Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

They chose to ignore the venomous gazes, the whispers, and the undisguised greed behind them.

They went straight back to the third-to-last military vehicle. Xu Xiaoyan had just put down the heavy bag when she glanced around and saw Jiang Shan stretching his joints not far from the rear of the vehicle. Xu Xiaoyan immediately put on a warm but appropriate smile, and she quickly went to greet him after putting the bag back on.

"Uncle Jiang!" she called out in a clear voice, with just the right amount of respect and friendliness. At the same time, she deftly put the burlap sack on her shoulder down at her feet with a "thud," and quickly pulled out five thick, plump yams from the open sack.

She held the yam in both hands, smiling as she offered it to Jiang Shan. "We were lucky enough to find some wild yams on the mountain, quite a lot! Here are a few for you to try! Thank you for doing us this favor!" Her words were clear, highlighting the nature of the "return gift," expressing gratitude for his kindness in allowing them a ride. Her attitude was humble, yet not obsequious.

Seeing this, Xie Yingtang and Wang Xiao immediately understood. They each took out three high-quality yams from the bags on their shoulders and handed them over. Several heavy yams were presented side by side in front of Jiang Shan. In this season when food is as precious as gold, this amount can be described as a generous gift.

Jiang Shan was clearly not expected that the three of them would pull this stunt. He was stunned for a moment, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the real yams and the sincere faces of the three men.

Immediately, a genuine and relaxed smile appeared on his face, which usually wore a somewhat businesslike and serious expression. The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes deepened. He reached out and took the yams, subconsciously weighing them in his hand. They felt solid and substantial, with the characteristic firmness of root vegetables. They were indeed rare and good stuff.

"Oh, you're too kind! Haha, okay, okay!" Jiang Shan laughed, his voice louder, his tone noticeably warmer and more natural than before, when it was just a purely transactional relationship.

The way he looked at Xu Xiaoyan and the other two instantly became much kinder and more approachable. His gaze no longer seemed to be looking at just a few "free riders," but rather at "one of his own who knew the rules and were grateful for kindness."

He casually put the yam into a half-empty canvas bag at his feet, clapped his hands, and said, "Alright, I'll take it! If there's anything you need in the future, as long as it doesn't violate my principles, I, Jiang Shan, will lend a hand." This was a veiled promise, but it carried significant weight.

In the days that followed, the three men developed a regular and purposeful rhythm of life: during the day, accompanied by the bumpy and swaying rhythm of the military truck, they would huddle in the carriage, trying to catch up on sleep and rest, ignoring the crowding and noise in the carriage, and conserving their energy to the greatest extent possible. Every evening around six o'clock, the convoy would find a suitable place to stop and spend the night. The sound of the engines gradually going out was the signal for the start of their operation.

They would sneak into the mountains, fields, or other places near the convoy's rest stop before it got completely dark, taking advantage of the darkness.

The search is not always smooth sailing. If you are lucky, you may find a few slender but still fresh radishes by a forgotten field ridge; or you may find a small patch of wild vegetables on the edge of a weedy wasteland that has not been looted by the survivors who passed by before.

When luck is against them, they might spend the whole night groping around in the pitch-black forest, barely able to see their own hand in front of their face, relying on their experience and intuition. Underfoot are tangled tree roots and slippery moss, their bodies are scratched by thorny brambles, and their clothes are soaked and cold with night dew. In the end, all they find is mud and cold dew on their hands and an even more exhausted body, and they return empty-handed.

Fortunately, the three of them have adjusted their mindset quite well after this period of hardship. Xie Yingtang is the oldest and has a calm personality. He rarely has great emotional fluctuations due to gains and losses and can always analyze things calmly.

Wang Xiao, with the optimism and resilience unique to young people, would mutter a few words even if he returned empty-handed, but he would quickly console himself and place his hopes on the next search.

Xu Xiaoyan, on the other hand, is a thorough pragmatist. She regards every search trip as a necessary investment and a proactive means of combating an uncertain future.

They all held an open-minded attitude: "Finding food would be a surprise, but not finding it wouldn't be a waste of time; at least we tried." After all, riding in military vehicles had already saved them energy, and searching for food was more like a proactive way to replenish their reserves and prepare for the potentially more difficult days to come.

This pattern of resting during the day and searching at night continued until the seventh day. That evening, the convoy stopped in an open area backed by rolling mountains. The terrain was relatively flat, with a wide field of vision, making it easy to be on guard and defend.

Xu Xiaoyan didn't immediately prepare to leave as usual. She first carefully observed the surrounding environment, and then took out a plastic children's telescope from the side pocket of her backpack, which looked quite spacious.

She climbed up a slightly higher mound nearby, using both her hands and feet. Once she was steady, she raised her binoculars and began to carefully examine the surroundings, especially the mountains behind the convoy. Her gaze moved slowly and methodically, sweeping over the outlines of the dark green and deep brown tree canopies nearby, and then casting her gaze upon the undulating mountains in the distance, which appeared even more profound in the twilight.

Suddenly, she stopped moving. On the second mountain, or more precisely, halfway up the second mountain, a strange color caught her eye—a large, bright orange that stood out against the predominantly green and dark brown forest!

Xu Xiaoyan's heart skipped a beat. She immediately steadied her trembling arms, pressed the plastic binoculars closer to her eyes, squinted one eye, and tried to adjust the focus, wanting to see more clearly and distinctly.

However, this was just a children's toy telescope, and its magnification and image quality were pitifully limited. In her field of vision, she could only barely make out the striking color of that alluring orange. As for what kind of plant it was, the size of the fruit, and its ripeness, she had no idea!

Was it a grove of ripe orange trees? Or some kind of maple or acer tree whose leaves turn orange-red in autumn? Or...? Countless guesses flooded her mind.

She knew that if it really was a wild or abandoned orange grove, it meant fresh fruit, sugar, and precious vitamin C that could alleviate the risk of scurvy!

She put down the binoculars, took a deep breath, and forced herself to calm down. The opportunity might be right in front of her, but the uncertain risks also existed. She needed a more reliable way to confirm it.

Without much hesitation, Xu Xiaoyan decisively jumped down from the earthen slope. When she landed, her knees were slightly bent to cushion the impact. She didn't even have time to meet up with Xie Yingtang and Wang Xiao first. She started running towards Jiang Shan's usual resting place.

When they found Jiang Shan, he was leaning against the wheel of a military jeep, carefully wiping his military water bottle with a cloth of indeterminate color. When he saw Xu Xiaoyan running over, he raised his eyelids, a questioning look flashing in his eyes.

Xiao Yan, slightly out of breath, said in a tone that was just right—urgent and pleading—"Uncle Jiang, can I ask you for a favor? I'd like to borrow the army's binoculars for a little while! I'll return them to you right away!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shan stopped wiping, looked up at her with some surprise, frowned slightly, shook his head, and said in a tone that carried the inherent principles and unquestionable authority of a soldier, "The army's binoculars? Those are standard equipment used for command and reconnaissance, and there are strict regulations that they cannot be lent out." His refusal was crisp and decisive, leaving no room for negotiation.

Xu Xiaoyan had anticipated this, and she immediately explained, "Brother Jiang, I'm not being unreasonable. I just looked over there with my binoculars—" She pointed towards the second mountain, "and found a large area of ​​orange things halfway up the mountain, quite extensive! I suspect it might be an orange grove! But my binoculars are just for kids, the magnification is too low, and the image is blurry; I can't see anything clearly! If I had military binoculars, I could confirm it! If it really is oranges, that's a good thing! Fresh fruit!"

Her words were very focused, especially the keywords "oranges" and "not a small scope," which instantly opened the tightly closed door of "principles" on Jiang Shan's face. His doubt and rejection disappeared, replaced by a serious expression that mixed surprise, interest, and quick weighing of his options.

Fresh fruit! In the current situation where they are almost entirely surviving on dry rations and canned food, the temptation is irresistible. Jiang Shan didn't hesitate for a second longer. He immediately stood up straight, stuffed the water bottle and rag into the car, and quickly said to Xu Xiaoyan, "You wait here! Don't wander off!" After saying that, he turned around and started jogging towards the core of the convoy, where the command vehicle was located, his figure quickly disappearing into the deepening twilight and vehicles.

Xu Xiaoyan remained where she was, waiting anxiously. Her gaze kept sweeping towards the direction where Jiang Shan had disappeared, while she also vigilantly observed her surroundings. Time passed by, the twilight deepened, and the outlines of the distant mountains began to blur.

About fifteen minutes later, Jiang Shan still hadn't appeared. Instead, Xie Yingtang and Wang Xiaoxian came over, their faces showing obvious questions and a hint of barely perceptible worry. They were clearly puzzled that she had been gone for so long, especially since she was preparing to set off to search.

"Xiao Yan, what are you doing here? We've packed our things and are ready to go up the mountain," Wang Xiao said first, his tone somewhat urgent. He had already picked up a short stick and a burlap sack for digging.

Upon seeing them, Xu Xiaoyan immediately made a "shush" gesture, signaling them to come closer. Then, she lowered her voice and quickly and clearly recounted her previous discovery using the children's binoculars, as well as her current plan to borrow military binoculars from Jiang Shan to confirm it.

Upon hearing the words "orange grove," Wang Xiao's eyes lit up as if two small flames had been ignited. However, he quickly looked puzzled and slightly disapproving. He scratched his head and asked in a low voice, "Wait... Xiao Yan, why do we have to tell the military about the good stuff we found ourselves? Why don't we just go secretly, pick a lot, and send some to them to try? If we tell them, won't everyone know? How much will we get then?" His thinking was straightforward, leaning towards monopolizing the benefits—a common mindset in the apocalypse.

Xu Xiaoyan shook her head, her gaze sweeping over the faintly visible core area of ​​the army, representing order and force, in the distance. She then looked at the composed Xie Yingtang beside her and the puzzled Wang Xiao, and patiently explained in a low voice, "I looked closely just now. That orange area is huge, almost covering half of the hillside. Think about it, so many oranges. Even if the three of us tried our best to pick them, how many could we possibly pick? Even if our backpacks were full and our sacks were stuffed full, we wouldn't be able to take away a tiny fraction. We're only staying for one night, how many can we pick? Besides, if we can spot it tonight, surely people passing by later will notice?"

She paused, letting Wang Xiao process what she was saying, then lowered her voice even further, "Rather than letting most of the fruit rot on the mountain, or causing chaos and scrambling because the news spreads—we'd be lucky if we could even keep our share in the chaos, or even get into trouble for possessing something valuable… it would be better if we proactively gave this news to the military, and especially to Jiang Shan, to do him a favor and curry favor."

She looked at Wang Xiao and said, "Think about it. We'll be following their car to Linchuan, and we don't know what we'll encounter on the way—detours, roadblocks, or even conflicts with other survivor groups... If this 'contribution' can make Jiang Shan, or through him, his superiors think we're 'useful' and 'sensible,' not just a burden who only knows how to take, then in the future, if there's any news, route changes, or important information, wouldn't they be more willing to give us a heads-up? Even just a little hint could help us avoid big trouble or seize opportunities that others don't know about. That's probably much more valuable than us carrying dozens of kilograms of oranges."

As soon as she finished speaking, Wang Xiao opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to refute, but ultimately couldn't say anything, and just lowered his head thoughtfully.

Xie Yingtang, standing to the side, nodded slightly, a hint of admiration in his eyes as he looked at Xu Xiaoyan. In this cruel world, those who can see immediate benefits are the survivors; but those who can see the long-term strategy and know how to use resources to gain more living space are the truly intelligent ones. In the silence, the three of them stopped speaking, their gazes all turned to the direction Jiang Shan had left, waiting for the crucial news that would determine their next move.