Jing Shu couldn't help but laugh at what she heard.
It's true what they say: never downplay your life too much in fear of looking flashy, because life will always remind you what true extravagance looks like. There's no such thing as the most luxurious, only more luxurious.
In this lifetime, Jing Shu's goal was simple. She didn't plan to flaunt her wealth, but she would absolutely ensure her comfort. She intended to live a life that didn't invite trouble but wasn't afraid of it either.
"Let's go check it out together?" Wu You'ai's eyes sparkled like stars.
"Sure," Jing Shu said, equally curious about how many rich tycoons still remained in this apocalypse.
They had already finished packing up, and what was left could be handled by Third Aunt and Jing An. Grandma Jing was busy preparing lunch, and Grandpa Jing was working with wooden planks, crafting folding stools. Everyone seemed occupied.
Su Lanzhi was on the phone, repeating herself several times because of the poor signal. "Yes, yes, we're in Zone Z, Cave No. 5!"
Zone Z, Cave No. 4 was much larger than Cave No. 5. At this moment, it was surrounded by a crowd of curious onlookers. The setup was impressive: three trailer-style RVs were being hauled by an off-road vehicle, followed by a large truck.
There were over a dozen workers bustling around, with one man directing them. A generator roared nearby, flooding the cave with bright lights.
By the time Jing Shu and Wu You'ai arrived, a platform roughly 100 square meters in size and 30 centimeters high had already been assembled, topped with a red carpet. Workers were erecting a frame and unloading a truck filled with foldable light steel panels.
Jing Shu immediately recognized this as a container house.
These were originally developed for disaster relief, designed to be quickly assembled into temporary housing. With enough flat ground, China could set up enough prefab housing for tens of thousands of people in under thirty minutes.
Later, an upgraded luxury version of these container houses became popular among the wealthy, costing millions per set.
"Are they… building a house here?"
"Looks like it. Wow, there's even a sofa, a round bed, a bathtub, a flat-screen TV, and a refrigerator! Are they really building a house right here?"
"Even before the apocalypse, I never lived like this."
Just then, the door of one of the RV trailers swung open. Curious onlookers peered inside the ten-square-meter space and gasped.
It was a luxury KTV RV. The screen was playing a song by a top celebrity, the sound echoing throughout the cave. The booth seating was piled high with snacks and drinks, enough to make mouths water. But the two pale white snakes coiled at the back made everyone shiver again.
Then, a woman in red heels and a crimson dress stepped out. Her makeup was delicate and understated, making her look pitifully beautiful. People stared in shock. Wasn't this the very celebrity whose song was playing on the screen?
"How's the setup? Satisfied with the environment? You'll have to rough it here for a few days, sweetheart."
The man behind her groped her openly, relishing the chance to humiliate a star who once stood high above the masses but now had no choice but to please him. The thought alone made him hard.
Qin Feifei bit her lip in secret fury. Two months before the apocalypse, China had cracked down on tax-evading celebrities, and many were arrested under various charges. Unfortunately, this man had seized hold of her weakness. If she hadn't chosen to flatter and comply with him, she would have been sitting in prison by now.
She would kill him one day. No, she'd repay every humiliation she'd suffered this year a hundredfold!
Outwardly, Qin Feifei blushed shyly. "I like it here. But… I don't like all these people staring at me."
"If Feifei doesn't like it, then we'll go somewhere more private," Zhou Daheng sneered. He scooped her up and carried her into another RV.
Moments later, the vehicle began rocking rhythmically, accompanied by unmentionable sounds.
"That poor actress… In the apocalypse, even she's reduced to being a rich man's plaything."
"Plaything or not, she eats well, dresses well, and enjoys life. Which woman wouldn't want that?"
Jing Shu shook her head. Anyone who had survived the crackdown two months before the apocalypse was now thriving. Some had even latched onto the military.
As people gawked at the construction crew's work and speculated about this family's mysterious background, even more shocking news arrived.
"Holy crap! Go check out the plaza! Someone just transported an entire mansion over there. A whole row of them!"
"Stop lying. How do you move a mansion? They weigh hundreds of tons!"
"You're behind the times. These lightweight steel mansions don't have foundations. They're modular and easy to transport."
The crowd surged toward the plaza. Wu You'ai dragged Jing Shu along, eager to join the spectacle.
Jing Shu had seen this scene in her past life.
In her previous life, around this time, she had already spent a night sleeping in a cave. It was a night of hunger and cold, and she hadn't slept well at all, when news spread that someone was so extravagantly wealthy they had literally brought a mobile mansion. Naturally, she had to go and see it for herself.
And then she witnessed a scene she would never forget. Just like in this current life, it was utterly astonishing: a two-story mansion, simply and easily transported to the square. They worked quickly, setting up the entire mansion in less than five minutes. It looked as if it had been built there originally.
In under an hour, a whole district of stylish, high-class mansions had been erected on the square. The advantage of these mobile mansions was their aesthetic appeal, energy efficiency, excellent insulation—keeping you warm in winter and cool in summer—and their resistance to earthquakes and typhoons.
After the apocalypse, there were people like this who could take their mobile mansions with them wherever they went. The sheer extravagance of it was something Jing Shu from her previous life envied to death.
In comparison, what Jing Shu had now was just a drop in the bucket; she only had an RV.
Wu You'ai was practically drooling, eager to see who could afford to live in such splendor. But Su Lanzhi called, asking her to pick up her uncle's family, who had also come seeking refuge. She had to abandon her sightseeing plans.
The plaza was packed with people. Despite the heavy rain, the daytime temperature had climbed back to 35°C. People stood around eating, chatting, and soaking in the spectacle.
Jing Shu soon found her uncle's family, drenched like drowned rats. They had also escorted a group of 300 residents from their community to the cave, but the staff merely handed them a sign and left, offering none of the special treatment Jing Shu's family had received.
Along the way, these people saw the delivered mansions and, just like the Jing Shu of the previous life, were insanely envious.
"We're staying in Zone Z, Cave No. 7. Looks like we're pretty close to you guys."
"I know that spot. I'll take you there."
As they passed Cave No. 4 and its lavish container house, the crowd's envy deepened.
By comparison, Jing Shu's setup made her a "rich woman," Zhou Daheng's container mansion was "obscenely luxurious," and the owner of the mobile mansions…
===
Author's Notes:
To Our Beloved Readers:
If the Earth doesn't explode, we won't take a holiday. If the universe doesn't reboot, we won't rest! When the sky turns misty blue, I'll be right here waiting for you.
There are no four seasons anymore, only two: busy if you work hard, slow if you slack off!
-
Reiya's note:
In truth, I was torn between using Mobile or Portable, and using Villa or Mansion in this chapter, regarding 移动别墅 (yídòng biéshù)
移动 (yídòng): Mobile, movable, portable.
别墅 (biéshù): Villa, luxury house, mansion.
In the end, I pick mobile mansion. My consideration for mansion:
-"Mansion" carries a much stronger connotation of immense size, cost, and ostentatious wealth than "villa." A villa might be a nice holiday home; a mansion is a statement of extreme affluence.
"相比起来静姝的就有点毛毛雨了,她只是带个房车而已."
("In comparison, Jing Shu's was just a drop in the bucket; she only brought an RV.")
-Using "mobile mansion" makes this contrast sharp and clear: an RV vs. a Mansion. "Mobile villa" softens this contrast, as "villa" and "RV" feel closer on the spectrum of luxury.
-The description isn't of a quaint, rustic holiday home. It's a two-story, "高大上" (high-class, tall, big, and upscale) structure that forms an entire "别墅区" (mansion area or compound). This scale and impressiveness are better captured by "mansion."
-The crowd is described as watching "热闹" (the excitement/a spectacle) and "羡慕的不得了" (so envious it's unbearable). The reaction is to something jaw-dropping and unprecedented—a mansion appearing out of nowhere in an apocalypse. "Mansion" justifies this level of shock and envy more than "villa."
My consideration for mobile:
It is designed for movement and is likely self-propelled or easily towed. And the description of it being "轻易的被移到了广场" (easily transported to the square) and set up in 5 minutes points to a integrated vehicle system, not just a structure that can be moved.
While "Portable" suggests something that can be carried by a person, like a portable generator, portable speaker, or portable toilet. This is the direct opposite of the image of a heavy, two-story, grand structure described in the text.
It completely misses the crucial idea that this is a drivable or towable unit. A "portable mansion" sounds like a pop-up tent or a prefab shed, not a luxurious, vehicle-based dwelling. "Portable" can sound cheap or temporary, which clashes with the theme of extreme, "obscene" wealth (壕无人性). "Mobile" sounds sophisticated and expensive; "portable" sounds practical and lightweight.