CHAPTER 651: EATING MEALS WITHOUT DISCRIMINATION

Anyway, discovering food in the bathroom... that was certainly unexpected, and it instantly killed my appetite. If it really came to distributing it to everyone, I would give my share to those in need.

Jun Jia’s eyebrows lifted; this was a pleasant surprise indeed. He hurriedly said, "Bring it all in, let everyone take a look. By the way, whose is it?"

The crowd’s expressions varied, but no one answered.

Soon, one large sack after another was brought in—at least a dozen of them, all covered in dirt. Li Chenglong shook the dirt off and casually opened one sack, revealing its contents.

"What is it?"

"It’s all black. Are we sure this is edible?"

Li Chenglong frowned, reached in, and pulled out a clump. It didn’t tear apart but clung together. It was like seaweed, forming clumps in the sack, and felt quite tough.

Li Chenglong leaned in to sniff it, eventually stuffing a few strands into his mouth to chew. Frowning, he showed a peculiar expression. "The taste is a bit bitter, and there’s a fishy flavor—a really strange taste, but I think it’s edible."

Jun Jia’s expression relaxed; being edible was good enough. This is the apocalypse, after all. It doesn’t matter if food tastes good or not. As long as it’s edible and helps you survive, that’s all that matters. There’s no room for high expectations.

Hearing that it was indeed food, many people breathed a sigh of relief.

"Who hid this food, anyway? At least tell us what this is," Jun Jia said with a smile. "Rest assured, we have a record of each person’s food contribution. After we’re rescued, not only will we compensate you with Virtual Coins, but we’ll also grant you an honorary title. The benefits of this title will be equivalent to those of a formal employee of the Township Government."

At these words, the man next to Jing Shu finally couldn’t hold back and stood up. The food had been discovered, so there was no use in denying it any longer, especially since benefits were involved.

"It’s mine..."

While Li Chenglong began to tally the strange foodstuff, the others in the room remained silent. Jun Jia looked at the unfamiliar man and asked, "And you are? How come I haven’t seen you before?"

The middle-aged man stared at the food and said, "My name is Da Ji. I came from the south with this green algae just a few days ago. I originally brought it to sell, but I didn’t expect to run into this situation..."

When Li Chenglong finished counting the food called green algae, a hint of relief flickered in Da Ji’s eyes. That isn’t all the food I brought!

Reassured by this thought, Da Ji relaxed completely and went on to explain, "Green algae is a new type of food developed in the south. It’s cheap to produce, and the upside is that it’s filling, albeit not very tasty. This green algae has been boiled and is ready to eat. I am willing to contribute all of it." Well, things have already come to this, anyway.

Jun Jia laughed loudly. "Good, good! On behalf of the Township Government and everyone in this building, I thank you. Rest assured, I stand by what I said. We will remember everyone here who contributed food. With your contributions, the people in this building can hold out for another ten days or so. We will definitely make it until rescue arrives!"

Having confiscated everyone’s food, Jun Jia was extremely satisfied. And with such satisfaction, of course, came the urge to make a grand pronouncement.

When these people had first arrived, they could at least eat their private food stashes. But now, departing with no food of their own, their only option was the communal cafeteria.

"It’s mealtime. Perfect timing for everyone here to eat together," Jun Jia announced. "Oh, and Li Chenglong, take some ingredients and have someone cook them quickly. Remember, it must be nutritionally balanced and distributed fairly to all."

No matter what, Jun Jia didn’t just represent the Township Government; he had an armed force backing him. Who would dare to cause trouble now? They all had to be as obedient as quails.

A group of people had ashen faces. Before, at least we had small biscuits and canned food. But now... let’s just see what the cafeteria has to offer.

Jing Shu’s complexion wasn’t much better. Sigh, this isn’t a good time to refuse food. Wouldn’t that just scream that I’m hiding private rations? She gently pinched her black box. Good thing no one is paying attention to it right now. Besides, how much could this little box possibly hold anyway?

The meal arrived quickly. Each person was first given a bowl and a spoon. Wang Miao had organized people to dig clay, shape it, and fire these earthenware bowls and spoons a few days earlier. They weren’t very sturdy and broke easily, but luckily, if the building lacked anything, it wasn’t dirt.

Then Li Chenglong came with a bucket, ladling out portions for everyone: about half a bowl each, and half of that was broth.

Jing Shu stirred the contents of her bowl with her spoon. Da Ji’s green algae, a few small chunks of meat, dried plums, and insects caught by Li Yuetian and his men. What a hodgepodge.

It smelled faintly sour and putrid, with an unidentifiable fishy odor.

I’ve eaten worse. Just one bowl of rotten corpse insects was enough to make you question your entire existence. But that was in my past life, after all.

It wasn’t just Jing Shu; the others didn’t look too happy either. After all, in the past few days, they hadn’t eaten anything nearly this unappetizing. They were used to lives of privilege. Even after the apocalypse began, they had mostly eaten white rice. None of them had ever been in such a wretched state.

"Let’s eat," Jun Jia said, taking the lead. He tilted his head back and began to eat, chewing as he remarked, "It’s not as bad as I thought. At least there’s meat."

Gold Dominator rolled his eyes in reluctance. He looked around everywhere but refused to eat.

However, seeing that Jun Jia had started eating, the others also slowly and hesitantly moved their spoons, opening their mouths as if facing torture, eyes closed.

Jing Shu calmly picked up her bowl, tilted her head back, and pretended to pour it into her mouth. In the instant it was about to go in, she redirected all of it into her space. Then, she swapped it with ordinary rice from her space and began to chew.

"Hmm, not bad," Jing Shu murmured, quietly exhaling. Thank goodness for my quick thinking. I’ll just feed this stuff to the pigs. But my pigs have gotten so picky; they actually won’t eat this dark, murky stuff! Even the pigs in my space won’t eat it!

Jing Shu was speechless. Unbelievable. She then gave the food to the chickens, which weren’t as picky. They devoured the ’dark cuisine’ completely. Well, at least it wasn’t a total waste of food, she thought.

Gold Dominator eventually pinched his nose and forced himself to eat. I have no choice; Uncle is watching me, he thought. Just get it down. Ordinary people don’t even have this much.

"Alright, that’s all the business for today. We’ll leave it at that," Jun Jia said earnestly. "If anyone discovers someone else hiding private rations, or knows where any are hidden, report it to me."

"No more, no more."

"You’ve taken them all."

"Absolutely! I’d consider it my duty to report them!"

Now that all our food is gone, we definitely can’t let anyone else keep their private rations! Jun Jia had effectively turned them into informants on each other. Jing Shu quietly sighed. This situation is getting worse and worse.

"By the way, Jing Shu, come with me for a moment."

After the others left, Jing Shu was called away to the soldiers’ camp. Jing Shu felt a bit regretful. I wanted to follow Boss Lu and see what exactly is in his safe.