Chapter 77 The End Times, Virtue Isn’t Much Help

Chapter 77 The End Times, Virtue Isn't Much Help

"Shen Que, Shen Que."

Meng Ci woke up to find it was already past three in the afternoon.

He wondered how Shen Que's cold was faring; what if his fever hadn't subsided and he had passed out?

So Meng Ci picked up the walkie-talkie and started calling out.

"Hmm, what is it?"

Fortunately, Shen Que's voice came through the walkie-talkie quickly.

"Nothing, just checking if you're awake," Meng Ci thought, not wanting to say something like 'checking if you're dead.'

"The pickled cabbage that Teacher Mao taught me to make a few days ago is ready to eat, so I plan to make pickled cabbage fish. Would you like to come over for dinner?"

"Sure." Shen Que agreed.

The weather had been getting colder these days, and Meng Ci decided he couldn't keep suffering.

He moved the coffee table away and took out a stove from the space, assembled it, and lit a fire.

He placed the rabbits near the stove; the little ones had opened their eyes and would probably be running around soon.

Meng Ci had initially planned to sleep in the living room with the stove burning all night.

But he feared he might die from carbon monoxide poisoning, so he abandoned the idea.

After getting up, Meng Ci first started the stove with firewood and then took a fish from the bucket that had been swapped out, placing it on the stove.

After feeding the rabbits and adding some coal to the fire, he began preparing the fish.

He put the rice on the gas stove in the kitchen to cook.

Not wanting to bother with other dishes, Meng Ci picked many vegetables from the flower pots and made a simple salad.

As the fish was cooking on the stove, there was a knock at the door. Meng Ci opened it to see Shen Que holding a bag.

Handing the plastic bag to Meng Ci, Shen Que explained, "I have some mung beans, so I soaked them a few days ago to grow bean sprouts. See if you can use them."

"Great."

Taking the bean sprouts, Meng Ci boiled some water, cooked the sprouts, and placed them in a bowl. Once the fish was done, he poured it over the sprouts.

The fragrant boiled fish was ready, and the two of them ate by the stove.

After they finished, Shen Que left, and Meng Ci started dealing with the fish in the bucket.

There were thirty fish in total. Meng Ci planned to salt-cure twenty of them, tie them with string, and give ten to Shen Que.

Later, he could hang them on a stick on the balcony to dry.

For the remaining ten fish, he only cleaned the scales and guts before putting them in the fridge.

In about ten days, a blizzard would arrive, and the fridge wouldn't be necessary; the fish wouldn't spoil.

As for the fish caught earlier, Meng Ci also salt-cured them and dried them, storing them in the space.

If they needed anything in the future, they could trade these fish.

That evening, the two went back to the hotel to retrieve more supplies.

Since there was still half a pig left, they called Shen Que over to help process the pork.

Cutting half the meat into five-pound strips, Meng Ci heated salt in a pan, added star anise, Sichuan pepper, and other spices, and stir-fried them for a minute before setting them aside.

He rubbed the meat strips with some liquor, then coated them with the seasoned salt and a mixture of soy sauce and dark soy sauce.

Placing the seasoned meat strips in a bowl and covering it with cling film, he flipped them every few hours. After three days, they could be hung to dry.

The remaining fifty pounds of pork were also cut. Meng Ci gave ten pounds to Yun Jingcen.

Now that both groups were tied together, it was better to maintain good relations. Besides, Mao Xinyu had taught them a lot about growing vegetables.

Moreover, when Yun Jingcen's group found supplies outside, they shared with Meng Ci and Shen Que.

Of the remaining forty pounds of meat, Meng Ci kept twenty pounds, cutting them into smaller pieces and storing them in bags for daily consumption.

He used the rest to make a pot of braised meat, which was easier to eat.

Of course, he shared all this meat equally with Shen Que.

Shen Que gave some of the meat back to Meng Ci, saying, "I'm not a good cook; taking it would be a waste."

"Keep the meat here, and when you cook, call me over to eat."

Meng Ci was happy, as this increased their chances of interacting.

Over the next few days, Meng Ci tended to the vegetables, fed the rabbits, and occasionally practiced combat with Shen Que, enjoying his company.

The little rabbits, sensing the warmth, sometimes ran out and hopped around the house.

However, due to their small size, Meng Ci worried that the little rabbits might be accidentally stepped on and killed before they could grow up.

So Meng Ci took some cardboard boxes and surrounded the rabbit cage with them.

This way, the little rabbits had space to move around without the risk of being crushed.

Life was comfortable, and it was easy to become complacent.

Because he feared the cold, Meng Ci's daily activities were greatly reduced, except for practicing martial arts with Shen Que.

Sometimes, after a meal, he would casually enter the space to grab some snacks, which was enough.

On this particular morning, just past nine o'clock, Meng Ci, still in bed, suddenly heard residents shouting outside.

"Ah! The rain has finally stopped, sniff sniff..."

"This inhuman life is finally over!"

...

Meng Ci picked up his phone and checked the date: December 18th.

That day, the heavy rain paused, and people rejoiced, thinking the rain had ended and hope had arrived.

Unbeknownst to them, the next day, acid rain would follow.

The pause in the heavy rain was not an end but a beginning.

It was still early, and there was nothing urgent to do, so Meng Ci stayed under the covers, planning to catch some more sleep.

He didn't get out of bed until eleven o'clock.

The apocalypse had its perks; as long as you had enough food stored, you could slack off and sleep as much as you wanted.

After getting up, Meng Ci heated up the stove and took out a portion of crayfish, a steaming bowl of rice, and a plate of cold cucumber salad from the space. He turned on his tablet and found a TV show to watch.

After eating, Meng Ci packed the leftovers and other garbage into a plastic bag, opened the balcony window, and threw everything down.

After the heavy rain, people initially kept the trash inside their homes, but once it started to stink, they began tossing it into the hallway.

As the hallway filled with garbage and the stench became unbearable, people started throwing the trash out the windows.

Of course, another significant reason for the foul smell was the blocked sewage system.

When the tap water supply ceased, the drains in the houses also clogged, causing toilets to back up all the way to the seventeenth floor.

So many residents would relieve themselves at home and then dispose of it in plastic bags, which naturally smelled terrible.

Besides, even if they carried the trash downstairs, it would still end up in the floodwaters and be washed away. Why waste energy climbing up and down?

Moreover, in the apocalypse, civility couldn't be eaten.