2
In my previous life, that feeling of thirst so intense it made my heart race, yet also chilling to the bone, rose up again.
I gulped down another large glass of ice water to suppress it.
Not hearing me speak, Lily’s crying grew louder, and her tone suddenly became sharp.
“Emma, if I had been the one to go to college back then, would I have to beg you like this? Have you forgotten what you promised Mom and
Dad?”
Tm your only sister. How can you be so heartless, watching me get beaten?”
“Do you want me to make a scene every day at your home and office, telling everyone how ungrateful and inhumane you are?”
Here we go again. She seems to only know how to repeat this one line over and over. I’ve helped her so much more over the years,
Whenever things don’t go her way, she takes out her frustrations on me with baseless accusations.
She has never shown any gratitude. Even when disaster struck in my previous life, she coldly pushed me out to die.
Remembering the desperation and suffocation I felt before dying in my previous life, Lily’s cold face kept flashing before my eyes.
Gripping the phone tightly, I spoke softly, “Do you really want to come stay with me?”
Sensing an opportunity, Lily quickly nodded, her voice taking on a hint of joy.
11:50 AM
<
“He owes a ton of money and keeps hitting me. There’s no way I can keep living like this.”
“Emma, I knew you were my dear sister. I knew you wouldn’t abandon me.”
A smile played on my lips as I spoke again, “Sis, are you absolutely sure about this?”
She seemed surprised that I hadn’t rushed out to help her like before. Her tone started to become impatient: “Emma, are you done?”
I took a deep breath and finally said to let her move in three days later, as I was currently away on a business trip.
She quickly agreed. In my previous life, Lily had also come over three days later.
Thinking carefully about her personality, she probably wanted to rush over immediately.
Even if I said I was away on a business trip, she would likely camp out in front of my building waiting for me.
If I guessed correctly, Derek probably got into a fight over the money he owed and was now being held at the police station.
Derek owed a ton of debt and had assaulted someone, so he was on the run hiding everywhere.
Lily was waiting at home for three days for him to be released, then planning to occupy my place long–term.
Since she wanted to come, let her come then.
3
Thinking about the unprecedented and brutal heatwave that was about to hit, I felt a chill.
Most people would lose their lives in this natural disaster.
Besides the food shortage, there would also be insufficient water and electricity supply in high–rise buildings, and heatstroke would be
rampant.
Since heaven had given me another chance, I needed to use these three days to make thorough preparations.
This time, I was going to take good care of myself.
First, I rented a large villa with a basement nearby.
I had looked at these villas when I was house hunting before. They all came with basements.
The basement temperature was cool and perfect for avoiding the heat. At the time, I thought the first floor was too dark, needing lights on day and night, so I didn’t go for it.
Now in this weather, it was perfect to rent it, in case of sudden power outages later when air conditioners and fans couldn’t run normally.
Also, the villa was far from others, which would draw less attention, making it convenient for me to store supplies later.
As soon as I stepped inside, I felt the coolness hit me. I took out the jacket I had prepared and put it on.
The male realtor who had brought me here involuntarily shivered and hugged himself, then smiled and introduced the place,
‘Ma’am, this is the villa with a basement you requested. Except for the poor lighting on the first floor, how do you like the rest?”
He trailed off, looking at me strangely After all, young people nowadays prefer houses with good lighting and bright rooms when renting.
While I was oddly looking for a place where you couldn’t see the sun even in broad daylight and needed to turn on lights as soon as you entered
Although the weather was indeed very hot now, everyone had air conditioning at home.
I paid him the money and, seeing he seemed nice, started chatting with him
“The weather is so hot. Several elderly people back home got sick with heatstroke after being outside too long. They can’t even go out to buy vegetables. This house is cool and cheap, so I can save
11:50 AM
<
I’m not sure if he understood my meaning, and I couldn’t be too obvious about it.
After finding the house, I continued shopping for the supplies I needed.
I borrowed a small tricycle and spent most of the day going to a wholesale market about ten miles away. I bought dozens of boxes of instant noodles and canned food, and brought them home to store.
Then I went to other places further away to buy some vacuum–packed vegetables and fruits.
I put all these things in the basement, and finally ordered several super large refrigerators online.
I also went to buy several boxes of wholesale ice cream, snacks, and so on.
After staying in the basement for a while, I couldn’t help but shiver. Suddenly inspired, I bought a set of hot pot cookware.
Then I went to other places to buy ingredients for hot pot, like beef, chicken, and so on. I bought quite a lot and stuffed it all into my big refrigerator, filling it to the brim.
Thinking about how unpredictable people can be during disasters, for safety and self–defense, I also went to a knife shop to buy some weapons for protection, and picked up a bag of mouse traps while I was at it.
Finally, thinking about the possibility of water and power outages, I bought several large water storage tanks with purifiers.
I also learned online how to make a solar power panel.
In addition, I stocked up on plenty of backup medicine to prevent heatstroke, just in case.
Of course, I was very cautious while doing all this, afraid of drawing attention. I dressed inconspicuously and wore a baseball cap.
By the time I finished all of this, three days had passed.
Looking at the room full of supplies I had stockpiled, I was very satisfied. It would be enough to last half a year.
In my previous life, experts on TV said the extreme heat would end in two months at most.
I had stayed home eating and drinking with them for half a month, until food became scarce and I was pushed out.
At this point, Lily’s call came in.
“Emma, I’m already at your door. You’re still not back?”
Her breathing was a bit heavy as she spoke, likely because it was indeed very hot outside.
I sat leisurely on the couch enjoying the air conditioning, and said slowly, “Sis, my car won’t arrive until tonight. Why don’t you find a coffee shop to rest in..”
Before I could finish, she hung up.
It was getting dark outside. I ate dinner, called a cab, and headed home.
Lily was standing in the hallway outside my apartment, empty–handed.
The bruises on her face hadn’t faded, and you could still see clear handprints. I didn’t rush to show concern like I used to.
She brushed back her sweaty, matted hair and glared at me with fiery eyes.
“Why are you only getting back now? I’ve been here for so long.”
Before I could speak, she snatched my bag, took out the keys, and opened the door.
She kept complaining, “I told you to make me a copy of the key.”
Once inside, she immediately turned on the air conditioning and started rummaging through my fridge.
11:50 AM
<
She took out a large, unpeeled durian.
“At least you had the decency to buy this for me.”
I looked at the durian in her hands, inwardly frustrated that I had forgotten about it. I could only watch as Lily opened it up.
She set aside one large, intact piece of flesh and hastily devoured the smaller pieces.
When she had eaten her fill, she picked up the large piece and looked at me warily: “Emma, I’m saving this. Don’t you dare touch it.”
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She had no intention of sharing with me at all.
I couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. What kind of expectations did I have for such a selfish sister in my previous life?
This was typical Lily behavior.
Every time Derek beat her, she would run to me crying, trying to gain some advantage, and especially worried that I might benefit from her
situation.
After Lily finished eating, she didn’t even ask if I had eaten before heading off to sleep.
Opening the door to my bedroom, her eyes lit up when she saw a set of skincare products on the dressing table.
“Emma, you bought so many skincare products? Give me a few.”
As soon as she finished speaking, disappointment spread across her face.
Because these were brands she had never heard of.
“I’ve never heard of these brands. Where are your fancy serums, Estée Lauder, and SK–II?”
Fortunately, I knew her personality and had already moved my expensive skincare products. Otherwise, they would have disappeared, never to be seen again.
I said calmly, “Sis, you know I’m broke lately. After lending you money last time, I have nothing left.”
Lily looked at me in disbelief: “If you’re broke, how did you buy a house?”
I sighed, “The mortgage costs thousands every month, and I’ll be paying it for a long time.”
Lily looked at me suspiciously.
“You went to college, how can you not make money?”
Her words made me laugh bitterly: “Who told you to run off with someone back then? If you wanted to study, Mom and Dad would have sold everything to send you. You keep saying I went to college and make more money than you, but did I stop you from going?”
“You always say you gave up your chance for me, using it for moral blackmail every day. With your grades in the bottom ten of the class, which college could you have gotten into?”
Lily hadn’t expected me to expose her like this, and her face flushed with embarrassment and anger.
“I was just worried about Mom and Dad working too hard.”
“How dare you talk to me like that?”
Before I could react, she shoved me hard.
“I really wasted my chance on you.”
5
That night, while I was asleep, Lily sneaked into the bathroom with her phone.
11:50 AM
<
th
“Come over tomorrow. If she doesn’t let you in, I’ll kick her out.”
“I should have a share of everything she has, including this house. If she doesn’t agree, I’ll make a scene at her company, tell everyone how
ungrateful and heartless she is. Let’s see how she can show her face after that.”
Her voice, which had been deliberately lowered, suddenly grew louder towards the end.
I opened my eyes in bed.
A smile curved my lips.
