Everyone was still discussing what to do when a nurse suddenly rushed out of the hospital room.
Holding a form in her hand, she shouted anxiously:
“Who is Pei Yanzhi’s family member? Is Pei Yanzhi’s family here?”
Dai Ya’s family immediately adjusted their expressions and hurried over.
“Yes, yes, yes! We are!”
“What is it, nurse? Has Yanzhi woken up?”
“Woken up? The anesthesia hasn’t even worn off yet!” the nurse snapped impatiently, stuffing the bill into Dai Ya’s hands.
“Why haven’t you paid the fees yet? Go pay them immediately!”
“The surgery fee, blood transfusion fee, and hospitalization fee come to a total of 52,000 yuan!”
“What?!” Dai Ya finally realized what was happening and let out a shrill scream. “Lin Lu still hasn’t paid?”
“That damned girl,” she cursed.
“I already told her on the phone to pay first. She dragged it out until now. Is she deliberately waiting for us to pay?”
“That ungrateful little wretch…”
“If you haven’t paid, then hurry up and do it! Stop yelling here!” The nurse rolled her eyes.
“Enough,” Wan Feng said with a dark expression, feeling embarrassed. He scolded them, “Just pay it first.”
“When Pei Yanzhi wakes up, make him pay us back ten times over.”
Watching the family grumble and curse while paying the bill, Lin Lu turned around and left the hospital.
Fifty-two thousand yuan? That was nothing.
Since they cared so much about Pei Yanzhi, they could spend some real money on him.
As for her, she wouldn’t spend a single cent on that scumbag.
Pay his hospital fees?
Not a chance.
When she walked out of the hospital, the rain outside had become even heavier.
Standing by the roadside, Lin Lu looked at the city, still glowing with neon lights despite the downpour.
The streets were packed with traffic, and people hurried about their business.
No one knew that a catastrophic disaster was counting down toward them.
Her top priority now was that jade pendant.
As for the phone call she had supposedly received from the police…
Of course, it was fake.
It had merely been an alarm she had set in advance.
Now that she had successfully gotten away, Lin Lu hailed a taxi and headed straight for the western part of the city.
“Driver, take me to Yueji Hotel on Antique Street.”
Naturally, the antique shops would be closed in the middle of the night.
She could only stay in a hotel first and wait until morning before heading to Yayun Pavilion, the antique shop mentioned in the diary.
After entering her room and checking carefully to make sure there were no hidden cameras, Lin Lu collapsed onto the bed.
Her body was exhausted, but her mind was buzzing with excitement.
Sleep was impossible.
She checked her phone.
It was now two o’clock in the morning.
Six hours until sunrise.
Six days until the apocalypse.
Time was running out.
She decided to start stockpiling supplies immediately.
Of course, she couldn’t use the villa as the delivery address. Those reborn people were undoubtedly watching her house right now.
So she changed the delivery address to the hotel front desk and added a note:
“Urgent package. Extra payment for expedited handling.”
Once she obtained the jade pendant, she could store all the supplies inside the spatial dimension without anyone noticing.
As for what to buy…
First came survival essentials: canned food with long shelf lives and high calories.
Canned luncheon meat, braised beef, canned yellow peaches…
She practically emptied out every nearby convenience store.
Then came medicine.
Cold medicine, anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, painkillers, bandages, iodine disinfectant…
Every commonly used medication she could think of, she bought in bulk.
In the apocalypse, all of these would become hard currency.
She had also wanted to buy solar generators, various tools, entrenching shovels, and other equipment.
Unfortunately, those items were too large for a hotel to conveniently receive.
She could only add them to her shopping cart for now and wait until tomorrow to rent a warehouse and have everything delivered there.
Besides that, she purchased feminine hygiene products, spare clothing, and other monthly necessities.
Anything she could think of—even if it seemed useless now—had to be bought.
Lin Lu was like a squirrel frantically stuffing supplies into its nest.
Before long, she had spent tens of thousands of yuan.
But she didn’t feel the slightest bit distressed.
Her bank account contained the inheritance her grandmother had left her, an accidental death insurance payout, and years of accumulated salary and bonuses.
Altogether, she had more than two million yuan.
In the apocalypse, that money would be nothing more than waste paper.
Only tangible supplies could keep her alive.
Spend!
Spend as much as possible!
She didn’t know how much time had passed.
Only when her eyes became so strained that tears formed and her fingers nearly cramped did Lin Lu finally stop.
By then, dawn was already breaking outside the window.
Her phone alarm vibrated.
It was eight o’clock.
The time had come.
Lin Lu immediately sprang out of bed, splashed cold water on her face, and hurried out of the hotel.
The antique street in the early morning was shrouded in a light mist.
The rain had washed the bluestone pavement until it gleamed with a slick shine. Because it was still so early, there were hardly any people on the street.
Following the route she knew by heart, Lin Lu walked to the end of the street and stopped in front of the shop mentioned in the diary—Yayun Pavilion.
It was an old establishment.
The storefront was not large, but its black signboard with gold lettering exuded a sense of understated elegance.
Lin Lu was very familiar with this shop.
The owner, surnamed Zhang, had been her grandmother’s chess companion and a close friend for many years.
Her grandmother had loved jade during her lifetime. Influenced by her grandmother and wanting to honor her memory, Lin Lu would visit Uncle Zhang every year around the anniversary of her grandmother’s death to choose a fine piece of jade and place it before her grave.
Perhaps that was exactly why she had purchased the spatial jade pendant here in her previous life.
Doesn’t this count as Grandma watching over me? Lin Lu thought.
She pushed open the door.
Behind the counter, Shopkeeper Zhang was sipping tea. When he looked up and saw her, a smile immediately spread across his face.
“Oh, Xiao Lu? You’re here so early this year?”
Lin Lu smiled obediently, just as she always did.
“Good morning, Uncle Zhang.”
“I was worried someone else might snatch up the good pieces, so I came early.”
Uncle Zhang chuckled as he set down his teapot.
“Don’t worry. I might forget anyone else, but I wouldn’t forget your request.”
“I knew you’d be coming soon, so I prepared everything in advance.”
“Wait here. I’ll go get it for you.”
With that, he turned and walked into the back room.
A moment later, he returned carrying a tray lined with red velvet and carefully placed it on the counter.
“Take a look. These are three jade pendants I specifically set aside for you. Their quality is absolutely top-notch.”
“Which one do you like?”
Lin Lu unconsciously held her breath and lowered her gaze to the three jade pendants.
The one on the left was white jade, smooth and delicate.
The one in the middle was green jade, with exceptional translucency.
The one on the right was black jade, dark and glossy.
Which one was it?
Of course, Lin Lu had no way of knowing.
Seeing her hesitation, Uncle Zhang smiled and offered some advice.
“Xiao Lu, if you can’t decide, I can help you out.”
“Look at this white jade piece—it’s carved with plum blossoms…”
“No need, Uncle Zhang.”
Lin Lu raised her head and pointed at all three jade pendants with a bright smile.
“I’ll take all three.”
Children make choices.
Adults take everything.
Who cared which one it was? As long as all of them belonged to her, that was enough.
And Wan Yinyin wanted to swoop in and steal it?
She could go chase the northwest wind instead!
Hearing this, Uncle Zhang looked at Lin Lu in surprise.
“Well now! Xiao Lu, are you planning to buy enough for the next three years all at once?”
He teased, “These three together cost over a hundred thousand yuan. Aren’t you planning to save any money?”
As she pulled out her phone to scan the payment code, Lin Lu replied with a half-serious, half-playful smile:
“It’s all about fate. Since I like all of them, I’ll buy all of them.”
“Uncle Zhang, the real question is—are you willing to sell them or not?”
“Sell them? Of course I’ll sell them!” Uncle Zhang laughed heartily.
“If you’re buying all three, that makes me even happier!”