Cong Yixing was ultimately unable to convince his family; his parents and eldest brother were unwilling to come to Yu City.
While part of their reluctance stemmed from a desire not to trouble him, it was mostly because they didn’t want to leave their hometown.
As Mother Cong put it: “The neighborhood is familiar, we know all the neighbors, and our relatives are close by. If something really happens, for better or worse, there will be people to lend a hand.”
Father Cong added: “Since your younger brother didn’t explicitly tell us to go to you, then there’s surely no danger at home. If it were truly dangerous, would he let us stay?”
The eldest brother, Cong Yijin, chimed in: “Having the military around is safe, but that doesn’t mean it’s unsafe without them. Even if there are no troops here, we still have the government. Things won’t descend into chaos, so don’t worry.”
When Cong Yixing mentioned the distribution of supplies in Yu City, Mother Cong said: “We have that here, too! They’re handing things out per person; everyone gets their share. Don’t worry your head about us—just take good care of my second daughter-in-law.”
The eldest brother asked: “How is the apartment you’re renting? Do the appliances work? Little Brother said to buy more grain. If your fridge is small, you might as well buy a freezer. Worst case, you can just sell it when you move later.”
Jiang Ding slept until six in the evening, waking up feeling more tired than when she lay down.
She sprawled on the bed, listening to Cong Yixing recount the conversation. She said lazily, “Don’t buy a freezer. Why waste that money?”
Cong Yixing replied, “Don’t you love meat? If we don’t buy a freezer, we probably won’t be able to stock up on much of it.”
My space is a giant freezer, Jiang Ding thought. I could fit all the pigs in Yu City in there.
Since she couldn’t say that out loud, she made up an excuse: “Didn’t you say the power grid is under pressure? If we stock up on that many frozen goods and the power goes out, it’ll all go bad.”
Cong Yixing looked thoughtful. “That’s a fair point. I’ll mention it to my brother—tell them to focus on stocking non-perishables like rice, flour, and oil.”
Jiang Ding’s mind began to wander. “And gas. I saw a video about a gas explosion in Jiang City. Even though that’s a low-probability event, what if the gas is cut off later?”
Cong Yixing took note. “I’ll tell them to buy some butane canisters as backups. We should buy some, too.”
Seeing her suggestions being accepted, Jiang Ding grew more enthusiastic and sat up abruptly. “And human nature! We have to guard against it! If we suddenly hoard so much stuff and someone malicious notices… it’s fine when resources are plenty, but if supplies become scarce later, having so much at your house will inevitably attract unwanted attention!”
Cong Yixing: “…” She’s starting to get a bit far-fetched.
Seeing his skepticism, Jiang Ding stared at him fiercely. “Do you think I’m wrong?!”
“No, you’re absolutely right. People’s hearts are hard to read. I’ll tell them to be discreet when they buy things.”
Jiang Ding added, “And we need to prepare weapons!”
“Huh? That… that might be a bit difficult.”
Jiang Ding snapped back, “What’s difficult about it! We can buy watermelon knives! Bone-cleaving knives! Stainless steel drying poles! Entrenching shovels!”
Cong Yixing: “…I’ll tell them.”
“We need to buy them, too!” Jiang Ding fumbled for her phone and opened a shopping app to start searching for self-defense items like telescopic batons, pepper spray, and mini personal alarms.
Seeing her so energized, Cong Yixing didn’t say much. He got up to wash his face and said to the shopping-obsessed Jiang Ding, “Then let’s go to the supermarket tonight. We can eat on the third floor?”
The word “eat” briefly snapped Jiang Ding out of her trance. Her focus shifted from the phone for a moment. “Mhm, let’s get wraps!”
Cong Yixing thought: Good grief, all she remembers are the wraps.
Around eight o’clock, the pair walked to the nearby Huafu Supermarket under the last traces of twilight.
Nowadays, the supermarket was empty during the day but bustling at night. Many families came out together to buy groceries, bringing along children who had been cooped up at home all day to get some fresh air.
Jiang Ding and Cong Yixing each pushed a large shopping cart. Jiang Ding divided the labor: “You get the rice, flour, and oil. I’ll get the snacks and instant food. Finally, we’ll meet up to pick out fruit and fresh meat.”
Cong Yixing said, “Take your time. They aren’t doing home delivery for bulk items anymore. Once I’ve bought the staples, I’ll check out, drop them off at home, and then come back to meet you.”
Jiang Ding’s eyes darted around. She pushed her cart back into the stack and said, “You go ahead with that. I’ll go upstairs first to order food. By the time you get back from the trip home, it’ll probably be ready. We can eat first and then come back down to buy the rest.”
Cong Yixing didn’t know what she was plotting; he just assumed she was hungry after not eating enough at lunch. He agreed and pushed his cart into the aisles.
Jiang Ding smirked inwardly and hurried up to the third floor.
The dining area was crowded. She looked around and ordered a dry pot meal from a place that smelled delicious. She got one dry pot with griddle-cooked fatty intestines and another with cauliflower, served with two bowls of rice and free silver ear soup.
Jiang Ding found an empty seat and placed a bowl of soup on the table to save it. Seeing a line forming at the wrap stall, she rushed over to join it.
Ten minutes later, Jiang Ding stepped into the mall’s elevator lobby carrying ten freshly made wraps. She stood facing the security camera, tapped a few things on her phone, and then held it to her ear, pretending to be on a call. “Don’t be so impatient, I’m bringing the wraps down to you right now,” she said into the phone.
Two elevators arrived at the same time. Jiang Ding chose the empty one.
There was a camera inside the elevator.
She rode it down to the B1 parking level. When the doors opened, she didn’t enter the parking garage.
The parking garage had cameras too.
She waited for the elevator doors to close, and once she was sure no one was around, she slipped into the stairwell behind her.
People rarely used the mall stairwell. Jiang Ding checked up, down, left, and right meticulously. Seeing no electronic devices, she still cautiously stood in the shadow of the stair landing. Using the darkness as cover, she stashed most of the wraps into her space, leaving only one.
She didn’t take the elevator back; instead, she climbed the stairs back to the third floor.
Though the effort made her break a sweat, she was in a great mood.
Swinging the bag with the remaining wrap, Jiang Ding took her receipt to collect the food and then messaged Cong Yixing: “I’m so hungry! Where are you?”
Cong Yixing replied: “I just got home. I borrowed the supermarket’s cart to push everything back. Go ahead and start eating, I’ll be there soon.”
Jiang Ding: “You’re working hard for our home; how could I eat without waiting for you!”
Cong Yixing was touched and sent her a “kiss” emoji.
Jiang Ding said she would wait for him, and she truly didn’t start the main meal.
When Cong Yixing arrived, she was chewing on a huge mouthful of the wrap. She had already finished half of it. Seeing him, she held up the wrap: “Hurry, come eat the one I saved for you.”
Cong Yixing: “…” He took the half-wrap and had just taken a bite when he saw Jiang Ding pop a piece of fatty intestine into her mouth. The next second, a light seemed to appear in her eyes.
Every time Jiang Ding ate something delicious, her eyes would light up. The level of tastiness determined the brightness of her gaze.
He heard her exclaim, “I’ve had their dry pot chicken before, but I didn’t realize their intestines were this good!”
Seeing her look so satisfied—as if she could die happy after just one bite—Cong Yixing’s heart softened. He couldn’t help but smile along with her.
“Then eat more.”
Jiang Ding was excited. “Cong Yixing! Can you make dry pot fatty intestines? Tell me you can!”
Cong Yixing said, “I haven’t made it before, but cooking is all the same once you get the hang of it. I’ll just find a tutorial, and I’ll know how after one watch.”
Jiang Ding had full confidence in his culinary skills. After dinner, when they went back down to the supermarket for snacks and fresh produce, she braved the smell and bought several pounds of raw intestines.
Cong Yixing tried to talk her out of it: “We don’t need this much; we won’t finish it in one go.”
Jiang Ding wouldn’t listen. “You can make braised intestines; your braised dishes are delicious too.” Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she turned back: “Braised dishes take effort; it’s a waste to only do intestines. Let’s go buy some duck parts and chicken feet to braise together!”
Cong Yixing followed her helplessly. “Then let’s get some kelp and bean curd skin. Do you want lotus root?”
Even though they had already moved the staples home, the amount they bought on this second trip was still too much. The small cart they borrowed couldn’t fit it all in one go, so Cong Yixing had no choice but to make an extra trip.
While Cong Yixing pushed the fresh meat and produce home, Jiang Ding waited outside the supermarket, guarding two large bags of snacks at her feet.
During the day, when the sun was out, temperatures soared to 40 or 50 degrees Celsius. Anyone outside without protection would feel their skin sting and redden within minutes; staying out longer would result in a layer of skin peeling off.
But at night, without the direct sunlight, the temperature wasn’t much lower. It was nearly ten o’clock, and the ground—which could have fried an egg during the day—was slowly cooling. The perceived temperature was around 40 degrees. While it was still hot to stay outdoors, it wasn’t unbearable.
Consequently, many people were out at this hour, and the street outside the supermarket was bustling.
Jiang Ding watched the crowd coming out of the supermarket. There were many people like her and Cong Yixing who bought a lot at once. With the heat being so extreme, buying more at a time meant fewer trips out.
Everyone clearly thought this was normal, and no one paid any attention to those making bulk purchases.
She observed carefully for a while and felt a bit more at ease. Just as she was about to look away, she unexpectedly locked eyes with someone.
It was a young man around twenty years old with dyed yellow hair.
Seeing the look of eagerness in his eyes, Jiang Ding had a bad premonition.
She quickly looked away and stared in the complete opposite direction.
But her avoidance clearly didn’t work. A few seconds later, “Yellow Hair” walked up to her and asked with a fake air of maturity, “Hey, pretty girl, I’ve seen you standing here for a while. Did you buy too much to carry? Let me help you.”
Jiang Ding replied, “No thanks.” I hate guys with yellow hair.
“Don’t be polite. Since we met here, we definitely live nearby. Roughly speaking, that makes us neighbors. It’s normal for neighbors to help each other out.”
Jiang Ding thought: Roughly speaking? Did your teacher teach you math just so you could use it like this?
Her face went cold, and her voice was distant. “No thank you. My husband is coming right now.”
Yellow Hair clearly didn’t believe her. “Your husband? How old are you to have a husband? You’re just saying that so you don’t ‘trouble’ me, right?”
Jiang Ding looked at him calmly. “I’m 28. My eldest son is four, my younger son is two, and I’m currently preparing for a third child.”
Yellow Hair’s jaw nearly hit the ground. “Impossible! You look 20 at most. Third child? Are you kidding me?”
Seeing Cong Yixing approaching from a distance, Jiang Ding gave Yellow Hair a small smile, then jogged toward Cong Yixing, shouting as she ran: “Hubby! Were Big Treasure and Little Treasure good at home? Could your mom get them both to sleep?”
Yellow Hair watched as the cute girl he thought was 20 at most threw herself into the arms of a tall, fierce-looking man.
“…” He walked away, completely disillusioned.
Cong Yixing caught Jiang Ding as she lunged at him. First, he said, “Hubby’s here.” Then he asked, “What’s this about Big Treasure and Little Treasure?”
Jiang Ding stuck her tongue out and, on the way back, chattered away, telling him how she had tricked the yellow-haired guy who tried to pick her up.
She emphasized the main point to Cong Yixing: “He said I look 20!”
Cong Yixing’s takeaway was: “Didn’t you buy pepper spray? Buy a few more bottles. Next time you run into someone hitting on you with ill intentions, just spray them!”
“Huh? He didn’t necessarily have ill intentions…”
Cong Yixing pulled out his keys to open the door and said to her, “Hard to say. Even from a distance, he didn’t look like a good person to me.”
The light in the hallway was dim. Jiang Ding looked at his dark, sharp eyebrows and his narrow eyes that slanted up slightly at the corners, thinking: Actually, you look more like the bad guy.