Jing Shu hid in the bathroom, gloating as she listened to her father and her mother argue. She turned on the faucet and directed the water into the Cube Space, filling all 8 cubic meters. At the same time, she checked off items on her phone's seafood purchase list, noting the quantities one by one.
In her previous life, in order to scrape together money, her father had also asked Uncle Sun to return what he owed. Every time, Uncle Sun promised well, but after a few tries he either disappeared or claimed financial hardship. Later, when the money was finally gathered, the debt simply vanished into silence.
If they had never been desperate, no one would have seen through it. Today, she wanted her father to experience it firsthand: the feeling of begging for 100,000 yuan to save a life, only for Uncle Sun to prefer eating, drinking, and having fun instead of repaying.
She wanted this naive man to recognize reality: he treated others as brothers, while they only treated him as an ATM.
After filling the pool inside the Cube Space, she planted lotus roots and aquatic grass in the soil, added seaweed and other organisms the boss had prepared, and dripped in one drop of Spirit Spring along with some fish bugs. Hopefully, a batch of crayfish and hairy crabs could be raised before the villa's pond was dug out.
She collected more than sixty chicken eggs, over forty quail eggs and duck eggs. The ones set aside for hatching still showed no signs of life.
Inspecting the fields, she found many green shoots already sprouting. Satisfied, she exited the Cube Space and went to eat lunch.
The black pepper beef pasta her mother made had burned, but no one dared complain while she was angry. The three of them quietly ate the dark dish, occasionally picking out bits of charred, unidentifiable matter from between their teeth.
Under his wife's wrath, her father reluctantly made three more calls. At last, Uncle Sun answered. He began with a flood of apologies, nearly groveling. He claimed he had originally gathered the money but an emergency had come up, and promised to transfer it over in a couple of days.
"You see, he really had an urgent matter. He'll definitely repay us in two days," her father said, regaining his confidence.
She opened her Moments feed and struck a direct blow. "Dad, isn't this Uncle Sun and his wife? She just posted from Dubai, saying how happy she is. She's thanking her husband for giving her a one-carat diamond ring."
Her mother leaned over, took a look, and sneered. "So that's his urgent matter, buying a diamond ring."
Her father grabbed the phone, his face twisted in embarrassment and rage. Uncle Sun's smiling face in the photo stung like needles.
"Dad, forget it. If we can't gather the money, then I won't become an influencer. I'll just take a random job tomorrow…"
Smack!
He slapped his thigh hard. "No, we'll get the money together. I've already found the construction team for you. Tomorrow you'll go with them to start renovating the villa. As for Uncle Sun's money, I will get it back, no matter what."
His teeth ground together. His daughter's future was worth more than his life. "Lao Sun, I was blind to trust you!"
Just then, her mother's phone rang. It was Su Meimei. When she learned they still lacked 100,000 yuan, she immediately begged to buy her sister's car cheaply. That way, they could give her the money right away.
Her heart sank. As expected, Uncle Sun and Su Meimei were already colluding. Otherwise, how could it be that the moment Uncle Sun claimed he had no money, Su Meimei immediately called with an offer? Without evidence, she could not yet expose this pair of adulterers.
"Little sister, you know the car's condition. It cost 290,000 yuan on the road, only 8,000 kilometers in three years, no scratches, no accidents. Selling it for 200,000 yuan is fair. Since I urgently need the money, I'll let it go for 160,000."
"My dear sister, I really don't have that much. I only have 100,000. Isn't that exactly what you're short of? Just lower it a bit more. When Jing Shu starts making money, she can buy you a big BMW."
She nearly jumped up in fury. Did this woman think cars were like vegetables to be bargained down by half? Such a black heart. So Su Meimei had never truly treated them like family, even before the apocalypse.
"Mom, the villa is still being renovated. That will cost well over 100,000 yuan. How about selling Dad's car instead? Aunt's money isn't enough," she quickly reminded. If possible, the car should never be sold to Su Meimei. She was too shameless.
Her mother also argued that 100,000 was far too low. But since she was desperate, what choice did she have but to sell?
What happened next left her stunned at Su Meimei's brazenness. She actually began to cry.
"Big brother had Mom and Dad supporting him when he married. Sister had big brother and Mom and Dad together providing her dowry. When I got married, Mom and Dad had already passed away, and even their inheritance went to big brother. I was left with nothing!
Heaven is unfair. I ask my own sister for help, and she even wants me to pay. Is she going to just let me die?"
The veins on her mother's forehead bulged. Her heart chilled as she realized that all her sacrifices had meant nothing in her younger sister's eyes.
"Take the car. Think of it as Mom and Dad making up your dowry. Since they're gone, let's part ways cleanly." Her voice was heavy with sorrow.
"Really? You're really giving it to me?" Su Meimei knew her sister was angry, but also knew her soft nature. In a few days, she could coax her back around.
"Yes." This time, there was no warmth.
Hearing the lifeless response, Su Meimei realized things were turning bad. She quickly tried to patch things up. "I can't let my own sister take a loss. I'll add in my private savings and buy the car for 120,000 yuan."
"Alright." Her mother closed her eyes. She told herself this was completing her sister's dowry. From now on, they owed each other nothing.
Su Meimei, thrilled, didn't notice her sister's heartbreak. She immediately called her mother to handle the transfer, and on the other side, she sent the money at lightning speed.
She never imagined that the car she haggled so ruthlessly for, hurting her own sister in the process, would soon be handed over to Zhang Zhongyong's mistress. Months later, when Su Meimei saw the mistress driving it, she would nearly vomit blood in fury.
"We'll go handle the transfer now. Jing Shu, you take the money straight to sign the contract," her father said, his expression dark as he tried to comfort his wife.
The car had been sold at a loss, but her mother's heart was already beyond disappointment in Su Meimei.
One hundred twenty thousand yuan could buy vital supplies. A BMW that would be worthless in a few months was no comparison. Who would have the last laugh, it was hard to say.
For the first time, her assets reached 817,000 yuan. Finally, she could spend without restraint.
Since the Cube Space could not yet store too many supplies, the priority was to buy containers, like commercial freezers. She would keep some at the villa for now and transfer them into the Cube Space later once it upgraded.
Appliances were also needed. The construction crew would be arriving soon, perfect timing for installation. Items like central air conditioning had to be set up early, or the first year of the apocalypse's heat could kill.
Although the villa was already renovated, in her eyes it was far from apocalypse-ready. She had to remodel it completely into a fortress.
Time was running short. She went directly to Suning and sought out the client manager, Manager Wang. The middle-aged man told her that the Double Eleven sales had already begun. Prices were guaranteed, and if she later found anything cheaper, they would refund ten times the difference. Free gifts and promotions were abundant.
She wasted no time. She ordered the most powerful central air unit, capable of heating ten rooms at once. Her family would be warm indoors while the outside world boiled.
She also ordered six massive 1,000-liter commercial freezers. Ideally, she would build a cold storage room, but since the basement was reserved for ordinary supplies, freezers would have to do for emergencies.