Chapter 27

It rained heavily for three days in a row without a break. At most, heavy rain and light rain alternated.

Perhaps the weather really reflects people's mood, or perhaps the mood is amplified and exaggerated by the environment. The continuous rain for several days has led to growing pessimism, and bad things and bad moods develop together.

In previous years, this summer season was also the rainy season. Waterlogging problems often occurred in cities with outdated drainage systems or prone to flooding. This rain was bound to cause flooding. Under the influence of the X virus, prevention measures were more difficult, and logistics were not smooth and there was a shortage of manpower.

Dams and other key water conservancy projects were constantly staffed, and a flood alert was issued on the second consecutive day of heavy rain. Fortunately, the three cities hardest hit, though coastal, were not so low-lying, thus avoiding the impact of natural disasters.

The few inland cities that hadn't been ravaged by Virus X were devastated by the torrential downpours. The rainfall increased, not just in short bursts but in continuous, heavy rain, flooding underground garages everywhere.

Some areas preparing to resume work and production have also slowed down. Waterlogged roads are waist-deep, and low-lying houses are flooded to the floor level. Underground passages and subways are also flooded. Fortunately, public transportation has been temporarily suspended, otherwise it would be extremely dangerous to encounter flooded subways.

The damn temperature didn't drop, and it rained warmly all day long. It was humid and hot, and the whole world seemed to be put in a huge sauna.

The secondary disasters brought on by the rainstorms began to show their full force. Due to the abnormal rainfall across the country and even the world, some desert and arid areas benefited slightly, but forest vegetation was destroyed by the massive flooding, and rivers swelled and flooded, destroying farmland...

The losses from this year's autumn harvest are incalculable. The most pressing matter is that if the heavy rains continue, disaster relief operations will have to be carried out in various places. Urban flooding and rural waterlogging will cause a lot of inconvenience to people living in low-lying areas, and their economic and life safety will be at risk.

The rain that everyone was looking forward to not only failed to bring a drop in temperature, but instead caused more trouble and problems. Now everyone's wish is that the rain will stop as soon as possible and not make things worse. Just when the X virus was about to finish its battle, a sudden flood made the situation even more chaotic.

Chao Youqian fell into a drowsy sleep every day during the drizzling rain. Although he could not hear the sound of rain in the soundproofed house, the gloomy rainy day really affected his physiological state.

When he was feeling sleepy, he saw Lang Xin, who was like a little sun with a self-heating constitution, full of energy. He felt that after two lifetimes combined, he had become a middle-aged loser.

Lang Xin always found out in time when Chao Youqian was about to fall asleep on the sofa recliner during the day. He felt helpless that he was like a lazy but extremely cute sloth. He rubbed his fair and tender cheeks, but all he got in return was a weak kick from Chao Youqian.

Since they lived together in college, Lang Xin has been Chao Youqian's health management expert. In the past, he could turn a blind eye to Chao Youqian's bad habits, but now the situation is special and the end of the world is approaching, so he has to help him develop a good body even if it means suffering.

So she dragged Chao Youqian to exercise together, not allowing him to sleep for a long time during the day or stay up late at night, and asked him to stand and walk more often instead of lying down all the time to play games or watch movies and TV series.

Chao Youqian knew Lang Xin's feelings, so even though he was tired, he still stayed with him obediently, as if he was standing by his brother. In the end, he was the one who benefited from Lang Xin's improved health.

After a week of torrential rain in H City, it finally subsided into an occasional drizzle. The overloaded drainage system and prompt municipal action prevented significant damage. An official announcement from H City listed low-lying roads with flooding, reminding residents to exercise caution.

The reason for announcing the road conditions is that in places outside the three closed cities where there have been no new cases of virus X for several consecutive days and rainfall has decreased, offline work needs to begin.

People need a salary to survive, and companies, being products of capital, are not likely to engage in charity. Some exploitative companies are forcing their employees to work from home, reducing their monthly wages by 30% or more. Those without savings or with loans are forced to grit their teeth and persevere. Job changes are difficult during the pandemic, and stability has become a hot topic.

The high mortality rate of the mutated X virus has gradually reduced people's panic as experts continue to popularize science. Judging from the data, the initial swift and decisive blockade of severely affected cities was indeed a wise move. It maintained stability in most parts of the country and allowed for the gradual restoration of supply, injecting a large amount of resources and manpower into the blockaded cities for assistance.

Now that people in the locked-down cities can ensure supplies and safety at home, all transmission chains have been blocked and isolated. It is acceptable for them to stay at home as long as they protect themselves without the threat of high infection rates.

Although there are many inconveniences, volunteers and people from all walks of life have coordinated to solve them. There is no worry about food and drink, but there are fewer varieties. This is understandable under extraordinary circumstances. I just hope for the day when the X virus will truly end.

The number of infections in the country has basically stopped increasing, and the medical supplies and aid personnel received by the Fangcang Cabin Hospital and the hospitals treating X virus patients are still increasing. We are concentrating our efforts on seeking assistance for every infected person and not giving up on any case.

Because the virus has an extremely high mortality rate and the number of X virus patients abroad is large and still growing, flights back from abroad are constantly being canceled and quarantine hotels are overcrowded.

The wealthy, each displaying their own unique talents, were returning to China in droves, arriving by private jet and yacht. Lang Xin alone knew of over a dozen such individuals, some of whom had resided abroad or even immigrated, and were now flocking back to China.

Those who can come back have all come back, and the price of air tickets has been rising. The round-trip tickets that used to cost several thousand yuan seem like a lifetime ago. Now a ticket starts at five figures, and there is no guarantee that it can take off. From time to time, the ticket money cannot be refunded or only partially refunded after the flight is suspended, and people spend a lot of money but still cannot return to their country.

Those who couldn't afford it received anti-epidemic gift packages from the embassy, ​​remembering the precautions recommended for epidemic prevention, and staying at home unless necessary. In the United States alone, the death toll exceeded 500,000 in just one week, and strangely, large numbers of people took to the streets to protest the government's ineffective epidemic prevention policies.

This wasn't their usual "humanitarian" indifference. Their initial complacency and political rivalry led to higher-than-expected infections. After the X virus mutated, medical resources were prioritized by the upper class, exacerbating racial and class tensions. Chinatown communities were self-organizing lockdowns to prevent the now rampant drug gangs from attacking.

The international situation is also unpredictable. The constant friction between several countries has caused crude oil and gas prices to soar, and logistics costs have also increased. Electricity bills in small countries without reserves can increase by 100%.

News reports of chaos are broadcast one after another on news channels, which makes people feel that fortunately the surrounding order is good and prices are relatively stable. They also quietly buy more rice and oil for their families, as the trend of global inflation is imminent.