In less than ten seconds, Luo Kai had finished everything. He then looked hopefully at the fierce-looking jailer outside the iron gate. Sometimes the jailer would be kind enough to give him an extra bowl of porridge, but today the jailer was obviously not in a good mood. He spat a mouthful of thick phlegm at Luo Kai and left with the rice bucket while cursing.
Luo Kai wiped the thick phlegm on his forehead expressionlessly and sat back down. He closed his eyes and tried his best to return to sleep. Not only was the life in his dreams too beautiful, but after every dream, he would feel that his groggy head had become a little clearer and his resistance to hunger had also strengthened a lot.
"Squeak squeak."
Luo Kai did not open his eyes. He had already blocked the rat hole. The iron window of the cell was nearly two meters high, and the smooth granite wall was impossible for a rat to climb up. Luo Kai did not open his eyes. He had already blocked the rat hole. The cell's iron window was nearly two meters high, and the smooth granite wall was impossible for a rat to climb.
This big rat had been in there for three days, and it would slowly become as weak as him. Eventually, it would become a delicacy in his stomach. In a trance, Luo Kai returned to his dream. His mother was preparing to cook his favorite white sliced chicken, but the old-fashioned farmhouse stove couldn't start a fire. He was so anxious that he paced around the pot …
"Rumble!"
The deafening thunder sounded. The cold wind mixed with the cold rain blew in through the iron window. Luo Kai woke up with a start and hurriedly stood up. He stood on his tiptoes and pointed his mouth at the window. Soon, he accumulated a large amount of saliva. After the cold rain entered his stomach, it turned into a warm current and moistened his body.
He greedily drank the rain until his stomach could not hold it anymore. This kind of heavy rain was too rare. He had only encountered it three times in the nearly a year he had been locked up.
After drinking his fill, Luo Kai contentedly changed to a position where the rain could not reach and was ready to go back to sleep. At this time, the mouse poked its head out and carefully walked to the wet place, gently licking the wet ground.
When the mouse saw that Luo Kai was looking at it, it did not run away like before. Instead, it stood there trembling. Through the dim light outside the iron window, one could see that its small bean-like eyes carried a trace of fear and pleading.
It was hard to imagine that a mouse could express its emotions through its eyes. Luo Kai suddenly felt an inexplicable feeling in his heart. He struggled to get up and opened the mouse hole that he had sealed with a stone, then slowly retreated.
The rat hurriedly rushed into the rat hole. After a while, it poked its head out and squeaked twice at Luo Kai before disappearing.
Luo Kai secretly smiled bitterly. He did not know how long he could live, but he still had the leisure to be kind. He went forward to cover the mouse hole, then went back to the corner and curled up to sleep again.
The silent and desperate days seemed endless. After more than ten days and nights, Luo Kai felt that he was getting weaker and weaker. It was even difficult for him to pee. Through the reflection of the yellow urine in the urine bucket, he saw a skinny figure in front of him. The long period of inactivity had caused his muscles to atrophy. The severe malnutrition had also caused some of his organs to fail. He did not have many days left!
Late at night, Luo Kai woke up on time. Although sleep could escape reality, it could not relieve the weakness of his body. He wanted to continue working, but he could not drag his tired body …
Luo Kai looked at the gloomy moonlight outside the iron window with empty eyes. He was originally a professor in a university. Later, he entered the business world. He cut his way through all the obstacles and finally became a senior executive of a large company at the age of 40. He could be considered a successful person. But behind these words, he had paid too much. Ideals, marriage, family, and even the bottom line of human nature … His past and present life flashed through his mind like clouds and smoke. It was just like an old saying, "The world is like a big dream. How many autumns are there in one's life?"
He sighed in his heart. He should have died when the plane crashed. It was meaningless to live for such a long time. Death might be the best relief for him. Rather than starving to death, it was better to end his own life.
He slowly took out the iron awl from under his armpit. He had found this iron awl when he was digging the tunnel. It had been sharpened and polished over the past few days. He took a deep breath and pointed it at his own chest …
"Squeak … Squeak!"
At this time, a weak rat squeak came from the floor under him. The sound was not coherent and was intermittent.
Luo Kai put down the iron awl in his hand and looked around blankly. Hunger made his thinking slow. After a long time, he remembered something. He tried to move his body and lifted the stone slab that covered the rat hole again.
The fat rat came again. It had grown a little bigger after more than ten days. Its gray fur reflected a silky gloss under the moonlight.
Luo Kai's throat moved. He could not help but swallow his saliva.
The rat looked around. When it saw Luo Kai, it squeaked softly at him and then retreated back into the rat hole. When it came out again, there was a small salted fish in its mouth.
In this way, the rat kept coming in and out. Soon, all kinds of food were placed in front of Luo Kai. There were small pieces of bread, biscuits, bacon, and smoked fish.
After it was done, the big rat half sat on the ground like a human. It stuck out its tongue and gasped for breath.
The food in front of him made him a little dizzy. Luo Kai rubbed his eyes and then pinched his waist. The slight pain proved that he was not dreaming.
The rat used its head to push the food in front of Luo Kai and squeaked twice. It seemed to be telling him to eat quickly.
For a person who was about to starve to death, there was nothing more important than food. Luo Kai trembled as he picked up a piece of bacon and stuffed it into his mouth. The waves of satisfaction from his taste buds told him that this was not a dream.
The food in his stomach immediately triggered a gastric acid reaction. A warm current rose from his stomach and quickly spread to all parts of his body. His body seemed to belong to him again.
The night was too quiet. He did not dare to make too much noise. He did not even dare to chew. No matter what food it was, he just swallowed it into his stomach.
The days seemed to become better. Every few days, the rat would send some food. Although it was not much, it pulled Luo Kai back from the edge of starvation.
This young body was much stronger than his previous body, which had been hollowed out by alcohol and women. His weak body quickly recovered, and his muddleheaded mind became sober. With his strength, the efficiency of digging the tunnel increased countless times. In a few days, he had dug more than ten meters until he was blocked by a granite foundation.
The granite foundation was very long and deep. He did not have the ability to break it. Moreover, the soil here was soft. If he changed the route, it would be fine for a short distance, but for a long distance, there was a danger of collapse at any time.
In order to dig this tunnel, Luo Kai had spent more than a hundred days and nights. Now, all his efforts seemed to have become useless. Fate was always so unpredictable. The hope that was born was once again destroyed.