Chapter 40

While they were planting cabbages in the study, Zhongqiu had been perched on the highest shelf, keeping Tang Man company, yawning and squinting down at everyone’s movements.

The seven of them toiled until past five in the morning to plant all the cabbages, by which point they were so exhausted they could barely lift their arms.

"Thank you all for your hard work today. Once we’re done here, we’ll make sure to properly thank you..." Auntie Sheng saw the three of them out, handing Dong Mingxu a small bag of crystal cores.

It was prepared by Tang Man and contained around 150 crystal cores. In a safe zone where just two cores could cover an ordinary person's three meals a day, this was no small fortune.

Dong Mingxu took the bag and jingled it in front of Auntie Sheng, his smile growing even more sincere. "Auntie, you’re too kind. I’m the one hitting the jackpot here—not only did I learn a lot of superpower techniques from Sister Man and the others tonight, but I also earned such a hefty sum of crystal cores. This is something others could only dream of..."

After seeing Dong Mingxu and his companions off, the remaining four were too tired to even speak. Without washing up, they turned off the lights and went straight to bed.

Tang Man slept for less than two hours before waking up. She hadn’t forgotten that she still needed to deliver the cabbages piled up at home to the property rental office.

Moving with silent steps, Tang Man got out of bed and closed the door behind her. She then picked up Zhongqiu and went next door to wake Tang Teng and Sheng Yao.

To her surprise, Sheng Yao and Tang Teng didn’t laze in bed. After just two calls from her, they obediently got up, rendering Zhongqiu’s "mountain-toppling pounce" useless.

The three of them quickly ate some cookies and milk for breakfast before loading the cabbages onto the bus.

Perhaps Captain Bai had given prior notice, but the property rental office already had someone waiting for them early in the morning, treating them with courtesy.

After a morning of hard work, they finally obtained the keys to Villa Unit 16.

"After all this effort, we’ve finally got the keys," Sheng Yao yawned. "Sis, can I go back to sleep now?"

Tang Man glanced at him, a long list of tasks flashing through her mind. But there was no rush—they could rest first.

She nodded. "Yeah, take the afternoon off. We’ll talk about everything else tomorrow..."

By the time they got home, Auntie Sheng was already up and had prepared lunch. The three of them ate quickly before heading upstairs to sleep.

When Tang Man woke again, it was already dark. Moonlight streamed through the transparent window, allowing her to barely make out the room’s interior.

Zhongqiu had long since wriggled out of her arms, claiming her pillow as territory to sit on while grooming herself. Tang Man’s head was forced to tilt awkwardly to the side, leaving her in a strange sleeping position.

Tang Man sat up, rubbing her sore neck before scooping Zhongqiu into her arms and giving her an aggressive snuggle.

"Next time, don’t hog my pillow, got it?" Tang Man said "sternly."

"Mrrow~" Zhongqiu sprawled out, letting herself be manhandled, even purring contentedly.

Zhongqiu’s soft, downy-soft belly was incredibly pleasant to touch. Tang Man suddenly realized that the cat’s belly seemed much rounder than before.

She lifted Zhongqiu and weighed her in her hands—she really had grown considerably rounder since Tang Man’s rebirth.

Tang Man decided to take Zhongqiu along on future supply runs. The cat’s appetite was growing daily, and with the whole family spoiling her, the three of them kept feeding her extra meals. She needed more exercise to turn that flab into feline fitness.

After playing with Zhongqiu for a while, Tang Man went downstairs.

It was just past six in the evening. As Tang Man poured herself a glass of water, Auntie Sheng trudged in from the yard, dust coating her clothes and swinging a flashlight beam.

"Auntie, where were you just now?" Tang Man asked casually.

"I saw the keys to the neighboring villa on the table and thought I might as well clean it since I had nothing else to do. I didn’t expect it to be so filthy—I spent the whole afternoon and still didn’t finish one floor..." Auntie Sheng set down a bucket and cleaning tools by the door.

Seeing how exhausted she looked, Tang Man frowned. "Leave the heavy work to us young ones. You should rest at home."

"It’s fine. Are you hungry, Manman? Should I make you something to eat?"

"No need. Sit down and rest, Auntie. I’ll handle dinner..." Tang Man downed her water in one gulp and headed straight for the kitchen.

————

Everyone had slept well, so the next morning, all four in the villa woke up early.

Auntie Sheng and Tang Man had breakfast ready early. Tang Man used a high-speed blender to make a pot of creamy corn milk drink and boiled a batch of marbled tea eggs, while Auntie Sheng steamed a large tray of fluffy buckwheat steamed buns.

The corn juice, thickened with rice, carried a rich blend of corn’s natural sweetness, rice fragrance, and creamy richness—utterly enticing.

As usual, Sheng Yao added two big spoonfuls of sugar before drinking. The sweet corn flavor instantly filled his mouth, making him purr with contentment.

Ever since everyone learned of his sweet tooth, a jar of sugar had been kept on the dining table just for him to "enhance" his breakfast.

The tea eggs were fragrant, their irregular brown patterns forming beautiful marbled designs on the egg whites. Delicately quivering, Sheng Yao devoured half in one bite, washing it down with a big gulp of corn juice. The unusual but addictive sweet-savory combo of savory tea eggs and rich corn juice made it hard for him to stop.

"Auntie said the neighboring villa is filthy, so Sheng Yao and I will handle the cleaning today. Xiao Teng, you’ll renovate the other villa to match this one’s standard, and remember to connect them with a passageway... Since bricks are hard to come by now, ask Dong Mingxu for help when building the courtyard wall. His Earth Superpower combined with your Metal Superpower should make for a sturdy fence..." Tang Man assigned tasks between bites.

"Xiao Teng wants to open a produce shop next door. To save time, let’s ask around at noon about custom shelf prices for planting. If it’s cheap, we’ll hire outside help. Once everything else is done, we’ll visit the gardening and pet market to collect more pots..." Tang Man laid out her plans unhurriedly, and the others listened attentively.

"What about me? Should I help clean the other villa today...?" Auntie Sheng asked eagerly.

Tang Man cut her off. "Auntie, just take care of this villa. There’s cleaning, cooking, livestock, and the plants upstairs and downstairs to tend to. You’re already busy enough—leave the other place to us."

Sheng Yao and Tang Teng also chimed in, and seeing their insistence, Auntie Sheng reluctantly gave in.

After breakfast, Tang Man and Sheng Yao carried buckets next door. Despite Auntie Sheng’s warning about the filth, Sheng Yao was nearly overwhelmed by the stench.

With no water to flush the toilet, it was completely clogged with human waste, even writhing with white maggots. Most furniture had been taken, leaving piles of garbage in the corners—some already rotting and reeking. The air was a nauseating mix of odors.

The kitchen and part of the living room were immaculate, clearly the result of Auntie Sheng’s hard work the day before.

"How did the previous occupants live like this for nearly a month?" Sheng Yao muttered through two masks.

"Let’s just get to work. Once we’re done, we’ll air it out for several days and spray some air freshener."

Tang Man sighed, pulling on rubber gloves before heading to the bathroom. She hadn’t expected the villa to be this disgusting—it had looked fine from the outside!

She poured half a basin of water into the toilet, trying to flush the waste down, but the pipe was blocked. The water level rose rapidly, nearly overflowing with the revolting yellow-and-white filth.

Tang Man stepped back, eyeing the row of fresh spring-green vines coiled around her wrist. After a brief internal struggle, she designated one as the sacrificial vine.

Closing her eyes, she activated her Superpower. The vine slithered into the foul liquid, and soon the toilet drained. The soggy vine was then unceremoniously bagged and tossed aside.

With the worst of the stench dealt with, Tang Man stuffed the fermenting garbage from the living room into a woven bag and dumped it outside.

Though she’d endured far worse in her past life, no one willingly stayed in filth if they had a choice.

Meanwhile, Sheng Yao swept and mopped diligently, huffing and puffing. After over twenty days of learning, he could now handle basic chores like laundry and cleaning—albeit slowly.

By noon, they’d finally cleaned the first floor.

The gleaming tiles filled them with a sense of accomplishment.

Outside, Tang Teng and Dong Mingxu had expanded the yard significantly, already completing a quarter of the work.

"It’s about time for lunch. Let’s head back. Ming Xu, you’re joining us today," Tang Man called to the others in the yard.

"Big Sis, I'm afraid I can't continue this afternoon. We burned through most of our metal stockpile this morning," Tang Teng said with a grimace.

"So soon?" Tang Man frowned in thought. "Then don't work on the wall this afternoon. Go out and collect more metal instead."

"Just me alone?" Tang Teng looked surprised.

"Just stay close, and you'll be safe," Tang Man said calmly. She had faith in her training and Tang Teng’s skills.

Although Tang Man trusted him completely, Tang Teng still felt uneasy—he’d never gone zombie-hunting solo since the world went to hell.

"Hey, I’ve got nothing going on this afternoon. I'll go with you!" Dong Mingxu said, patting his shoulder with a smile. "The faster you scavenge, the faster I can get back to 'work.'"

"Thanks a lot, Ming Xu." Tang Teng's expression immediately relaxed.