"Open the door, open the door!"
"I'm Chen Zhenghao. I want to trade a place to stay with you. Hurry up and open the door, or I'll start shooting!"
Inside the room, the young couple huddled together in fear.
"What should we do? They've come to take our home. We won't even be able to keep the last bit of food we have," the wife said, her face filled with despair as she looked at her husband.
The husband, a bespectacled office worker, held his wife and comforted her, "Don't worry, it'll be okay. If they want the house, we'll give it to them."
"Right, let's quickly hide whatever food we have left on us."
The two of them stuffed the remaining food into their clothes, trembling as they opened the door.
Seeing the menacing faces of Chen Zhenghao and his gang outside, the man swallowed hard and bent over, saying, "Brother Hao, from now on, this house is yours. We'll leave right away!"
With that, he prepared to leave with his wife.
Before they could take more than two steps, one of Chen Zhenghao's lackeys sneered and raised a steel pipe.
"Bang!"
After a dull thud, the man collapsed to the ground, his vision going black. Even in unconsciousness, his eyes were filled with disbelief.
He couldn't understand—he had obediently given up the house. Why had they still attacked?
The woman looked on in terror as her husband lay on the ground, blood flowing quickly and turning black on the floor.
"Ahhh!!!" She let out a piercing scream, covering her mouth.
Another pipe came down on her head.
Two lackeys approached and, without saying a word, began beating them relentlessly with their pipes.
Zhou Ke'er covered her mouth tightly, utterly paralyzed by fear. It was her first time witnessing a murder, and no matter how strong her mental fortitude, she couldn't stay calm.
Chen Zhenghao glanced at her and sneered, "It's freezing cold. We need to stock up on some food, or we'll starve when the time comes."
After killing so many people, Chen Zhenghao had lost all respect for life.
There was something Chen Zhenghao didn't want to admit: ever since Zhang Yi had placed a bounty on his head and he had been attacked, he had felt a deep sense of fear.
To suppress this fear, he resorted to even more violent methods to subdue the residents of the building, forcing them into submission.
Zhou Ke'er fought back the urge to vomit, remaining silent.
Chen Zhenghao swaggered into the house and ordered his lackeys to dispose of the bodies.
...
Over the next few days, Zhang Yi constantly heard a series of clinking and clanking sounds.
The noise came from next door, and he knew it was Chen Zhenghao and his men searching for any weaknesses in his home.
Not only that, but those men took turns keeping watch on the front door and back window of Zhang Yi's house.
Chen Zhenghao assumed that at the very least, Zhang Yi would come out to throw away trash or collect snow for water.
If they caught him at the right moment and killed him, they could seize everything Zhang Yi owned.
But what they didn't know was that Zhang Yi had a large extradimensional space at his disposal, so water was never an issue for him.
However, Zhang Yi was indeed hesitant to open the window to throw out trash.
Chen Zhenghao had guns, and Zhang Yi wasn't about to take that risk.
Still, for someone like him, a little more trash at home wasn't a big deal.
When he got bored, he played video games or watched the movies and TV shows he had downloaded in advance.
Every day, the residents in the building's group chat continued to beg him for help.
And alongside those pleas came furious curses after their requests went unanswered.
"Zhang Yi, you heartless bastard!"
"You could easily help everyone live a little longer. Why are you so selfish?"
"You're doomed to be lonely for the rest of your life!"
"Don't you have a heart? If you don't help us, you'll spend the rest of your life filled with guilt and regret!"
Faced with their angry scolding, Zhang Yi responded in the simplest way possible.
He started live-streaming himself eating, recording his comfortable life, and sending the videos to the group chat for all to see.
"Hello, dear neighbors! Today I'll be cooking braised pork belly!"
As he spoke, he tossed a slab of pork belly, at least ten pounds heavy, onto the cutting board.
The neighbors watching in the group chat were seething with jealousy.
"Who needs that much pork belly just to make braised pork? If you can't finish it, don't waste it—give it to me!"
"Zhang Yi, you're not human—you're a monster! You don't deserve to eat that pork belly!"
"I haven't had anything with oil in it for a week. Please, just give me a piece of pork skin!"
"Even just a sip of the oil would be enough. That's something you don't want, right? Please give it to me!"
For people on the brink of starvation, the sight of such high-fat food was irresistible.
Zhang Yi, deftly slicing and cooking, made the neighbors almost smell the aroma of braised pork through the screen.
But after cooking for a while, Zhang Yi frowned.
He picked up a piece of pork belly, took a bite, and then spat it into the trash can.
"Too much soy sauce! Damn it, the whole pot is ruined."
Though Zhang Yi often cooked, he hadn't made a lot of large meals before. This time, the flavor was off.
"How can anyone eat this? Ugh, such a waste, such a waste!" Zhang Yi muttered, shaking his head as he dumped the entire pot of pork into the trash.
The group chat exploded instantly, the neighbors losing their minds.
"Don't throw it away! My mouth is a trash can—throw it to me!"
"It's a sin! Why did you throw it away? Why? Why? Why?! Ahhh!!"
"Hurry and throw away your trash. I'm coming right now to pick it up!"
"Young master, this humble servant is late. Do you need a dog to help clean up your trash?"
Some people were so furious at Zhang Yi's wastefulness that they nearly passed out.
Their hearts bled with anguish.
In the freezing cold, with gas supplies cut off, cooking was impossible.
Even the idea of eating a warm meal had become an unattainable luxury.
As for braised pork, they wouldn't dare dream of such a treat.
But Zhang Yi, without a care, had thrown out an entire pot of it!
It was maddening!
"I'll just eat something ready-made," Zhang Yi said, shifting the camera to reveal a table full of dishes, neatly laid out in his clean, cozy home.
The warm yellow light of a ceiling lamp illuminated the food, making it look even more appetizing.
Zhang Yi pointed to each dish, enthusiastically introducing them.
"Take a look, everyone. Tonight's dinner is braised prawns, scallion-stewed sea cucumber, imperial tofu, sweet and sour Yellow River carp, braised intestines, stir-fried fish fillets, sweet and sour pork, black fish egg soup, and candied yam."
"Alright, my friends, the food is ready. Let's dig in!"
Zhang Yi set up his phone like a food vlogger and began feasting with gusto.
The messages from the neighbors came flooding in, faster than ever.
"Zhang Yi, please give me just one bite! I'm begging you!"
"Zhang Yi, let my child have just a piece of fish—just the tail would do!"
"Zhang Yi, you're my father. I'm your son. Just let me have a sip of the soup!"
The pleas continued endlessly, with some even trying to call Zhang Yi in desperation.
Zhang Yi ignored them all, enjoying his meal with a satisfied smile.
Watching his neighbors lose their composure only made the food taste even better.