Chapter 174: The Gathering

Every room was packed to the brim, stacked tightly from floor to ceiling.

Zhao Ping’an reminded them, “When you’re storing supplies, it’s best to sort and organize them like I do. That way, it’s not only easier to find things, but it also helps avoid a lot of safety hazards.”

Chu Peipei nodded. “Your space planning is really smart—you’ve made use of every corner. I’ll reorganize my supplies like this when I get back, so it won’t be such a mess that I can’t even find a place to stand.”

An Nan also silently resolved to tidy up her own storage space. She had so much stuff, it stretched as far as the eye could see, only roughly divided into zones, with everything piled together haphazardly. When she needed something in a hurry, she often couldn’t remember which area she’d stashed it in.

Zhao Ping’an looked at them seriously.

“Actually, I’ve run a lot of simulations during this time, and the results aren’t great—the disaster is likely to last a very long time, and it probably won’t just be floods and extreme heat.”

An Nan glanced at him but said nothing.

In the past, Chu Peipei would have scoffed, “Don’t jinx it!” But this time, she simply nodded.

“It’s not just you. Even I’m not blindly optimistic anymore.”

An Nan patted her on the shoulder, comforting her. “No need to be too pessimistic, either. We’ll just deal with whatever comes our way.”

Zhao Ping’an said, “Exactly. I brought you here to remind you to think about sustainability. Supplies will run out eventually—farming and raising livestock are the only long-term solutions.”

Chu Peipei nodded thoughtfully.

Just then, Hu Cuilan’s voice called from across the hall:

“Kids, time to eat!”

The group hurried back to apartment 1501.

Hu Cuilan had already set the table with practiced efficiency.

There was lettuce with oyster sauce, stir-fried gluten with chili, garlic baby bok choy, stir-fried greens, tomato and egg, spicy rabbit heads, braised rabbit, and chicken stew in an iron pot—a total of eight dishes, mostly vegetarian.

Before the apocalypse, if you served mostly vegetables at a dinner party, people would have laughed at you. But now, this was a feast of the highest order.

If those outside, surviving on dried snake meat and giant cockroaches, saw this table, they’d go crazy fighting for these vegetables. After all, with so much protein and so little fiber, the body craves vegetables.

Hu Cuilan greeted them warmly, “Come on, sit down! I didn’t know what you all like to drink, so I just brought out whatever we had!”

As she spoke, she set out two bottles of Coke, two bottles of Sprite, and four cans of beer.

An Nan was a bit surprised. Even in Zhao Ping’an’s well-stocked home, drinks like these were rare. She’d given him some Coke before, and he’d treated it like treasure. When she’d looked over his supplies earlier, she’d barely seen any drinks at all.

It was clear that this meal, offered by mother and son, was far more sincere than Hou Jianming’s showy banquets.

An Nan grabbed a drink, Chu Peipei opened a can of beer, and together they raised their glasses to wish Zhao Ping’an a happy birthday.

Hu Cuilan beamed with joy. “Seeing you young people getting along so well makes me so happy! In times like these, just being alive is a blessing, and for us to be able to sit around a table like this is a real miracle. I hope you’ll always support and help each other—let’s all keep going and live long lives!”

Zhao Ping’an grinned and raised his glass. “To friendship!”

An Nan and Chu Peipei exchanged smiles. “To friendship!”

They toasted each other back and forth, laughing and chatting for a good while before finally starting to eat.

There were two staple foods on the table: rice and steamed buns. An Nan picked up a bun and happily added some baby bok choy to her plate.

She took a bite and said, “Auntie Hu, your cooking is delicious!”

To be honest, in terms of taste, it couldn’t compare to Gu Zhiyu’s cooking, but for some reason, this food tasted especially sweet and comforting to An Nan.

It had been a long time since she’d eaten a meal cooked by an elder.

Hu Cuilan smiled and pushed more food toward her and Chu Peipei. “If you like it, eat more!”

The four of them ate and chatted. If not for the apocalypse, these three families probably never would have had the chance to sit together like this and enjoy each other’s company.

The air conditioner was running strong, the lights were a warm yellow, and it felt like a world apart from what was outside.

Chu Peipei couldn’t hold her liquor—after just one can of beer, her cheeks were flushed and she was a little tipsy.

“I’m so happy today! After Jiadong passed away, I thought I’d be alone for the rest of my life. Actually, who even dared to think about living to old age? Back then, I didn’t even know where my next breakfast would come from!”

Hu Cuilan, who’d been drinking with her, was also feeling sentimental.

“That’s right! I thought it’d just be me and Ping’an, relying on each other in this little apartment. I wasn’t worried about myself, but I worried about Ping’an—he’s always been a loner, burying himself in his lab tinkering with his gadgets. I kept thinking, what would he do after I’m gone?”

She hiccuped. “But now, he’s finally making friends with you all!”

Zhao Ping’an frowned. “Mom! I’ve told you a thousand times, those are instruments, not junk!”

An Nan couldn’t help but laugh.

But then Hu Cuilan pointed at her. “You look so pretty when you smile! You’re just in your early twenties, but you always put on a serious face, pretending to be all grown up…”

An Nan froze.

Suddenly, she remembered—before the disaster, before her mother passed away, she was just an innocent young girl. She was afraid to walk alone at night, never dared to stick her feet out from under the covers, and always avoided drunken men on the street…

But somehow, she’d managed to walk so many dark roads all by herself.

Her eyes grew a little moist.

Zhao Ping’an went to the kitchen to make some hangover soup. An Nan leaned her head on Chu Peipei’s shoulder, watching Auntie Hu chase after him, giving instructions.

In that moment, she suddenly didn’t feel so alone anymore.

The gathering lasted several hours before finally breaking up.

An Nan and Chu Peipei each took home some improved seeds and a pair of rabbits.

At home, Fugui and Laifu, who had been waiting, rushed over curiously when they saw their owner bring back a live animal.

Especially Fugui, who pawed at the rabbits a few times, then grabbed one in his mouth and started crunching away.

An Nan was dumbfounded.

“Fugui! That’s not for eating!”

But ever since the dog mutated, its teeth had become razor-sharp. In just a moment, the little female rabbit had met an untimely end.

An Nan quickly scooped up the male rabbit. “Fugui! This is a friend I brought home, not food!”

The little male rabbit was still young and clueless, not understanding what had just happened.

Fugui, however, lowered his head apologetically and nuzzled up to An Nan, as if admitting his mistake.

An Nan didn’t scold him further—it was her fault for eating first and forgetting to feed Fugui and Laifu.

She was just about to get them something to eat when suddenly, a loud bang sounded from outside the window."