Chapter 174: It’s Not Illegal to Pick Up a Dead Man’s Things, Right?

Zhou Dafu didn’t expect that sometimes things don’t go according to plan. For example, the stone in his plan to hit three birds with one stone suddenly disappeared, and instead, the birds fell on their own. That was pretty awkward.

So, in times of displacement, when you're fleeing from disaster and feeling depressed, what’s the best way to lift your spirits?

Eat! Eat delicious food!

Drink! Drink something nutritious!

For lunch, the main course was slices of bread with fresh lettuce, topped with rich cheese spread, thinly sliced ham, and freshly fried eggs from the family’s The Fat Chicken.

The sandwich was divine. One bite into it, and the savory meat mixed with the fresh aroma of the wheat... Jing Shu was thoroughly enjoying it. Without realizing it, she had eaten seven or eight sandwiches already.

There was also a smoked ham leg hanging in the shelter. If you felt like having some, you could just slice off a piece. Jing Shu stood right next to it, and in a short time, the ham leg was visibly shrinking before everyone’s eyes.

After that, they enjoyed a bowl of rich, creamy old duck soup with dried bamboo shoots that had been simmering all morning. It was the kind of meal that made you feel like you were on top of the world.

The heavy feeling of being displaced and the gloom of having to flee all vanished. With such good food and drinks, it almost felt like they were on a leisurely outing, not fleeing from a flood. It wasn’t as bad as they had imagined.

As for her uncle’s family, they gained a new understanding of Jing Shu’s household. Poor people were indeed fleeing from disaster, but the rich? They were on a luxury vacation. Not only was Jing Shu’s family well-stocked with food, but they also had every possible piece of outdoor gear. It was truly enviable.

“Stick with your sister, okay? Your father and I have work to do,” her aunt said. She couldn’t bring herself to ask for food or drinks and had too much to take care of. But when she came back after finishing her tasks, Jing Shu’s mother greeted her with, “We’ve saved some sandwiches for you and big brother. Go ahead and eat.”

“Oh no, we couldn’t possibly... the three of us—"

"Eat. And in the future, remember to take care of your little sister too, whenever there’s a good opportunity.”

“Alright.”

After that, her uncle’s status also rose, his back straightened a little more, and his words carried more weight.

After lunch, no one lazed around. Jing Shu’s father went to help move bricks, while her grandfather started digging up soil. The two were planning to build a brick kiln to roast sweet potatoes and keep warm at night when the temperature would drop to just a few degrees.

Jing Lai was called away by Li Yutian for a meeting, likely to organize a large community kitchen. With so many people, they needed to distribute emergency food. People couldn’t keep eating raw red worms all the time—that stuff took forever to chew, and if you ate it for three meals a day, your jaw would be sore.

Jing Shu’s mother was busy coordinating with people from the Agricultural Bureau. They had another batch of vegetables that needed to be distributed.

Jing Shu’s grandmother was organizing the food they had brought and preparing dinner.

Wu Youai was busy organizing the labor force, reassuring everyone that there would be food at five o’clock to calm their nerves.

As for Jing Shu, she wasn’t idle either. She went back to Cave 4—because she had some... business to attend to.

The luxury container in Cave 4 that Zhou Da Heng had set up was now fully installed. The workers were gathered on one side, eating porridge. Jing Shu counted—there were the same number of workers as there had been earlier in the day.

While the luxury container wasn’t quite as extravagant as a mobile villa, it was still comparable to a proper house.

The most valuable part of it was the lightweight steel exterior, which made it easy to fold and transport, light in weight, and highly stable. It also provided great earthquake and wind resistance.

Jing Shu thought to herself, "If I could modify my RV with this lightweight steel, it would be perfect." The only flaw with the Conqueror RV was that the second floor was just an open, retractable terrace.

While it offered a luxurious outdoor bar setup, it wasn’t fully integrated with the rest of the RV. It was exposed to the elements—wind, snow, and dust. Jing Shu wanted to convert the second floor into a fully sealed, retractable living space. Given how low the temperatures would be during the migration, adding this lightweight steel exterior would definitely improve insulation.

Though she was very tempted, Jing Shu wasn’t the type of person to kill others and steal their things just because she wanted something.

...Twenty minutes later, Jing Shu suddenly changed her mind. "It’s not illegal to pick up things left behind by the dead, is it? I didn’t kill anyone out of greed. After all, there’s an old saying: 'Heaven may forgive your sins, but your own actions may not.'"

"No, no—maybe it’s more accurate to say, 'The most ruthless of all is a woman’s heart.'"

Even Jing Shu couldn’t help but marvel at the strange ways of fate.

Within a few short minutes, she had forged a relationship with a woman she barely knew. It was a bond that transcended friendship or romance—it was built on mutual interest.

That being said, Jing Shu didn’t expect to find someone else here. Given the occasional indecent sounds coming from the luxury container, she thought the man had moved to a different place, and the workers were all eating.

When she slipped in, she saw Qin Feifei standing there with a knife, clearly trying to kill the snakes in the cage but not knowing how to go about it. The snakes were large and flicking their tongues—it was clearly dangerous.

Qin Feifei looked at Jing Shu in surprise, and for a moment, both were caught off guard. Qin Feifei had only come because no one else was around.

“Are you here to steal the snakes?” Qin Feifei asked, seeing Jing Shu’s eyes fixed on the snakes. She assumed Jing Shu was a thief.

Jing Shu had only come to scout the area and hadn’t expected to run into anyone. Was there someone else with that man inside the container?

“Are you trying to kill the snakes?” Jing Shu asked, noticing that it seemed like Qin Feifei was.

“If you want the snake meat, I’ll give it to you after I kill the snakes. Just please, don’t tell anyone,” Qin Feifei begged. She had limited time and needed to make a decision quickly.

“Why are you killing the snakes? If you have a grudge against that man, why don’t you just kill him instead?” Jing Shu asked, sensing that something wasn’t quite right.

Tears welled up in Qin Feifei’s eyes as she started sobbing. She explained her situation, how she had been wronged and was living under the threat of Zhou Da Heng’s constant abuse. Every day, she cried herself to sleep. Zhou Da Heng had done so many horrible things to her, and now he had obtained two snakes, planning to breed them and make snake wine to boost his strength, enabling him to continue his monstrous ways.

She pleaded with Jing Shu, saying that once she killed the snakes, she could take the meat. She confessed that she wasn’t capable of killing Zhou Da Heng, and besides, this was a law-abiding society. Even if she killed him, it would just mean her own death as well. The best she could do was kill the snakes and make it look like an accident, hoping that Zhou Da Heng wouldn’t be able to continue tormenting her afterward.

“You deserve an Oscar for this performance,” Jing Shu said.

Qin Feifei was puzzled. “Huh?”

“This act is really convincing. You’re planning to take the snake’s venom and make it look like Zhou Da Heng was killed by a snakebite, right? You’d frame someone else for it and escape scot-free? You were going to give me the snake meat to deflect suspicion, knowing that Zhou Da Heng’s death would be thoroughly investigated, and eventually, it would lead back to me.”

Jing Shu paused and smiled, “But I like it.”

---

Author's Note:

There will be more updates today! Please vote for the novel! Thanks to all the readers, and congratulations to *Weiwoka* for leveling up to *Steward*!