Reborn with Nothing but My Farm and Vengeance in the Apocalypse novel Chapter 263

Chapter 263: Chapter 263: Humiliated and Enraged

The price of fever-reducing medication was now astronomical, and the Lancaster family couldn’t get their hands on any.

All they could do was fill bags with water, leave them in the snow to freeze, and then place the makeshift ice packs on Simon Lancaster’s head to bring his fever down.

Simon Lancaster was bedridden, Silas Lancaster was complaining about his leg pain, and Robert Lancaster and Elaine Hughes used their age as an excuse to do nothing. Naturally, the task of clearing the snow fell to Sylvia Lancaster alone.

Every two hours, Sylvia had to climb onto the roof and brave the bone-chilling wind to clear the accumulating snow.

This was the first time in her two lifetimes she had ever endured such misery. ’I’m going to lose my mind from all this suffering!’

When Sylvia mentioned she needed a break, Elaine Hughes didn’t say a word. She just reached out and viciously twisted her ear.

Elaine Hughes gritted her teeth, her voice laced with fury. "You useless girl, why are you so lazy?! Rest, rest, that’s all you think about! How dare you ask for a break just for clearing some snow? If you don’t go, then you can get the hell out of this house!"

Ever since she discovered that Sylvia’s mother was the one who had switched her own daughter at birth, Elaine Hughes had stopped treating Sylvia with any kindness.

’It’s all Sylvia’s fault!’ Elaine thought resentfully.

’If it weren’t for her mother, I never would have been separated from my own flesh and blood!’

’If it weren’t for Sylvia, my real daughter wouldn’t refuse to acknowledge me!’

"AAAAGH—"

Sylvia felt as if Elaine was about to rip her ear clean off, and she couldn’t stop a pained wail from escaping her lips.

Robert and Silas heard the commotion from Sylvia’s room but didn’t react. They no longer cared about her, so they couldn’t be bothered to get involved.

The only person who would have protected Sylvia, Simon Lancaster, was still unconscious with a high fever.

Helpless, Sylvia had no choice but to painstakingly climb back onto the roof.

Stepping through the icy black snow, Sylvia felt waves of bone-piercing cold seep into her ankles through her soaking-wet pants.

She gritted her teeth and bent down, beginning to clear the snow piled on the roof.

The black snow was still falling relentlessly. A couple of flakes landed in Sylvia’s eyes, and she felt a sharp, stinging pain.

Sylvia knew the snowflakes contained hard particles of volcanic ash. She didn’t dare rub her eyes, so she could only let her tears wash the grit away.

Sylvia cried as she cleared the snow, and soon, she couldn’t stop crying at all.

She could feel her feet and calves slowly going numb from the cold.

Sylvia’s heart ached with misery. ’When will this nightmare ever end?!’

******

Meanwhile, Melody Summers and Grace Sutton took their grandmother and Miss Lowell to the supply distribution point, taking advantage of a lull in the snowfall to collect their cold-weather gear.

The property management staff had been diligent ever since the snow began. They worked in shifts, on call twenty-four hours a day, and kept the grounds swept clean of the black snow.

After several snowfalls, the sky was no longer pitch-black as it had been. It had lightened to a hazy gray, and a faint glow was now visible.

The residents in the complex were all excited. It felt as if in just a few more days, the sky would clear completely, and this whole disaster would finally be over.

A long line of residents had formed in front of the plaza, all waiting to receive supplies.

People chattered amongst themselves as they waited in line:

"Look at the sky, everyone! It’s getting brighter, isn’t it?"

Just as Melody’s family was about to head home with their coats and boots, a commotion suddenly broke out.

Winnie Summers frowned at the ID in her hand. Looking up at the middle-aged man in front of her, she said, "This ID has already been used to claim a coat and a pair of boots. You can’t get them again."

The middle-aged man was bundled up in a padded coat, a scarf wrapped around his nose and mouth. He had a receding hairline that left the top of his head bald—a chrome dome—and it was the only part of him exposed to the cold.

Hearing Winnie’s words, the man scowled. "When did I claim anything?" he grumbled. "Don’t you go making false accusations!"

Winnie calmly explained, "Your wife came by this morning with all of your family’s IDs and collected four padded coats and four pairs of shoes. We have a record of it right here."

The middle-aged man, Chrome Dome, was just trying to scam an extra set of free supplies. Cold-weather gear was precious now. On the black market, a single padded coat could be traded for five pounds of rice, and a pair of snow boots could fetch ten compressed ration bars!

Now, hearing Winnie say it was all on record, he felt the awkwardness of being caught in a lie.

When the onlookers saw what was happening, they began to point and gossip:

"What’s going on here? Is someone really trying to scam government supplies?"

"Supplies are rationed per person. If you take extra, what’s left for everyone else? How can you be so selfish?"

"Hey buddy, are things that bad for you?"

"And you call yourself a man? Acting so greedy!"

"..."

Hearing this, Chrome Dome’s face flushed bright red, a mixture of shame and anger.

He snapped. Shoving Winnie hard, he cursed, "Bullshit! I said I didn’t take anything, so I didn’t take anything! You damn bitch! How dare you accuse me! I don’t care! You’re giving me those supplies today, one way or another!"