This time, the two of them made thorough preparations and might avoid infection, but that may not be the case if they go to the research institute. 

Who isn’t afraid of death? If Jiang Ning wasn’t afraid, she wouldn’t have taken so many risks to gather herbs and spent these years taking care of it. 

The smog not only strikes during the eternal night but also has a more astonishing toxicity and infection speed. Although the siblings wore masks when they went out before, they kept the windows open at home. 

If one person gets infected, the whole family won’t be able to escape. 

Almost everyone in the villa where smart mouthed monkey lived had symptoms, and there were quite a few people coughing while speaking on the community channel. 

To put it more seriously, there were already many infected people in the community. 

Jiang Ning had a bad premonition that their family being infected was only a matter of time. 

The situation was very serious. If given the choice, nobody wanted to take the risk, but could antiviral drugs outpace the spread of smog? 

Huo Yishen said that in the previous life, the outbreak wasn’t obvious. Many people thought it was just a cold and didn’t consider it to be a virus. 

He persisted in working for half a year before being infected, and the successful development of antiviral drugs would take even longer. 

Although she provided the key drugs, which would definitely shorten the research and development time, who could guarantee when it would be successful? 

If she got infected very quickly, who dared to guarantee that she could wait for the medicine? 

Jiang Ning was never a passive person waiting around. “The risk of being infected when entering the research institute is high, but they have the best resources there. As long as there is a chance to get in, treatment can be obtained at the first time of the disease outbreak.” 

Opportunities and risks coexist. Right now, there is still a chance to squeeze in. If the already scarce medical resources become overwhelmed and collapse, even the Buddha may refuse to accept them. 

Huo Yishen knew her worries, but still insisted, “Anning, I don’t want you to go.” 

He had experienced it. He had coughed and felt worse than death, as if millions of worms were gnawing at his liver and lungs, and even his joints had hurt. It is not an exaggeration to say that it was torture. 

Before, he used to be alone, so he had no worries even if he died.  

But now they both had people to worry about. If one of them passes away, how painful will it be for the one left behind? 

If it couldn’t be forgotten, the rest of one’s life would feel like torture. 

Huo Yishen tried to persuade her, “Our physical fitness is very good. We haven’t been sick for these years. As long as we insist on disinfection every day, we won’t get infected. Don’t be too anxious.” 

Since they’ve been together, it was the first time he had been so firm in his attitude. Jiang Ning thought about it and didn’t insist anymore. Maybe she was really anxious. 

Huo Yishen was right. She was not alone now; she had him, Coke, and Doudou. 

She didn’t sleep well at night. She felt dizzy and always felt like coughing. 

When she opened her eyes, it was eerily quiet. 

Just as she opened the door in the morning, the dog wagged its tail and came over. Before reaching her, it sneezed three times. 

Doudou was doing disinfection. At first, Jiang Ning didn’t pay much attention, thinking it was choking, until the sneezing became more frequent, and the dog kept scratching its nose with its paws. 

Jiang Ning panicked instantly. 

She had prepared its favorite legs specially, three in total, but it only ate two. 

In the past, it would gulp down each leg without blinking an eye. 

Jiang Ning knew its appetite very well; when was its plate not clean? 

She squatted down and pried open Coke’s mouth with her hand, shining a flashlight into its throat. 

It wasn’t very clear, but it seemed swollen with white spots. 

Then she flipped its eyelids, and the bottom of the eyes was somewhat yellow, with a hint of black and blue. 

Jiang Ning’s head was buzzing, and her eyes felt very uncomfortable. Without saying a word, she returned to her room to pack up. 

Huo Yishen followed into the room, “Are you going to Yuecheng?” 

“Yes.” Jiang Ning kept packing, “Coke may have been infected. I must take it with me.” 

He comforted her, “Stay calm, it might not necessarily be an infection.” 

“The swollen throat with white spots and the yellowish eyes with dark circles are all symptoms you had when you were infected,” Huo Yishen said. “But dogs naturally have somewhat yellowish eyes, and besides, Coke has been eating a lot of fried fish nuggets lately, so it might just be a throat inflammation. How about trying some medicine first?” 

Jiang Ning stared at him, “If it were Doudou that got infected, would you be as calm as you are now?” 

Her tone was somewhat sharp, even piercing. 

As soon as the words came out, Jiang Ning regretted them. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that. You know how much Coke means to me.” 

Huo Yishen didn’t say anything, instead, he silently helped her pack her things. “I’ll go with you.” 

“No need, you stay home and take care of Doudou.” 

He was right. The research institute posed the highest risk, and they couldn’t afford to take the risk with their whole family. She could take Coke with her; they shouldn’t risk everything. 

Huo Yishen insisted, “The smog virus is so strong. If Coke is really infected, we won’t escape either.” 

“It won’t happen. Both you and Doudou are in good health, but Coke is a dog, and its respiratory system is different from humans.” 

“Madame Xiao died this morning,” Huo Yishen dropped a bombshell, “But it’s only been a few days. She went from onset to death very quickly, and the whole family got infected. Anning, if you insist on taking Coke alone to Yuecheng, neither of us might have the chance to see each other for the last time if one of us falls ill. Stay calm, we’ll face it together if anything happens.” 

Jiang Ning felt a pang of guilt, “But…” 

Huo Yishen stepped forward and hugged her tightly, “Anning, if something happens to you in Yuecheng, I’ll live in regret for the rest of my life.” 

She calmed down. In fact, what he said was not wrong. If one person in the family got infected, the chances of others getting infected would greatly increase. 

They hugged each other tightly. 

Their voices attracted Doudou, who came looking panicked, saying, “Brother, sister-in-law.” 

Jiang Ning quickly pushed Huo Yishen away, but before she could speak, she saw a stream of clear nasal mucus flowing from Doudou’s nose. 

It’s over, even Doudou got infected! 

Jiang Ning, dressed in her mask and protective suit, checked on Doudou. The temperature read 37.9 degrees Celsius, indicating a fever. Its throat appeared slightly swollen, without white spots, but there was a hint of yellow in its eyes. 

Jiang Ning asked, “Doudou, when did it start?” 

Doudou didn’t notice; the clear nasal mucus just started flowing suddenly. 

It seemed the virus was even more terrifying than expected, even the two who had always been tougher than adults fell victim. It’s truly unfair! 

Thinking of Madame Xiao’s rapid decline from onset to death in just a few days, Jiang Ning felt deeply unsettled. They decided to leave immediately; any delay might mean they wouldn’t even secure a hospital bed, let alone a coffin. 

Before leaving, Jiang Ning made a lot of preparations. She brewed a large bucket of herbal soup. Three humans and a dog would drink it every day. 

Hot water, brown sugar water, antipyretic drugs, antipyretic tablets, and she did not forget to have the dog hold the thermometer. 

Fortunately, its body temperature was normal, but it developed symptoms of a runny nose and heavy, sleepy eyelids. 

Without masks and protective suits for the dog, the three of them had to protect themselves. 

As they left, Jiang Ning administered the medicine again. 

As a gesture of gratitude to Rong Sanshao’s trampled dignity and his efforts to protect her, she threw the largest gift package toward his house. 

A couple of kilometers down the road, the voice of the second generation came over the radio, “Sister, did you give the medicine to me?” 

“I’ll be away for a few days. I hope we all have a chance to meet again.”