Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 446: Chapter 436: Revenge

Yeah, if you put yourself in Xu Yin’s shoes... seeing the people who caused your family’s death in a past life now eating and drinking comfortably in your own home, you’d be angry enough to rise from the grave.

’I was being too thoughtless.’ Tang Mo clearly recognized her mistake.

The priority now was to get this family out of the house. As for what she would do after they were gone, Xu Jinsan would be none the wiser.

’But what excuse could I use to drive them out?’

After all, with Xu Jinsan around, Tang Mo couldn’t just use brute force.

Tang Mo rubbed her aching temples. ’So this is what it’s like,’ she thought for the first time. ’A mission that can’t be solved with brute force isn’t so simple after all.’

’Having to deal with petty family squabbles in the middle of the apocalypse... Really...’

The next day, when Tang Mo got up, Tan Jing and her daughter, who had previously been somewhat wary of her, had now completely dropped all pretenses. They couldn’t even be bothered to keep up appearances.

’So what if that Xu Yin doesn’t like us? Isn’t Xu Jinsan the head of this household? As if that little brat gets to call the shots here.’

Seeing Tan Jing and her daughter walking around with their noses in the air, Tang Mo couldn’t be bothered to spare them a glance.

’Go on, enjoy yourselves,’ she thought. ’Your good days are numbered anyway.’

”Mom, I’ll feed Pingping and An’an in a little while.”

Mrs. Xu was in her room with her sister-in-law, Xu Shan, learning to knit. Having lived in the city her whole life, she found it quite fascinating.

A couple of days ago, she had gotten the sudden urge to knit a scarf for Yinyin, but she just couldn’t get the hang of it and had to give up.

Now that the skillful Xu Shan was here, she could pick it up again, and it was a good way to pass the dull hours.

”Of course. The formula is in your father’s and my room.”

Zhou Jingyi kept her eyes glued to her sister-in-law’s hands, trying hard to memorize the steps.

She wanted to knit a scarf for Yinyin, and if possible, a small sweater for each of Pingping and An’an.

With Mrs. Xu’s permission, Tang Mo went to her room, retrieved the baby formula and bottles, and sat down in the living room to mix it for Pingping and An’an.

The two children were still young, but they could eat some solid food, so one bottle of formula a day was enough. Besides, Tang Mo hadn’t brought out much formula—just a few cans that wouldn’t last very long.

After Xu Yuanshan’s family arrived, Zhou Jingyi had started keeping the formula and bottles in her own room, and she always fed the children there in private. She didn’t even ask Xu Shan for help.

Today, however, Tang Mo deliberately brought everything out to the living room, for the express purpose of letting Tan Jing and her daughter see.

’It’s better if they see. Better for them to make a mistake.’

”Wasting good formula on kids you just picked up. Your family sure is generous.”

At that moment, only Tan Jing and Xu Ru were in the living room watching TV. Seeing the two little brats getting their milk, they couldn’t help but make a snide comment.

’The adults are starving, and they’re wasting milk on someone else’s kids. How ridiculous.’

”This formula is full of nutrients, and it’s a good thing. Pingping and An’an are so little. How could we not give them some nourishment?”

Tang Mo spoke calmly, her hands never ceasing their work.

Xu Ru stared intently at the can of formula. The powder inside was a pale yellow and looked incredibly rich.

Though she couldn’t smell its milky aroma, watching the two children drink with such relish, she could just imagine how sweet and fragrant it must taste.

’Such a good, nutritious thing... In times like these, who isn’t malnourished?’

”Stop dreaming,” Tang Mo said. ”Even if you stare a hole through that can, I’m not giving you any of this good stuff.”

After they finished their milk, Tang Mo picked up a child in each arm and went into a room.

She deliberately left the can of formula on the table, its lid off, like a Hunter laying a trap.

”Be good, Pingping and An’an. Big Sis is taking you to a room for a nap.”

It was time for their afternoon nap, but Zhou Jingyi and Xu Shan were chatting in Pingping and An’an’s room.

So, Tang Mo had to take the two children into her own room.

Tan Jing and Xu Ru stared at the open can of formula on the table, their minds clearly scheming.

”Mom, Xu Yin is so condescending. I’m her cousin, for crying out loud. Aren’t I more her family than those two kids?”

Xu Ru swallowed hard as she spoke.

Tan Jing knew exactly what was on her daughter’s mind. She glanced around, noticing that her two sisters-in-law were deep in conversation, completely oblivious to their surroundings.

Tan Jing got up and, pretending to do so casually, quietly pushed the door to the room her sisters-in-law were in, leaving it slightly ajar.

Meanwhile, Xu Jinsan and her husband had just stepped out onto the balcony for a smoke. It would be at least one cigarette’s worth of time before they returned.

Xu Yin was putting the two little brats down for a nap, and getting children to sleep was no easy task. She wouldn’t be out anytime soon.

”There’s so much in there,” Tan Jing said. ”A mouthful or two won’t hurt.”

With her mother’s encouragement, Xu Ru threw all caution to the wind. She plunged her hand directly into the can and began stuffing the powder into her mouth.

’They usually hide this good stuff where I can’t even see it. I finally have a chance, I can’t miss it!’

’I’ve been so hungry lately, my face has gotten all sallow and I’ve lost weight. I’m not pretty anymore. This is unacceptable!’

Xu Ru greedily shoveled the powder into her mouth, stuffing in another handful before she had even swallowed the last.

Powder from her hands spilled all over the floor, and Tan Jing scrambled after her with a tissue, trying to wipe it up.

”Oh, you little menace, slow down,” Tan Jing hissed.

It wasn’t that Tan Jing was a neat freak; she was wiping the floor mainly to destroy the evidence.

But there was no way Tang Mo would let them get away with it that easily.

At that exact moment, out on the balcony, Xu Yuanshan and Xu Jinsan suddenly felt a powerful gust of wind blow right at them.

Both men shivered.

Ever since the strange fog had appeared, there hadn’t been any wind for a very long time.

There’s trouble when things deviate from the norm. Looking out at the oppressive black fog, both men felt a sense of foreboding.

They quickly slid the glass balcony door shut and stubbed out their cigarettes, terrified the strong wind would blow the black fog right into the apartment.

With their cigarettes extinguished and little to say to each other, the two men saw no reason to linger on the balcony and returned to the living room.

But the first thing they saw upon re-entering the living room was an all-too-familiar scene.

”Xiao Ru, what are you eating?”

Xu Jinsan’s expression was grim, but it was Xu Yuanshan who spoke first.

”Are you treating this like a snack? This isn’t for snacking. Put the lid back on, quick.”

On the surface, Xu Yuanshan was admonishing his daughter, but inwardly, he was already making excuses for her.

’Although it’s a bit embarrassing even for me that my daughter’s been caught stealing food twice, isn’t food meant to be eaten?’ In his heart, Xu Yuanshan didn’t think it was a huge deal.

”Big Brother, she’s just a kid, she doesn’t know any better. Please don’t be offended.”

Over on her side, Xu Ru froze for a second when she saw her uncle, but unlike the panic of the previous night, she simply picked up a cup of water and calmly washed down the contents of her mouth.

’Last night, Uncle saw me eating and didn’t say a thing, so he won’t say anything today either. He’s a total softie.’ She had him pegged.