Chapter 4

Liam was incredibly dedicated to my cause.

In just ten days, he completed the bunker renovation.

Next up was stocking the bunker with equipment.

In the deep freeze apocalypse, most areas would experience power outages.

I bought three generators: a diesel generator – portable, providing stable power, but requiring regular maintenance and fuel; a solar generator – converting sunlight into electricity, no harmful emissions, no diesel consumption, but with obvious drawbacks like being weather-dependent and unusable at night.

And a pedal-powered generator – its advantage was needing only human power, but it generated minimal electricity.

So, the diesel generator was the most crucial.

I purchased a massive amount of diesel, enough for three months. The bunker was the best place to store it.

With the power issue resolved, the remaining concerns were food and water.

I started by buying essential appliances like a stir-fry pan and an electric rice cooker, trying to minimize electricity-consuming products to avoid excessive power usage.

I stocked a hundred pounds of grains, flour, and cooking oil, and hundreds of boxes of instant ramen in various flavors.

As for water, I decided to buy a water purifier. In the deep freeze apocalypse, the outside would be a vast frozen wasteland, so water itself wouldn’t be scarce.

Firstly, pure water bottles took up too much space. Secondly, the saved space could be used for a hydroponic vegetable growing area.

Self-sufficiency, no need for refrigerator space, no wasted electricity.

I bought seeds for cabbage, spinach, coriander, tomatoes, and bok choy.

For meat, I could only buy large quantities of military-grade MREs, enough to last me three months.

Other items included my favorite snacks and daily necessities.

The food problem for the deep freeze apocalypse was solved; next, clothing.

I purchased down jackets and snow boots costing over ten thousand dollars, advertised as being suitable for the South Pole.

Then, medicine.

Especially vitamin tablets.

In an apocalypse, if people don’t eat fruit for extended periods, they’ll lack vitamins and develop scurvy.

If left untreated, it could lead to fever, swelling, paralysis, and death.

Living alone in the bunker, I absolutely couldn’t afford to get sick.

After all this, the weather grew increasingly cold.

My mother-in-law often nagged me.

“Running out all day, who’s going to take care of your best friend with her big belly? Are you expecting me, an old woman, to do it?!”

I bit my tongue, quietly cooking for the three of them.

Seraphina sat on the couch watching TV, acting more like the lady of the house than I did.

“I want some fruit. Can you make me a pretty fruit platter? I’ll only feel better if it looks nice.”

My gaze turned cold.

“The apples on the table are already washed. You can eat them directly.”

Seraphina glanced at Brandon, seeming eager to reveal their secret.

Last night, I'd secretly checked Brandon’s phone and saw the advice he’d given her.

*“My mom said not to tell her about us yet. Just treat her like a free maid. If she ever refuses to work, just use emotional blackmail.”*

Seraphina immediately looked tearful and wronged.

“Chloe, you’re the one who asked me to live here. Are you regretting it now? It’s normal for a pregnant woman to crave things.”

At this, my mother-in-law also stepped forward.

“Exactly! You were the one who said you wanted Seraphina to move in. My son and I, the homeowners, have no complaints, so why are you suddenly getting emotional?”

Hah, I had said she could live next door. Moving her in here was *your* idea.

If I had known the baby in Seraphina’s belly was Brandon’s,

I wouldn’t have cared if she lived or died.

I smiled.

“Alright, please wait. I’ll go make the fruit platter now.”

The temperature dropped lower and lower. Everyone thought this year’s cold snap came earlier than usual.

Before a disaster, there’s always an eerie calm. Humans don’t feel it.