My Courtyard Shelter

Chapter 14: Filling in the Gaps

After New Year’s Day, the calendar officially turned to 2022, and the world entered a new chapter. Right at the start of the year, Daxia suffered a major “setback”: trade negotiations between the country and its counterpart across the ocean ultimately concluded hastily with Daxia making voluntary concessions. According to the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two countries, Daxia pledged to increase imports of the other party’s goods and services by at least 2 trillion yuan. Particularly regarding agricultural products, Daxia once again signed a massive procurement contract worth approximately 70 billion yuan. Throughout 2021, Daxia had already imported approximately 400 billion yuan worth of agricultural products from across the ocean. In other words, in just over a year, Daxia imported a total of approximately 4,700 yuan worth of agricultural products from across the ocean, amounting to nearly 300 million metric tons. Of that total, soybeans alone accounted for over 40 million metric tons, virtually clearing the other side’s entire historical inventory in one go. Just as the monopolistic giants across the ocean were rejoicing, Xu Dong couldn’t help but smile knowingly. What a generous people!!! As someone who had been reborn, he was deeply moved by the generosity shown by the other side of the ocean. In his previous life, had the other side not frantically pressured Daxia to purchase their domestic agricultural products, the difficulties Daxia faced would likely have increased tenfold—or even more. After all, Daxia has a large population, and the pressure to secure food supplies is far greater than in many other countries. Unintentionally, the competitors across the ocean had done Daxia a huge favor—it would not be an exaggeration to describe it as “help in time of need.” In contrast, the equally populous India disintegrated in the second year following the Great Catastrophe; from then on, its various states plunged into civil war, and fewer than one in a hundred of its people survived. After reading this news, Xu Dong scrolled through the comments section, which, as expected, was filled with cries of despair. Topping the list of most-liked comments was this one: “Everyone, remember: Summer Grain Brand: Huilinmen Summer reserve grain brand: Tieding Please prioritize purchasing state-owned and national brands when prices are reasonable. If they’re not available locally, buy them online—for the sake of the country and for ourselves. [Strive][Strive][Strive]” The number of “likes” on the comment actually broke the 10-million mark. To be honest, Xu Dong was a bit stunned. His previous life had been miserable and painful, filling him with resentment toward society as a whole and causing him to overlook many of the beautiful aspects of human nature. Life must go on. Putting national affairs aside for the moment, Xu Dong planned to conduct a comprehensive data analysis of the entire warehouse. The inventory had two purposes: first, to get a clear picture of the situation, and second, to identify gaps and address them. After a day and a night of recording, compiling, and analyzing the data, Xu Dong finally identified several overlooked supplies and areas where preparations were insufficient. First, he hadn’t given enough thought to energy needs; he hadn’t considered how to cook when electricity wasn’t available. This was no small matter—with three young children at home, they simply couldn’t eat cold food. The solution was simple: Xu Dong specifically bought several alcohol stoves and stockpiled 3,000 kilograms of solid alcohol—a full three large barrels. Sun flares can damage electrical equipment, but they certainly won’t affect the combustion of alcohol. Second, while he stocked up on common medications, he forgot to buy vitamin tablets—not health supplements, but the kind purchased at a pharmacy for a few yuan a bottle. If fruits and vegetables are stored for too long, they lose a significant amount of vitamin C. A lack of vitamin C in the human body can lead to a weakened immune system and, ultimately, illness. The solution to this was even simpler: Xu Dong simply bought a large supply of vitamin tablets from the pharmacy right down the street. Third, there was the issue of drinking water. In the future, drinking water will primarily come from desalination plants and groundwater, with a small portion coming from wastewater treatment plants. At that time, in order to provide sufficient freshwater resources, the government’s water quality standards may not be as strict. Therefore, Xu Dong needed to get his own water purifier to avoid drinking contaminated water. This problem was just as easy to solve: Xu Dong simply bought ten water dispensers online, along with over a hundred cases of spare filter cartridges—enough to last more than a decade. Fourth, he was still missing a dog and a cat. After the Great Catastrophe, although public safety in Daxia was generally acceptable, petty theft would become increasingly common, and the crime rate for violent offenses would skyrocket, so caution was essential. Although his Siheyuan has a comprehensive security system, it cannot guarantee 100% safety; having several guard dogs provides an extra layer of protection. As for the cat, it’s mainly for rodent control. In the early stages of the drought, the rat infestation will be severe—until starving people eat all the rats. In fact, factories dedicated to raising rats for meat eventually emerged—after all, rats have a short growth cycle, aren’t picky eaters, and are inexpensive to raise. On the other hand, cats and dogs can also become good friends to children, helping to foster compassion. One weekend, Xu Dong took the Ke Ke sisters to a pet market. After some deliberation, and with his final approval, they bought a half-grown wolfdog and a “secondhand” tabby cat that had just reached adulthood. The reason they chose these pets was simple: they’re strong hunters, easy to care for, and not picky eaters. You can’t very well have to stockpile a decade’s worth of dog food just to keep a dog, can you? As for the issue of not being able to obtain a dog license for a large breed, the solution is simple: just put it off—by the time the new year rolls around, it won’t be a problem anymore. Back home, Xu Dong ordered a wooden doghouse and a cat bed online; for the time being, they’d make do with cardboard boxes. Ke Ke named the wolfdog “Buck”—probably something she picked up from TV. Le Le was given the honor of naming the tabby cat and chose “Hua Hua”—probably because the cat has so many patterns on its fur. By the way, both Buck and Hua Hua are male. Now, back to the main topic. There was one final omission on the supply list—and it was the one thing that absolutely should not have been left out: face masks. First, to protect against sandstorms. As droughts continue to worsen in the future, sandstorms will become increasingly severe, making face masks an absolute daily necessity. Second, to protect against major flu outbreaks. In my previous life, Luyang experienced several waves of the flu. Although the flu’s fatality rate is low, it causes immense harm to infants and young children, making masks even more indispensable in such situations. A good disposable mask can last up to three to five years. With a wave of his hand, Xu Dong ordered a hundred boxes online. One hundred boxes would be enough to last five or six years. Once this batch of masks was used up or expired, he could always buy more at the hospital—just because they’re hard to find doesn’t mean they’re impossible to get. A week later, all the items ordered online had arrived. With that, the final version of Xu Dong’s stockpile list was finally complete. According to the statistics, the current warehouse inventory is as follows: Granulated sugar: approximately 1,000 metric tons Emergency food supplies: 100,000 packages Rice: 30 metric tons Miscellaneous grains/local specialties: approximately 48 metric tons Wheat: 10 metric tons Dehydrated vegetables: 100 boxes Alcoholic beverages: Over 3,700 cases (23,000 bottles) Cigarettes: approximately 50 cases (2,500 packs) Tea bricks: 50 boxes (1,000 kilograms) Cooking oil: 100 barrels (5-liter containers) Meat products: Over 6,500 kilograms Dairy products: Over 50 cases Condiments: 128 cases Snacks: Over 1,260 boxes Canned goods: Over 1,250 cases Beverages: 530 cases (including bottled water) Infant formula: 100 boxes (600 cans) ----------Children’s formula: 30 boxes (180 cans) ----------50 boxes of adult formula (300 cans) Honey: 70 boxes (514 bottles) Clothing: Approximately 710 sets Household appliances: Over 450 items Electronic devices: Over 330 units Denatured alcohol: 3,000 kilograms Kitchen and bathroom supplies: approximately 290 boxes Spare parts: Over 350 boxes Face masks: 100 boxes Medicines: Various Xu Dong saved this list on his computer, feeling a bit wistful. He hoped that his future life would truly turn out the way he envisioned.