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These days, as the snowstorm grew stronger, Chen Xu could feel Luo Xiyun becoming more restless and uneasy. Every midnight, she woke up from nightmares.
He had never seen such a fragile and helpless side of her. At this moment, all he could do was offer her more physical and emotional comfort.
He held her hand, looked into her eyes, and said, "No matter what happens, I will always be by your side."
Luo Xiyun placed his hand on her face, feeling the cold yet slightly rough texture of his palm. She slowly closed her eyes, the worry between her brows gradually easing away.
Chen Xu looked at her calm and peaceful face, and something inside him was stirred.
These days, a thought had lingered in his mind and refused to leave. When this dream ended and he woke up, what would become of this dream world and Luo Xiyun, who lived in it?
He desperately wanted to ask the virtual dream device that brought him to this dream world, but no matter how he called, there was no response.
To him, this dream world felt somewhat unreal, yet accepting it was not difficult.
However, Luo Xiyun felt like a living, breathing person. Her body warmth, her breath, her murmurs, her screams, her cries, her trembling, her spasms... all seemed so real.
When the dream ended, would she disappear along with it?
But even if this dream world could be preserved, after he left, she would be left all alone. To her, it might be more terrifying than death, right?
He was a bit lost.
"If one day, I die, and you're the only one left..."
"I will live well," Luo Xiyun said softly, without opening her eyes.
"That's too sad. I thought you would die for me."
"Don't flatter yourself. I won't live for anyone."
After finishing, Luo Xiyun waited for a long time without hearing his response. When she opened her eyes, she saw him staring at the fire and gently said, "What, hurt your pride?"
"Yeah, hurt deeply."
Chen Xu smiled and said, "Alright, you should go to sleep first. We have work tomorrow."
.....
Early the next day, the two of them got up to work, spending the morning filling all the empty barrels they brought. It was hard work, leaving them almost exhausted.
So, they rested here for another night to recover their strength. On the third morning, they left and started their journey home.
They returned the same way they came. The path they shoveled earlier was still there, making the journey much easier, and they reached the villa in just five hours.
Chen Xu breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, nothing unexpected happened along the way. The gasoline they brought back this time, if used sparingly, could last for two months without any issue.
To celebrate the successful completion of this mission, they took out the last few tomatoes they had and cooked them.
The torrential rain had come too quickly before, and they brought very few fresh vegetables when moving. To preserve them, they could only freeze them. These tomatoes were the last of their stock.
Outside, the wind and snow raged.
Inside, it was warm like spring. The two sat at the dining table, eating steaming-hot food. At least in this small world, it was a happiness that belonged to just the two of them.
However, Chen Xu knew that when the countdown to the end of the dream began, such happiness wouldn't last much longer.
.....
On the fifteenth day of the countdown, as they slept, the room's glass window suddenly shattered with a bang. The biting cold wind swept in with snowflakes, and the temperature, originally around ten degrees, dropped instantly to minus dozens of degrees.
The two, awakened, wrapped themselves in blankets and hurriedly fled the room.
Outside, they found that all the glass windows in the villa had shattered, leaving not one intact. The once-warm small world could no longer resist the onslaught of the cold.
In the end, they could only hide in the wardrobe next to the master bedroom, wrapped in a single quilt, listening to the roar of the wind outside, holding each other for warmth.
Chen Xu had already anticipated this day and was not too badly affected. He was just worried about Luo Xiyun.
To his surprise, Luo Xiyun in his arms seemed calm, not panicking, and remained silent.
Slowly, he closed his eyes, no longer thinking about the dreamscape, no longer worried about the subzero cold outside the door.
A duvet separated them from the outside world, creating a small, isolated world.
In this pitch-black darkness, the two of them listened to each other's heartbeats, felt each other's breathing, and borrowed each other's warmth.
They reveled in this brief warmth and tranquility.
.....
After dawn, Chen Xu and Luo Xiyun put on thick protective clothing and used wooden planks to seal all the windows except for the living room's floor-to-ceiling window since they couldn't find a board big enough.
Fortunately, the basement had no windows, so it escaped damage. The generator stored there was unaffected.
As long as the generator still worked, it wasn't too big of a problem. At least, they didn't have to worry about freezing to death.
They spent two days cleaning everything up. However, their lives were still severely impacted. At the very least, every time they went to the living room, they had to put on heavy clothing.
Moreover, Chen Xu clearly felt that the weather was getting colder by the day. The heating system's effectiveness was decreasing.
After all, this was the south, where winter temperatures rarely drop below zero. Although the villa used some thermal insulation materials, it wasn't originally built to withstand temperatures of minus dozens of degrees.
Luo Xiyun also grew increasingly silent.
As the countdown entered the tenth day, Chen Xu let go of everything, freed himself of worries, and wanted only to enjoy their time together.
On the fifth day of the countdown, in the morning, Luo Xiyun, as usual, woke from Chen Xu's embrace, got up quietly, and covered the quilt. After washing up, she dressed in thick protective clothing, opened the door a crack.
She immediately sensed something unusual. Opening the door was effortless, and the chilling wind she anticipated did not rush in from the crack.
Her heart pounded as she pulled the door open further, finally confirming one thing.
The wind had stopped.
She rushed outside, stood in front of the balcony, covered her mouth, and tears gushed from her eyes.
Outside the balcony, the world was still cloaked in white, but the snow that had persisted for over half a month had stopped. At the edge of the world, a golden sun was spreading its light and warmth.
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