Chapter 42: Super Mold 6
“Are there any shiitake mushrooms or tea tree mushrooms left?”
Chu Yian asked. As long as these two items are stored well, they can be used not only for stewing soup but also for stir-frying. They are also among the few vegetables that can be preserved.
“None left.” The owner waved his hand. Even if he had some, he’d have to keep some for himself. But seeing Chu Yian was rich and free-spending, he was reluctant to let such a big customer go. “Wait a moment.”
He said, then ran into the storeroom and came out with two bags.
Chu Yian looked at the open bags and instantly lost interest. However, the owner was still introducing them to her endlessly, “Besides what you’ve already bought, these dried wood ear mushrooms and snow fungus are also very easy to preserve. They’re dry, just soak them in water when you want to eat them. Look how dry these snow fungus and wood ear mushrooms are; I can even give you a better price.”
The owner grabbed a handful of wood ear mushrooms and held them out to Chu Yian. If his fingers hadn’t been trying to rub off the mold on the surface of the wood ear mushrooms, it might have been more convincing.
“Sorry, I only want sealed items.” Chu Yian didn’t want to waste words with him and rode away on her tricycle.
There was another street ahead, which used to be a wholesale market. As she got there, there were more people and vehicles. She was worried her purchases would be stolen, so she hung her backpack on her chest and stuffed a few bags of dried goods inside. Just as she finished, a sudden ambulance siren sounded behind her.
Chu Yian glanced at the ambulance, quickly pushed her tricycle aside, and made way for it.
“Oh dear, that family is truly miserable.” A grandma who seemed to know the inside story chased out, her voice so loud that everyone around could hear it.
“What happened?” A busybody asked.
“Oh, the old lady in their family saw the rice was moldy but couldn’t bear to throw it away. She washed it a few times in water and then cooked porridge with it. Now look, out of a family of four, only she didn’t eat because a neighbor called her away. Now her son, daughter-in-law, and grandson are all lying in the ambulance. I heard it’s poisoning! The two adults have severe stomach cramps, and the little one is foaming at the mouth and has already fainted.”
“Oh dear! That old lady, really, to save a bit of rice, she harmed her whole family.”
“This mold is so fierce. Last night, I accidentally ate something moldy too, and my stomach hurt all night.”
…Everyone started discussing, realizing that as long as they had eaten moldy food, they would feel at least a little uncomfortable. This conversation further strengthened Chu Yian’s resolve not to eat moldy food.
Of course, there were also people who thought everyone was overreacting.
“It’s just moldy, it’s not as bad as you’re making it out to be.”
“Didn’t the news say that the grain sellers got all the grain damp, and with the continuous rainy weather, that’s why it all got moldy?”
“Exactly, new grain will arrive in a couple of days. Only a fool would buy these expensive foods.”
…There were quite a few of these blindly confident people. Even some who were already storing supplies were a bit hesitant.
In fact, whether some things are reliable or not can be discovered from subtle clues. For example, the news said that rice got damp in the warehouse, but what about flour? What about seasonings? Fruits, vegetables, meat? It’s impossible for everything to get damp at the same time, right?
Another example is that almost all restaurants and Hotels in the city have closed. These restaurants and Hotels incur huge losses by closing for even one day; if there really was grain around, would they close?
Chu Yian predicted they wouldn’t be confused for too long, because mold’s reproductive ability is too strong and fast. Before long, those who haven’t prepared food will find that if they don’t go out to buy food, they won’t have anything to eat.
However, the best time to hoard grain has already passed. They will have to spend more money but can only buy less food, and when there is absolutely no food available for sale on the market, these people will be the first to face a food shortage.
But… what does that have to do with her?
Good advice is hard to give to the doomed.
She couldn’t even protect herself, so it was best not to do anything attention-grabbing.
She rode her tricycle back quickly, carrying the items she bought this afternoon.
After a busy day, she hadn’t even had a proper hot meal.
So tired, and so hungry.
That night, she indulged herself for once, taking a box of self-heating rice from the refrigerator. When the rice was cooked, the aroma of the food made her wolf it down. After eating the rice, she also made a bowl of instant noodles.
Eating made her feel much better; now she just wanted to rest.
She then took a shower, didn’t even tidy up her things, and went straight to the bedroom.
She slept soundly until dawn.
Game Day Four.
The first thing Chu Yian did upon opening her eyes was to open the treasure box!
This thing had become a Pavlovian conditioned reflex for her; dogs salivate at the sound of a bell, and she wants to open the treasure box every third day.
She opened the box.
[A pink and tender utility knife]
[Note: To be retrieved after this round of the game ends]
[Item’s Inner Voice: Some people are clearly very rich, yet they can’t bear to buy a nice-looking utility knife. It only costs two yuan at the stationery store, but in the treasure box, you need to be unlucky enough to draw it.]
Oh, this… Chu Yian looked at the utility knife she was holding, and it really was very ordinary. Being ordinary was one thing, but the item’s inner voice even sounded a bit like it was mocking her.
Chu Yian put away the treasure box, casually tucked the utility knife into her shirt pocket, and then walked out of the bedroom.
Then, she saw that the lunchbox, which she had been too tired to clean up last night, was already moldy!
She had clearly eaten all the self-heating rice and instant noodles, yet the mold on them had grown nearly two millimeters! The empty paper box and bowl were like a culture medium brewed with beef.
It was truly exaggerated!
Seeing this, Chu Yian quickly packed up the trash and took it out to dispose of it.
Not only did she throw away the trash, but she also thoroughly wiped down the living room, kitchen, and two freezers with boiling hot water.
It didn’t matter if it molded after eating, as long as her stored food wasn’t contaminated.
By the time she finished cleaning the room, it was 10 AM.
The weather was still hazy, as if the sky itself was covered in mold.
Outside, it was drizzling, and Chu Yian put on her raincoat and went out.
On the exterior walls of the apartment building, the mold had already grown up to the second floor. A dusty layer, looking particularly mottled. There were still quite a few people going out from the apartment, but most were not going to work, but to rush to buy supplies.
Just as Chu Yian had guessed, many people wanted to wait for national relief, yet the food in their homes couldn’t even last one day. Not only that, but there were more and more ambulances yesterday and today, which surely meant more and more families had tried moldy food.
Knowing that moldy things couldn’t be eaten, even more people were buying things today.
Chu Yian’s expression tightened; she was already prepared not to get anything.
