A dirty shoe flew out, heading directly towards Li Yu. Li Yu reacted quickly, shifting his body to the side, and the shoe narrowly whizzed past his eyes. The sneakers were worn like slippers, their heels completely flattened.
Thud!
Director Zhang, who was behind, wasn't as quick to react, and the shoe slapped him squarely in the face.
The shoe fell, leaving a faint, visible shoe print on his face.
Director Zhang's face showed a dazed expression, and a burst of snickers came from nearby.
Perhaps to save Director Zhang's face, the laughter was somewhat suppressed, but the more suppressed it was, the more noticeable it became.
Director Zhang's face immediately darkened, especially when he heard the low snickers around him, making him even angrier.
Humiliation! A dignified director, now the leader of this faction, was slapped in the face with a shoe!
"Who was that?!" Director Zhang cursed loudly.
He was about to continue his outburst, but he turned his head and saw Li Yu looking at him with a half-smile.
There seemed to be a hint of threat in his eyes.
Director Zhang's inner rage felt as if it had been doused with cold water. This Li Yu killed without batting an eye; he was not someone to be trifled with. Just now at the entrance, he killed those four people in one go, as if he were slaughtering chickens.
He had been following behind, listening to everyone's conversation, so he knew that Xiao Lata and Li Yu were acquainted. If he got angry now, Li Yu would definitely side with Xiao Lata. His anger would be useless; he couldn't beat him!
So, he forced a slight, rather awkward smile and said, "Uh, haha, ha, I'm just too unlucky. But shoes shouldn't be thrown around like that!"
Li Yu gave him a deep look, then started to enter the house, but before he could, the person inside came out.
A person about 175 centimeters tall emerged from the door, with a slender figure, graceful as a startled swan.
Her hair was a messy bird's nest, tangled, with some strands even knotted.
Her face was grimy, making it hard to make out her features at first glance, but just looking at her face shape, the smooth jawline appeared exceptionally harmonious.
She had extraordinarily long legs, which normal sweatpants seemed unable to contain, making them look like capris, subtly revealing a small section of her fair calves.
Pale! Very pale!
She was dragging a tattered backpack, its zipper half-open, containing some ham sausages, two lighters, and other supplies.
Li Yu saw her but didn't quite recognize her. After all, in his impression, although Xiao Lata's name meant 'Little Slob,' she wasn't this slovenly back then. However, in the apocalypse, slovenliness might also be a form of camouflage.
Looking at Xiao Lata, Li Yu fell into a memory:
When he was young, Li Yu often saw Xiao Lata when he went to his grandmother's house.
Every time he saw her, she was always alone, picking up trash on the street, and later everyone called her Xiao Lata.
But Li Yu only learned later, after he grew up, that Xiao Lata's parents had passed away when she was very young. She then grew up with her grandparents, and her grandfather had always collected scrap, with Xiao Lata helping him pick up trash.
His grandmother used to tell him her story:
When she was little, many children would shun Xiao Lata because she often picked up trash, saying she smelled bad, but Xiao Lata never paid them any mind.
Then a little boy said her house smelled bad. The young Xiao Lata, despite her small age, held the boy down and hit his face until it bled.
Later, the boy's parents, who were not good people either, took their child and ran to Xiao Lata's house, cursing loudly.
They also demanded compensation for medical expenses. Xiao Lata's grandparents were very old and struggled to make a living by picking up scrap, while also trying to save money for Xiao Lata's schooling.
After the boy's parents cursed at Xiao Lata's house, they found that Xiao Lata's grandparents had no money to pay, so they made a scene and smashed things in their home.
At that time, Li Yu's eldest uncle, grandfather, and grandmother were all there. Hearing the commotion, they ran to Xiao Lata's house.
Li Yu's eldest uncle was, after all, from the armed police force. He had just gotten off duty and was wearing his police uniform. As soon as he arrived, his presence intimidated the parents.
After all, the boy's face had been disfigured, with a long mark on it.
In the end, it was Li Yu's eldest uncle who paid a small sum of money, which resolved the matter.
Later, the two families became closer, and Li Yu's grandparents' family would often help Xiao Lata's family.
But after that incident, Xiao Lata was isolated in the neighborhood.
Many adults warned their children not to play with her, not to play with that crazy girl, so the children around her often avoided her as if she were a plague.
Every time Li Yu went to his grandfather's house, he often saw Xiao Lata alone.
She was either picking up trash by the roadside or often behind the main road, not far from her home, where there was a large palm tree.
Under the palm tree, she would often sit there alone.
A tiny figure.
Wearing ragged clothes, with messy hair, she would stare blankly at a sports field in front of her, where people were playing ball boisterously.
She was very sensible from a young age. She said she didn't like wearing dresses, or hair clips, or pink.
She liked picking up trash.
Every time Li Yu's grandfather and eldest uncle wanted to give them more support, they were reluctant to accept, feeling they could earn money by picking up trash.
Later, whenever Li Yu, Li Hang, and Li Yuan went to their grandfather's house, they would find Xiao Lata to play with.
Li Hang was naturally a mischievous person, so he insisted on dragging Li Yu to pick up trash with Xiao Lata.
During that summer, Li Yu, Li Hang, Li Yuan, and Xiao Lata picked up trash for an entire summer.
That year, the four children ran on the streets, laughed and played by the roadside, picked up trash in alleys and streets, and in the hot weather, the four of them put their heads under the tap, letting the water soak their hair.
Then, armed with wooden sticks, they split into two groups to see who could chop down more lotus leaves;
By the shallow stream, they splashed water and played;
They bought 50-cent packs of spicy strips from the convenience store, sharing them among the four;
They played hide-and-seek at their grandfather's house, and when it was time to find Li Hang, they ended up searching until late at night.
Eventually, the adults even started to call the police, and finally, when the eldest uncle rushed back, Li Hang foolishly climbed down from the small attic in the woodshed.
He mischievously declared himself the coolest.
That day, he couldn't quite remember how badly Li Hang was beaten.
But after that, Li Hang never played hide-and-seek again.
Later, summer vacation ended.
When Li Yu and the others went home, Li Yuan gave her a pink hair clip;
Li Hang didn't give her anything because Xiao Lata laughed the loudest when Li Hang was beaten that day;
Li Yu gave her his favorite pencil sharpener.
Xiao Lata gave them three very beautiful smooth pebbles. Who knows how long Xiao Lata searched by the river, but these three pebbles were exceptionally round and full.
Li Yu still liked them very much and kept them in his room as decoration.
That day, Xiao Lata told them she was very happy.
Later, in the sunset, Li Yu and the others left their grandfather's house by car. Xiao Lata stood by the roadside until they were gone.
Small, slovenly, standing against the wind, her clothes fluttering.