After they finished bathing, they went to eat. As it was past dinner time, there were not many people in the dining hall. The chef asked them to go into the kitchen and eat. He sat beside them and watched them eat while sighing, "Eat, eat more. The flood has flooded the city. We will have to tighten our belts in the days ahead."
When they went to bed at night, Yan Bubu hugged Feng Chen's arm tightly and kept whispering, asking what the big fish looked like and how he was able to ride it back.
Maybe it was because he stayed in the water for too long, or because he had consumed too much energy, Feng Chen was a little listless, and he just closed his eyes and said a few perfunctory words. Finally, he pretended to be asleep, and only then did Yan Bubu shut up.
Yan Bubu rubbed her face against Feng Chen's shoulder, found a comfortable position in his arms, and soon fell asleep with even breathing.
…
In a daze, Feng Chen came to the familiar snowfield again and saw the big cocoon standing in the wind and snow.
The cocoon had cracked, with fragments scattered all around. As expected, the black lion curled up in the cocoon, holding its claws tightly and curling up its huge body into a ball.
Feng Chen suppressed his heartbeat, carefully uncovered the topmost fragment, and looked into the black lion's half-open eyes.
Without any communication, he could sense all the conditions of the Black Lion and knew that the Black Lion was working hard to break through and was taking the final step in its complete growth.
Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow, the black lion will break free from all restraints and break out of the cocoon.
…
Yan Bubu dreamed that he was hugging a stove and his whole body was burning. He turned over in a half-asleep state, trying to get away from the stove, but fell off the bed with a thump.
The bed was not too high, but he was still hurt when he fell. He just lay there without moving, twitched a few times with his eyes closed, and called out "brother".
Without getting a response from Feng Chen, he lay on the ground for a while, then had to get up groaning, rubbed his elbow which was hurt from the fall, and sat down on the edge of the bed.
Half of Feng Chen's body was against his back, and the skin that was in contact was very hot, just like the stove he had just dreamed of.
"Brother, what's wrong with you?" He pushed Feng Chen and felt a burning sensation.
Feng Chen lay there motionless. Yan Bubu touched his forehead in the dark. He could feel that he had a fever without putting his forehead against his.
Yan Bubu's sleepiness disappeared instantly and he was completely awake.
He knew very well what a fever meant in the Hive. Soldiers measured their body temperatures every day, and if someone was slightly abnormal, they would be locked up in the bare building of the medical center. Some people would be able to come out after a few days, but many more people were never seen again after being locked up.
Yan Bubu turned on the light, and the room became brighter. He saw Feng Chen lying on the bed with his eyes closed, his cheeks flushed, and his lips cracked.
"Are you sick? You have a fever." The beehive was very quiet. Yan Bubu was afraid that his voice would be heard by others, so he leaned close to Feng Chen's ear and whispered.
Feng Chen didn't react at all and had fallen into a deep sleep. Yan Bubu stared at him for a moment, then quickly slid off the bed and took out the two bottles of medicine from the cabinet.
"One long strip, one rhubarb - no, two rhubarbs."
After counting the pills, he ran back to the bed, tried to prop up Feng Chen's upper body, let him half lean against the head of the bed, then brought water and medicine, pried open his mouth, and stuffed the pills in.