"Alright, alright, I got it already." Jing Shu rubbed her temples. "This kid was hopeless. Why was he still talking reason at a time like this? Did arguing ever solve anything? Who knew how long that replacement paperwork would take?"
Besides, after walking all this way, she hadn't seen a single person in line who looked like they were doing any better than the rest. Yet surely there were some from nearby towns who still had cars or other ways to get around. So what did that mean?
It meant people were pulling strings to get in. Wu City wasn't refusing everyone, it was just prioritizing those who could still feed themselves, settling the rest slowly afterward. After all, every mouth meant another meal gone. If the city suddenly accepted this many refugees, what would they do when the food ran out?
Jing Shu pulled out two generous handfuls of fragrant fried rice and stuffed one into each guard's hands. Just as their attention loosened a little, she used the Rubik's Cube Space's hypnosis ability. "Brothers, could you make an exception? We'll handle the paperwork later, just let us through first."
For those with strong willpower, distraction made hypnosis easier to land. And really, she couldn't just walk up and say, "Hey, let me through," could she?
Both men's expressions went a little blank. One of them, under Xiao Zhao's stunned gaze, said, "Alright, just remember to get that paperwork sorted afterward."
The other nodded. "Follow me, we'll take a smaller path."
Xiao Zhao was still in disbelief. That was it? Just like that, they were through? He didn't snap out of it until Jing Shu called out, and he hurried after her to start up the minibus.
It was only a small incident, but it made her realize how serious the situation was. Wu City was facing a huge shortage of food and supplies. They could still eat worm patties during the New Year, but now, with so many people flooding in, where would the grain come from?
If the government ran out of food, what then? In the third year, she'd already been taxed for grain. Every district had to collect one million virtual coins' worth of materials. If it weren't for Li Yuetian helping behind the scenes, and her joining Xingfu Shiyuan which covered part of the donation, she'd have had to cough up resources too.
Now that things were getting worse, the government would definitely come to "harvest the leeks" again.
And these were just people from smaller towns moving in. She'd been keeping an eye on the larger cities before she left. Ningshan City alone had over a million residents, and nearby Qingshui Town and Zhuhuo Town were both low-lying areas. They were almost completely flooded already. That would soon become a massive problem too.
Turns out, the food shortage really began in the fourth year.
The minibus crawled along the muddy road, wheels slipping with every turn. The fourth year's mudslides had destroyed most vehicles. Low-lying parts of the city were already buried in sludge. The old city center of Wu City had been a basin to begin with, and now it had disappeared entirely. Everyone had been moving outward toward the edges, forming a huge circular sprawl around what used to be the city.
Even Banana Community, once a quiet, forgotten suburb, had now become one of the three main residential zones of Wu City.
Jing Shu jotted down notes in her planner. The situation was tense, and she had to start planning ahead. With her mind full of jumbled thoughts, she finally arrived home.
It had only been a month since she left, but Banana Community had completely changed. Mudslides from the back mountain kept coming down, spreading through the neighborhood up to thigh level. The community had sealed every entrance and exit to the underground garages as an emergency measure, barely protecting the tens of thousands of residents living there. Some buildings in lower areas had their first floors flooded, completely uninhabitable. Worse yet, more mud kept flowing down every day.
Good thing Jing Shu had brought a full-body rain suit. Otherwise, trudging home through the mud would've ruined her coat beyond repair. Walking in a mud pit was miserable. It was easy enough to step in, but getting your foot back out? That was another story. Every pull left a bootful of muck.
The mudslides made life ridiculously hard. Just walking around took a ton of effort every day.
Still, plenty of people in the community were out there digging mud. They filtered the sludge through scraps of cloth to collect fine soil, which could be exchanged for two virtual coins per basket—enough to buy two Earthworm Patties.
Say what you will about the Chinese, but when people have hope, they work like hell for it. A few baskets of dirt a day meant several days of food. In this apocalypse, having coins and food was the only real security left.
Jing Shu, strong as ever, carried a big box up front while Xiao Dou suffered behind her, flapping through the mud. The poor hen was coated head to toe in muck. By the time they reached the villa, she looked like a walking ball of dirt. The weight dragged her down until she could barely move. Somehow, she managed to stumble home, tears practically streaming down her feathery face. Outside was no fun at all—she'd nearly never seen her beloved grandma again!
Jing Shu stomped her boots, peeled off the rain suit, and stepped onto the dry porch. She eyed the chicken and said, "Heard beggar's chicken tastes amazing, especially wrapped in lotus leaves. Tsk, guess we can skip the step of covering it with mud, huh?"
The hen squawked in pure terror. "Some wicked human wants to eat me again!" it seemed to say, scrambling into the house like her life depended on it.
Hearing the commotion, Grandma Jing came running. When she saw her precious Xiao Dou looking like a blackened lump of coal, she almost burst into tears. Without caring about the mess, she scooped the chicken up and fussed over her, cooing as she ran hot water for a bath. The pampering was almost absurd.
Jing Shu could only stare. "...Yeah, the family hierarchy's pretty clear."
Even so, Grandpa Jing quickly got up and went to warm up her dinner.
Back inside the cozy villa, Jing Shu took a hot shower, changed into clean clothes, and sipped the caramel macchiato she'd brewed herself. With Grandpa Jing's hot meal in front of her, she finally felt alive again.
Only her grandparents were home—everyone else was still busy outside.
Grandpa Jing, unusually idle, was reclining on his massage chair, smoking his old dry pipe while listening to opera. His brows were furrowed with worry, and even Grandma Jing didn't scold him for smoking indoors this time.
"Grandpa, you actually lit up? What's got you in such a bad mood?" Jing Shu teased.
He exhaled a puff of smoke and frowned. "Ningshan City's been struggling for a month, but it's finally going under. You know, when the big flood hit two years ago, half the city was underwater, but people still stayed put. Now, I heard they're all being relocated to Wu City. But Wu City's already taken in several nearby towns. Even if those places send their supplies and food over, how many people can we really feed?"
Jing Shu nodded. She'd already guessed as much from what she saw at the checkpoint earlier. There were still crowds stuck outside. "So what? It's not really our problem yet. What are you worrying about?"