The blazing sun hung in the sky. This was the last day before the apocalypse when the sun could still be seen.
For the seventeenth day in a row, Jing Shu's family went to the Ai Jia supermarket. Starting two days ago, S-shaped queue barriers had been set up at the entrance, and the line stretched all the way to the parking lot. Only a few people were allowed in or out at a time to maintain order inside and prevent chaos.
Her family had already been waiting for more than half an hour, but they had not even reached the security gate.
"Mom, let's not bother picking up the free rice. Let's just go home. It's the middle of winter but it's thirty degrees outside. This sun is brutal, and with so many people the air doesn't circulate. Look, several elderly people have already collapsed from heatstroke." Jing An wiped the sweat from his forehead. Fortunately, his daughter had been thoughtful enough to bring two high stools for the grandparents to sit on. People around them looked on with envy and jealousy.
"It's the last day to collect free rice. Just hold on a little longer. Once we're inside, the air conditioning will be on." Grandma Jing was hot, but otherwise she felt surprisingly energetic. In fact, she found it odd—she could actually feel her body becoming healthier by the day.
As for Grandpa Jing, he was enthusiastically chatting with a young man in his twenties.
Grandpa Jing: I can chat five yuan's worth with anyone, just not with my son.
Jing Shu closed her eyes while squeezing pomegranate juice in the Cube Space. In her hand was a large chilled cup of watermelon juice, which she slurped at leisurely through a straw. Jing An complained that she had been sipping it for half an hour and still had not finished. Jing Shu cheekily stuck out her tongue before finally handing him the cup to finish.
Another ten minutes later, the family finally passed security and entered the supermarket. Inside, it was packed with people. Since it was Saturday, entire families had come together. Some were asking prices, others chatting idly. Children whined for snacks, and when people ran into acquaintances, they would stop for a friendly talk. Overhead, the loudspeaker repeated a recording urging customers to finish shopping and leave quickly.
Faces were still relaxed and smiling. People wanted to buy just a little more food to stock up on this final day. Those who had already collected their free rice usually carried out another five or six bags of rice as well.
With the 500-yuan purchase limit, one could still buy six or seven 10-kilogram bags of ordinary rice. For an average household with vegetables and snacks, eating out or ordering takeout occasionally, one bag of 10 kilograms of rice could last for months.
Buying six or seven bags meant enough for an entire year in most people's eyes. But without side dishes, vegetables, or fruit, rice would be consumed far faster.
Signs in the supermarket boasted: All goods available without limit! The stock looked plentiful, but the prices were anything but cheap.
The meat counters for pork, beef, and lamb had long lines. Prices had risen higher each day, and people feared that soon meat would be unaffordable, so everyone wanted to buy a few kilograms while they still could.
Prices at the seafood counter had also climbed. After all, live seafood could be kept at home for two weeks, ensuring fresh meals whenever needed.
Technically, a single month without sunlight would not affect meat or seafood much. But with vegetables becoming scarcer and more expensive, demand naturally shifted to meat, seafood, and even snacks. As demand grew, so too did prices.
Snack foods had gone up by about ten percent. Even instant noodles were several cents more expensive.
The vegetable section was the most crowded of all. Customers bought basket after basket, but no matter how quickly stock disappeared, it was immediately replenished. The government had spent months preparing in advance, cracking down on corruption to ensure supplies. They wanted to avoid shortages, prevent merchants from hoarding and price gouging, and stop panic from spiraling out of control.
Better to guide than to block. Everyone knew that Chinese people always stockpiled food in the face of disaster. Fine, then let them hoard until they felt secure. Let them buy to their heart's content, and when they saw shelves still full like always, they would naturally calm down.
Cabbage alone filled an entire warehouse. People were buying it by the sack. Cabbage was filling, kept well, and was nutritious, so of course it was popular.
"These black-hearted merchants. One cabbage costs twelve yuan now. It used to be only two." Grandma Jing could not read characters, but she knew numbers well enough.
"Didn't they say price gouging is illegal?" Grandpa Jing listened to the news every day and had often heard such practices were supposed to be reported.
Jing An shook his head. "Vegetable prices have been climbing for the past ten days. They go up a few cents to a yuan every day. It counts as normal fluctuation. That's how it rose to this point. Just watch, in a few days it will be even higher."
Twelve yuan was still cheap. In a few months, one cabbage might cost a thousand yuan and still be impossible to find.
After picking up the rice, the family strolled around the supermarket. First, there were too many people and checkout lines were long. Second, they realized there was not much left worth buying. So they went home to help pack for Grandma Jing and Grandpa Jing, who would be staying with Third Aunt Jing Lai for a while.
The truth was simply to separate Jing An and Grandpa Jing for a time.
The older generation had lived through famine years. Days earlier, Grandma Jing had already called her three daughters, urging them to stockpile food, grow more vegetables, and prepare. Without snow in winter, next year's harvest would not be good, and food prices would climb further.
Eldest Aunt Jing Pan said she lived in town and grew vegetables. Recently she had traded apples for grain and asked when Grandma Jing was coming home so she could bring over some food.
Second Aunt Jing Zhao admitted she wanted to stockpile too, but she lacked money.
With the phone on speaker, the atmosphere turned awkward. Jing Shu's whole family could hear. After hanging up, Jing An told Jing Shu to transfer one hundred thousand yuan to her. After all, the money Jing An had withdrawn from his shares had already been spent by Jing Shu to buy gasoline and supplies.
Third Aunt Jing Lai was living in a two-bedroom apartment in Wu City with her daughter. She had been shopping like crazy in recent days, claiming she had bought enough for Grandma Jing and Grandpa Jing too, so they should come stay with her.
"Grandpa, Grandma, just stay for a while and then come back."
"Alright. Once the Dark Days are over, we still need to help you with your livestream. We've been here long enough, it's time to see your third aunt and your cousin Wu You'ai." The elderly couple packed light luggage, carrying jars of pickles and canned goods, while Jing An delivered some spicy beef jerky for them.
Jing Shu also packed herbal jelly mixed with diluted Spirit Spring for the grandparents, instructing them to eat a little each day. In this life, with Spirit Spring and closer distance, her grandparents would not starve or die of illness like before.
The spacious villa was quiet after the grandparents left. Jing Shu lounged on a deck chair by the fish pond, shaded by an umbrella Jing An had set up. She sipped shaved-ice yogurt while sunbathing, occasionally tossing feed into the pond and watching the fierce fish scramble. It was pure enjoyment.
Maybe, this really was the last time in her life she would see the sun.
Jing Shu felt a twinge of sadness. She lay there until the sun set, then carefully sealed the tempered glass covers to guard against tonight's falling soil. She took many photos for remembrance before heading inside to cook dinner. The meal was chicken stewed with mushrooms, braised seaweed and black pork ribs, and stir-fried romaine lettuce. The portions were generous, and the family finished everything.
Su Lanzhi had been in low spirits lately and went to bed early. Jing Shu guessed it was because her mother's colleague Yu Caini had been making trouble for her at work again.
Jing An washed up, loading all the pots and bowls into the automatic dishwasher. He praised Jing Shu's thoughtfulness yet again, saying if not for her foresight, all of this housework would fall on him.
After one last inspection of the water source, food supplies, and poultry, Jing Shu began practicing the Cube Space through the night. She could not sleep anyway. This time, she would witness the apocalypse firsthand.
Later, people would mark January 1st, 2223—the day the sun disappeared—as the first day of the apocalypse.