Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Looking at the tree still covered with oranges, Xu Xiaoyan felt heartbroken. These were precious food resources, and it was such a waste to leave them to rot on the tree.

She stood there, her gaze sweeping over the dilapidated houses and the abundant fruit, her mind racing. "I've got it!" she murmured to herself, already having an idea.

Xu Xiaoyan carefully walked down the mountain along the original path. When she was almost at the area where she had seen people before, she took out two bundles of firewood from her spatial storage and a dozen oranges and stuffed them into her backpack.

She hadn't walked far before people noticed her. Several survivors who were bending down to pick up twigs and leaves straightened up, their eyes immediately drawn to the two thick, neatly stacked bundles of firewood behind her.

In this area that has been almost completely looted, firewood of this quality is truly rare.

"Hey! Young lady!" a middle-aged man couldn't help but call out, taking a few steps to stand in front of her, his eyes fixed on the firewood. "Where did you find this firewood? It's so good!"

Xu Xiaoyan stopped, her face showing just the right amount of fatigue. She casually pointed upwards and said in a flat tone, "I walked a little further up, there were fewer people there, and more dead branches."

As soon as she finished speaking, several more people gathered around, all asking, "Is there any more up there? How far is it?"

"It will probably take another ten minutes or so," Xu Xiaoyan said vaguely.

At the same time, he turned slightly to the side, showing off the sturdy bundle of firewood. "If you go early, you should still be able to find some," he said. This sentence was like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, instantly creating ripples.

The group exchanged glances and made their decisions almost simultaneously.

"Quick! Go up and check it out!"

"Call Old Li and the others!"

The people who had been searching carefully in the grass just moments before now stood up and hurriedly gathered their meager haul.

They rushed toward the direction Xu Xiaoyan pointed, some even neglecting to pick up the scattered twigs on the ground, afraid that if they were late they would get nothing.

Xu Xiaoyan stood there, watching the figures of those people hurrying up the mountain, her face expressionless.

She adjusted the shoulder straps of her backpack slightly, feeling the rounded shape of the oranges inside, and then continued to drag the two bundles of firewood, walking slowly down the mountain.

When Xu Xiaoyan dragged two large bundles of heavy, tightly bound dead branches back to the residential area, she immediately attracted a lot of attention.

The two bundles of firewood were not only substantial in quantity, but also mostly consisted of thick, durable hardwood branches.

Chen Yong was sitting at the cave entrance wiping a tool when he looked up and saw this scene. He was so surprised that his mouth dropped open, and he quickly got up to greet him.

"Sister Xu, where...where did you get this?" He helped Xu Xiaoyan unload the firewood, weighed it in his hand, and his face was full of disbelief.

"My buddies, four or five of them, worked for most of the day and probably couldn't have gathered two such large bundles of good firewood! How did you manage to do it all by yourself?"

Xu Xiaoyan wiped non-existent beads of sweat from her forehead, panting slightly, and feigned exhaustion. She pointed to the towering mountains behind her:

"I walked a bit further into the mountains, where almost no one goes. There were no people to snatch the fallen branches, so I picked up more of them. It's just that the journey was long and it took a lot of time and energy to go back and forth."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yong nodded thoughtfully. Currently, most people are vying for what's nearby, and there are indeed not many who are willing and able to explore the more dangerous and distant mountains.

He sincerely praised, "You really have guts! These days, you have to be willing to put in the effort to reap the rewards."

The two men worked together to stuff firewood into Xu Xiaoyan's cave. Xu Xiaoyan looked around the somewhat empty cave and said to Chen Yong:

"Chen Yong, I have to go out again to take care of some things. I'll need your help to look after these things for a while longer, and make sure no unrelated people sneak in."

"No problem! Leave it to me!" Chen Yong readily agreed. "You go ahead and do your work, I'll keep an eye on things here!" Xu Xiaoyan thanked him and turned to walk towards the temporary supplies exchange point.

Xu Xiaoyan bypassed the queue and went directly to a window where a staff member in uniform was registering supplies.

She didn't take out any physical object, but lowered her voice and said to the man directly, "Comrade PLA, I want to sell a message."

The staff member looked up; he was a shrewd-looking middle-aged man. He raised an eyebrow, signaling her to continue.

"I know a place, to be precise, the ruins of an abandoned village, where at least twenty-six orange trees grow."

Xu Xiao spoke slowly and calmly, with a clear gaze: "The fruit is hanging all over the place now. Although it is not fully ripe yet, there is a lot of it. If we organize people to pick it, we estimate that we can harvest thousands of kilograms of fresh oranges."

The staff member, the junior manager surnamed Wu, immediately showed a suspicious look on his face.

These days, such "good news" sounds like a fairy tale.

Xu Xiaoyan took out a few green, plump, and firm tangerines from her backpack and handed them over. "I was afraid you wouldn't believe me, so I brought back some samples. You can try them."

Manager Wu took the oranges with some skepticism, carefully examined the broken end of the branch, peeled one open, broke off a segment, and put it in his mouth.

Instantly, the refreshing, slightly sweet, and long-lost citrus flavor invigorated him, and the doubt on his face was quickly replaced by surprise and seriousness.

He quickly finished the remaining oranges in a few bites, clutching them tightly in his hand, and said to Xu Xiaoyan, "Wait here for a moment. I can't make this decision myself; I must report to my superiors immediately!"

After saying that, he took the oranges, turned around, and hurriedly went into an office at the back.

Xu Xiaoyan stood outside the slightly noisy exchange point and didn't wait long.

The manager, Wu, returned, followed by a stern-faced officer with a straight posture and a serious expression. His epaulets indicated that he was of a higher rank. The two walked briskly and headed straight for Xu Xiaoyan.

The officer's gaze swept quickly over her, and he cut to the chase to confirm, "You're the comrade who provided the information on the orange trees? I've seen the samples you brought back. Do you know the exact address?"

"Yes, I remember the location very clearly, it's right here..." Xu Xiaoyan clearly and concisely described the specific path and landmarks leading to that abandoned mountain village again.

After listening, the officer hesitated for a moment, then made a decision almost immediately. He turned to his deputy and gave the order:

"Immediately select fifteen people from the third rank to form a harvesting team, carrying the necessary harvesting tools and transportation equipment. Act quickly, and be sure to complete the mission and return!"

"Yes, sir!" The deputy accepted the order and quickly ran off to arrange the manpower. Soon, a team of fifteen soldiers assembled. They were well-equipped, acted efficiently, and demonstrated excellent discipline.

Seeing this, Manager Wu smiled and turned to Xu Xiaoyan, his tone much warmer than before:

"Comrade Xu, thank you for providing such valuable information! As long as our team confirms the situation and successfully harvests the oranges, you will receive a reward of eighty work points according to regulations!"