The Ger's Contract Marriage [BL]
Chapter 531: Good Dad 101

Chapter 531: Good Dad 101

Xu Feng’s smile grew as he thought about how pleased Xuan Jian and Xuan Yang would be with everything he’d gathered. His men might not even noticed he’d gone a bit overboard. They would fully understand in their own ways.

Both men had been willing to sacrifice everything, even their health, for their children, just as Xu Feng was now. And when it came time for their babies to have the best, Xu Feng would spare no effort.

Neither of them had really ever interfered in his shopping habits. However, Xu Hu Zhe seemed to have a different opinion on his love of shiny and not-so-shiny objects. Then again, no money was involved... Xu Hu Zhe should be fine, shouldn’t he?

Thinking about his family in Nanshan made Xu Feng light but somehow heavier all in one breath. It was best not to think too hard about home. What to do? Get your mind off more serious things by thinking of his haul of course... also maybe sleep.

When utilizing his five-finger discount, Xu Feng began with the items he thought he needed most to raise his own buns—his precious little eggs—first. He picked up things like diapers, cribs, and bottles at first, but then he found himself dropping entire shelving units into his space as well.

There was just so much stuff. How could he even begin to organize it?

There was no answer to that question, and that was exactly why Xu Feng finally stopped collecting items he didn’t strictly need or want.

The thought of finally looking around at the shelves full of brightly colored toys, soft blankets, and clothes in all shades of pastel. Plush bears, ducks, dinosaurs, and dragons would stare back at him, their button eyes would one day stare at his sons.

Items from these stores were still intact—like no one had even thought about raiding them, as if people had forgotten about their children in the scramble to survive. Maybe they had mostly abandoned pampering their children?

Even with his first few hauls under his belt, Xu Feng’s desire to hoard still nagged at the back of his mind each and every time.

Included in his hauls there were learning materials too—educational toys to use during play, puzzles for counting, musical toys, and books for reading. It was just too much.

There were shelves stacked high with child development kits, and a part of Xu Feng desperately wanted all of them for his cubs. Surely they need all the advantages they could get, just because he now had the chance to give it to them.

Luckily, Yujie seemed interested in some of these items too. She picked out books and puzzles, and even she seemed a bit overwhelmed by the sheer quantity.

She was much pickier than Xu Feng, which helped curb his greedy tendencies. He began to wonder if the woman had more children back home. Some of the items she chose were definitely meant for children younger than four or five years old.

Others were for children much older. Perhaps she was collecting items for Mingjun and Mingyue’s future use, but what about the things meant for toddlers? Was she planning to have more children?

...it was possible.

...not that it was any of Xu Feng’s business. It wasn’t his place to ask, and he had enough self-control to keep his questions to himself.

It also became apparent that Xu Feng’s space and the space bracelet on Mingjun’s wrist weren’t secrets within their group of four.

Both sides openly stuffed their hauls into their respective storage spaces, and the trust between them was so strong in this matter that it amazed Xu Feng. He couldn’t imagine showing such a valuable trump card so easily.

In fact, he realized that both sides still had many secrets of their own and that was for the best. That kind of trust wasn’t something you built in a day. Xu Feng knew he was lucky to be on their good side, whether he understood the full extent of that luck or not.

Xu Feng didn’t know the capacity of the bracelet, but it couldn’t be too large. Only the most valuable finds—including crystal cores—were stored in the Feng family’s bracelet, and other items were stashed in all available corners of the van.

Once Xu Feng realized that Yujie didn’t mind his mission to collect as much as possible, they expanded their range of shops.

Closer to Aran Base, items had been few and far between. Stores had obviously been cleaned out several times by survivors searching for supplies.

However, as they traveled farther away, into areas harder to reach—especially for those worried about the upcoming zombie tide—they found far more to pick from.

Xu Feng was unlucky in many ways to be stranded in Dongmen again, but in others, he was lucky beyond words. He just happened to meet a fellow sticky-fingered friend, and they had started their shopping spree right when the zombies were fierce but more scattered than usual.

The zombie tide had drawn many of the undead into massive congregations, forming terrifying hordes that targeted places with dense vitality. It was almost as if there was a mastermind behind each tide, orchestrating the chaos... but all of that was beyond Xu Feng’s current care.

Whatever zombie generals or masterminds were leading the horde, it wasn’t something he needed to worry about for now. Maybe if he’d had to struggle through a zombie tide surrounded by hundreds of thousands of zombies like Yujie had, he’d be more alert.

But his luck had held, and this young mistress had chosen to remain blissfully ignorant and unbothered.

Listening to Yujie and Mingyue’s stories about spending weeks on base walls, fighting zombies with both friends and hidden enemies all around, was unnerving, to say the least. The two half-pint children had seen more blood than Xu Feng had hoped to see in his entire life.

Back to the shopping.

Dwelling on horror stories and the gruesome monsters he had to dispose of every day was not a good sleep aid—not at all. He still couldn’t put the rancid odor of the zombies out of his mind, an always present stench that refused to be ignored. Thinking about happier things—like shopping—was a much better option.

As they traveled farther from Aran Base, they began to move along the edge of the city, where the journey grew longer, and the pickings slimmer. But as Yujie grew more confident in Xu Feng’s abilities, they began to get bolder. They decided to cut through the city—a risky move, but it opened up their shopping options considerably.

One of their stops had Yujie filled with undisguisable excitement. A gas station that still had fuel!

The two gas stations they had passed on the outskirts had been nearly dry, and even the items in their convenience stores had been lacking, picked over so many times that even a rat would find little of interest.

Yujie didn’t completely clean out the station, but not because she didn’t want to. She simply didn’t have the space. Xu Feng had followed her inside, and while she took what she could, he quietly took the entire gas tank beneath the station into his space.

...covertly, though the sweat on his brow made it slightly obvious.

He didn’t need it.

Well, he didn’t think he needed it, but he didn’t mind making room for Yujie and her boys. The effort of moving that much into his space had put him out of commission for several hours, but the thought of helping Yujie’s family made it worthwhile.

The cost of gas back at Aran Base had been ridiculous. It was clearly something they needed, something that was far more important than Xu Feng had imagined.

Other great finds along the way included food.

Actual food that wasn’t rotten or picked over, food that had somehow lasted two years into the apocalypse. Xu Feng wasn’t above raiding previously looted convenience stores, but Yujie had bigger plans for them.

Most of the food they took came from small warehouses, stockpiled with packaged or canned goods. The warehouses weren’t as large as the factories in more rural areas, but for Yujie and Xu Feng, they were an amazing find—perfect additions to their ongoing shopping expedition.

As Xu Feng drifted off to sleep, he couldn’t help but smile as he thought about all the random material possessions he’d gathered. It was almost laughable. He almost wished he’d had the chance to stockpile things two years ago at the start of all this mess.

Then he could have offered his lovers the ultimate gift: frozen foods, ready-made meals, things that would bring them comfort in any world. Modern conveniences he wasn’t sure he could replicate on his own.

"Heheh." Xu Feng giggled softly, his consciousness fading as the van continued to bump and jostle over the road. Somewhere in the background, he heard Yujie chuckle as well.

Whether she was judging him or not, she could have her laugh. He didn’t mind.