Zhang Ye sighed, "Does this woman think I'm a junk collector?"
Though Fang Yuqing is a green tea and delicate flower, she at least knows how to act coquettish and dress up. What about you, Lin Caining? Besides being self-indulgent and narcissistic, what else do you possess?
However, out of a mischievous sense of humor, Zhang Ye smirked and said, "Oh, is that so?"
"But I just scolded Fang Yuqing fiercely. Since you two are good friends, what if you follow me? Won't it affect your relationship with her?"
Lin Caining's eyes brightened, sensing an opportunity.
Without hesitation, she said, "What good friends? We're just living together as roommates."
To gain Zhang Ye's trust, she spilled all the dark secrets about Fang Yuqing.
"You don't know how disgusted I am by her!"
"This woman is exceptionally lazy. In these days, she claims to feel cold and refuses to go to the toilet. She even uses mineral water bottles for urination, disgusts me!"
"Don't be fooled by her pretending to be innocent. In reality, she frequents nightclubs to find men."
"If she encounters a wealthy second-generation, she tries her best to offer herself."
"If she lacks money, she resorts to selling herself. Otherwise, with a monthly salary of only 5,000 yuan, where does she get the money to buy cosmetics and branded bags?"
"Just 1,500 yuan for a night. Very low! Hmph, I have no respect for such a woman."
This was the first time Zhang Ye learned about Fang Yuqing's sideline.
He clenched his teeth, increasingly feeling the absurdity of this world.
Fortunately, he wasn't foolish. While pursuing Fang Yuqing, he wouldn't become a pitiful lapdog like Zhou Peng.
To further earn Zhang Ye's trust, Lin Caining continued revealing more of Fang Yuqing's dark secrets.
"Don't be fooled by her pretending to be innocent. In reality, she's been pregnant multiple times."
"In college, she even had several construction bosses support her for four years."
...
Zhang Ye silently watched and recorded what she said.
Lin Caining obviously had a strong dislike for Fang Yuqing. After all, being prettier and better at coquetry, Fang Yuqing made Lin Caining merely a foil in her presence. In this world, how many women willingly accepted being someone else's green leaf?
After venting her emotions about Fang Yuqing, Lin Caining continued to express her affection for Zhang Ye.
"Zhang Ye, do you know how difficult it was for me to watch you pursue Fang Yuqing all these years?"
"Now I finally have the chance to confess to you. Let me be your girlfriend! I will definitely love you well."
"And at this time, aren't you lonely at home? Having a woman by your side can help you with many things."
Lin Caining was already indicating to Zhang Ye that as long as she went to Zhang Ye's home, he could play with her however he wanted.
Unfortunately, Zhang Ye wasn't interested in someone of her caliber.
He promptly forwarded the chat history between them to Fang Yuqing.
Then he said to Lin Caining, "Although I'm touched, let's forget about this."
Lin Caining, unwilling to give up, asked, "Why? Don't you need a woman now?"
Suppressing the nausea in his stomach, Zhang Ye replied to his phone, "I do like women, that's correct. However, you are too unattractive!"
Having said that, Zhang Ye muted his phone and threw it aside.
Upon hearing Zhang Ye's voice message, Lin Caining's face changed color.
He... actually said she's too unattractive?
Defamation, this was a serious defamation!
Every time she posted her beautifully edited photos online, countless people praised her as a great beauty!
Just as Lin Caining was furious, a scream of anger rang in her ears.
"Lin Caining, you treacherous woman!"
Fang Yuqing, upon seeing Lin Caining badmouthing her, exploded in anger.
The two fought, pulling each other's hair, pinching each other's arms.
They fought until they couldn't move, but still glared at each other fiercely.
If it weren't for the cold weather and the need to live under the same roof, they would have killed each other.
Lin Caining, of course, understood what had happened. She also hated Zhang Ye as much as Fang Yuqing did. But, like Fang Yuqing, she probably envied him more than hated him!
As long as at this moment, Zhang Ye agreed to let them into his room to eat something, they would abandon their dignity and crawl over like bitches.
On Zhang Ye's end, he continued to lead a simple, abundant, and monotonous life.
Every night, he would turn on the TV to watch news he had never bothered with before.
Although the content of the news broadcasts still had significant distortions, it might still provide some external information.
"Tianhai City officials have issued a notice. To meet everyone's electricity needs, power will be supplied every day from 1 to 2 pm."
"High-power appliances cannot be used, only low-power
appliances such as kettles and phones can be heated."
"Now, major power plants are in a period of shutdown. With a scarcity of electricity, we hope everyone will voluntarily reduce power usage. Avoid large-scale and prolonged power outages."
Zhang Ye raised an eyebrow slightly upon seeing this news.
In the past few days, power had been gradually returning, lasting only up to an hour.
Sometimes, it was only powered for a dozen minutes.
At this time, the authorities were still willing to provide electricity to the general public, even if only for a short moment. It was probably their maximum effort.
Most power plants worldwide were idle. Before the Ice Age ended, energy was becoming scarcer.
However, what caught Zhang Ye's attention wasn't the content of the news but the tone of the female anchor and the format of the broadcast.
This time, the news was delivered with a serious tone, and the content was no longer primarily focused on consoling the public.
This meant that the authorities had given up hiding the extent of the disaster nationwide.
When unable to control the situation, they could only release information comprehensively, allowing everyone to recognize the reality as soon as possible and find ways to save themselves.
Sure enough, Zhang Ye opened his phone to find that all the chat groups had exploded.
There were those cursing the authorities for inaction, others in despair and tears, and many more engaged in high-priced acquisition of goods.
The price of instant noodles had risen from 2,000 yuan per pack two days ago to 5,000 yuan per pack!
Zhang Ye still felt speechless.
Human greed was undoubtedly laid bare. Despite knowing the world was coming to an end, money, a commodity of little use in the short term, was still being exchanged for food and drink.
Zhang Ye didn't say a word. He observed everything like a detached observer.
Life still had to go on. Even if hope was lost, no one wanted to die, even if it meant surviving in hardship!
So, amidst the scolding and quarrels, the next day, they would still struggle desperately to survive.