No matter how heated the trash problem got, it never really led to anything useful. In fact, because the police kept showing up to investigate, the residents of their building ended up behaving far better than people in the others.
Time slipped by, and it was already the third round of supply distribution.
This time, the supplies were even more pathetic than before: two packs of instant noodles, one pack of compressed biscuits, and a single bowl of self-heating rice. That was it.
If the previous distributions at least managed to feed someone one meal a day, this one barely kept people alive. Even though the person handing out the supplies had a gun strapped to their back, someone still had to say it:
"Seriously? That's all? Are they trying to starve us?"
"Yeah. This isn't even enough for one meal a day. What are they expecting, one meal every two days?"
"I thought last week was bad, but I was wrong. This week is the real test."
Still, this was all free. You got just enough to stay breathing. Did people really expect to eat their fill?
Of course, the staff wouldn't say anything that blunt. And the higher-ups had already given them guidance about the food situation, but that wasn't something they were allowed to reveal yet.
"Take your supplies and leave quickly. Any new updates will be posted in the group chat. Just check it regularly. There's no point asking me—I don't know anything either."
Everyone wanted to push the staff member a bit more, but there was that gun… and no one wanted to test their luck if it accidentally went off.
So even though people were frustrated and unwilling, they still left after collecting their things.
Last time, Lan Jin and Huang Jinghe had run into each other by chance when picking up supplies. This time, they had planned to come down together.
In the stairwell, Huang Jinghe said in a low voice, "Sister Lan, did you take my advice and exchange more contribution points?"
Lan Jin quickly nodded. "I did, I really did. I traded almost all the furniture and some jewelry I didn't use. But I still don't get what these contribution points are good for. It's been days and no one's said anything. I've had a bad feeling this whole time."
Huang Jinghe replied, "My mom said the higher-ups can't keep providing free supplies forever. There are too many people in China. It's impossible to feed us all like this long-term. So they plan to let us exchange contribution points for food. But yeah, contribution points only come from trading your own stuff."
And just like that, the pieces started falling into place.
Lan Jin nodded. Then, acting like she didn't know anything, she asked, "But how do we even make the exchange? We can't leave the building."
"I don't know all the details," Huang Jinghe answered seriously, "but my dad said they'll be setting up canteens and supermarkets in every community. That's where we'll use the points to get food and supplies."
It really did help to know someone on the inside. Now that Lan Jin had this information, she said sincerely, "Thank you. I'm really glad I listened to you and exchanged more points. If we really can use them to buy things, then having more will make things much easier."
"Yeah. You can still trade for contribution points later too, but after this, staff won't come collect your stuff from home. For small things it's fine, but if you've got something big, there's no way to carry it down on your own."
"So the first round of exchanging was our best shot," Lan Jin finished for him. "Thanks again. You don't know what a nightmare it was. I traded away a bunch of cabinets last time, and there was no way I could've moved those by myself."
At that, Huang Jinghe couldn't help but laugh.
Since they had come down late and just in time, there weren't many people in line. The person handing out the supplies was someone who had registered their information several times before. When they saw Lan Jin and Huang Jinghe, they smiled and said, "Wow, you two really know how to show up at the last second."
"No choice. Come too early and it's too crowded," Lan Jin replied as she glanced at her phone, confirming she wasn't late. Neither of them complained about how little they got. They just smiled and cheerfully headed back upstairs.
Another staff member stepped forward and asked, "Hey, you know those two?"
"They're from the 32nd and 33rd floors," the other answered. "Last time they both traded a lot of stuff for contribution points..."
He didn't finish the sentence, but the coworker already understood. Once the two left, a nearby soldier quietly asked, "What's up? Are they suspicious or something?"
"Oh, no. Nothing like that. It's just that the boy—Huang Jinghe—his parents are in the military. When their families traded points, they both gave up a ton of stuff. And after we saw that, we ended up trading a bunch too."
They had practically emptied their homes to get points. No one knew why at the time, but two days later, the volunteers were given early notice of what was coming. That bit of insider information was a huge relief.
The soldier who had been asking questions made a mental note about Huang Jinghe on the 33rd floor. Not out of suspicion. He had no bad intentions at all. He just thought that since the kid of a fellow soldier was living alone, it was worth keeping an eye on him and offering some help if needed.
Once the supply distribution ended, the community workers wrapped things up for the day.
While everyone was still busy complaining about how little they had gotten, the staff suddenly dropped a bombshell in the group chat:
"At the request of the higher-ups, each community will open its own canteen and supermarket for residents to buy food and supplies. Please download the Disaster Relief App and scan the QR code posted in the group to register. The system will automatically place you within your assigned community.
The app allows you to order meals from the canteen and purchase items from the supermarket. Staff will deliver them to the entrance of your building.
The app will officially go live on May 1.
Note: All canteen meals and supermarket items must be ordered one day in advance. The app does not handle payment directly. You must bring your resident ID to deduct contribution points in person. The system will only deduct points if your ID matches your registration. Please remember this to avoid wasting a trip."
After that announcement, another message followed right away:
"Now hiring laborers for supermarket and canteen construction. Also hiring:
Supermarket cashiers
Supermarket clerks
Canteen chefs
Canteen dishwashers
Residents with relevant experience will be prioritized.
All positions include three meals a day. Compensation will be in the form of supplies: two packs of instant noodles and one bottle of mineral water per day."
The work benefits were the same as before, and back then, no one really cared. At that time, people still had plenty of food stored up, so they didn't think much of volunteering or those meager rations.
But that was then. Now, with everyone on the edge of hunger, even just two packs of noodles a day was enough to get people scrambling to sign up. Suddenly, those jobs were looking very attractive.