Master Liu swallowed hard, while Captain Chen's jaw nearly dropped to the floor.
"Tempered glass costs far too much. Why not consider composite glass or even cement walls?" Captain Chen asked.
In the apocalypse, safety was everything. The key was saving time. Once the frame was set up, adding tempered glass would finish the job. It was like putting a massive dome over the villa. Jing Shu had no time to waste.
"For beauty," Jing Shu said after a pause. That reason was flawless in her eyes.
"Well then, our company has a stockpile of tempered glass we haven't been able to sell. Even at cost, it'll run you over a hundred thousand," Captain Chen said, scribbling down notes on the materials.
"And while you're at it, replace all the windows with triple-glazed glass. It'll look grand, plus it'll be insulated and soundproof." Jing Shu pulled out her design sketches and began explaining all the ideas she had gathered over the past few days.
In the fourth year of the apocalypse, frequent landslides and mudflows rocked the mountains. Thunder cracked daily without rain, explosions echoing like the wrath of heaven and hell. Sometimes a single thunderclap shook an entire house. Soundproofing was absolutely necessary.
The fifth year brought endless blizzards. Jing Shu remembered it vividly. Countless froze or starved to death. Many collapsed while digging for tree roots, unable to continue.
Jing Shu herself had been covered in frostbite. Itched and burned, festered and scarred, her skin was ruined. Yet she had still been forced to labor daily just to trade for scraps of bark and rotten roots that were never enough to eat.
She clenched her fists. This life, she would never again let frostbite disfigure her body.
"I want to extend the villa with a boiler room at the back. Connect it to two stoves, so even without firewood in winter, I can still cook. Add a heated brick bed, and behind that, build a coal storage room. With a grill for skewered meat and naan inside, it'll be perfect." Jing Shu pointed at the back corridor of the villa, practically salivating at the thought of roasted naan and meat.
In the north, houses were heated with underfloor systems. Jing Shu's villa had been fitted with a wall-mounted boiler, burning gas and billing by usage.
But after the second year of the apocalypse, all gas and electricity had been diverted to the artificial sun. The government only just managed to grow enough food. As for cooking at home, there was simply no possibility when even eating was uncertain.
Building her own boiler room was essential. Coal or charcoal could be burned to heat both the underfloor system and air conditioning.
Fortress Upgrade Step Two: Warm in winter, cool in summer, with water, with electricity, full bellies and comfort.
"That's easy enough. We'll just add a door in the corner of your kitchen," Captain Chen said with relief, worried Jing Shu might come up with another wild idea.
Jing Shu then brought them to the front yard of the villa. "I had planned to plant flowers here, but now I want a small pond on the left side, deeper, so I can raise lotus and fish. Install rows of fluorescent lights above to mimic sunlight. I'm worried winter sunlight won't be enough.
The middle passage stays the same. On the right, I want a water storage and circulation system underground, with crops planted above it."
Captain Chen jotted down notes briskly. "As long as we waterproof it properly, that won't be a problem. Don't worry."
The pond would be about 8 square meters, while the water circulation system and crop beds would cover more than 20 square meters.
Next, Jing Shu led them to the gate of the yard. "Build a storage shed here, divided into four sealed sections." In truth, this was for raising chickens and pigs.
With her outdoor requirements finished, Jing Shu guided them into the villa.
Father Jing had used only the finest materials in renovating the villa, including high-grade security doors and windows. Even the basement had a concealed panic room with reinforced doors. Those needed no changes.
"Move the dining area into the main hall, then connect the dining room with the kitchen to make one big kitchen. Build another row of cabinets here, and add a door there leading to the boiler room." This would finally give her space for the large freezer and storage of supplies.
The thought of a vast kitchen overflowing with food and resources filled Jing Shu with a deep sense of security.
"Convert the second-floor living room into a greenhouse with constant temperature." That would require extensive work: redoing the water, electricity, and pipes, adding insulation, racks, and grow lights.
Lastly, Jing Shu went up to the 40-square-meter rooftop terrace. Unfortunately, it was already filled with water tanks and solar panels. She had once dreamed of planting crops there, but remembering the water shortages of the first year, she decided it was wiser to store more water first. She could always grow crops in later years when things stabilized.
Fortress Upgrade Step Three: Grow food, raise poultry, eat eggs, drink milk.
After an hour of discussion, Jing Shu finalized the contract with Captain Chen and Master Liu. The villa's remodeling was officially entrusted to their team.
"Fifteen days, guaranteed completion!"
That afternoon, Master Liu accompanied Jing Shu to select materials. By the end of the day, everything was chosen and signed off, costing an estimated four hundred thousand in total. Even Jing Shu herself was startled.
At dinner, Father Jing looked as though he had words stuck in his throat. Watching his daughter wolf down food, he said nothing in the end. His daughter had smiled less lately, spoken less, and gone days without changing clothes when she once loved dressing up and never wore the same thing twice. What had happened?
On November 7th, quails hatched inside Jing Shu's Cube Space. She fed the ten newly hatched chicks diluted Spirit Spring and numbered them, marking fresh eggs as well. She also collected another batch of chicken and duck eggs.
Unfortunately, the chicken and duck eggs had failed to hatch after five days. Jing Shu wondered if perhaps she should have incubated the eggs from Chicken No. 1 instead.
Chicken No. 1 had grown even larger, laying an astonishing ten eggs a day. At this rate of acceleration, it should have been entering decline, but it remained vigorous, the undisputed queen of the flock.
Jing Shu decided to observe for another seven days. If there were still no adverse effects, she would begin consuming Spirit Spring herself. After a trial period without side effects, she would allow her parents to start drinking it too.
The pigs, sheep, and cows were thriving, already half-grown. At this rate, in about twenty days, the female pigs, sheep, and cows would mature. Males would need another month or so. It was clear that their growth was tied to how much Spirit Spring they received.
The past few days had kept Jing Shu busier than ever. She had just finished installing the central air system and solar power system. The remaining appliances would wait until Captain Chen finished renovating the kitchen.
Four massive water tanks now occupied nearly all the rooftop space, finally easing her fear of reliving the first year of the apocalypse, when she had been so thirsty she could only lick her lips and swallow saliva.
The steel frame for her inverted triangular tempered glass walls was already built. The retractable roof was complete. Tomorrow, once the glass was fitted, her fortress would be secure.
With half a day free, Jing Shu turned her attention to harvesting crops.