Natural Disaster Hoarding to Survive Daily

            ◎ Happy 13th Day: Dog Sneaks for Zero-Cost Acquisition ◎ 

East City is the largest port city in China and the country's largest foreign trade port. Countless goods are sent from here to various parts of the world every day, and numerous goods also arrive in China through this port.

And the purpose of Jiang Muyun's trip is one of the most scarce resources in the post-apocalyptic world: energy.

Oil, coal, natural gas—when the signs of disaster first appeared, the government quickly consolidated these resources in their hands.

Not to mention natural gas, coal can be used for heating and cooking, while diesel needs to power generators. If Jiang Muyun wants to live a better life in the apocalypse, these resources are essential.

Jiang Muyun has several sets of solar power generators. As long as she utilizes solar energy during the dry season and stores the electricity in batteries, she can successfully navigate through the early stages of the apocalypse. She already has a plan in mind for acquiring enough batteries.

Compared with solar power generators, the diesel generator is not only noisy but also needs diesel for energy supply, which is not cost-effective.

But it doesn't take much time to use.

This one advantage alone is enough to make Jiang Muyun take the risk of acquiring diesel.

Although it is not suitable for use in crowded places, the majority of places in the post-apocalyptic world are uninhabited.

Regardless of low temperatures, droughts, or heavy rain, as long as it's not submerged in water and there is suitable fuel, the generator can be used. From Jiang Muyun's perspective as a seasoned survivor, this is more reassuring than relying solely on solar power.

But even in peaceful times, it is difficult for Jiang Muyun to purchase diesel in large quantities through normal channels.

Normal channels are inaccessible, and she doesn't know where to go about abnormal means. In the end, she can only resort to some sneaky activities.

During the day, Jiang Muyun wore a sun-shielding mask and wandered around the port. When someone approached her, she would inquire about a worker named "Wang Qiang" and casually chat with people to gather information about the layout of goods in the port.

After learning that oil tankers usually dock in fixed locations, with the fuel tanks stored in the same place, Jiang Muyun had a clear plan in her mind.

After gathering this information, Jiang Muyun openly drove her car to the nearby Linshi Fishery Port.

Since Jiang Muyun's space couldn't accommodate living creatures, she had to buy live seafood such as fish and crabs from the fishermen. She loaded them onto her van and took them to a processing shop, waiting for them to be cooked before loading them back into the car and storing them in her space.

Jiang Muyun didn't mind the trouble and made multiple trips, mainly spending her time waiting for the seafood to be cooked.

However, after the apocalypse, this seafood would completely disappear.

The best things are those we can't have. Jiang Muyun may not particularly like seafood in normal times, but the thought of not being able to have it in the future made her willing to spend time hoarding it.

At night, Jiang Muyun found a hotel and spent the night there. The next day, she set off to return to South City.

She had made progress with diesel, but she had no clue about coal.

She went around the East City port the day before yesterday, but couldn't figure out where the coal was being transported from.

Moreover, she won't need diesel fuel for the time being, so it's fine if there's a delay of a few days. Coal, as a life-saving resource when the temperatures cool down, needs to be stored as early as possible.

After much thought, Jiang Muyun honestly started researching coal manufacturers.

Although smokeless coal for heating is rarely seen in the city, many people in towns and villages still use it.

Whether it's for winter heating or selling snacks with a portable stove, this inexpensive and flammable fuel is quite popular.

As long as Jiang Muyun found a small county or town, she could inquire about places selling smokeless coal nearby.

Jiang Muyun drove her van and bought several cans of automotive spray paint. Along the way, she changed her glasses, hat, and mask, rotating different accessories to alter her appearance. She went to small factories along the route from East City to South City.

Each time she arrived at a location, she changed her disguise and switched the color of her vehicle between silver-gray, black, and champagne. Every time, she filled the entire car with goods, then found a secluded spot to store them in her space.

By repeatedly moving from one place to another, and gradually accumulating goods, Jiang Muyun managed to acquire a considerable amount of smokeless coal.

She planned to supplement it with smokeless barbecue charcoal when she returned, ensuring that she would have no problem navigating through the early stages of the apocalypse.

When the first winter arrived, although there were intermittent power outages, she could still manage. If her home became unbearable, she could go to the centralized relief centers.

With the resources she had obtained, which were suitable for immediate use and could be shown to others, Jiang Muyun could comfortably get through this winter.

And by the time the next winter arrived, Jiang Muyun would have plenty of time and opportunities to acquire goods that were currently inconvenient to obtain.

Unlike fuel, coal is not subject to such strict government control and cannot be immediately consolidated after the apocalypse. She could always find opportunities to scavenge.

As for the smokeless barbecue charcoal, Jiang Muyun intended to use it openly, in plain sight. 

She could also find an excuse for a group barbecue to encourage her neighbors to stock up on food and fuel as well.

It's reasonable for her to buy more barbecue charcoal during this hot summer season.

But as a stranger who didn't do business in the nearby villages and towns, suddenly purchasing a large quantity of smokeless coal would undoubtedly leave a lasting impression on people.

That's why, when Jiang Muyun bought the smokeless coal, she specifically targeted small private factories. She went through the trouble of disguising herself, changing hats and masks back and forth.

These small private factories had loose management, and sometimes even the gatekeeper had the authority to sell without needing to contact the person in charge. There wouldn't even be any transaction records, making them the best places to stock up.

On the last section of the road before returning to South City, Jiang Muyun stopped her car near a field ridge.

On both sides of the fields, there were freshly matured soybeans, a vast expanse of golden waves, occasionally accompanied by a cracking sound. That was the sound of stalks leaning on the ground, bursting open after being scorched by the sun.

This golden sea seemed to be a scene of yellowing leaves, but Jiang Muyun could still perceive signs of vitality.

She jumped off the embankment, sat by the field, listened to the sizzling sound of the hot air, watched as the sun gradually descended... and then, taking advantage of the cover provided by this vast crop field, she vigorously scraped soil into her space.

There was no way around it. Even an average person could see the poor condition of the land after the apocalypse. Otherwise, with the farming skills of rabbits, they wouldn't have fallen to the point of using insects as they’re main food source.

She wanted to collect more soil, but she couldn't directly dig a pit in someone else's well-tended farmland. So she could only scrape a small amount multiple times, layer by layer, discreetly and without leaving a trace.

Just as Jiang Muyun was almost done with her scraping and about to stop, she noticed some movement in the soybean field in front of her.

Jiang Muyun withdrew her hand from the ground, patted the soil off, stood up cautiously, and took a few steps back, vigilantly staring at the slightly trembling area.

Then Jiang Muyun saw a small black head suddenly emerge from the golden cluster.

The black head swayed from side to side, struggling for a few moments before plopping down with a thud, rolling on the ground, and getting covered in bits of grass.

It's a pitch-black little dog.

It was slightly larger than a palm and staggered when it walked.

Whether it fell unconscious or too young, the little black dog looked at Jiang Muyun for a while, tilted its head, made a coquettish sound, and then just collapsed on the ground.

The little black dog lay on the ground, looking like it couldn't get up anymore, but its slender tail behind it wagged furiously, sweeping up dust and debris around.

Perhaps not getting a response from Jiang Muyun, it blinked its eyes twice, made another soft sound, and then kept staring at Jiang Muyun with its big round eyes.

Jiang Muyun:?

Did she touch porcelain?

*** 

1."碰瓷" (pèng cí) is a term used in China to describe a fraudulent act where someone intentionally causes or stages an accident in order to extort money or compensation from the victim. The phrase literally translates to "touching porcelain." It originates from a practice where scammers would deliberately collide with a person or vehicle carrying fragile porcelain items and then demand compensation for the damages caused. Over time, the term has evolved to encompass various types of fraudulent accidents or intentional collisions. It is important to note that this behavior is illegal and considered a form of fraud in China.

***

Author's note:

原本内容是女主弄到了油，不让写差点被锁，好在第二批油到手前没写到用油的内容，这里就改成只踩点没动手了（轻轻跪下）

The original content was that the female protagonist got oil and almost locked her writing. Fortunately, before the second batch of oil arrived, there was no mention of the use of oil. Therefore, it was changed to only stepping on the oil and not doing anything (gently kneeling down)