Sorry, I can't possibly finish writing this on time. Everyone please come back tomorrow afternoon.
These past few days, I've been writing until dawn, nodding off as I wrote, my mind completely unfocused.
Today, I only got a chance to write after it got dark. I even realized I'd gotten the word count wrong at the end of yesterday's (before 7 AM today) writing.
I can't continue writing in this state of being awake day and night.
Today, I'll be posting three chapters of old, discarded drafts to fill today's quota. You don't need to read them.
I'll make up for it tomorrow with the proper chapters.
2022.11.14
(The following are all old drafts)
"My water! My food!"
"Who is it? Which scoundrel stole my water and food?"
On July 29th, in the early morning, a desperate cry came from the 17th floor.
Then, the entire building descended into chaos.
Tang Li woke up, removed her earplugs, and realized that besides the rumbling thunder outside her window, there were also banging and… no, smashing sounds coming from her door.
"Open the door!"
"You little slut! Why aren't you opening the door?"
"Are you feeling guilty? You must have stolen our supplies!"
At the same time, another voice Tang Li was already very familiar with could be heard – it was the angry scolding of Aunt Li Guilan.
Tang Li frowned upon hearing this.
As the saying goes, there's a limit to everything.
This aunt had been bothering her repeatedly.
If she didn't show some response, wouldn't that make her seem too easy to bully?
Tang Li collected the basins of ice water in the room into her spatial dimension, changed into clothes suitable for movement, and then left the bedroom.
As soon as she stepped out, she retorted, "What are you howling about? Wailing here so early in the morning? You're not even as loud as the thunder!"
Tang Li's words caused a brief silence outside the door.
Then, Li Guilan's wailing voice came again.
"We only had that little bit of water and food left, how could you have stolen it all?"
"How could you not leave any for us? You should have at least left us a little!"
"You heartless wretch! Aren't you trying to kill us?"
Tang Li looked through the peephole and saw only Li Guilan crying and wailing outside the door.
Seeing that there was no one else this time, Tang Li decided to open the door and teach her a lesson.
Just then, a voice came from the hallway, asking, "What's going on? What's happening? Have you found the thief who stole our supplies?"
Li Guilan pointed at Tang Li's apartment door, crying with a runny nose and tears streaming down her face, and adamantly declared, "It's her! It's her! It's her! She stole our supplies!"
Soon, a crowd gathered outside Tang Li's door.
They were all residents from the lower floors of the 17th level, the same people who had caused trouble for Tang Li's family in her previous life.
The fear of the rescue team not arriving in time, the tension of not having enough water and food, and the anger of having their supplies stolen had made them lose their reason.
Incited by Li Guilan, they began to curse Tang Li indiscriminately, banging on her door and demanding she hand over the supplies.
Fortunately, Tang Li's door was sturdy enough to prevent them from breaking in.
Although Tang Li didn't quite understand why these people had gathered in front of her door, she knew that such an incensed crowd was terrifying and wouldn't listen to reason.
Moreover, after living in the apocalypse for so long, Tang Li had no habit of reasoning with people.
Taking out her Yanling saber, she was just about to open the door and hack Li Guilan a few times to calm everyone else down when she heard Zhang Yan's voice from outside the door.
"What are you all doing? Instead of looking for supplies, why are you bothering a young girl?"
As soon as Zhang Yan finished speaking, the others began to explain volubly.
Only then did Tang Li understand. It turned out that this morning, the residents of the lower floors on the 17th level had woken up to find that all their remaining meager supplies were gone, and they were looking for the thief everywhere.
As a result, Li Guilan had confidently claimed that she was the one who stole their supplies, which instantly ignited their fury, leading them to gather agitatedly in front of her door.
Zhang Yan asked Li Guilan, "How do you know it was the young girl who stole our supplies?"
To this, Li Guilan did not answer directly but retorted, "Old Zhang, why are you protecting this little slut so much? Are you in on it together?"
Hearing Li Guilan's words, the way others looked at Zhang Yan immediately changed.
Tang Li also realized that there was something wrong with Li Guilan!
She immediately had an idea.
Zhang Yan was silent for a moment, then said to Tang Li, "Young girl, I believe you didn't steal our supplies."
"But to make the others here believe it, could you open the door and let us take a look? If our supplies aren't in your house, we'll leave immediately and won't bother you again. What do you say?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Li sneered, "Do I look... that easy to fool?"