In her previous life, when the apocalypse arrived, Yu Xia had been so hungry that she was reduced to chewing tree bark because there was no food. Meanwhile, these people had enjoyed the stockpiled supplies they had shamelessly taken from her family as though it were perfectly natural.
Yu Xia chewed slowly, savoring the long-lost feeling of being full. So this was what it felt like not to go hungry. She had almost forgotten.
“So sweet,” she murmured, her gaze sweeping over the abundant fruit basket in the hospital room. In her previous life, supplies like these had been precious enough to trade for a life.
“I’m not donating it.” Yu Xia continued chewing her apple as she spoke indistinctly, while her fingers rapidly pressed the power button in her pocket five times. The phone’s automatic emergency call function was instantly activated.
The moment the call connected, Yu Xia immediately pulled out her phone. “Police, please come quickly! Someone here is trying to force me to have my blood drawn!”
“You!” Yu Jianguo flew into a rage and raised his hand to slap her. Yu Xia had been prepared for this, and she nimbly dodged.
“Smack!”
The crisp sound of a slap echoed through the corridor. Yu Jianguo’s palm landed squarely on the face of a young nurse who happened to be passing by.
“Ah!” The young nurse covered her face and screamed, “Help! Someone is assaulting medical staff!”
The crowd that had already gathered to watch immediately erupted into chaos. Several male orderlies rushed forward and restrained Yu Jianguo, while the doctor on duty shouted at everyone to maintain order. Some people even took out their phones and started recording. Taking advantage of the confusion, Yu Xia turned around and slipped away, not forgetting to take the fruit basket with her.
It was not until she got into a taxi that Yu Xia finally let out a long sigh of relief. She hugged the basket of fruit tightly, her fingertips trembling slightly, not from fear but from excitement. This time, she would never repeat the mistakes of her previous life.
After returning home and locking the door, Yu Xia immediately called her parents.
“Ring… ring…”
During the few seconds she waited for the call to connect, Yu Xia’s heart nearly leaped out of her chest. In her previous life, the apocalypse had arrived while her parents were away on a business trip, and she had died without ever knowing what had happened to them in the end…
“Xia Xia?” The moment the video connected, her mother’s concerned face appeared on the screen. “Why are you calling at this hour?”
Seeing her parents’ familiar faces, Yu Xia’s tears instantly burst forth.
“Dad, Mom, come back quickly…” She could no longer hold back as all the grievances, fear, and longing she had accumulated during the apocalypse erupted at once. She cried so hard that she could barely catch her breath. “Wah… wah… Your… precious daughter… was bullied…”
Yu Xia’s parents had never seen their daughter like this before, and they immediately panicked. Her father moved his face closer to the screen. “Xia Xia, don’t cry. Dad will book a flight right away!”
Her mother was so anxious that her voice changed. “Who bullied you? Tell Mom, and we’ll stand up for you!”
Through her tear-filled eyes, Yu Xia looked at her worried parents on the screen, her heart aching yet filled with warmth. This time, she would definitely protect them and never let the tragedy of the apocalypse happen again.
“It… it was Uncle… They took advantage of you being away and forcibly dragged me to the hospital, forcing me to… have my blood drawn for Lili.” Yu Xia spoke between sobs.
The moment her mother heard this, she immediately became furious and quickly booked a flight home.
After hanging up, Yu Xia took a deep breath and tried to calm her turbulent emotions. She looked around at the three-story European-style villa, which her parents had given her as an eighteenth birthday coming-of-age gift. Ever since they had moved into this villa two years ago, her uncle’s family had set their sights on the apartment her parents owned in the city. In the end, Grandma Yu had threatened to take her own life, forcing Yu Xia’s parents to agree to lend the apartment to her uncle’s family as part of his daughter’s dowry. They had agreed that it would be returned six months after the wedding, along with rent.
But in the end, they did not receive a single cent in rent, nor could they get the apartment back. Yu Xia’s parents had gone to ask for it several times, only to be driven away by Grandma Yu’s crying, shouting, and threats to take her own life. Eventually, they could only let the matter go.
Looking at the villa again, Yu Xia saw that it had a modest-sized yard in front, with neatly laid grass and several rose bushes growing in the corner, their pink and white flowers in full bloom. The walls were barely over a meter high, and vines had climbed over the wrought-iron fence, making it look elegant but offering virtually no protection.
The first floor consisted of the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Floor-to-ceiling windows covered an entire wall, providing excellent natural light, but the glass was too fragile and could easily be shattered by a single stone. The second floor contained the bedrooms and study, while the third floor was an attic normally used to store miscellaneous items. The entire house was beautifully furnished and comfortable, but in the apocalypse, such a structure would never be able to withstand the darkness of human nature.
Yu Xia bit her lip, and her gaze gradually hardened. This house had to be renovated!
In the second year of the apocalypse, torrential rain would strike, flooding vast areas across the country. Fortunately, their villa was located in the northern suburbs of the city, where the terrain was relatively high, so it remained safe. However, this also attracted survivors from various places to their residential community, Tianze Garden.
As a result, several families ended up crammed into a single home. During the torrential rains in her previous life, large numbers of survivors flooded into the area. In the end, Yu Xia simply sold the villa and used the money to buy herself a full meal. As a weak woman who could not even defend herself, there was no way she could protect the villa. Rather than having it taken from her, she would have been better off selling it in exchange for food.
Later, she could only squeeze into the refugee district, where she eventually froze to death during the extreme-cold apocalypse…
Coming back to the present, Yu Xia picked up her phone and quickly called a well-regarded local renovation company.
“Ring… ring…”
The call was answered quickly, and a polite male voice came from the other end. “Hello, this is Anju Renovation Company. How may we help you?”
Yu Xia cleared her throat and spoke crisply. “Hello. Our house needs to be renovated. I’d like to ask if you can arrange for someone to come over tomorrow and take a look?”
“Of course, ma’am. May I have your surname?”
“My surname is Yu.”
“Hello, Ms. Yu!” The man’s voice became even more enthusiastic. “Could you tell us which parts you would like to renovate so that we can arrange a suitable designer to visit?”
Yu Xia glanced around the living room and quickly replied, “Mainly reinforcing the walls, replacing the doors and windows, renovating the basement, and making a few other modifications that I’ll need to discuss in person.”
“Of course, no problem!” The other party readily agreed. “We can arrange for a designer to come over between nine and ten tomorrow morning to take measurements. Would that time work for you?”
“Yes.” Yu Xia nodded. “The address is No. 18, Tianze Garden, in the northern part of the city. Just ring the doorbell when you arrive.”
“Alright, Ms. Yu. Everything has been registered. See you tomorrow!”
“Thank you. See you tomorrow.”
After ending the call, Yu Xia let out a long sigh of relief. She had already taken the first step.
Immediately afterward, Yu Xia hurried upstairs and found the family heirloom jade pendant in the safe. In her previous life, when her uncle’s wife came to her house to steal their food, she had taken the jade pendant as well. Later, they discovered that the pendant contained a space. While everyone else was struggling to find food, they enjoyed fresh fruit and drank natural water, living an enviably comfortable life.
But all of that had been stolen from her!
It should have been hers!