Chapter 016: Signs Before the Apocalypse

The two left hand in hand, hiccuping as they went.

Jing Shu gritted her teeth and exhaled deeply, already plotting how to deal with Wang Zijian.

“Kids don’t know any better; it’s all because the shrimp was too delicious,” Uncle Sun said, finishing off the remaining shrimp porridge without leaving a drop.

Jing’s father finally brought up the matter of repayment. Uncle Sun readily agreed to pay back the money within the next two days, but Jing’s father was starting to doubt him. They agreed that the money would be returned by 3 p.m. the day after tomorrow before Uncle Sun left.

Jing Shu threw away the plates, bowls, and chopsticks used by the three of them. She wouldn’t allow them to come over and freeload anymore, let alone take food to go. It seemed necessary to accelerate and worsen her father’s relationship with them; otherwise, after the apocalypse, Uncle Sun’s family might shamelessly cling to them.

Speaking of Uncle Sun, Jing Shu had to admit he was a tough nut to crack—impervious to criticism, resistant to pressure, and unaffected by both soft and hard tactics.

No matter what you said to him, he’d agree cheerfully but never take action. Jing’s father, whether out of face or friendship, would at most say, “Please try to repay the money soon.”

Uncle Sun would always reply, “Sure, sure, definitely,” and that would be the end of it.

Debtors are always in the position of power.

That evening, Jing’s mother came home late, picked up by Jing’s father, and praised the meal Jing Shu had prepared.

The three of them held a family meeting. Jing’s mother said, “Starting tomorrow, government and public institution employees will be subject to a new policy of collective responsibility. In two months, it will be extended to state-owned and private enterprises, and eventually to ordinary households.”

“The new policy states that if any direct family members commit crimes or are reported for corruption, and if found guilty, we will also be dismissed. In severe cases, we will be considered accomplices unless we report them in advance.”

After the apocalypse, there was a period of nationwide riots and looting. China implemented a new law where if one person committed a crime, their immediate family would also be held accountable. Extended family members would have to undergo re-education through labor. Disobedient families wouldn’t receive relief food, and informants would be rewarded.

“There’s a crackdown recently; maybe something big is about to happen. International trade has banned grain exports, causing quite a stir,” Jing’s mother continued, mentioning recent security issues and other new policies. There were more security checks and patrol cars on the streets, and you needed to scan your ID card wherever you went.

Jing Shu’s heart skipped a beat. So the country had already started preparing? They already knew the various consequences and social phenomena that would result from the collision of celestial bodies and had begun implementing corresponding countermeasures. The new policies indeed curtailed many people’s ill intentions in the early stages of the apocalypse.

Unfortunately, no one expected the disasters to last at least ten years. No one anticipated that the Earth would face so many calamities—not just the absence of sunlight.

Then, Jing’s father talked about raising money. A buyer was interested in the car, and they could get the money in the next couple of days. They planned to lower the price of the house to sell it quickly.

“I want to withdraw my shares and start my own business,” Jing’s father said abruptly, leaving them puzzled and unwilling to explain further.

Jing Shu knew that a man like her father wouldn’t admit to being fired from the company. He had contributed more than anyone else and was deeply attached to it. By saying this, he was preparing Jing’s mother and Jing Shu mentally.

In the past few days, Jing Shu had been spending money like water. After buying grains, oils, dried goods, dried fruits, air conditioners, and appliances, she had only 300,000 yuan left. She still needed to stock up on essential supplies and equipment; otherwise, surviving in the harsh conditions of the apocalypse would be very difficult.

She needed a large sum of money, so her father would have to make some sacrifices to gather more funds.

—

“November 9th: The Central Procuratorate uncovered a massive corruption case involving 87.9 billion yuan…”

“November 10th: Enthusiastic citizen Mr. Zhou reported and confirmed that core leaders of the Welfare Lottery embezzled over 100 billion yuan…”

“November 11th: Enthusiastic citizen Mr. Liu reported unusual glowing from his neighbor’s place at night. Upon investigation, it was found that Secretary Zhang of Yuzhou had hidden gold worth several billion yuan in dozens of locations…”

For several consecutive days, there were explosive news reports daily, mostly about who had embezzled how much money, all of which was confiscated. Jing’s father and mother watched the morning news every day to see how much more had been embezzled.

“This is just the beginning,” Jing Shu yawned as she finished washing up. She went out for her morning run, taking the opportunity to clean up the livestock manure. Recently, the neighborhood posted notices prohibiting the secret raising of large animals that damaged the environment. She wondered if it was directed at her.

“Let me think, this month they’re catching corrupt officials. Next month, it’ll be celebrities evading taxes. In two months, it’ll be the food industry. By then, anyone who refuses to donate money or supplies will definitely be targeted by the government.”

Everything was following the same trajectory as in her previous life. Unfortunately, she hadn’t noticed it back then. Jing Shu felt the warm November sun, knowing that in another month and a half, she’d never see sunlight again.

“Master Kong (a famous instant noodle brand) was smart. In the early stages of the apocalypse, they donated instant noodles and water for three months and then announced a halt in production due to a shortage of raw materials. They gained both fame and fortune and successfully entered politics.”

“Every day, the news is about catching corruption and tax evasion, reporting on which celebrity donated how much money, which food company donated how much food. Some food companies remained unmoved and hoarded supplies, only to be taken over by the government later under some pretext and redistributed to citizens with no criminal records.”

In the first year of the apocalypse, there was no harvest, and people suffered from high temperatures and plagues. They survived by executing corrupt officials, controlling various food industries, and living off stored grains.

Since the government was actively stockpiling grains, what reason did Jing Shu have not to be proactive?

The rules for Singles’ Day (November 11th shopping festival) were becoming more and more complicated, but that couldn’t stop Jing Shu. At midnight on Singles’ Day, many stores offered half-price deals in the first ten minutes or hour. She had already bought a small batch last night at midnight.

Today, Jing Shu mainly shopped on Tmall Supermarket, JD.com, and NetEase Kaola.

She bought a lot of all the available snacks, like compressed biscuits, chocolates, beef jerky, instant noodles—five boxes of each kind that were filling.

She also bought several boxes of milk, yogurt, and beverages, mainly for convenient consumption in emergencies. She bought several boxes of adult milk powder and planned to wholesale a roomful of mineral water.

Instant noodles, canned sausages, hot pot ingredients—these were essential. Jing Shu bought ten boxes of each, planning to store them on the second floor of the villa.

She stocked up on ten years’ worth of daily necessities like toilet paper, shampoo, body wash, sanitary pads, toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, laundry detergent, disinfectant, and moisturizer.

Jing Shu bought fifty 60-liter storage boxes, mainly to pack various dried goods and scattered supplies. This would make it easier for her to organize, and in case of evacuation, she could load everything into her space without chaos.

She wanted to buy more different types of clothing and equipment, like airtight spacesuits and extreme cold-resistant winter clothes. However, she ran out of money!

Snacks had consumed most of her funds. She couldn’t bear to return some of them; after the apocalypse, these items would all stop production, and she wouldn’t be able to eat them again.

Jing Shu could only wait for the next batch of funds to arrive.