Сhаpter 19: Forming а Тeam tо Gather Suррliеs
Аlthоugh nо onе in thе nеighborhоod grоup chаt rеspоnded tо thе сall frоm thе 15th floоr, thаt vеrу night, twо mеn sеcrеtly wеnt uр to the 15th floor tо pаy а visit.
Zhаng Qiаng рulled a рack оf сigаrеttes frоm his pоcket аnd оffеrеd оne tо the dark-skinned middlе-аgеd mаn аcross from him.
Не аsked еagеrly, “Brоthеr Каi, is what yоu sаid in the grouр chat truе?”
Тiаn Jiаkai tооk out a lighter, lit the cigarettе, and tооk а lоng, sаtisfying drаg.
Impatientlу, he rеpliеd, “Why wоuld I lie?”
As he spoke, he looked Zhang Qiang and Zhang Shuai up and down, the two brothers who had come to the 15th floor to find him on their own initiative. In a serious tone, he said, “If you two are sure you want to work with me, go back and get ready. I’ll take you on a job tonight. Once you see the benefits, you’ll understand.”
Zhang Qiang and Zhang Shuai quickly nodded, expressing their determination. “We’re in.”
“My wife, plus the two of you—four people is enough. Don’t bring anyone else. More people means less to share.”
As he spoke, Tian Jiakai took another deep drag of his cigarette, exhaling smoke as he continued:
“Those ungrateful fools who won’t work with me will regret it later. When they come begging, I won’t take them in.”
Zhang Qiang and Zhang Shuai couldn’t have been happier. The fewer people competing for supplies, the better.
They went back, tucked two axes and two kitchen knives into their belts, and each brought a large woven bag.
Carrying flashlights, they met up with Tian Jiakai and his wife on the first floor, and the four of them set off.
Tian Jiakai’s wife, Yuan Jiaojiao, was also large-framed and stout, with a fierce-looking face that made her seem unapproachable.
The four of them didn’t use any form of transportation. Tian Jiakai led them through twists and turns until they entered an old alley, where there was a dilapidated, old-fashioned residential complex.
The buildings in this complex were only six stories high, with no elevators, and were mostly inhabited by the elderly, weak, sick, or disabled.
When Tian Jiakai and his wife led Zhang Qiang and Zhang Shuai into this complex, the Zhang brothers exchanged a glance and immediately understood.
It seemed that the old lady who had died on the third floor had given Tian Jiakai the idea.
Why hadn’t they thought of it themselves?
Fortunately, it wasn’t too late to know now. It looked like following Tian Jiakai was the right move!
Everything went smoothly.
In half a night, the four of them had gathered quite a haul—enough to last them for a while.
They divided the supplies in a secluded spot, then each carried their share home.
While the 15th and 7th floors reaped a bountiful harvest, Li Weiwei from Room 1103 also benefited.
Both of her parents were in poor health, so when the supermarket had last opened for supplies, her family hadn’t managed to grab much.
That day, feeling down, she had gone to the basement level to take a walk and clear her mind. Unfortunately, she ran into Zhang Qiang and Zhang Shuai stealing oil.
At first, she thought she was in serious trouble, but unexpectedly, Zhang Shuai took a liking to her beauty. He offered to let her go if she promised not to tell anyone and agreed to date him and sleep with him. He even said he’d help support her family for her sake.
Although Zhang Shuai was involved in shady activities, he wasn’t bad-looking. With no other choice, she reluctantly agreed to save her life.
After Zhang Shuai got her, he discovered she was still a virgin. Delighted, he became very protective and affectionate toward her.
She didn’t know where Zhang Qiang and Zhang Shuai had gotten so many supplies, but Zhang Shuai gave her a ten-pound bag of rice and two pieces of cured meat.She felt this relationship was well worth it, gaining tangible benefits, so naturally she was also extremely obedient to Zhang Shuai. Even when he often made some strange requests in bed, she was willing to satisfy him.
When Jiang Ci went out at night, she ran into the girl from unit 1103 twice.
She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she felt that the girl, who had initially seemed somewhat timid and hesitant, had recently grown increasingly proud and confident.
However, Jiang Ci thought it was a good thing for someone to become more confident, so she didn’t pay it much mind.
Instead, it was Zhou Junming from the 9th floor, who could play the guitar, and Zhao Yunqiu, the alluring widow from the 13th floor, that piqued her interest.
After all, with no entertainment activities to speak of, the daily routine of eating and sleeping was simply too boring.
She didn’t mind indulging in a bit of gossip.
Why was she interested in these two? Because the night before, when she opened her door to go out for a stroll, she actually saw Zhou Junming and Zhao Yunqiu kissing passionately and clinging to each other at the stairwell on their 11th floor.
And this was a match personally arranged by Zhou Junming’s mother. Who knows how she would react upon learning that her precious son was involved with a widow.
By the end of October, the government had once again adjusted the water and electricity supply hours, reducing them from four hours a day to just two.
From 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM each day.
As the weather grew hotter, the duration of water and electricity supply grew shorter. It was easy to imagine how dire everyone’s lives had become.
It wouldn’t be long before the water and electricity were completely cut off.
Jiang Ci returned to Xianglan Xiaozhu with a week’s worth of supplies.
She didn’t drive her BMW Mini from the garage. Instead, taking advantage of the night, she carried her skateboard to an empty spot, then took an off-road vehicle from her space and drove there.
Every day, different people loitered around Xianglan Xiaozhu, clearly planning to do something to the place.
Indeed, one villa without bodyguards or housekeepers, occupied only by a single family, had been broken into at night.
Fortunately, for now, it was only burglary, and no murders had occurred yet.
Jiang Ci felt that Si Dad and Wen Mom were no longer safe either. After all, their villa only housed three people, and those constantly scouting outside surely had their eyes on it.
Even with Si Beichen, a soldier, living there, it was hard for one person to fend off many.
Jiang Ci drove around Xianglan Xiaozhu and noticed more than one group of people scouting the area. If those thugs went mad and tried to harm Si Dad and Wen Mom, Si Beichen alone would definitely be unable to stop them.
The bodyguards of other households certainly wouldn’t step out to help them either.
Jiang Ci shared her thoughts with Si Dad, Wen Mom, and Si Beichen. Unexpectedly, Si Beichen had already considered these issues, and the three of them had discussed it earlier.
Originally, Si Beichen had planned to take Si Dad and Wen Mom to live in an apartment in the city center.
But now that Jiang Ci had invited them, and Si Dad and Wen Mom were also worried about Jiang Ci living alone, they decided to go with Jiang Ci and stay at her place.
Jiang Ci’s house had been specially renovated, equipped with bulletproof windows and a super anti-theft door, making it extremely secure.
The only issue was that it was a small two-bedroom apartment. If Jiang Ci took one room and Si Dad and Wen Mom took the other, Si Beichen would have to sleep on the sofa in the living room.Si Beichen didn’t mind where he slept—he had slept everywhere during missions.
Since there were no objections, Jiang Ci began helping pack their belongings.
There wasn’t much to pack. The food had long been transported away by Jiang Ci, who came to deliver supplies every week.
From now on, there would be no need to go back and forth delivering supplies.
The main items were clothes and daily necessities for the three of them.
Si Dad and Wen Mom had never been to Jiang Ci’s current residence. It was their first time living with their daughter, and they felt both nervous and excited.
Si Beichen drove his Land Rover Defender, taking Si Dad and Wen Mom. Jiang Ci asked him to drive ahead first and wait for her at the entrance of the residential complex.
She would bring up the rear.
After watching Si Beichen drive away, Jiang Ci returned to the Xianglan Villa and thoroughly cleared out the house. Anything useful was stored in her space and taken away.
Once everything was cleared, she turned off the main power switch, locked the door, and drove away.