Chapter 21: The Delusional Mind
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Chapter 21: A Person Who Isn’t Thinking Clearly
That afternoon, Dong Mingyue called Gu Pan.
The moment Gu Pan saw her name, she hurriedly answered.
“Panpan, you have to help me,” Dong Mingyue said anxiously.
Gu Pan had no idea what had happened, so she naturally could not agree at once. Instead, she asked, “What’s wrong?”
“We’ve run out of food at home. We’ve gone to queue up these past two days, but we still couldn’t buy anything. Panpan, you gave me so much before, so you must have stocked up quite a bit yourself, right? Could you give me some more?”
Gu Pan’s brows drew tightly together. With Dong Mingyue’s personality, surviving the apocalypse would truly be difficult. Of course, she could no longer keep involving herself in the affairs of someone like that.
“I don’t have enough for myself anymore. You’ll have to find a way on your own.”
Dong Mingyue grew frantic. “Panpan, I really need food. You know my mother-in-law has changed her opinion of me because of this. If everyone is unable to get food and I manage to obtain some, she’ll certainly think even more highly of me.”
Gu Pan was genuinely angered by that. Her voice rose slightly. “Dong Mingyue, are you stupid? Do you even realize what’s happening now? People are about to starve to death, and you’re still worrying about this? The power and internet are going to be cut off soon. Think about how you’re going to survive first. As your friend, I’ll give you one last piece of advice: if this really is the apocalypse, protect yourself and don’t trust other people too easily.”
Hearing this, Dong Mingyue replied in complete disbelief, “Panpan, how can you believe those rumors too? The apocalypse? What era are we living in? Don’t you believe in science? Once this cold wave passes, life will return to normal. I’m the most important person in this family.”
“I honestly don’t know what to say to you. You just said it yourself—what era are we living in? Then why are you still stuck in such an old-fashioned way of thinking? Why do you still have to live by your mother-in-law’s moods? Why is failing to conceive treated as though it were an unforgivable crime? Don’t forget that your parents paid for your marital home. That is your home, and you were originally the most important person in it. Dong Mingyue, I’ll give you one last piece of advice. Think about your situation and your future. If this really is the apocalypse, who will you be able to rely on?”
Gu Pan still had feelings for a friend of more than twenty years. Although she was disappointed in Dong Mingyue, she still had to say what needed to be said. Otherwise, she would feel guilty afterward.
After speaking, Gu Pan hung up directly. That friend truly was beyond saving.
She put down the phone and immediately called Tian Zhenzhen. She had to prevent Dong Mingyue from asking Tian Zhenzhen for supplies. If Tian Zhenzhen did not know the truth and gave her some, it would simply be a waste.
Tian Zhenzhen answered first. “Panpan, I was just about to call you. I heard the power is going to be cut off.”
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“I heard that too,” Gu Pan said. “If the power goes out, the internet will be cut off as well, so it’ll be difficult for us to contact each other again. You know where my home is. If there’s anything you can’t resolve, come find me.”
“I know. You know where my parents live too, so you’ll be able to find me.”
“Right. By the way, if Dong Mingyue calls you and asks for supplies, do not give her any. Her mother-in-law gave away most of the things she had before, and now she wants to obtain more supplies just to please that woman. Even if you give them to her, they won’t be used for her own benefit, so don’t waste anything on her.”
“That woman really has water in her brain. She wasn’t like this when we were children. How did getting married turn her into someone who’s been brainwashed?”
“She may really have been brainwashed by her husband’s family. But given the current situation, we truly don’t have supplies to waste on her. We need to look after ourselves first.”
“Exactly. If she were alone and had nothing to eat or drink, I would take her in. But if she’s still doing everything for that man and his family, then I’d rather pretend I never knew her.”
“That’s right. No one dares help fill that bottomless pit. Oh, and I need to remind you to hide your family’s supplies properly. Your family has a lot of them, so someone may have their eye on you. Have your father hide the food in the ceiling or inside the sofas. If someone breaks in to steal things during the night, it’ll be harder for them to find it.”
“Seriously? There are already people breaking into homes to steal?”
“People can’t even buy food anymore. What do you think?”
“That’s true. All right, I’ll hang up now. I’ll have my father and brother hide everything immediately.”
“Okay. Bye.”
After hanging up, Gu Pan realized that the apocalypse truly tested a person’s character. Cautious people had already sensed the danger and begun thinking about how to confront the unknown threats. Yet some people were still wasting time on trivial matters of pride and status.
Seeing her expression, Lu Ruisheng understood the complexity of her feelings. He said nothing, merely sitting beside her and putting an arm around her to comfort her.
Suddenly, they heard the sound of a fight in the stairwell. It was not on their floor, but the noise was loud, and it sounded as though people had come to blows. Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng still went out to see what was happening. They needed to understand the capabilities of the people in the building so that they would know whom to guard against more carefully in the future. After all, this life was different from their previous one.
In their previous life, they had merely struggled to survive. In this life, they intended to live while taking the initiative. The more information they had, the safer they would be.
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When they came out, the neighbors across the hall had also stepped outside. The noise had been so loud that some people were already talking about calling the police. Everyone wanted to come out and see whether their own interests might be affected.
Several people from the floors above had also come downstairs to find out what was going on.
The owner of Apartment 901 saw Lu Ruisheng and asked, “Hey, do you know what happened?”
His Mandarin was exceptionally precise, making it impossible to tell where he was from.
Lu Ruisheng shook his head. “We just came out too.”
At that moment, the owner of Apartment 801 came upstairs. He was wrapped up tightly as well, but he was tall and sturdy, making him relatively easy to recognize.
The owner of 801 was talkative. When he saw them, he stopped and began explaining what had happened downstairs.
“Two families from the second floor went to buy food from 501, but the people in 501 refused to sell. They got into a scuffle. The old lady from 501 is really something—she clawed up the other person’s face. Then she threw herself onto the ground and refused to get up, claiming that her heart hurt. Someone on the first floor called the police, but the police don’t have enough manpower to deal with everything, so they asked the building manager to mediate. I doubt anything will come of it. It’s freezing out here, and this isn’t worth going down to see.”
The owner of 901 sighed. “That old woman from 501 really is something… I don’t even know what to say about her. We had already agreed over WeChat that I would pay ten thousand for a bag of steamed buns. But once I got to her place, she raised the price to twelve thousand. I couldn’t be bothered arguing with her, so I bought them.”
The owner of 801 snorted coldly. “The people in 501 have no conscience. Who among us hasn’t helped them before? They have so much food, yet they refuse to lend us even a little. And when they sell, they demand outrageous prices. We’d better keep our distance from them from now on.”
Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng said nothing. In peaceful times, these people’s thinking would have been perfectly normal. But this was the apocalypse, and ordinary ways of thinking no longer applied.
Chen Shaonan and his wife also remained silent. They avoided getting involved in anything unless absolutely necessary—a lingering consequence of what had happened to them.
Their feet were already freezing just from standing there and talking. Once they realized there was nothing more to see downstairs, everyone said their goodbyes and returned home.
Before they parted, the owner of 901 said to Lu Ruisheng, “If you know any way to get food, let me know, will you? Thanks.”
Lu Ruisheng nodded. That would not be difficult. If chaos broke out and he learned where supplies could be found, he could tell the man. Whether the man managed to obtain them would be his own problem. Saying a few words would cost nothing.
End of Chapter