An Nuan heard many people swallow. She ignored them and continued eating.
Resources were still abundant now, but in a few months, self-heating meals like this would be scarce.
Because all it took was a little water to have a hot meal, without wasting other resources, they were incredibly popular, selling even better than rice.
Xiao Long had an astonishing appetite.
Not only did she finish a whole self-heating meal, but she also ate most of the dumplings, even licking the broth at the bottom of the bowl clean.
After everyone was full, they drank some water to clear their mouths and rehydrate.
But they were afraid of needing to use the restroom later, so they didn't dare to drink too much.
An Nuan had originally wanted to digest crystals, but with so many people watching, it wasn't convenient to act.
She could only wait until they returned.
Once An Nuan knew the abilities of the enemy's awakened individuals, she had nothing else to worry about.
Among the six people, only the wind blade user and the one who spat were offensive types; the rest were support and logistics.
She had already witnessed the wind blade user's abilities, which were of average lethality and posed no threat.
The other one, who spat, was a lackey to Guo Tao, and his abilities were surely inferior to his, posing even less of a concern.
An Nuan casually lay down on Juanzi's belly to sleep.
"If they dare to make any moves, I'll let Daidai roast them into jerky!"
Chen Wenjing snickered. The cave was a natural echo chamber, and everyone turned to look at him.
Chen Wenjing turned away in embarrassment and cuddled up with Xiao Long next to Hai Changfeng to sleep.
An Nuan napped for a while. She was already energized but too lazy to move, yet she was also bored.
Just as she was contemplating whether to go out and survey the situation, a string of numbers appeared on her wristband.
It was a binary code, which translated to: The dumplings were delicious, I liked them very much.
An Nuan smiled. Of course, the dumplings were delicious since everyone had made them together.
As she was feeling happy, her watch suddenly went dark.
This angle perfectly illuminated the area five meters behind her.
Two people, with their eyes open, were stealthily approaching them with jerky.
In fact, everyone except Xiao Long had heard the commotion.
Chang Kaitong, in particular, had reached the second stage, and his senses were stronger than those of a first-stage awakened individual.
But he didn't open his eyes either.
Everyone remained silent with a tacit understanding, wanting to see what they were up to.
The two people, holding jerky in their mouths, crawled forward. When they were about three meters away, they extended the jerky towards Juanzi.
"Squeak, big cat, have some meat!"
Juanzi narrowed his eyes, glanced at the two girls, found them ugly, and with a tilt of his head, continued to sleep.
The two girls knew that An Nuan's group was formidable, so they didn't dare to get too close.
But these two cats were truly rare: docile, obedient, and with thick fur.
Even if they couldn't be used as mounts, they would be useful for emergencies when food was scarce.
They dared not provoke the one that could breathe fire, but this one looked docile and gentle, likely easy to capture.
"Squeak, it's delicious, big cat, look..."
The girls tried their best to lower their voices, but An Nuan's team heard every word clearly.
An Nuan opened her eyes and saw Hai Changfeng stifling a laugh.
Juanzi had been raised by An Nuan since he was little and ate better than most people. Did they think a couple of pieces of jerky, licked by saliva, could lure him away? Don't be ridiculous!
As expected, Juanzi yawned and gave them a pitiful look.
With a gentle sweep of his tail, he swept the two of them back into their group like trash.
"Jerky? That's not right. You two didn't go out to scavenge for supplies, where did you get this jerky?"
A bald man stood up, snatched the jerky from the girl, and stuffed it into his mouth.
The jerky was covered in the girl's saliva, yet the bald man ate it with relish.
He grabbed the girl by the collar: "You little slut, I'm risking my life to scavenge for supplies, and you're secretly hoarding it for yourself? You're asking for death!"
"No, no, this is what Brother Dong gave me!"
"Dongzi? You little brat, you're stealing supplies! I thought you were suspicious last time. To think you'd share everyone's things for two women, you're asking for death!"
"I didn't steal it, I saved it because I couldn't bear to eat it."
"I don't believe you, you definitely have more hidden. Brothers, let's go and strip this traitor naked!"
The bald man led his men to grab Dongzi and tear at his clothes.
Dongzi frantically denied it, but no one listened. Soon, as the crowd dispersed, Dongzi lay on the ground, dead.
Some of the people who had acted took biscuits, others took jerky, and some even found chocolate hidden in their clothes.
The bald man spat on Dongzi's corpse.
"Serves you right! Boss, you won't blame me, will you?"
"You did the right thing."
Guo Tao said loudly, "In this environment, we can only survive by uniting and helping each other. Such a selfish person who harms everyone's interests is not worth pity! If anyone else hides supplies and doesn't hand them in in the future, I'll break their legs and throw them out to feed the zombies!"
Everyone lowered their heads, not daring to speak.
The bald man laughed heartily, praising Guo Tao's wisdom.
The others also chimed in, praising Guo Tao's leadership abilities.
The two girls trembled, but quickly recovered and batted their eyelashes at the bald man.
The bald man glanced at them but didn't show a lecherous smile; instead, he looked disgusted.
"You two good-for-nothings, you relied on crawling into directors' beds when you were nobodies. Now you want to sleep in my bed? You're not worthy! Brother Tao, these two little bitches are accomplices for not reporting this. What do you think should be done?"
"Brother Tao, no! I really didn't know this jerky was being hoarded. This, this is what she gave me!"
"You're spitting blood! You clearly exchanged it with Dongzi for one night. Brother Tao! I'm the one who's wronged. I don't know anything."
Guo Tao sighed, "As the nation has its laws and the family has its rules, you have harmed everyone's interests, and I cannot let you stay. Return the supplies and leave the team."
The bald man and his men stripped them, even their underwear, leaving them with only a camisole.
Despite the warmth of the cave, the temperature was still a few degrees.
The two girls shivered uncontrollably, their jaws nearly dropping.
"What nice vases. I was planning to sleep with them later, what a pity."
Chen Wenjing could barely hold back, desperately wanting to ask An Nuan to let him kill the hypocrite.
An Nuan signaled him to calm down and tossed a blanket to the girls.
Guo Tao looked surprised. "You are..."
"Don't misunderstand, I have no intention of interfering in your internal affairs, nor am I interested in the cat dealer who took my baby to the right."
"Then you're being kind? How truly benevolent. I really want to invite you to join my team."
An Nuan said coldly, "I don't want to be involved with perverts."
Guo Tao froze, his face turning dark.
An Nuan was unreserved.
"If you want to assert your authority, you could have killed them, stripped them naked to humiliate them, and then enjoyed the tragic sight of their deaths. What's the difference between that and being a pervert? Please stop talking to me, I'm afraid perversion is contagious and might affect the children."