The Fantastical Beasts at World's End

"It's a pity, there is one less attractive man in the company, how will I live in the future—"

"Huh? Someone resigned again?"

"What? Don't you know such a big news?!"

"Please, I've been in the hospital for more than a month. I just came back from vacation in the morning. I don't know where to go."

"Oh yes, I forgot. Hey... It's Ye Zhao. It is said that the resignation letter submitted last week has been handed over in the past few days."

"Ah? Ye Zhao resigned?! Why—"

The elevator nearby stopped on the first floor with a "ding--" and interrupted the chat between the two receptionists. They immediately stood up straight and put on professional smiles facing the elevator.

Ye Zhao, who was still being talked about by them a second ago, walked out of the elevator with his computer bag in his hand, rushed to the front desk and nodded his head as a greeting, and then strode out of the company gate.

The huge LED screen on the opposite street corner is playing an advertisement that is repeated many times a day-"The latest protective clothing is made of super elastic fiber, coated with three layers of protective materials, light and breathable, and feels close-fitting! Breathable protective clothing , let you no longer worry in foggy days!"

While waiting for the red light at the crosswalk, Ye Zhao watched blankly as the screen gradually dimmed and switched to an advertisement for multi-purpose masks.

These advertisements began to rise after the nightmarish fog three years ago. Generation after generation continued to introduce new ones, and people who bought them flocked to them. However, in the past three years of intermittent fog, people still died.The living people are still buying new models without giving up, thinking that maybe this one will be useful.

No matter how big the effect is, it is at least a kind of psychological comfort.

What people lack the most is peace of mind.

Following the flow of people across the road, towards the subway entrance under the LED screen, Ye Zhao was just about to stand on the escalator when he felt someone tap his shoulder, and hearty laughter sounded beside him: "Ha! Ye Zhao!"

Hearing the voice, Ye Zhao was stunned for a moment, then turned around: "Xiaochen?"

The corner of Luo Xiaochen's mouth twitched: "Fuck! How many times have I told you, don't yell like that, you old man will die of exhaustion if you yell one more word!"

Ye Zhao nodded: "Yes."

Luo Xiaochen: "..."

Luo Xiaochen was Ye Zhao's roommate when he was a graduate student.When the school arranged the dormitory, there were four people in one room, and three of them were from the financial institute, and only Luo Xiaochen was studying psychology.I thought it would be a little awkward, but I didn't expect that this person is born with a bold personality, and he quickly got rid of other people, and even abducted the most sarcastic Ye Zhao into a close friend.

However, no matter how big a person is, there are still a few points that cannot be poked, and they will be distorted with one poke - such as Luo Xiaochen's name.

It is said that Luo’s father heard people say that a smaller name is easier to support. In view of the current situation where people want to die and live very difficult, Luo’s father simply put the word "small" directly into the name, but he didn’t want Luo Xiaochen to run wild in adolescence He is tall, but he still likes fitness. He accidentally grows into a man of nearly 1.9 meters. With that name, he feels a sense of disobedience.

When he was still in the rebellious period, the most annoying thing was his name. He once wanted to change his name when he was an adult and had full capacity for civil conduct. Luo Shaochen will do.

Of course, when he really became an adult, he would be determined, so he protested when Ye Zhao called him "Xiaochen".

"Why are you here?" Ye Zhao made way for the people coming from behind, and followed Luo Xiaochen to the side of the street.

Luo Xiaochen raised the file bag in his hand: "Psychological training for a company here. In the big cities, the work pressure is high and the pace of life is fast, so few people have no psychological problems. What's more, so many people have died in the past two years. It makes people panic, and the one who quits, the one who resigns, and the boss of the company are going crazy. You say that people are the same now, and it’s no brainer to change jobs and resign! Hey, that’s right,” he pouts at Ye Zhao, “You get off work today So early? Didn’t they work overtime all day long without seeing anyone?”

Ye Zhao shrugged: "Resigned."

Luo Xiaochen: "..."

The large LED screen above the head is still circulating protective clothing advertisements: light and breathable, no feeling of close-fitting——

"Hehe," Luo Xiaochen laughed dryly, "You heard this advertisement, it looks like some sanitary napkin."

Ye Zhao: "..."

"No, buddy, why do I say you resign properly?! Don't tell me it's because you were frightened by the poisonous fog. I don't believe your nerves are as strong as steel bars." Luo Xiaochen dragged Follow Ye Zhao to walk towards the hot pot restaurant in front, "Walk, walk, just pass by, talking while eating."

This hot pot restaurant has always been known for its good environment. The decoration is more in the style of a western restaurant, with uniform warm lighting, lively but not noisy. Even in this unstable day, the business is still not bad, and there are often lines waiting outside the door A bit of a long queue.

Fortunately, it's not time to get off work yet, and there is still a while before the rush hour, and there are still vacant tables when Ye Zhao and the others enter the store.The waiter handed over the menu with a smile on his face, and Ye Zhao handed it directly to Luo Xiaochen: "You can order, I will do whatever you want." He put the computer bag on the empty space inside, took off his scarf, took off his coat and put it on the back of the chair.He is wearing a smoke blue pinstriped shirt and dark gray suit pants today, which are tailored to fit his body, making him look slender and straight.After pulling out the chair and sitting down, he unbuttoned the cuff buttons and turned the shirt up to the elbows. He has always been meticulous in his work, and his gestures and gestures reveal a gentle temperament.

Luo Xiaochen took the menu with a curled lip, and ordered the dishes skillfully.I'm used to eating with Ye Zhao, and I'm familiar with this set.Although he said it was casual every time, he was actually the most picky one. If you want him to order, it may take a long time before he can barely order a few.It's better to wait for you to order all the dishes, and then he will choose what he likes to eat.

"Well, that's all." Luo Xiaochen handed the menu to the waiter, "I want the mandarin duck for the pot, and lemonade for the drink." The waiter brought lemonade to the two of them from the dining table at the side, and then brought the mandarin duck pot.

"Spicy this way." The waiter turned the pot around, and Ye Zhao nodded at her: "Thank you."

"Okay, let's talk, why did you resign?" Luo Xiaochen crossed his fingers against his chin, looking like "Come and let my bosom brother enlighten you".

"Are you suffering from an occupational disease?" Ye Zhao smiled and leaned back, thought for a while, then withdrew his smile, bent his index finger and tapped on the table, "Actually, it's nothing, I told you last time that I just got a new transfer." Do you remember that vice president?"

"Oh—that's the one we met at dinner?" Luo Xiaochen made a gesture under his shoulder with his flat palm: "It looks almost fifty, so tall, and the one who has a tendency to bald?"

"Well, you remember it quite clearly."

"That's it," Luo Xiaochen raised his eyebrows, "everyone is as blind as you and doesn't recognize anyone. What did the vice president do? Is he jealous of your handsome looks and wears shoes for you, or does he just happen to like men who sexually harass you?"

Ye Zhao took a sip of lemonade, nodded calmly and said, "Well, the last one."

"Damn it, you guessed right!" Luo Xiaochen looked horrified, "And then, what did you do to him?"

Ye Zhao raised his eyebrows: "Shouldn't you ask him what happened to me?"

Luo Xiaochen made a "cut" and said, "Pull it down, I don't know you yet."

"Okay," Ye Zhao spread his hands, "I broke both of his wrists."

Luo Xiaochen: "..."

"I thought about it," Ye Zhao then said slowly, "Although this job has a high salary, it is too intensive. If you go on for a long time, you will either lose your crown or be overworked. Moreover, you have offended such a person now. Why don't you resign. I plan to take a break. For a period of time, recuperate your body and find a new job."

"Hey - well, that's right, with the current situation, maybe one day everyone will be finished, why make yourself guilty... Well - by the way, go to Yz, he is now a state-designated protective device Sales company, the performance of other companies has plummeted these years, but this company has been rising." Luo Xiaochen became more and more enthusiastic, "Hey, let me tell you, you are going to go in, the first thing you must do is I suggest that the company change the advertising words! The thin, breathable, non-sensing, close-fitting, breathing protective clothing is so stupid, it must be copying the advertising words of other sanitary napkins."

"..." Ye Zhao saw the waiter coming with a dining cart with dishes on it. He probably heard Luo Xiaochen's words and was standing there pursing his lips and holding back a smile, so he stood up and said without turning back, "I'll get the sauce."

Luo Xiaochen howled in the back: "By the way, help me get it too!"

Ten seconds later, Luo Xiaochen looked at the whole bowl of red chili sauce in front of Ye Zhao, and then at the same crazy red bowl in front of him, and he froze.

So it's okay to be ashamed of yourself, and you must not drag Ye Zhao to be ashamed together.

After making the sauce again, Luo Xiaochen put the food into the pot while shaking his head: "It stands to reason that people who love spicy food should have a tendency to be abused, why are you the opposite."

By the time the two finished their meal, it was already dark.In the past two years, the weather has gotten worse and worse, and there is not much light during the day, let alone at night.Ye Zhao and Luo Xiaochen parted ways at the subway station. Luo Xiaochen's urban area was further to the east, which was quite far away, while Ye Zhao was only two stops away.

The station where Ye Zhao got off was at the entrance of the primary school next to the residential area.Recently, the school was being refurbished and rebuilt because it was reported that the quality of the teaching building was not up to standard.There are construction sheds driving along the street, and the street lights along the way have been dug away because of the expansion.Except for the lights from the subway entrance, the whole road was dark and eerie.

In the past two years, the law and order has been very chaotic. Except for the frequent fog that often leads to a bunch of people entering the hospital, and then most of them are dragged directly to the funeral parlor, there are always people missing inexplicably, so generally as long as it is not particularly busy, it is very easy. Few units work overtime at night, which is why people in Ye Zhao's company always resign recently.

The students of this elementary school were all moved to another elementary school a few blocks away at the end of last semester, which did not affect the progress of teaching for the time being, so this batch of construction units built in a leisurely manner for more than half a year, and at night it was dark , It was so quiet that there was no sound at all.Occasionally, during the day, a drink bottle that was thrown upstairs by someone unknown was blown by the wind and fell all the way, hitting the scaffolding with a clanging sound, which made people's hairs stand on end.

Ye Zhao belongs to the kind of courageous person. He was once teased by Luo Xiaochen that his elite appearance with gold-rimmed glasses and a shirt and trousers, if he wears a white coat, it looks like the night tour in the novel. In the morgue, the perverted doctor who cut people into pieces without changing his face.

Just as he walked through the dark street with the indifferent expression Luo Xiaochen described, and walked towards the east gate of the residential area, he seemed to see something flashing past the open gate of the construction shed.

Like—a pair of blood-red eyes.

Ye Zhao paused, frowned slightly and stared at the door of the workshop for a few seconds, then raised his foot and walked over there.

He stood by the open gate and looked in. Except for a few buildings full of scaffolding that had just emerged, he could only see the black shadows of building materials piled up in disorder on the open construction site.There is no silhouette similar to a person or animal, let alone blood-red eyes.

After scanning around for two more times to make sure there was nothing unusual, Ye Zhao clicked his tongue, shook his head and laughed secretly that he was too suspicious, and started to hallucinate after not sleeping well for a few days, while turning back and walking towards the community.