Chapter 118 - 116: Choosing Decadence (2/10)

Words : 1082 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

Chapter 118: Chapter 116: Choosing Decadence (2/10)Chen Xin is just an ordinary person, indistinguishable from everyone else. He can cry, be afraid, feel dejected, and despair. The only difference, perhaps, is that he got a bit luckier, having a system that can improve living conditions and serve as a cheat. The system brought a chance for change, and change means a better future. This is also why Chen Xin hasn’t had an emotional breakdown before, because the system is like a carrot dangling in front of a donkey, allowing him to keep moving forward. But a carrot is just a carrot, a temptation that can be seen but not necessarily reached. Perhaps in the distant future, when Chen Xin upgrades his shelter to a sufficient level, he will live well and comfortably. But for now, he is still struggling in this apocalypse like everyone else. The future might be beautiful and bright. Maybe the donkey can finally eat the carrot that tempted it all the way, but along the way, it has to endure the constant temptation of that carrot. Why can’t I stop and eat this carrot before moving on? Humans shouldn’t be like donkeys, led by a dangling carrot, right? Once this thought appeared in Chen Xin’s mind, it burst forth uncontrollably. Relax a bit, enjoy yourself, make today comfortable, and why worry about how tomorrow should be? That’s something for tomorrow’s self to worry about. Admittedly, such a thought is really... too tempting. For most ordinary people, indulgence and enjoyment are just too tempting and too easy to obtain. Under the heavy pressures of life, maintaining one’s resolve and living a frugal life by working hard every day is truly exhausting. Compared to wild indulgence and enjoyment, it’s really hard to stick to one’s beliefs. The willpower needed for this is not something everyone, or most people, possess. Besides, Chen Xin himself is not a monk-like person. Once the thought arises, it grows uncontrollably like wild grass. Chen Xin finally understood why, in Christian doctrine, sloth ranks second among the seven deadly sins. Because for a person, laziness is the most irresistible and easily cultivated emotion. Thinking about his struggle for survival over the past half a year, always having endless tasks, Chen Xin suddenly thought that maybe taking a day off wouldn’t be bad. Forget it, let’s indulge a bit today. Chen Xin abandoned his struggle and decided to give himself a break today. After all, doing things tomorrow is just the same, why exert so much effort today? Let work go to hell! I’m going to play games today! Taking out the cola he’s been saving from the storeroom, Chen Xin couldn’t help but lament that if he had some chips at times like this, enjoying cola and chips while playing a thrilling shooter game with friends would be perfect. Unfortunately, there’s only cola, no chips, and the shooter game could only be played in boring single-player mode. But who cares! There are always some games worth playing ten, twenty, or even a hundred times without getting bored! Besides, isn’t shooting games all about enjoying the thrill of spraying bullets? —————————————————— "Sister Lan, how much longer until we arrive?" On the truck, the young special police officer accompanying Qin Lan for the first delivery looked out the window at the darkness, feeling a bit restless as he asked Qin Lan. Due to the worsening conditions after the snowstorm, the special police team wasn’t comfortable with Qin Lan driving alone, so they specifically assigned someone to accompany her to prevent any dangerous or difficult situations on the road that Qin Lan couldn’t handle alone. However, there hadn’t been any issues along the way, except the snow made the road a bit hard to navigate. "We’re almost there, A-Xin lives just up the mountain." Qin Lan glanced at the road ahead, answering with certainty, while also looking at the young officer driving beside her, smiling, "Why, does it feel far already?" "Not really, just..." The young officer tried to find the words but seemed unsure of what to say, suddenly appearing flustered. "Focus on the road, drive carefully." Qin Lan reminded him but also understood his feelings: "In these road conditions, it’s easy to feel like you’ve been driving forever without arriving, but don’t worry, we’re almost there. Just turn ahead and head up the mountain." "Up the mountain? Got it." Following Qin Lan’s directions, the young officer slowly drove up the barely recognizable mountain path. That’s why he felt he’d been driving long; in these icy and dark conditions, they could only inch forward, and the road conditions didn’t support speeding up. Fortunately, when Qin Lan said it wasn’t far, it really wasn’t. After driving less than five hundred meters up the mountain, he saw an iron door half-buried in snow illuminated by the headlights. "Is this it?" The young officer, looking at the nearly snow-covered door, confirmed with Qin Lan beside him, simultaneously commenting on how inconspicuous the place was. If not for knowing the location and having Qin Lan guide him, accurately finding it wouldn’t be easy, especially with snow everywhere and the darkness. "This is it, I’ll call him to open the door." Qin Lan nodded, not intending to get out, but instead took out the shortwave radio to call Chen Xin. Qin Lan’s call was quickly answered, but she found it strange that Chen Xin’s voice sounded a bit different than usual over the radio. However, Qin Lan didn’t delve into it because, in such weather and environment, Chen Xin might be unwell or something else. Not waiting long, the half-buried door opened. A beam of light shone through the door crack, only then did Qin Lan and the young officer put on their protective masks and get out of the car. "A-Xin, I’ve brought you the things you wanted, but there’s a lot, so I only brought a third today, totaling eight air conditioner units." Qin Lan greeted Chen Xin and began introducing the items she brought. Peeking behind the door Chen Xin had only opened a crack, Qin Lan worriedly asked, "A-Xin, is your door blocked by snow? Do you need our help clearing it?" "I just cleared it yesterday, but it seems blocked again overnight. If you could help, that’d be great." Chen Xin quickly nodded. Although he planned to take a day off today, with things at the doorstep, he couldn’t just ignore them and laze around.

Chapter 118 - 116: Choosing Decadence (2/10)

Comments (0)