Chapter 124: Didn’t Argue With Him

Liang Shuyun looked across the parking level at the residents who had already begun approaching Luo with questions.

She had wanted Shichen to tell them what to do. Instead, he had placed part of the building into her hands from a shelter she couldn’t reach.

"I have a five-year-old daughter and two parents to care for," she reminded him. Her frustration emerged more clearly now that the immediate danger had passed. "I can’t spend every hour supervising 300 people."

"You shouldn’t," Shichen agreed.

He opened the building’s access records and began assigning narrower permissions. "Create a maintenance group of five people. Luo will oversee mechanical systems. Select one person for electrical controls, one for water and two for security. No individual receives access outside their responsibility."

His sister stared at him. "You already decided I would do it."

"I’m explaining how to make it manageable."

"You’re explaining how to run the building."

"Yes."

Shuyun closed her eyes briefly.

Their father shifted Nian into Wenlan’s arms before taking the phone from her. Jianye’s expression remained severe, but the anger behind it had changed direction.

"Your sister will organize the maintenance group," he told Shichen. The decision made Shuyun open her eyes, though she didn’t object. "I’ll deal with the committee and the residents."

"You can’t threaten everyone who disagrees with you," Wenlan warned from beside him.

"I don’t need to threaten them." Jianye looked toward Mr. Du, who remained near the food tables pretending not to watch the family. "I only need to explain that the last man they trusted nearly destroyed the entire cooling system."

For the first time since the call began, Shichen recognized part of himself in his father.

He reviewed the permissions once more before sending them. "I’ll monitor the building remotely and call every morning at 8:00."

His mother’s attention returned to him. "To check the machinery?"

Shichen understood the correction she wanted.

"To check the machinery and speak to you."

Wenlan accepted the answer with a small nod.

Nian had become drowsy again in her grandmother’s arms. She rested one hand against the phone as if she could touch her uncle through the screen.

"You can come tomorrow on the phone," she decided.

Shichen looked at the pressure readings, the ventilation controls and the faces of the family he had reduced to access records for seven days.

"Yes," he promised. "I can come tomorrow on the phone."

His niece considered that arrangement before nodding. Then she asked him to read the story about the rabbit who refused to sleep.

Shichen had no idea which story she meant.

Shuyun smiled when his confusion became apparent. "I’ll send you a photograph of the book."

The photograph arrived before Shichen could ask what a rabbit had to do with refusing sleep.

Shuyun had captured two pages at once. The angle distorted half the text, glare from an emergency light obscured several sentences and Nian’s fingers covered the final line.

Shichen enlarged the image and attempted to reconstruct the missing words.

"The rabbit left his bed because the moon was awake," he began. His tone resembled the one he used while presenting structural reports to municipal inspectors. "He determined that sleeping was unnecessary when other creatures remained active."

Zeyu stopped eating.

Across the communications wall, Shuyun pressed her lips together while his mother looked down at Nian to hide a smile.

Shichen noticed their reactions but continued. "The rabbit’s mother explained that the moon did not have school the following morning and was therefore operating under different scheduling requirements."

"That isn’t what it says," Nian mumbled from her grandmother’s arms. Her eyes remained closed, but her familiarity with the story survived exhaustion. "The moon watches everyone sleep."

"The sentence is covered by your hand," replied Shichen softly with a smile on his face.

Shuyun moved closer and adjusted the book beneath the phone. "Try again."

The newly visible line confirmed that Shichen’s interpretation had been incorrect.

He corrected himself without apology and continued reading while monitoring Qingsong’s systems on the adjacent display.

Luo reopened the remaining fresh-air intakes one at a time.

Each change increased the interior temperature, but the heat-exchange system absorbed part of the difference before distributing the air.

Carbon-dioxide levels continued falling throughout the underground zones, and the residents reporting dizziness began recovering without further intervention.

Nian fell asleep before the rabbit returned to bed.

Shichen finished the story anyway.

His mother remained on the call until he closed the final page. The distance in her expression hadn’t disappeared, but it had changed into something less absolute.

"Eight o’clock tomorrow," she reminded him quietly. Her voice made it clear that the scheduled call had already become an obligation rather than a suggestion. "Nian will expect you."

"I entered it into my calendar."

Wenlan’s mouth curved. "Of course you did."

His father reclaimed the phone long enough to confirm that he had received the building permissions.

Liang Jianye intended to assemble the maintenance group before morning and inspect the food distribution records after Shichen pointed out that 317 detected occupants had been sharing supplies intended for 216 residents.

Shuyun looked tired merely hearing the assignment expand.

Before ending the call, Shichen instructed her to return their parents and Nian to the apartment.

The underground air would require several hours to stabilize, and the eastern bedroom upstairs remained safer despite the higher temperature.

This time, she didn’t argue with him.

The call ended after 72 minutes.

Shichen immediately opened Qingsong’s maintenance log and documented every unauthorized change, the steps taken to reverse it and the names of the people holding new access permissions.

Zeyu watched him work for almost a minute before crossing the room.

"Your niece asked for a bedtime story," he said, leaning one hip against the terminal. "You spent half of it explaining why the rabbit shouldn’t have wandered into the forest alone."

Shichen kept his attention on the maintenance log, although embarrassment tightened the back of his neck. "He left home without telling anyone where he was going. I wasn’t going to pretend that was a good decision."

"He was looking for carrots."

"There were probably carrots at home."

Zeyu studied his profile before beginning to smile. "You were worried Nian would hear the story and decide to follow a rabbit into the apocalypse."

"She’s six," Shichen replied, finally looking at him. "Six-year-olds make terrible decisions."

"That is why most bedtime stories don’t include a risk assessment."

"I didn’t know what else to say." Shichen returned to the maintenance log before Zeyu could enjoy the admission too much. "She fell asleep. That was the whole point."

"Possibly to escape."

The corner of Shichen’s mouth moved despite his attempt to suppress it. "She asked me to read the same book again tomorrow."

Zeyu’s amusement softened. "Then I suppose the rabbit survived your performance."

Jingwei passed behind Zeyu and removed the empty cracker package from his hand. "You’ve eaten enough for tonight."

The confiscation distracted Zeyu more effectively than anything Shichen could have said.

He followed Jingwei toward the kitchen while protesting that an opened package constituted a single portion regardless of its weight.

The familiar argument eased some of the tension left by the family call.

Shichen completed the report, then programmed alerts to notify him if anyone altered Qingsong’s cooling, ventilation or emergency-access controls.

He couldn’t prevent the residents from making another frightened decision, but he could ensure that he learned about it before they finished sealing the building around themselves.

When he finally closed the plans, Qinghe remained beside the communications wall.

He had contributed medical guidance during the call but hadn’t left with the others. His attention rested on Qingsong’s improving air-quality readings, though the information no longer required him.

Shichen understood why he remained.

The conversation had forced every man in the shelter to consider the people outside it.