She collected the remaining goods, settled the wages with the workers guarding the warehouse outside the city, and confirmed that there were no shortages in supplies for now.
She checked her phone—there were still several logistics updates. At the latest, everything would arrive by tomorrow.
The day after tomorrow, once noon passed, a week-long torrential rainstorm would sweep across the entire world.
She received the second batch of storage batteries she had purchased. Having suffered through hard times in her previous life, she had grown afraid of deprivation. Extreme heat, extreme cold, lack of food and clothing—every hardship had relentlessly worn down her sanity. She had persevered only because she wanted to see the world return to normal. Unfortunately, she never lived long enough to witness it.
After storing everything into her space, she went to check on the supermarket. The renovation there looked decent, and deliveries were still arriving at the warehouse behind it.
After personally signing for the goods, she locked the warehouse. Sensing a prying gaze, Li Yao remained outwardly calm.
Sure enough, as she reached her small cargo truck, she saw a familiar figure.
“Miss Li Yao.” Su Xiao looked pleasantly surprised. For the past few days, he and Yan Wantong had been keeping watch—one stationed in the residential complex, the other lurking near the supermarket—all just to catch Li Yao.
“Mr. Su.” Li Yao had already forgotten his given name. She only remembered his surname was Su.
Su Xiao looked at her. After she drove away a few days ago, he hadn’t seen her again. According to Wantong, she had even left in a Cullinan.
“I still need to thank you for what happened to my sister the other day,” Su Xiao said gratefully. “If it weren’t for Miss Li Yao, she might have been defiled by those thugs.”
Li Yao thought: So they’re in the same group.
“It was nothing. I was just passing by.” Her tone was indifferent. She intended to leave—she planned to return this truck and rent an off-road vehicle from another dealership.
“Miss Li Yao.” Su Xiao stepped forward to block her. “My sister and I would like to invite you to dinner, to thank you for saving her life.”
“No need.” Li Yao’s gaze sharpened. The look alone made Su Xiao take a step back.
Li Yao got into the truck and drove off in one smooth motion.
Watching the truck disappear, Su Xiao rubbed his neck. For a moment just now, he had felt a chill there. How could a woman like Li Yao have such a ferocious gaze?
Li Yao returned the truck. After confirming there was no damage, the rental company promptly refunded her deposit.
She went to another dealership. As soon as she entered, she saw a Mercedes G63 and a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon.
After hesitating for a long time, she chose the Wrangler—though she liked the G63 as well.
She rented it for half a month. With only two days left before the apocalypse, buying an expensive car wasn’t worth it. Better to freeload—once the torrential rains came, these vehicles would all be scrapped anyway.
She drove to a cat litter manufacturer. Calculating the usage for three people, she directly ordered over ten tons of cat litter.
After paying, she had the factory deliver it to the warehouse. With a large supermarket, selling pet supplies made perfect sense. As for cat food, she planned to do a “zero-yuan purchase.”
Cat and dog food could be eaten by humans too. After the extreme weather passed, pet food could be traded for decent supplies.
As for medicine—it would also be a zero-yuan purchase. Her body was now as tough as steel; stockpiling medicine would allow her to trade for even more later.
The three of them needed a legitimate source for their supplies. In the apocalypse, medicine would be scarce—one box of antibiotics could be exchanged for two bags of clean rice or a tightly sealed barrel of purified water.
From the two hundred thousand she had left, after deducting the cost of cat litter, only a few thousand remained. After thinking it over, she decided to have one good meal.
Smiling, she sent a message to Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue.
[Li Yao: Brother Yan, Sister Ning—want to eat out? Hotpot tonight.]
Yan Yuansi replied immediately.
[Yan Yuansi: Yes yes yes!]
Since Yan Yuansi agreed, Ning Xinyue came along as well.
Li Yao waited for them at the north gate. Once they got into the car, Yan Yuansi stared at it in surprise. “Wow, this car is really cool.”
That day, Li Yao chose a high-end hotpot restaurant. Not only were the ingredients fresh, there were also live shrimp and crab.
Yan Yuansi took a bite of king crab leg and covered his mouth. “Wuu wuu wuu, this is so good—so good I want to cry.”
There was even a tear glistening in his eye.
[Is it really that exaggerated?]
[Trust me, it’s real. I know Yan Yuansi—he doesn’t have acting skills like that.]
[Exactly! It must really be delicious. This flavor is addicting.]
[Does Yan Yuansi know you’re talking about him like this?]
Li Yao ate quietly, watching the two of them lose themselves in the food. She knew she was already 75% successful.
If they lived together in the future and had to drink tasteless nutrient solution while she ate good food, resentment would inevitably grow. If they were to live comfortably through the apocalypse, their lifestyle had to be roughly the same as hers.
If she provided food out of kindness, they wouldn’t cherish it. She didn’t yet understand Ning Xinyue well, but Yan Yuansi wore everything on his face—an empty-headed, single-celled creature who was far too soft-hearted.
Yan Yuansi was the one most likely to expose their identities.
As the two ate, they suddenly felt a chill run down their backs. Something felt off—but when they looked up, everything seemed normal.
Li Yao had already planned it all out. Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue had no idea that the next ten years would be ten years of willing submission under Li Yao’s rule.
After the meal, Li Yao dropped them off at the entrance of the residential complex. She still had a few things left to take care of.
The warehouse outside the city hadn’t been returned yet—there were deposits and packages still pending.
She contacted the agent, who went with her to inspect the warehouse. Seeing the packages, Li Yao explained that there were still deliveries on the way, with a maximum delay of three days.
The warehouse urged her to hurry and not delay them from renting it out again.
Li Yao agreed.
However, when it came time to refund the deposit, she noticed the agent being nitpicky, clearly reluctant to return it. She sneered. “The warehouse is exactly the same as when I rented it. What—did a bit of wall paint peeling mean I have to compensate you with a whole wall?”
The agent had planned to pocket the deposit—he’d done it before.
Li Yao took out her phone and pulled up photos she had taken when she first rented the warehouse. “If you want to play dirty, I have plenty of ways to get my deposit back.”
Realizing he’d run into a tough opponent, the agent refunded the deposit and demanded she move everything out within three days.
Li Yao scoffed. “There are still seven days left on the contract.”
With that, she drove away leisurely. Now, only the supermarket warehouse remained.
The supermarket renovation was completed that day. The materials used weren’t great. The reason it had taken a whole month was simply because the construction crew had been dragging their feet—after all, Li Yao looked like a clueless rich second-generation heir, easy to deal with and generous with money.
Still, they had cleaned up all the renovation debris. Li Yao paid promptly, and both sides were satisfied.
The supermarket itself was just a smokescreen. After everyone left, Li Yao went to the warehouse behind it. After inspecting it carefully, she discovered several hidden cameras.
They must have been installed recently. Every time she stored goods into her space, she had been extra cautious.
There were too many people coming and going in the warehouse for her to pinpoint who planted them—delivery vendors, movers, unloading workers. Security was lax; anyone with intent could get in.
She disposed of all the hidden cameras, checked again to confirm there were none left, and only then stored the goods into her space. The largest quantities now were drinking water, along with the cat litter and deodorizer received today.
After putting everything away, Li Yao felt the burden on her shoulders lighten.
She just wanted to go home and sleep.