Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

When Xu Xiaoyan parked her small truck in front of the "Old Flavor" restaurant, she found that the scene here was very different from when she left a few hours earlier.

The shop was bustling with people, with almost every table packed with diners.

The sounds of ordering food, conversations, and clattering dishes were several times louder than before.

People's faces showed a kind of eagerness to "live for the moment," as if they wanted to quickly convert the soon-to-depreciate banknotes in their hands into a real sense of satisfaction.

She squeezed through the noisy diners and went straight to the counter.

The proprietress was extremely busy when she looked up and saw Xu Xiaoyan. Before she could even greet her, she heard Xu Xiaoyan clearly say, "Proprietress, 19 servings of pork rice bowls to go."

The proprietress's pen clattered onto the table, and she repeated incredulously, her mouth agape:

"19 servings? Girl, how many people are you going to feed that? It'll spoil if it sits like that in this weather!"

"Don't worry," Xu Xiaoyan said calmly, having already prepared her explanation. "I'm bringing meals to the workers on duty at a nearby factory. They're rushing to finish and can't come out, and I'm in a hurry. Could you speed things up a bit?"

The proprietress nodded as if suddenly understanding, asked no more questions, and turned to yell at the kitchen, "Boss! Make everything into takeout! Prioritize this!"

She couldn't help but show her joy. Once this order was completed, she would have almost fulfilled her quota, and she would go to the designated warehouse to collect the grain in a little while!

Immediately, the kitchen erupted in even more rapid sounds of chopping boards and clattering spatulas. The owner and his wife, along with their entire family, came out to help with packing and packaging.

After nearly half an hour of work, 19 neatly stacked transparent lunch boxes were finally ready, almost forming a small mountain.

"That's 9500 yuan in total," the proprietress said, her calculator clicking away.

Without hesitation, Xu Xiaoyan counted out cash from her backpack and handed it over. As she handed over the thick wad of bills, she felt a sense of relief.

This cash may be converted into points later, but the ratio is unlikely to satisfy the average person. Rather than facing the unknown, it is better to store up the certainty first.

With the help of the owner and his wife, several bags of food containers were carried out of the store and loaded into the back of the small truck.

Once they had gone a little further away, Xu Xiaoyan took advantage of the moment the carriage door closed to put everything into her spatial storage.

At this stage, she has exchanged almost all of her cash for food, and only has two hundred dollars left in her pocket.

That night, Xu Xiaoyan's phone screen suddenly lit up. An urgent red alert shattered the tranquility of the night. She swiped her finger across the screen, and cold text appeared line by line:

Affected by the super undersea earthquake, many coastal cities with low-lying terrain have been directly impacted by the tsunami!

The report stated that although the local government issued the highest level of warning three hours in advance and organized the evacuation of a large number of residents, the destructive power of this tsunami far exceeded expectations!

Twenty-meter-high waves swept away the port, streets and residential areas with devastating force, and some of the breakwaters were easily washed away like building blocks.

The latest rolling data shows that the number of deaths and missing persons continues to rise, with incomplete statistics exceeding 800,000. On the constantly updated map of victims at the end of the push notification, a shocking red color is spreading across the coastal areas.

Xu Xiaoyan stared at the ever-expanding red area on the screen, his fingertips icy cold. The moment the notification came, his phone started vibrating wildly. Messages from Zhonglian Supermarket's internal group, news apps, social media pushes... countless messages flooded into his phone like a tsunami.

Outside the window, all was silent. She clicked on a short video marked "Live Report"—the screen was shaking violently, and she could vaguely see towering waves swallowing the distant city skyline.

Desperate cries mingled with the roar of engines, and the filmer's screams were quickly cut off by a sharp noise, bringing the video to an abrupt end.

Immediately afterwards, WeChat Moments was flooded with missing person notices:

"My uncle's family is in Haishi, but I can't get through to them by phone at all. I pray they're safe!"

"Does anyone know what's happening in the East Bay area? Everyone's out of contact!"

Behind every hurried message lies a world on the verge of collapse.

The official reports began to repeatedly emphasize "incomplete statistics" and "data is still being updated," with a somber tone. The constantly rising numbers coldly and concretely represented this distant disaster.

Xu Xiaoyan suddenly stood up, flipped through her contacts, and found a number she hadn't dialed in a long time—her college roommate, Xiao Qing.

After graduation, she and her boyfriend settled in Haishi. All she heard on the other end of the line was a long and monotonous busy signal.

She helplessly put down her phone, took a deep breath, grabbed her coat and car keys, and rushed out the door.

As Xu Xiaoyan drove her gray pickup truck into the gas station, her heart sank.

A long, winding line of cars had already formed in front of the gas station, moving extremely slowly. The air was thick with the smell of gasoline and a silent sense of anxiety.

She stood quietly at the back of the queue, while the driver of the SUV next to her was excitedly talking loudly into his phone, his other hand unconsciously pounding heavily on the car door.

The female driver of the car in front kept peeking out, her face pale.

Xu Xiaoyan rolled down the car window, and the cool night air, mixed with various whispers, rushed in:

"...The radio said the worst losses haven't even been tallied yet. All communications over there are down, so the real numbers are probably several times higher..."

A deliberately lowered but still clear voice came from a black sedan with its window rolled down next to it.

Another, louder voice, with a distinct local accent, came from not far away, exuding absolute confidence:

"My second aunt just sent a message from the Transportation Bureau saying that all highway exits leading to the coast are now under control—only exits are allowed, no entry! The opposite lanes are completely blocked by cars heading inland, like a scene of a disaster!"

"Only realizing it now? Too late!" A middle-aged man in overalls leaned against the gas pump, exclaiming loudly to his companion, his tone carrying a knowing sigh.

"My wife went to the designated supermarket an hour ago, and when she came back she said that everything edible was sold out, like a locust swarm!"

Xu Xiaoyan closed the car window, shutting out the unsettling noise. She glanced at the fuel gauge, which was still half full, and knew that there was no other way but to wait.