Dimensional Supermarket - Chapter 4

According to Cao’er and her mother’s description, Ye Zhou’s current location is about three to five days’ walk from the edge of the forest.

There are no clear paths in the forest; the way is marked only by the tracks of wild beasts. In the past, when there were wild animals and edible plants in the forest, people used to venture in, but that has stopped. The trees have been nearly stripped of their bark, and the forest no longer offers anything of value to humans.

Even if someone ventures deeper, surviving wild beasts isn’t the only challenge—finding the right direction can also become a problem. Moreover, the physical strength of the refugees can’t support such a long journey.

Though overexploiting the forest’s resources harms its ecology, it brings one small benefit: even without weapons, people don’t face immediate, life-threatening danger from wild beasts.

This also gives Ye Zhou a layer of protection.

Without Cao’er and her mother to guide him, Ye Zhou has no idea which direction to take to leave the forest. He has a compass, but it doesn’t tell him which exit to head for. It only has one function: to prevent him from walking in circles.

If Ye Zhou wants to get out, his only option is to take the simplest approach—walk in one direction until he reaches a dead end. If he can’t find a way out, he’ll turn back and try another route. It’s not only dangerous but also time-consuming.

Right now, his biggest worry is how to recruit people. Once he finds people, he’ll start worrying about attracting customers.

Though the supermarket is relatively safe deep in the mountains and ancient forests, it has one major downside: there are very few people. Those who enter the mountains are either like Cao’er and her mother, seeking a place to die, or people who intended to find food outside the forest but ended up lost.

After four days, Cao’er and her mother finally recover. They are like resilient grass—able to cling to the land with fragile roots, surviving on a drop of water and a ray of sunshine to spring back to life.

Ye Zhou can’t help but admire them.

As a modern man, he’s enjoyed the conveniences brought by modern industry, but what does that really mean?

He has never made a screw or assembled a machine. He’s simply lucky to have been born in the modern era and to enjoy the benefits passed down from those who came before him.

He can’t feel superior to others just because they lack those advantages. If he were among the refugees, he might have been one of the first to starve to death.

Cao’er and her mother feel uncomfortable staying in the supermarket for too long. They’re always afraid they’ll be driven out if they don’t contribute. So they do their best to find things to do—mopping the floor and wiping the cabinets every day. For such a large supermarket, they clean it thoroughly every time.

The next day, the place is spotless, and still they keep cleaning.

Ye Zhou doesn’t stop them. In fact, he thinks it’s a good idea. If they have something to do, they’ll feel a sense of belonging and won’t worry as much.

“Mother, this mop is really useful,” Cao’er says, her eyes bright. Since arriving at the supermarket, her eyes haven’t dimmed. Everything seems new and amazing to her, and she had even exclaimed over the floor tiles on her first day.

“Lord Immortal must possess divine powers. These things are nothing to him,” Cao’er’s mother says, speaking as if she knows all about it. She points to the lamp and adds, “That’s an Immortal lamp, lit by Immortal spirit—no fire, no smoke.” Lowering her voice, she warns, “We must be careful. The Lord Immortal has eyes and ears everywhere and knows everything. We have to be sincere!”

To Cao’er’s mother, Ye Zhou has become not a person, but like a stone statue in a shrine—one to be worshiped with utmost respect.

At that moment, Ye Zhou happens to pass by the door and hears this…

As expected, he’s truly become the “Lord Immortal.”

The honorific “Lord” holds more weight than “Immortal”—Ye Zhou is almost overwhelmed by the thought. So he pretends not to hear and quietly slips away along the wall.

“I wonder if we’ll have meat tonight,” Cao’er mutters, swallowing.

She’s mostly eating white flour or rice now. The steamed buns made from white flour are so white, they almost look like the makeup powder used by actresses in plays—whiter than any flour she’s ever seen.

There’s also meat. If the Lord Immortal hadn’t restricted them from eating too much fat, Cao’er could eat fatty meat three times a day. But even now, almost every meal includes some meat and oil.

“Keep your voice down!” Cao’er’s mother says sternly. “It’ll be bad if the Lord Immortal thinks we’re being greedy.”

Cao’er quickly nods. Now that she no longer has to worry about food or drink, she’s become much bolder and more talkative.

Not only do they have enough food and drink now, but they also have three sets of clothes to wear—and they don’t even need to wash them by hand.

Ye Zhou shows them how to use the washing machine in the store.

Fortunately, the machine isn’t a high-tech product. It has just a few buttons—wash, dry, and spin—and is originally used for small items like towels, though it can also wash clothes.

“All these things were made by Lord Immortal himself. With just a breath of immortal energy, anything can be done!” Cao’er’s mother says with certainty.

Washing clothes isn’t light work—whether it’s pounding or scrubbing. Small items are manageable, but big ones can take an entire hour to wash. Afterward, they have to wring them out. If the household has a lot of laundry, it can feel like washing away half your life.

Now it’s much easier. The washing machine works like magic—just throw the clothes in, and they come out clean and wrung out. Hang them on the rack, and they’ll dry in half a day.

Though the clothes given to them by Lord Immortal are light and delicate, and washing them by hand wouldn’t be difficult, they think it’s better to use that time to wipe the shelves instead.

After all, since the clothes are theirs, a little dirt doesn’t matter. But cleaning the shelves is for the Lord Immortal—so not a moment should be wasted.

“If the Lord Immortal hadn’t said we aren’t allowed to work after dark, I’d still be wiping,” Cao’er even says with a touch of regret.

She wants to do more work, thinking that it would be best if she collapsed from exhaustion one day so the Lord Immortal would see her and know her sincerity.

Cao’er’s mother nods in agreement.

The Lord Immortal doesn’t want them to kowtow or offer sacrifices—though they have nothing to offer anyway. But since he doesn’t let them work from morning until night, they don’t feel secure.

They are farmers, and in their entire lives, they’ve never even woven cloth. Only small but wealthy families can afford weaving machines, and cloth can sometimes be worth more than copper coins.

As for needlework, they can patch clothes without breaking the thread, but it’s not a skill to boast about.

Their thoughts are simple: the emperor requires taxes, the landlords take rent, and the Lord Immortal must also demand labor—it all feels the same to them. This is simply how the world works, in their view.

The emperor doesn’t set fixed taxes. If the harvest is good, taxes are higher; if bad, taxes are lower. Regardless, the amount of leftover grain is about the same every year.

Fortunately, their family is small. If there had been two more people, they wouldn’t have been able to afford the head tax alone.

Though the landlord collects 60% of their rent, they’ve heard from traveling peddlers that in some villages, it’s gone up to 80%. Even if they borrow grain and seeds from the landlord, they still can’t fill their stomachs. The debt just keeps growing. Even though they aren’t slaves, they might as well be.

As for gods and Buddhas, they believe that if you’re sincere, you’ll be helped—but they don’t expect much.

The farm women and daughters don’t expect to go to temples and burn incense without paying.

Gods and Buddhas don’t bless the poor.

When wishes come true, they also require repayment—which shows that even gods and Buddhas need human wealth to maintain their position in the heavens.

While Cao’er and her daughter talk, Ye Zhou packs his things. He plans to head to the edge of the forest with them the next morning. He finds a large backpack and packs dry food. Self-heating food takes up too much space, so he mostly packs compressed biscuits and ham sausages, which will fill the stomach without taking up too much room.

Since they will be camping outdoors, they need two tents. To save space, he brings the most expensive and portable one from the supermarket.

Besides the essentials, he also packs wolf-repellent spray and a machete.

The machete doesn’t have a scabbard, so Ye Zhou wraps it in a cloth strip to avoid hurting himself while walking.

The next morning, before dawn, Ye Zhou sets off with Cao’er and her daughter.

Originally, it would have been enough to bring just one person, but Ye Zhou is concerned that if he leaves the supermarket unsupervised, the person staying behind might not keep an eye on the electronics, and if something catches fire or someone gets electrocuted, it could be disastrous.

At this point, the supermarket is the only thing he can rely on.

Without it, he would have nothing to survive on.

He is fully aware of his limitations. The locals have survived in this famine-ridden era, but as a modern man with limited physical strength and an ordinary stomach, he would be even worse off. At least the locals can identify wild vegetables and fungi, but he would die if he ate a poisonous mushroom.

Better safe than sorry.

They aren’t in a rush, so they walk at a normal pace. For safety reasons, they don’t travel at night. Although there are no wild beasts, Cao’er and her daughter have varying degrees of night blindness. If there are any potholes or cliffs, they would break their arms and legs if they fall.

Ye Zhou doesn’t bring a flashlight. Though not in a hurry, he doesn’t want to risk meeting someone on the road. If they see him carrying a flashlight, it could lead to trouble.

If the other person has bad intentions, it could be disastrous for him.

Anyway, he can’t afford to gamble—he doesn’t have the money for it.

After five days of walking, Ye Zhou finally sees the road beyond the woods.

Although it is just an ordinary dirt road, Ye Zhou has a strange sense of returning from a primitive world to a civilized one.

But that feeling only lasts for a moment.

He doesn’t approach directly. Instead, he climbs a slightly higher hill and uses a telescope to look at the road. There are many ragged refugees sitting or lying by the side of the road, occasionally craning their necks, hoping that a noble person will pass by and give them some food.

Their condition isn’t much better than Cao’er and her daughter’s.

They look like they are on the verge of death.

It is more terrifying than a zombie movie. These are living people, but they look as stiff as corpses, which makes them even more frightening than actual dead bodies.

“Stay close, be careful,” Ye Zhou says as he takes a knife from his bag and hands it to Cao’er and her daughter.

Cao’er takes the knife, her face flushed with excitement.

She is a little scared, but the excitement outweighs the fear. The Lord Immortal has asked her to do something!

There’s a saying that only men are meant to do certain things. Though she isn’t a man, in the Lord Immortal’s eyes, she is no different.

“If the other party has bad intentions, run if you can. If not, draw your blade and defend yourself,” Ye Zhou says seriously. “I’ll keep an eye on you, but it will take time for me to get there, so be cautious.”

Cao’er’s mother isn’t nervous: “Lord Immortal, we’ve been with these people before we entered the forest. We aren’t rich ladies or wives of wealthy families. Who would care about us?”

They are all dressed in wigs and ragged clothes, as dirty as the refugees.

The wigs are made from real hair, which isn’t cheap in modern times. Back then, they were mostly exported. Ye Zhou bought a batch while shopping for supplies. He hadn’t expected them to come in handy here.

Once they confirm their disguise is perfect, Ye Zhou nods to them.

Cao’er and her daughter hunch down, slowly walking out.

When they first step out, some of the refugees glance at them but quickly turn their heads back. Most people lie with their eyes closed, pretending to sleep to conserve energy, not moving at all. They resemble corpses, still alive but devoid of hope, just waiting for the day to end.

Cao’er and her daughter don’t try to engage. They find a higher spot and sit down, pretending to sleep.

They know the routine of the refugees. They have once been one of them. They see the Lord Immortal as a savior, even though the Lord Immortal hasn’t saved many. His merits are comparable to Bodhisattvas.

The real Bodhisattvas haven’t come down to save them!

Cao’er and her daughter don’t wander or look around; they focus on identifying a target.

They know how to read people, easily distinguishing which men are honest and which are not. Such a skill is honed in the famine.

They eliminate single men, then observe families. If the family has a mother and a little girl, that is their target.

After spotting their mark, Cao’er and her daughter approach them, claiming they need fire. It doesn’t take much convincing. If they tell them they can eat and live by following, they wouldn’t refuse.

After all, what could anyone get for deceiving them now? A handful of bones? They wouldn’t yield much meat even if they were killed.

Hunger has already made them lose the ability to think. If there is bread in front of them, they will fight over it, no matter the risk.

Ye Zhou holds up the telescope. His arms begin to ache, but he keeps his focus. He can’t afford to put it down.

If Cao’er and her daughter are in danger, he, as an adult male, will have to intervene and protect them.

He has the machete and the wolf-repellent spray, so he is confident he can delay the attackers and lead them into the woods.

Of course, it will be best if they can take some of the refugees away safely.

Though Ye Zhou is an atheist, at that moment, he silently prays, hoping they will get through the ordeal without trouble. Otherwise…

Well, if it doesn’t go well, he vows to remain an atheist in his next life!