Zhang Yi feigned ignorance and said, "What's wrong? I haven't done anything bad!"
Lin Cainin said, "Are you stupid? The city is shut down by a heavy snowstorm, and we're almost out of food at home."
"Isn't it the perfect time for you to send over some delicious food to express your loyalty to Yuqing?"
"If I were you, I would send her the best stuff from home like steaks and lobsters."
"Once Yuqing is moved, won't your chances be greater?"
Zhang Yi could imagine the greedy face of that scheming girl reading Lin Cainin's message.
He sneered to himself.
Wasn't this behavior akin to begging?
But, what made him laugh was that they acted as if they were doing him a favor by begging.
As if by giving them food, they were granting him an opportunity.
Their shamelessness made Zhang Yi want to slap them hard!
Despicable!
Zhang Yi decided to toy with these two manipulative women.
He replied, "But we don't have much at home either! Just barely enough for me."
Lin Cainin frowned and criticized, "Foolish! How long can a snow disaster last? Endure hunger for a few meals. Once you've deceived Yuqing, won't you be the big winner?"
"If you can't even part with such trivial things, I don't think you're truly sincere about our Yuqing!"
Zhang Yi laughed even harder.
These two women, playing good cop and bad cop, thought they had it all figured out.
Too bad Zhang Yi had returned from the past and saw through their shamelessness.
Faced with Lin Cainin's manipulation, he simply replied with a "Oh", tossed his phone aside, and ignored her.
Lin Cainin was furious at the "Oh".
"What do you mean by 'Oh'!"
"I've been talking to you for so long, and this is your attitude?"
"Send the food over now! I want to eat steak and Australian lobster too!"
Lin Cainin craved good food. She hadn't had anything tasty in days and was drooling over the feast Zhang Yi had, so she plotted to trick him into sending her the food using Yuqing's name.
But things didn't go as she planned.
That "Oh" nearly broke her!
Could it be... he was no longer interested in Yuqing?
No, that's impossible!
Lin Cainin shook her head, recalling the years of Zhang Yi's attentiveness to Yuqing.
"He must be temporarily out of his mind!"
Lin Cainin, frustrated, then went to Yuqing and exaggeratedly recounted the events.
Of course, she told Yuqing that she approached Zhang Yi only to gather supplies for her.
Yuqing replied coldly, "Hmph, who is Zhang Yi? Do I know him? Don't mention him to me again!"
If Zhang Yi wanted to resume being her follower, he would have to apologize sincerely for his recent actions and pay a hefty price for her forgiveness.
Lin Cainin nudged Yuqing, "Zhang Yi is clueless. Don't you have other followers?"
In their complex, there were several colleagues from the warehouse, including other suitors of Yuqing, like Zhou Peng, who was especially devoted to her.
Yuqing knew who Lin Cainin was referring to.
She scoffed. Zhou Peng wasn't even worthy to be her backup.
Even though they both worked at Walmart before, Zhou Peng didn't have a house in Tianhai City and was still renting.
Yuqing was merely using him for small favors, with no real affection for him.
Lin Cainin advised, "It's so cold outside, and the snow is heavy. We can't go out to shop; we might as well use him for a while, let him run errands for us!"
After some thought, Yuqing saw the sense in Lin Cainin's words.
So, she sent a message to Zhou Peng.
Unexpectedly, in less than five minutes, Zhou Peng hurried over with a backpack full of food.
Working at the Walmart warehouse, they often took home discounted goods, so they naturally had some stock.
With just a word from Yuqing, Zhou Peng energetically selected the best items to bring to her.
And Zhou Peng assured her, patting his chest, "Yuqing, just say the word and I'll do anything. You know I'd do anything for you!"
Yuqing rarely smiled, but she grinned at Zhou Peng.
"Thank you, Zhou Peng! You're so kind."
With sweet nothings, she sent Zhou Peng on his way.
Then, returning to her room, her face shifted immediately.
"Pfft, you dare to aspire for me with that look? Maybe in another life!"
...
The atmosphere in the entire building was becoming strange.
Extreme cold temperatures made it difficult to tell day from night, as the indoors were also below freezing even with the heat on.
This was unbearable for the southerners of Tianhai City.
Furthermore, not accustomed to stockpiling supplies, the two-day freeze had emptied many fridges.
While Aunt Lin reassured everyone that the snowstorm would pass soon, concern grew in everyone's hearts.
But for Zhang Yi, watching the chaos unfold was amusing.
For the apocalypse, he was well-prepared and was living more comfortably than before it began.
He felt like an outsider, silently watching the drama unfold.
After receiving his lesson, Chen Zhenghao and his lackeys stopped bothering Zhang Yi.
They also knew breaking into Zhang Yi's home was no easy task.
Moreover, with Chen Zhenghao's leg nearly useless, without hospital care, he would soon become disabled for life.
The other lackeys, drenched and sick, were at risk of not dying from food shortages but more likely from their fevers.
At home, Zhang Yi passed time by gaming, checking chat groups, working out, and reading various professional books, like "The Barefoot Doctors' Manual" and "The Militia Training Handbook".
Better safe than sorry, possessing this knowledge might save his life in an emergency.
Outside, snow whirled through the air, the sky cloaked by clouds, blending the boundaries between day and night.
On the third morning, Zhang Yi got up, hugging a delicious Beijing duck, and glanced at his watch.
"It's about time, the show is about to begin."
Zhang Yi murmured lightly.
And at that moment, the chat group on his phone exploded into chaos!