After a quick wash, Su Ling brought out a bowl of wontons.  

Once she finished eating, she opened the shop as usual. The moment the door swung open, someone rushed in, complaining, “Boss, why did you open so late? Do you even want to do business?”  

Su Ling glanced at him. “Do you still want me to buy your snow or not?”  

The man froze, then flushed with embarrassment. Stubbornly, he retorted, “Boss, I’m just saying, since you’re running a business—”  

Su Ling rapped her knuckles on the counter, her expression turning cold. Had she been too polite, giving some people the impression she was easy to bully?  

“This is my first and final warning. I didn’t come here to play savior. I have no patience for your complaints, and I don’t sympathize with you. If you don’t want to buy anything, leave. If you keep causing trouble, think carefully about the consequences of crossing me!”  

The man paled, suddenly recalling the many police officers who had visited that day.  

Su Ling frowned in disgust. Some people groveled before those in power but acted high and mighty toward others. They clung stubbornly to their so-called “face” and “dignity,” refusing to back down or apologize, terrified of being looked down upon.  

But in reality, no one cared about them at all.  

Su Ling turned to the others. “Line up properly if you want to buy something. Decide what you need beforehand. I’m in a bad mood today, so the shop’s only opening for half a day.”  

At her words, many in the crowd glared at the man in front. His face turned red, but he refused to retreat or apologize. Instead, he stiffly stated his order, paid, and shoved past the others to leave in a hurry.  

Su Ling couldn’t be bothered with him and simply asked the next person what they wanted before fetching the goods.  

After the people from Dawang Village left, those from other villages arrived one after another.  

Su Ling looked at them in surprise. “Didn’t I set up self-service vending machines at the border? You can just call out your orders there—it’s very convenient.”  

The villagers exchanged glances before one finally spoke the truth. “We were worried the stuff there might be different. A shop with a real person feels more trustworthy.”  

Su Ling was both amused and exasperated. “The items are exactly the same. There’s no need to suffer in this cold weather… Just tell me what you need, and I’ll get it for you.”  

These villagers had come prepared, each listing their requests. Su Ling tallied them up before heading to the back warehouse to place the orders.  

…  

By the time the last of the other villagers left, it was already 1:30 p.m.  

Seeing no more customers, Su Ling closed the shop and opened the Stasis Space.  

“Let’s have sour hotpot for lunch today.”  

As soon as she spoke, a small pot appeared on the table. She turned on the electric stove, then opened the mall to pick out ingredients. Once everything was ready, she pulled up her tablet.  

Today, she’d watch Little Forest.  

…

The Second Day of the Great Temperature Drop

The temperature had dropped even lower today. Zhu Ying refused to let her daughter leave the bed except for absolute necessities—it was just too cold.  

Next door, the neighbors were knocking again. They could’ve gone to buy supplies during the day, but they’d foolishly assumed the cold would let up. Now they’d suffered through another night.  

The worst part was, they could’ve gone themselves, but they insisted on guilt-tripping others into lending them supplies. If ignored, they’d curse and hurl insults, calling people heartless and worse.  

Truly, the wretched have their own wretchedness.  

But soon, they quieted down. A fierce older sister berated them, asking if their family was full of cowards—why weren’t they rushing to the vending machines instead of trying to steal from others? Did they want a bullet or a jail cell?  

After that scolding, the man of the house slunk out to buy supplies.  

Zhu Ying muttered, “Serves them right. Always hiding behind others.”  

“Mom, I want hotpot again today.”  

“Alright, we’ll have hotpot again. I’ll add two packs of instant noodles too.”  

Zhu Ying started preparing again. A tomato-based hotpot would warm their hearts along with their bodies.

…

Wang Zhaodi indeed kept herself busy, as she had said, working non-stop except during meal times.  

Since the inside of the house was quite dark, she rented a hanging lamp from Su Ling and set it up inside her tent. Then, she took out some yarn and began knitting a sweater.  

At first, she had worried that Liu Guihua might come looking for her—that she might discover her little sanctuary and fly into a rage upon seeing how comfortably she was living. But later, she stopped worrying. She realized that her parents’ control over her wasn’t as absolute as she had thought.  

The only leverage her parents had over her was money—without it, she couldn’t go to school. But now, she had her own money.  

The other concern was her household registration being tied to her family. They might try to force her into marriage to collect a bride price for her future brother. But that was even less of a worry—her brother wouldn’t be born for years, and by then, she might no longer be under their control.  

“Money really is the foundation of survival,” Wang Zhaodi thought fiercely. She would definitely live a wealthy, comfortable life one day.

…

The Educated Youth Dormitory 

Among the rooms in the educated youth dormitory, Li Juan’s was the liveliest and most comfortable. The girls inside either gathered around a hotpot or burrowed under their blankets, chatting about everything under the sun. The more they talked, the closer they became.  

In contrast, the other room was eerily quiet. There was no conversation—not even an occasional greeting. If not for hunger, they probably wouldn’t even bother going to the kitchen.  

In this suffocating silence, Zhang Xiu buried her head under her blanket.  

Xie Linfeng hadn’t been particularly harsh with his words, but they had cut her deeply. For the first time, she truly understood that some things couldn’t be obtained just through sheer, one-sided effort. The saying “When a woman pursues a man, it’s like only a thin veil separates them”—well, it wasn’t always true.  

Her passionate feelings had been crushed by a cold gust of wind, shattered beyond repair.  

…

Feng Qi, meanwhile, had decided to stick close to Xie Linfeng—mostly because he didn’t want to talk to idiots. He felt like it would lower his IQ.  

Xie Linfeng, on the other hand, had started reevaluating his own behavior after his encounter with Zhang Miaomiao.  

Since childhood, he had been held to high expectations and rarely faced criticism. Even when he acted impatient or careless, people would dismiss it with, “Well, men are just naturally a bit rough around the edges.”

He had always been given preferential treatment, so he had unconsciously assumed the role of a “savior”—someone who should “enlighten” Zhang Miaomiao, help her “see the truth,” and take charge of everything to prove his superior capabilities.  

He really was a chauvinist.

But he could change. Wasn’t it just about learning to treat others as equals? Wasn’t it just about respecting their opinions? He was sure he could reform himself.  

“Feng Qi, you should change too,” Xie Linfeng said suddenly.  

Feng Qi: “……”

Change? Change what?

Weren’t they just pooling money to eat hotpot? Was he about to call it off last minute?