Chapter 392: Tornado
Chapter 392: Chapter 392: Tornado
The gale swept through, leaving nothing in its wake.
The roof of the two-story building diagonally across the street was ripped off in an instant. The people hiding inside were immediately swept into the cyclone, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
The tornado didn’t press deeper into the city. After grazing the end of the street, it twisted and veered off in another direction.
"It seems... we’re really okay?" Huo Qian said, stunned. Her tight grip on Shen Lu’s hand loosened unconsciously.
Shen Lu also breathed a sigh of relief. Maintaining her cool facade, she said, "Drop the ’it seems.’"
Wu Jun’s eyes were practically bugging out of his head. "Boss Shen, what in the world is this place made of? Even a tornado couldn’t tear it down?!"
"Alright, go bring Xiao Lang back. And Wu Jun, remember to fill in that trench you dug."
Shen Lu bent down. "Miss Sang, the tornado is gone. You can come out now."
Sang Yue slowly crawled out from under the table, patting away imaginary dust.
She was a little embarrassed; out of everyone in the restaurant, she was the only one who had dived under a table.
She had planned to sneak back out when no one was looking, but then Shen Lu just had to call her out by name.
"Boss Shen, your building is incredibly sturdy. If it weren’t for the poor location, I’d be tempted to rent a space in your shop to set up my bakery."
Shen Lu’s lips twitched. ’Better not. It was hard enough getting rid of a big shot like you; I wouldn’t dare ask you to stay.’
"Miss Sang, your bakery’s target customers are different from mine. If you really set up shop in a place like this, business would be hard to get off the ground."
She wasn’t wrong about that. Sang Yue nodded. "That’s true. In fact, I think Boss Shen could move to a more bustling area and sell gourmet stir-fry."
"Nothing in the world is perfect. I’m already quite satisfied with how things are."
’She’s still so young,’ Shen Lu thought. ’Why would I want to move? This is the best place for me.’
’With my culinary skills, plus ingredients with special properties, an endless stream of customers will come to me no matter where I open my shop.’
’I don’t have to look for customers; they have to look for me.’
’Dragon Hall’s business hasn’t completely taken off yet. Maybe it’s just missing a catalyst?’
Shen Lu couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but the current level of business was enough—just enough for her to complete her weekly task.
Suddenly, Shen Lu’s Light Brain vibrated. She answered the call without looking.
"Xiao Shen? Xiao Shen, can you hear me?" Granny Jin’s voice faded in and out, but the terror in it was clear and intense.
"Granny Jin, what’s wrong? Where are you?"
Shen Lu frowned. The other end of the line was extremely noisy; it didn’t sound like Granny Jin was indoors, but more like she was at a construction site.
’But in weather like this, how could Granny Jin possibly be outside? She must be in her room.’
"I..."
Before Granny Jin could finish her sentence, there was a loud CRASH. Something had smashed down. Granny Jin screamed, then managed to say intermittently, "In the house... the wind is too strong..."
Then, the line went dead.
Shen Lu saw that Granny Jin had ended the call. She hurriedly dialed back, but no one picked up.
Shen Lu knew this was bad. No longer caring about secrecy, she pulled out the Any Door, set a new location, and yanked it open.
WHOOSH!
A fierce gust of wind ripped through the opening, nearly blowing Shen Lu off her feet.
Fortunately, Huo Qian and Wu Jun reacted in time, both grabbing onto Shen Lu to steady her.
"Boss Shen, what is this?"
The scene stunned everyone, especially Sang Yue. If it hadn’t looked so dangerous on the other side of the door, she would have been dying to rush over and get a closer look.
’That’s an Any Door, right?’
’She had loved watching Doraemon as a child and had a vivid memory of the Any Door.’
’She remembered telling her parents how great it would be to have an Any Door. You could go anywhere you wanted just by opening it, no more long journeys by car, boat, or plane.’
"Hold on tight," Shen Lu said to Huo Qian and Wu Jun over her shoulder before carefully stepping through the door.
She was in luck. Granny Jin was near the doorway, huddled against a wall. The old woman was curled into a ball with a large bloody patch on her forehead. Next to her, a huge piece of sheet metal, likely torn off by the wind, was repeatedly being lifted by the gusts, looking as if it would be swept away at any second.
’In a situation like this, there’s no time to worry about stabilizing her. I just have to get her out of here,’ she thought.
It took every ounce of their strength, with Shen Lu even summoning her newly acquired Mimi and Wangcai to help, but they finally managed to pull Granny Jin into the restaurant.
Shen Lu closed the Any Door and put it away in her storage. She collapsed onto the floor, panting for breath.
Cai Su found a first-aid kit and immediately began treating the wound on Granny Jin’s forehead.
Sang Yue, who knew some basic first aid, helped her.
Yang Jing went to Shen Lu’s side and noticed her hands were covered in small cuts, injuries she’d gotten while rescuing Granny Jin.
Fortunately, they were all superficial. Nothing that a little disinfectant couldn’t fix.
Shen Lu left Wangcai out to clean up the mess with the robot vacuum.
They carried Granny Jin into a vacant dorm room. The old woman’s face was pale and her eyes were shut tight. If not for her shallow breaths, anyone would have thought she was dead.
Sang Yue’s brow furrowed. "This isn’t good. With a head injury, we should get her to a hospital for an examination. What if she has a brain bleed? That would be disastrous."
Everyone there knew that, but going outside in this weather was a death sentence.
After a moment of internal debate, Shen Lu pulled out the Any Door again, setting the destination to Lower City Hospital.
’Sang Yue is right,’ Shen Lu thought. ’We have to get her checked out. If Granny Jin has intracranial bleeding, she’ll need surgery immediately.’
’I can’t worry about exposing my secrets right now.’
Her expression firm, Shen Lu gripped the handle and twisted.
Huh?
’Why isn’t it turning?’
Shen Lu applied more force, but it still wouldn’t budge.
She suddenly had a realization.
’Don’t tell me... My current spiritual power is only enough to open the door once?’
"Boss Shen, what’s wrong?" Sang Yue asked.
"..." Shen Lu said, a little embarrassed, "I can’t get the door to open."
"Huh?" Sang Yue looked skeptical. "Let me give it a try?"
Shen Lu stepped aside.
’Maybe someone else can open it?’ she wondered.
But despite her efforts, Sang Yue couldn’t get it to open either.
Shen Lu had the others try as well, but none of them could open it.
"It seems this is Granny Jin’s fate," Cai Su sighed.
"Maybe things aren’t as bad as we think," Shen Lu said, trying to be reassuring. "Wu Jun, Huo Qian, you’ve both worked hard. Go get some rest."
There were plenty of dorm rooms now, so Shen Lu arranged one for the two of them near the third-floor entrance, making it convenient for them to come and go without disturbing anyone else.
Wu Jun and Huo Qian accepted Shen Lu’s kind offer. After a brief discussion, they decided that Wu Jun would continue to stand guard while Huo Qian rested first.
Cai Su volunteered to look after Granny Jin. Sang Yue, seeing there was nothing for her to do, started pestering Shen Lu about the Any Door.
Shen Lu was exasperated. "Miss Sang, I’m really tired right now."
Rescuing Granny Jin from the storm had not been easy, and Shen Lu truly didn’t have the energy to deal with her questions.
"Alright... I won’t disturb you then."
Sang Yue fell silent, looking sheepish.
Shen Lu returned to the fourth floor and collapsed for a while. The ointment on her hands had numbed the pain, leaving only a faint cooling sensation.
A video call from Xue Can came through.
Shen Lu didn’t want to answer, but he was persistent, so she had no choice but to accept the call.