Chapter 38: Super Mold 2
Having experienced the previous round of the game, Chu Yian knew that staple foods like rice and noodles were the most filling and cheapest.
Although she wasn’t short on money now, she still dragged back a 50-jin bag of rice and 8 jin of noodles.
She didn’t miss out on vegetables and fruits either, buying two large bags that almost filled her small refrigerator.
Game Day Two.
Early morning.
It had been raining in this city since she arrived, and this morning was no different, with a continuous drizzle.
She woke up early and, passing by the apartment building, happened to hear the residents on the second floor starting to cook.
Immediately after, she heard a complaint, “When will this rainy weather ever end? It rains every day, every single day! The rice I bought a few days ago has already gone moldy again. It’s so annoying!”
Hearing this, Chu Yian looked towards the window, watching the speaking aunt walk past the window and throw the moldy food into her household trash can.
She shifted her gaze, noticing that the corner tiles of the first floor of the building’s exterior wall were covered in a layer of gray.
From a distance, it looked like dust, but up close, one could immediately see it was mold.
Meanwhile, people around her, those exercising in the morning, walking their dogs, or rushing to work, were all too busy.
No one noticed the tiny abnormality at the corner of the wall… This round of the game was about a food crisis triggered by mold corroding food.
Chu Yian didn’t know how severe this crisis would be, but based on the previous two rounds of the game, it was highly unlikely to be resolved easily.
Perhaps I should buy another freezer?
If the super mold had reached the point where it corroded anything it touched, at least low temperatures could slow down the rate of food spoilage.
With a plan in mind, Chu Yian quickly found an appliance store.
After a fierce bargaining session, she successfully brought back a powerful, affordable, and spacious second-hand freezer.
The delivery man brought the freezer upstairs for free, and he was a bit surprised when he saw that she lived in a high-end Residential Area, “Little girl, you live in such a nice place, but you still haggled 80 yuan off a second-hand freezer and demanded free installation.”
The delivery man remembered that his freezer, which cost at least 870, had been cut by 79 yuan by her.
That exact amount, with both whole numbers and change, suddenly made him feel like he had been tricked.
“Uncle, I’m like a donkey dung ball, shiny on the outside.”
Chu Yian quickly went to her room, grabbed two bottles of water, and handed them to him, “Look at how poor I am, in the early stages of starting a business, where would I have money!”
Her stingy nature made her reluctant to spend an extra cent.
This second-hand freezer was two meters long, one and a half meters wide, and one point two meters deep, with enough space inside for her to hoard plenty of things.
When buying things, she even became more generous.
She went to the supermarket twice, and the security guard at the entrance had already recognized her.
Seeing her preparing to go out again, he joked, “Little girl, are you hoarding food? You bought a big refrigerator and keep going back and forth buying so many things.”
The guard’s casual joke made Chu Yian’s body tremble.
Being noticed during the early stages of hoarding food was not a good thing; when food became scarce later, everyone would remember there was a big fat sheep upstairs.
She stiffly raised the corners of her mouth and greeted the security guard, “I… I’ve been thinking of opening a small convenience store recently, and I have nowhere to put this freezer, so I’m keeping it inside for a few days.
It won’t be there long, I’ll move it out the day after tomorrow.”
Chu Yian smiled nonchalantly on her face, but she was terribly nervous inside.
She wished she could immediately declare that her small rented room, her one-third of an acre, was so clean there wasn’t a single grain of rice.
“Becoming a boss at such a young age, that’s impressive.”
The security guard seemed like a talkative person, able to chat about any topic.
“I just want to go out and try my luck.”
Chu Yian casually chatted with the man for a couple of sentences, and before leaving, she didn’t forget to say, “When my seafood store opens, Uncle, remember to come and support me!”
After walking away.
Chu Yian’s smile instantly collapsed.
She was truly too stupid, too careless.
How could she hoard food in plain sight?
This kind of elementary mistake, if not for that security guard’s reminder just now, when would she have realized it?!
Upon discovering this problem, she quickly adjusted her strategy.
Things must be brought back to the Residential Area in a way that others cannot see.
Actually, the treasure box could accomplish this, at most requiring a couple more trips.
The more difficult problem was how to put these things into the treasure box without being easily discovered?
She walked and frowned in thought.
The light rain was still falling, and the raindrops landed on her, giving her a slight chill.
Not just cold, the air of the street was also filled with a faint, almost imperceptible, musty smell.
Suddenly, a storefront with a “Shop for Rent” sign appeared before her, making her pause her steps, which were originally preparing to move forward.
A flash of inspiration struck her: she could rent a storefront and use it as a cover for storing things.
Thinking of this, she quickened her steps and entered the shop that was available for rent.
Seeing someone come in, the owner immediately greeted her, “Little sister, what do you want to buy?”
“I’d like to ask how much it costs to rent this shop?”
The woman was momentarily stunned when she heard Chu Yian was asking about the shop.
She sized up Chu Yian, her face showing a look of disbelief that she could afford the rent.
“Little sister, my shop is a bit expensive to rent out.
The monthly rent is 6000, with a deposit of one month and three months’ rent paid upfront, for a minimum of three months.
If you need it, you can come by in the middle of this month.”
Middle of this month… by then, the yellow flowers would have already withered.
Chu Yian shook her head and turned to leave.
This street seemed to be struggling economically; about a third of the shops on the entire street were for rent.
She walked around the street, specifically calling about shops being sublet, and finally chose a shop that was a bit secluded, but had the cheapest price on this street and could provide the keys tomorrow.
The deal was made quickly.
The woman who couldn’t come to an agreement earlier was surprised that Chu Yian actually came to rent a place.
Then she muttered softly, “Doing business on this street, you’ll lose your shirt.”
Chu Yian heard her as she passed by the woman’s doorway, so she stopped and coldly glanced at her rental advertisement.
“You can’t even rent out your shop, won’t you lose even more?”
The owner didn’t expect her words to be overheard, and to be retorted to her face, her complexion instantly turned green.
Chu Yian gave her a haughty look and then left—a joke, she wasn’t even afraid of dead people, why would she be afraid of her?
The keys hadn’t arrived yet, so she had to pause her food hoarding.
If not food, then she had to hoard other things.
The game’s three life-saving essentials: a reinforced door, a car ready to escape at any time, and a box of pain and cold medicine for various situations.
After another round trip, it was already evening by the time Chu Yian returned home.
She rubbed her somewhat sore arms, planning to eat something simple tonight.
Rice bag, she suddenly noticed that a layer of green mold had already grown on the surface of the rice.
The rice bought last night had already gone bad today!
