14 Chapter 14
Tong Shu felt a little guilty and was about to turn around and walk in another direction when Wen Shaocheng noticed them and walked straight over.
"How did you get here? Did you run out of supplies at home?" Wen Shaocheng asked.
"Major Wen, what a coincidence." Tong Shu smiled awkwardly. "We still have some supplies, but with such a large family, it's better to stock up on more, just in case."
Wen Shaocheng nodded: "What's missing? The supplies distribution point is over there."
Tong Shu waved her hand: "It's okay, it's okay. We'll just wander around here. This time, we mainly want to see if there are any daily necessities. We'll get the food and water together with everyone later."
Upon hearing this, Wen Shaocheng said nothing more, gestured for them to do as they pleased, and turned back to the rescue work.
The fourth floor of Jiangxia Plaza was packed with people. The corridors and passageways were crowded with people. All the shop doors had been smashed open by the refugees. Anything of value had already been snatched up by those who had taken refuge in Jiangxia Plaza long ago. Tong Shu went into several shops, but apart from the people hiding inside, there was really nothing else worth picking up.
Initially, the situation here was relatively good. When the heatwave struck, the military quickly took over. The basement level was originally the food street of Jiangxia Square. After the soldiers used the supermarket on this floor as a temporary supply point, they also took control of the various food stalls. At the same time, they would patrol the entire mall at night when the temperature dropped to ensure the safety of goods and property. So even during the evacuation, people were relatively orderly, and those who had cash on them used it to make purchases.
Until the flood broke out, the army dispatched a large number of soldiers to race against time to salvage supplies. The remaining soldiers also had to carry out evacuation, guidance and rescue work. After being left unattended, the crowd that had been guided to the fourth floor for refuge went crazy and looted the goods in the shops on the fourth floor.
The fourth floor is a large area of restaurants. After the high temperature and power outage, the fresh raw materials and ingredients that were originally stored in the refrigerators have all spoiled. When Tong Shu entered the kitchen of a hot pot restaurant, she was hit by the smell of decay and took a step back. She quickly took a mask out of her backpack and put it on while no one was around, and continued to pick and choose.
After managing to collect some seasonings at this shop, Tong Shu moved on to another shop to continue her search.
"Shushu, look at these!" Wang Jianye's voice was slightly excited. Tong Shu turned around and saw that it was a box of potatoes. The potatoes were so shriveled that they were no longer edible, but many of them had sprouted small green shoots, showing a unique vitality.
Even though she didn't need these herself, thinking of the residents trapped in their apartment buildings, she figured these potatoes might offer them some hope. Tong Shu quickly packed the potatoes away.
I visited several more stores and collected a lot of scallions, ginger, and garlic that could still be planted. Along with some water basins and buckets, it was quite a fruitful harvest.
Tong Shu and Wang Jianye struggled to carry the things back to the window they had come in through. Wang Jie quickly reached out to help, "Did you find so many supplies? Hmm? Potatoes? They've all sprouted and can't be eaten. Don't we have some at home?"
Tong Shu whispered, "I'll take some supplies out of my bag later. You can take another bag and pack them up. We can distribute these things to the neighbors."
Wang Jie instantly understood Tong Shu's meaning. It turned out that Tong Shu's real purpose for this trip was not to find supplies, but to figure out how to get their family's supplies into their home legitimately.
The inflatable boat was much larger than a kayak, so Wang Jie deliberately soaked the items in water to make them look less clean, as if they had been pulled out of the water, to avoid arousing suspicion. Including the things he collected from Jiangxia Square, he filled three large bags, stuffing the inflatable boat to the brim.
Back in the residential area, the water level had already reached the fourth floor. People who had been taking refuge on the fourth floor had moved to higher floors. Tong Shu instructed Wang Jianye to break open the floor-to-ceiling window of a fourth-floor apartment, and the three of them drove the inflatable boat through the window into the building.
After Tong Shu and the other two transported the supplies to the stairwell, they put away the inflatable boat. While carrying the supplies, Wang Jianye was hit in the lower back by a small cabinet that floated by, causing him to wince in pain. The water was now filled with all sorts of things, murky and extremely smelly.
Wang Jie carried most of the supplies and occasionally helped his father. Tong Shu followed behind, her body covered with buckets of all sizes and her hands carrying various basins. She walked very carefully.
After finally climbing to the twelfth floor, all three were panting heavily. Those who had taken refuge on the twelfth floor heard the commotion coming from the stairwell and rushed out to investigate.
"Wow, where did you find so many supplies!" Zhang Ming, a young man temporarily staying in room 1203, was filled with envy. The last time the army distributed supplies was when they were in the air-raid shelter. He and his girlfriend felt sorry for the mother and daughter and even shared a compressed biscuit with them. Now they were also struggling to make ends meet.
After thinking for a moment, Tong Shu gave Zhang Ming the bag of supplies she had picked up from Jiangxia Square, along with two buckets and two basins: "There are some crops in here that can be planted. You can take them and distribute them to the other people on this floor. We don't know when this flood will end. If you have soil and water, you can plant them. It's a good way to make a living."
According to Nini's prediction, the flood may continue for a long time. As the highest residential area in the north of the city, it is unknown how many more outsiders will enter here in the future. Tong Shu must find a way to unite the original residents. Only when the original residents are united can they protect themselves and their families to the greatest extent.
"Ah, thank you! Thank you so much!" Zhang Ming thanked them repeatedly. "This family used to grow a lot of green plants at home. Now the plants are all dead, but the soil is still there and can still be used. We'll go and plant them in a bit."
Tong Shu told him not to be polite: "From now on, we'll all be neighbors living in the same building. If we have any difficulties, we can lend each other a hand."
"What are you pretending to be so kind for?" Hao Jia had been eavesdropping behind the door for a long time. When she heard Tong Shu give the supplies to Zhang Ming, she couldn't sit still anymore. She opened the door and prepared to grab something. Her eyes kept looking at the other two bags in Wang Jie's hands. "If you're really kind, you should share some other things. You take the things you can eat directly and give others some seeds that you don't know if they can grow. You even packed them up."
Tong Shu crossed his arms, remained silent, and looked Hao Jia up and down, making Hao Jia's whole body tremble with fear. Hao Jia jumped up and said, "What are you looking at! Am I wrong!"
Many residents who had taken refuge downstairs also secretly came up to see the situation and gathered at the stairwell. Tong Shu did not respond to her, but turned her head and raised her voice slightly, saying, "It doesn't look like the rain will stop anytime soon, and the water level is still rising. Long-term disaster relief is inevitable. Of course, you don't have to grow your own things. These supplies of mine were salvaged by me and my family at great risk by going into the water. If any of you are willing to risk it, you can also go and salvage. There is everything in the water."
“We also want to get out, but even if we collect the supplies, we can’t bring them back in this deep water,” said Sun Xiaolong, a resident of the tenth floor. He is a physical education teacher who divorced a few years ago and lives with his son and parents. His family is one of the few that has survived the high temperatures.
“Since we’ll all be living in the same building from now on, my family can lend us a lifeboat,” Tong Shu said. “You can take turns using it. If it’s not your turn, bring a bucket and search the area. You’re sure to find some supplies.”
Everyone happily shared the vegetable seeds that Tong Shu brought back. Those who could afford it even traded some small trinkets for pots and buckets with Tong Shu. Tong Shu accepted things like rubber bands and earrings. Although she didn't need them, she still had to put on a show. Otherwise, if they really took advantage of her family, they would inevitably take advantage of her in the future.
Tong Shu brought out a lifeboat from her home. The lifeboat was brand new and not inflated. Tong Shu only said that her family always had one, and now that they had exchanged a speedboat with someone else, they had extra lifeboats, which could be used by the neighbors in rotation.
The neighbors were extremely grateful and said that if they found any supplies in the future, they would share some with the Tong family as a way of repaying them, and Tong Shu agreed.
The news spread quickly, and now the sixth to twelfth floors are full of people. Before long, everyone knew that the Tong family on the twelfth floor had donated a lifeboat for the residents of the building to use to collect supplies. Those who were agile even managed to get some crops to grow, which they immediately planted.
Seeing everyone showering Tong Shu with compliments, Hao Jia was so angry that her eyes turned red. She turned around, went home, and slammed the door shut.
Without electricity, everyone had to take turns using the manual air pump that came with the lifeboat packaging to inflate the lifeboat. The group worked until midnight and finally filled it with air. They agreed that each floor would use the lifeboat for one day. Today, they would leave it at Zhang Ming's house and pass it down the next day.
While everyone was pumping air into the lifeboat, Tong Shu took Wang Jie and Wang Jianye home. She didn't want to stand out too much, but if she wanted her family to be less conspicuous, she had to make sure everyone benefited. In the face of the apocalypse, all actions had to be based on self-preservation.
Outside the window, the rain continued to fall, and with the sound of raindrops hitting the glass, Tong Shu closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
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