Chapter 11: Downgrading Consumption

Although there was the sound of running water in the space, Jiang Yan had never figured out where it was coming from.

On the other hand, the space could automatically detect and purify trash, which meant it was entirely possible to take care of all her daily needs—food, clothing, shelter—inside.

She tossed the chaise lounge from her living room straight into the space.

After rummaging through her backpack for the deposit receipts and doing some quick math, she realized that in just one day, she’d already blown through one and a half “small goals” worth of money.

Still, stocking up on food and traditional Chinese medicine was her top priority.

Although the price she paid for the medicinal herbs was higher than planned, at least her overall budget was still under control.

She put away the receipts, pulled out her phone, and sprawled out lazily in a classic “Ge You slouch.”

While recharging her batteries in the space, she casually scrolled through the news. The top national trending story was about a small island in a certain island nation that had discharged nuclear-contaminated water, and now an earthquake had caused seawater to flood back in.

The comments section was full of applause.

There were also stories about extreme and abnormal weather abroad, mostly about record-high temperatures, with tourists flocking to street fountains to cool off.

But none of it seemed apocalyptic—at least not yet.

She checked her social media account; the comments were a mix of people urging her to post more and those expressing concern.

Of course, there were also a few particularly nasty keyboard warriors, calling her a bringer of disaster, cursed to bring misfortune to her parents and family.

Some even said she was “the perfect catch”—someone with a car, a house, and no parents, making her highly sought after in the marriage market.

She couldn’t be bothered to respond.

Whether she replied or deleted her account, it would only draw more attention.

The apocalypse would arrive in three months anyway—let the keyboard warriors have their fun while they still could.

After a bit more aimless browsing, she logged off.

Even though she’d maxed out her spending limit for the day, that didn’t stop her from adding more items to her shopping cart.

With that in mind, Jiang Yan quickly opened up Taobao, JD.com, and Pinduoduo, and continued frantically adding various odds and ends to her cart.

Among these supplies were wigs in different styles and clothes in a variety of looks.

After all, with surveillance cameras everywhere, if she went out every day dressed the same while making bulk purchases, she’d definitely attract unwanted attention.

Jiang Yan stayed in the space for two hours before coming out.

The space she’d acquired was truly impressive, but she had no intention of hiding out there forever.

Jiang Yan had always had a strong sense of crisis.

Or maybe it was just that she was someone who felt deeply insecure.

Now, with both her parents gone, that sense of crisis and insecurity had only grown.

To her, no matter how good a person or an object was, she always made sure she was ready to turn away or let go at a moment’s notice.

After all, if the space could appear out of nowhere, who’s to say it couldn’t disappear just as suddenly in the future?

She could make good use of it, but that didn’t mean she had to rely on it for life.

Besides, learning to adapt to life outside was something she’d have to consider if she wanted to survive the coming apocalypse.

*

The next day.

Following the location Du Zitong sent her, Jiang Yan drove her little cargo van to the agreed meeting spot right on time.

When Du Zitong saw her climb out of the driver’s seat—decked out in full “national trend” sportswear—his jaw nearly hit the floor.

Yesterday, she’d shown up in a flashy Pagani Huayra, wearing designer clothes worth tens of thousands. Today, she’d arrived in a second-hand domestic van, dressed in an outfit worth a few hundred at most.

“Yan-jie, you—” The consumption downgrade was a bit extreme!

He didn’t dare say the second half out loud.

Even a skinny camel is bigger than a horse.

No matter how much she downgraded, she was still at a level he could only dream of reaching after years of hard work.

Jiang Yan glanced at him calmly. “What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing,” Du Zitong replied awkwardly, then pointed to a nearby residential complex. “Yan-jie, this neighborhood matches your requirements pretty well. There are only five residential buildings, labeled A through E, all with high-end renovations. It’s been almost five years since they were handed over, and the occupancy rate is decent. Four of the buildings are 24 stories, and the A building is 32 stories. The outermost building has commercial shops on the ground floor, including a fresh food supermarket of over a thousand square meters—very convenient for daily life.

Across the street, there’s a small shopping center and a pedestrian street where you can shop, grab coffee, or get your nails done. There’s also a top-tier hospital and a government-run kindergarten nearby. Overall, the amenities are excellent.”

Listening to his introduction, Jiang Yan glanced up at the name of the complex: Shallow Water Bay.

Interesting name.

And a good omen, too.

It reminded her of something Song Deming had once mentioned while chatting with his mistress, Zhang Qiqi. During that big storm, most of Anming city was flooded, but there was a place with “Shallow” in its name that fared better. They’d wanted to evacuate there, but it was too late—the mountain floods and mudslides outside their villa had cut off all the roads.

Thinking about it now, this was probably the place.

“Beep—” Du Zitong swiped the access card and led Jiang Yan into the complex.

She quickly scanned her surroundings. The environment was pretty standard; the five buildings formed a ring around a central garden.

In the middle of the garden was an oval pond with water lilies.

Some dead aquatic plants floated on the water, apparently uncleaned.

Outside the entrances of two buildings, residents had tied ropes to trees to dry their bedding and underwear.

This, to some extent, showed that the property management wasn’t great.

But after the apocalypse, the property managers would all go home anyway.

Whether management was good or bad wouldn’t make much difference to the residents.

It was probably working hours, so aside from a few elderly people with children, the place was deserted.

As they walked toward Building A, Du Zitong explained, “Yan-jie, we’re going to see the 32nd floor. There are four units per floor. The landlord is a young guy—he bought it as a wedding home, but just before they registered for marriage, his girlfriend ran off with someone else. He doesn’t want to be reminded of it, so he’s eager to sell and go back to his hometown to start a business. Kind of a pity, really.”

Jiang Yan laughed at the gossip. “What’s there to pity? Career is way better than romance.”

Du Zitong froze for a second, then remembered the rumors online about Jiang Yan’s mother being a real-life version of “The Vanished Her.” It must have affected Jiang Yan a lot, so he quickly changed the subject.

“Right, right. By the way, Yan-jie, there were a few people asking about your two apartments yesterday. The offers were pretty good, so if all goes well, they should sell this week. But if you’re not in a rush, I think you could hold out for a higher price. Those locations and the reputation of those buildings are excellent.”

Jiang Yan replied without hesitation, “No need, sell them as soon as possible. The down payment for a third home is much higher than for a first.”

Thank you to [Yuzhong Moke] for the 100 Xiaoxiang coins and 6 Xiaoxiang tickets!

Love you! (づ￣3￣)づ╭～"