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Jiang Ning was startled and quickly checked with her consciousness.
The space was still there, and so were the supplies. She tried retrieving something with her mind, and a coal briquette appeared in her hand.
She scanned the area with her consciousness and found the light-and-shadow timer had reset to zero.
Suddenly, it dawned on her—this space could only be used for two hours at a time.
Two hours… well, better than nothing!
After showering, it was already past midnight.
Jiang Ning glanced at the space. The new two-hour timer had been replenished, and she let out a small sigh of relief.
Lying in bed, she couldn’t fall asleep for a long time. She had no choice but to take some melatonin to survive the night.
Her sleep was uneasy—she dreamed again of being chased and hacked at by that group of people, their blades stained with rust-red blood slashing down at her…
Jiang Ning jolted awake, drenched in cold sweat.
It was 5 a.m., and the sky outside was still dark. She entered the space to calm herself by looking at her stockpiled supplies, and only then did she feel a bit more at ease.
She didn’t go back to sleep. Instead, she grabbed her car keys and headed to the largest agricultural wholesale market.
As dawn broke, the area outside the market was bustling with traffic.
Jiang Ning went to the vegetable section and bought freshly harvested produce, still glistening with dew.
Winter melons, pumpkins, lotus roots, red and white radishes, eggplants, string beans, bitter melon, celery, tomatoes—all 100 jin (approx. 50 kg) each. Potatoes and sweet potatoes—200 jin each.
She also bought 100 jin each of ginger and garlic, which could be used for planting or as seasoning. In extreme cold, a bowl of ginger soup could save someone’s life.
She walked and shopped at the same time. Other than leafy greens, she didn’t skip anything. Altogether, she spent around 4,000 yuan.
By breakfast time, around 9 a.m., the crowd had thinned.
She compared prices at different stalls to stock up on staple grains:
She spent under 30,000 yuan and even got 3 extra bags of rice for bargaining with the stall owner.
Just these alone could feed her for 30 years.
While the owner prepared the order, she walked to the seasoning section.
Soy sauce, vinegar, and baijiu—10 barrels each (20L/barrel).
30 jin each of star anise, fennel, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, and black pepper.
300 jin each of brown sugar, white sugar, and rock sugar.
3,000 jin of salt in 1-jin packs.
Grains were vital in the apocalypse—but salt was even more important. Without salt, the body couldn’t function.
By Year 3 of the apocalypse, she had seen someone trade one pack of salt for 30 jin of food.
3,000 jin of salt didn’t take up much room. Once resources were scarce, she could trade it. If she had more space, she’d hoard several tons.
After loading up, she drove to a quiet, unmonitored corner and transferred everything into the space, then headed to the frozen goods section.
She got 10 large boxes each of buns: plain, sweet red bean, salted egg yolk, brown sugar, and siu mai.
She avoided meat-stuffed ones in case of poor quality and instead bought 200 jin of frozen dumpling wrappers—to pass the time making dumplings during the flood.
Next, she hit the dry goods section: shiitake mushrooms, antler mushrooms, tea tree mushrooms, wood ear fungus, kelp, seaweed, jujubes, dried vegetables, all kinds of flavored sunflower seeds—another 10,000 yuan gone.
In the meat section, Jiang Ning found the stall that supplied meat to school canteens. The owner greeted her warmly,
“Xiao Jiang, what can I get for you today?”
With the typhoon approaching, the heat was suffocating. There wasn’t much fresh meat left at this hour, but the prices were reasonable.
She ordered:
The boss was shocked. “Xiao Jiang, are you serious?”
His wife worked at the slaughterhouse, and Jiang Ning had often referred customers to earn commission.
“Relatives are hosting a wedding banquet. Just give me a good price.”
“No need to say more between us. I won’t make a profit on this order—30% off everything!”
Meat was costly—pork had only dropped recently, but beef and lamb were still expensive. So buying from a familiar vendor was most economical.
The total came to nearly 30,000 yuan. Jiang Ning didn’t haggle but made one request: two cleavers and a pig-slaughtering knife.
She needed weapons for self-defense, but with no time or means to get proper ones, she had to make do.
The boss was startled. “What do you need those for?”
“Relax, I’m not going to kill anyone or commit arson.”
Thinking of both profit and friendship, he agreed quickly.
She then went to the fish stall and ordered 100 fish—gutted but not chopped. She’d pick them up later.
She bought 3,000 chicken eggs and 1,000 duck eggs. Thinking the disaster might end one day, she also got two trays each of fertilized chicken, duck, goose, and quail eggs, along with a small household incubator.
Remembering the garden in the space, Jiang Ning stopped by a seed shop and got leafy vegetable seeds with short growing cycles—lettuce, canola, water spinach, bok choy, etc.—dozens of varieties.
Seeds were cheap. 500 yuan worth could last for decades.
Although the black soil area was only 10 square meters, both balconies could be used. Her gardening instincts kicked in, so she also bought planting pots, a hoe, a spade, and nutrient soil.
With high hopes for the future, she visited the fruit sapling section and bought three each of various mature trees: apples, grapes, oranges, mandarins, etc.
Meat was consumable. As disasters dragged on, even the elites would run out of fresh meat, let alone the average person.
Jiang Ning bought a pair of breeding rabbits. They could live off vegetables and reproduce quickly—enough to meet her meat needs.
She loved marinated and cold dishes, so she got:
She spent money like water, feeling the pain deeply. But when she thought about the ever-growing supplies in the space, she also felt a deep sense of satisfaction and confidence.
She spent the entire day at the wholesale market. By the time she left, the streets were bustling with lights and activity—the city’s liveliest hours had just begun.
Jiang Ning went to a restaurant and indulged: braised ribs, steamed meatballs, tomato and egg stir-fry. She ate heartily and packed the leftovers.
Back home, it was still early. She spent hours organizing the space, filling up all the large rooms. She placed the vegetable and fruit saplings in the living room and kept the breeding rabbits on the balcony.
Jiang Ning had a trick up her sleeve—she left the space just as the timer hit the final 10 minutes.
As soon as she exited, the two breeding rabbits were kicked out too, landing hard on the ground.
Jiang Ning: “……”
First came frustration, then joy.
Apparently, the space had a time limit, and if she wasn’t inside, living things couldn’t stay inside either.
This meant—no one could take it from her.
In a great mood, she sat down to double-check her supplies. She’d bought everything she could think of, with about 20,000 yuan left.
Only the living room and bathroom were left unoccupied. To survive extreme disasters, there was still much to prepare. She decided to stop stocking bulky items.
Opening her food delivery app, she ordered from top-rated restaurants—the ones she used to crave but couldn’t justify splurging on. She got 10 portions each of over 20 dishes like: braised prawns, Hakka salted chicken, stuffed tofu, Dongpo pork.
Also: fried dough sticks, soup dumplings, pan-fried dumplings, flatbread wraps, beef pies, pan-seared buns, skewers, marinated meats, roast meats, milk tea—dozens more.
She spent over 10,000 yuan and selected pickup options timed for freshness.
Though exhausted, she still wanted to witness the city’s last days of prosperity…
That afternoon, a school notification arrived: due to the approaching super typhoon, school was tentatively closed for three days. The reopening date would be announced later.
Students cheered, calling friends to go out and party—celebrating before the storm arrived.
Coastal cities in the south experienced over a dozen typhoons each year. Every time, they’d hope for school closures. This time, their dream came true.
Jiang Ning felt the same—but unlike them, she knew this time was real.
There’d be no more school. Ever.
Sitting with barbecue and beer, her feelings were mixed as she continued collecting goods.
Back home, Jiang Ning had a nagging feeling—she’d forgotten something important.
But for the life of her, she couldn’t remember what. What was it…?
Lhaozi[Translator]
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