"That is why you are cleaning it."
"I feel targeted."
"You are."
The chihuahua trotted over, sniffed the truck, and sneezed.
Tang Li Yue pointed at it. "No. You are not helping. Your idea of cleaning involves teeth."
The dog barked once.
Sir Edmund, seated in the window with sunlight over his tuxedo fur, watched the scene with imperial disinterest.
The farmhouse resumed motion around the new rules.
Professor Han and Shen Deyuan set up a more proper medical corner in the side room. Shen Mingxia assisted, quietly learning where each item belonged. Lin Shuying sat nearby with Minghao as the boy practiced slow breathing between doses from the precious inhaler. Qin Yu sat in the shaded part of the yard, one hand held out as a loose thread tied to a wooden post fluttered under her trembling control. Her brother sat a safe distance away, speaking to her in a low voice whenever panic made the wind scatter.
Wei Jian trained with sandbags under Gao Jun's supervision.
