A Guide to Doomsday Preperation by Shen Jiu

Chapter 1: A Safe Place

  

  Shen Jiu holds up the disc to the sun. The light passes through the clear jade and refracts across his skin. The words etched into it seem to glow under the sun’s gaze.

  It’s been a week since he first got this artifact. When he had first returned to Qing Jing Peak he had given a detailed report of what he found in those ruins. He then gave Shizun the ornament so it could be properly investigated by an expert.

  The thing didn’t follow him around. Its sudden appearance in the cave seems to have been the result of the teleportation array, not the artifact itself.

  However, it was soon returned to him by his Shizun. As it turns out the thing had bonded with his soul, and was now virtually useless to anyone else. He had been pondering on what to do with it since. 

  Turn it into storage space? No, Shen Jiu didn’t have that many things. He didn’t like being excessive with decorations or collectibles. He’d rather sell off anything valuable, after all, money was much more useful than fancy baubles. 

  He also wasn’t one for sentimental attachment. In the past, he never knew when something might be taken away from him, whether that be by the slavers, Qiu Jianluo, or Wu Wanzi. He would keep whatever he could, but it wasn’t out of nostalgia. It was so he could use it for as long as its lifespan allowed, then recycle its material for something else. 

  He still keeps that mentality, but him taking care of his old stuff only meant that he rarely bought anything new, and was frugal with his money.

   “Maybe I can use it to store my fans.” Shen Jiu snorts at the idea. 

  Fans were one of the few things he had plenty of. When he started finding out the many uses of a fan in social situations, he began to keep one on him at all times.

  At first, he treated his fan like he did with everything else. He wore the same one every day and never bothered to get more than two. One that’s more elaborate for formal occasions, and one that’s more durable for travel.

  But then a shixiong of his noticed how Shen Jiu only ever used the same fan and mocked him for carrying it around everywhere. 

  "Like a child would with a favorite stuffed bear." He'd taunted.

 It was then that Shen Jiu realized that his behavior wasn’t standard for young masters. His shixiong had interpreted it as emotional immaturity, not a lack of options. But if he had known that Shen Jiu only had two fans, with one rarely used, he would’ve had a field day.

  So Shen Jiu made it a point to buy more fans after that. Enough that he wouldn't have to repeat one for a whole month if he wanted to.

  He could be as frugal as he liked with his private possessions, but when it came to what was shown in public, he had to keep up the appearance of a spoiled noble. It was worth spending his allowance on.

  Still, he didn’t have enough fans to warrant dedicating a whole pocket dimension to them…

 The loud sound of a gong reverberated throughout the dorm. 

  “It’s time for breakfast!” The head disciple’s voice rang out.

  Shen Jiu puts the jade into the drawer by his bed and pulls the curtains of his window shut.

  He takes a deep breath and opens the door, braced for whatever's going to be thrown at him today.

  Shen Jiu tries his best to focus on the words in front of him, but they seem to blur together into one big ugly blob.