"Are they opening a supermarket or something?"

Among the curious onlookers, a woman in her thirties slowly walked closer. She was holding a small girl in her arms, probably around four years old. The child looked at the stacked cartons with wide curious eyes.

The woman soon recognized Bai Li standing near the entrance.

"Bai Li?" she called out in slight surprise.

Bai Li turned her head and looked toward her. The moment she saw the woman’s face, the system quietly provided a piece of information in her mind. The woman was Xiao Li, a neighbor from Bai Li’s previous apartment building.

The original Bai Li had exchanged pleasantries with her a few times before. They were not close friends, but they knew each other well enough to recognize one another.

Bai Li nodded politely.

"Yes."

Xiao Li looked at the constant stream of goods being carried into the building and asked with obvious curiosity, "You bought so many things. Are you planning to open a business or something?"

Bai Li had already expected that people might ask this question.

She replied calmly, "Yes. I’m thinking about opening a chain store business. This is just the starting preparation."

The explanation sounded reasonable enough.

Xiao Li nodded with an understanding expression.

"Oh, I see," she said. "You are already thinking so much about your future at such a young age."

She adjusted the little girl in her arms and continued speaking with a light laugh.

"When I was your age, all I thought about was getting married and starting a family. But seeing you working so hard like this makes me feel that doing something for yourself might actually be more fulfilling."

Bai Li gave a small polite smile but did not comment further.

After chatting briefly, Xiao Li said goodbye and carried her daughter away.

Meanwhile, the workers continued transporting the goods upstairs. As per Bai Li’s earlier instructions, everything was moved directly to the storage room located on the second floor of the duplex.

Even though the apartment was currently under renovation, the two groups of workers did not interfere with each other. One side focused on construction work while the other side focused on stacking the supplies neatly inside the storage room.

After about half an hour, the delivery process was finally completed.

The last batch of cartons was carried upstairs, and the workers returned downstairs to report to their manager.

The delivery manager approached Bai Li again.

"All the goods have been delivered according to your instructions," she said.

Bai Li nodded. "Thank you for the hard work."

She then handed out a small amount of tip money for the workers who had helped carry the supplies upstairs.

The workers thanked her politely before returning to their trucks.

Before leaving, the manager spoke with Bai Li again with a friendly smile.

"Miss Bai, if you need more supplies in the future, please remember to contact us. We would be very happy to work with you again."

After all, customers who could casually place orders worth hundreds of thousands were not common. Losing such a client would be a shame.

Bai Li nodded slightly.

"I will."

With that, the trucks slowly left the apartment complex one after another.

The crowd that had gathered earlier gradually dispersed as well, leaving the area quiet again.

Bai Li also went back to her apartment.

..

..

When Yan Cijin got off work that evening and returned to the riverside apartment complex, the sky had already begun turning slightly golden with the late afternoon light. The air was calm, and residents were slowly returning home after their day outside. Some people were walking along the inner paths of the complex, while others gathered in small groups near the benches or garden areas, chatting about the usual daily topics.

As she walked through the entrance gate and headed toward her building, she faintly heard several people talking nearby. At first, she paid little attention to it. Conversations between neighbors were common, and she had long learned to ignore the noise of other people’s lives. But then she suddenly heard a familiar name mentioned among their words.

Bai Li.

Her steps slowed slightly without anyone noticing.

The group of people speaking was standing not too far away near a row of benches under the trees. Most of them were older residents of the building, along with a few younger men who seemed to enjoy hanging around and gossiping. Their voices were not exactly quiet either, so it was easy for anyone nearby to hear what they were saying.

"So I heard today that Bai Li ordered a bunch of trucks full of goods," one of the men said with a faint sneer. "What does she think she’s doing? Starting a business or something?"

Another man laughed in a mocking tone. "A young kid like her trying to run a business? She doesn’t even know how hard business is. Just wait and see, she’ll fail miserably."

One of the older men shook his head while speaking in a somewhat condescending tone. "Business is not something women should be doing anyway. She already has a good job as a software engineer, doesn’t she? Earning so much money at such a young age should already be enough."

Another voice chimed in with a hint of jealousy. "Exactly. I heard she bought her old apartment with her own money. That kind of income at her age... it’s already very rare."

But instead of sounding impressed, the group continued speaking with more sarcasm.

"Now she even bought that expensive duplex on the twentieth floor," someone added. "I bet she took a huge loan for it."

Another man nodded immediately. "Of course she did. And now she’s buying so many goods. Once that so called business fails, she’ll probably go bankrupt."

A few of them chuckled in agreement.

"Honestly," one of the older men said loudly, "she should just find a good husband while she still can. Quit that job and settle down as a housewife. That’s what women should be doing anyway."

Several people nearby nodded as if that was the most obvious truth in the world.

She stood there quietly for a moment, listening.

At first, what caught her attention was not their gossip but the information hidden inside their conversation.

So Bai Li had purchased several trucks of supplies today.

That detail immediately connected with what she had already suspected earlier.

Preparing supplies.

Stockpiling resources.

Buying large quantities of goods before any sign of disaster appeared.

The conclusion formed almost instantly in her mind.

Bai Li knew.

She knew about the coming apocalypse.

That realization made her eyes narrow slightly with interest.

If that was true, then Bai Li was far more mysterious than she had originally assumed. Someone who could predict the end of the world and begin preparing before anyone else... such a person could not possibly be ordinary.

Her curiosity about Bai Li deepened even further.

But as the group of men continued their gossip, the tone of their voices gradually became harsher and more unpleasant. The jealousy in their words was obvious, and the way they spoke about her was filled with mockery and contempt.

For some reason, hearing them talk like that made a faint trace of annoyance appear in her calm eyes.

It was a small feeling, almost insignificant, but it was there.

She did not stop walking.

As she passed by them quietly, her slender fingers moved almost imperceptibly.

From the tips of her fingers, a tiny blue wisp slipped out silently, so small and subtle that no one around her noticed anything unusual. The faint wisp drifted gently through the air like a thread of smoke before reaching the group of men.

Then it split into several smaller strands.

Each strand quietly attached itself to one of their heads.

None of them felt anything.

None of them noticed.

But within the next day or two, each of them would suddenly experience an unfortunate accident. A broken arm. A twisted leg. A fall that seemed strangely unlucky.

As for why such accidents would happen, they would have plenty of time to think about it later.

After releasing the small wisp, she continued walking as if nothing had happened at all.

Her expression remained calm and indifferent as she entered the building lobby and headed toward the elevator.

A moment later, the elevator doors opened, and she stepped inside quietly as the doors slowly closed behind her.

..

..

When Yan Cijin returned to the apartment that evening, the corridor outside her door was quiet as usual. The lights along the hallway were warm and soft, casting a gentle glow over the polished floor. She took out her key and unlocked the door, but the moment it opened, a small pink blur rushed toward her.

A chubby little dumpling ran across the living room as fast as her tiny legs could carry her and immediately wrapped her arms around Yan Cijin’s leg.

"Mommy! You’re finally back!" the little girl complained with a soft pout. "Why did you come home so late today?"

Yan Cijin lowered her eyes and looked down at the little figure clinging to her leg. The tiredness from a long day at the hospital faded slightly the moment she saw her.

"Mommy had work today," she said gently as she closed the door behind her and slipped off her shoes. "Did LiLi behave well at home and listen to Grandma?"

She bent down and lifted the little dumpling into her arms with practiced ease.

The little girl was wearing a pair of pink kitten pajamas. The hood had two small round ears on top, making her look like an especially chubby little kitten that had somehow learned to walk on two legs. Her cheeks were round and rosy, and her big eyes sparkled with excitement the moment she was picked up.

Yan LiLi happily buried her little face into Yan Cijin’s shoulder and rubbed her head against her like a spoiled kitten.

"LiLi was very good today," the little girl said proudly in a soft childish voice. "LiLi helped Grandma water the plants and watched cartoons quietly."

Then she suddenly lifted her head and looked at Yan Cijin expectantly.

"Mommy, did you bring candy?"

Yan Cijin could not help but smile faintly.

She reached out and gently tapped the little dumpling’s forehead with her finger.

"Didn’t Mommy already tell you?" she said with mock seriousness. "You can’t eat too much candy every day, or your little teeth will turn black."

The little girl immediately froze.

Her big eyes widened dramatically as if she had just heard something extremely frightening.

"Black... teeth?" she whispered.

Yan Cijin nodded very seriously.

"Yes. Completely black. Like little coal."

The little dumpling gasped softly and quickly covered her mouth with both hands, clearly imagining the terrible scene.

She hesitated for a moment before whispering again in a conflicted voice.

"But... LiLi still wants candy."

The small face scrunched up with visible struggle.

Seeing the adorable expression, Yan Cijin could not help letting out a quiet laugh.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a small wrapped candy. It was strawberry flavored, bright pink under the thin plastic wrapper.

The moment the little girl saw it, her eyes lit up like stars.

Yan Cijin slowly unwrapped the candy while speaking calmly.

"You can eat one," she said. "Only one. If you eat more, your little teeth really won’t be able to handle it."

The little dumpling nodded vigorously before the sentence even finished.

"Yes yes yes! Only one!"

Yan Cijin placed the candy into her small waiting hand.

"Thank you Mommy!" the little girl cheered happily before quickly popping the candy into her mouth.

Her cheeks puffed up slightly as she sucked on the sweet treat, her eyes squinting with satisfaction.

Watching the little dumpling enjoy such a simple piece of candy made Yan Cijin’s expression soften slightly.

In every timeline she had lived through, there were only two people who truly mattered to her.

This little dumpling in her arms.

And her mother.

No matter how cruel the world became, no matter how many times fate tried to crush her, those two were the reason she kept fighting. The reason she refused to give up even when everything else collapsed.

.

.

.

To be continued.

Thanks for reading my dear readers >••<

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