When his mother-in-law had just left, he couldn’t say much.

If Zhang Taoming had to be blunt, he’d say the two of them brought it on themselves.

They just had to be greedy for that bit of petty gain.

Even Deng Mifen’s sister-in-law had complaints.

Buying this house in the inner ring had completely drained both families’ savings.

Wasn’t it cramped enough already?

Twenty square meters.

Two families, four adults, four children.

What was Deng Feiyu sticking around for every day?

And she still had the nerve to save food for her brother—like they had enough to spare for someone who just took and never gave back.

Who did Deng Feiyu think he was?

The household arguments grew more intense.

Her husband and sister-in-law stopped even hiding their disdain.

Deng Feiyu understood.

He started coming home later and later. In the mornings, before the lights even came on outside, he’d sneak out in the dark.

Deng Mifen felt bitter, resentful, and pained.

She cried quietly into her blanket, not daring to alert anyone, letting the tears soak her face.

Every day, she watched Yu Xifeng coming and going, the bag on her back always stuffed full.

If not for Yu Xifeng, how could her family have ended up like this?

Yu Xifeng seduced her brother and got her mother killed.

And yet she could just dust herself off like nothing happened.

The heavens were truly unfair.

A knock came at the door. Yu Xifeng checked the monitor—it was Zheng Weiyang.

He still wore that warm, friendly smile, though he looked much older than the last time they met.

He had come to deliver an invitation.

Less than three months since his son’s death, and he was throwing another banquet.

He seemed to bear no grudge against Yu Xifeng.

He wasn’t arrogant despite his high position, and didn’t take out past conflicts with his son on her.

Of course, that was assuming he hadn’t discovered Zheng Chengfan had died at her hands.

Yu Xifeng politely declined.

She had no interest in Zheng Weiyang’s gathering.

If he weren’t holed up in the inner ring every day, she might have already made a move on him.

There was never any possibility of peace between them.

Zheng Weiyang said, “After the banquet, there’ll be an auction. Miss Yu, you should stop by. If there’s anything you want to sell, send it over in advance.”

That changed Yu Xifeng’s mind.

Any auction hosted by Zheng Weiyang was bound to be far more upscale than the market near the Contribution Center.

She should check it out.

Yu Xifeng accepted the invitation and gave a social smile.

Zheng Weiyang chatted with her a bit more before leaving.

Yu Xifeng watched him from behind.

He didn’t extend the invitation to Deng Feiyu’s family.

Clearly, Zheng Weiyang had filtered the guest list—not all inner ring residents were invited.

What had caught his attention about her?

Or… was he suspicious of her?

The banquet was a week away.

When Yu Xifeng went to practice with Old Cai, he told her not to come tomorrow.

“I asked around. There are quite a few medicinal herbs over on Zhongqiu Street. I’m heading over there to try my luck. Take a break, you’ve been training hard every day,” Zhang Qiu said while sorting herbs.

“Are you going to gather herbs for my medicine packs?” Yu Xifeng asked directly.

Zhang Qiu rubbed his nose. “I need some for myself too.”

Yu Xifeng said, “Old Cai, you’re getting on in years. Stay home and guard the place. I’ll go tomorrow.”

“A man and a woman alone—won’t look good,” Zhang Qiu said. “If something happens, people will talk.”

Yu Xifeng didn’t hesitate. “If something happens, I’ll throw you to cover our retreat. You wouldn’t outrun me anyway.”

Zhang Qiu blinked.

Then laughed out loud once he processed it.

Didn’t expect Zhang Qiu to be the stubborn, spirited type.

The next day, since they were heading out, Yu Xifeng didn’t do standing meditation to save her strength.

She met up with Zhang Qiu and joined the rescue team heading out.

It was around ten in the morning.

The outside temperature was around minus 40 to 50°C during the day, but Zhongqiu Street wasn’t too far.

Before heading out, a broadcast reminded all surface-bound survivors of safety precautions.

Without professional gear, they were advised to return by 4 p.m. at the latest.

As soon as they left the shelter, the sun blazed overhead like a golden disc.

Yu Xifeng hadn’t seen the sun in days.

Though there was no real warmth, she still stood under the light and looked up.

Sunlight was different from artificial light.

Hard to describe, but the feeling was distinct—even if neither brought warmth anymore.

Still, it was different.

Like venting a long-held breath. The sky wasn’t blue, the wind wasn’t clean.

But standing on solid ground, it felt freeing.

The cult of the sun god wasn’t entirely without reason.

That moment didn’t last long—soon she was engulfed by a bone-deep cold.

The group slowly dispersed.

“Not going to the commercial street today?”

“It’s been picked clean. Nothing left there.”

“Someone found some amoxicillin in a pharmacy yesterday—scored big.”

“Damn, why can’t I find stuff like that? All I get is useless weeds.”

“Tell me about it. Finding it’s one thing—you also need the luck. Someone once dug up a whole bucket of chocolate in the commercial area and got killed for it. Tsk tsk.”

Snippets of conversation reached Yu Xifeng’s ears.

She was already going numb from the cold.

Even Zhang Qiu, usually so talkative, had gone mute from the chill.

As they walked, Yu Xifeng started recalling fragments from her previous life. Her body slowly adjusted.

Comfort never lasted long.

In her past life, she seemed to always be walking like this, head down in the cold.

Yu Xifeng licked the roof of her mouth and, hidden by her mask, popped a piece of candy into her mouth.

The sweetness scattered her unpleasant memories.

The herbal medicine street wasn’t far.

As they got closer, Zhang Qiu dug a small piece of frozen drunken fish herb from the snow.

It looked no different from any other frozen twig.

At first, Yu Xifeng helped him gather herbs.

But once they had a big pile, Zhang Qiu picked through her handful, tossed it all, and told her to stand aside.

So she found a spot to squat and popped a few chocolate drops into her mouth now and then.

Before coming out, Yu Xifeng had studied the map.

She didn’t lack the hot commodities that had been fought over in the underground shelters.

It was the less sought-after things she’d overlooked.

If given the chance, she needed to stock up—like medicinal herbs and construction materials.

The nearest building materials market was over ten kilometers away.

At Zhang Qiu’s pace, she wasn’t sure they’d make it today.

Most signs had collapsed in the snow—it was impossible to tell which shop was which.

They had to search one by one.

When they finally found the herbal medicine shop, someone was already there, prying up the wooden threshold.

That wood could be burned for heat.

All kinds of herbs were scattered across the floor.

“Get lost. This is my turf,” the man barked, waving a wooden stick at Yu Xifeng.