“The Fushi Meteorological Station has continued to issue a red high temperature warning at 12:30 p.m. on October 4. It is expected that this afternoon, temperatures in Lanan District, Jianzuiao, Kemen County, Zhouji County, and Xingshui County may exceed 40°C. Please take precautions…”
“Why is the weather getting hotter and hotter…”
“Jiayue, when are you going back to school? Have you booked your ticket yet?”
Zhou Jiayue came back to her senses in shock as she stared at everything before her, her pupils trembling.
She had actually returned one month before the apocalypse began!
“Sis, are you okay? Mom asked when you are going back to school.” Zhou Jiajun was still a second year high school student. He took another bite of rice and nudged Zhou Jiayue with his elbow.
Zhou Jiayue blinked and quickly lowered her head to hide the expression on her face before answering vaguely, “In a couple of days. I haven’t booked my ticket yet.”
“You’d better hurry. Tickets aren’t easy to book these days.”
“Mm…”
It was not until she had finished eating and returned to her room that Zhou Jiayue finally recovered from the overwhelming joy of realizing that she had been reborn.
She bit herself hard.
It hurts!
This was not a dream!
She had really come back!
When she thought of everything she had experienced in her previous life, all of it like a nightmare, Zhou Jiayue lay on the bed as tears instantly burst from her eyes.
Extreme heat, torrential rain, extreme cold, earthquakes, mutated plants and animals…
She had struggled to survive in the apocalypse for three years, enduring the most painful and chaotic era imaginable. In the end, she had died at the hands of a group of men eating beasts!
Zhou Jiayue’s final memory from her previous life was of being disemboweled…
The bloody image violently assaulted her mind. Her entire body curled up, her face pale and filled with grief, as though the pain of having her body torn open still remained in her muscles.
“Jiayue, don’t lie on the bed and play with your phone right after eating…”
“Jiayue!”
Wang Yumei pushed open the door and immediately saw her daughter curled up on the bed in agony. She was startled and hurried over to pull her daughter into her arms.
“Jiayue, what happened to you?” Wang Yumei anxiously held her daughter, gently patting Zhou Jiayue’s face as worry filled her completely.
Wang Yumei’s voice and movements pulled Zhou Jiayue out of her nightmare. She opened her eyes in panic, and the fear and wariness in them were clearly reflected in Wang Yumei’s eyes.
When Zhou Jiayue finally saw who was standing in front of her, she remained stunned for a long moment before tears once again surged from her eyes.
“Mom…” Zhou Jiayue called out weakly, her voice hoarse and fragile.
“Yes, Mom is here! Jiayue, where does it hurt? Tell Mom, and I’ll take you to the hospital!” Wang Yumei held her daughter with heartache, gently stroking her back.
Zhou Jiayue finally came completely back to her senses. Feeling the warmth of the body holding her, the desolate emptiness in her heart gradually gained some warmth as well.
Zhou Jiayue wiped away her tears, took a deep breath, and shook her head. “Mom, I’m fine. I just had a nightmare. I don’t need to go to the hospital.”
Wang Yumei was still worried. “Whatever happens, you must never hide it from us. Your father, Jiajun, and I are all here.”
Hearing those words, Zhou Jiayue’s heart suddenly felt as though it had been soaked in hot vinegar, becoming tender and painfully sweet all at once.
She willingly buried herself in Wang Yumei’s arms, drawing warmth from her mother like a baby. Sniffling as tears blurred her vision, she whispered, “Mom, it’s so good that you’re all still here!”
In her previous life, she had still been a third year university student at this time. After the National Day holiday ended, she returned to school.
Then the apocalypse arrived.
Transportation systems across the country collapsed, and she was only able to make a few phone calls to her parents at the very beginning.
Later, the water and electricity were cut off as well, and she completely lost contact with her family. She never saw her parents or her little brother again.
Zhou Jiayue wiped the corners of her eyes. This time, she would never let herself be separated from them again!
After putting her emotions in order, Zhou Jiayue rekindled her determination to survive.
The extreme heat she was experiencing now was already a sign that the apocalypse was approaching. The hot weather would continue until early November, after which the temperature would rapidly fall. In just one week, it would drop from more than 40°C to the teens.
Then the torrential rain would begin.
An entire month of relentless rain would leave most of the cities across the country submerged.
The torrential rain would mark the true beginning of the apocalypse!
Zhou Jiayue quickly gathered her thoughts. She needed to hurry and stock up on as many supplies as possible. Once the apocalypse arrived, supplies would become extremely scarce. During the period of torrential rain alone, countless people who had failed to store enough food would starve to death.
“Mom! Let’s go to the supermarket this afternoon!”
Having been given another chance at life, she would cherish this opportunity from heaven and absolutely refuse to sit around waiting for death!
Zhou Jiayue had always had good grades and regularly received scholarships at school. During her winter and summer vacations, she also worked part time jobs. In addition, she had always saved whatever remained of the living expenses her family gave her, so she currently had around twenty to thirty thousand yuan in private savings.
But that was nowhere near enough.
“Mom, how much money do we have at home right now?”
Wang Yumei looked at Zhou Jiayue in surprise. Her daughter had never asked about this before.
“Uh… Probably a little over one million yuan.”
Wang Yumei gave her an approximate figure, which was about what Zhou Jiayue had estimated.
Their family lived in Xingshui County, a small county with an underdeveloped economy. However, both of her parents worked for government affiliated organizations and had been employed there for many years. Their salaries were neither particularly high nor particularly low. As long as they did not spend money extravagantly, it was not difficult for the two of them to save one million yuan together over more than twenty years.
“Mom, can we take all that money out and use it?”
“…Jiayue, tell me honestly. Did you borrow money from loan sharks outside?”
Wang Yumei had recently been seeing many news stories about university students taking out predatory loans and committing suicide because they could not repay their debts.
Now that Zhou Jiayue had suddenly asked how much money the family had, combined with the fearful and guarded expression she had just shown after being tormented by a nightmare, it was impossible to blame Wang Yumei for thinking too much.
Zhou Jiayue was stunned for a moment, secretly admiring her mother’s imagination. Then she suddenly realized that this could actually serve as the perfect excuse!
If she told her mother right now that the apocalypse was about to arrive and they needed to stock up on supplies immediately, and that money would become worthless after the apocalypse, her mother would probably think she had gone crazy.
Besides, without a special reason, there was no way her family would be willing to empty their entire savings all at once.
So Zhou Jiayue silently accepted the misunderstanding.
Seeing Zhou Jiayue lower her head without saying anything, Wang Yumei felt her anger surge instantly.
“You foolish child! You really did borrow money from loan sharks! If you needed money, why didn’t you tell your family? How could you go and borrow from loan sharks? You study every day, and now you’ve studied yourself stupid! Don’t you know that loan sharks are something you must never get involved with?”
“Are we not giving you enough food or enough clothes? Why would you borrow money from loan sharks? Are you trying to make me die from anger?”
By the end, Wang Yumei’s entire face had turned red with rage.
Zhou Jiayue felt somewhat guilty, but when she thought about the cruelty of the apocalypse, she hardened her heart and said, “Mom, I’m sorry. I… Can we take the family’s money out?”
Wang Yumei’s chest rose and fell violently. Seeing her daughter like this made her heart ache with anger.
However, when she thought about the university students in the news who had chosen suicide because they were afraid to tell their families and could not repay their debts, and then looked at Zhou Jiayue’s pale face and pitiful eyes, she could not bring herself to say anything too harsh.
Wang Yumei took a deep breath and tried her best to calm herself down. “How much do you owe?”
Zhou Jiayue thought for a moment before answering, “Maybe more than two million yuan.”
Wang Yumei’s vision went dark, and she was so furious that she actually fainted from the shock.