The dog seemed almost human in intelligence, and the way it stared at them was downright eerie. "We're all dog lovers here and firmly oppose eating dog meat," Caleb was the first to back down. "Nadia, make it stop looking at me like that." He was genuinely scared. Jasmine understood his feelings but still felt compelled to offer advice as a friend. "Nadia, I'd absolutely support you under normal circumstances, but these are extraordinary times. Most of the food supplies were soaked and ruined by water. "We were quick to stock up. However, what you have will last only six or seven months. We don't know what the future holds. Plus, large dogs like this one consume a lot of food. You really need to think this through. "Don't regret it when the food runs out. By then, it'll be too late." "To me, it's not just a dog. It's family." Nadia tenderly comforted the anxious Colby. "We can always find more supplies. I won't abandon it." Jasmine and the others weren't the type to meddle too much. They were fine with it as long as she had thought it through. Taking Colby inside, Nadia fetched some dog food from her storage and soaked it in goat milk. She had picked up the milk at a supermarket but disliked its gamey taste and couldn't get used to it. Now, though, it was perfect for Colby. After devouring a large bowl of dog food, Colby's previously sunken belly finally became pleasantly full. Standing before the sofa, it stared intently at Nadia, its eyes suddenly welling up with tears. Its guard softened, replaced by a flicker of hope. Seeing it cry completely caught Nadia off guard. She hugged it, tears flowing as she cried over the fears, injustices, loneliness, and despair of past lives. Colby's head rested on her shoulder, letting out soft whimpering sounds. It cried because she hadn't abandoned it like its previous owner had. Not only was it being hugged tightly, but it was also getting delicious food. It whimpered softly, unsure if it could ever trust humans again. Nadia and Colby held each other, crying for a long time. After the tears were shed, Nadia no longer felt the fear and confusion she had before. Having been reborn, her initial goal was to survive—to live a little longer. But now, things were different. She not only wanted to survive well and for as long as possible but also to protect Colby. Once she calmed down, she began inspecting Colby's body. It was covered in a mix of old and fresh wounds, both horrifying to see. It also had a severe skin condition, with patches of fungus scattered all over its fur. Its head was blackened, making it look utterly disfigured. Nadia gave it anti-inflammatory medicine, then grabbed a clipper to shave off Colby's fur. She disinfected the wounds with iodine and sprinkled herbal pain relief powder on them. Without pet-specific medications, she dug through her medicine box and applied a similar medicated plaster to Colby's wounds. Colby didn't resist but kept trying to lick itself. Now, it was skin and bones, and its appearance was even more jarring without its fur. Nadia found her jersey and put it on Colby. Ruffling its head, she said, "Once you put on some weight, you'll look much better." Nadia wasn't worried about supplies. Her storage space was stocked enough for her and Colby to last indefinitely. Besides, there was also the Black Earth Garden for planting. The ground was damp, and there was no doghouse, so she laid down a few pieces of cardboard and found a dirt-resistant lazy sofa from her storage. Colby instinctively knew this was its bed. The sofa was so soft and comfortable. It finally had a home. Lying in its new bed, it drifted into a deep, exhausted sleep. Nadia, carrying a large backpack, knocked on the door of unit 1801, then headed to 1803 to meet the others. In front of everyone, she opened the heavy backpack. Caleb and Levi were stunned, repeatedly counting the bundles. "1,000,000?"Nadia nodded. "I found it today in the cashier's office of an office building while I was out scouting." Before the disaster, such a find would have excited everyone. But now, facing a thick stack of cash, they only felt frustration. "Money's useless now. There's nothing to spend it on." Rice had risen to 500 per kilogram, limited to one kilogram per person per day. And that was dried and salvaged from the water. It was edible, but whether it was safe was uncertain. They weren't sure what to do with all this money. It might as well grow mold in their hands. Nadia warned them, "Being able to buy food now is already a blessing. Who knows if it'll still be possible in the future." "You can't even buy it now. It sounds nice to say it's a limited purchase, yet the amount released daily is very small. Many people lining up in the middle of the night still can't get any," Levi said, inquiring about the latest news. However, there are resellers outside. It's the same grain, fished out of the water and dried, but it's now sold for 2000 per kilogram. How ironic that 1,000,000 can only buy 500 kilograms of grain. "Is there any way in?" The government is cracking down on speculation and profiteering. If they get caught, the goods are confiscated. Not everyone has connections. "Money is losing value. More and more people are bartering, and who knows when money will become obsolete. We need to figure out how to spend it tomorrow." "If we can't buy grain, how do we spend it?" "Whatever the department store is selling, we'll buy it. It's October now. We used to wear short sleeves, but now we need blankets. How will we survive if this rain doesn't stop by winter?" Everyone from unit 1803 agreed, "Alright, we'll sweep through the department store tomorrow, grabbing whatever we can." The man from unit 1801 remained silent, betraying no emotion with his deep, unreadable eyes. He seemed part of the group, but his cold and vigilant demeanor was unmistakable. His eyes were sharp as an eagle's, seeming to pierce through people's hearts, making Nadia uneasy. Leaving unit 1803, just as Nadia was about to enter her own home, Harrison suddenly spoke, "Nadia, can I discuss something with you?" "Please, go ahead." Harrison explained, "I used to be a SWAT officer, but I moved here after retiring due to an injury. When I was on duty, I often worked with the police dog, so I have some experience in dog training. "The Malinois you brought back is a new breed of police dog. It has excellent physical stamina, and its obedience and combat abilities are even better. If trained properly, its combat capability could rival several adults, benefiting the 18th floor." Nadia was surprised. She had initially suspected he might have a military or police background, but after witnessing his steadfast approach to killing, she dismissed the idea. She had thought he was either a hitman or a bodyguard hired to resolve problems with money. She hadn't expected him actually to be a SWAT officer. Based on his words, he must only have recently retired—so how can he kill without batting an eye? Though her suspicions remained, she knew everyone had their secrets, and as long as he didn't do anything to harm her, she wouldn't pry. She refocused. "What are your conditions?"Even knowing that Colby is no less capable, I still hope it can become stronger. After all, no one can resist the temptation of dog meat when faced with the threat of starvation. So, Colby needs to grow stronger. Harrison's request was simple. "I'll help you train the dog, and you teach Lily how to read." That's the deal? Nadia was a bit taken aback. "Lily is both smart and obedient. You can totally teach her yourself." Harrison looked a bit uncomfortable. "I can't manage when it comes to academics." Training a dog was much easier for him. Nadia felt a bit awkward. "Alright, then it's a deal." He would train her dog, and she would teach Lily how to read. A black shadow pounced on her as soon as she opened the door. The dog was letting out a low whimper filled with anxiety and unease, its paws constantly pawing at Nadia. Nadia petted its head. "It's okay, I'm not leaving." Stray dogs were hard to comfort, so she fed it a sausage. However, the dog was still anxious, following her wherever she went, refusing to let her out of its sight. Today, Nadia was not only exhausted but also starving. Reuniting with Colby by chance was certainly worth celebrating, so she took out some smoked ribs, pork chop, roast chicken, and some beer. The dog's eyes were still glued to the food, almost drooling even if it wasn't hungry. Nadia picked out some plain ribs for it, then ate her meal while watching a show to relax. Colby was so tempted it couldn't help itself, jumping onto the sofa to lie on her lap, occasionally using its paw to nudge her shoulder. Seeing Nadia wasn't reacting, it ran to fetch its food bowl. Come on, human. I need food! "You clever little thing." Nadia tossed the dog a bone to chew on. "Don't stuff yourself too full. From now on, there will be tasty food every day." After dinner, she still had to teach Colby where to use the bathroom. Not just Colby, but also that pair of breeding rabbits and a whole litter of kits. The room was still damp even though the balcony was sealed with glass, which made the rabbits listless. Lining it with lots of cardboard and moving them to the bathroom helped quite a bit. Once familiar with her, they were no longer afraid of people and started roaming around the house. Colby's eyes gleamed green when it saw the rabbits, instinctively lunging forward to bite. Nadia quickly stopped it with a fierce glare. "No biting!" Whether she and Colby would eat a good meal or not in the future depended entirely on those rabbits. Having spent time together before, Colby was relatively familiar with her temper and could only endure its itchy teeth. It wasn't hungry now, but it might bite when it was. Colby was quite smart, and it knew to do its business in the trash bin lined with a black garbage bag in the bathroom after just over an hour of training. Yet, the rabbits were still not sharp. No matter how much she taught them, they wouldn't learn, leaving her to clean up multiple times a day. Nadia felt exhausted. "Colby, taking care of them is your job from now on." I need to be a responsible dog, helping my owner with the chores.By the time everything was done, it was already late at night. Nadia went to bed, only to find Colby dragging its bed into her room. Fine, I understand since it feels insecure. She woke up several times during the night, all because Colby kept waking her up. Colby was extremely sensitive to sounds; any slight noise from downstairs would have it up and guarding the stainless-steel door at the entrance. Its long time living as a stray had changed its nature; it wouldn't easily make a sound that might alert enemies. This was just an apartment building, but it was filled with all kinds of people and plenty of dirty and ugly things going on. A little past 7 a.m., she was woken up by a restless Colby. One of Wayne's classmates was downstairs pounding on the door when she opened the door. "Nadia, Wayne was stabbed by you yesterday, and your dog bit him. Now, he's running a fever, so you must take responsibility for this." Nadia shut the door and went about her morning routine. It was a simple bowl of spaghetti, along with two steamed dumplings. Meanwhile, Colby had half a bowl of dog food and four steamed dumplings. Just as she finished tidying up, Levi came over to pick her up for today's mission, spending one million. Besides looking after her baby, Jasmine now had the additional task of watching over the dog. There was a new sandbag in the hallway, something Levi and Caleb brought for her. They told her to practice her boxing on it and not use them as punching bags anymore. They reached the department store by 9 a.m., only to find it packed with people waiting in line. Suddenly, a loudspeaker announcement came on, saying that today's food supplies had already sold out, and anyone still in need should come early tomorrow. "I got here at midnight last night. How is it all gone already?" "I've been waiting since nine last night. I still didn't get anything." There were cries of frustration all around, with public resentment boiling over, but what could anyone do? There were now military troops with live ammunition around. They wouldn't be able to grab any food even if they charged in. One weary face after another lingered, unwilling to leave, but eventually, they all left in disappointment. 99% of the people who came to the department store were here for food, hoping to grab some other essentials along the way. The huge mall felt empty in an instant once the crowd dispersed. Compared to last time, there were noticeably fewer goods this time. Anything that could fill a stomach had been snatched up immediately. However, they were now offering purified tap water at ten per liter, with customers required to bring their own containers. Thinking of the floating corpses in the water, Levi and Caleb lost interest immediately. Most of the mall's offerings were electronics, clothes, bedding, and various household items. It was hard to spend it even with money in hand. There were only two inflatable boats left. Levi wanted to buy them for emergencies but dared not speak up upon seeing the price tag of 50,000 each. Nadia had a clear goal: to prepare extreme cold survival gear for them. She had enough of those but couldn't just give them her supplies; everything had to be done above board. Essential daily supplies had skyrocketed in price, while clothes and bedding hadn't increased much as everyone was saving money to buy food. As they wandered around, they actually found mink coats. It was a full-length purple mink coat, soft to the touch and incredibly warm. A glance at the price tag showed 49,999. There were men's and women's styles, with little price difference. Nadia decided to buy seven in one go, even getting one for Colby, which she would modify later. She spent 350,000 in an instant, making Levi's heart ache. "How about we choose something cheaper?" "Are we going to use the money as toilet paper if we don't spend it now?" Aside from mink coats, there were also warm cotton-padded jackets, down coats, windbreakers, quilts, socks, boots, thermal underwear, and so on. Nadia let them buy whatever they wanted. Unfortunately, there were no pet supplies. Otherwise, she would have stocked up for Colby, too. While they were selecting items, a middle-aged man suddenly approached, whispering, "Miss, are you looking for food?" With shifty eyes and a sneaky demeanor, he clearly wasn't a good person. Nadia had noticed him tailing them when she was buying the mink coats, initially suspecting he was a pickpocket or a robber. It turned out he was a food scalper. "What kind of food?" "Rice." "Water-damaged rice?" The middle-aged man nodded. "We also have undamaged rice, but it's twice the price." "What's the price?" "Water-damaged is 2,500. Undamaged is 5,000."Nadia thought for a moment. "How do I know the water-damaged rice won't kill anyone?" "Miss, don't worry. We run an honest business. We never deceive our customers." He took out a handful of broken rice from his pocket as he spoke. It was yellowish and dull, but it didn't smell bad. "How much do you have?" "As much as you want, I have it." Nadia did some quick calculations and subtracted the expenses. "I'll pay 2,000 per kilogram, and I want 250 kilograms." The man who had rice on hand was left speechless.