Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Panlong Mountain Waterfall, 4 a.m., June 3rd. Seven days remained until the apocalypse.

Qi Mo turned off his phone alarm.

His toddler was still sleeping soundly beside him, but this time, the child had rolled over, pressing close and clutching his clothes with chubby little hands.

After slipping a blanket into the child’s hands and placing a pillow nearby, Qi Mo slipped out of the RV without a sound.

The moon was mid-sky, giving decent light.

Without using a flashlight, he walked straight to the mountain stream.

The water gurgled, clear and icy cold.

He filled half a bucket (from the RV) with water.

Then Qi Mo started storing the filled water tanks.

In theory, if he could see it, he could store it.

In reality, objects over a dozen tons couldn’t be stored just by looking—he needed direct or at least indirect contact.

Fish, shrimp, and crabs in the tanks were ejected from his space, as it couldn’t hold living creatures—they got kicked out automatically.

He could choose where these ejected items landed.

Of course, anything too large was beyond his ability to move.

He could only move things up to four or five pounds.

Qi Mo figured this limit was linked to his mental energy. Powers would start appearing six months into the apocalypse.

Unfortunately, the ability he awakened wasn’t combat-based. Otherwise, scum like Chen Feng wouldn’t have ambushed and killed him.

His child… Qi Mo hated those two-faced monsters.

In the stream, he spotted several fish traps.

No way he was leaving those behind.

He quickly retrieved them—this way, the fish and shrimp he caught would have a plausible source. Even his brother-in-law wouldn’t question it.

Once the last fifty tanks were stored, Qi Mo began gutting the fish.

The stream fish varied in size—some large, some small. The largest mandarin fish was a pound, while the smaller ones were around half a pound.

There were over twenty mandarin fish in total, along with many others Qi Mo couldn’t name.

He gutted and stored the bigger ones, releasing the smaller ones back into the stream.

By 5 a.m., Qi Mo had finished gutting the big fish and stored the dead shrimp in his space.

Another fifty water tanks were filled and stored as well.

This time, the catch was smaller.

Fish, shrimp, crabs—Qi Mo figured he’d wait until he’d gathered most of the supplies. He still wanted to head to Haicheng and stock up on seafood.

Once the seas dried up completely, he needed to make sure his little one had enough.

Jumbo lobsters, Alaskan king crabs, bluefin tuna, abalone sashimi, sea cucumbers, A5 Wagyu beef, octopus sashimi—he had storage space, so parasites weren’t a concern. He’d make sure his little one got it all.

Bird’s nest soup, shark fin—he’d take it all, no exceptions.

If not for the apocalypse, with his husband Huo Liangzhou’s resources, their child could have lived the high life.

Zoned out, Qi Mo kept cleaning fish, his face a mask of bitter resentment.

Of course, none of this could be bought under the guise of donations, so the cash from hocking their mansions and yachts would finally be useful.

Genius move!

Another ten minutes passed.

“Xiao Mo, what are you doing here?” His hair sticking up in every direction, Huo Liangchuan hurried over to Qi Mo.

Qi Mo glanced at the person beside him. “You’re awake? Here, give me a hand cleaning these fish.”

Huo Liangchuan looked at the mountain stream catch in the bucket—about two finger-widths across, ten to twenty centimeters long, filling a large bucket.

“Xiao Mo, you came all the way out here just to catch fish?” Taking the knife from Qi Mo, Huo Liangchuan asked.

Qi Mo nodded. “I saw a video and thought it looked fun, so I gave it a try. Hit the jackpot—look at this haul!”

Watching Qi Mo lift and rinse the traps, Huo Liangchuan muttered under his breath, *Is my brother cutting you off or something? You had to come all the way to the mountains to catch your own fish!*

Qi Mo prepared to carry the traps back—he was claiming them for good.

At the start of the apocalypse, before the water fully evaporated, streams and ponds still held fish.

Seeing Qi Mo about to haul such a heavy load, Huo Liangchuan immediately protested. “Put that down, put it down! I’ll carry it later. You go back and keep an eye on the kiddo first.”

He remembered that just a few days ago, his brother had someone check Xiao Mo’s health.

The lab results read: eight weeks along.

Letting a pregnant Xiao Mo carry all that? Did he even want to live?

Qi Mo thought for a moment. With two little beans in the oven, better to let Huo Liangchuan handle the heavy stuff. That’s what brothers-in-law are for—free heavy lifting.

Watching Xiao Mo walk away, Huo Liangchuan could feel his temples throbbing just thinking about his older brother.

*You’re some hotshot tycoon who can shake the business world, yet you don’t even dare tell people Xiao Mo is pregnant again?*

*You haven’t even moved in together yet? Pathetic.*

If word got out, no one would believe that Huo Liangzhou—a man who makes Jiangcheng tremble with a glare—still couldn’t seal the deal with his own spouse.

But Xiao Mo? Impressive. One shot, one baby—every damn time.

Poor dude, it's been two years already!

A married couple only doing it once a year? Seriously?

Huo Liangchuan shook his head. His brother’s perfect image in his mind came crashing down.

With Xiao Mo, even his brother was just human.

Qi Mo returned to the car.

After washing his hands and cleaning the fish, his hands still reeked of fish.

He scrubbed them three times before the stench finally lightened.

He washed the rice and set the porridge to cook, then took out buns from the car fridge and steamed them.

Half an hour later, Qi Mo saw Huo Liangchuan holding a bucket in one hand and fishing traps in the other as he returned.

"Go wash your hands quickly. Food’s ready—eat up, then we’re heading back," Qi Mo called out.

After the meal, Huo Liangchuan watched Xiao Mo feeding the baby with a bottle. "Xiao Mo, I’ll go first. Don’t get out—just drive straight back."

"Alright, don’t worry. It’s broad daylight—nothing’s gonna happen. Jiangcheng’s safe," Qi Mo replied.

Huo Liangchuan reluctantly got out of the car. He waited by the SUV, still worried about Qi Mo.

After 99 steps, a few more won’t hurt.

After feeding and buckling in the baby on the child seat beside the driver’s seat, Qi Mo started driving.

The two cars drove off Panlong Mountain in tandem.

Once in the city, Qi Mo and Huo Liangchuan split up.

At seven o’clock, Qi Mo wrapped things up with the warehouse guy before leaving.

Then he rushed to the mall.

Clothes, shoes, socks for the little one—spring, summer, autumn wear, especially winter stuff.

For adult clothing, Qi Mo walked into a store selling off-season down jackets. Holding his well-behaved baby, he gestured at the racks and said to the salesperson: “This one, this one, this one…”

“Trying them on, or should I just bag them?” the salesperson asked.

Qi Mo looked at the clerk. “Got any deals?”

“It’s already 50% off, sir. That’s as low as we go,” the clerk replied.

Qi Mo nodded. “Don’t pack the ones you’re holding. Pack every other down jacket here, all sizes, and deliver them to this address. They need to arrive by 1 PM. Oh, and 40% off—is that possible?”

The clerk froze. All of them? Seriously?

“Wait, let me check with the manager,” the clerk said before rushing off.

Soon, the manager came out. They’d still profit even at 30% off.

After calling the company, they agreed to take the order.

The manager approached Qi Mo. “We can do 40%, but half up front. What do you think?”

"Ring it up," Qi Mo said.

This store had short, mid-length, and long puffer jackets, insulated pants—sizes from 1.6m to 1.9m. All told, over 500 pieces.

At 500 bucks a pop, Qi Mo paid without batting an eye.

"If it’s not here by 1 sharp, I’m canceling," he added.

The manager immediately assured him, "No worries—guaranteed by 1 on the dot."

That was serious cash, after all.

Qi Mo kept raiding the stores.

Shoes, socks, boxers, snow boots, kids’ clothes…

He only needed to receive the goods at the shop in the afternoon—no more legwork.

Online was cheaper, but too slow.

Same-day delivery put Qi Mo at ease.

After finishing his clothing purchases, Qi Mo bolted to the gold shop. Fifty-gram, hundred-gram bars—he picked up over a hundred just like that.

At noon, he took the kid to grab lunch.

He ordered a dozen of his favorite dishes, had ’em sent to the RV, and stashed them in his inventory.

Next stop: the bank. He picked up a cool mil in cash and stored it in his inventory.

Early in the apocalypse, cash still talked.

He drove toward the shop.

On the way, he stopped at a milk tea place and bought a boatload of boba.

For later cravings.

Now, snacks were the only thing left to buy.

No sweat—snacks could wait till tomorrow.

The day after, he’d pick up the firepower, then head to Haicheng for seafood.

Wait—Haicheng… On June 5th, some smuggler had stashed a duffel of heat and ditched it… somewhere.

It clicked—he knew the spot.

He could ambush the drop, swipe the goods into his space, and no one would ever know.

A crowded beach? Nobody’d spot a thing. Perfect.

Qi Mo was pumped.

Back at the shop, he opened the door—the down jackets arrived shortly after.

From then on, shipments rolled in every 30 minutes.

It continued until four in the afternoon.

Qi Mo stayed until half past four before leaving.

When he returned home, Qi Mo hadn’t expected his stand-in husband—usually not back until six—to already be waiting for him on the sofa.

“Where did you run off to this time, getting yourself and Baby Yan all dusty?” Huo Liangzhou asked, softening his expression as much as he could.

Qi Mo shoved Baby Yan into his stand-in husband’s arms. “I’m exhausted. I went to gather supplies—I’m planning to donate them in half a month.”

Huo Liangzhou frowned slightly. “Running around with Baby Yan will wear you out. Tell me what you need, and I’ll buy it. Don’t go wandering off—it’s not safe.”

Qi Mo took the water his husband handed him and chugged it down.

“Great, great! I’ll need a whole lot of groceries—you can store them in the warehouse for now. Oh, by the way, have you bought out the Jiang family’s supermarket, their food processing plant, and beverage factory yet?” Qi Mo asked eagerly.

Huo Liangzhou hummed. “We’re in talks already. It should be finalized tomorrow.”

“Thanks, honey! I’m going to shower—you take care of Baby Yan tonight.” With that, Qi Mo pecked his husband’s cheek and hurried away.

Huo Liangzhou watched him leave, then touched his cheek gently. The young master kissed me.

A small smile tugged at his lips.

As long as he’s happy.

But how was he supposed to tell the young master that he was pregnant again?

Back when they had Baby Yan, the young master had thrown a tantrum, refusing outright to carry the child.

Only after Huo Liangzhou promised that everything—houses, money—would be prepared for Baby Yan, and that without Baby Yan, the Qi Corporation wouldn’t be saved, did the young master finally give in. He agreed to marry on the condition that if things didn’t work out within three years, they’d divorce.

He even promised 10% of the main Huo Corporation shares before the young master finally signed the marriage certificate.

In addition, for those three years, the young master would live quietly in the Huo household—no infidelity allowed.

So far, the young master had played the role of an obedient spouse quite well.

Still, recalling what he’d found out, Huo Liangzhou rubbed his temples in frustration. Why on earth did the young master want a gun?

Murdering his own husband? Huo Liangzhou couldn’t believe it.

After all, they got along great in every way—except for the young master’s occasional hesitation in the bedroom.

If he wanted to kill him, he could’ve done so two months ago. There was no need to wait until now.

The young master’s personality was actually very gentle, sweet, and compliant. Even after what happened two months ago, the worst he’d done was ignore him or pretend not to know him.

After about five or six days of giving him the cold shoulder, he’d remember that Baby Yan needed a father’s love and come back to make up.

Of course, Huo Liangzhou had to promise never to mistreat the young master again—even when drunk.

So the matter had been settled—no need to resort to violence.

Then Huo Liangzhou thought again about the young master’s plan to get back at Chen Feng. So something must’ve upset his young master.

Huo Liangzhou himself couldn’t bear to see the young master unhappy.

Chen Feng. He mulled over the name. This guy must’ve had a death wish, daring to mess with the young master again.

Bankruptcy for the Chen family wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

At least then Chen Feng would stop forcing himself into the young master’s life.