Ch9 Holy cow, this guy's totally my type
Before leaving the country, Meng Ci measured the dimensions of the space room and had a custom kitchen countertop made.
It was already finished and delivered to the warehouse. Meng Ci stowed the items in the space.
The final day of the apocalypse countdown.
"Yaya, I happen to be free tomorrow. Let's invite Dad, Auntie, and Brother Jie to celebrate at the new place."
"The property will be transferred to your name next month, so this is an early celebration for you."
"Besides, I won't have time after that."
"Alright." Li Xiaoya agreed, then playfully said what kind of crab she wanted to eat, hoping Meng Ci would buy it for her.
Meng Ci agreed, letting them have one last big feast.
After hanging up, Meng Ci tore off the page for September 29th from his calendar.
Tomorrow would be the 30th-the first day of the apocalypse.
Li Shanyang, Zhang Lu, Li Xiaoya, Liu Jie... it was time to settle our scores.
Meng Ci had inspected the villa and the Jinshang Jiayuan property over the past few days. Any unsatisfactory aspects had already been ordered to be reworked.
Especially the villa-its main gate now matched the security level of a bank vault.
Beyond the password, opening it from the outside required either a fingerprint or an iris scan.
The walls were high, densely studded with anti-climb spikes, offering exceptional security.
The drainage system had been redesigned to prevent flooding.
As for the Jinshang Jiayuan apartment, the main entrance now featured a steel sliding gate and a security door.
Safety bars were installed on every windowsill, and even the exterior window ledges were fitted with anti-climb spikes.
If anyone attempted to descend from the rooftop, they'd have to consider whether their feet could withstand the fall.
After hanging up, Meng Ci drove to Jinshang Jiayuan.
The seventeen-story building housed Li Xiaoya's rented apartment on the fifth floor.
Meng Ci made no stops, heading straight to his own unit.
The three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment with two living rooms had cabinets, sofas, and beds already arranged according to his specifications.
One room lacked a balcony; Meng Ci had had the window bricked up from the inside.
Turning on the lights revealed an empty space.
Meng Ci retrieved five bags of noodles, five bags of rice, and other daily necessities from his storage space.
Some leftover construction materials remained nearby. Meng Ci had instructed not to discard them-they might prove useful later.
After locking the door from the outside, Meng Ci went to the kitchen and arranged pots, bowls, ladles, and utensils in order.
With electricity and water still functioning days before the downpour, he cooked for himself whenever possible.
After all, once the power and water were cut off, even with alcohol blocks and coal, he'd have to worry about the smell of his cooking alerting others.
Pulling several buckets from his storage space, Meng Ci began collecting water.
Though his storage space held fifty tons of water, Meng Ci alone consumed three to four tons monthly under normal circumstances.
Even with extreme frugality in the apocalypse, that likely wouldn't suffice.
Therefore, stockpiling as much as possible while water was still available could only be beneficial.
He retrieved two electric blankets and two ten-pound cotton quilts.
A military-style overcoat, five thermal undershirts, and five sweaters were placed in the wardrobe. One hundred heat packs and two electric heaters were also stored.
After putting away the essentials for the time being, Meng Ci stood on the living room balcony. Through the protective mesh railing, he watched the bustling crowd below.
Several children played downstairs, a few elderly people sat playing chess, and some grandmothers even took out fans to dance to the square music.
This lively, warm scene would vanish by tomorrow night.
Though Meng Ci was a character transported from a book and knew the general plot, he remained powerless.
After all, how insignificant and laughable humans appeared before nature's punishment.
Even if he warned everyone of the impending apocalypse, what good would it do? It would only amplify their fear-they might even call him a lunatic.
So Meng Ci could only protect himself.
Pushing aside his melancholy, Meng Ci consoled himself: at least this life was far better than his reality.
He slept on a bed worth tens of thousands, ate foods he'd never dare touch normally-only the environment was harsher.
You gain some, you lose some. Meng Ci took it in stride.
He scooped a bowl of flour, grabbed a tomato, an egg, and a green chili from the fridge, and made himself a bowl of hand-rolled egg noodles.
Turning on the TV and letting the noise wash over him helped ease Meng Ci's fear a little.
After all, this was the apocalypse.
He recalled news reports from the real world showing people caught completely unprepared when floods struck.
How could anyone not be terrified?
After eating, Meng Ci scrolled through the news, hoping to find reports or warnings about tomorrow's expected downpour. There were none.
Even the weather forecast predicted a clear, sunny day.
Lying in bed, Meng Ci forced himself to sleep. This might be the last night he could rest peacefully.
But when he woke the next morning, his head still felt foggy.
All night, nightmares had haunted him-either being swept away by floodwaters or getting bitten by zombies.
He even dreamt of being sent by Li Xiaoya and the others to another man's bed, trading his body for food.
Pushing these jumbled thoughts aside, he splashed water on his face to look more alert.
After washing up, Meng Ci saw a message from Li Xiaoya saying everyone planned to move into the new apartment at noon and asking him to buy some food to bring over first.
Meng Ci replied with a simple "Okay" before heading downstairs for a bowl of hotpot. He then went to the supermarket to buy snacks, vegetables, and crabs.
Of course, the supplies were only enough for Li Shanyang and the other three to last three days indoors. Once those three days passed, the rain would intensify, water would pool on the roads, and leaving would become impossible.
As he entered the community gate, Meng Ci's mind was still preoccupied with whether any items were missing from his storage space that he could purchase before the apocalypse truly arrived.
Distracted, he nearly got hit by a car.
Luckily, a hand grabbed him just in time.
"Squeeeek-"
The car screeched to a halt. A head emerged from deep within the driver's seat, spitting phlegm onto the ground with a nasty tone.
"Damn it! Can't you watch where you're walking?!"
"If you're blind, go home and stay there. Don't get in the way here."
Meng Ci froze, utterly stunned-whether from the shock or something else, he couldn't tell.
His mind even wandered to the thought: If he were hit by a car and died right here, would his gear drop?
With all those items in his storage space, would passersby go mad scrambling for them?
Would scientists dissect him to uncover the truth?
"The speed limit in this complex is 5 kilometers per hour. You know exactly how fast you were going just now."
"If you can't drive, don't drive. Or should I call the police to handle this?"
The man who had saved Meng Ci fired back.
The driver seemed intimidated by this retort, muttering curses under his breath as he drove away.
Only then did Meng Ci snap out of it and look at the man to thank him.
But when he saw his physique, he couldn't help but swallow hard.
A black short-sleeved shirt hugged his tall, straight frame, muscles perfectly defined, radiating masculine energy.
Neatly cropped hair, sharp eyes, a straight nose bridge.
Whoa.
That physique, that face-how could he be so perfect?
"Were you shocked?"
The man frowned, glancing outside the compound, seemingly debating whether to take him to the hospital.
Meng Ci snapped back to reality, shaking his head. "A little, I guess."
"But it's nothing serious."
"Thanks for saving my life, big guy. I'll treat you to a meal sometime."
Meng Ci was just being polite.
After all, the apocalypse was set to begin at six this evening. Whether they'd ever meet again was uncertain.
"No need."
The man declined. They parted ways-one heading out, the other heading in.