Chapter 46 Solitary Journey
Through Heaven and Earth Snowflakes fell softly from the sky. Only about an hour after the rules were implemented, the city was already blanketed in white.
The tram's windshield wipers whirred back and forth, maintaining clear visibility.
"Heh..."
Guan Tong sat in the tram, breathing on his hands.
The temperature was dropping faster than he'd expected; he could already feel the chill seeping into his clothes.
However, since it wasn't unbearable yet, he didn't continue using the [Constant Temperature Technology Underwear] function. This thing could only be used for 6 hours a day, so he had to be careful with its usage. He
also didn't turn on the heater or air conditioning. Trams like this consume power faster due to the lower temperature. Turning on the air conditioning would likely drastically reduce the original 1000-kilometer range, causing him to run out of power before reaching his destination.
"I can't see any people or civilian vehicles on the streets anymore. It seems everyone's indoors now."
The vehicles visible outside were mostly government vehicles.
For example, large snowplows with a large blade at the front and a large hopper on the back.
There were also unmanned transport vehicles used by the Department of Livelihood Support to transport food and other survival supplies.
Some of these vehicles had drivers, and many cast curious glances at Guan Tong's shared car on the road, wondering where he was going.
Guan Tong, watching the dwindling number of cars on the road, guessed the official final choice:
to concentrate people in large cities rather than conduct a large-scale evacuation.
He felt this choice was likely a last resort.
A large-scale evacuation would not only require the emergency mobilization of transportation capacity and supplies, but also the research into where to evacuate people and how many people to evacuate in groups.
Not to mention that the entire city had a population of over ten million, and everyone had their own ideas. Even if many people were clearly told that snowfall was related to population density, they might still choose to stay and cluster together in large cities.
They would still believe that large cities had more supplies and equipment and were safer, and that evacuating to remote areas would provide no sense of security.
This idea was not entirely wrong, because no one could guarantee safety by evacuating to remote areas. Yes, perhaps the snow would lessen by then, but if food and other supplies didn't keep up, they might still go hungry.
Even a slight delay like this would waste precious time getting out of the city.
Unless an individual, or a small group, is determined to set off immediately after learning the hidden rules, they might not be able to outpace the blizzard.
Otherwise, with the speed of the blizzard, any delay will quickly fill the city's main roads, except for those constantly being cleared by snowplows and de-icing agents, with snowplows plowing the way.
It's like a small boat is easy to turn around.
A large boat, even if the captain wants to turn it around, it takes a long time.
In this situation, the smallest unit of "boat" is undoubtedly the individual.
Guan Tong increased the car's speed, getting closer to the city's edge, where there were fewer official vehicles.
With fewer snowplows, the snow on the roads was visibly much more plentiful than in the city center.
"No, I can't use autopilot anymore."
Guan Tong immediately disengaged autopilot and took over.
Autopilot is subject to built-in legal restrictions, with very low speed limits within the city.
At this speed, Guan Tong worried that before reaching his destination, the snow would accumulate too much, making the car immobile and leaving him in a predicament. Besides,
there were no snowplows clearing the snow outside the city, and he couldn't bring himself to experience the conditions outside the city.
He sped up and arrived at the New City Development Zone after more than twenty minutes.
It was deathly quiet, without a sound. The only sound seemed to be the soft patter of falling snow, giving Guan Tong a sense of desolation.
He knew this area was mostly comprised of dark factories, with few people to begin with, and the heavy snow had driven them all into the city.
Guan Tong took a deep breath and continued on.
He knew that since he had chosen to stay away from people and the city from the beginning, there was no going back; he had to see it through.
He drove out of the New City Development Zone as quickly as possible, reaching the outskirts of Yunhua City and into its townships.
Once outside the city, the road conditions worsened considerably, with snow visibly piling up rapidly.
Guan Tong gripped the steering wheel tightly, focusing intently on driving, refusing to let his mind
wander or check his phone for the latest news online. He had only one goal: to reach Mingdao Mountain as quickly as possible, paying close attention to road conditions and driving carefully to avoid slipping and veering off the road.
After driving for over an hour, Guan Tong observed the size and speed of the falling snowflakes outside the window and had a clear feeling: the snow was less.
Yes, he had vaguely sensed this before, and now, as they got further away from Yunhua City, the phenomenon became more pronounced.
In the center of Yunhua City, the snow didn't feel like snowfall, but more like a downpour! It was as if a giant was standing in the sky, holding a huge winnowing basket overflowing with snow, constantly pelting it down!
But now, far from the big city, the roads were surrounded by villages. These villages, being on the outskirts of the city, actually had quite a few residents, much more lively than villages in remote areas.
Yet even so, the snow had visibly decreased. Although it was still a lot compared to the snowfall of previous winters, this change filled Guan Tong with exhilaration.
He knew that as long as he kept driving forward, the snow would only lessen as he moved further away from the densely populated areas!
Keep going!
Guan Tong didn't have time to stop for lunch. He took out a piece of chocolate from his bag, ate it to replenish his energy, and continued driving with renewed vigor.
Another hour passed.
Crunch, crunch, crunch…
the sound of the vehicle crunching through the snow had become particularly noticeable. Guan Tong looked at the snow layer on the road ahead. Less than three hours after the rules took effect, the snow was already seven or eight centimeters thick, almost half the height of the car tires.
And the destination was still…
Guan Tong glanced at the navigation; it was about two hundred kilometers to Mingdao Mountain.
Two hundred kilometers. If he could drive at 100 kilometers per hour, he could get there in two hours.
But even though there were almost no cars on the road, Guan Tong didn't dare to drive that fast given the snow-covered road conditions.
Guan Tong glanced at the time: "It's 12:13 now. If I drive at 70 kilometers per hour, it will take about 3 hours to cover 200 kilometers. If all goes well, I should arrive before 4 PM."
Guan Tong could accept arriving at this time; any later, around 4 or 5 PM, he might face complete darkness.
Normally, it wouldn't get dark so early in June, but since the rules came into effect, thick clouds have obscured the sky, making it already quite gloomy at 12 PM, and it would definitely be pitch black by 5 PM.
Even if the snow lessened by the time he reached Mingdao Mountain, entering the mountains in the dark would undoubtedly be very dangerous.
Having planned his time and speed, Guan Tong stopped thinking and focused on execution.
He couldn't afford to be distracted in the slightest to ensure his safe driving.
"Keep going straight. We are currently 178 kilometers
from our destination, Mingdao Mountain." "Turn right at the next intersection into the first lane. We are currently 145 kilometers from our destination, Mingdao Mountain."
"Due to rain and snow, please slow down."
"We are currently 109 kilometers from our destination, Mingdao Mountain."
The tram was running very quietly. Besides the sound of the wheels crunching through the snow and the navigation's voice prompts, Guan Tong could only hear his own breathing.
With each navigation update, Guan Tong saw that he was getting closer and closer to Mingdao Mountain.
From over 200 kilometers, to over 100, then to 90, 80, 70…
"We are currently 31 kilometers from our destination, Mingdao Mountain."
Almost there!
Guan Tong felt a surge of joy and even hummed a tune.
He could clearly see that the snow outside was getting lighter, now almost at the level of a normal heavy snowfall.
Although a month of normal heavy snow would still result in a severe snow disaster, with careful handling, at least he wouldn't easily die!
"17 kilometers to the target location, Mingdao Mountain."
"9 kilometers to the target location, Mingdao Mountain."
Guan Tong could vaguely see the outline of the mountain through the windshield.
Just then, he suddenly saw several cars parked on the road ahead and quickly slammed on the brakes.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle—bang!"
Although Guan Tong reacted in time, the road was slippery due to the snow, and the brakes weren't very effective. The car still slightly collided with a car blocking the road.
"Collision detected, automatically alarming!"
Guan Tong took a few deep breaths, smiled bitterly, and muttered, "What's the point of calling the police? If the traffic police were here, they would have cleared those cars blocking the road long ago..."
The shared car automatically shut off after the accident. He got out of the car and carefully looked ahead.
It seemed that four or five cars had been involved in a chain-reaction accident, blocking the road. But because the area was remote and the new regulations were about to be released, no one came to deal with it, and these cars had been stuck here.
"This is troublesome..."
There were long, deep ditches on both sides of the road, and Guan Tong couldn't even reverse around them.
"Less than ten kilometers left, should I just walk? But..."
Guan Tong glanced down at his feet; the snow was already above his calves, making walking very difficult. He also had a large backpack, a small backpack, and a sleeping bag to carry.
After a moment's thought, Guan Tong slung the supplies over his shoulder, then took out the wordless book and summoned his shadow.
He had the shadow carry him and run forward as fast as it could!
He wanted to utilize the shadow's unlimited stamina to carry him as far as possible within the time limit. He would then walk the remaining distance himself.
Chapter 47 I am the First Person in Charge
Limi Hotel.
Five hours after Guan Tong left, the hotel was already packed.
Over three hundred people were crammed together in the lobby alone. The restaurants and bars on the same floor had also been cleared out, with tables and chairs removed to make room for bedding and makeshift beds.
The lobby's air conditioning was at maximum power, constantly generating warm air. However, it wasn't enough to keep several hundred people warm.
So, most people were huddled up, scrolling through their phones for the latest news, occasionally glancing up at the heavy snow outside.
What made them uneasy was that the steps on either side of the entrance were completely filled with snow. The speed at which the snow was accumulating was truly alarming.
In fact, the hidden rule that "regional snowfall is positively correlated with population density" had already been known to the public more than three hours earlier.
However, everyone at the Limi Hotel chose to stay, and no one had any intention of leaving.
The hotel was located right next to a main road, with large snowplows passing by frequently and the occasional roar of helicopter rotors overhead, all of which provided a strong sense of security. Moreover
…
many people's eyes occasionally glanced towards a corner of the hotel lobby, where an eight-man armed squad was stationed.
They had recently entered the hotel, and the squad leader had informed all the refugees that his squad was merely there to maintain order, reassuring them not to be nervous or worried.
People naturally welcomed this.
Although they usually only dealt with sheriffs and rarely saw these armed squads, they still held these soldiers who protected their homeland in high esteem and trusted them greatly. With them around, they felt even safer.
"Look at this video! The snow on those side roads in the city that no one's cleared has completely covered the curbs!"
"That's too fast, it's not even night yet..."
"Luckily we're on the main road, there are snowplows clearing it regularly."
"I doubt it... Don't forget this snow has been falling for a whole month... This is only the first day! What if a lot of people die in the end..."
"Don't jinx it! We have so much food and drink, and the logistics department will send over blankets and stuff later, everything will be fine!"
"Yeah, and there are soldiers here, so don't worry too much."
Most people were optimistic, but Xu Xiaotian, sitting near the door, looked at the heavy snow outside with a melancholy expression: "I wonder how Tong is doing. If he's outside right now, it's really too dangerous."
...
"Huff, huff..."
Guan Tong, carrying his bag and sleeping bag, panted heavily, trudging through the snow.
Shadow had carried him for a long distance, but Guan Tong had to walk the remaining five kilometers or so on his own.
Five kilometers isn't a long distance, and it's nothing for his current physical condition. It's just that the snow on the road made it a bit more strenuous than usual.
Temperature isn't a concern; with the [Thermostatic Technology Underwear]'s 6-hour effective period, now's the perfect time to use it.
After the underwear took effect, he no longer needed to worry about hypothermia.
Moreover, the snowfall here was significantly less than in the city. Judging from his visual and sensory experience, if the city was experiencing a "heavy blizzard," then the area around Mingdao Mountain was roughly between "moderate" and "heavy" snow.
This was satisfactory enough for him, considering Mingdao Mountain's sparse population was a comparison to villages and cities. Truly desolate places, where "not a bird flies, not a human footprint," belong to the uninhabited areas of the border regions.
Guan Tong walked for over an hour, covering only five kilometers, finally reaching the foot of Mingdao Mountain around 4 PM when it was getting dark.
Due to its undeveloped state, there were few buildings around the foot of the mountain. There was no path leading up the mountain, only a winding, narrow trail that looked like a path worn by hikers.
This trail was now covered with a thin layer of snow, and with the gloomy sky, it didn't look very safe.
Guan Tong had originally planned to go up the mountain to find a safe spot to camp, but after considering it, he decided against it. He didn't have
any climbing crampons, and if he accidentally slipped on a snow rock and fell, he would really be asking for trouble. Besides, he was only here because there was no one around and the snow was light; he didn't have any particular fondness for mountain climbing, so there was no need to risk going up.
"I'll find a leeward slope to rest for a while first."
Guan Tong walked around the foot of the mountain for a while, then found a spot on a higher elevation with a huge protruding rock. Staying there would provide shelter from the snow.
He wasn't worried about the rock falling; besides, such a huge rock couldn't be easily collapsed by the snow. Even if it did collapse, it would be deflected by the slope of the mountain and wouldn't threaten Guan Tong's safety.
After finding a good spot, Guan Tong immediately began clearing the snow.
He used a folding shovel to move some of the surrounding snow to both sides, then spread his sleeping bag on the ground, adjusting its position according to its size, preparing for sleeping that night.
He then sat down, took out a pack of compressed biscuits from his bag, and quickly ate his dinner with the water he had brought.
After eating, his strength returned somewhat, and he continued working before it got completely dark.
He gathered some wood at the foot of the mountain, wrapped it together with electrical tape to form a small wooden platform, and brought it back to line it with dry paper to store batteries and other moisture-sensitive items. Then he chopped the remaining wood into sections and piled them in a circle to make a makeshift campfire.
This was something he didn't need to learn; it was practically an instinct ingrained in human nature. Fortunately, modern humans invented lighters, so starting a fire wasn't as troublesome as before.
After the campfire was lit, watching the flickering flames dispel the surrounding darkness, Guan Tong felt completely relaxed.
He knew that this somewhat "retro" lifestyle was self-inflicted. If he had chosen to stay in the city, at the Limei Hotel, perhaps he could have lived a comfortable life with air conditioning and provided food.
But the question was, could this comfortable life last for thirty days? The pressure might not have been apparent in the first few days, but as time goes on and the snowfall shows no signs of abating, various serious problems may emerge.
Rather than trusting the authorities to provide perfect protection for tens of millions of people for thirty days, Guan Tong has more faith in himself. He knows he is primarily responsible for his own life.
Others might see the situation is bad but stay only because they have no other choice. But since he has a choice, he needs to make decisions based on his own judgment.
"I'll wander around the area tomorrow at daybreak and see if there's anything useful," Guan Tong thought. "As for food, what I brought is barely enough if I eat it sparingly. If all else fails, I still have a food box left in my storage box, which should last at least two or three days." "
I'm afraid my own water supply won't be enough, but I have a portable filter and a single-person gas stove in my bag. I can boil snow water, filter it, and drink it; that should be fine."
"Then, I need to quickly craft some bound coins and gather 100 to buy the [Multi-Terrain Marching Boots] from the Ascension Shop. With them, my movement speed in the snow will definitely be much faster..."
Chapter 48 The First Signs of Snow Disaster
"Hiss—"
Guan Tong unzipped his sleeping bag, sat up, and stretched.
He hadn't slept very soundly overnight, but the sleeping bag was warm enough, and he'd certainly had enough rest.
He squinted at the snow accumulation outside. Overnight, the snow in the area outside his "little camp" had risen by about ten centimeters.
"If it's like this here in Mingdao Mountain, the snow in the city will probably be fifty or sixty centimeters by now..."
Guan Tong didn't linger. He immediately got up, put on his warm clothes, and rummaged through his backpack for food.
Besides several large bags of compressed biscuits, there were several cans of food, several packets of instant noodles, and several packets of freeze-dried food.
If he ate these sparingly, he could barely survive a month on a semi-starved diet. Moreover, the previous rule, the "fasting therapy," had honed many people's ability to endure hunger; going hungry for two or three days wouldn't be a big deal.
He opened the bag of freeze-dried fruit and ate some biscuits for breakfast. Then he took out the [Wordless Book] and began writing "Ascension Coins" on the second page.
He currently had 70 coins, but he was still short 30 to buy the [Multi-Terrain Marching Boots]. He could only make up the difference by using the Wordless Book and consuming his mental energy to create the remaining coins.
The first time he did this, his mental energy limit was low, and it took him almost half a month to create 10 bound coins. But now, his mental energy limit had increased significantly, which would also improve his efficiency considerably.
Roughly estimating, he estimated that it would take him about twenty days to create 30 bound coins. Considering that under his current extreme conditions, he could increase his mental energy limit by 1 point every seven or eight days, the overall coin-making time might be shortened by one or two days.
It wouldn't be a short time, but Guan Tong could afford to wait. This rule lasted for a whole month, so even if he could only buy the boots in ten days, he would still have ten days left, which would be enough for him.
After quickly finishing today's writing, Guan Tong put away the book, picked up a shovel, and went to clear the snow outside the camp. Although the snow was blocked by the towering rocks high in the mountain, a path still needed to be cleared outside for him to pass through.
Otherwise, if he stayed huddled in the small camp while the snow piled up outside, he wouldn't be able to leave the camp in ten days or half a month, when the snow, which was more than half a person's height, would freeze solid.
Guan Tong didn't choose to clear a large area; he only had a folding shovel, and he couldn't clear a large area anyway. What he did was simply clear a path about forty or fifty centimeters wide, extending outward from the camp.
He piled the shoveled snow on both sides of the path, knowing that sooner or later, both sides would be piled high with snow. As for the direction the path led, it naturally led towards the highway.
After the rule ended, the frozen snow that had lasted for thirty consecutive days wouldn't melt immediately. The authorities would definitely prioritize clearing the roads, so that Guan Tong could wait for the snow on the highway to melt and then leave the camp along the path he had cleared.
For the next three days, Guan Tong used his mental energy to write each day and then used his physical strength to clear the snow on the path he had cleared.
During this time, he also looked around to see if there was anything he could use. He was disappointed to find that besides a patch of wild wood, the area around Mingdao Mountain was all wasteland, with nothing else.
The wild wood was somewhat useful, though; Guan Tong had cut down a lot of branches to bring back, which could be used for bedding, making a fire, or as wooden fences along the "snow path" he had cleared.
Over three days, the snow on both sides of the path had become increasingly thick. It was now over forty centimeters, taller than the case of Guan Tong's desktop computer.
Furthermore, due to the low temperatures caused by the continuous snowfall, a frost layer had formed in the middle of the snow. Guan Tong tried to knock it down with a shovel, but it only produced dull thuds and was very difficult to break.
This made him feel fortunate that he had persisted in clearing the path every day from the first day; otherwise, if he had delayed for a few more days, it would have been impossible to clear it at all!
"Phew..."
He worked until evening again today. Guan Tong took a deep breath and carried his shovel back home. He lit a campfire and sat on a makeshift wooden stool made of branches wrapped with duct tape, warming his hands by the fire to alleviate the numbness from working in the low temperature.
"The temperature is dropping lower every day, I have to be very careful not to get frostbite," Guan Tong thought, looking at the flickering firelight. "Once the temperature drops even further in a few days, I'll try to work during the six hours each day when the [Thermostatic Technology Underwear] is active. Outside of those six hours, I'll try to stay by the campfire at the campsite."
He turned his head and glanced into the distance, where he could vaguely see the hazy lights of city lights through the snow.
"The rules have been in effect for four days now, I wonder how things are in Yunhua City..."
Even Mingdao Mountain, where snowfall has decreased significantly, has deep snow accumulation; with four consecutive days of torrential snow in the city, the situation can only be much worse.
Even with all the professional equipment, snowplows, and de-icing agents in the city, can they truly contend with the power of nature? Guan Tong wasn't very optimistic.
Of course, if he had remained optimistic from the start, he wouldn't have resolutely decided to leave the city and come to this desolate place to survive alone…
"Beep—beep—"
Suddenly, Guan Tong, who was warming himself by the fire and deep in thought, jolted awake. He vaguely heard a sound that wasn't from nature coming from afar.
"What's that sound? Is it a car horn?"
Guan Tong immediately stood up and looked towards the road where the sound was coming from.
His gaze pierced through the dim snow, and he could vaguely see two thick, round beams of light shooting out in the distance, like car headlights.
"How did it get here?" Guan Tong clearly remembered that about ten kilometers down that road, several cars involved in a pileup had blocked the road.
Could it be that the driver had crashed into those broken-down cars? Powerful and able to drive on such thick snow, it must be a large vehicle…
Guan Tong watched the headlights getting closer and closer, and a sense of vigilance rose in his heart.
...
More than 300 kilometers away from Guan Tong, in Yunhua City.
This city had become a snow city.
Except for a few main roads where snowplows were busy clearing snow 24 hours a day, all the auxiliary roads, side roads, and various sidewalks were piled with thick snow.
The snow was generally close to two meters high, exceeding the height of most people, looking like snow walls standing in the city, giving people a cold and suffocating feeling.
A driver wearing heavy winter clothes was driving a snowplow on a main road. Looking at the high snow walls on both sides, he felt a strange tightness in his chest and difficulty breathing.
"This deadly snow..."
he muttered, worried. It had only been four days, and there were at least six more "four days" to come. If these snow walls continued to pile up, wouldn't they eventually completely cover and bury the shops on the street?
No, it was probably already...
"Thump!"
A sound of collapse came from behind the snow wall. The driver was slightly startled, but quickly calmed down.
He knew it must be another poorly constructed shop collapsing under the weight of the snow.
He'd heard that sound two or three times since yesterday. It wasn't just him; other snowplow drivers had also mentioned hearing the sounds of snow collapsing shops and other buildings while working on the roads.
Some collapsed instantly, while others made that unsettling, teeth-grinding "crunching" sound until they exceeded a certain threshold before collapsing with a roar.
"These little shops collapsing is fine, no one's home there anyway. Just don't let the houses collapse," the driver muttered. "If those houses collapse, the people inside… ugh… what a tragedy."
Chapter 49 Different Problems
"Quick, stop lying around playing on your phones, let's clear the snow at the entrance!"
At the entrance of the Limei Hotel, someone was loudly calling out to the others, shovel in hand.
Night was approaching, and the hotel lights were already on.
The lobby was packed with makeshift beds, and with those staying in the guest rooms upstairs, the hotel was at least five or six hundred people.
Hearing the call, someone complained, "Why are we clearing snow again? Didn't we just clear it yesterday?"
"It's snowing so heavily every day, it's piled up again."
"It's almost a meter high, it really needs clearing."
"Call those people out of the guest rooms, we can't just be the ones working in the lobby!"
"Cough, cough!"
People were clamoring, and someone looked outside. The steps at the hotel entrance were piled with a thick layer of snow.
Although official snowplows were clearing the main roads, they couldn't easily reach the hotel entrance steps; the guests had to do it themselves.
"Stop complaining, this is for our own good!"
"Yeah, if we don't clear it, and the snow blocks the gate, it'll be hard for the logistics bureau to bring supplies in!"
"Get out here quickly!"
As soon as the gate opened, a howling wind mixed with snowflakes rushed into the lobby.
People tightened their clothes and shivered.
Some ignored the call to action, simply burrowing under their blankets, not even daring to peek out.
There wasn't much the others could do about those who were shirking their responsibilities. A few hot-tempered men were livid; if it weren't for the armed squad stationed at the hotel, they probably would have already attacked them.
In the end, it all came down to their own initiative.
Twenty or thirty people voluntarily took tools and went outside to clear the snow near the hotel entrance steps.
Xu Xiaotian was among them. After the hotel was full, he had given his room to a pregnant woman who had come to take refuge, and he himself had slept on a makeshift bed in the lobby.
In this post-apocalyptic world, especially after experiencing the cruelty of the first rule, very few people were still willing to have children.
But while no one wanted to have children, they also felt that children were the hope for the future.
Therefore, when a pregnant woman arrived, most people were very considerate.
They were accepting of letting her sleep in a warm guest room and even taking up more food resources.
"Damn it, look at both sides of the street, it's all ice walls!"
someone in the snow-clearing team at the entrance couldn't help but curse.
"If we don't clear the snow, in a few days, there will be an ice wall like this in front of the hotel! They'll all be trapped inside, unable to get out!"
Others chimed in, "Yeah, some people are too selfish, unwilling to do any work. This isn't for anyone else, it's ultimately for everyone taking refuge here, including ourselves."
"If you ask me, those with guns shouldn't be doing anything!"
"Didn't they say their only task is to maintain order, nothing else?"
"Alright, alright, we're lucky we still have food and heating. We've already made it through a few days, let's just hang in there for the rest of the time… cough, hang in there… cough cough, cough cough cough!"
The man suddenly coughed violently halfway through his sentence. The others looked over and saw that the refined-looking middle-aged man's cheeks were flushed, clearly something was wrong.
"Teacher Feng, what's wrong?"
This refined-looking man was a local middle school teacher who had checked in quite early.
He was also the one who first proposed starting the mutual aid and sharing session at the Limei Hotel, so everyone was quite familiar with him.
"Teacher Feng, why is your face so red?"
"I touched my forehead... Ouch! It's so hot, Teacher Feng, you have a fever!"
"You're sick and still working? Go inside and rest!"
"Xiaotian, quickly help Teacher Feng inside!"
"Yes!"
Xu Xiaotian agreed and quickly helped the coughing Teacher Feng into the house, to his makeshift bed on the floor.
"Teacher Feng, rest here. I'll get you some water and some medicine, okay?"
"Xiaotian, I'm fine." The man covered his head and lay down. "I'll be fine after a while, no need to trouble yourself."
"That won't do... I'll go get some hot water!"
Xu Xiaotian hurried to the dining room, only to find a long line in front of the direct-supply hot water dispenser.
Most of these people looked sick, coughing incessantly while covering their mouths. Some held cups filled with cold medicine granules, while others held a cup in one hand and a strip of cold capsules in the other.
Xu Xiaotian belatedly realized, "The flu might be spreading!"
Many people in modern times are already in a sub-healthy state, and with the increased psychological pressure of entering this post-apocalyptic era, their bodies are more susceptible to illness.
Coupled with the sudden drop in temperature, it's not surprising that some people are catching the flu.
However, in this nearly enclosed space where hundreds of people are crammed together, with the air conditioning running 24/7, the virus can spread rapidly.
If one person gets sick, it can quickly infect others. Listening to the constant coughing, Xu Xiaotian figured at least dozens of people in the hotel were already sick.
This alarmed him; he felt the situation was getting very bad.
The blizzard had only been going on for a few days, and so many people were already getting sick. What if someone's condition worsened and medication became ineffective? How would
they get someone to the hospital in this terrible weather? They didn't even know if the hospital was still operating…
He wasn't the only one realizing this; a commotion erupted in the lobby outside.
Someone was shouting.
"Isolate them! These coughing people must be locked up in guest rooms! We absolutely cannot let them spread the virus to others at this time!"
...
Under the same night sky, different problems arose in different places.
Although Guan Tong wasn't troubled by infectious diseases, he had his own concerns.
He stared at the road ahead. As time passed, the two cylindrical beams of light grew brighter, indicating that the large truck was getting closer.
He could even hear a "whoosh...sizzle..." sound, clearly the sound of a large truck.
Guan Tong was both vigilant and curious.
The rules had been in effect for several days, and the snow on the roads was already thick and icy.
Driving outside at this time, weren't they afraid of getting stuck in a snowdrift? Or slipping and driving into a ditch?
Guan Tong was worried about slipping on the first day of the rules, let alone now, four days later. Anyone
daring to drive outside at this time, at the very least, had a lot of guts!
"And judging by appearances, this driver came because Mingdao Mountain is deserted and has little snowfall."
There's no other reason for someone to take such a huge risk driving a large truck to this desolate place.
It appeared!
Just then, Guan Tong saw the vehicle with his naked eye.
Just as he guessed, it was a large cargo truck, and the two cylindrical beams of light were from its headlights.
Guan Tong had heard of many truck drivers modifying their headlights; he didn't know if this one had. But the light was indeed bright enough, illuminating the surrounding area like daytime.
"Screech!"
The truck braked and stopped at the edge of the road, not far from the end of the path Guan Tong had cleared with his folding shovel.
The driver, with his high seat and the headlights shining down, must have seen the path Guan Tong had cleared.
Guan Tong glanced at his personal panel; his mental energy, used up during the day writing, had only recovered less than a third.
If he summoned a shadow, it would probably last for about 30 seconds.
He pulled up his hood, silently picked up the pair of pliers he'd brought from the self-service supply point, and walked down the path.
Since the truck driver had discovered this path, contact was inevitable.
Guan Tong wanted to see if he could have a friendly conversation with the newcomer.
If they were well-intentioned, he wouldn't mind cooperating and getting through the remaining time under the rules.
If they had malicious intentions, his experience with gang kidnappings and the previous conflict at the supply point had given him sufficient fighting spirit.
There was no movement from the front of the truck; the driver, seemingly preoccupied, hadn't opened the door.
Just as Guan Tong reached the front of the truck after walking down the path, the door opened with a "whoosh," and a slightly petite figure jumped off the floor mat.
"Oh!"
Guan Tong was slightly taken aback when he saw the little girl with the ponytail jump down; she looked to be about ten years old.
The little girl jumped down and saw Guan Tong. Startled, she cried out, "Mommy! Someone's there!"
"Nana, don't be afraid!"
Immediately afterward, a middle-aged woman in a cotton coat quickly got out of the car.
She held a flashlight in one hand and a crowbar in the other. After getting out, she shielded her daughter behind her and nervously shone the flashlight into Guan Tong's face.
Guan Tong raised her hand to block the bright light and said, "Don't shine it in my eyes. Turn off the flashlight. Your truck's headlights are enough."
Chapter 50 Wang Yan and Chen Na
The middle-aged woman hesitated for a moment after hearing Guan Tong's words before turning off her flashlight.
Using the truck's headlights, she could see Guan Tong's face clearly; he was young and handsome, looking like an eighteen or nineteen-year-old student.
Judging by appearance alone, Guan Tong didn't seem particularly aggressive. However, the iron pliers he was holding made the middle-aged woman with a child somewhat nervous and fearful.
She looked at Guan Tong warily and said, "I'm from Sunjiazhuang. I read online that places with fewer people have less snow, so I brought my daughter here. Young man, where are you from?"
"I came from Yunhua."
Guan Tong knew Sunjiazhuang; it was a village more than forty kilometers away. He had passed through that village when he drove here earlier.
"Mommy, I'm cold..."
A little girl's voice sounded from behind the woman. Hearing this, the woman quickly picked up the girl and put her back in the car.
Then she said to Guan Tong, "Young man, my daughter and I will stay in the car. If you also have a place to stay, let's not bother each other."
"Okay."
Hearing the middle-aged woman say this, Guan Tong was happy to agree.
"But be careful, don't destroy the path I cleared," he reminded her.
"Okay, we'll be careful."
Guan Tong, hearing the middle-aged woman's agreement, didn't say anything more and turned to walk back to their campsite along the path.
The middle-aged woman also returned to the car, and her daughter asked curiously, "Mom, was that brother also bullied and hiding here?"
"I don't know." The woman touched her daughter's forehead and earnestly instructed, "Stay with Mom all the time these days, and don't wander off on your own, okay?"
She hadn't expected anyone to be here at Mingdao Mountain. Although Guan Tong didn't look like a bad person, she was alone with her daughter, two women facing a strange adult man in the wild, and had to be extremely careful.
After all, in this place, if any violent crime occurred, even calling the police wouldn't get any help.
"Okay, Mom. Mom, I'm a little hungry."
"Hmm, there's food in the car, Mom will get it for you."
Before the apocalypse, the woman was a long-haul truck driver.
Driving such long-haul trucks often meant spending all day in the truck, so she always kept plenty of food in it. Before leaving, she had specially taken a large amount of food from home and packed it into the truck, enough for her and her daughter to eat for the next twenty-odd days.
She took out a bag of fruit and bread for her daughter to tear open and eat, and didn't forget to lock the truck door.
This way, she could sleep more soundly at night, and if someone wanted to force their way in, they would have to break the window.
The woman kept the crowbar within easy reach.
"Mom, I'm full."
"Okay, go to sleep early if you're full."
These trucks all had sleeping berths, although they were cramped, but enough for one person to sleep in.
When the woman's husband was still alive, the couple drove the truck together, taking turns. When one person got tired, they would rest on the berth, and then the other would take over.
The woman watched her daughter slowly fall asleep on the berth, while she leaned back in her seat, gazing at the snowflakes outside the window, her brow furrowed with worry that she couldn't shake.
Because the truck's headlights were always on, the visibility in the vicinity was much better, and Guan Tong also benefited slightly in the camp, able to see his surroundings more clearly.
However, since there were other people nearby, he was still somewhat cautious. He broke off some stored branches and scattered them on a patch of ground in front of the camp, covering them with snow.
This way, if the mother and daughter sneaked over in the middle of the night, their footsteps on the branches in the snow would make a crisp sound, waking Guan Tong in time.
This might seem like overly cautious, but it was necessary for their safety.
Guan Tong wouldn't let her guard down just because they appeared to be a weak mother and daughter.
On the contrary, so many people had died since the advent of the post-apocalyptic era; the fact that this mother and daughter had survived indicated they possessed extraordinary abilities. Moreover,
they had "black box" items like psychic power artifacts; no one knew what their artifacts were. If you underestimate someone just because they look weak, you risk being defeated by a powerful artifact. The
current situation, where both sides are keeping to themselves and fighting against the rules for survival, is something both sides are happy to see.
The night passed without incident.
The next day, Guan Tong woke up and looked towards the wagon.
The mother and daughter hadn't gotten off, which was normal; the wagon itself was essentially their camp. They didn't need to come out unless absolutely necessary.
After glancing at it, Guan Tong looked away and went back to what he was doing.
He ate something quickly and then began clearing the snow that had accumulated on his path the previous night with a folding shovel.
The task itself wasn't difficult, but the challenge lay in the fact that it had to be done every day for a month.
If he skipped even one day, the accumulated snow from the previous two days, combined with the ice, would make clearing it significantly more difficult.
At the end of the day, he and the mother and daughter coexisted peacefully, without disturbing each other.
Two more days passed peacefully.
Three days later, on June 9th,
Guan Tong got up to clear the snow and saw the mother and daughter also clearing the snow near the car door.
They had to clear it, because if the snow was allowed to pile up, it would reach the car door in a few days. Once the frozen snow blocks blocked the door, it would be a problem.
However, the middle-aged woman cleared the snow differently from Guan Tong. She started the truck, slowly driving forward, reversing, turning slightly, driving forward, and reversing.
She used the truck's powerful engine and the thick, tall tires to crush and compact the snow blocks. It had to be said that this was much more efficient than clearing snow by hand.
After they finished, the car door opened, and the mother and daughter got out and used small tools to clear the tires.
At this moment, Guan Tong was clearing his own path. The little girl saw him and also took a small shovel to help shovel snow and scatter it at the end of the path.
Seeing this, Guan Tong politely went over and thanked her for her help.
The little girl grinned at him, showing her big teeth, seemingly finding it amusing.
Her mother quickly approached, saying apologetically, "I'm sorry, did I cause you any trouble, young man?"
"It's alright, I'm just thanking your daughter for helping me clear the snow."
"This child isn't helping, she just thinks it's fun." The woman said helplessly, "In this cold weather, she insisted on getting out of the car to play in the snow, even though she was sitting in the car."
"It's normal for children to be playful."
After chatting for a while, the two gradually lowered their guard.
Because neither of them had done anything to make the other uncomfortable in the past three days, they both felt that the other meant no harm and was just an ordinary person.
So after chatting for a while, they learned some basic information.
The woman said her name was Wang Yan, and she used to be a truck driver, but she stopped working after the apocalypse rules appeared and stayed home to take care of her daughter.
Guan Tong also told her that he used to be a senior high school student, but then he stopped working and going to school, and he's not in school anymore.
"Young man, it's good that you're already in your final year of high school." Wang Yan looked at her daughter, Chen Na, playing in the snow with a small shovel, and said with some worry, "My daughter was only in sixth grade before, she hasn't even finished junior high yet. My education level isn't high either, how am I going to teach her in the future? Just online classes without any interaction with people won't work."
"Maybe the school will open again later," Guan Tong said, "but it might be in a different form." Wang Yan
said, "I heard the other day that the government is going to open a college in the capital, recruiting students nationwide…"
"That's an academy to help students develop their mental power, right? It shouldn't teach any other basic knowledge."
"Ah? Is that so…" Wang Yan was a little disappointed upon hearing this.
Guan Tong then asked, "Sister Wang, I'm a little curious and want to ask a question, I hope you don't mind."
"Hehe, it's okay, go ahead and ask."
"There's less snowfall in less populated areas, this news must have spread within hours of the rules being announced. Why did you only bring your daughter here to escape the snow a few days later, Sister Wang?"
Wang Yan's expression was somewhat complicated upon hearing this, she hesitated, seemingly unsure of how to answer.
Chen Na, the little girl who had been squatting on the ground playing in the snow, suddenly looked up, pouting angrily, and said, "Someone in the village bullied us! That's why Mom took me away!"
"Bullyed?" Guan Tong was quite surprised.
He felt that villages were different from cities. In cities, many people didn't even know their neighbors, living a completely atomized life, so they were more willing to follow official commands and act according to official calls during disasters.
But in villages, villagers saw each other all the time, and basically everyone in the village knew each other. Under such circumstances, after a disaster broke out, they should quickly band together to resist it, so how could there be bullying?
Wang Yan didn't want to say anything, but her daughter Chen Na blurted it out, so she could only nod helplessly: "Someone came to our house, a widow and her child, and took some food. They said they'd return it, but..."
Little Chen Na snorted, "They stole a box of instant noodles and a box of yogurt from my house, which my mom had saved for me!"
"How could something like that happen?"
"Yes. Actually, a box of noodles and a box of yogurt isn't much, but I feel like it's only been a few days. If it continues like this, who knows if they'll come back and take something else..."
Wang Yan sighed as she spoke.
"Actually, I was fine, but I couldn't let my daughter risk going hungry, so I took her out of the village in the truck that night. I figured the truck had a full tank, plenty of power, and high tires, so snow on the road wouldn't be a problem."
"I see…"
"Speaking of which, young man, you're quite brave," Wang Yan said. "Dare to come all the way from Yunhua, which is over 700 li away."
"It's all for survival."
"Yes, ever since these rules came out, we don't ask for anything else, just to survive."
"Today is already the 9th, and a third of the rule's effective period will soon be over," Guan Tong said. "Based on the snowfall here, we should be able to get through this safely as long as we clear it every day."
Wang Yan nodded: "I just don't know how things are in the village, and what about Yunhua, the place you came from. That's a big city, the snow must have been incredibly heavy, right? After these nine days of blizzards, I wonder what the city will be like…"