After selecting their items, Song Ya and Zheng Yiming went to the checkout counter.
Even though they had arrived early, by the time they went to pay there was already a long line. Everyone’s carts were piled high with goods.
The supermarket had six cashiers, but every line was still quite long.
After waiting for about ten minutes, a sudden argument broke out ahead of them.
“I told you I’m paying with my phone! Why not? It’s not like I’m refusing to pay!” a man shouted.
“Sir, I’m sorry. There’s a notice at the entrance stating that all purchases in the supermarket must be paid in cash. If you don’t have cash, you can go home and get some first,” the cashier said politely.
Looking at the packed supermarket, the man wasn’t stupid. He immediately yelled in a shrill voice, “If I go back now, everything will definitely be gone when I return! And who even carries cash these days? Everyone uses electronic payment!”
As soon as he finished shouting, several security guards walked in. The tall, burly guards surrounded him, and his previously arrogant attitude immediately shrank.
“Y-You… what are you trying to do? Are you going to beat a customer?” he stammered.
“Sir, there are still many people waiting in line behind you. If you don’t intend to buy anything, please leave first,” one of the guards said bluntly.
The man instantly lost his nerve and didn’t dare cause trouble anymore. He quickly slipped away.
The guards held a loudspeaker and announced to the people behind them, “Attention, customers. This supermarket currently only accepts cash payments. Anyone without cash should go home and bring money.”
Seeing the guards’ firm attitude, those in line who hadn’t brought cash could only leave awkwardly.
With more than half the people gone, Song Ya’s line moved much faster.
While they were waiting, many more people entered the supermarket. If they hadn’t come out early, they would probably be part of the crowd now.
Just as it was almost their turn, an elderly woman suddenly rushed over from somewhere. Seeing their three shopping carts, she began scolding loudly.
“It’s all because of people like you! You’re buying so much that the people behind you won’t have anything left! Do you even have a conscience?!”
As she shouted, she reached out to grab the food in their cart, but Song Ya grabbed her hand immediately.
Seeing that they wouldn’t give her anything, the woman suddenly collapsed to the ground with a loud thud, pretending to be injured.
“Help! They’re hitting me! They’re hitting me!” she wailed. “You bought so much food you can’t possibly finish it all! Why can’t you help others? Are you trying to starve us to death?!”
The old woman cried with tears and snot running down her face as she rolled around on the ground, throwing a full-blown tantrum.
Her shouting attracted everyone’s attention, and all eyes turned toward Song Ya.
Song Ya looked at the woman on the ground coldly and smiled. “Auntie, instead of wasting time rolling around here, you might as well go check if the supermarket still has other food left.”
The woman froze for a moment before propping herself halfway up from the ground, her eyes fixed on their carts.
“You must give me one cart of food today! Otherwise this isn’t over! Young people these days don’t know how to respect the elderly at all!!”
Those who had arrived early had almost all bought several carts of supplies. Aside from the limited rice, everyone’s carts were packed with food.
But most of the early shoppers were older people. Young people like them were rare.
The woman had probably targeted them because they looked young and thought they would be too embarrassed to argue, assuming they would compromise after a little fuss.
Song Ya smiled.
If there weren’t so many people around, she would have slapped her twice already.
“Auntie, you can keep making a scene. But if I give you any food, then I lose,” Song Ya said with a bright smile.
Just then, the people in front finished paying. Zheng Yiming pushed their cart forward while the cashier began scanning the items.
Seeing this, the woman quickly scrambled up from the floor and tried to grab the cart again.
Song Ya didn’t indulge her. She grabbed the woman’s wrist and applied a bit of skillful force, instantly dislocating it.
The woman screamed in pain and clutched her wrist, gasping. “Y-You… are you trying to kill someone?! What did you do to me?!”
But because of her earlier act of pretending to be injured, no one paid much attention to her cry. They simply assumed she was still acting.
Song Ya leaned closer and whispered softly in her ear, “If you keep making trouble, next time it’ll be your neck.”
Perhaps Song Ya’s expression was too frightening, because the woman was genuinely scared. She held her wrist and didn’t dare make a scene again.
The three carts of goods, combined with the soaring prices, cost more than 5,000 yuan in total.
Song Ya took cash from her bag. On the way there she had already organized the money into stacks of 1,000 yuan. She handed over five stacks and then took out a few hundred more.
After paying, the two of them pushed their carts out of the supermarket.
Their car had been parked on the first floor, so as soon as they exited the supermarket, they reached it.
Although Zheng Yiming didn’t look particularly strong, he was incredibly powerful. He carried four bags of rice on his shoulder while still holding three bags of groceries in his hands.
The remaining two bags mostly contained snacks and bread, which weren’t heavy, so Song Ya carried them easily.
Looking at the load he was carrying, Song Ya said, “Why don’t I help you carry two bags?”
“No need. I’m strong. Let’s go,” Zheng Yiming replied as he walked forward.
After loading everything into the back of the pickup truck, they were just about to drive home when a man in his thirties approached them.
“Miss, I saw you bought a lot of food. Could you sell me some? I’ll pay triple the price.”
Song Ya refused. “Sorry, we’re not selling. The supermarket is right inside. If you want food, you can go buy it there.”
The man didn’t give up immediately after being rejected.
“Miss, just sell me one bag of rice. I’ll pay five times the price, alright?”
As he spoke, he took out five one-hundred-yuan bills from his wallet.
But money wasn’t nearly as useful now.
Song Ya ignored him and got straight into the car. Zheng Yiming stepped on the gas without hesitation and drove away.
Instead of going home, they headed to the wholesale market.
Compared to the supermarket, the wholesale market had far fewer people. Most people probably thought of going to the supermarket first. However, only a few shops were open.
The wholesale market had everything, but after being stuck in typhoon weather for days, people who had been starving rushed out and bought huge quantities.
The shop owners had no choice but to impose purchase limits as well.
Song Ya and Zheng Yiming bought two more bags of rice, a sack of potatoes, and a sack of mung beans. Song Ya also went to buy a box of soil, fertilizer, and seeds.
Although it would be difficult for these things to grow in the upcoming weather, she had her ability. She could secretly help them grow little by little.
Because of the harsh weather, fresh vegetables had almost disappeared.
If they wanted vegetables, they would have to grow them themselves.