Zhang Yi sighed, "Does this woman think I'm a junk collector or something?"

Fang Yuqing, though a Green tea White Lotus, at least knew how to flirt and doll herself up.

What else do you have, Lin Caining, besides being cheap and narcissistic?

But out of a twisted sense of amusement, Zhang Yi couldn't help but smirk and say, "Oh, is that so?"

"But I just gave Fang Yuqing a harsh scolding. You two are besties, wouldn't following me affect your relationship?"

Lin Caining's eyes lit up, sensing an opportunity.

Without hesitation, she said, "Bestie? We're just roommates, that's all."

Eager to gain Zhang Yi's trust, she spilled all the dirt on Fang Yuqing.

"You have no idea how much I despise her!"

"That woman is so lazy, these past few days she's been saying she's too cold to go to the bathroom. She's been peeing in mineral water bottles, it's disgusting!"

"Don't be fooled by her innocent act, she's actually out at nightclubs looking for men every day."

"If she meets a second-generation wealthy guy, she'll throw herself at him."

"And when she's short on cash, she's out selling herself. Otherwise, how could she afford all those cosmetics and designer bags on a salary of just 5000 yuan a month?"

"A mere 1500 yuan a night, how cheap! Hmph, I have no respect for that kind of woman."

It was the first time Zhang Yi had heard about Fang Yuqing's side hustle.

He gritted his teeth, feeling the world had become absurdly ridiculous.

Fortunately, he wasn't foolish. Although he pursued Fang Yuqing, he wasn't about to become a pitiful simp like Zhou Peng.

Lin Caining, intent on winning Zhang Yi's trust, continued to expose Fang Yuqing's dark secrets.

"Don't be fooled by her pure facade, she's had several abortions."

"In college, she was even kept by several contractors for four years."

...

Zhang Yi silently watched, then recorded the conversation.

Clearly, Lin Caining had long harbored resentment towards Fang Yuqing.

After all, Fang Yuqing was better at acting coy and was prettier than her, relegating Lin Caining to merely a backdrop.

In this world, how many women are willing to play second fiddle to another?

Otherwise, why do you think the besties of those elusive goddesses in college are usually the ugly and overweight girls?

After venting her feelings about Fang Yuqing, Lin Caining continued to confess her love for Zhang Yi.

"Zhang Yi, do you know how painful it's been for me to watch you chase after Fang Yuqing all these years?"

"Now I finally have the chance to confess to you. Let me be your girlfriend! I'll definitely love you well."

"And at this time, you must be lonely at home, right? Having a woman by your side, she can help you with a lot of things ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)"

Lin Caining was clearly hinting to Zhang Yi that if he let her come over to his place, he could do whatever he wanted with her.

Unfortunately for her, Zhang Yi wasn't interested in that sort of thing.

He forwarded their chat history to Fang Yuqing with a flick of his hand.

Then he told Lin Caining, "Although I'm touched, let's forget about this."

Lin Caining, not giving up, asked, "Why? Don't you need a woman now?"

Zhang Yi, suppressing the nausea in his stomach, replied through his phone, "I do like women, but you're just too ugly!"

After that, he muted his phone and tossed it aside.

Lin Caining, upon hearing Zhang Yi's voice message, was livid.

He... he actually called her ugly?

Slander, this was serious slander!

Every time she posted her photoshopped pictures online, countless people praised her as a great beauty!

Just as Lin Caining was fuming, an angry scream pierced her ears.

"Lin Caining, you despicable woman!"

Fang Yuqing, having seen Lin Caining's backstabbing words, exploded in rage.

The two women grappled with each other, pulling hair and pinching arms.

They only stopped when they were too exhausted to continue, but still glared at each other with venomous eyes.

If it weren't for the cold weather and the need to live under the same roof, they would have had murderous intentions.

Lin Caining, of course, realized what had happened and despised Zhang Yi just as much.

But like Fang Yuqing, perhaps envy outweighed the hatred.

If at this moment, Zhang Yi agreed to let them into his room and share some food, they would abandon their dignity and crawl over like bitches.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yi continued to live a simple, yet affluent and boring life.

Every evening, he would turn on the TV to watch the news, something he never used to do.

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Although the news was still heavily filtered, it provided some information about the outside world.

"Tianhai City officials have announced that to meet the demand for electricity, power will be supplied from 1 to 2 p.m. daily."

"High-power appliances cannot be used; only low-power devices such as kettles and mobile phones can be heated."

"With most power plants shut down and a shortage of electricity, we hope everyone will voluntarily reduce their power usage to avoid large-scale, prolonged blackouts."

Zhang Yi raised an eyebrow at this news.

In the past few days, there had been sporadic power supply, lasting less than an hour, sometimes just a few minutes.

The fact that officials were still willing to provide electricity to the general public, even for just a brief moment, was probably their best effort.

With most power plants around the world at a standstill, energy resources were dwindling as the Ice Age continued.

However, what caught Zhang Yi's attention was not the content of the news, but the anchor's tone and the way the news was presented.

This time, the anchor's tone was serious, and the report was no longer aimed at comforting the public.

This meant that the government had given up on hiding the extent of the disaster across the country.

When control was no longer possible, the only option was to fully disclose information, allowing everyone to face reality sooner and find ways to save themselves.

Sure enough, when Zhang Yi checked his phone, he saw that various chat groups were in an uproar.

There were those cursing the government's inaction, those crying in despair, and many more trying to buy supplies at high prices.

The price of instant noodles had risen from 2000 yuan a pack two days ago to 5000 yuan a pack!

Zhang Yi was speechless.

The greedy nature of humanity was laid bare; despite knowing the world was ending and money would likely be useless in the short term, people still preferred to trade food and drink for cash.

Zhang Yi said nothing; he observed everything as a detached onlooker.

Life must go on, and even without hope, no one wants to die; even a meager existence is better than none.

So, despite the complaints and quarrels, the next day they would still struggle desperately to survive.