Chapter 11 Strange Phenomena
If the wholesale market in D City is a paradise for food, then the small commodity market in Z Province is a paradise for daily necessities. Jiang Rong and her son had never seen so many daily necessities before, let alone imagined that things here could be so cheap.
Clothes costing hundreds or even thousands of dollars in large department stores are available here at wholesale prices. The money I usually spend on one outfit for my son can buy a dozen here. Besides the discounted prices, the variety of styles is dazzling.
No child can resist the temptation of new clothes, and Jiang Xiaoheng was no exception. Seeing so many beautiful clothes, he completely forgot about his previous unpleasantness. He enthusiastically held Jiang Rong's hand, and when he saw any nice clothes, he stopped and asked to try them on.
The saleswomen at the clothing store were instantly overcome with maternal instincts upon seeing Jiang Xiaoheng, and each of them went to great lengths to dress him up. Jiang Xiaoheng looked like a delicate porcelain doll, and in his new clothes, he was even cuter than in the photos displayed at the store entrance.
Amidst the saleswoman's repeated exclamations of "cute" and "pretty," he gradually lost himself. Jiang Xiaoheng, dressed in his brand-new clothes, quickly ran to Jiang Rong. He spread his arms to show his father the patterns on the clothes, his fair face flushed with excitement, and his bright black eyes filled with anticipation. "Daddy, can we buy this dress?"
It was clear that Jiang Xiaoheng really liked the clothes he had tried on, but Jiang Rong firmly refused her son, "We've already bought a lot of clothes today, and this one is the same style as the previous ones, only the pattern has changed from a bunny to a dinosaur. Sweetie, shall we go find some other clothes?"
Jiang Xiaoheng had tried on so many clothes that they piled up into a small mountain; if he continued buying, he would never be able to wear them all. Moreover, Jiang Rong paid more attention to comfort and practicality than the style of the clothes.
Seeing Jiang Xiaoheng purse his lips, Jiang Rong used her trump card, "Dad will buy you ice cream later."
Upon hearing the word "ice cream," Jiang Xiaoheng's unhappiness vanished instantly. He quickly took off his clothes and asked, "Can I have strawberry and macadamia nut flavors?"
Jiang Rong didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Okay."
Jiang Rong discovered that his son's aesthetic sense was completely different from his own. He preferred simple and elegant things, while his son liked brightly colored and flashy gadgets. During the rest of the trip, Jiang Xiaoheng selected many items that looked good but were impractical, most of which were, of course, ruthlessly rejected by Jiang Rong.
Before bringing Jiang Xiaoheng, Jiang Rong was worried that his son might not have enough stamina and might not be able to last long. However, after walking around for an afternoon, he found that his son's stamina was amazing. His own legs were starting to ache, but his son was full of energy and enthusiasm.
The father and son spent most of the day exploring only one corner of the wholesale market, but their haul was astonishing. Jiang Rong thought that if the major crisis hadn't struck, he could have easily opened a shop and sold all those clothes.
The small commodity wholesale market is very large, and it's impossible to see everything in just one day, so the two decided to stay and explore it properly.
It was Jiang Xiaoheng's first time traveling far from home, and everything he saw seemed new and exciting. Whenever he saw something interesting, he would video call Uncle Chu and the elderly couple. The old couple were overjoyed by Jiang Xiaoheng's charm and wished they could fly to Z Province right now to shop at the small commodity market with him.
For example, right now, Jiang Xiaoheng pointed the camera at the big round pancake in front of him and said, "Grandpa, look, Dad and I are having meat pies tonight."
Uncle Chu and Aunt Chu's faces were squeezed into the small screen. Seeing the pancake on the table, they felt a little sorry for them. "Why did you only eat one pancake? Isn't there anything else?"
Jiang Xiaoheng then moved his phone up to a bowl of beef offal, "And this too, Dad said it's a specialty of Y City, it's delicious."
While listening to his son and Uncle Chu chatting, Jiang Rong took out a small notebook and scribbled on it. He had been spending money very quickly in the past two months, and fearing that he might accidentally exceed his spending limit, he would write down every penny he spent each day.
He thought he had stockpiled enough things, but when he came to the small commodity market today, he realized that a family needs to prepare a lot more if they want to live well after a crisis.
Just as Jiang Rong was concentrating on keeping accounts, Jiang Xiaoheng had already ended the video call. Xiaoheng enthusiastically put a piece of beef offal into his father's bowl, saying, "Grandpa and Grandma said that even in hot weather, we should eat well."
Jiang Rong put down her pen and smiled at her son with satisfaction, "Okay, Dad will eat now."
Just then, his phone screen flashed. Upon closer inspection, he saw that Uncle Chu had transferred 20,000 yuan to him, along with a message: "Don't make yourself and your child suffer while you're away from home."
Upon seeing the message, Jiang Rong was stunned for a moment, then a surge of warmth welled up in his heart. It had been a long time since anyone had transferred money to him since his parents passed away.
While browsing the small commodities market today, he and his son kept eating. When it was time for dinner, neither of them was actually hungry. However, out of habit, they still ordered two dishes as a token gesture.
Unexpectedly, a pancake and a bowl of beef offal became a symbol of frugality in the eyes of the Chu family elders, so they transferred 20,000 yuan without hesitation.
Normally, Jiang Rong would never have accepted this money. However, after pondering for a moment while looking at his phone, he still clicked "accept payment" and sent a thank you message to Uncle Chu.
After the great crisis, the currency currently in circulation will become worthless. The money received now will become the resources upon which the Chu family depends for survival after the crisis. With this in mind, Jiang Rong accepted the money without hesitation.
Over the next few days, Jiang Rong and her son thoroughly enjoyed browsing the small commodity market.
Previously, when he was hoarding goods alone, he focused on quantity. Now, with Jiang Xiaoheng's involvement, he no longer rushes through the stockpiling process but instead calmly and carefully selects what he needs.
With his son by his side, he found many things that weren't on his stockpiling list, such as sanitary napkins—two pads are much more effective than shoe insoles when his feet sweat. He also found smokeless charcoal, so he and his son could enjoy a delicious barbecue on cold days.
Besides daily necessities, Jiang Rong also bought a lot of medicine: disinfectants, anti-inflammatory drugs, hemostatics, painkillers, and health supplements...
These supplies were all packed in the same way as before and then transported to the warehouse of HSBC Logistics Park one after another.
After returning from Z Province, Jiang Rong had only one thing left to do: move.
Don't be fooled by the fact that his house doesn't look cluttered; when they actually started cleaning, the amount of stuff was quite astonishing. Especially the small appliances and kitchen utensils in the kitchen—they filled three large cardboard boxes.
Of course, the furniture that could be moved around took up the most space, and he originally wanted to keep it. But then he thought that his furniture was of good quality and he might need it in the future.
The process of packing and moving was exhausting. After moving into the new house, there were still many small things to buy. Jiang Rong and his son spent almost half a month getting everything sorted out, and by the time everything was finally ready, it was June 5th.
Jiang Rong stared at the calendar on her phone in silence for a long time; this day was finally coming.
But seeing his son beside him, the tension in his mind finally eased. He had done it; he had finally built a place for himself and his son to stay before the great crisis hit.
Thinking of the hardships she endured in her past life, and seeing her warm and sturdy home and healthy, lively son now, Jiang Rong's eyes welled up with tears.
However, Jiang Xiaoheng was clearly unaware of Jiang Rong's current mood; he was engrossed in watching a television program. The program was playing an advertisement for Longlong Amusement Park in D City, with the enthusiastic voiceover enticing viewers: "Longlong Amusement Park Water World, bringing you a cool summer!"
Upon seeing this advertisement, Jiang Rong couldn't help but recall her past life.
In his past life, Jiang Xiaoheng always wanted to visit Longlong Amusement Park, but either his timing wasn't right, or the weather was unsuitable for travel. Until the major crisis erupted, his son never set foot in the park. After the crisis, the park closed, making going there a distant dream.
During the two years at the base, his son was forced to mature early, shouldering the burden of survival like an adult. The more sensible his son became, the more guilty Jiang Rong felt. He clearly had the time and energy before the major crisis; why couldn't he have spared a little time to fulfill his child's dream?
Without hesitation, Jiang Rong booked family tickets for Longlong Amusement Park on her phone. After the booking was successful, a text message notified her of her remaining balance: of the 21.65 million yuan, she still had a little over 1,000 yuan left. This amount would allow them to enjoy a full day at Longlong Amusement Park, and on their way out, they could also stop by the foreign-owned supermarket next to the park to buy some supplies.
Jiang Rong called to Jiang Xiaoheng, "Come on, son, Dad will take you to Longlong Amusement Park."
Jiang Xiaoheng was stunned for a moment, and when he came to his senses, his round eyes lit up with astonishment, "Really?!"
Because of the heat, Longlong Amusement Park wasn't crowded. However, this had its advantages; there were no long lines for any of the rides. Except for a few rides that Jiang Xiaoheng couldn't ride due to his height, the father and son enjoyed all the remaining attractions.
Jiang Xiaoheng was having a blast and was extremely happy. If Jiang Rong hadn't noticed that his skin was almost wrinkled from being soaked in the water, he could have stayed in the water for hours.
The experience at Longlong Amusement Park was so wonderful that Jiang Xiaoheng kept reminiscing about it. While shopping at a foreign-owned supermarket, he kept asking, "Dad, can we come back to play again tomorrow?"
As Jiang Rong stuffed the snacks and fruits from the shelf into the shopping cart, he replied to his son, "I probably won't be able to come tomorrow." Even if there wasn't a major crisis, he wouldn't have the money to come tomorrow.
However, seeing the disappointment in her son's eyes, Jiang Rong still added against her conscience, "Dad will definitely bring you here when he has the chance."
The light returned to Jiang Xiaoheng's eyes, and he flashed his white teeth, "Okay, I want to come to Longlong Amusement Park with my dad often from now on."
Jiang Xiaoheng's energy was fully released, and he couldn't help but doze off on the way home. Just when Jiang Rong thought he was going to sleep the whole way, Jiang Xiaoheng suddenly woke up. He held his little toes and looked out the window, his dark eyes gradually turning red. "Daddy, the sky has turned red."
Jiang Rong's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously looked up at the sky.
The once azure sky was rapidly turning red, the clouds floating in the sky turned a beautiful magenta, and even the setting sun was tinged with a golden-red hue. The entire sky, from east to west, was filled with varying shades of red, and everything beneath the heavens was bathed in a reddish halo.
Seeing this, many vehicles on the road slowed down. People raised their phones to the sky, wanting to capture this beautiful moment.
Little did they know the deadly danger lurking beneath this beautiful scene. In just a few hours, nature would unleash its most devastating retribution upon humanity. Most of the people under the heavens would not see the sunrise tomorrow.
Jiang Rong frowned and accelerated, while the car's Bluetooth system frantically dialed Chu Qiang's number. After a series of ringing sounds, Chu Qiang finally answered, "Hey, Xiao Jiang? What's up?"
Jiang Rong asked eagerly, "Brother Chu Qiang, can you go back to your hometown with your uncle and aunt tonight?"
For a while, Jiang Rong and her son called Chu Qiang and his family every day, hoping they would return to their hometown as soon as possible. Chu Qiang also wanted his parents to come back sooner, but he was too busy with work, and his parents kept running into things, so their return home was kept being postponed.
Chu Qiang sighed helplessly, "We can't go back, there are too many things to do."
Hearing Chu Qiang's answer, Jiang Rong's eyes dimmed slightly. Those who haven't experienced a crisis have no idea how terrifying a major crisis can be. His madness and anxiety, in the eyes of Chu Qiang's family, were probably just needless worry.
With things having come to this, Jiang Rong could only say seriously, "Brother Chu Qiang, after you get off work tonight, go to the supermarket and buy plenty of water and food to put in the trunk of your car. Also, make sure to fill up the gas tank!"
Chu Qiang seemed to be working underground, and the signal wasn't very good: "Hello, hello? Xiao Jiang, the signal is bad... I know..." After a burst of noise, the call ended.
Jiang Rong tried calling the Chu family elders several more times, but for some reason, he couldn't get through, so he had to give up.
Jiang Xiaoheng asked in his childish voice, "Daddy, the sky is so beautiful today! Is this the fiery sunset cloud that they talked about in the book?"
Jiang Rong looked at the sky with a complex mix of emotions, said nothing, and only shook her head.
This was the second time he had witnessed this day.
But compared to the first time, Jiang Rong was now prepared to face everything.
He snapped out of his daze, stepped on the gas without batting an eye, and sped away among the crowd of people looking up at the sky.
He has done all the necessary preparations and reminded those who needed to be reminded countless times. The rest is up to fate.
Author's Note:
Whether Jiang Rong was planning ahead or lost her mind and ruined everything, we'll see now.
Fortunately, his gamble paid off, and he had a small home after the crisis.
Unfortunately, he won, and the crisis for all humanity has officially begun.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
