The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 318

Chapter 318

Cola perked up his ears and listened for a while. When nothing interesting followed, he lowered his head and went back to chewing.

Nicole glanced at Zeph lying beside her. She wanted to say something, but for a moment, she couldn’t find the words.

After turning it over in her mind, she rolled onto her side. “Are we still selling water?”

If they stopped, they would have to trade grain, cigarettes, or liquor instead.

“Large amounts of fresh water aren’t easy to get right now,” Zeph said. “And desalinating seawater costs too much. Let’s hold off for a few days and see what Sven does.”

Nicole had been thinking the same thing, so she relaxed and let herself settle in for an afternoon nap.

Zeph didn’t leave. He only held her lightly.

Nicole went a little stiff. Was he trying something? If he did, should she scratch him?

Fortunately, the man knew better. He behaved himself and kept his hands exactly where they belonged.

Little by little, she drifted off.

A man who didn’t want to try anything wasn’t much of a man, but Zeph knew she wasn’t ready. Some things couldn’t be rushed.

Once they made up their minds, neither of them went out again.

Still, staying cooped up in the villa all day got boring fast.

Nicole thought for a moment, then pulled a whole pig out of her storage space and smiled at Zeph. “This one’s yours.”

With a butcher knife and a boning knife, the work wasn’t too difficult.

The pig had gone into her storage space right after it died, so it was still warm.

Nicole quickly found a large basin and didn’t even waste the blood.

The two of them squatted in the bathroom and got to work.

Zeph took care of the heavy labor. After more than two hours of steady work, he had butchered the pig and cut the meat into smaller portions. He had just stood up to stretch when Nicole pulled out another pig.

The second he froze, Nicole burst out laughing. “I’m kidding. We’ll do this one tomorrow.”

Then she put the pig away again.

After being teased, Zeph suddenly walked over and reached for her.

1/3

Nicole dodged him at once. “Don’t come near me. You stink.”

+15 Bonus

In truth, it wasn’t that bad. The pig had gone hungry for so many days that its intestines were relatively

clean.

Still, Zeph hadn’t taken shortcuts. He had even cleaned the large and small intestines until they looked almost spotless.

They didn’t butcher any more pigs that night, but they didn’t sit around either.

The villa’s location was perfect. No one would notice what they did here. It wasn’t like Crownview Residences, where chopping a single bone could probably make the upstairs and downstairs neighbors curse through the walls. 1

Nicole brought out a meatball maker. She chose a well-marbled cut of pork, chopped it into chunks, and fed it into the machine, setting it to pound and knead until the meat turned smooth.

Once the pork became a fine paste, she added water, salt, and potato starch, then mixed it until the texture turned firm and springy.

After that, she shaped the paste into balls by hand, dropped them into a pot of water, and let them simmer gently. Once the meatballs floated to the surface, they were ready to come out.

The process was simple enough that Poppy ran over to help, too.

By the end of the night, they had made more than 100 pounds of meatballs. After they cooled, Nicole stored them all in her storage space.

The broth left from cooking them looked clear but tasted rich and savory, so she saved that as well. Later, they could drink it as soup or use it for noodles. Either way, it would be excellent.

The next day, Zeph and Nicole worked together and butchered three pigs.

Poppy handled the meatball machine on her own. Her back and waist ached from the work, but she never complained.

After they had butchered ten pigs in total, Nicole decided that was enough for now and had Zeph start cleaning fish instead.

Zeph, newly promoted to senior pig-butchering specialist, went quiet.

Poppy changed lanes with him, ready to build a new career as the prettiest fishball maker in the apocalypse.

Only Cola was so bored he could barely stand it. He blinked up at Nicole, practically begging for a job.

“Keep watch,” Nicole said, slow and clear. “Stay here and guard the house.”

The moment she finished speaking, Cola’s fur bristled. His head snapped toward the front of the villa, ears pricked and teeth bared as a low growl rumbled in his throat.

2/3

+15 Bonus

Nicole went alert at once.

About three minutes later, a car stopped outside the villa gate.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify