Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

About ten minutes later.

The door on the other side of the room opened.

A soldier stood at the door, holding a key in his hand.

"The car has been inspected and everything is fine," he said. "Here are your car keys."

Xu Xiaoyan stood up, walked over, took the keys, and thanked her.

The soldier nodded, stepped aside, and pointed to the corridor behind him. "Go straight to the end, turn right, and that's the entrance to Sector B. Park your car there."

Xu Xiaoyan thanked her again and left the room.

When you reach the end, turn right.

Xu Xiaoyan pushed open the door, glanced around, and quickly found her small truck—parked not far from the door.

Xu Xiaoyan walked over quickly, opened the car door, and got in.

Start the car, shift gears, release the handbrake, step on the accelerator, and the small truck slowly starts moving and drives away from the area checkpoint.

The passageway in Zone B is wide enough for two cars to drive side by side.

There weren't many cars on the road. Occasionally, you could see a few small trucks similar to hers driving by from the opposite direction, as well as some more upscale-looking sedans with gleaming bodies, silently gliding past her.

No one honked their horns, no one cut in front of them, and everything was in perfect order.

There are pedestrians on the roadside.

Not many, just small groups of two or three, some carrying shopping bags, some pushing shopping carts, and some walking dogs!

Xu Xiaoyan was stunned for a moment. It was a real dog, alive and furry, being led around by its owner on the roadside.

In the dungeon, dogs are a luxury. She couldn't help but glance at them a few more times until the dog was led into another passage by its owner, at which point she looked away.

Keep driving forward.

Her room was in the East District, and it wasn't hard to find. The signs for District B were very clear, with one every so often, white with blue lettering, indicating the directions and distances of each area.

She followed the road signs eastward at a slow speed, observing her surroundings as she drove.

Along the sidewalk at the edge of the passageway, some people walked hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, strolling leisurely down the street with the kind of expression that only those who have nothing better to do have on their faces—leisure.

Xu Xiaoyan had already seen several couples flirting and teasing each other on her way here.

Talking about love? In her opinion, that's something only a person with nothing better to do.

The main road in Zone B was much easier to drive than she had imagined. The road surface was smooth, the markings were clear, and there were occasional traffic signs at intersections, clearly indicating the directions.

Xu Xiaoyan followed the road signs eastward, maintaining a speed of around 30 km/h, and slowed down to try and see the signs hanging on the pillars more clearly.

However, her slow speed affected the vehicles behind her. A silver-gray sedan was following her at a leisurely pace. When it saw her slow down, it also slowed down, maintaining a safe distance without honking or overtaking.

She had no choice but to accelerate again and continue driving forward.

After driving for about five more minutes, the view ahead suddenly opened up.

Ahead was a wide open space with a large open area on the side, the ground paved with neat gray tiles and marked with white parking spaces.

Dozens of vehicles were parked in the parking space, including small trucks, cars, and some other models she couldn't name, all neatly arranged.

On the other side of the parking lot, there is a large doorway.

It has three floors, and the main entrance is a row of metal doors, at least seven or eight of them, all open, allowing you to see people coming and going inside.

Above the door hangs a huge sign, white with red characters, that reads "State-owned Procurement Center".

Xu Xiaoyan was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously stepped on the brake.

The car slowed down, slowed down, and finally stopped on the side of the road.

She looked at the building through the windshield, at the six large characters, and at the people coming and going, her mind going blank for a moment.

There is a supermarket in Section B.

It's not like the exchange points in Zone C—a few shops, a few windows, limited supplies, and long queues. It's a real supermarket, with doors, shelves, shopping carts, and cash registers, the kind of supermarket you can walk into and browse.

Xu Xiaoyan gripped the steering wheel and stared at the doorway for several seconds.

Then she turned right and drove into the parking lot.

The parking lot is very spacious, with plenty of empty spaces.

She found a spot not far from the door, parked the car, turned off the engine, and removed the key.

People were walking around in the parking lot. Some were walking towards the supermarket empty-handed, while others were pushing shopping carts that were full of goods.

She glanced at the items in the shopping carts—there was rice, flour, cooking oil, vegetables, fruits, daily necessities, and several children clutching snacks.

She saw children, more than one.

Some children were being pushed around in shopping carts, others were running behind adults, and two seven- or eight-year-old boys were chasing and playing by the side of the parking lot, their sharp and loud laughter echoing in the open space.

Children are rarely seen in Zone C.

It's not that there aren't any, it's that there are very few.

Most of the children had sallow complexions, dull eyes, and little energy, like little adults struggling to breathe under the weight of life.

But these children before her had rosy complexions, bright eyes, ran with a swift pace, and laughed without a care in the world—exactly the same as the children on the ground in her memory.

Xu Xiaoyan withdrew her gaze and continued walking forward.

As I approached the supermarket entrance, a blast of cool air hit me, carrying a faint smell of disinfectant, and a hint of... food aroma? Like the smell wafting from the deli section.

She walked through the row of open metal doors and into the supermarket.

For a moment, she almost thought she had returned to the ground.

The supermarket was brightly lit, illuminating every corner clearly.

The floor is made of non-slip metal tiles, which are very clean and reflect the overhead lights and the shadows of the shelves.

The shelves were arranged in rows, with silver-white metal frames, each row over two meters high, and filled to the brim.

She stood in the doorway, her gaze sweeping over the row of shelves closest to her.

The entire shelf was filled with snacks: potato chips, cookies, chocolates, candies, jelly, spicy strips... Colorful packaging bags were crammed together. She recognized some of the brands; they were old brands from the surface era. She didn't recognize some of the brands; they were probably products made in the underground city.

She took a step forward.

She walked up to the shelf, reached out, and picked up a bag of potato chips.

The bag is plastic and transparent, so you can clearly see the potato chips inside—golden yellow, neatly stacked one by one.

The front of the bag is printed with the words "Produced by Food Factory in Area B" in large print, and below that is a line of smaller print: "Production Date: February 28, 2030".

Potato chips produced today.

Xu Xiaoyan stared at that line of text for several seconds.

In the supermarket in Zone B, she can buy potato chips made today! What happened while she was away? Why has this area developed so rapidly? Why is the variety of goods so abundant?

She put the bag of chips back on the shelf and continued walking.

Passing through the snack section, you'll find the beverage section, where various bottled waters, carbonated drinks, juices, and teas are neatly arranged on the shelves.

Some were placed in the room temperature zone, while others were placed in the freezer. The glass door of the freezer was closed, and you could see the white steam coming out.

Passing through the beverage section, you'll find the grain and oil section.

The rice, flour, and cooking oil weren't sold in bulk like at the redemption point in Zone C; they were sold in bags and buckets, with attractive packaging and a wide variety of brands.

A middle-aged man was standing in front of the rice shelf, picking up bags one by one to look at them, as if comparing which bag was better.

After passing the grain and oil section, you'll find the fresh produce section, which is the busiest place in the entire supermarket.

Vegetables, fruits, meats, and seafood are arranged in different sections according to their categories.

The vegetables were fresh, with vibrant green leaves and still glistening with dewdrops.

The fruits were brightly colored: red apples, yellow bananas, and purple grapes, piled up like a small mountain.

The meat is placed in the freezer, cut into pieces, wrapped in plastic wrap, and labeled with price tags.

The seafood section has several large freezers filled with various types of cut and frozen fish.

Some people are picking out vegetables, some are weighing them, and some are queuing to pay.

An elderly woman was pushing a shopping cart, half full of groceries, and standing in front of a fruit stand. She picked up an apple, brought it to her nose to smell it, put it down, and then smelled another one.

A young mother next to me was holding her crying child. She was soothing the child while throwing things into her shopping cart. Her movements were quick and practiced.

Xu Xiaoyan stood at the edge of the fresh produce section, watching people pick out vegetables, weigh them, and line up to pay.

Look at the expressions on their faces—some are focused, some are tired, some are impatient, and some are absent-minded.

She was all too familiar with that expression; it was the unique expression of people shopping in supermarkets.

It wasn't the anxious and eager expression you'd see at the C-zone redemption point; it was an ordinary, everyday expression, as if life should always be like this.

She suddenly remembered something.

So many people chose the East District back then, and she had always been a little puzzled—what exactly was set up in the East District that made it the best choice?

She initially thought it was a hospital.

She already knew that there was a hospital in Zone B.

There is also a hospital in Zone C, but it is a "medical station" that can only handle minor illnesses such as headaches and fevers. It is helpless when there are any serious problems.

So she thought that the East District might be closer to the hospital, making it convenient to seek medical treatment when sick, which is why everyone would prefer the East District.

But now she understands.

It's not a hospital.

It's not just hospitals, but supermarkets too.

With supermarkets, life has become much more convenient.

This is what real, normal life is like.

Xu Xiaoyan stood there, looking at the bustling, ordinary, and vibrant Yangjing before her, and a feeling she couldn't quite describe welled up inside her.

She recalled the crowds huddled at the exchange point in Zone C, their faces clutching dry biscuits and demanding answers.

She remembered the old woman, clutching three pancakes in her hand as if holding onto her last hope.

She thought of those who had been deceived, those who were angry, and those who were desperate.

How far away are they? A few kilometers? She didn't know.

But she knew that those people and the people here lived in different worlds.

The same underground city, yet two different worlds.

She took a deep breath and suppressed those thoughts.

Now is not the time to think about these things.

She walked into the crowd and strolled around for about half an hour, almost exploring the entire supermarket.

From the entrance to the exit, from the first floor to the third floor—the third floor is the daily necessities area, selling clothes, shoes, bedding, pots and pans, and there is also a small appliance area, selling small appliances and electronic products.