In the quiet night, Gu Yanzhi suddenly heard someone wailing outside.

"God, please, have mercy on us!"

"Give us a way out!"

The voice, filled with despair and helplessness, echoed through the empty and desolate streets.

As the man continued to question and pray, more and more people gathered outside, and the cacophony of voices expressed everyone's sorrow.

The extreme cold continues. Although the outside temperature is still around -60 degrees Celsius, the lack of sunlight at night makes it feel even colder.

"Swish"

The streetlights that had been installed long ago outside lit up all at once. The streetlights were installed very sparsely, with only one every 500 meters or so, but they still illuminated the boundless darkness and became people's only comfort.

The lighting of the streetlights interrupted everyone's prayers, complaints, and wails.

Taking this opportunity, government staff walked around striking a gong.

"Clang clang clang"

"Attention everyone, we are currently experiencing polar night. Please do not panic. Go home now. The government will release relevant solutions later."

"Attention everyone, we are currently experiencing polar night. Please do not panic. Go home now. The government will release relevant solutions later."

"..."

After being reassured by government staff, everyone's emotions gradually calmed down, but they still returned home with no hope for the future.

For some people who were really agitated, the staff patiently tried to persuade them again and again, but if they still wouldn't listen, they just let it go.

Once most people had gone home and were no longer gathered on the streets, the streetlights outside suddenly went out again.

Seeing that the only light source was still working only intensified their despair, and they felt that the government was just giving them the runaround; whether they could survive in this weather was a question.

People were in a state of panic until noon, when it finally got a little brighter outside, but it wasn't very bright; you could barely make out the road.

In the dim light, government staff appeared again with leaflets, gathering people together by neighborhood and building to explain the latest policies.

The area that Gu Yanzhi was in charge of was actually managed by Uncle Zhang's family.

Since yesterday, none of the residents in Building 10 who work for the government have returned home; they've been busy with related training. Gao Zhi, Xiao Lin, and Sister Li have all asked Gu Yanzhi to look after their homes through intermediaries.

They only knew about the arrival of the polar night a day earlier than ordinary people. The official explanation given by the top leaders was that it was based on scientists' predictions. It is likely that only Gu Yanzhi, Song Zhao, and Gu Yanlin knew the real truth.

Knowing that the polar night is coming soon, but as the only one or two people in the family with a job, although I am worried about the elderly and children in the family, I must keep my job so that I can take better care of them.

The three of them each asked someone to help Gu Yanzhi take care of their families, sending her extremely subtle hints and hoping she would understand and make preparations in advance.

After receiving messages from the three people, Gu Yanzhi immediately went to each of the three families to comfort the elderly people in the homes as soon as he realized the polar night was approaching, so that they would not feel despair like the people outside. However, it was impossible for him not to feel panicked.

She was worried about the situation outside, and also about her child who hadn't come home all night.

Everyone is paying close attention to the government's handling of the polar night. As soon as the staff started banging the gong to call for people, they found themselves surrounded by a dense crowd.

Gu Yanzhi and Song Zhao also escorted the three elderly people who had just put the child to sleep downstairs, managing to snag a spot where they could hear the sermon clearly without feeling crowded.

As the building manager of Building 10, Uncle Zhang enjoys an excellent reputation and high prestige in the area. Team leaders from other buildings often consult Uncle Zhang for information and advice.

The content of the presentation is as follows:

1. According to scientists' predictions, the polar night period officially begins today, with the duration unknown.

2. Due to darkness, and for the safety of the public, logging and ice-breaking work are suspended. The resumption time will be announced separately.

"3. The government will set up manufacturing plants to produce all the necessities of life, achieving self-sufficiency. Recruitment will begin tomorrow, please be patient."

"4. From now on, the streetlights will be turned on for two hours before and after noon each day. We encourage everyone to go out when the streetlights are on, because the darkness can cover up too many crimes."

5. We encourage bartering. The Songshan District government will designate specific areas where people can set up stalls to sell their unwanted items and exchange them. Alternatively, items can be taken to the district government's material purchasing center, where staff will purchase them based on their actual value.

"6. A unified currency system will be implemented using a points system. Starting today, daily wages will be settled based on points, with different prices for different job types. Government procurement of goods will also be settled based on points, and we encourage everyone to use points for barter as well, saving time and effort."

City C was originally a typical plain area. However, something happened when the flood came. After the rainstorm subsided and the extreme cold arrived, some people wanted to escape the city, only to find that City C, which was built against a mountain on one side, had somehow become surrounded by mountains on three sides and the sea on one side, making the way out even more difficult.

This was confirmed by staff members who did not go out.

The staff also went through a difficult journey to enter City C, crossing mountains and overcoming numerous obstacles. They spent nearly a month setting up tents outside City C before the extreme cold arrived and they were finally able to enter.

Initially, many of the daily necessities in City C were painstakingly carried back by the special rescue team from outside, and it could take half a month to a month to carry out a single mission.

Gu Yanlin had also gone out with his team a few times. When he came back, he told Gu Yanzhi and the others that the living areas outside were much better than those in the closed-off City C. At least they had restored power to the city a long time ago, and people had more job opportunities to choose from.

The government's relief supplies are much better than those in City C, with vegetables and meat, unlike in City C where they basically only have steamed buns, and occasionally they can get a little canned food or dried vegetables.

It wasn't that no one successfully overcame the obstacles to reach other cities, but most met their demise.

The extremely high mortality rate deterred most people, and they never even considered leaving City C.

After Zhang Shuxuan finished speaking, he reassured everyone not to panic, assuring them that the government had prepared an emergency plan. He then distributed leaflets to the building leaders of each building, which contained more detailed information.

After everything was done, Uncle Zhang, Aunt Zhang, and Zhang Qian were about to leave when they were surrounded by a huge crowd. People were asking them all sorts of questions, and some were even asking emotionally, "When will the apocalypse end?", "When will the polar night end?", "When will this freezing, awful weather finally end?"