Edge of the Apocalypse
Chapter 7: Flexible Use of ’the Dead

Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Flexible Use of ’the Dead

"Every detail is both important and unimportant..."

Yu Dong had just suddenly recalled this quote from Flaubert.

Thanks to his superhuman memory of those seven days, he could remember every detail. Just as he was racking his brain for anything he might have missed, his thoughts took a sharp turn, and he suddenly saw things from a strange new angle.

If he couldn’t find living teammates, he could make use of the dead.

The so-called ’dead’ were the people who turned into zombies after the apocalypse in his previous life.

No matter what Yu Dong did now, Xufeng and Ding Ming would still become part of the first wave of zombies when the virus broke out.

Yu Dong couldn’t save them.

At the same time, they wouldn’t be able to threaten Yu Dong’s stockpiled supplies after the apocalypse.

This meant Yu Dong could let them know about all his supplies now. As long as the two of them didn’t leak the secret within the week, they would take it to their graves.

And Xufeng and Ding Ming happened to be the most reliable kind of people.

’It’s a bit cruel to think this way, but it’s the truth. I can’t save them, so I’ll ask them to give me a hand, to help me survive...’

Yu Dong took out his phone.

"Junior Brother Ding, I have a high-paying part-time job for you. It’s urgent..."

"Xufeng, I’m actually planning to start a TikTok account teaching people about apocalypse survival. I need your help..."

As expected, both of them accepted his request. The only thing was, Xufeng never missed a single class, so he could only come over to help at night. Ding Ming, on the other hand, had no such qualms. The moment he heard "high-paying part-time job," he grabbed his backpack, skipped class, and set off.

’Ding Ming wants to make money, and Xufeng likes to help people... By targeting their exact motivations, I get the response I want.’

Although he had successfully secured two quality laborers, there wasn’t a trace of joy on Yu Dong’s face.

Because in five days and seven hours, he would lose these two friends forever.

Yu Dong searched the details of his memory again. When the zombie virus broke out, he was in the library. Other than Xufeng, who was with him, and Ding Ming, whom he ran into, he didn’t see any other familiar faces, especially not living ones...

The only thing he remembered was that there were very, very few living people.

’I don’t know what the situation was like elsewhere, but Yanhai University fell in an instant... I’d estimate that ninety percent of the people turned into zombies immediately. The rest, if they didn’t escape, were eaten, just like I was.’

’This is the apocalypse.’

The thought of this tragic situation made Yu Dong feel even more pressed for time.

He had to complete all his preparations in the remaining five days and seven hours!

It was already noon when Yu Dong arrived at the Xiangti Bay Community in the cannery’s truck. Ding Ming was waiting for him at the community entrance.

"Brother Dong!"

A skinny, dark-skinned young man waved enthusiastically at Yu Dong in the truck.

"Get in. Come with me."

As usual, he found the security guard, Liangzi, to open the underground garage door.

This time, the cannery workers wouldn’t help unload. Fortunately, he had Ding Ming, a sturdy young guy. The two of them worked together and quickly moved the 20 barrels of compressed biscuits and 73 boxes of canned food upstairs.

The barrel-packed compressed biscuits and pre-packaged boxes of cans saved them a lot of time.

Only after everything was unloaded did Yu Dong start chatting with Ding Ming.

"You’ll be organizing goods here today. I’ll pay you 20 an hour, and you’ll work until 10 PM. For now, you can’t tell anyone about this part-time job after you leave. Sound good?"

"Damn! That’s 200 for the day? Count me in! Brother Dong, you’re the best, saving a gig this good for me."

"As long as you’re happy with it. Let’s get to work."

"You got it~"

The wage he offered Ding Ming was very fair. In Yanhai City, which wasn’t economically developed, the typical income for a university student’s part-time job was around 100 yuan a day. Yu Dong’s offer of 20 yuan an hour was quite generous.

Yu Dong didn’t have much money left, but this was a necessary expense. Otherwise, he likely wouldn’t be able to finish everything he needed to do on his own before the apocalypse arrived.

Organizing was much more laborious than purchasing.

Yu Dong had a clear schedule and had to stick to it rigorously.

He first had Ding Ming organize the goods in the other two apartments according to his instructions.

He divided the newly purchased compressed biscuits and canned food, along with his other supplies, into three portions using a 6:3:1 ratio. He then stored them separately in the 160-square-meter, 100-square-meter, and 45-square-meter apartments.

If something happened to his main residence, he could move to one of the other two apartments without worrying about having nothing to eat.

With that, his purchase of the second category, processed foods, was complete. Used in conjunction with the first category, basic unprocessed foods, it was enough to keep him well-fed for three years.

As for the third category, luxury items... Yu Dong put that on hold for now.

’There’s still a lot of stuff I haven’t bought. I’ll think about it if there’s any money left after I get everything else.’

Yu Dong calculated the money he had on hand again.

He had already spent nearly 20,000 today.

His remaining balance was 61,165 yuan.

"Ding Ming, have you eaten?"

"I’m not hungry, Brother Dong!"

"How about some authentic Anhui beef banmian noodles?"

"Okay."

Yu Dong went downstairs to the entrance and bought two large, fully-loaded bowls of beef banmian noodles. He brought them up and started shopping online while he ate.

The food and water problem was solved. Now it was time to buy some medicine to have on hand.

There would be no doctors after the apocalypse. If you got sick, you were on your own.

Fortunately, Yu Dong had been on his own for years, and the doctor at the orphanage when he was a child had taught him a lot of basic knowledge. He was familiar with common medications.

Just now, when he was buying noodles downstairs, Yu Dong had popped into the pharmacy next door for a look. He asked about the prices of a few drugs and found they were all more expensive than online. Plus, many were from small, unknown pharmaceutical companies.

It was better to just buy them online.

Yu Dong compared his options and found that Jingdong Pharmacy had a spend-and-save discount, offering the best prices.

As for what medicine to buy, the gurus on Zhihu had already compiled lists. Yu Dong just had to copy their work.

First were large 300-tablet bottles of multivitamins. He bought four. On days without fresh vegetables, this stuff would ensure his body stayed healthy.

Next were lifesaving antibiotics like amoxicillin, cephalosporins, levofloxacin, and erythromycin. Yu Dong didn’t skimp, buying enough for forty courses of treatment to ensure he could handle an infection once a month.

After that, Yu Dong also bought painkillers, fever reducers, anti-allergy medication, anti-diarrhea medicine, glycerin enemas, cold medicine, topical antiseptics, and eye drops.

Yu Dong tried his best to choose medications from major pharmaceutical companies to avoid being screwed over when his life depended on them later.

They were all common drugs, but the total price was steep.

Even after applying coupons, the total was still 6,954 yuan.

Just as Yu Dong was about to click pay, a window popped up.

[Activate Jingdong Baitiao? Get 50 yuan off your first purchase.]

In the past, Yu Dong would have closed it immediately. He didn’t have the habit of spending beyond his means. Using only what he had was a basic requirement of his financial planning.

But now...

’Free money.’

Yu Dong clicked to activate it directly. Based on his past spending history, Baitiao gave him a credit limit of 1,000 yuan.

’Thanks for the gift, Brother Dong.’

He paid 1,000 yuan with Baitiao, and 5,854 yuan from his own funds.

’Speaking of which... there’s still some money I haven’t claimed.’

Yu Dong immediately went and activated Alipay’s Huabei, Meituan’s Monthly Pay, Douyin’s Monthly Pay, and Kuaishou’s Monthly Pay.

Huabei also gave him a 1,000 yuan credit limit, while the other three only gave him 500 each. It wasn’t much, but it was a welcome bonus.

This money could only be used for online shopping. Yu Dong placed orders across the different platforms, buying various odds and ends.

For example, a rainwater collection barrel, water purification tablets, a water filter pitcher, and a water storage tank—a set to handle daily cleaning water. He also bought some long-shelf-life fortified bread, glue sticks, lighters, magnesium rods, candles, blackout film... and other small things he’d heard were useful, like fishing line.

In no time, he’d finished fleecing this 2,500 yuan.

At this point, Yu Dong still had 55,311 yuan left.

’Next, it’s time to buy some big-ticket items... electricity.’

As a modern person, being without electricity was like a fish out of water. It was suffocating.

’Gasoline and diesel generators are out of the question. They’re noisy, and the fuel isn’t a sustainable resource. Solar panels are the best power generation equipment for the apocalypse.’

Yu Dong planned to install a row of solar panels on the outside of the south-facing balcony of his apartment to generate electricity.

After a bit of browsing, he selected a 650W photovoltaic panel from LONGi. On a clear day, it could generate 2 to 3 kWh of electricity.

Yu Dong calculated the length of the south-facing side of his apartment; it was just enough to install three panels horizontally.

On a clear day, that would be 6 to 9 kWh of electricity, which was basically enough for his needs.

He ordered three photovoltaic panels and also placed an order for installation service, for a total cost of 2,600 yuan.

Power generation also required storage. Yu Dong then chose an outdoor portable power station from Ningde Era that could store 20 kWh of electricity. By connecting it to the photovoltaic panels, he could store the power generated each day and convert it into a stable electrical output.

On cloudy days, he could use the stored backup power.

But the price made even Yu Dong suck his teeth.

’15,250... so expensive.’

Yu Dong gritted his teeth and bought it. After all, his quality of life after the apocalypse depended on it.

His cash on hand shrank to 37,461 yuan.

Yu Dong glanced at the time. It was already 3:00 PM. He told Ding Ming to keep working and headed out to a hardware store himself.

If everything he had done before was to ensure he could live comfortably, what he had to do now was strengthen his defenses.

The "I hoard food while my neighbor hoards guns" scenario was something Yu Dong would absolutely not allow to happen.