The opening music of the evening news started playing.
Under everyone's gaze, Bai Xiqin calmly took out her phone and accepted the call.
"Hello? Mm, mm, okay, got it."
Bai Xiqin acknowledged with a nod, then handed the phone to her grandma, Liu Jing.
It was a call from Bai Anhai; the rented warehouse was filled, and he wanted Bai Xiqin to go and take the supplies into storage.
"Ah! Got it, you guys carry on then!"
Liu Jing exchanged a few simple words with Bai Anhai before hanging up.
"Sis, your ringtone is so—righteously majestic!"
Bai Yifan couldn't help but quip.
"This sound makes me feel at ease!" Bai Xiqin slipped the phone into her pocket, "I've got to head to the warehouse, you take care of grandpa and grandma!"
"With me here, rest assured!"
Bai Yifan patted his chest confidently!
"Xiao Niu, take it easy on your way. Tell your parents to come back soon too; grandpa's making rib stew for you all!"
Bai Zhengxuan said with a warm smile to Bai Xiqin.
"Alright!"
Bai Xiqin's eyes lit up.
In three years of apocalypse, who's had a taste of ribs!
Bai Xiqin gave Bai Yifan a couple more simple instructions before heading out.
The family car had been taken by Bai Anhai, so Bai Xiqin could only hail a taxi to the warehouse they rented.
The rented warehouse was a bit of a distance from the community, located on the outskirts where it's sparsely populated but with good transportation, making it easy for trucks to come by.
It took about an hour for the taxi to finally pull up in front of a modest warehouse.
Wang Yiyun was waiting in front of the warehouse, and as soon as she saw Bai Xiqin approaching, she eagerly waved.
"Xiao Niu, over here!"
Wang Yiyun smiled as she looked at Bai Xiqin, always thinking her daughter was gentle and graceful, much more likable than a rowdy boy!
"Mom, the warehouse you rented is huge!"
Bai Xiqin stared wide-eyed at the nearly 500-square-foot warehouse in astonishment.
"It's cheaper out here in the suburbs, just a few thousand for three months."
While speaking, Wang Yiyun handed Bai Xiqin a small box.
The small box was made of wood, intricately designed as a pendant, with a cute pink bunny on the surface.
Opening the little wooden box, it was packed full with needles.
The needles were about the size of regular ones, but unlike standard needles, these had no holes for threading and were significantly harder.
Bai Xiqin took one out and tried to bend it, managing to barely bend it a little.
"These needles are custom-made; your dad had a lot of them made."
Wang Yiyun pulled Bai Xiqin into the warehouse while speaking softly to her.
Bai Xiqin pinched the needle with her fingers, and frost instantly formed a layer over the needle's surface.
Then the needle floated up and shot forcefully toward a nearby big tree.
Thump~
A faint noise sounded as the needle buried itself fully into the tree, leaving a tiny hole.
Bai Xiqin squinted slightly as the needle extracted itself from the tree, returning to her hand unscathed.
She inspected the needle's surface, noting that the frosted tip wasn't deformed.
The combination of Control Ability and Ice Ability could maximize the power of a mere needle.
"That's my girl!"
Wang Yiyun looked at Bai Xiqin's recent display with a glowing face, practically ready to applaud.
Bai Xiqin, smiling, put the needle back in the little wooden box and hung it from her waist to carry around.
They entered the warehouse.
A truck was parked at the warehouse entrance, filled to the brim.
Bai Anhai was unloading items from the truck, his shirt soaked with sweat, yet he continued hauling goods without pause.
To avoid attention on the supplies, Bai Anhai rented a truck, hauling goods from suppliers all by himself.
"Dad, I can just transfer the supplies to the storage; no need to unload them."
Bai Xiqin promptly stopped Bai Anhai from his labor.
"Okay, Xiao Niu is the best!"
Bai Anhai descended from the truck, pointing to two large boxes beside him.
"One box is needles, the other is blades. We're not exactly unarmed now!"
The boxes were large enough to fit Bai Xiqin comfortably, and when she opened them, they were filled neatly with needles.
There had to be close to a hundred thousand, if not more.
The other box contained long blades, thin and light, perfect for wielding as weapons.
There were not only long blades but also short daggers.
Just looking at these two boxes of arms put Bai Xiqin at ease.
With a wave of her hand, Bai Xiqin first took these two boxes into the storage.
"Girl, what else do you think we're missing?"
Bai Anhai asked energetically, gesturing at the warehouse filled to capacity.
The sight was one of abundance.
There were stacks upon stacks of toilet paper.
Various condiments and cooking oils were stored box after box.
Hundreds of bags of rice and flour were lined up in tidy rows.
Plenty of snacks, especially sugar and chocolates, were scattered everywhere.
This stockpile could last the family for years!
"This should be about enough; we should stock up more on tobacco, alcohol, and clothes. No more rice, flour, or vegetables; there's quite a few seeds in the storage."
Bai Xiqin mused aloud.
The staple foods and vegetables could be grown in storage.
The supply in this area was only that much.
If they recklessly hoarded copious amounts of grain, it would deprive those outside of survival resources.
Yet tobacco, alcohol, and clothes are indispensable.
Tobacco and alcohol could serve as bartering resources in the apocalypse.
And clothes were essential for the family to wear.
"Got it!"
Bai Anhai grinned from ear to ear.
Bai Xiqin placed her hand on the supplies, and with a thought, a mountain of materials was transferred into storage.
The two had hoarded materials slowly, but Bai Xiqin collected them swiftly, and in no more than ten minutes, the entire warehouse was barren.
"We bought a bus for 500,000; it was mid-priced. I had someone modify it; the upper level is for sleeping, and the lower level is a living room and kitchen, costing an extra 100,000. It should be ready in about a month."
Bai Anhai spoke with a pained expression.
"We also sold the house and agreed to hand it over in four months."
"That person is certainly not going to get the house. When it's nearly the end times, I'll give them a heads up as compensation."
Bai Anhai mumbled a few words to himself.
"Now we're set. When the apocalypse hits, we won't be starving."
Bai Xiqin beamed, feeling the abundance within the storage space.
"Sigh!" Bai Anhai sighed, "I hope that in the future our family will still be just as it is now, safe and healthy."
"Of course we will!"
Wang Yiyun confidently extended her hand, purple lightning subtly flickering at her fingertips.
Bai Xiqin: ...
Meanwhile――
Grandpa planned to cook ribs, but there weren't any in the home's refrigerator, so Bai Yifan went to the supermarket to buy some.
The largest chain supermarket was across from Wangyang Company, bustling just like before.
As Bai Yifan approached the supermarket entrance, a man rushed over.
Leng Yebai ignored others' gazes, tightly gripping Bai Yifan's wrist, his sharp eyes scrutinizing Bai Yifan's surroundings.
As if searching for someone else by his side.
After a thorough scan, failing to find whom he sought, Leng Yebai's sharp eyes darkened, casting an overcast shadow across his face.
"Wh-Who are you?"
Bai Yifan timidly looked at the man shadowed with gloom in front of him.