Edge of the Apocalypse
Chapter 22 - 20: I Just Moved In

Chapter 22: Chapter 20: I Just Moved In

Under Yu Dong’s gaze, Liu Ye’ye cautiously revealed the truth.

"I asked the property manager, Sister Zhang..."

Yu Dong thought for a moment. He had indeed told Sister Zhang that he was a senior from the food science department, preparing for his graduate school entrance exams.

"Why would you ask about that?"

"Because... a perverted senior from my school stalked me before. He followed me to the complex, rented an apartment here, pretended to run into me, and then stole my underwear, so..."

’What the...?’

The corner of Yu Dong’s mouth twitched a few times.

"You thought I was a pervert?"

Liu Ye’ye buried her face in the stuffed dog and let out a barely audible "mm-hmm."

Yu Dong had actually considered many possibilities. Perhaps Liu Ye’ye had attended a science event hosted by his food science department, or maybe she knew Xufeng. He’d even entertained the absurd idea that she might have a secret crush on him.

’He never would have guessed... she thought he was a pervert.’

"Senior, don’t get the wrong idea. I don’t think that anymore. You’re... a really good person."

Liu Ye’ye peeked out from behind the stuffed animal, trying to salvage the situation.

"Alright, let’s drop the subject. We need to talk about how we’re going to survive from now on."

Yu Dong chose to end the topic. It was just too awkward.

When the conversation turned to serious matters, Liu Ye’ye sat up straight again, hugging the stuffed dog to her chest, her little face etched with worry.

"The power’s out. My cream, cheese, butter, cream cheese, fresh milk, and fruit are all going to expire soon... They were so expensive! What a waste."

"Oh, right, and my ice cream!"

Liu Ye’ye trotted over, grabbed two large tubs of Häagen-Dazs, and gave one to Yu Dong, keeping one for herself.

"Senior, let’s eat it quickly. Otherwise, it’ll all be melted by tomorrow."

Yu Dong nodded and started digging in with a small plastic spoon.

It was dense and silky, with the rich, sweet aroma characteristic of high-quality dairy fat, making Yu Dong instinctively want to scoop another spoonful.

"This tastes amazing."

Yu Dong praised, which made Liu Ye’ye’s almond-shaped eyes curve with happiness.

"Right?!"

Yu Dong hadn’t stocked up on such a luxury item.

A single tub cost over a hundred yuan, took up a lot of space, and had to be kept frozen in the freezer.

His 93-liter, single-door mini-fridge had a tiny freezer compartment, probably only big enough for two tubs of Häagen-Dazs.

Yu Dong glanced at Liu Ye’ye’s refrigerator. The freezer still held six large tubs of Häagen-Dazs and some packaged wontons and sweet rice balls.

The fridge section, meanwhile, was packed full of baking ingredients.

Large blocks of butter were stacked two layers deep, along with a large quantity of various dairy products.

And in the two drawers at the very bottom, one was full of fresh eggs and the other with fresh fruit.

’This is all good stuff.’

Yu Dong hadn’t prepared any fresh eggs or fruit. Those things expired too quickly.

After getting a clear look, Yu Dong immediately closed the refrigerator to prevent the cold air from escaping.

"But it’s all going to spoil if we can’t finish it..."

Liu Ye’ye scooped her ice cream, the corners of her mouth turned down, her mood sinking.

She had hoped to play the part of a master hoarder and wow her senior.

Instead, she’d started things off with a massive blunder...

Yu Dong thought for a moment and came to a decision.

"We can’t waste food. After all... this is our primary resource for survival now."

Liu Ye’ye looked at Yu Dong and asked expectantly, "Senior, did you prepare anything in advance...?"

"I just moved in."

"Okay... I guess not many people besides me would stock up on so much food... Ordering takeout is so much more convenient."

Liu Ye’ye immediately understood. The senior had nothing. If she hadn’t called him over, he would definitely be starving.

Yu Dong nodded without explaining.

"However, I have a solar power generator and a small refrigerator at my place. They can help you preserve some of this food."

"Oh! Then let’s hurry and move everything over!"

"Not so fast. My fridge is much smaller than yours... We can only selectively take some of it. We’ll have to eat the rest as quickly as possible."

"Then let’s move all my butter. I can’t make bread or cookies without butter..."

"Don’t worry about the butter. It’s an oil, after all. If it’s unopened, it can be stored at room temperature for several months. We can just take it out tomorrow and put it in a cool, ventilated place."

"But not refrigerating it will affect its freshness and texture..."

"At a time like this, we can’t worry about those kinds of details. The key is not to waste anything."

"Oh... Okay, I’ll listen to you, Senior."

Yu Dong took direct charge of the planning. After all, when it came to food, he was far more professional than Liu Ye’ye. This wasn’t the time to be democratic.

"The cream, cream cheese, and cheese will spoil quickly at room temperature, so we have to take all of it. Take out half of the fruit, eggs, and fresh milk to store in my fridge. The rest... we’ll eat over the next few days."

While the items were still cold, Yu Dong and Liu Ye’ye packed them into boxes and moved them up to the fourth floor.

This was also Liu Ye’ye’s first time in Yu Dong’s apartment. It lacked any homey feel and looked like he had just moved in.

"Senior, what’s in all these boxes?"

Liu Ye’ye noticed that the living room was full of boxes sealed with tape.

"I just moved in..."

"Oh, so it’s your personal belongings and stuff, right?"

"Yeah... Come help me pack these into the fridge."

Yu Dong pulled Liu Ye’ye over, preventing her from getting bored and opening a box full of canned food out of curiosity...

Since Liu Ye’ye was confident she could get more food, Yu Dong decided to see what she was capable of.

The two of them quickly filled the small 93-liter refrigerator almost to the brim.

Only a small area in the freezer section remained empty.

Liu Ye’ye thought for a moment, then went downstairs and brought back two tubs of Häagen-Dazs, which fit perfectly inside.

"Senior, when we get rescued, we’ll eat these last two tubs of ice cream. We’ll be in heaven."

Like Yu Dong, Liu Ye’ye was optimistic and believed the country would definitely come to rescue them.

"Good idea."

After they finished organizing the contents of the refrigerator, their food for the next few days was also settled.

They would eat the remaining items from Liu Ye’ye’s fridge.

As for the flour, its shelf life was very long, so for the time being, it would stay at Liu Ye’ye’s place.

After they were done, Yu Dong asked, "You said before that you were confident you could get more food. How?"

"Senior, yesterday I flew my drone around our Building 1. Besides seeing that a lot of people had turned into zombies, I also saw some apartments where no one was home... They might have gone out the day before yesterday, or maybe they’re downstairs. We can definitely find a lot of food in those places, and we won’t be chased by zombies."

’So she really did use a drone for reconnaissance.’

Yu Dong nodded, affirming Liu Ye’ye’s idea.

"Good thinking. So, how do we get into those empty apartments?"

Liu Ye’ye looked at Yu Dong with pleading eyes.

"That’s why I wanted to survive together with you, Senior... You’re so strong, you must have a way, right?"

The corner of Yu Dong’s mouth twitched.

’That’s a security door... Can you really open one with brute force?’

However, Liu Ye’ye wasn’t wrong. He did have a way.

But at this moment, he was more concerned about another question.

"Did you see any other living people in our building?"