[edited]

After receiving kisses from the poop scooper, Coke was so excited that he spun around in circles and he almost peed. 

Doudou wasn’t going to be outdone. Holding onto her arm, she said, “Sister, it’s really scary out there. Everywhere we go, there’s water flooding all the houses. But Doudou isn’t afraid!” 

“Yeah, Doudou is so brave.”  

After giving each of them a candy as a reward, Jiang Ning went downstairs to help move the firewood. 

The water tower was so big that the three men lifted and carried it directly to the rooftop. 

They brought the inflatable boat upstairs and Zheng Weili opened a large backpack, taking out a plastic bag with a snake and two wild rabbits. 

“We went even farther this time. There’s a group of hillside villas in the middle of the mountain that was already flooded. The water tower is what Huo Yishen wanted. We were supposed to come back after finishing, but who knew Coke would run up the mountain.” 

Afraid that he would be in danger, they all hurried to catch up and found it entangled with the snake. 

Huo Yishen acted quickly and chopped off the snake’s head with a military knife. 

With the few pounds of snake meat they obtained, everyone was already very happy, but Coke still refused to leave. 

After failing to persuade the dog, they gathered firewood and made their way into the the mountains. As a result, Coke discovered a rabbit hole.  

“Anning, you’ve definitely hit the jackpot. What kind of dog is this? It’s like it’s become a genius.” 

Jiang Ning chuckled, “Coke has been wandering outside all year round, who knows how much stronger its survival skills are compared to ours.” 

Zheng Weili marveled, “I’ve never seen such a smart dog, it even climbed up a tree. If it weren’t for Huo Yishen, it would have been impossible to control it. It didn’t even want to come back when it got dark.” 

Being gluttonous is a dog’s nature. Only a dog that has experienced hunger will have the strong desire to hoard food. 

Thinking about the last time it chased the pig, it was reluctant to come back. It would be strange if it didn’t dash into the mountains. 

Jiang Ning didn’t go out, but she contributed by taking care of the house, while the dog made significant contributions through hunting. They decided to split the rewards evenly. 

She didn’t want to take advantage of this, but Zheng Weili and others insisted, “Coke is also one of us, we can’t treat it differently. It’s efforts are no less than ours. If you feel guilty, you can be in charge, and we’ll assist.” 

In the end, Jiang Ning didn’t take charge either, but acted as an advisor, guiding Huo Yishen’s cooking skills. 

The snake was skinned and gutted, then stewed with black beans in a pressure cooker. 

The two rabbits were plump, one braised and the other spicy. 

They also stir fried some greens and cooked mixed grain rice. Everyone was beyond satisfied. 

“Anning, we’re planning to go back tomorrow,” Zhang Chao asked, “Do you want to join?” 

The wealthy owners of the villa community had already evacuated, so forget about expecting any food, but many of the furniture was solid wood, perfect for chopping into firewood. 

Moreover, placing water towers on the rooftop was quite practical. They decided to bring two more back, so that each household could have one installed, so they don’t have to work hard to collect rainwater from the balcony. 

Huo Yishen suddenly spoke up, “There are quite a few water towers over there. Why not bring back a few more? When the rain stops, it won’t be so easy to restore the water supply. We need to make a water storage plan.” 

Zhang Chao and others were briefly stunned, then agreed with his suggestion. 

His and Jiang Ning’s survival skills were strong, so it would be wise to listen to them more. 

Jiang Ning didn’t object, “We should keep one for ourselves. Who do you think should go?” 

Zheng Weili wasn’t fond of staying indoors; being cooped up at home every day had driven her crazy, “I’ll go, but Coke has to come with me.” 

“Woof!” Coke barked in agreement. 

“I want to go too.” Doudou raised her hand eagerly, “I can help picking the firewood.” 

Huo Yishen intended to let her experience the outside world, “Alright, but no crying.” 

“I won’t cry.” Doudou rubbed her bottom, “Brother, I fell today but I didn’t cry.” 

So, everyone decided to have Jiang Ning stay behind at the main base, while Coke would go out in her place. 

In the middle of the night, while everyone was sleeping soundly, there suddenly came a lot of commotion downstairs, and it went on for quite some time without stopping. 

Jiang Ning was awakened by the noise downstairs. Seeing Coke lying still in its doghouse, she rolled over and went back to sleep. 

In the morning, she was still reluctant to get out of bed, but Coke excitedly pulled at her pajamas. 

The poop scooper had to tidy up quickly because it needs to get ready to go to work. 

Jiang Ning yawned and got up. She fed Coke chicken breast mixed with dog food, applied ointment to it’s skin condition, and then helped it put on a raincoat. 

Lunch had to be simple, just vegetarian dog food with white congee packed in a thermos. 

Coke grabbed the pack and twisted the doorknob, glancing back at her. 

It seemed to be saying, “Poop scooper, I’m off to earn some food, you stay home and behave.” 

Jiang Ning chuckled and hugged it, “Alright, be safe and don’t be too reckless.” 

Huo Yishen’s door opened, and Doudou came out wearing a raincoat. “Sis, I want a hug too.” 

Apparently, Huo Yishen had had a heart to heart with her. The little one was becoming more and more expressive. She greeted Zheng Weili and the others one by one, a far cry from her timid and fearful demeanor during their first meeting. 

Coke walked at the end, constantly looking back at her with eyes full of affection. 

The only difference now was that, after training with Huo Yishen, it clearly carried a sense of responsibility. 

Jiang Ning’s eyes suddenly welled up. She closed the door and went to the balcony. After a while, she saw them, along with Coke, paddling away in their inflatable boats. 

Just as they left, He Zhian’s team followed suit in their rubber boats. 

Not only He Zhian, but also Yang Weicong and others, as well as teams from other floors. 

Unconsciously, the 18th floor had become a benchmark. 

They couldn’t understand why, despite going out to search for supplies, the 18th floor always returned loaded with goods while they couldn’t even find firewood. 

Why is there such a big gap between them? 

Regardless, they couldn’t do anything about it. Since they couldn’t join in, they could only find a way to keep up. 

Jiang Ning counted quietly, there were quite a few who were secretly following. 

Although they were being watched, she wasn’t worried. Huo Yishen would shake them off. 

After breakfast, she continued to study her medical books. Around ten o’clock, Grandma Zhong came up for acupuncture. 

After several days of treatment, her back injury had improved significantly. She no longer needed her family’s assistance to go upstairs. 

Grandma Zhong was in a good mood, holding onto Jiang Ning’s hand tightly. “Anning, the Xu family was robbed last night. It’s really karma.” 

It was the family of the lady who came to Jiang Ning last time, the one throwing a tantrum and causing a scene. 

In the dead of night, someone broke into their house, knocked them unconscious, and took away all their food supplies. 

When they woke up, they caused a scene again and went to He Zhian in the morning, demanding that every household open their doors for a search. 

Even if He Zhian had ten times the courage, he wouldn’t dare to organize a search. Especially when he heard how much food the Xu family had lost, he almost spat out blood. 

There were over two hundred kilograms of rice, flour, oil, and plenty of other items like preserved meat and pickled vegetables. 

“It’s probably exaggerated. Which family would hoard so much food?” 

Grandma Zhong shook her head repeatedly. “Those who kindly lent her food are furious. They were ready to fight, saying she’s the one with no conscience and deserved to be robbed.” 

Jiang Ning listened nearby. “You should be careful too.” 

Grandma Zhong, wise with age, replied, “My family doesn’t have any food either. We only eat one meal a day now, we barely filled our stomachs.” 

By noon, they still hadn’t returned. 

Dragging the water tower shouldn’t take too long. Jiang Ning was getting worried about Coke and really wanted to make a phone call, but there was no signal. 

Every fifteen minutes, she would go to the balcony to look out. 

Finally, at three o’clock in the afternoon, she saw Huo Yishen’s figure. 

She counted and noticed that not only was everyone back, but Coke was also standing at the front of the rubber boat like a triumphant hero. 

She went downstairs to help. 

As the rubber boat approached, Jiang Ning noticed that something was wrong!