40 Chapter 40
Time flies, and another half month has passed in the blink of an eye.
The outdoor temperature has remained around minus fifty degrees Celsius. The survivors have gradually adapted to the harsh environment, and there are more and more people searching for supplies on the road.
The government has erected greenhouses and sheds throughout the city. The low and simple buildings stand on the smooth ice, and through the impurities in the ice, one can vaguely see the city that was once buried beneath the ice.
Residents in various areas have already eaten the first batch of sweet potato leaves, factories everywhere have started to recruit workers again, and people are starting to think about where to find a stable and easy job.
Tong Shu's small workshop is the first choice for residents of Jiulongjiao Community. A week ago, Tong opened another instant noodle workshop. The machines inside were all found by Zhu Cheng from all over the place, including ovens, fryers and refrigerators from shopping malls and restaurants. Everything that was usable and unusable was sent to Tong's family.
Zhu Cheng strongly supported Tong Shu and his team in developing new production lines, and told Tong Songming that he could dismantle any unused machines, and keep the usable parts. These parts could also be used if the machines broke down or if a new machine was to be assembled.
Tong Shu's family appreciated Zhu Cheng's kindness and would occasionally send him homemade things, and the two sides got along very well.
That day, Zhu Cheng was on his way to Tong's small shop to buy some pickled radishes when he suddenly felt something was wrong.
He was completely covered up, with not a single patch of skin exposed, but he clearly felt something striking him, not hard, but with a chill.
Zhu Cheng looked around and found that the surrounding residents were also looking around blankly.
Until a drop of water hit his goggles.
"Is it raining?" A man next to him asked, unsure.
Zhu Cheng wiped his glasses clean with the back of his gloved hand, and saw the patches of ice that had instantly frozen on his arm.
"It's raining!" Zhu Cheng shouted to the people around him, "Get inside! Don't stay outside! You'll freeze to death if you get wet!"
Upon hearing Zhu Cheng's shouts, everyone quickly took refuge in the nearest apartment building.
Zhu Cheng ran into the office building in one breath and stood at the stairwell window, continuing to shout out the window.
His heart pounded in his chest, and cold sweat poured from his skin, which was covered by his clothes. He was terrified. Every change in the weather seemed to herald a new disaster. Images of corpses dying in various ways flashed through his mind, and his whole body began to tremble.
"Director Zhu? What's wrong?" Tong Shu skipped down the stairs, holding onto the railing. Behind her was a group of residents who had come to the convenience store to buy things. They had all heard the commotion downstairs and followed Tong Shu down to find out what was going on.
"...It's raining," Zhu Cheng replied, his voice trembling.
"What?!" Tong Shu's pupils shrank, and ignoring her still-healing ankle, she stomped heavily on the stairs and ran towards the window.
A sharp pain rose from the soles of her feet. Tong Shu gritted her teeth, clung to the window frame, and peered out.
"Impossible. If a new disaster were to occur, Nini would surely have predicted it." Tong Shu frowned. She went to the island to perform divination every day, and yesterday's prediction was no different from the previous one.
Hearing Zhu Cheng's words, the people behind him became anxious. Some of them thought of their family members who had gone out to collect firewood, and tears welled up in their eyes. They rushed downstairs in two steps, wanting to go out and look for their loved ones.
"Don't go out! Stay inside!" Zhu Cheng shouted downstairs.
A somber atmosphere enveloped the entire apartment building, with everyone huddled around the doors and windows, watching the rain dripping down outside.
...
Half an hour later, the rain was still falling sparsely, and the water droplets froze as soon as they hit the ice surface, melting into the thick ice layer.
"Director Zhu, it seems to be just ordinary rain." The person who was sheltering from the rain on the ground floor waited for a while and found that the rain was not as heavy as expected. The person's heart gradually relaxed and he looked up and shouted.
Zhu Cheng also sensed it, and thinking of how he had trembled and shouted earlier, he felt a little embarrassed: "...Well, let's all go home first."
Tong Shu noticed Zhu Cheng's embarrassment and understood his feelings. She said to him, "Director Zhu is right to be cautious. Didn't the previous high-temperature disaster weather gradually increase? Nobody dares to gamble with their life. I think this rain is strange too. It's best if everyone stays home."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Cheng also became serious: "You're right, Xiao Tong, we can't underestimate every change in the weather." He then looked down and shouted outside: "Everyone, hurry home while the rain is light! Don't leave the house if the rain doesn't stop!"
The others nearby didn't dare to relax either, and after saying goodbye to each other, they hurried home.
...
The convenience store became deserted again. Tong Shu felt the pain in her ankle at this moment. She locked the iron gate with a hoarse grimac and skipped home.
After more than half a month of rest, her foot had almost fully recovered, and she no longer needed a bamboo cane to walk. Unfortunately, this ordeal caused her troubled ankle to swell up again.
Tong Shu secretly applied ice to her feet. Listening to the sound of raindrops falling outside, she couldn't calm her mind. After thinking it over, she decided to go to the island to find Nini and ask her to do another divination.
"Hmm...it's still chilly, and I can't see anything else." Nini's crystal ball hadn't changed, and Tong Shu still trusted it quite a bit. She repeatedly told Nini to let her know if there were any new prophecies. After receiving Nini's assurance, Tong Shu returned home.
"Ouch, it's freezing!" Wang Jianye stamped his feet as he came in through the door, ice crystals falling off his clothes. "It suddenly started raining, and I was exchanging cloth with the people from W City."
"Where are my mom and the others?" Qin Xiaoxiao peeked behind him.
"They should be back soon. The community sent someone to tell everyone that work is suspended due to rain and everyone should stay home and not go out."
As they were talking, Shuli and Shuya came up from the stairwell, their hats and clothes covered in frozen ice.
Once the family was all present, Shuhua brought out ginger tea from the kitchen and poured a bowl for each of them who had returned from outside to warm them up and prevent them from catching a cold.
The sky outside was dark and gloomy. Tong Shu recalled how her family used to gather together like this during typhoons, except now there were more than twice as many people.
"Our family is also responding to the community's call to never go out on rainy days, and to give ourselves a good break!" Qin Jiaqiang chuckled as he pulled out a few bags of peanuts from his backpack, then found a few bottles of liquor, and invited Tong Songming and Wang Jianye to have a drink together.
My family has been exhausted lately, busy with farm work and the small workshop. Everyone is working non-stop like a spinning top, so they really deserve a good rest during this rare rainy day.
Tong Shu glanced at her mother out of the corner of her eye. Seeing that her mother hadn't noticed her, she quietly limped to the sofa, happily exchanged for a few cups of milk tea, and then took out the hand-peeled bamboo shoots and other snacks that her grandmother had prepared. She then casually picked out a comic book and started reading.
"Hey, this set of thermal underwear is finished. You can deliver it to her yourself when she gets back." Shu Li walked over and placed a set of pure black thermal underwear next to Tong Shu.
"Hmm? What thermal underwear? Who's it for?" Wang Jie came over after smelling it.
"It wasn't that day..."
"Auntie!!" Shu Li was about to speak when Tong Shu screamed and quickly interrupted her.
Seeing Tong Shu's flushed face, Shu Li chuckled and decided to stop teasing her. She patted her son's back and said, "Alright, stop asking around. Go keep an eye on your dad and make sure he doesn't drink too much."
Wang Jie was completely bewildered, and his mother pushed him away, forcing him to turn a corner.
Tong Shu quickly stuffed the clothes lying next to her into her bag to prevent others from coming over and making fun of her.
-----
That night.
The rain continued to fall in a light drizzle.
The entire neighborhood was fast asleep.
On rainy days, there are no patrols at night, and only a dim yellow light flickers on the supply ship, with a thick layer of frost covering the bulb.
Finally, the lamp could no longer withstand the baptism of ice water, and after several rapid flickers, it went out with a "bang".
The pitch-black night enveloped the entire northern part of the city. In the darkness, a group of suspicious-looking people quietly sneaked in through the south gate of the residential area.
"Brother Qiang, it's so dark, can you tell which building this is?" someone asked in a low voice.
Qiang scoffed, "Nonsense, what have I been doing getting nothing for free these past two weeks? Keep up!"
This "Brother Qiang" was the same man in black who had helped the elderly residents of Building 6 carry water. He had been eyeing Tong Shu's convenience store for a long time, and had been looking for an opportunity to pull off a heist. Unfortunately, the security in this neighborhood was many times better than other places, and there was even a government supply ship stationed in the small square, which prevented him from sneaking in.
Fortunately, fate was on his side. Just as the last batch of stolen supplies was running out, a rainstorm suddenly started. Knowing that opportunity knocks but once, Brother Qiang didn't hesitate. After observing that the rain wasn't going to get any heavier, he called on a few of his brothers from the village who had been stealing with him, and they sneaked over under cover of night.
Brother Qiang led the person downstairs to the office building and pointed to the water pipe on the side, saying, "Climb up from here, and the convenience store is at the very top."
A short man with slanted eyes next to him immediately tied his trouser legs with a rope and rubbed his hands together, ready to climb up.
"Wait a minute." Qiang called out to Diaochayan and handed him a large pair of scissors: "Take these tin snips. This family is very cunning. They've installed security bars on windows and doors everywhere. Once you're up there, cut the security bars and climb in. A few of us brothers will be waiting for you down below."
"Brother Qiang is so thoughtful!" The man with the slanted eyes took the tin snips, tucked them into his waistband, and quickly climbed up the water pipe to the top floor. The water pipe was frozen solid, so he wrapped his thin legs tightly around it and started cutting at the security window with the snips.
The remaining few people hid against the wall in the shadows, their eyes scanning back and forth, working together seamlessly.
Meanwhile, at Tong Shu's home.
The burly men had been drinking that night, and their snoring filled the room; even thunder couldn't wake them.
Everyone was fast asleep.
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