# Chapter 3: Another Day of Big Shopping
The owner stared at Sophia in amazement. "You're really buying all this?"
Sophia nodded matter-of-factly. "Of course! I've already told my family—I'm starting my own business this time. I'm going to blow their minds."
Hearing this, the owner nodded unconsciously.
Buy this much food? How could anyone not be shocked?
Though in his heart he was thinking—who cared if she could make money or not? He was going to make his money first!
With that in mind, the owner quickly rattled off his account number.
Sophia transferred half the payment and arranged for the goods to be delivered to the warehouse in three days. Once confirmed, she left the store.
With grains purchased, it was time to buy cooking oils next.
Sophia walked into a shop specializing in cooking oils and ordered 100 containers of Canola oil, 100 of peanut oil, 100 of soybean oil, 100 of sunflower oil, 100 of sesame oil.
Grapeseed oil, corn oil, olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil, walnut oil—500 bottles of each.
So much oil? Sophia felt that not even her lifetime would be enough to finish it all.
But in her past life, she'd been starving. She didn't care whether she could finish it or not—she just wanted to buy, buy, buy!
What was bought and stored belonged to her. Only then did she feel secure.
Next, Sophia went to a specialty foods wholesale shop to buy various condiments and seasonings.
Salt was essential. Not only could she eat it herself, but after the apocalypse it would also become a popular currency for bartering.
A case held 50 packets of salt. Sophia bought 1,000 cases in one go.
Beyond salt, sugar was also hard currency in the apocalypse.
White sugar—1,000 pounds, rock sugar—1,000 pounds, brown sugar—1,000 pounds.
Hard candies, milk candies, toffees—500 pounds of each variety.
Light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, black vinegar, white vinegar, cooking wine, and oyster sauce—500 bottles of each.
Chicken bouillon, MSG, five-spice powder, curry powder, cumin, chili flakes, black pepper—100 cases of each.
BBQ rubs, hot pot broth bases, and recipe-specific seasoning packets—100 cases of each.
Sophia didn't forget to buy various sauces either.
Mushroom sauce, chili crisp, peanut butter, hoisin sauce, sandwich spread, hot sauce, BBQ sauce, sweet chili sauce—200 cases of each, bought by the case.
Spices were also indispensable.
Cinnamon, star anise, bay leaves, cloves, rosemary, thyme, fennel, Sichuan peppercorns, paprika, nutmeg—200 pounds of each.
Because Sophia was ordering in such large quantities, the fastest delivery wouldn't be until tomorrow.
It was already noon. Sophia left the wholesale district and drove to a restaurant.
After not tasting restaurant food for so many years, seeing a table full of beautifully presented dishes, Sophia swallowed hard and ate with barely contained urgency.
She'd been a regular at this restaurant before. They served homestyle cooking, but the flavors were exceptional.
Thinking that after the apocalypse, she probably wouldn't be able to eat these things anymore, Sophia felt a pang of regret.
Then, an idea struck her.
After finishing her meal, Sophia found the owner.
Using the excuse of ordering office meals, Sophia placed an order for ten portions of every dish on the menu, to be picked up daily for a month.
It wasn't that Sophia only planned to order from this one place. Besides this restaurant, she had many other favorite spots and intended to visit each one.
This way, even when the apocalypse came, she'd still be able to taste the flavors of the pre-apocalypse world.
That entire afternoon, Sophia went from restaurant to restaurant, finally placing orders at every place she loved.
Watching the sun dip toward the horizon, Sophia headed to the food street.
The food street had no shortage of delicious eats. She certainly wasn't going to miss out.
Cold noodles, rice rolls, bibimbap, tacos, pizza slices, kebabs—each one held a place in Sophia's heart.
She ate and bought as she went. By the time she left the food street, both hands were overflowing with bags.
If the street weren't so crowded and covered in cameras everywhere, she would have stored everything in her space long ago.
Only once she sat in her car did Sophia store all the street food in her space.
Near dusk, Sophia checked the yogurt she'd left in the space—it was still exactly the same as when she'd put it in.
This space could preserve things!
Whatever went in came out exactly as it was.
With this final concern resolved, Sophia went all out, buying with abandon!
Back home after a bath, Sophia didn't sleep right away. Instead, she opened Amazon.
Some things could be bought at the wholesale market, but others were better purchased online.
Like some of her favorite snacks.
Spicy chicken, buffalo wings, various chips, crackers, jerky, dried fruit—Sophia ordered everything.
Because the quantities were large, she had everything shipped directly to the warehouse, not her home address.
After placing the orders, Sophia pulled out the printed list and checked off everything she'd already bought, then finally went to sleep.
That night, sleep was uneasy. Her dreams were filled with scenes of surviving the apocalypse.
When dawn finally came and Sophia opened her eyes, confirming she was still in her apartment, she let out a long, slow breath.
Thank goodness it was just a dream.
This time, she would live better than before!
For breakfast, Sophia fried some sausages and eggs, paired with congee and soup dumplings she'd bought the day before. A truly satisfying meal.
With a full stomach, Sophia drove out immediately.
Another day of big shopping!
The day before had been all food and drink. Today, Sophia bought daily necessities.
Laundry powder, liquid detergent, bar soap, body soap, shampoo, body wash, conditioner, toothbrush, toothpaste, dish soap—bought by the case, 200 cases of each.
Paper towels, wet wipes, disinfectant wipes, menstrual pads—even more than she could use in two lifetimes.
For skincare and cleansers, she'd already called ahead and placed orders for dozens of sets of her usual brands.
After some thought, Sophia also bought several large boxes of affordable hand cream and moisturizer.
With toiletries taken care of, Sophia bought disposable food containers, disposable cutlery, plastic wrap, zip-lock bags, aluminum foil, and more.
All of these were consumables that, even by the apocalypse's tenth year, still hadn't returned to production.
So she bought plenty of each.
The quantity of disposable containers alone—even if she used two and threw two away with every meal—would last her several lifetimes.
Drinking water was crucial too.
The first year of the apocalypse would bring extreme heat. Temperatures would be outrageous, and rain would be nonexistent. Water was an essential survival resource.
Sophia contacted a manufacturer and ordered 1,000 water barrels and 1,000 water containers.
Each container could hold 5,000 gallons of water. Near the bottom, there was a spigot installed—when water was needed, she could just turn it on and fill up.
The smaller barrels were the kind used on water dispensers. Sophia planned to use them for filtered water.