether it was for exploring puzzles or evading the monster’s pursuit, they could have more confidence.

But he just didn’t understand why that guy named Xu RenDong always looked down on him?!

Obviously they were both veteran players so they should work together! Doesn’t he understand that fighting will only make him die faster?

And that Lian Qiao dared to question his ability! A mere rookie, what right does he have to make irresponsible remarks towards him? Doesn’t he know how much danger he has gone through to live until now!

The most irritating one was that Ye QingLiu, who took his milk powder and was not grateful at all! Fortunately, he had anticipated this long ago.

Zhang DunDun’s mouth raised in a smug smile.

It was not milk powder that he handed to Ye QingLiu but wall dust. It was his mockery of all those who looked down on him.

A thick smell of milk wafted from the kitchen. A dozen friends gathered around the dining table, a dozen pairs of eyes staring at him expectantly and gazing at the powdered milk in his hand. This feeling of being the center of attention made Zhang DunDun feel great about himself.

He was in such a good mood that when Ren GaoFei called him “Little Fat Brother”, he was not angry and just glared at Ren GaoFei.

“How many times have you said it, don’t call me that!”

Ren GaoFei smiled helplessly: “You refuse to tell us what your name is so what should we call you then?”

Zhang DunDun frowned and said in displeasure: “What do you know? How can I reveal my true identity so easily?” He stirred the powdered milk in the glass, revealing the mannerisms of an old man which did not match his appearance currently. “You guys ah, you are all too inexperienced. As someone who’s been around before, I advise you not to tell others your real name casually, let alone trust others.” He paused and sighed, “After all, there are not many good old-timers like me.”

“Fat… “Ren GaoFei almost called him the wrong thing again but fortunately stopped his words in a timely manner, corrected himself and said, “Brother, you’re right. “

All the hungry children were staring at the milk powder. ZhangDunDun couldn’t help but respond with a satisfied smile. He pushed the glass in front of the children and announced, “Okay, the milk powder is ready. Now everyone have a sip. Be careful, don’t be greedy and save some for others. Don’t be selfish.”

Everyone showed a surprised expression: “Why can we only have one sip?” “Don’t we have several bags of milk powder?” “One sip is not enough!”

Zhang DunDun frowned but immediately stretched out his expression again and made it more pleasant. He explained: “It’s the second day now. We don’t have a clue about the world at all. We don’t know how long we will spend here! You have all seen it, and right now this is all the food in the monatery. If we don’t ration them I’m afraid….” He sighed, his chubby little hand hooked, and brought all the bags of milk powder on the table to his chest. “Trust me things will turn out bad. People will be forced to do things they don’t want. But let’s not let it become like that, okay?”

The children understood what he meant, although they were still a little bit dissatisfied in their hearts. But they also think that he makes sense. After all, he is an old player who has stepped into the world of ghosts and monsters many times, so they still need to listen to his advice.

“That’s right, I agree.” A thin girl first stretched out her hand, raised the glass and said, “Everyone let’s keep our heads up. I’ll only drink a small sip.”

Under all eyes, she really only drank a small sip of milk powder and then immediately passed the glass to the next person.

Zhang DunDun said with satisfaction: “Thank you for making a good start.”

As a result, under the leadership of the old players, everyone followed the rules and simply took one sip. Although this sip of milk powder is just a drop in the bucket, for everyone who has not eaten for a whole day and night, this milk powder is extraordinarily sweet. Everyone couldn’t help but smack their lips, enjoying the lingering scent of milk between their lips and teeth.

As the leader of the team, Zhang DunDun naturally did not abuse his power. He just added some hot water after the milk powder in the cup reached the bottom and drank the remaining milk in the cup into his belly. This action once again won the hearts and minds of his followers and a little girl was even so moved that her eyes blushed and she choked and said: “Fat brother, fortunately you’re here!”

Zhang DunDun heard this harsh name again. Looking intently, he saw this girl was one of the ones who had defected from Xu RenDong’s team. His heart became even more unhappy. He felt it was necessary to emphasize the importance of this matter and was about to speak but suddenly saw a pale face flashing outside the door.

Zhang DunDun was shocked and suddenly chills down on his back. When he looked carefully, he realized that it was the old nun again. Then he thought about it. A dozen teammates who support and love him are all around him. What does he need to be afraid of a NPC for? With confidence in his heart, he smiled and said, “Auntie, what’s the matter?”

The children were surprised when they heard the word “Auntie”. The old nun ordered them to not eat but they gathered here to steal milk powder and were caught. They didn’t know how the old nun would punish them. Everyone’s hearts were tight and the faces of the newcomers showed uncontrollable panic. Even the old players’ eyes were erratic and they didn’t dare to look at the old nun.

“What are you doing?” the old nun asked darkly.

Zhang DunDun had already hidden the milk powder behind him. At this time, he was very calm and pointed to the kettle and said: “We are drinking water. Didn’t you say we need to be punished so we can’t eat? We got too hungry so we could only drink some cold water to satisfy our hunger.”

“Drink water?” The old nun let out a rustle of laughter from her dry throat, and her fish-like eyes swept across everyone present. “Drink water? Hahahahaha…”

“Fat brother…” That new girl who had defected flinched and looked at him with fear.

Zhang DunDun glared at the girl, and whispered displeasedly: “What are you afraid of? We haven’t done anything wrong.” He raised his head and looked straight at the old nun without fear, “Auntie, is there anything else? If not, we want to go upstairs to sleep.”

“Hahahahaha… drink water? Hahahahaha…” The old nun repeated the word “drink water” and left with a strange smile. The laughter echoed in the quiet and dark monastery, and it was particularly harsh. Everyone was horrified, including Zhang DunDun.

But Zhang DunDun didn’t show the slightest cowardice because the new girl had already cast admiring eyes on him: “Fat brother, you are so amazing! Are you really not afraid of her at all?”

Zhang DunDun showed a deep smile. Then his smile disappeared  and he solemnly said: “Okay, let’s be safe for the time being. Just in case, I will keep this milk powder first. After all, I have the most experience here, so let me take care of any dangers.”

The old nun has not allowed them to eat and they will be punished if she discovered they have secretly hidden milk powder. So everyone nodded and agreed to hand over the milk powder to him for safekeeping. The eyes of the newcomers flashed with gratitude, but the old players knew what was up: This little fad kid appeared to mean well but in fact, he just wanted to hold the most precious food tightly in his own hands.

Zhang DunDun continued: “I have one more thing to announce.” He touched the smooth surface of the milk powder packaging bag and said sincerely, “Since everyone is willing to entrust such precious things to me, it can be seen that everyone indeed trusts me very much. Then I have to show some sincerity and stop concealing my identity. I will make it clear that I am Zhang E’Yun, means ‘the cloud moving forward’.”

The name “E’Yun” was a bit strange and at first when he spoke no one reacted until he explained the meaning of his name. Then the newcomer girl beside him covered her mouth and exclaimed: “Are you the Zhang E’Yun who just won an award?!”

Zhang DunDun nodded humbly.

Ren GaoFei said in surprise: “Do you know him?”

The new girl said: “Zhang E’Yun the great writer! He just won the XX Literature Award, and it was in the newspaper two days ago!” She looked around in surprise, “You all don’t you know him?”

“Zhang E’Yun…” The thin little girl thought for a moment then glanced suspiciously at Zhang DunDun, “That writer who is said to be a classically beautiful man?”

Zhang DunDun modestly gave a little bow. “I don’t dare claim such things. It’s just my media friends creating a bit of a fuss.”

“I just knew that Brother Fat……… cough. “Ren GaoFei quickly corrected himself,” I knew our Brother Zhang was extraordinary and turns out you’re a great writer! No wonder your mind is so clear and your thinking so careful. It seems we’re really saved this time!

Everyone showered him with praise. Zhang DunDun made a low-key gesture and thanked everyone. The corners of his mouth raised slightly,and his eyes were wise and deep. He felt that the expressions that he had practiced for many years finally came of use- of course, he wasn’t practicing for this moment.

He prepared for an upcoming TV interview.

For the video interview, he even started a hunger strike to lose weight three days ago. Even though he was already very thin and he didn’t look like he did when he was a child, he was still dissatisfied. He hopes that he could be even thinner and more listless looking, so he can truly display classical beauty and conform to the beautiful name of “Drinking with the Clouds” that he has made for himself.

He wants to show his perfect self in front of everyone so that those who look down on him and those who scolded him for being a fat piggy would be shocked. They would regret their whole lives for having looked down on him, being rude to him and offending him! He wanted to make them cry and deeply regret why they chose to laugh at him and bully him back then. At that time no one stood by him and no one said a word for him.

He is about to fulfill his long-cherished wish of many years but why, just at this time,  did the elevator appear? !

When he was desperately dieting and exercising, when he was writing all night, when he was toasting and drinking with the committee members in order to win the nomination for the literary award, he had already experienced the ghost world several times. He knew what the appearance of the elevator meant and he also knew that he might not have the luck to survive the next time.

But why did it happen at this time!

…He must not die!

When everyone had gotten into their beds and had gone to sleep, Zhang DunDun quietly reached into the powdered milk bag and took out the dry powdered milk bit by bit.

He moistened his mouth with saliva, trying not to let himself make any noise. He has estimated that according to the ration he announced, the dozen or so people around him will experience fatigue, edema and even coma after three days due to severe malnutrition. But he can maintain the normal operation of the body with enough milk powder.

He was the most familiar with dieting. Dieting was simply his best friend. When he didn’t have the courage to go to the gym, when those people provoked him at the class reunion, when he got on the elevator and it indicated it was overweight, leading to strangers looking at him with disgust… only dieting lent him a helping hand. Only dieting helped him lose weight.

Really, it’s really not easy for him to lose weight. Three generations of his ancestors were all goddamn fatties. His whole family shamelessly indulged the fat on their bodies. Even his biological parents stupidly named him “Zhang DunDun.” How disgusting and vulgar! He hated this name, hated his family and hated everything that put him in a miserable place.

When he sacrificed his health, overdrew his life and even gave up his dignity and bowed his knees, he finally appeared in front of the crowd with a brand-new position and body and slapped them in the face fiercely.

So how could he die?

Zhang DunDun swallowed the dry powdered milk viciously, his bulging chest filled with resentment and sadistic pleasure. He could already see the panicked expression on the faces of the people who mocked him.

Thinking about it, he couldn’t help but grin and smiled triumphantly.

He smiled so happily that he didn’t notice the slender and pale ghostly figure next to the door.