Ice Age Apocalypse: I Hoard Billions of Supplies

Zhang Yi’s sincere expression left Zhu Yunque completely flustered.

”I... I...”

She stammered, unsure how to respond.

”I’ve never taken care of a child before either.”

Zhang Yi said, ”There’s a first time for everything. Didn’t you say before that children are easy to take care of? They eat little and sleep a lot. How much trouble could they be?”

He patted Zhu Yunque’s shoulder. ”I have faith in you. Just focus on taking care of the child during this time. I’ll arrange for others to handle everything else.”

After speaking, Zhang Yi gave her an encouraging look before walking away.

Zhu Yunque stood there helplessly, unable to come up with any solution after much thought.

At that moment, Zhou Ke’er came out of her room and crossed paths with Zhang Yi.

Zhang Yi gave her a peculiar look that made Zhou Ke’er chuckle involuntarily.

Zhou Ke’er approached Zhu Yunque and said gently, ”That child has been crying nonstop. You should go check on him quickly!”

Zhu Yunque stamped her feet anxiously. ”But I don’t know what to do!”

Zhou Ke’er sighed. ”First, get some rice porridge from the kitchen to feed him. Also, I noticed his swaddling clothes are soaked. You’ll need to change his diaper immediately.”

”But where would I find diapers for him?”

Zhou Ke’er replied, ”He’s been using makeshift diapers made from cloth scraps. It’s not like we can find store-bought diapers here!”

As they were talking, Zhang Yi’s voice came from behind.

”Ke’er, come here for a moment. With so many people on board, we need to discuss disease prevention measures to avoid outbreaks.”

Zhou Ke’er said to Zhu Yunque, ”You’d better get to it. I need to attend to this matter first.”

Zhu Yunque wanted to ask Zhou Ke’er for help, but the latter had already left with quick, small steps.

Gritting her teeth, Zhu Yunque went to the kitchen first to have the cook prepare rice porridge for the child.

Then she had to go prepare diapers.

Before she even reached the room, the child’s deafening cries could already be heard clearly through the ship’s decent soundproofing.

Zhu Yunque took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

The child on the bed was crying his eyes out, wailing loudly. The sheets beneath him were soaked with yellow liquid.

Zhu Yunque turned pale and shrieked, ”Ah! My bedsheet!”

In this weather, drying bedsheets would be extremely difficult, not to mention the mattress was probably soaked through.

How was she supposed to sleep now?

Zhu Yunque lamented her misfortune bitterly. For the first time, she felt intense regret.

She shouldn’t have impulsively taken on this responsibility.

Originally, when she suggested to Zhang Yi that they bring the child along out of maternal compassion, she never imagined she would be the one responsible for childcare.

There’s an old saying that fits perfectly:

Those with their hands in their pockets are always overconfident.

When you’re not the one doing the work, it’s easy to talk big.

Only when the task actually falls on your shoulders do you realize how difficult it truly is.

Zhu Yunque was at her wits’ end when she suddenly caught a whiff of something sour and foul.

The child hadn’t just wet himself - he had soiled himself too. Anyone who’s cared for children knows how pungent their waste can be.

To make matters worse, the room was small and heated, making the smell even more intense.

The pampered Miss Zhu gagged and rushed outside, taking several deep breaths to recover.

Yet the crying continued unabated in the room.

The room wasn’t far from Zhang Yi’s, so the noise was clearly audible.

The thought of being mocked by others if she failed at childcare made Zhu Yunque stubbornly determined.

”I refuse to believe I can’t take care of one child!”

Steeling herself, she abruptly pulled open the door and charged back in.

Changing diapers is an extremely challenging task, especially for beginners.

The cloth diapers the child used were called ”jiezhi” in Huaxu Kingdom dialect.

They had no waterproof function whatsoever - just several layers of coarse fabric folded and stuffed under the child’s bottom.

The moment Zhu Yunque touched them, she felt both her hands become wet.

She let out another loud shriek.

This time, she cried. She and the child were crying together.

Just changing a diaper made her feel utterly humiliated.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yi, listening to the commotion next door, was thoroughly amused.

Sitting elegantly on the sofa sipping milk tea, he said to Zhou Ke’er, ”How long do you think it’ll take her to finish changing that diaper?”

Zhou Ke’er tilted her head in thought before shaking it vigorously.

”I think she’s in real trouble!”

She had seen friends care for children before, and it had once made her fear the idea of motherhood.

Those were no little angels - they were practically little demons capable of driving sane adults mad!

The moment you open a soiled diaper and see its contents can make you wish you were ascending to heaven.

Even Zhou Ke’er admitted she would need time to adjust to such tasks, and that was coming from someone with hospital experience and strong mental fortitude.

Zhang Yi shrugged. ”Well then, let’s wait and see! After all, she chose this herself. Idol!”

Old Zhu had said this trip was meant to broaden Zhu Yunque’s horizons and show her the hardships of life outside.

Zhang Yi had been wondering how to make her understand clearly.

As it turned out, Zhu Yunque had volunteered for the perfect lesson.

When Zhang Yi saw Zhu Yunque holding the child earlier, he had nearly died laughing.

Zhang Yi had no intention of helping Zhu Yunque with her predicament. He had also instructed Zhou Ke’er and others on board not to assist her - the principle being that one should handle the responsibilities one takes on.

Instead, he left the cabin and went down to where the Rockflow Group members lived.

When he arrived, several people who had been whispering among themselves immediately fell silent upon seeing him, then greeted him with ingratiating smiles.

”Hello, Mr. Zhang!”

Zhang Yi asked, ”Where’s Li Zongyu? Have him come see me.”

Someone immediately went to fetch Li Zongyu.

Soon, Li Zongyu came jogging to Zhang Yi.

”Mr. Zhang, you wanted to see me!”

Zhang Yi said, ”Come with me. There’s something I want to discuss with you.”

”Of course.”

Li Zongyu agreed without hesitation, smiling as he did so.

He had been prepared for this moment.

After all, the secret he guarded was precisely why the Jiangnan Region had sent people thousands of kilometers to rescue them.

Zhang Yi led Li Zongyu to the deck where they were completely alone.

Li Zongyu wore thick down jackets that could withstand temperatures below -20°C.

Leaning against the railing, Zhang Yi asked calmly, ”Tell me about that stone.”

Li Zongyu reached into his pocket and slowly produced a stone, presenting it to Zhang Yi.

It was a yellow stone resembling Tianhuang stone, appearing utterly ordinary at first glance.

But the moment Zhang Yi saw it, he felt his DNA stir.

Author’s Note