As soon as the subject of Zhang Lingling's old oath came up, the entire group remembered that incident vividly. Yes, what exactly was that oath back then, during that heated argument over the failed group investment?
[Wang Chao]:"@Zhang Lingling, don't you dare say you didn't trick us. Now your oath has come true, in the most literal way possible. Pay me back my 60 virtual coins! With interest!"
[Datou]:"@Zhang Lingling, stop playing dead. Back then, your words sounded so righteous and convincing. What do you have to say now? The whole city is a lake."
As expected, Zhang Lingling pretended to be dead silent, hoping the topic would pass. But when someone threatened to actually go find her in the shelter based on her last known check-in, she immediately spoke up, defensive:
[Zhang Lingling]:"This flood is a massive natural disaster! I'm innocent! And my house might be underwater, but it hasn't collapsed. My oath was specific, it only counts if my house collapses! That hasn't happened yet. The oath only counts if my house collapses next year!"
[Nima Sang]:"Ha. And who knows which 'house' you meant back then? Your current apartment? Your childhood home? Your future dream villa? You were slippery even with your words."
[Zhang Lingling]:"Of course it's where I was living at that time! The apartment on Qingfeng Street! As long as the oath comes true within the timeframe, I will refund everyone's virtual coins, alright? Doesn't that show my sincerity?"
She thought smugly to herself, "My home is a reinforced concrete high-rise from the 2010s. It must be the safest place. How could it possibly collapse? And what are the odds that this year we get a historic flood, and next year there's a major earthquake, and that earthquake just happens to hit my specific building? Impossible."
[Mu Xiaoxuan]: "Fine, I've got a screenshot of this conversation too. People like you, who scam classmates on purpose, won't have a good ending. Karma isn't just about houses."
[Zhang Lingling]:"I walk with integrity, sit with dignity, and fear no slander."
She made sure to sound imposing, invoking old proverbs to shield herself.
Once again, through semantic gymnastics and sheer audacity, Zhang Lingling wriggled out of immediate accountability. Jing Shu sneered quietly, reading the exchange on her dim phone screen. This was exactly what "they who does evil will destroy themselves" meant, the universe had a way of collecting debts, often in unexpected currency.
Soon the chat, ever pragmatic, shifted to the real, pressing issue of the day: where each family had been assigned to live under the new relocation plan.
The consensus was clear: the worst option was the old district of Xishan. Dirty, cramped, with crumbling pre-2000s buildings, no one wanted it. The most desirable was the northern development district, filled with new buildings, wide roads, and previously low population density.
[Mu Xiaoxiao]: "Our family has two apartments registered in the city, so we were assigned to the largest community in the development district, Xiangjiao Community. I heard they even have a villa area there. It used to be considered too remote, but now it's prime real estate. Not only is the area big, but the houses are new, built after 2025."
[Yao Zixin]:"You mean Xiangjiao Community? My family was assigned there too. But now they say three families will have to share one home unless you own it outright. Before we move in officially, we can apply to swap assignments if we can find relatives or friends to consolidate with."
Jing Shu covered her face with a hand. This was exactly why she had avoided mentioning the community's name in previous chats. Because everyone kept mispronouncing or mentally reading it as "Xiangjiao" (Banana), its intended elegance, "湘娇," suggesting the charm of the Xiang River region, instantly transformed into something rustic and vaguely tacky. Now, inevitably, everyone in the chat had started calling it "Banana Community."
(Reiya's Note: The joke here is a play on homophones. The community's intended name, "湘娇" (Xiāngjiāo), uses characters for the Xiang River (湘) and "charming" (娇). However, it sounds identical to the word for "banana" (香蕉, xiāngjiāo). The characters are different, but the pronunciation is the same, leading to the elegant, marketed name being twisted into something silly and much more memorable.)
[Xie Zihao]:"We pulled some strings and managed to get a middle-floor apartment in Banana Community all to ourselves, no sharing. But from now on, we will have to pay monthly virtual coins to the housing bureau, a sort of post-disaster property tax. Brutal."
[Shi Lei]:"My family only had one small apartment. We were placed in an independent garage unit in Banana Community. Sigh, the three of us crammed into 10 square meters. I just hope the floodwaters recede soon so we can go home, even if it's wet."
"We were given only a 6-square-meter basement storage room. Damp and cold at night. I can't stand it."
"Anyone actually living in Banana Community right now? Give us some tips about the best buildings, which ones have power sometimes, which managers are less strict."
[Yao Zixin]:"@Xiao Shu lives in Banana Community. She's a local there."
[Shi Lei]:"Jing Shu is lucky. I heard locals, people who already lived there before the flood, don't seem to have outsiders assigned into their private homes. Looks like a lot of our classmates are ending up in Banana Community. We should all meet up once things settle a bit. Safety in numbers."
Crowded? That was an understatement. It would be packed to bursting, a pressure cooker of displaced people and enforced cohabitation.
"I envy you all. My family was assigned to a condemned row house in Xishan's old district. With this rain, who knows if it will collapse tonight? They say it doesn't even have intact windows anymore."
A quick tally in the group showed more than a dozen of Jing Shu's high school classmates were placed in Banana Community, most of the rest in adjacent zones. Only a few unlucky ones were sent to the dreaded old district or the barren northern outer ring. The conversation quickly turned practical: everyone started planning a small exchange fair, a chance to barter spare goods, food, or information. But the immediate problem was where to host it.
"We need a place that doesn't leak, and is relatively private. Best if it's inside Banana Community itself, so we don't have to travel far with our stuff."
[Maria]:"Oh my, another exchange fair? Perfect, my family has a house in Banana Community too. Make sure to invite me."
Her message popped up, the name triggering a complex reaction in Jing Shu.
[Datou]:"Look at that, a hidden rich girl. Where is your place in Banana Community? An apartment?"
[Maria]:"In the villa section. You are all welcome to come over."
The response was casual, dripping with unstated wealth.
"Wow, amazing! Respect!"
"+1"
"+2"
"+10086"
The classic internet meme string followed, a digital wave of awe.
[Zhang Lingling]:"I propose we hold the exchange fair at Su Mali's villa. Plenty of space, and she won't have to run around. It's the perfect venue."
"Good idea."
"Agreed! Thanks, Su Mali!"
[Maria]:"Alright. Last time I didn't get to host properly because of the sudden blackout. This time, everyone can just bring your things to my house to trade. I will even host a simple meal for everyone afterwards."
Her words, magnanimous in the extreme, made many classmates swallow hard. Su Mali really was on another level of wealthy. In the apocalypse, inviting dozens of people to a meal was like handing them a wad of cash before the world ended, an act of staggering generosity or foolishness.
"Perfect. Once everyone settles in, let's get it going."
What was originally planned as a small gathering of a dozen people now looked like nearly the whole class would attend, drawn by the twin magnets of potential trades and a guaranteed free meal. That was the pull of a single promised meal in a food-insecure world.
[Maria]:"@Xiao Shu, are you there? Where is your home in Banana Community? I want to find you. It's something important."
The direct @ was a ping Jing Shu had been hoping to avoid.
Heaven knew, if not for the flood and the cave confinement, those eager or desperate classmates would already have stormed off to find Jing Shu's house based on vague descriptions.
"My house is right next to yours!" Jing Shu thought with internal sarcasm, rolling her eyes. She didn't want to reply. She had vowed to avoid this Mary-Sue-like saintess character, but somehow in this life their paths kept threatening to converge. Remembering some of the chaotic, dramatic, and dangerous things Su Mali had attracted and gone through in the previous life made Jing Shu shiver. No way. Too dangerous. Too much drama.
[Maria]:"@Jing Shu, make sure you come to the exchange fair too. I will wait for you!"
The second message was persistent, friendly, and inescapable.
[Classmate A]:"@Maria, need anything specific? I will keep an eye out for it during salvage."
[Classmate B]:"@Maria, what are you hoping to trade this time? Medicine? Tools?"
The enthusiasm toward Su Mali surged in the chat. To them, she was a soft-hearted, gullible cash cow, a source of potential advantage.
After all, last time at the previous fair, Jing Shu had traded a few bundles of common herbs and walked away with Su Mali's luxury electric car worth hundreds of thousands of virtual coins. Everyone else wanted their slice of that kind of luck this time.
Compared to the excitement and subtle scheming in the classmates' chat, the mood in Cave No. 5 was grimly practical.
That morning, after Wu You'ai finished her official survey for the relocation administration, she discovered and had to explain a major problem to her group: many people's homes had been bought with bank loans that were still active. That meant they had only two choices under the new policy, accept the government assigning outsider families into their houses, or pay a hefty monthly virtual coin fee to "retain exclusive occupancy rights" and cover their ongoing mortgage obligations to the state bank.
"Ten virtual coins every month! It's killing us! Where are we supposed to get that? That's half our family's basic rations converted!" a man groaned, holding his head.
"What else can we do? I heard each apartment might get three or four civil servant families assigned if you don't pay. They get priority for housing too."
"You should be grateful it's only civil servants. Some houses in the old district have more than a dozen refugee families shoved in, with no say at all."
Jing Shu's villa had also been bought with a significant loan, meaning on paper her family owed twenty virtual coins a month to retain exclusive use. But for her family, with their stockpiles and assets, that was pocket change, hardly worth worrying about. It was just another line item.
In the morning, the dominant talk in the cave was all about these crushing mortgage payments and the injustice of the policy. By afternoon, the government, perhaps sensing the rising discontent, released a list of new job categories and announced mass recruitment for public works, salvage operations, and community management, offering virtual coin wages.
The announcement was met with a mix of hope and cynicism, another way to tie survival to labor for the state. The chatter in the cave shifted from despair over costs to strategizing over which jobs to apply for.