Chapter Thirteen: Jiang Huan's Request

Wu Gang asserted himself forcefully, not bothering to consult anyone else. Now was not the time to listen to opinions.

"First, no matter how things are arranged later, everything above the fifteenth floor belongs to me."

Wu Gang agreed immediately—it wasn't his building anyway. Still, he was considering taking a few floors below the fifteenth for himself.

Questions arose from the crowd, asking on what grounds, but when it came time to pinpoint the source, everyone shrank back like quails, and no one could be identified as the one who spoke.

Jiang Huan paid no mind to such timid souls and continued with her second demand. "My only aim is survival. If anyone tries to make trouble for me, I won't let it slide. Mr. Wu, I might go out to find supplies in the future. Whatever I find, ninety percent is mine. One floor’s worth goes to you as a management fee. After all, it’s not easy to oversee everything in this freezing weather. I acknowledge you as the manager. Of course, if there’s anything in the complex that interests me, I’m open to discussion."

Wu Gang nodded immediately, suppressing his excitement and even speaking up for Jiang Huan. "Miss Jiang was pushed to the brink. She was fine on the twentieth floor, never bothered anyone below, and held no grudges against anyone here. Yet everyone believed Lin Lili’s words without question—that’s unreasonable. Well, that settles it. From now on, don’t go above the fifteenth floor. If it happens again, I can’t guarantee I’ll always be there."

His words were directed mainly at Lin Lili, who dared not retort, her teeth chattering in fear.

Jiang Huan released her, casually cutting off half her hair. Lin Lili’s knees buckled and she fell, clutching her head. The floor beneath was bitterly cold, and a student remarked that she had wet herself. The crowd immediately stepped back several paces.

Expressionless, Jiang Huan burned the hair, then turned to the crowd with a slight smile. "I’m not a monster; I just want to live in peace. I welcome normal interaction with everyone."

She took the opportunity to explain her knives. "Before the freeze, I was an adventure blogger. I’ve encountered plenty of dangerous things deep in the mountains. Maybe it seems extreme to you, but surviving such wilderness required certain methods—I hope you understand. In short, I won’t harm anyone unless they harm me."

The crowd fell silent for a moment, until someone stepped forward.

"That’s nothing. As long as you’re not foul-mouthed or malicious, I don’t believe you’d cut someone without reason. I trust this young lady—she helped my family carry buckets upstairs for snow earlier. A bad person wouldn’t do that. Miss, I’m Wang Ping, and my wife is Liu Ling."

Seeing it was Liu Ling’s husband, Jiang Huan relaxed and shook his hand.

"I’m Jiang Huan. Is Sister Liu Ling too tired to come downstairs?"

Wang Ping showed a hint of bitterness. "She caught a cold from the wind. I was going to trade some firewood for cold medicine upstairs. I’ll head off now—come visit us when you have time."

They were a cheerful couple; Jiang Huan had a good impression of them so far. "My brother caught a cold recently, so I have a few sachets of medicine in my backpack. I’ll give you some later."

"Really? Thank you, thank you! You probably don’t need firewood right now, so I’ll trade you instant noodles instead."

"That works."

Jiang Huan nodded to Wu Gang, signaling she was heading upstairs—a subtle hint to hand over what was hers.

Wu Gang, now demoted to an assistant manager, quickly organized a hundred pounds of firewood. Wang Ping, sensing the moment, helped carry half of it, and together they headed up.

The crowd erupted in discussion—some thought Jiang Huan was dangerous, others believed Lin Lili had it coming.

Wu Gang clapped his hands, signaling for quiet. "That’s how it is. Jiang Huan is an adventure blogger, so her survival skills are better than most. She’s proactive, alert, and befriending her can only be beneficial. If she goes out for supplies and you tag along, isn’t it safer than going alone?"

Seeing the crowd waver, Wu Gang pressed his advantage. "I’m planning to organize a team to go out, and I was going to ask Jiang Huan to join us. Opportunities like this won’t come often. If you want to go out for supplies together, come sign up with me. When the time is right, I’ll announce it downstairs."

People hesitated only briefly, ignoring Lin Lili’s cries and crossing over her to sign up with Wu Gang.

At the same time, the notion of Wu Gang as the leader and Jiang Huan as someone not to be trifled with was firmly established in everyone’s minds.

On the twentieth floor, Wang Ping, panting and barely able to stand, set down the firewood and leaned against the wall.

Carrying more than half the load up twenty floors—even as a northerner, he couldn’t endure it.

Jiang Huan didn’t rush to sort the firewood. She closed the door upon entering, waited a minute, then brought out several sachets of medicine for Wang Ping. "Quick, take this to Sister Liu Ling. I’ll handle the firewood myself."

"Thank you, little sister. I’ll bring the instant noodles up later." Wang Ping grabbed the medicine and hurried downstairs.

When he reached his wife, she was indeed feeling worse—her cheeks flushed, hands and feet icy. He quickly boiled water for the medicine.

The mildly sweet drink warmed her, and Liu Ling recovered noticeably.

Learning the medicine came from Jiang Huan, she insisted they couldn’t take advantage of her.

"Instant noodles aren’t enough—what about the thermal blankets…"

She bit her lip. "Let’s give her two. She has a younger brother, after all."

Giving two out of five seemed a bit much.

"But with her skills and the rapport she’s built with Wu Gang, aren’t you worried you’ll miss out on soup behind her? Besides, I liked her from the start—not someone who complains or fusses. Today proved I wasn’t wrong; she’s quiet but gets things done. I’ll treat her as a younger sister and help her out."

Wang Ping shook his head—at a time like this, his wife still wanted to adopt a sister. But she was right; Jiang Huan was no ordinary person. So he got up, took two unused thermal blankets, and went upstairs.

Knowing Jiang Huan valued her privacy, Wang Ping only knocked, waited for movement, then stepped back without peering inside. When Jiang Huan came out, he pointed to the blankets on the floor. "Sister Liu insisted on giving these to you. Take them—I’m heading back down."

He turned and left.

Jiang Huan brought the blankets inside and tossed them on the sofa—not out of disdain, but because for her and her brother, they were just barely useful, so no need to store them carefully.

Yet the blankets inspired her. If she wanted to avoid frequent supply runs, she needed a steady source.

She split the firewood with her knife into pieces suitable for burning, stacked them in a corner, covered them with a moisture-proof mat, and opened the map to study the area.

Before the last freeze, she’d pulled off a daring heist, but it was impossible to clear out all the shops in a city in a few hours. Her main target was the port’s shipping containers, with a few stores swept along the way. To acquire supplies openly, she’d need to go out again.

"Here, here—three small gas stations. Taking this route, I can also check the cold storage. The canned food factory is on this main road as well…"

Jiang Huan studied the map carefully, plotting her course.