In Country M, despite her frustration at being unable to acquire firearms, Shuxin made up for it by purchasing double the amount of oil and diesel she had originally planned, exceeding her budget by the same amount.

Unable to get firearms, she compensated by stockpiling more oil to ease her disappointment.

Shuxin didn’t stay long in Country W. In that country, she always felt like she would encounter armed troublemakers at any moment, and it left her feeling unsafe. On the same day she finished acquiring the oil, she boarded a flight to her next destination, Country A.

Country A’s livestock industry was highly developed, and her goal there was to stockpile fresh meats and poultry.

When purchasing, Shuxin was surprised to find that there were so many different breeds of pigs, cattle, and sheep. She didn’t buy every breed, but she stocked up more of the varieties with the best flavor.

Shuxin targeted the three largest farms in Country A, all of which had complete production lines, so she didn’t need to find separate factories to process the meat. She ensured that all livestock were slaughtered fresh on-site.

She had the farm owners cut and vacuum-package all the meat by parts. Even when Shuxin paid generously and requested that some beef and mutton be sliced and some skewered, they didn’t object.

Since her space could also accommodate livestock, Shuxin ordered a batch of live animals to be kept in the second-level pasture. She made sure there were both males and females, so they could breed freely.

Afterward, she flew to Country H, known for its dairy products.

Cheeses, butter, fresh milk, yogurt, cream, condensed milk, milk powder—she stocked up on everything. She made sure to cover every stage of milk powder, from infant to elderly, ensuring she was prepared for the future, in case she ever had children. After all, it’s always better to be over-prepared.

Shuxin also traveled to several European countries, buying their regional specialties. In Country F, she even bought half the stock from the most famous wineries.

She would have bought it all, but they wouldn’t sell everything to her. If they sold everything, they would face a stock shortage, which would damage their brand. So, Shuxin had to let it go.

In Country D, she successfully picked up the cars she had ordered earlier. With that, her European tour concluded. Summer vacation was also coming to an end, and Shuxin boarded her last flight back home.

Country T

On this trip, she had stockpiled a variety of goods, from staple foods, vegetables, and fruits to snacks, meats, seafood, and all sorts of animals—anything she could think of was in her space.

The only thing she hadn’t stocked up on was rice. She had been thinking about T-country’s fragrant rice and the various rice varieties from her own country. When it came to rice, she didn’t want to compromise, which led to this trip to Country T.

When she boarded the flight back home, the overseas stockpiling trip finally came to a perfect end.

As soon as Shuxin stepped out of the airport and onto her homeland’s soil, she felt a sense of long-awaited reality. The moment she walked through the door, the exhaustion from months of traveling and the mental fatigue that had built up suddenly overwhelmed her, and she collapsed into bed.

She took a long, hot bath to relax her muscles, then curled up under the blankets and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

She woke up around noon the next day and checked her phone. There were several missed calls—one from the renovation team she had hired, another from Shuliangjun, and one from Shuhan.

“Huh, looks like my ‘good uncle’ had people monitoring me at home. I didn’t even mention that I was back yesterday,” Shuxin thought to herself.

“Hello, Mr. Peter,” Shuxin calmly returned the call from the renovation team first.

“Oh, beautiful Miss Shuxin, you finally returned my call. The renovation is complete, and all the materials you requested have been placed in the designated rooms. When will you be able to come and inspect?”

“How about 3 p.m. this afternoon? Mr. Peter, you’re in such a hurry—it must be because you’ve got some big orders, right? Your indifference really hurts my feelings,” Shuxin teased with a smile.

Peter laughed exaggeratedly, and the mood lightened as they joked around for a moment.

Just as she hung up on Peter, Shuliangjun called. Shuxin’s lips curled in annoyance, and she answered the call reluctantly.

“Hello, Xiner, why didn’t you tell me you were coming back? I could have had Aunt and Hanyan pick you up at the airport.”

“If I didn’t tell you, didn’t you already know? You really have connections everywhere, don’t you?” Shuxin’s voice was cold and without warmth, surprising Shuliangjun.

“Don’t you understand, Xiner? I’m just worried about you. We’re family. Could I possibly want to harm you? Everything I do is for your own good. You need to understand my intentions.”

Maybe annoyed by Shuxin’s bluntness, Shuliangjun’s voice raised a few decibels, as if thinking he could cover his guilt by raising his volume.

“Hah, at this point, we don’t need to hide anything anymore. I have no time for your nonsense. If you send someone to track me again, I will report it to the police. If the police come to question your people at the company, you’ll be the one who suffers the consequences, and I honestly don’t care.”

Seeing that Shuliangjun was about to continue playing dumb, using family ties as an excuse, Shuxin directly ripped off the mask he had put on, exposing his true face.

“Shuxin, you think you’re all tough now, and that you can threaten me?! Don’t forget, you’re just a helpless orphan with no one to back you up! I have ways to make you hand over the money!”

With his mask shattered, Shuliangjun shouted furiously, and his words became a far cry from his usual facade of kindness and virtue.

“You’d better think carefully before you speak. I have evidence of your tax evasion and leaking company secrets. If you don’t want to end up in prison, don’t mess with me.”

“Don’t even think about killing me to protect your secrets. I’ve already backed up all the evidence. If I don’t hear from you for a week, I’ll send everything to the police by email.”

Shuxin hung up the phone immediately, refusing to give Shuliangjun any more chances to speak. She didn’t want to waste another second pretending with someone like him—it was too disgusting.

Furious, Shuliangjun threw his phone at the wall, kicking over the office chair. But there was nothing he could do except rage impotently.

Shuxin had made it clear that his actions of monitoring her had crossed the line. She still needed to stockpile more supplies domestically, and if someone kept an eye on her, they would quickly discover something was wrong.

Such a massive security risk was something Shuxin couldn’t leave to chance. She would never allow herself to be vulnerable.