Chapter 4: Buy, Buy, Buy

September 5th – 10 Days Until the Apocalypse

The window and door installation crew arrived at 7 a.m.—more than twenty of them. Jiang Xingzhi stayed home to supervise, while Jiang Yuan took Qin Yue and Xiao Nuan to the textile market.

Comforters—down, cotton, summer quilts—bed sheet sets… if it looked remotely useful, they bought it.

Prices here were far cheaper than in department stores. Qin Yue even bought rolls of tightly woven fabric, cotton cloth for sewing clothes, silk blends, threads, needles, thimbles—anything useful.

Jiang Yuan also swung by an outdoor gear store, telling the clerk her “friend was going to Antarctica to study penguins,” and asked for the most practical equipment.

Sleeping bags, high-lumen flashlights, wool hats and gloves, waterproof fleece-lined windbreakers, knee-high non-slip rain boots and insoles, and 100% UV-protective sunglasses—all specifically requested.

The store clerk helpfully added a tent, an inflatable expedition boat, compressed biscuits, moisture-proof mats, climbing ropes, pitons, ascenders/descenders—and even a top-tier multifunctional survival kit.

Jiang Yuan gave the items a cursory glance: high-powered binoculars, compasses, fire starters, drones…

Yup, all outdoor-use ready. “Pack it all,” she said.

She also bought four sharp daggers and four military-grade folding shovels.

Why four? Because she counted Xiao Nuan in. In the apocalypse, the child would have to grow up quickly too.

The gear was excellent—and also pricey. Just this one trip cost over a hundred thousand yuan. But Jiang Yuan didn’t mind at all. When it came to survival, quality was non-negotiable.

The minivan was packed to the brim. Qin Yue sat in the passenger seat, holding Xiao Nuan. With the end of the world coming, they didn’t worry about getting caught for traffic violations.

The workers at home were fast. By the time they returned, they were just wrapping up.

The surveillance system installer arrived too. Cameras were installed in discreet corners, fully adjusted. The control panel and monitor were integrated and mounted by the front entrance.

Jiang Yuan promptly paid the final balance. Though the workers were curious what all this was for, they wisely kept their mouths shut.

The solar panel delivery and water filtration installation also arrived that day, both worked on the rooftop. Jiang Xingzhi supervised the setup to make sure the layout left room for future rooftop gardening.

That afternoon, no one left the house. They’d watched enough doomsday films to fill their heads.

Jiang Yuan downloaded a bunch of apocalypse-themed web novels. Skimming just the first half of each, she caught all sorts of plot holes. She had to admit, some online authors had truly wild imaginations.

The new freezers were delivered too—stored right in the attic. The ceiling height there was decent—2.4 meters—more than enough to hold their growing stockpile.

Jiang Yuan placed more orders for daily necessities: toilet paper, cotton tissues, wet wipes, sanitary pads. She also bought a variety of books—lots of them.

Her checklist grew longer and longer with every revision.

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September 6th – 9 Days Until the Apocalypse

A ton of deliveries arrived.

She synced her phone with her mother’s so Qin Yue could pick up packages while taking care of Xiao Nuan.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuan and her dad drove to the largest grain and oil wholesale market in the city.

They bought 30,000 jin (15,000 kg) of rice, 20,000 jin (10,000 kg) of flour, barrels of soybean oil and sunflower oil, along with salt, vinegar, MSG, chicken bouillon, and more—twenty boxes of each, minimum.

Rough calculations said one cubic meter could store about 1,600 jin of rice. Even after all this, the attic was only half full.

There were tons of spice vendors too. Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, cinnamon bark, cloves—they bought everything in bulk.

Other items like bean thread noodles, dried tofu sticks, dried seaweed, dried shrimp, hotpot meatballs—anything shelf-stable—were bought in large quantities.

Smaller items were brought home in person. Bulk goods were scheduled for delivery at 10 p.m., to avoid disturbing other residents with elevator use.

Jiang Yuan didn’t dare slow down. After dropping things off, she skipped dinner and rushed back out.

She bought tons of simple storage racks and hardware like screws for assembly.

Back home, Jiang Xingzhi stayed in the attic assembling the shelves. Qin Yue had picked up a mountain of packages—now the living room looked like a warehouse.

Before the rice delivery came, Jiang Yuan went to a nearby telecom store. She bought 10 tablets, 20 power banks, 3 backup phones, and a 1-terabyte flash drive.

The store was buzzing with energy. The floor manager even brought her tea and snacks personally.

Her request was simple: preload all the tablets and flash drives with movies, TV shows, e-books, and children’s content like cartoons, songs, and dances.

No one understood why—but they cheerfully followed her instructions.

At 8:30 p.m., Jiang Yuan brought Xiao Nuan home. She plugged in all the power banks, then happily sat down to watch a variety show while eating her mom’s homemade pork-and-cabbage dumplings.

At 10:30 p.m., right on time, the grain and oil delivery arrived. The seller brought two freight vans.

To ensure a smooth drop-off, Jiang Yuan gave the workers a 1,000-yuan tip to unload everything right at their building entrance.

Then, the three of them used carts to haul everything up—working until 3:30 in the morning.

Exhausting, but reassuring. Every box hauled upstairs was one more step toward survival.

With 9 days left until the apocalypse, all three adults slept in and didn’t wake until noon. If Xiao Nuan hadn’t cried for food, Jiang Yuan wouldn’t have budged from bed.

Her physical condition wasn’t great. Yesterday’s physical exertion left her arms sore and heavy, and her legs felt like lead.

Still, no rest. There was too much left to do, too much to buy.

She made Xiao Nuan a bottle of formula, ordered some takeout, then woke her parents and went to freshen up.

That afternoon, Jiang Yuan and Jiang Xingzhi went to the local water station and ordered 100 bottles of purified water. She had already measured: all the jugs would fit neatly on the bottom shelves. The top shelves could be used for other supplies. They still had rain collectors and water filters, so a hundred jugs would be more than enough. Delivery was set for 10 p.m.

Next, they headed to the cold-chain meat wholesale market and bought:

• Pork and beef: 50 jin (25 kg) each
• Lamb: 100 jin (50 kg)
• Chicken, duck, fish, shrimp: 100 jin (50 kg) each

All scheduled for delivery early the next morning.

On the way back, they stopped at a pet store and bought loads of cat litter—a clever idea Jiang Yuan had picked up from a web novel. Without running water, going to the toilet could become a big problem.

They also picked up two large bags of cement and a bag of putty powder from a hardware store. Along the way, they raided a maternity store and a pharmacy too.

No one had energy to cook that night. They went to a well-reviewed hotpot restaurant downstairs. Qin Yue had spent the whole day receiving packages and definitely deserved a break.

Watching the hotpot’s steaming mist rise, Jiang Yuan suddenly felt sentimental—soon, she wouldn’t get to enjoy meals like this anymore.

Before she could finish the thought, her phone rang.

It was Xia Chaoyang calling.

Jiang Yuan frowned in disgust—but still answered.