Chapter 29: Indulgence Before the Flood

She also left a note on the dining table, telling her parents she’d gone out and asking them not to worry.

At 2 a.m., Jiang Yuan tiptoed out of the apartment.

By the time she got to the first floor, the water had already seeped in. It was quiet—everyone seemed to be asleep.

Once outside, the water had risen to her waist.

Wading through it was tough, and visibility on the road was increasingly poor.

Fortunately, the distance wasn’t too far, but it still took her twenty minutes to get out of the residential compound.

Once she crossed to the opposite side of the road, she stayed close to the edges, not daring to walk down the center.

Passing through the row of shops on the opposite side, she headed south, where there was a fairly decent neighborhood supermarket—one she’d wanted to check out yesterday but didn’t due to safety concerns.

Given how bad the rain was tonight, she figured she wouldn’t get another chance, so she made the call to go.

She didn’t break in through the front. She remembered the supermarket had a warehouse at the back, and she could reach it by detouring through a nearby restaurant.

From her previous visits, she recalled that the restaurant’s restroom was in the rear courtyard. That was her way in tonight.

The restaurant’s rolling shutter opened easily. Seeing the wooden tables and chairs inside, she had a sudden idea.

She quickly stashed three sets into her space, placing them in the attic area.

Wood, after all, followed metal in value.

Using her mind to sense the space, she felt it wasn’t enough, so she grabbed two more sets and didn’t bother overthinking it—she headed to the back.

The restroom was under the stairs, and climbing the stairs led directly to the warehouse window.

Jiang Yuan took out a heavy-duty cutter and, with a great deal of effort, managed to snap the metal bars.

She was petite, so she easily slipped inside. The warehouse wasn’t large—just over 200 square meters—and the front area stored mostly alcohol.

Since the space was limited, many of the shelves in the supermarket were stocked directly by brand suppliers, so inventory wasn’t abundant.

Jiang Yuan didn’t start looting right away. She first crept over to the security office. The door wasn’t locked, and it looked like no one was there.

Inside, she found the surveillance system wasn’t even on—probably to conserve power—so the security system hadn’t been activated either. She’d been worrying for nothing.

Her spatial storage was limited, so she prioritized the essentials.

On the first floor, there were two gold and jewelry shops. The jewelry in the display cases had been packed away, and she didn’t know how to crack the locks, so she gave up.

Food was the top priority. She went up to the second floor, only to find the situation worse than expected.

There were almost no vegetables left—just a few white radishes.

Looking at the empty shelves, Jiang Yuan sighed deeply and packed up the radishes—two bags’ worth, about twenty jin (~10 kg).

Better than nothing. She stored them.

The nearby shelves weren’t much better. A few bags of rice, flour, and cooking oil—not even as much as the veggie store from yesterday.

There were only instant noodles in the pickled mustard flavor, a few crispy snacks, and some milk—she wasn’t sure if it had expired, but she took it anyway.

There were still quite a few sausages, as well as self-heating hotpots and rice meals, plus some handmade knife-cut noodles.

In the snack section, there were still plenty of puffed foods, mini breads, cookies, and all kinds of canned goods.

She looted as she moved.

Back in the summer, this place had run a home delivery service, so products moved fast.

What was left now wasn’t much—even the bulk rice and flour was nearly gone.

Jiang Yuan packed up what little loose rice remained, along with purple rice and cornmeal. Everything went into bags, then into her space.

There were still a few loose snacks left—she did the same and stored them.

The most abundant items left were drinks. Her home already had some, but with space to spare, she packed in a large quantity.

There was also plenty of alcohol—she picked the expensive stuff and grabbed a few cases for her dad.

Though the quantities weren’t large, the variety was wide. Jiang Yuan still managed to stuff her space nearly full.

Now only the courtyard section had room left. She wasn’t sure how high it could stack, but if there were no height restrictions, she could just keep going.

If that was the case, as long as nothing toppled, she could store an unbelievable amount.

A wave of excitement rushed over her, and Jiang Yuan began executing her plan.

The boxed alcohol was easy to load.

She controlled it all with her password and mental command, but once the boxes reached the ceiling, there was no more room above.

A little disappointing—but still, she’d managed to pack in a ton.

Inside the warehouse, besides the alcohol, there were plenty of household goods: laundry detergent, soap, toilet paper, and sanitary pads, all boxed up—made things easier for her.

Jiang Yuan took everything she could use and then moved to the first floor, where more of the same supplies were stored.

She didn’t collect any more of those but did grab six sets of shampoo and conditioner from the personal care section. She already had a good stash but figured it couldn’t hurt to add more.

As for her space, she wanted to save it for more important items.

Outside, there were still many clothing shops and two children’s play centers. Jiang Yuan spent a while there and eventually took a stack of small stools from the entrance.

Those were for adults to sit on while their kids played—just the right height.

The two kids’ clothing stores had mostly summer and fall items. She took two children’s outdoor jackets in both small and large sizes—for Xiao Nuan to grow into.

She also grabbed a few cute pairs of shoes—her little girl had to stay stylish.

Next were two accessory shops and a cosmetics store. Jiang Yuan grabbed two skincare sets and five boxes of face masks—just in case. These things were a luxury, not a necessity.

She’d stockpiled a bit already, but if there were room, she’d move it all into her space to avoid spoilage.

In the center of the complex were two jewelry stores. To the left was a liquor and tobacco shop, and a tea shop. To the right was a bakery and a beauty salon, which also had some skincare products.

The bakery didn’t seem to be open. The display case only had plastic models.

The tea and liquor shops had plenty of stock—top-tier stuff, the kind Jiang Yuan used to gift to clients.

High-end liquor wasn’t sold in supermarkets—only specialty shops carried it.

Fortunately, these weren’t everyday essentials, so the inventory was pretty full.

With space to spare, she took as much as she could.

Can after can of tea—didn’t matter the type—all of it went into her collection.

She even found cordyceps! That stuff is rare and probably impossible to find again in the future. There was also a lot of saffron.

Dendrobium, Dragon Well tea picked before the rains—her eyes lit up. She found several cardboard boxes and loaded everything in.

Finally, she spotted the tea set in front of her. It looked like solid wood—authentic and heavy, with a vintage feel.

After a moment’s hesitation, she took it too.

By the time she finished, it was already 4:30 a.m.

As for the jewelry stores, all their stock had been locked in safes. She didn’t know the codes and couldn’t carry the entire cabinets away, so she had no choice but to leave it.