My Courtyard Shelter

Chapter 7: Stockpiling Food

As the saying goes, money makes the world go round! Spurred on by the financial incentive, the renovation of the Siheyuan was officially completed in less than a week. Xu Dong brought in an industry professional to inspect the work, and the results were quite good—it really is true that you get what you pay for. In the inspector’s own words: “If it’s properly maintained, it’ll last a hundred years without a problem.” Xu Dong spent a total of approximately 3. 56 million yuan on this renovation. If you add the 100 million yuan spent on purchasing the Siheyuan and the various loans he had previously repaid, Xu Dong now has roughly 60 million yuan left. Of this 60 million yuan, the majority will be used to stockpile various supplies. Xu Dong’s first priority is stockpiling food, including staple grains and non-staple foods. Based on his experience from his previous life, once the massive solar flare subsided, the world would soon face an unprecedented drought with no end in sight. At that time, food would become a strategic resource for every country, second only to freshwater. From a certain perspective, food might even be more important than freshwater resources. This is because as long as the oceans have not completely dried up, freshwater resources will continue to flow—it is merely a matter of cost. Food, on the other hand, is grown from the ground, and with so many unforeseen factors, no one can guarantee the yield. To facilitate procurement, Xu Dong specifically took over a small supermarket on the verge of bankruptcy through an intermediary, using it solely as a cover. After all, some procurement requires specific qualifications and channels—ordinary people simply cannot get involved. Everything is ready! Xu Dong quickly placed his first order with a supplier: 30 metric tons of dehydrated rice in the husk. Half was Northeast rice and half was Simiao rice, and he specified that deoxidizers be added and the rice be sealed in airtight packaging. The sole purpose of these strict requirements was to extend the rice’s shelf life; theoretically, if stored properly, it could last as long as thirty or forty years. To attract suppliers, Xu Dong had to raise the purchase price of the rice by a full 20 percent; only then were sellers willing to accept the order. After all, 30 metric tons of rice is a considerable amount—enough to feed a family of ten for thirty years; but it’s also not a large enough quantity to convince major manufacturers to alter their production lines—the volume is too small, making it not worth the effort. Only some small manufacturers were willing to give it a try—provided they were paid extra. After placing the order for rice, Xu Dong immediately placed another order for 10 metric tons of wheat, with the same requirements: to be dried, treated with a deoxidizer, and sealed. Although Wanzhou is a transitional region between the north and south, Luyang is definitely a southern city, where rice remains the staple food for the common people—and the Xu Dong family is, of course, no exception. Wheat was used only for breakfast or to add some variety to their diet—and, of course, dumplings were definitely the best choice. After placing these two orders and arranging the delivery times, Xu Dong didn’t place any more orders. He had been in Yanjing on a “business trip” for a week already and was starting to miss home—especially his children. Besides, he really needed to go home and check in on them, so his family wouldn’t worry. Happy times are always short-lived… Five days flew by in the blink of an eye, and Xu Dong returned to Yanjing once again, as the rice and wheat were about to arrive. At 11:00 p. m. , Xu Dong received a call from the logistics Company—the delivery fleet had finally arrived. There happened to be a square measuring over 500 square meters right next to the Siheyuan, and under Xu Dong’s guidance, the three large trucks parked neatly in the square. After completing the handover procedures, Xu Dong signaled the porters to begin unloading the cargo. The porters were part-timers he’d found online in advance—a total of 20 people, paid by the hour. Since it was heavy physical labor, they were paid 70 yuan per person per hour. Two hours later, all 30 metric tons of rice had been transported into the courtyard of the Siheyuan. Thankfully, they had purchased three electric forklifts in advance; otherwise, the job would have taken until dawn to complete. Early the next morning, 10 metric tons of wheat also arrived. This time, four small trucks made the delivery, and Xu Dong had the drivers park right in front of the main gate. This time it didn’t take long—the ten workers finished in less than an hour. Seeing how efficiently everyone worked, Xu Dong gave each of them 100 yuan on the spot. To maintain secrecy, over the next week, Xu Dong, working with the diligence of ants, moved a total of 40 metric tons of staple grain into the second basement level. The temperature on the second basement level was slightly lower than on the first basement level, making it more suitable for storing grain. Although 40 metric tons might seem like a lot, it actually only took up about one-fifth of the shelving space. The entire warehouse still needed more goods to fill it up, and Xu Dong was filled with anticipation at the thought. After stockpiling the staple grains, the next step was to stock up on various other grains, including corn. For many people in southern China, corn is also considered a secondary grain and is rarely eaten as a staple food in daily life. This time, Xu Dong didn’t contact suppliers; instead, he placed an order directly on an e-commerce site, since the quantity needed wasn’t as substantial as that for staple grains. Among these, soybeans were purchased in the largest quantity—a full 2 metric tons. These soybeans are mainly used to make soy milk and tofu, which are favorites among both adults and children. Next came millet, barley, oats, mung beans, black beans, peas, lotus seeds, and corn; Xu Dong purchased 1 metric ton of each, enough to feed the entire family for many years. All of these beans and grains are ideal for long-term storage; they simply need to be kept in a dry, airtight container and will generally remain fresh for three to five decades. In addition, for grains with shorter shelf lives—such as sesame seeds, peanuts, Job’s tears, and chestnuts—Xu Dong purchased 200 kilograms of each, enough to last a few years. In any case, once they’re gone, he can always buy more on the black market. Even if they can’t be bought, it doesn’t matter—going without won’t make anyone any thinner. Speaking of meat, fresh meat is out of the question; by then, he’ll just have to try his luck on the black market. Xu Dong planned to buy a batch of cured pork and Jinhua ham; if stored in airtight containers, these two foods should last for several years. Xu Dong picked a very well-known seller on an online shopping platform and bought up their entire inventory—a total of over 4,000 kilograms. Because of the large quantity, the seller gave him a 20% discount, but even so, it cost him over 1. 5 million. Unwilling to give up, Xu Dong searched online and finally found a meat-based food product with a sufficiently long shelf life. This is an emergency food item that’s very popular across the ocean; it uses freeze-drying technology and has a shelf life of up to 30 years. Even more amazing is that this emergency food offers a wide variety of ingredients and can be prepared as ready-to-eat meals, with vegetables, meat, and noodles all serving as ingredients. It’s said to taste quite good as well; even after decades, it retains most of its flavor and nutritional value, and was developed specifically for “post-apocalyptic survival.” However, it’s also quite expensive—a single 100-gram package of this emergency food costs the equivalent of about 70 Daxia yuan. Xu Dong was flush with cash at the time, so he was certainly willing to spend the money. Through a distributor, he purchased 100,000 packets of emergency rations in one go—in a variety of flavors—and, including shipping costs, ended up paying a total of 7. 2 million yuan. The only problem was that this shipment wouldn’t arrive until August—after all, the two countries were separated by the Pacific Ocean.