Chapter 30: The Perfect Backup
Lin Cainin continued, "We have five packs of crispy noodles and three packs of instant noodles left. There's half a jar of Lao Gan Ma (Translator Notes: A famous chili source in China) in the kitchen, but the mantou and noodles are long gone."
Fang Yuqing clutched her head in anguish.
"Crispy noodles! Crispy noodles! That stuff doesn't fill us up at all!"
Lin Cainin stared at her, "Yuqing, the situation outside is getting worse. Do you think this snowstorm will ever stop?"
Fang Yuqing froze for a moment, then turned her head to look out the window.
Through the ice-covered glass, she could faintly see the snowflakes continuously falling from the sky.
It had been snowing for ten days without a moment of respite.
The second floor was completely buried, making it impossible to go outside.
Fang Yuqing's heart sank to the depths of despair.
She had no idea how long this snowstorm would last.
Or if it would ever end.
Covering her eyes, Fang Yuqing cried in pain, "Lin, what should we do? If this continues, we will starve to death."
Lin Cainin gritted her teeth and asked, "Does Zhou Peng have any food left?"
Fang Yuqing shook her head, "I've asked him several times, even pretended to befriend him. But he’s completely drained, not a crumb left."
"The last time he brought me two packs of instant noodles, that was his final stash. Now he's as skinny as a skeleton. He definitely doesn't have any more food."
Lin Cainin clenched her fists in frustration, "Is there anyone else we can try?"
"Look, we're both beautiful. If we make a move, there will definitely be men willing to help us."
Fang Yuqing glanced at her, annoyed, "Are you stupid? Everyone treats their supplies as their lifeline now."
"Even if they are attracted to us, they won't easily give up their supplies."
"And with the weather so cold, even if we offered ourselves to them, they’d be too frozen to do anything."
As she spoke, a flash of pain crossed Fang Yuqing's eyes.
Lin Cainin didn’t know that Fang Yuqing had already tried this method.
She had hoped to use her beauty to trade with men for supplies.
But her standards were too high.
She wanted someone at least 1.85 meters tall, a civil servant, and earning 50,000 yuan a month before she would consider sleeping with them.
Even the sixty-year-old grandpa next door said, "You're too late. If you'd come half a month earlier, I might have been able to rise to the occasion."
Lin Cainin bit her lip, deeply afraid.
As a woman with some beauty, she had planned to use her looks as her last resort for survival.
But the cold had turned out to be an excellent deterrent against such plans.
Suddenly, an image of a man flashed in her mind.
She said to Fang Yuqing, "Yuqing, did you forget you have another simp?"
Fang Yuqing knew exactly who Lin Cainin was talking about.
She pursed her lips stubbornly, "Hmph, that disgusting man. Unless he comes and begs for my forgiveness, I will never contact him first!"
She had approached Zhang Yi several times, intending to give him a chance to bring her supplies and win her favor.
But Zhang Yi’s cold attitude, even sending her pictures to provoke her, had left her furious.
She vowed to make Zhang Yi come and grovel at her feet.
If she contacted him now, it would ruin her image as a cool, aloof goddess.
No, for Fang Yuqing, this was absolutely unacceptable!
Her image had to be maintained, or how would she ever attract a wealthy heir suitor?
Lin Cainin reminded her, "Did you forget? Zhang Yi stocked up a lot of food before. Even after a month, he must have more than the average household."
"If you go to him, he'll definitely agree to give you supplies."
Hearing about the food, Fang Yuqing felt tempted.
But she hesitated, "But when I asked him before, he was so cold."
Lin Cainin said, "You're so naive! He probably thinks he doesn't deserve you and wants to give up. After all, you’ve been pretty cold to him lately."
Fang Yuqing immediately got excited.
"Well, that's his own fault! He’s just a nobody, pretending to be a wealthy heir. I wasted so much affection on him for nothing!"
Lin Cainin grinned, "But he’s a perfect backup, isn’t he? A backup is meant to be used when needed."
"Just give him a little smile, rekindle his hope, and then he’ll give you whatever you want."
Fang Yuqing nodded, feeling her heart waver.
She decided to try contacting Zhang Yi again, this time using all her charm to get what she needed to survive.