Chapter 122
Lin Zhen opened her basket and saw that at least three or four glass bottles had shattered. Her eyes reddened with frustration.
“Ugh, my bottles…”
Lan Lin hesitated, as if he wanted to comfort her, but what finally came out was: “It’s just a few broken bottles. I’ll find replacements for you later.”
Lin Zhen glared at him in annoyance, then unfolded a cloth to carefully collect the shards of broken glass.
“The bottles didn’t contain anything toxic, did they?” Lan Lin asked nervously, still shaken from witnessing her deadly venom take down the mutated frog earlier.
“They were empty,” Lin Zhen muttered gloomily.
The ones containing substances had already been taken back by Tang Yu’an earlier.
Lan Lin breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, looking on the bright side, it’s lucky they were empty. At least your poisons didn’t spill and go to waste.”
It was a clumsy attempt at consolation, but Lan Lin tried. Once Lin Zhen finished gathering the glass shards, he urged her, “Let’s get moving. The water level keeps rising, and we might attract more mutated creatures.”
He was about to help her lift the basket when a familiar voice called out from behind.
“Sister Lin!”
Lan Lin flinched instinctively.
He turned sharply and saw a figure, both unfamiliar and familiar, standing on the ice. It was the boy who had once used bizarre means to leave a lasting psychological trauma on him—Tang Yu’an.
Lan Lin’s face darkened immediately.
Another figure descended from above—Zhou Qi, who had leapt over after spotting Tang Yu’an appear.
“An’an, Zhou Qi,” Lin Zhen said, surprised. She straightened up, her spirits lifting slightly.
“What are you doing here?”
“We came to help you move your things,” Tang Yu’an replied. “Sister Lin, are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“Um, did you see what just happened?”
“Yes! Sister Lin, you were amazing! You took down that frog in no time!” Tang Yu’an beamed.
Lin Zhen, a little embarrassed, looked away awkwardly.
Lan Lin watched their conversation, his expression souring further as no one paid him any attention. He let out a derisive snort and turned away, only to find Lin Zhen glaring at him angrily again, clearly annoyed.
What did I do now? he thought, baffled.
Ignoring him, Lin Zhen bent down to lift her heavy basket. But after taking a single step, she cried out in pain.
Seeing her about to stumble, Lan Lin hurried to catch her. “What’s wrong?”
Lin Zhen looked down at her foot. She had been too preoccupied with her bottles earlier, but now that she tried walking, she realized her ankle—where the frog’s tongue had wrapped around her—was swollen.
“That mutated frog wasn’t poisonous, was it?”
Lan Lin quickly knelt down, a faint blue glow enveloping his hand as he placed it on her swollen ankle. The icy energy eased the pain, and Lin Zhen’s tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed.
“It’s not poison; I just twisted it,” she said. She likely strained it when she was dragged and fell onto the ice.
“Sister Lin, let us help you move your things back first,” Tang Yu’an offered.
“Is this all? Is there anything left in the house?” Zhou Qi asked.
“That’s about it,” Lin Zhen replied. “What’s left are items too big or heavy to carry, like the insulated box, the water purifier Zhou Qi made for me, and other everyday essentials.”
“We’ll go check,” Tang Yu’an insisted. “We’ll take whatever we can.”
Though hesitant to trouble them, Lin Zhen eventually nodded at their insistence. “Here, take this antidote with you. I’ve scattered poison throughout the house, so be careful. Hold your breath when you go in.”
[Employee “Zhou Qi” completed a profitable trade with a regular customer: Points +30, Experience +1.]
A small bottle of antidote was worth 30 points.
“Brother Lan Lin, we’ll leave Sister Lin in your care,” Tang Yu’an said, pointing toward Store No. 1. “See that building? Our store is there.”
Lan Lin froze for a moment at being called “Brother Lan Lin,” but after some hesitation, he grudgingly agreed.
The two boys quickly left with Lin Zhen’s belongings, disappearing into the ruins.
Lan Lin glanced at Lin Zhen. She hobbled toward the edge of the ice path but stopped to look at him when she noticed he hadn’t moved.
“What are you standing there for? Aren’t we leaving?” she snapped irritably.
Lan Lin smirked and muttered, “You’re so polite to everyone else but act like this to me…”
Still, he crouched down in front of her. “Hop on.”
Lin Zhen blinked, her expression softening for a moment, but then Lan Lin added, “With your limp, we won’t make it by nightfall.”
Unable to hold back, Lin Zhen smacked him on the head. “Can’t you say something nice for once?!”
“Are you crazy, Lin Zhen?!” Lan Lin yelled, glaring at her.
While the two bickered, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi had already transferred Lin Zhen’s items to the groceryl store’s warehouse and made their way to her house.
“Brother Qi, they’re arguing again.”
Tang Yu’an, standing close enough to see their interaction, couldn’t help but feel concerned.
“It’s fine. Maybe that’s just how they get along,” Zhou Qi replied with a chuckle.
Before long, though grumbling under his breath, Lan Lin ended up carrying Lin Zhen on his back, sprinting across the ice.
The icy path extended beneath his feet as they headed in the direction of Store No. 1.
Tang Yu’an, observing their dynamic, couldn’t quite understand it. He and Zhou Qi rarely argued, and even when they disagreed, they made up quickly. He couldn’t fathom why Lin Zhen and Lan Lin were always bickering.
Shaking his head, he took out masks; together with Zhou Qi and entered Lin Zhen’s house.
Most of the bottles and jars had already been packed, while the poisonous plants and mushrooms, being living organisms, were also moved using the remote retrieval skill and Tang Yu’an’s portable warehouse.
The remaining items were transferred to the grocery store’s storage—
It was worth mentioning that since becoming the manager of Store No. 1, Zhou Qi’s remote retrieval skill could only access Store No. 1’s warehouse. Unlike Tang Yu’an, who had unrestricted access to all store inventories, Zhou Qi’s scope was more localized.
Once they had moved nearly everything, the two left Lin Zhen’s house.
This time, Tang Yu’an jumped onto Zhou Qi’s back, letting him carry him back.
“Watching you hopping around outside makes me nervous. It’s safer for us both under the umbrella,” Tang Yu’an said as he clung to Zhou Qi’s shoulder.
Zhou Qi smirked and offered no argument.
By the time they returned to Store No. 1, Lin Zhen and Lan Lin had already arrived and were talking to Old Li.
“An’an has arranged a room for you on the seventh floor. Can you make it up there with your foot?” Old Li asked, glancing at Lin Zhen’s injured ankle.
Lin Zhen clearly couldn’t manage, so Lan Lin grudgingly carried her up to the seventh floor.
“This room is great!”
When Lin Zhen entered Room 701 and saw all her bottles and jars neatly arranged, she finally felt relieved.
Her judgment had been right—Tang Yu’an was someone she could trust!
“Your chicks and A’Mu are upstairs with Grandma Guo in Room 801,” Old Li said, glancing at her foot. “Do you need help bringing them down?”
“Not yet; I’ll settle the room first,” Lin Zhen replied.
She handed Old Li a packet of insect repellent powder as payment for her rent. “How many days will this cover?”
Old Li weighed the packet and replied, “A week. You can also use it to trade for food or clothing if needed.”
“Food? Do you have meat pancakes?” Lin Zhen asked hopefully.
“No, we’re only selling raw materials at the moment.”
Disappointed, Lin Zhen wasn’t particularly interested in the clothing either. Most pre-apocalypse garments didn’t fit well.
What she didn’t know was that the store’s clothing stock was newly made by Zhou Qi and came in smaller sizes too—though the selection was still limited.
“Alright, I’ll think about it later. I’m not hungry yet,” Lin Zhen said.
Old Li nodded and then turned to Lan Lin. “Are you planning to stay here as well?”
“I’ll think about it,” Lan Lin replied curtly.
“You’ll need to decide before evening,” Old Li said, glancing at the darkening sky.
Lan Lin frowned but assumed Old Li was concerned about his safety if he left at night. “Got it,” he said with a nod.
“Good. I’ll be in Room 501 on the fifth floor. If you need anything, come find me there,” Old Li said.
Room 501 was centrally located in the building, making it convenient for all residents to conduct transactions. At least for the next month, this setup would remain, but after the floodwaters receded, further adjustments could be made.
With that, Old Li left, leaving Lin Zhen and Lan Lin alone in Room 701.
“You should stay,” Lin Zhen said as she carefully transferred bottles filled with various medicinal liquids and powders. Her actions were especially cautious. “It’s dangerous outside, and food isn’t easy to come by.”
“That’s a problem for you, not me,” Lan Lin replied smugly.
As a strong ice-based mutant, Lan Lin could survive just fine even during the flood.
Hearing this, Lin Zhen glanced up at him and narrowed her eyes. “Lan Lin, one day I’ll poison you mute.”
Lan Lin smirked but thought better of retorting when he recalled the sight of that mutated frog flipping belly-up. He shrugged and turned to leave.
“Hey!”
Lan Lin stopped and turned back just in time to catch something Lin Zhen tossed his way—a small bottle.
“It’s insect repellent. You’ll need it,” Lin Zhen said.
This liquid version of the repellent smelled better and lasted longer when applied.
“Thanks for coming to find me and carrying me back,” she added begrudgingly. “Otherwise, with your sharp tongue, I’d have cut ties with you long ago.”
In a world like this, having someone who genuinely cared enough to look out for her wasn’t easy.
Lan Lin stared at her for a moment, then muttered a gruff acknowledgment before pocketing the repellent and leaving.
—
Only after leaving the room did Lan Lin take a moment to observe the building.
Compared to where he currently lived, this one was taller and far more spacious. Still, as someone used to living alone, the thought of sharing space with others didn’t appeal to him much.
However…
Wasn’t the temperature in this building a bit off?
While the flood had cooled the general climate, the constant evaporation had made the environment humid and stuffy. Yet inside this building, he didn’t feel any of that discomfort.
Sensing the subtle flow of heat, Lan Lin headed toward the stairs. Just as he began to ascend, he spotted Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi coming down, their arms laden with items.
The items they were carrying were clearly Lin Zhen’s belongings.
“Brother Lan Lin!” Tang Yu’an greeted him warmly.
Lan Lin paused mid-step, his eyes narrowing slightly at the boy’s cheerful and friendly demeanor. Yet, all he could recall was the “toy” from their last encounter—the one that had left him writhing on the ground.
Cautiously, he took a step back.
“Your name’s An’an, right?”
“Mm-hmm!” Tang Yu’an nodded enthusiastically. “Last time, I thought you were a bad guy bullying Sister Lin, so I wasn’t very nice to you. I’m sorry.”
Lan Lin didn’t expect an apology and was momentarily taken aback.
He stiffened, retreating another step awkwardly. “Well… I was bullying Lin Zhen back then. You don’t need to apologize…”
Halfway through, Lan Lin stopped himself. Why was he so flustered? And why did he feel the need to take responsibility for something that wasn’t his fault?
He was about to retract his statement when Tang Yu’an smiled brightly at him and said, “Brother Lan Lin, you’re a good person!”
“…”
Do you even need to say that?
Lan Lin opened his mouth to retort, but the boy’s innocent smile made him swallow his words.
Clearing his throat, Lan Lin glanced at Tang Yu’an and asked, “So… was that thing you used last time your ability? That mind-controlling… thing?”
Tang Yu’an hesitated before nodding. “You could say that.”
Quickly changing the subject, he added, “We’re moving Sister Lin’s belongings into her room. Can you help us?”
Lan Lin wasn’t sure how, but he found himself agreeing.
What he thought would be a small task turned into something much bigger.
“Did you… move everything from Lin Zhen’s house?” Lan Lin asked incredulously.
“Not everything. We didn’t touch the poisonous plants or mushrooms,” Tang Yu’an replied. “But other than that, yeah, we moved most of it!”
How had they managed to move so much in such a short time?
*
Lin Zhen was delighted. Even the small cabinet she used to store her bottles had been brought over—a piece she had stumbled upon in the ruins and worked hard to carry back home.
“An’an, Zhou Qi, thank you so much! You’re so thoughtful,” Lin Zhen said happily. “I feel like I might just stay here forever.”
“Of course!” Tang Yu’an nodded. “Stay as long as you like. The more people, the merrier.”
“Alright, then,” Lin Zhen replied with a laugh.
With so much to unpack, Lan Lin—despite his original intention to leave—ended up staying to help.
Meanwhile, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi went downstairs to find Old Li.
While helping Lin Zhen move, system notifications of Old Li’s profitable transactions had kept popping up. Each of the five new residents had completed three transactions, bringing Store No. 1 a total of 17 additional EXP, drawing them closer to the 300 EXP milestone.
When they arrived, Old Li was sitting down, rubbing his knees and legs with a pained expression. Upon noticing them, he quickly masked his discomfort.
“Grandpa, are you alright?” Tang Yu’an asked with concern.
“I’m fine. Probably just climbed too many stairs today. A little rest will do,” Old Li replied. “How much time until six o’clock?”
Tang Yu’an glanced at the clock. “Less than an hour.”
Old Li nodded. “Stay in the store for now. Don’t go back out. It’s getting darker, and the outside is more dangerous.”
“Got it.”
Although staying put wasn’t an option—there was still a trip to Jufeng Town to make—they chose not to argue for now.
Tang Yu’an checked the inventory in Room 501. In addition to coarse and fine sea salt, it also held rock sugar, millet, polished rice, several pieces of clothing Zhou Qi had made, wool blankets, matches, alcohol, and hemostatic powder.
Even with this modest stockpile, Old Li was visibly tense.
“I’ll move downstairs to sleep tonight. I won’t feel secure unless I’m guarding this room.”
Despite the rules against theft and robbery in the store, Old Li didn’t trust that everyone would abide by them. After all, the rules only applied once someone was caught. Plenty of people were willing to gamble on not being discovered.
Noting his unease, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi exchanged a look. After a moment of hesitation, they decided not to say anything further for now.
“Grandpa, where do you think this light strip would look best?” Tang Yu’an asked, pulling out a glowing green vine-like strip.
It was a special item redeemed from a seven-day sale, capable of emitting light when exposed to wood-elemental energy. The denser the energy, the brighter the glow.
After hearing Tang Yu’an’s explanation, Old Li stared at the vine-like light strip in surprise.
“It works like the mutant lantern fruits that glow?” he asked.
“Probably,” Tang Yu’an replied.
Recovering from his shock, Old Li grinned. “Then use one in your room and another here in Room 501.”
“Alright.”
The glowing green light strip was 10 meters long and could be divided into sections as short as 1 meter. Its length could also be reconfigured as needed.
Once the strip was secured to the ceiling, Tang Yu’an brought in a pot of spirit-gathering grass.
After about ten minutes, the bulb-like nodes on the vine began to glow softly.
A warm white light illuminated the living room of Room 501. As the wood-elemental energy from the spirit-gathering grass increased, the light grew brighter and brighter.
Old Li stared in awe at the sight.
This light was far brighter than any mutant lantern fruit. For a moment, it felt like he was back in the pre-apocalypse days, surrounded by the glowing warmth of a city at night.
“Wonderful… truly wonderful…”
The old man murmured, “By night, it’ll probably get even brighter.”
Tang Yu’an was equally impressed with the glowing green light strip. Finally, the dark nights would be less oppressive!
He resolved to exchange more of the Seven-Day Special Sale cards for additional glowing strips once he accrued more points—and to keep an eye out for more spirit-gathering grass to power them.
“If you don’t want the light strip to glow, just move the spirit-gathering grass out of the room and close the door,” Tang Yu’an explained.
Old Li glanced at the pot of spirit-gathering grass, his thoughts briefly wandering. He wondered if the giant mutant bear from before had been attracted not by the mutant sapling but by this grass instead.
“I understand,” Old Li replied with a nod.
Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi then left Room 501. Taking advantage of the fading daylight, they installed another glowing light strip on the ceiling of Room 901.
*
[Employee “Xiao Cao” completed a profitable transaction with a regular customer: Points +9, Experience +1.]
As night fell, Xiao Cao’s stall opened for business.
Tang Yu’an checked the shop’s EXP: 276 points. They were now just 24 EXP away from the 300 EXP milestone.
“It feels like even if we don’t make it to Jufeng Town, Xiao Cao alone could rack up enough points by tonight!” Tang Yu’an said excitedly.
Zhou Qi nodded and then asked, “Isn’t there still an open employee slot at Store No. 1?”
“Yes,” Tang Yu’an replied.
Currently, Store No. 1 had two employees—Old Li and Xiao Cao. Though initially full, the store’s upgrade to Level 1 had added one more slot.
“Do you want to hire another employee?”
“Exactly.” Zhou Qi pulled Tang Yu’an to sit with him as he elaborated. “I think we should hire someone to work permanently at the Jufeng Town general store, maintaining regular hours.”
For any business, irregular operation was a major taboo. Given their current circumstances, neither of them could consistently stay at the store to tend to customers. Thus, the Jufeng Town shop needed someone reliable, like Old Li, to anchor operations there.
“I’m thinking of hiring Xiao Cao,” Zhou Qi suggested. “We’ve already met her and her brother at the market. She’d probably be willing.”
Over the past few days, Xiao Cao had proven her capability.
Tang Yu’an tilted his head in curiosity. “Are you planning to reveal our identity to her?”
Zhou Qi shook his head. “No, we’d approach her as the Jufeng Grocery Store’s owner. She’d handle sales for us during the day.”
This way, they wouldn’t need to stay in the shop full-time, yet they could still accrue shop heat and points. Xiao Cao, in turn, would gain a stable income source.
“If she figures out who we are, it’ll depend on her own insight,” Zhou Qi continued. “But since she already spends her nights braving the cold to sell hot soup, it’s tough on her. That’s why I think we should hire one more person.”
“So, you want to hire her brother, Shi Tou?” Tang Yu’an asked.
“Exactly,” Zhou Qi nodded.
With both siblings hired, they could either split their duties or work together, depending on the situation. Moreover, transactions Shi Tou handled would count under his name, ensuring no missed opportunities to generate points.
Given their current hiring capacity, it made sense to loosen their criteria. Shi Tou seemed capable enough.
Tang Yu’an nodded in agreement. “Xiao Cao could guide Shi Tou through the beginner tasks. It’d strengthen their bond!”
Plus, Shi Tou might not immediately agree to the recruitment. Guiding Xiao Cao to advocate for her brother’s hiring might make the process smoother.
With their plan set, Tang Yu’an grabbed a pen and paper to draft tasks. After careful review, he issued Xiao Cao’s new task and sent a recruitment notice to Shi Tou.
*
By this time, night had fallen, and the clock struck six.
The Peace Grocery Store’s non-operational hours began.
As the protective barrier activated, Lan Lin’s figure suddenly vanished from Lin Zhen’s view. A moment later—
Splash!
He reappeared outside, falling into the floodwaters in front of Store No. 1, looking utterly bewildered and drenched.
