Early on the second day, Luo Jun neatly folded over 30 newspapers and brought along a novel. After drinking some Dried Tangerine Peel Tea, he left early to find a spot better than the day before, standing and reading the novel all day long.
You could say he was completely engrossed, neglecting both food and sleep.
The same routine continued for the next two days.
If there were smartphones at that time, Luo Jun’s WeChat step count would surely be very high because he was engaged in city walks every day and stood reading. Qin Huai even suspected that Luo Jun might have leg problems when he got older, not because he was Bi Fang’s real body with only one leg, but because he walked a lot in his youth.
Qin Huai followed Luo Jun for several days, yet he couldn’t figure out why Luo Jun chose to painstakingly wander thousands of steps to find places to read instead of comfortably sitting at home. However, he did end up reading quite a lot of the novel alongside Luo Jun, more than he had in the previous two segments of memories combined.
By the third day, Qin Huai actually found Luo Jun’s way of reading novels rather healthy.
He mixed exercise with reading, maintained a regular routine, and apart from skipping lunch, there seemed to be no flaws.
Qin Huai even thought that Luo Jun could completely be honest with Liu Tao. Given Liu Tao’s trust and tolerance towards Luo Jun, even if Luo Jun didn’t provide any reason and just said he wanted to walk outside while reading, Liu Tao would probably be okay with it.
Oh, wait, Liu Tao believed it was too dangerous outside, so he probably wouldn’t accept it.
Wait, could this be the reason Luo Jun deceived Liu Tao?
But why was he so insistent on reading outside?
On the evening of the third day, all the questions seemed to have answers.
Luo Jun, as usual, read the novel to Liu Tao, who was listening with great interest. Suddenly, the air raid alarm sounded.
Liu Tao, still in her pajamas, quickly got up, put on a warm coat, fetched a kettle and some butter paper-wrapped biscuits from the cupboard, and pulled Luo Jun, who had just selected a novel, downstairs.
Downstairs, Uncle Zhang and Chen Ping, who lived on the ground floor, were also ready with small bags, just waiting for Liu Tao and Luo Jun to come down. They protected the two, front and back, as they headed to the air raid shelter.
The air raid shelter in this area was likely dug especially for this wealthy district, not very spacious but well-equipped.
Qin Huai noticed that the shelter had radios, telegraphs, kerosene lamps, tables, and some wooden boxes, presumably filled with food and water supplies.
Liu Tao and Luo Jun didn’t bring complex supplies because someone else had helped them. The servants from Mrs. Cao’s household not only brought hot water, tea sets, and tea but also chairs and cushions.
Other people’s items were even more absurd; someone brought mahjong, another brought chess, someone carried an opium pipe, someone toted a birdcage, someone hugged a cat or dog.
All the items put together meant that inside one could play with birds and dogs, play cards and chess, smoke, and gamble with dice.
There were guards stationed on the outermost perimeter.
Qin Huai was shocked.
Outside, families were being destroyed, yet inside here, it was all revelry and indulgence.
No wonder Luo Jun said that other places might not be as safe as here. It was indeed very safe, maybe even excessively so.
Clearly, Luo Jun disliked this decadent, extravagant environment.
No matter how many items the rich people added here, they couldn’t change the fact that it was an air raid shelter.
Damp, dark, narrow, noisy, and musty—a hidden underground nook unfit for sunlight.
Liu Tao was pulled onto the card table by Mrs. Cao, but she was obviously not in the mood for cards. Because Liu Tao also knew that Luo Jun didn’t like staying in the air raid shelter, she wanted to stand by Luo Jun’s side and accompany him, even if it meant singing a couple of opera phrases under others’ disdainful eyes.
"Mr. Luo, we’re short of one player—want to join?" someone called out to Luo Jun.
Luo Jun shook his head.
Someone else laughed, "You know Mr. Luo doesn’t like playing mahjong, don’t bother him reading. I remember your driver knows how to play, right? Bring him to the table."
"He’s just a driver..."
"In these extraordinary times."
The crowd burst into laughter.
Seeing this scene, Qin Huai felt as if he had returned to the Licha Restaurant during his first glimpses into Luo Jun’s memory, where the lights blazed brightly all night as they played mahjong.
Qin Huai seemed to understand a bit why Luo Jun made excuses every day to read newspapers outside.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to stay at home; he just didn’t want to be here.
He couldn’t be bothered to explain, and even if he did, he couldn’t explain it clearly. So he simply didn’t bother and made up a reason to go outside every day.
After all, he wasn’t afraid of the bombing.
Qin Huai could only say that at his peak, Bi fang indeed did as he pleased.