novelraw Chapter 66 : Photo
Chapter 66 : Photo
Chapter 66: Photo
"Completely disappeared? Never to be seen again?" When Zhang Wenda heard this, his heart suddenly sank.
He hurriedly rushed out toward the surrounding shops and buildings. After making a full circle inside and out, Zhang Wenda discovered it wasn’t just the Supply-and-Marketing Cooperative.
The school, breakfast stalls, family quarters, and park—at this very moment, all these places were devoid of people.
A fist pounded hard on Zhang Wenda’s body. Song Jianguo, furious, shouted at him, "We told you not to go! And yet you insisted!"
"What’s the point of saying that now? Shut your mouth!" As soon as Zhang Wenda gave the order, Song Jianguo, who had been cursing, instantly fell silent and could only fume in frustration by the side.
Zhang Wenda looked around and walked toward the UFO-shaped White Water Tower not far away. That was the highest point nearby and allowed him to overlook the entire town.
Climbing up the rusted iron ladder to the top of the water tower, he could basically take in the whole town at a glance.
To be honest, the scenery of the town wasn’t bad, but it was too quiet—far too quiet—as if they were living inside an old summer photo from the past.
Clearly, it wasn’t just a local anomaly; the whole town likely shared the same situation as the Supply-and-Marketing Cooperative.
"What is this place exactly?" Zhang Wenda looked at everything before him, speculating inwardly. "Did everyone vanish overnight? How could that be done? A parallel world? Another dimension?"
He considered many possibilities, but none matched the current situation. What lay before his eyes simply defied logical explanation.
After thinking for a while, Zhang Wenda turned his head to look at Aunt Flo. "Can you explain what that paradox was all about? The grandfather paradox? I helped the past version of me, so now I no longer exist?"
"That’s not right. If that were the case, it still wouldn’t match our current situation. I still exist. I’ve just come to an empty place."
Aunt Flo furrowed her brows and rubbed her temples with her fingers. "Damn, how am I supposed to answer that? It’s my first time encountering this too."
"Let’s go down first. Let’s check the edge of the town and hope it’s only this town that’s affected," Zhang Wenda said as he descended the steps.
They then walked along the empty streets, heading toward the town’s edge. The road was dead silent. It was so quiet that their footsteps echoed back off the buildings.
Just as Zhang Wenda passed by a park, he saw through the iron fence the stone elephant slide inside. Suddenly, Song Jianguo grew agitated and grabbed Zhang Wenda’s hand, shaking it vigorously.
"Speak with your mouth—what are you doing?" Zhang Wenda restrained her.
Freed, Song Jianguo pointed at the stone elephant slide and said, "That spot is wrong! There isn’t supposed to be an elephant slide there! There’s supposed to be an airplane!"
"Really? Are you sure?" Zhang Wenda looked through the fence. To be honest, he couldn’t tell if Song Jianguo was right or wrong—he rarely visited places like this.
"No mistake! I’m sure of it! Beside the airplane in this park, there used to be a sandbox where children played. The cats always used it as a litter box. If you don’t believe me, ask the cats!"
"Really?" When Zhang Wenda turned his head, he saw a large mass of black cats, pitch-black and uniform, nodding in unison at him.
"A change in details? What does that mean?" Zhang Wenda suddenly stopped walking. He turned on his heel and headed toward his own neighborhood.
He might not visit the park often, but he was extremely familiar with the area near his home. If there were any changes in the details, he would definitely notice.
Aunt Flo patted Song Jianguo’s head. "Oh, Mimi, you can’t do that. It’s really lacking in civic sense. Think about it—what if kids dig in the sandbox to build castles and dig out cat poop instead?"
Song Jianguo tilted her head back and nuzzled her head against Aunt Flo’s hand. "It’s fine. There’s a group of stray dogs around this park. As soon as the cats finish, the dogs come and eat the sand-covered cat poop like they’re eating glutinous rice balls."
"Oh? You know that much? Are those dogs your friends?"
Song Jianguo quickly shook her head. "They’re not my friends. I don’t have friends who like to eat poop."
"Hurry up, will you? Is this the time for small talk?" Seeing Zhang Wenda urging from a distance, Song Jianguo followed along with the cat group.
When they arrived at that familiar street, thanks to Song Jianguo’s earlier reminder, Zhang Wenda no longer focused on whether there were people—he carefully observed every detail around him.
When he stopped in front of Fatty’s family quarters, he also noticed the changes in detail. "Were these buildings always this new?"
He looked up at the two rows of brand-new red-brick buildings in front of him. He remembered very clearly—Fatty’s home was never this new.
His dad’s factory was an old one, and these family quarters had been built a long time ago. They couldn’t possibly be this new.
As Zhang Wenda walked past the family quarters, he noticed more and more details. Some of the older buildings nearby looked significantly newer.
The whole town seemed like his old hometown, but something about the details felt subtly off.
"What does that mean? Is it connected to the disappearance of those people?" Faced with this strange scene, Zhang Wenda couldn’t help but feel a sense of confusion.
He would rather face the monsters at the Youth Center or the Elder than deal with this incomprehensible situation. There were no leads at all—he didn’t even know how to begin handling it.
Zhang Wenda led them around for several hours and finally stopped at the edge of the town.
Before them stretched fields that extended to the distant horizon. Everything was present—except people.
Dripping with sweat, Song Jianguo fanned her neck with her hand. "What now? Still no one. Could it really be like you said—nobody left in the whole world?"
Zhang Wenda squatted in the field, examining carefully. He noticed that not even a single bug could be found near the crops. Then he looked toward the nearby creek and saw that the exceptionally clear water held nothing but pebbles beneath the surface.
It wasn’t just people—even bugs and fish—every form of life in this place had vanished.
Seeing this, Zhang Wenda realized there was no point in going further. The whole Earth was probably like this.
His heart felt heavy, but Song Jianguo didn’t dwell on it too much.
"After walking so long, I’m starving," Song Jianguo said as she reached down and yanked up a bunch of sweet potatoes from the ground.
Now with a small clue in hand, Zhang Wenda pulled out a flashlight prepared to ignite a fire with the laser. "Let’s eat something first."
Under a tree, the firewood burned vigorously. When the dark red ash had formed a thick layer, several sweet potatoes were tossed in to slowly roast.
When the roasted sweet potatoes were peeled open, the golden flesh inside steamed and gave off a fragrant aroma. Zhang Wenda stuffed one into his mouth—sweet and delicious beyond words.