Really Not Tasty

Ming Jiu wasn't sure how well City B could handle a sudden plunge in temperature and a blizzard. In her previous life, after G Province was suddenly hit by heavy snow and freezing temperatures, the city's power grid hadn't even lasted twelve hours.

And repairs had been extremely difficult. It was no exaggeration to say that large-scale power supply had only barely been restored after G Province established an official base, and the user experience had been on par with India.

Just in case, it would be better to modify the electrical wiring in advance. A dual-power transfer switch could solve the problem perfectly.

After modifying the wiring, Ming Jiu tested it—it worked perfectly.

Then she turned her attention to the heating in the house.

She shut off the radiator valves, drained the hot water from the radiators, took out the oil-filled electric heaters, and turned on the air conditioning's heating mode to maintain the temperature indoors.

City B's authorities might still be able to struggle with the power supply, but once temperatures dropped to minus thirty degrees Celsius, City B's heating would definitely stop working.

City B wasn't like the northeastern regions. Winter temperatures of minus forty or fifty degrees Celsius were normal there, and the cities' infrastructure had fully accounted for low temperatures from the very beginning, with heating pipes buried deep underground.

She remembered that City B's heating pipes were only one or two meters underground. They wouldn't even withstand the initial minus-thirty-degree cold, let alone the even more extreme temperatures to come.

With blizzards piling up and the ground frozen solid, repairs would be out of the question.

Finally, Ming Jiu found indoor and outdoor thermometers and installed them outside the master bedroom window and indoors respectively.

The indoor temperature was twenty-eight degrees Celsius, while outside it was minus sixteen.

After finishing up at home, Ming Jiu changed into thick clothes and headed over to 602. She didn't touch the heating or electrical wiring there, only applying insulation film to the windows.

2501 was on the top floor. Even if the heating in the entire building broke down, it wouldn't affect her as long as she prepared in advance. There was no need to maintain the heating in 602.

Water would definitely leak down from upstairs anyway, so maintaining it meant little. She wasn't going to live there, so if it got soaked, it got soaked.

Before she even reached the ground floor of her building, Ming Jiu spotted a moving company truck parked outside the entrance from afar.

It was even a "Japanese-style" move. More than a dozen staff members in matching uniforms kept entering and leaving the building, every piece of luggage carefully packed and stored.

There was no need to think about it. The Chu Family had moved in.

Ming Jiu entered the building. The moving company had taken up one elevator, so she could only wait for the other.

She pulled out her phone and glanced at it. The old lady from 2401 was complaining in the neighborhood group.

[Family Harmony Brings Prosperity: Whose family is occupying the elevator? It's holding everyone up.]

[2404 Chu: Sorry, we won't hold everyone up for too long. We'll be done soon.]

[Family Harmony Brings Prosperity: Who moves on the first day of the Lunar New Year? So inconsiderate.]

[Family Harmony Brings Prosperity: First renovations, then moving, disturbing the neighbors. They didn't even tell the neighbors in advance or say hello. They're not as considerate as the young girl upstairs.]

Ming Jiu: ...

Well, she'd been eating popcorn only to find herself at the center of the drama.

[2404 J.N: @Family Harmony Brings Prosperity, my home is undergoing normal renovations, not midnight renovations. How is that disturbing anyone? Which unit are you in? 01, 02, or 03? I'll come say hello right now.]

That message successfully silenced "Family Harmony Brings Prosperity," who didn't say another word.

The elevator arrived. Ming Jiu got in and swiped her card. It stopped on the twenty-fourth floor, and when the doors opened, it was Chu Lanning.

Chu Lanning was bundled up tightly too, with a hat and mask fully covering her face. Only her eyes were exposed, yet it was still obvious that she was a stunning beauty.

She glanced at the elevator buttons and smiled apologetically at Ming Jiu. "Sorry, I pressed the wrong button. I pressed up."

Ming Jiu nodded and pressed the close-door button. The elevator continued upward.

The moment she opened her front door, Ming Jiu smelled the fragrance of steamed dough. Ming Rong had put both the steamer and the multi-function steaming pot to use. A layer of plastic wrap covered the dining table, piled with plump white steamed buns the size of fists.

Black Girl circled the table, whining and sniffing. Black Rice had no interest in the steamed buns and sat off to one side, elegantly grooming herself.

Ming Jiu picked up a steamed bun, broke it in half, and took a bite. It was soft, sweet, and rich with the fragrance of milk. She tore off a tiny piece for Black Girl too.

Ming Rong had just put another batch of proofed buns into the steamer. When she came out of the kitchen, she asked her sister in sign language, [Is it good?]

Ming Jiu nodded vigorously. "Using milk to make the dough makes it even tastier."

She broke half of her bun into two smaller pieces and handed them to Ming Rong.

"Don't eat too much. Eat slowly, little by little."

The flour produced by the farm was incredibly filling.

Ming Rong opened her tablet.

[This afternoon, I'll make braised pork buns, as well as three-delicacy buns and beef buns. There's leftover filling from last night's dumplings too, so we can steam buns with it or make stuffed pancakes.]

Worried that she would tire herself out, Ming Jiu said, "The steamed buns are already great. No need to make things so complicated. Do we have any pickles at home?"

The rice in the space kitchen had finished steaming. Ming Jiu wanted to add some pickles or something and make rice balls.

Ming Rong typed rapidly: [Sis, you want pickles? I don't think we have any. I can make you a few side dishes. What do you want to eat?]

Ming Jiu pulled her sister over to sit in a dining chair. She felt that it was time to come clean to Ming Rong.

She would only be using the space more and more often in the future.

Ming Rong: [Sis, just tell me what you want to make. Or take it out and I'll make it. Don't secretly make it yourself. What you make doesn't taste good.]

Ming Jiu choked.

Wait, there was a lot to unpack in that sentence.

Ming Rong took back her tablet, tapped the screen a few times, then turned it toward Ming Jiu.

On the screen was a novel bookshelf page, filled entirely with titles like "Natural Disaster Something Something," "Apocalypse Something Something," and "Invincible Space Something Something."

Her little sister truly was the smartest child.

Ming Rong pulled back the tablet and continued typing.

[Sis, it's okay. I like cooking. Please don't do it yourself. It really doesn't taste good.]

Ming Jiu: ...

Having a child who was too smart wasn't great either. Those words hurt way too much.

She made one last little struggle. "If I follow the recipe exactly, my cooking is still okay, right?"

Ming Rong didn't type anything on the tablet. She merely looked at her calmly, and the meaning was obvious.

Sis, do you really have no idea?

Ming Jiu had nothing to say.

There wasn't even this much trust between sisters. She suddenly felt that setting up a kitchen in the space had been somewhat unnecessary.

"Okay," Ming Jiu surrendered. "Sorry, Xiao Rong. I didn't mean to hide it from you. I just didn't know how to explain it."

"Anyway, you guessed right."

Ming Rong's eyes lit up brilliantly.

[Sis, are you the legendary female lead!]

[Stockpile tens of billions in supplies! While everyone else eats dirt, we eat meat!]

Ming Jiu fell silent again.

Female lead, haha.

Tens of billions in supplies? Their family did not even have one hundred million. Where would tens of billions come from?

Ming Rong continued: [Go abroad to seize supplies, empty out the United States' arsenal!]

[Sis, can you use a gun?]

This time, Ming Jiu couldn't hold it in. "When did I ever go abroad?"

How did she herself not know that?

[Anyway, you're amazing! I hope my sister becomes a dragon!]

Her sister could put insulation film on windows. Her sister was the most amazing sister in the world!

Ming Jiu: ...She really didn't want to talk.

"...I want to make rice balls. Can you prepare some fillings for them?"

Ming Rong immediately returned to the main topic. [I'll shape them. The ones you shape don't taste good.]

This little sister was beyond saving.