Trembling in the Skies

Chapter 8: The Beach and the Sea

After eating and drinking, an overwhelming wave of exhaustion washed over Li Teng once more. He collapsed and fell into a deep sleep. Even if this helicopter were to take him straight into the fires of hell, nothing could stop him from getting a good night’s sleep at that moment. At least, it was warm here. And he was neither thirsty nor hungry. Li Teng had no idea how long he’d slept. Maybe a few hours? Or maybe even longer. When he woke up again, the helicopter’s door was open. Outside… was flat ground. After eating some bread and cookies and drinking some soda, he began to feel stronger. Li Teng climbed out of the helicopter’s cabin and stood on the flat ground below. A concrete surface. After setting Li Teng down, the helicopter soared straight up into the sky and flew away. After taking a few steps on the flat ground, Li Teng began to wonder if he was dreaming. His feet felt light, as if he were walking in a dream. Was he finally back on solid ground? The question was, where was this place? It wasn’t snowing or raining here, and the temperature was moderate—around twenty-something degrees—making it feel very comfortable. After glancing around, Li Teng quickly became certain of one thing. This place was either by the ocean or on an island. He was standing on a helicopter landing pad, with a sandy beach and the ocean behind him, and a cluster of buildings ahead. There was no doubt about it: he’d have to go inside those buildings first to figure out where he’d been brought. Although Li Teng was wearing nothing but a set of smelly pajamas and hadn’t brushed his teeth or washed his face in days, now was not the time to worry about his appearance. He’d better go take a look. If he could find someone, everything should become clear. “Is anyone there?” Li Teng stepped out onto the street and called out a few times into the empty street. No one answered. Next to the entrance to the street was a restaurant. The sign simply read “Restaurant.” Although he had no money in his pajama pockets, upon seeing the restaurant, Li Teng went inside anyway. The bread and cookies he’d eaten on the helicopter had long since been devoured by his hungry stomach. He was still very hungry. A clock hung on the restaurant wall, showing 10:03 a. m. If the time was accurate, Li Teng estimated that the helicopter had probably been in the air for three or four hours. Or perhaps a little less. Next to the clock was an LCD screen. The LCD screen displayed a countdown of about one hour and fifty-seven minutes. It looked like the countdown would end at exactly 12:00 p. m. “What’s this countdown about? Is it the restaurant’s opening time?” “Reopening at 12:00 p. m. —isn’t that a little too late?” “It can’t possibly be the restaurant’s closing time, can it?” The entire restaurant was completely empty. At least, after looking around thoroughly, Li Teng didn’t see a single person. “Is anyone here?” “Can I order something?” Although Li Teng was wearing nothing but his pajamas and had no money on him, driven by hunger, he had no choice but to swallow his pride and ask to eat on credit. No one answered. Li Teng took another careful look around the restaurant. The restaurant had a service counter, and next to it was a machine. “Could this be a self-service meal system?” Li Teng walked over. Sure enough, it was a self-service meal dispenser. The display showed the menu. There was quite a variety of food on the menu. There were steamed buns, baozi, congee, rice, various kinds of noodles, fried dough sticks, braised eggs, and other home-style breakfast items. You could also order dishes to go with rice, including home-style stir-fries, roasted chicken and duck, pork trotters, braised pork belly, lobster, hairy crabs, and even all kinds of delicacies from land and sea. The sight made Li Teng’s mouth water, and his stomach began to growl uncontrollably. These foods weren’t purchased with money. Instead, a membership card was required, and the items were redeemed using points stored on the card. The machine right in front of him could be used to apply for a membership card. After facial recognition, the machine actually filled in Li Teng’s name automatically. But that wasn’t all that surprising—We Chat and Alipay have had this feature for a long time, so perhaps the restaurant was connected to those systems. Now wasn’t the time to be thinking about such things. The membership card was a plain white card with no text on it. Once the membership card was issued, Li Teng could use the points in his account to redeem food. Unfortunately, Li Teng didn’t have a single point in his membership account. I wonder how these points are earned. Are they earned by spending cash? After examining it for a while, Li Teng discovered that his membership account had a feature similar to Huabei. He could advance 100 points to his account. Although he was very hungry and really wanted to indulge in some roast chicken or duck, Li Teng ultimately managed to resist. The more tempting the food, the more points it cost. Besides, his stomach—which had been empty for several days—wasn’t in a condition to handle overly greasy foods right now. In the end, Li Teng only advanced five points. Those five points were exchanged for a bowl of hot dry noodles, a steamed bun, a bowl of congee, three mantou, and a small plate of pickles. After confirming the exchange, the conveyor belt at the pickup window delivered the food. Li Teng tried to peer through the serving window to see what was inside, but found it pitch black—he couldn’t see a thing. Although he couldn’t see where the food came from, it was definitely piping hot and didn’t smell strange. Even if it was just hot dry noodles, steamed buns, and baozi, they were an unparalleled delicacy for Li Teng right now. Eating the steamed buns in big bites with the pickles was an absolute delight. He finished all the food. He was completely full. Li Teng wanted to eat more, but he held back. Overeating at this point would ruin his severely damaged and fragile stomach and destroy his weakened body. It was better to take it easy. “Thank you for the food. I’ll definitely find a way to pay the bill later,” Li Teng called out a few times toward the restaurant. Although no one might hear him, he wanted to make it clear that he intended to honor his word. After eating and drinking his fill, Li Teng returned to the street. Next to the restaurant was a clothing store. Next to the clothing store was a bathhouse. Glancing down at his smelly, dirty pajamas—which he hadn’t changed in days—Li Teng quickly ducked into the clothing store. Just like the restaurant, there were no clerks in the clothing store—only a vending machine. Just like in the restaurant, there was a wall clock and an LCD countdown timer on the wall of the clothing store. It looked as though something big was going to happen here at exactly noon. What could it be? I’d better buy some clothes first. The most important thing is to buy a pair of socks and a pair of shoes. During his time atop the stone pillar, he had been barefoot the whole time. The clothes in the store ranged from cheap to expensive. Li Teng didn’t have many points in his account, so he chose the cheapest outfit—a promotional set that included a shirt, pants, shoes, and socks—which cost him a total of just twelve points. Counting the points he used for his meal earlier, Li Teng now owed a total of seventeen points. After selecting his clothes, shoes, and socks, Li Teng didn’t change right away; instead, he went into the bathhouse next door.