The communal meals at her mother's workplace were all sand and dirt. Eating rice meant swallowing it whole, without chewing. Su Lanzhi had even damaged her teeth eating those meals. Jing Shu decided she would just prepare the food herself and bring it along. Nothing like this had ever happened in her previous life.
"These are domesticated, right? Our poultry doesn't come into contact with the outside world. As long as we maintain ventilation and temperature, it should be fine. When Grandpa Jing comes, he and Dad will have to turn the chicken coop into a double layer; otherwise, it's too small."
"I know. Well, some farms process poultry according to regulations, but most of them sell the meat—like river crabs—as various kinds of marinated or dried meat." Jing An shuddered remembering the black water in the big boiler floating with countless untreated chickens and ducks. Just thinking about it made him want to vomit.
Having food at all was lucky. But when large numbers of poultry died from heat, it would get truly serious. If the carcasses weren't dealt with in two or three months, the piles would attract swarms of maggots and bugs. That would be catastrophic.
No meat at first, then forced to eat maggots later—that was the kind of pretentious problem she had to avoid.
"People don't dare eat poultry meat now, and the price of vegetables has gone up a lot. Grain prices are rising too. I hope these Dark Days end in another ten or so days so we can finally breathe." Su Lanzhi rubbed her temples.
The Dark Days were unlikely to end. The apocalypse had only just begun; nobody realized it yet.
After seeing her mother off to work, Jing Shu took up her pen and recorded everything that had happened in the first year of the apocalypse, preparing herself. Ten years had passed, and she had already forgotten some things.
In the first month of the apocalypse in her previous life, Jing Shu spent her days at home in air conditioning doing live streams while her parents went to work. Half the water in Wu City was mud. Her father used connections to buy a batch of mineral water at high prices, but he gave away half of it, which later caused a shortage.
It was now January 14. In a few days, the heat would kill all the fish in the river, contaminating the water completely. By the end of the month, power would start to be rationed, and refueling and gas would become difficult.
By one and a half months, water would be cut off completely. Every household would have to rely on water trucks and strict limits.
Nearly two months into the Dark Days, everyone began hoarding more grain. But as electricity time decreased, the heat worsened, water scarcity worsened, and grain purchases were restricted, supplies dwindled, and within months, gangs killing each other over river crabs would mark the start of the dark half-year.
Jing Shu bit her pen. The current weakness was absolute combat ability. Through her Spirit Spring, her strength had increased a lot—one punch could easily knock over an adult—but even master craftsmen were killed by wild punches. What chance did someone with no training like her have?
She wrote down her plans quickly. Before the dark half-year arrived, she had to secure the Cube Space storage and set up defensive mechanisms in the villa. She had to prepare for ambushes and ensure her survival no matter what weapons were used against her. She would prevent the tragedies of her past life from repeating.
Her only leverage was absolute control over the Cube Space. How could she use it to protect herself?
Beep—beep!
A message in the residents' group broke her train of thought.
[Supermarket Owner Bai]:"@everyone, I got a batch of mineral water, 20 yuan per bottle. Leave your building number if you want some, I'll deliver it to you."
[Young Mom 13]:"Owner Bai still has channels for water? Impressive. Why is it so expensive, what brand is it?"
[Supermarket Owner Bai]:"Locally produced."
The group immediately erupted in a scramble for water. Large supermarkets had purchase limits, but the daily supply sold out almost instantly. Even big water factories couldn't keep up with demand.
Tap water was full of sand. One filter wasn't enough. You had to install six like Jing Shu did.
Water for washing could tolerate dirt, but drinking it left a mouthful of sand, which many people couldn't handle. Hence, mineral water had become scarce.
She remembered how, at the beginning, some people mixed industrially filtered water into bottled mineral water for profit. Many who drank it suffered diarrhea or metal poisoning. Those with weaker constitutions died. It was worse than eating heat-dead chicken.
She searched online and confirmed that much locally produced water was industrially filtered. She took a screenshot and posted it in the residents' group to warn everyone to check before buying.
[Supermarket Owner Bai]:"@Xiaoshu Villa, what nonsense? I got this batch for 19 yuan a bottle using connections, earning just one yuan per bottle. You compare me to profiteering small vendors with this image, what's that supposed to mean?"
[Luxury Car Owner 5]:"Ignore her, just deliver the water."
[Luo Hao 13]: "Exactly, the villa thinks it's special."
[Feng 3]: "Locally produced and still this expensive, could it be industrially filtered? Can't it be cheaper?"
[Young Mom 13]:"Jing Shu's warning is good. I have kids, I won't risk it, I'll skip the water."
Several others followed suit. The supermarket owner angrily said: "@Jing Shu Villa, I remember you. Never come to buy anything here again."
[Wang Qiqi 13]: "Everyone calm down. @Xiaoshu Villa's warning is correct. Always check before buying things."
The group quieted. Jing Shu had only offered a friendly warning; she wasn't trying to stop anyone from risking themselves. In the apocalypse, looking out for yourself was already enough.
Soon Jing An also saw the group messages.
[Jing An Villa]:"@Supermarket Owner Bai, is the convenience store at our gate yours? [smile]"
[Supermarket Owner Bai]:"Yes, want water?"
[Jing An Villa]:"Okay, got it. [smile][smile]"
By 4 PM, Wu City's temperature reached 49℃. Jing Shu sat in the villa hall, enjoying the air conditioning and chilled orange juice, ignoring the envious gazes around her.
"So you knew in advance that the supermarket owner sold industrial water, warned the residents' group, and were insulted. Your father confronted the owner, asking why he sold industrial water, causing a conflict. Your father was protecting himself, correct?" the staff confirmed again.
Jing Shu nodded like a pecking chick.
The truth was her father had gone to the supermarket and beat the owner until he couldn't care for himself. The owner's wife called the police. When they came to arrest Jing An, Jing Shu intervened. A neighbor named Luo Hao had drunk the water and soon suffered metal poisoning, sending a voice message to the group. Only then did everyone realize the water was industrially filtered.
Jing Shu had already planned with her father.
"You did an excellent job. Selling industrial water at high prices will be punished severely. We will confiscate all his supplies and assign labor reform. Given your heroic actions, this will be recorded in your files. Rest for a bit until your father is done." The staff saluted and left with the records.