The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 223

Chapter 223

Distracted the entire game, Jeremy lost horribly.

Good thing they were only gambling snacks. At the rate Jeremy was losing, he would’ve ended the game without a shirt on his back.

That afternoon, the Goodmans stopped by with a plate of homemade donut holes as a Christmas treat

from back home.

The 18th floor returned some trail mix in exchange. Nobody went overboard, but they weren’t about to let the Goodmans walk away empty-handed either.

That night passed the usual way: dinner, TV shows, walking the dog downstairs.

And just like that, Christmas was over.

Nobody exercised. They all completely gave up for the holiday.

By Boxing Day, the food quality dropped dramatically.

Dinner was just skillet potatoes and noodles mixed with meat sauce.

Everyone was so bored that they started finding ways to entertain themselves. Hughie’s group resumed training, Poppy and Cola started training each other again, and Nicole sparred with Zeph.

Outside was still a frozen wasteland, and the 18th floor was only so big. Being stuck in the same cramped space day after day got old fast.

After the New Year’s, the holiday officially ended.

Bundled up in layers, Hughie’s group planned to head outside for some fresh air before they all went stir-

crazy.

“Nicole, you coming?”

Three years into the apocalypse, Nicole had already adapted to this kind of life.

“It’s too cold.”

Not long after the three of them left, the walkie-talkie crackled.

“The cold-resistant potatoes sprouted.”

Life had gotten so painfully boring that even potato sprouts managed to spark Nicole’s interest.

“I’ll be right there.”

She headed over to Zeph’s apartment balcony. Tiny green shoots had already broken through the soil in the planting trays.

Nicole crouched down and counted. About 80% percent had sprouted already. At this rate, the rest

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should emerge within a few more days.

The survival rate was actually pretty decent. A lot of that came down to the soil. Their planting mix was loose, nutrient-rich, and easy for roots to grow through.

The Goodmans’ potatoes were doing noticeably worse. Their dirt had been dug from outside, dense and sticky with poor nutrients. Even with Gabrielle’s farming experience, the seedlings still came out weak

and thin.

“Should we start using grow lights now?”

Nicole shook her head. “Give it a few more days. Let the leaves come in first.”

Beatrice and the others returned around evening, looking hesitant, like they wanted to say something.

Since nobody brought it up directly, Nicole pretended not to notice. She tossed a pork bone into the pot to stew with all the carrots.

Tonight was their last shared group meal. Starting tomorrow, everyone would cook separately again.

Finally, she could go back to eating the food stocked inside her storage space. She had been craving it for ages.

After dinner, Beatrice finally spoke.

“Nicole, I want to apply for the public security patrol team.”

New recruitment notices had gone out today. Besides opening various new jobs, the city government had even created purchasing departments that bought resources from civilians, like firewood and

charcoal.

It was better to teach people how to survive than keep handing out relief supplies forever.

Emergency grain distributions weren’t sustainable long-term, so the government had started encouraging survivors to become self-sufficient.

There were farming jobs, coal mining jobs, logging jobs, and all kinds of technical labor positions.

Victor’s words had clearly left an impact on Hughie’s group.

The disaster wasn’t ending anytime soon, and nobody knew what kind of future awaited.

During the holidays, the three of them had thought about it seriously and decided it was time to face reality.

If they rationed carefully, their supplies could probably last another two years.

What would happen after that, though?

If conditions kept getting worse, resources would only become harder to find. They couldn’t wait until they were completely out before scrambling to survive.

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Besides, three healthy adults staying locked inside an apartment every single day was enough to drive

anyone crazy.

They couldn’t handle heavy labor, and they lacked technical skills. After thinking it over, the public security patrol team seemed like the best option.

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