CHAPTER 148: YOU OWE ME FOR MY HARD WORK!

Coconut leaves needed no mention, as the Domestic Poultry in the Magic Cube Space ate whatever was available.

The coconut trees naturally couldn’t be wasted either. Jing Shu went to the charcoal production factory and successfully used the immovable machinery to turn the coconut trees into over ten tons of compressed charcoal, preparing sufficient Fuel for the increasingly colder weather to come.

At the same time, Jing Shu decided to keep the boiler room running all year the following year, since there was now an abundance of charcoal.

Not a single thing from the Magic Cube Space had been wasted to this day. Jing Shu would utilize anything that could be recycled, creating a perfect biological cycle.

And when the torrential rains next year made everything extremely damp, she had to prevent the food from getting moldy. The space was now large, so she could first store all the food there; otherwise, she would have nowhere to cry if it really got moldy.

Jing Shu also planned to make more desiccant, as thick moss growing on the corners and walls was simply too terrifying. It was the best warm nest for nurturing all kinds of insects.

In her previous life, it only took a few months for the mold to cover the buildings. Then all sorts of insects would crawl around, and brightly colored Mushrooms would grow as well.

The outer layer of the buildings would have mold, as would the damp insides of houses. The result was predictable—if the first year was unbearably hot, the dampness of the second year could be just as lethal, not to mention the many people who were left with rheumatism.

One could never understand without experiencing it. In rainy weather, after houses had been soaked by rain for months, water would seep inside. It dripped from everywhere, even carrying insects. Clothes, bedding, and beds were all damp and chillingly cold. At night, it was so frigid that one would be repeatedly jolted awake, unable to sleep through.

Waking up the next day, one would feel all sorts of aches and the deep discomfort of dampness within the body. Moreover, if one wasn’t careful, clothes and bedding could get moldy. The next morning, they would be crawling with various small insects.

The steam from bathing would form many large droplets on the ceiling. The second year was like this for every household: large droplets constantly dripped from ceilings and walls, not to mention the leaks from the torrential rains outside... It was truly miserable!

In her previous life, Jing Shu’s daily routine included hanging a plastic bag above her bed to collect a full bag of red earthworms and water by the next day, occasionally popping the fallen red earthworms into her mouth as a snack...

The one hour of electricity each day was spent holding a hair dryer and blowing everywhere, indulging in my pride... Ah, I digress.

Speaking of desiccants, Jing Shu had prepared a lot of quicklime before the apocalypse for just such a situation. She had used some during the early chaos in the traps around the villa, and the rest could be used as desiccant.

Its ability to absorb moisture was among the best of all desiccants. Its only flaw was releasing a large amount of heat after absorbing moisture. This made it ideal for placement in the villa’s courtyard and in every nook and corner.

As for Calcium chloride, which had the best adsorption ability, Jing Shu didn’t buy it due to its costly price and her large demand.

Instead, she decided to install dehumidifiers in the villa, as well as using central air conditioning for dehumidification, plus underfloor heating and wall-mounted stoves for warming. With these tools combined, she refused to believe it would still be damp. If it was still damp, she would think of another solution!

Jing Shu also considered waterproofing the villa again, but that had to wait until the torrential rains and floods came; there was no good reason to do it now.

Jing Shu happily finished a bowl of ice cream. She actually felt that the first year of the apocalypse was relatively easy to get through; the following years would become increasingly difficult, and the preparations she needed to make were also growing.

Just as the Artificial Sun had finally fulfilled its mission, allowing the citizens to temporarily not lack water, and Jing Shu managed to steal some leisure time amidst her busyness, the chat groups were also exceptionally lively, and the affair with the solar-powered distiller had successfully come to an end.

After the government finished distributing water, it turned its attention to new problems. They were furious to discover a pyramid scheme had emerged. Using draconian measures, they arrested everyone with more than a thousand Virtual Coins in their account within two days. This also served as a lesson to the public.

Wang Chao: "@Zhang Lingling, you owe me my hard-earned money! Let’s all denounce her together!"

Wang Can: "They’re all fraudsters, promising profits together but then they ran off with our money to enjoy themselves. Still a class leader, huh? What a cheap person!"

Shi Lei: "Forget about not lacking water now; even during the severe water shortage, the little cat piss you collected wasn’t even enough for me to have a sip. It’s bad enough that I went broke buying a Water Collector, but now my relatives have all cut ties with me because of you. You’ve done serious harm!"

Wang Chao: "Exactly! I even bought three and pulled in my relatives and friends to buy them. Now that we’re not short of water, I can’t attract new people anymore. The most infuriating thing is that this Water Collector doesn’t even work! Remember how nice the promises were at the time? And now what?"

The chat group erupted into the satisfying frenzy that Jing Shu missed out on in her previous life by leaving the group early. This time, Jing Shu sat in her massage chair, cracking Brazilian Pine Nuts and drinking watermelon juice, enjoying the drama unfold.

That feeling—awesome!

Pie never falls from the sky, only traps do, unless you’re Bill Gates who can make money even with his eyes closed. Otherwise, it’s best to honestly earn the fruits of one’s labor through hard work!

And Mu Xiaoxuan, who hadn’t made a purchase, said, "Today, the news reported that these fake Water Collectors are all over the country, harming many people. The criminal group has been arrested and sent for labor re-education."

"I heard that those at the top of the pyramid made thousands, even tens of thousands, of Virtual Coins. They squandered it all on rice and flour, but everything was confiscated. The app was also shut down, so they can’t recruit anyone anymore."

"So, should we, the victims, be compensated with Virtual Coins?"

"It seems the government has said there will be no compensation. You reap what you sow."

Zhang Lingling then came out to plead, "Everyone, listen to me, I’m a victim too! Otherwise, I would have been arrested. I invested in 20 accounts and lost everything! I only involved everyone so we could all make money together, for everyone’s benefit! Haven’t some of you classmates earned tens of Virtual Coins? You’re all better off than I am. You only lost a dozen or so Virtual Coins, while I’ve lost hundreds!"

Wang Chao: "We don’t need to hear anything else. Just give me back what I put in, and I’ll return those distillers to you."

Xiao Yun: "Exactly, return the goods! You were the one selling these; are you trying to play the victim card with us now?"

Zhang Lingling cried in the group, lamenting how miserable she was. She claimed she truly wanted the best for everyone and hadn’t expected such an outcome. Begging for forgiveness just this once, for the sake of their many years of camaraderie, she even said, "How have I treated you all normally? What kind of person am I? If I intended to scam you, may my home be washed away by floods next year and be destroyed by an earthquake the year after!"

Zhang Lingling thought for a moment. The oath to be struck down by lightning was too terrifying. She didn’t dare bet on herself, so she might as well... use something else as a stake. After all, isn’t my home also a part of me? We’re already dying of drought; where would floodwater come from?

Truly, a little praise for my own cleverness!