The sky over City B was a gloomy gray.
A sinister Demon Qi obscured the bright sunshine.
Winter was already cold, and the bit of warmth from the sun disappeared without a trace, making people feel inexplicably cold.
Beneath the dreary sky, the villa of Bai Yinman stood like a colossal tomb.
Desolate, without the slightest sign of habitation or the warmth of a living hearth.
If there had been any sign of cooking in the kitchen, the house might have had some positive energy.
Clearly, although Bai Yinman lived there, she had already become one of the Living Dead, rarely making normal meals three times a day.
I took a deep breath and walked to the door, just as I was about to press the doorbell.
Bai Yinman's voice, pale and indifferent, came through, "Han Dai, I did not expect you would come looking for me. Aren't you filming your big fantasy drama in Xiangshan? What are you doing here? To show off your power?"
I looked at my phone, and Han Dai hadn't replied to the message I sent her.
It seems she had just arrived at Bai Yinman's house, so she hadn't seen it yet.
The timing was just right, Han Dai was lucky not to have been caught by the zombie demon, and she had even arrived at Bai Yinman's place before me.
Han Dai explained humbly, "Yinman, you've misunderstood me. I...I didn't come to show off my power, I came to you for help."
Bai Yinman: "For help?"
"Your child has turned into a zombie demon and wants to kill me," Han Dai said in a panic.
Upon hearing this, Bai Yinman suddenly became furious and grief-stricken, "What nonsense are you spouting? How could my child possibly be a zombie demon? And you say you didn't come to trouble me? With your career booming and me having never wronged you, can't you just leave me alone?"
"Please, you must believe what I'm saying. She really has turned into a zombie demon."
In her urgency, Han Dai's emotional intelligence dropped into the negatives. Without any linguistic finesse, she confessed and explained in a flurried tone, "I was wrong before; I should not have been so arrogantly callous in exposing your sore point, much less should have thrown your child. Although it was clear you approached Lin Wanyan first, I bullied you to cut in line, boasting over my higher status in the entertainment industry. I now realize my mistake... please, save me... your child's body has been manipulated by a villain, turned into a murderous zombie demon!"
A crisp slap echoed from within the house, accompanied by Bai Yinman's almost hysterical scream, "What good does your recognition do now? The good are bullied, and the meek are ridden over. My Congcong was so small, yet you had the heart to throw her so forcefully. At that moment, I wanted so badly to avenge her, to kill you with my own hands, to tear your face apart. Han Dai, I'm asking you to leave, to get out of my house!"
Despite the intense nature of the argument, each word struck deep into my heart. A slight movement touched my chest, as though it was being gripped by an uncomfortable hand.
I could very much empathize with the pain Bai Yinman felt in losing her child and the indescribable grief of her child being harmed.
But even though she hated Han Dai immensely, Bai Yinman still maintained sanity and decency, merely delivering a slap and asking Han Dai to leave. One could imagine how gentle Bai Yinman normally was.
It wasn't difficult to see why the little zombie demon, even when being controlled by someone, was still able to retain a trace of lucidity.
All of this was inherited from her mother.
"Don't ask me to go, Yinman. We've both been schemed against; believe me just this once." Han Dai was completely panicked and finally remembered there was also me to consider. "Miss Wan can vouch for all this; I will call her now... Wait, Miss Wan has called me. Let me return her call."
"What Miss Wan? I don't know her at all. Han Dai, if you don't leave now, if you keep throwing a fit and going crazy here, I'll have security escort you out," Bai Yinman would not believe a word from Han Dai, giving her a final ultimatum.