Chapter 35 [VIP]
—Emergency notice, emergency notice, important things should be said three times. Cold wave is coming, cold wave is coming, cold wave is coming.
The cold snap arrived at midnight tonight. The owner estimated that the temperature would drop rapidly at a rate of 10 degrees per hour.
——Residents who have fallen asleep or have not yet fallen asleep are requested to take out the warming items prepared in advance.
—And at 7:00 tomorrow, everyone will leave the building and wait outside. At 7:00, the boss will install stoves in each apartment and courtyard. Each stove requires 100 units of charcoal per day to raise the temperature above freezing.
——Please cooperate actively so that we can successfully resist the cold wave.
Long segments of broadcasting sounded in the silent night, and it sounded three times. The first time it sounded, those who were sleeping were awakened.
Then the second time, the third time, even though my mind was a mess, I could hear it clearly now.
"The temperature has dropped?"
"10 degrees per hour?"
"Oh my god, what's the temperature now?"
Amidst the commotion, some people frantically searched for thermometers. They weren't easy to find, and some people rarely had them, but if you lived in the same apartment building, you could probably find someone with one.
The Jiang family has a thermometer.
Liu Yan found it quickly.
"It's 19 degrees now." Liu Yan looked at the thermometer and said to her family.
"Before I went to bed, I remember it was around 29 degrees Celsius," Jiang Lijun said. "I was still saying it was abnormally hot, as if it were still summer."
"Mom and Dad, take out all the cotton-padded clothes and quilts we made these past few days," Liu Yan called out. "And the little solar heater, take it out too."
"This thing consumes a lot of electricity," Jiang's mother sighed. "Honey, please find the small diesel generator we brought with us."
The small solar heater requires electricity; without it, it simply won't work. So, when Jiang Lijun and his family moved from Shuguang Base to Taoyuan Base, they packed everything they needed and didn't.
Many of the unused items were converted into Starlight Coins. The ones that were usable were piled up at home. Actually, a small diesel generator didn't take up much space, even if I stockpiled a few cans of diesel.
Soon, the small diesel generator was moved to the living room, and then the canned diesel was found and poured into the small diesel generator.
However, the small diesel generator hadn't started working yet. Jiang Lijun and his wife, Liu Yan, followed Jiang's father and mother to gather all the quilts and cotton-padded clothes in the house, then sat and waited.
Just like that, at 2 a.m., the temperature dropped another 10 degrees. Now it was only 10 degrees, and it suddenly changed from the relatively warm autumn to the beginning of winter.
Then, it was 3 a.m. and the temperature officially dropped to zero degrees, suddenly turning from early winter to the coldest month of winter.
Then, at 4 a.m., the temperature dropped to minus 10 degrees Celsius. A thin layer of ice began to form on the street outside the apartment, and even the breath people exhaled turned into white mist.
At this time, people are already shivering. Fortunately, the "extreme cold weather" will come, and the warning is issued half a month in advance.
Two more crops of cotton were planted, and Mingzhu made almost no money, so he sold or gave away almost all the harvested cotton, so that all the residents of Taoyuan Base had cotton to make cotton-padded clothes, cotton-pants, cotton-padded shoes and cotton quilts.
Jiang Lijun and his family put on thick cotton coats and trousers, and wrapped themselves in quilts when the small diesel generator was running.
At 5am, the temperature dropped to -20 degrees Celsius...
6am, minus 30 degrees Celsius...
By 7 o'clock in the morning, the temperature was controlled at minus 30 degrees Celsius and did not drop any further.
The extreme cold weather is expected to last for three months, with temperatures expected to remain around -50 degrees Celsius for the first month.
The temperature in the second month should be maintained at around -80 to 100 degrees Celsius; as for the third month, the temperature should be maintained below -100 degrees Celsius.
Except for the first day of the "extreme cold weather" which occurs at 12 midnight and the temperature drops rapidly, the temperature drops in other time periods are calculated on a daily basis.
There is a hint of rationality in the outrageousness.
In short, on the first day of the "extreme cold weather," thanks to timely response, the residents of Taoyuan Base experienced no accidents despite the cold. Even the elderly and children with weaker immune systems did not catch a cold.
People in other bases were not so lucky.
City Z, City X, and City C are adjacent to each other, located at the junction of the north and south. They can be said to be southern cities, but they can also be said to be northern cities.
The 'Taoyuan Base' is adjacent to City Z, City X, and City C, and the temperature there plummeted to minus 30 degrees Celsius overnight. The temperatures at other bases, especially those in the north, were definitely higher than that of the 'Taoyuan Base' overnight.
And because there was no defense at all, many people died in other bases overnight. Most of them were ordinary people with weak resistance, among whom the elderly and children were at a disadvantage.
In contrast, the base in the south is relatively warmer. Of course, this so-called warmth is just a comparison.
For example, if the temperature in one area is zero degrees and in another area is 10 degrees, then naturally, the area with zero degrees is warmer.
All of the above can be easily achieved by intelligent machines of advanced civilization in the end times when transportation is basically broken.
But this has a prerequisite, that is, there is no Internet outage in the world, and 184.
So, the omnipotence of 184 is currently limited to
Soon it was past 7 o'clock, and the residents of the apartment and the courtyard came out one after another, except Qin Mingyue and Yu Xiaowan who lived in Taoyuan Inn.
Taoyuan Inn and the residences of the owner and NPC employees at the back had long been equipped with stoves.
The indoor temperature was just right, maintained at around 10 degrees Celsius. Naturally, Qin Mingyue and Yu Xiaowan didn't come out to watch the fun.
And Mingzhu didn't have to install the stove himself, but the Maomao Special Construction Engineering Team was dispatched.
The Cat Construction Team has a huge number of cats in various shapes and sizes, with orange cats being the most popular.
There were a ton of orange cats, some carrying bricks and pounding them on the ground; others were hitting stones with hammers...
In one hour, stoves were installed on all apartment floors and in the courtyards.
And the furnace is still under construction, producing 20 per hour, which is quite fast.
All stoves are installed free of charge, but residents need to find their own way to obtain charcoal for daily use.
You can buy and sell it privately, or you can make your own charcoal. However, making your own charcoal is not recommended, as it can be mishandled and lead to disasters.
So after discussion between Mingzhu, 184, and the NPC employees, they decided to add another business to Jin Dachui's weapon shop, which is selling carbon.
Jin Dachui is a blacksmith. Blacksmiths need carbon to forge iron and make weapons...
The carbon used by Jin Dachui was all burned by himself. Although most of it was coal, burning charcoal was no problem for Jin Dachui.
According to the income from burning charcoal by Jin Dachui, 100 units of wood can be used to burn 100 units of charcoal. If the residents burn it themselves, the conversion ratio will never reach 1:1.
About 100 wood can be exchanged for 30 to 70 units of charcoal.
"It's really cold today..."
After the stove was installed, the residents who came out to wait did not rush back to their homes.
They gathered in groups of three or five, rubbing their hands and chatting. Although it was cold, their hearts were burning. They no longer had the despair of struggling to survive in the apocalypse, living in uncertainty and not knowing when to die.
They are more talking about how long this "extreme cold weather" will last.
"The boss announced that it's expected to last three months."
"So long?"
"What do you mean long? Spring, summer, autumn and winter, 12 months a year, three months in each quarter."
"Hey, do you think there will be other disasters? I have a feeling it won't just be 'extreme cold weather,' but something else will be mixed in."
As soon as these words were spoken, those who were speaking and those who were listening to others fell silent.
Why can't you think positively? You have to destroy the false illusion of calm that they are trying so hard to maintain!
Everyone was silent, unable to find words to speak for a long time.
Finally, Liu Yan suddenly said, "If it snows heavily, there will be a snowstorm." This broke the silence.
"Hey, it's snowing."
Yes, it's snowing. Heavy snowflakes are falling from the sky. While snow is naturally formed, too much of it can cause serious disasters. Snowstorms and avalanches are all caused by excess snow. Therefore, the protective shield covering the entire "Taoyuan Base" effectively blocks the snowfall.
People saw snow falling outside the Taoyuan Base. Standing on the open road, they could clearly see that as the snow fell, the snow that landed above the Taoyuan Base melted instantly and disappeared without a trace, while the snow that fell outside the Taoyuan Base's protective shield quickly accumulated, soon becoming a vast expanse of white.
"Can we go out in this weather?"
"I have to go out. I have a big family, and I haven't found a job. I have special abilities, but they're strength-based. If I don't go out every day to find supplies, my family will soon be unable to buy food and cook for ourselves."
Since Taoyuan Base was priced low at the beginning, the prices can be compared to those in the early sixty or seventy years ago, which is very cost-effective.
The cost of renting an apartment for a month is only 15 Starlight Coins. If you subscribe to a restaurant for a month, it will cost 25 Starlight Coins per person per month.
If you cook your own food, you will undoubtedly save a lot. And with the high grain yield, the food, vegetables, fruits, meat and poultry at the Taoyuan base are sold at very low prices.
Therefore, for a large family with one or two people with special abilities, if they are frugal, the monthly expenses will be around 200 Starlight Coins.
This includes rent, food and clothing for the whole family, water, electricity and other expenses.
It seems expensive, but in fact it is not expensive at all.
Of course, this is only applicable if you rent the entire courtyard house. Regardless of the type of courtyard house, the maximum number of people living in it is 10 to 50, and the monthly rent is 100 Starlight Coins. If you subscribe to the annual package, it only costs 1100 Starlight Coins.
Many families who do not want to live in an apartment will choose to share a courtyard house with several other families.
After all, compared to a small apartment, a courtyard house is relatively larger and is a two-story building. If there are about 10 people in your family, it is very cost-effective to share a courtyard house with others.
Be careful to control costs and try not to be extravagant. You can live a good life by spending about 50 Starlight Coins a month!
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