Chapter 87 Polar Night [VIP]
Since arriving at the base, Tang Tian first stayed at home. Even after starting to go to the training camp, she took care of her meals at home and never went to the so-called community canteen.
When I got closer, I found that this community cafeteria was like a university cafeteria, with two floors. Lights were on on both floors, and dark figures could be vaguely seen.
The first floor is similar to an ordinary cafeteria. Apart from a few windows at the edge, there are tables, chairs and benches arranged, and some people are sitting there eating.
It will just be quieter. Apart from the sounds of eating, you can only hear a few words of conversation occasionally.
There are more windows on the second floor, but they are all shops similar to convenience stores, trying to meet the living needs of the surrounding people.
What's more, ordinary people in the base basically don't need much except for three meals a day and daily necessities.
Tang Tian looked up and saw a board with prices written on it, but there were very few items: simply cooked potatoes and sweet potatoes, steamed buns, porridge and cakes made with whole grains, and carbohydrate staples were always the main ones.
The next thing is the crops grown in the planting area. The mutant cactus is probably growing very well and is placed in the first column in the table.
The most common way to cook cactus is to cook it. The better way is to make it into salad or fry it. There is also cactus juice, but the prices have increased.
However, unlike the time when there was only cactus, other vegetables appeared now.
Tang Tian took a quick look and found that they were all easy-to-grow crops that Wei Mingxia had grown indoors before: such as leeks, arugula, and bean sprouts. These were crops that could be harvested after one batch was harvested and then continued to grow, so another batch could be harvested soon.
There are also vegetables that grow in a short period of time, such as lettuce, spinach, and cherry radish.
But the price of vegetables is much more expensive, and even if you wait a while, no one will buy them, so you might as well buy the cheapest boiled cactus.
In addition, the base will distribute food every day. As long as you have an ID, you can go and collect it. No one will be accepted after the deadline.
Tang Tian lowered her eyes and whispered:
"It seems that the base is currently running out of meat."
Shen Boyun nodded:
"Although they've started raising animals in the livestock area, they're not yet ready for meat. Gerbils are almost impossible to find these days. If you want to eat meat, you can only go to the second-floor shop to see if they have canned meat. It's more expensive there, and it's not always available every day. When it is, it's always in limited quantities."
There was no one at the window where food was served, so Tang Tian and Shen Boyun walked forward.
The latter was more familiar with these things, and just like ordering food in the cafeteria before the end of the world, he only ordered a bowl of multi-grain porridge and two potatoes, a portion of boiled cactus, and a cup of cactus juice.
These canteens are prepared in advance, so they can be served in seconds and taken away.
Tang Tian could still cook for herself at home, so she only ordered two cooked potatoes.
For just five points, you can get two potatoes that are much bigger than your fist and still feel warm to the touch.
I have to say, potatoes are really the greatest crop in the world!
Shen Boyun had already found a seat in the corner and sat down, and Tang Tian also sat down opposite him.
But seeing that Tang Tian only had those two potatoes, the former frowned slightly and asked:
"These? Aren't they too few?"
"It's okay, I'm used to eating small meals frequently."
As Tang Tian spoke, she began to peel potatoes, then looked at those of Shen Boyun and smiled faintly.
"You must earn quite a bit every month, right? Is this all you eat?"
The former meal costs fifteen points coupons, and this staple food is most likely made from stale grains and bran, and the taste is not very good.
The most expensive thing is the cactus juice, which tastes sweet and sweet things can greatly soothe the human heart.
Shen Boyun sighed:
"Although I get a salary every month, the prices are definitely still high right now. Life is different from before, and we still have to pay rent every month. If we save a little, maybe things will be better in the future."
We can only be thankful that it is polar night now and nothing extremely dangerous has fallen from the sky.
The most important thing is that it is not only expensive, but also not at all as delicious as it was before the apocalypse.
Tang Tian thought for a moment and took something out of his pocket.
After tearing a small hole, sprinkle the powder inside on the peeled potatoes, and a light red color will appear.
Is that... barbecue ingredients?
After all, eating potatoes alone is a bit bland, but as long as you add seasoning, everything is different. The taste will make people feel that adding potatoes is a very lucky thing.
"What do you want?"
Tang Tian chewed a potato and handed over the remaining barbecue ingredients.
Shen Boyun swallowed a mouthful, thanked him, took it, and evenly distributed it on the potatoes, multi-grain porridge and boiled cactus, looking pitiful.
The food finally had flavor, but as he ate, he still felt that the person in front of him was more appetizing.
…
After dinner,
Different from the first floor, there are several more windows on the edge, including a small shop, and a simple exchange office.
This kind of redemption can be done before the points coupons are fully circulated in the base.
There were queues at several windows, but none of them were as quiet as the first floor.
"Is there no canned meat today? I finally saved enough to buy some..."
"The supplies here are so scarce. Does the base still have any supplies?"
"How could I possibly exchange all the supplies I found for just these few points? Are you going to swallow them all for me?"
There was a lot of noise, but no one noticed Tang Tian and Shen Boyun.
This kind of store sells essential consumables for survival: food, and more expensive limited water, mostly produced by water plants.
In today's polar night, people are scrambling to buy second-hand clothes, lighting tools, and low-quality fuels that they found somewhere.
Then there are daily necessities such as cold weapons, gauze, soap, etc., the prices of which are rising one after another.
In particular, some seasonings are sold by gram. One gram of salt and sugar is more expensive than many dietary supplements.
It is said that this is because there are so many varieties in the middle-class areas, while in the civilian areas and even the outer areas, there are so few varieties that only cheap food is left.
After learning the information, but not wanting to buy anything, Tang Tian left the second floor and prepared to go back.
Eating two potatoes is not enough to fill my stomach, it’s time to go back and have another snack.
So the two of them walked again at night, and when they saw the community canteen, they knew they were not far from home. When they reached the 10th floor, they said goodbye to each other and went back to their rooms.
Tang Yi and Wei Mingxia left a separate meal for Tang Tian and also fed Tan Tan.
Tang Tian stroked the dog's head that rushed towards him, came to the dining table and started eating, and told the two of them what he had seen, so that they could also get an understanding of the base.
Not long after finishing their meal, it was time for another break. The Tang family, as usual, prepared to sleep on the floor in the living room near the door.
The lights in the community gradually dimmed, and it became a pitch-black night where one could not see one's hand in front of one's face. Only the bright light of the stars and the moon flowed quietly.
…
However, in the second half of the night, a dog's barking broke the silence in the room.
Tan Tan noticed that there was a stranger passing by the door, so he immediately got up from his nest and shouted towards the door as a warning.
“Duoduoduo…”
Tang Yi and Wei Mingxia sat up nervously, but Tang Tian remained calm. She listened carefully and found that it sounded more like a knock on the door - it was a knock on her own door!
"The base has patrols 24 hours a day, and they also come to the community. This..."
"It's okay mom, this sounds different than those prying doors before."
Tang Tian comforted him softly, and then stopped Tan Tan before getting up and walking to the entrance.
Raising one hand, ready to release her supernatural power at any moment, she then asked in a deep voice:
"who?"
A vague voice came from outside the door:
"Cousin, it's me."
Tang Tian was stunned.
The door to the middle floor was quite sturdy. In fact, she could hardly hear the voice clearly, but it was this name that made her almost instantly think of the person who came.
Since that man left, Tang Tian has never seen him again.
She tightened her lips, frowned slightly, and responded after a while:
"You are... Wei Qian?"
"It's me, cousin. Can you open the door before we talk?"
Tang Tian naturally couldn't open the door, but fortunately there was a window on the door, which she opened silently.
Wei Qian's tone was calm yet heavy, and a little hoarse:
"Cousin, long time no see, you finally entered the base."
"I know you're very capable. I heard that even the authorities are paying special attention to you. I'm short of manpower here, so why don't you join us? This is a very bright place, and we will definitely not treat you unfairly..."
Tang Tian: What the hell?
But she vaguely heard that Wei Qian must have joined some organization and was recruiting people for expansion, which was a common thing in the past.
And this organization seemed to be deep inside the base, which gave her a bad feeling.
But even in the past, she had not taken much care of her cousin, so it was impossible for her to agree at this moment and she refused directly.
"Really? That's such a pity..."
Wei Qian's hoarse voice was like the hissing of an old gear.
"It's okay, cousin. If you have any ideas, come to me in the civilian area. I welcome you."
After waiting for a while, there was no movement at the door. Wei Qian must have left.
This conversation was also heard clearly by Tang Yi and Wei Mingxia who came over quietly. They also frowned, not understanding what was going on.
Returning to the floor, the three of them sat down and looked at each other, before Tang Tian concluded:
"I haven't seen him in a while, but I was the one who asked him to leave during the last flood. He must have gone to a shelter after that. I don't know what happened to him, but he seemed to be acting weird."
Wei Mingxia seemed to recall what happened in the past and couldn't help but sigh.
Tang Yi didn't relax her brows, but just said:
"It seems like this is like an invisible bomb. We should be more careful next time..."
…
The curtains in the living room were drawn to block out the moonlight. After all, people still need to rest.
Until the next day, the sun, which symbolizes hope, still did not rise from the east, but the Tang family got up again relying on their biological clock.
After washing up and having breakfast, there was a radio on the table, which is still the most important means of communication at present.
Tang Tian took a big bite of the red bean bun made in the system and drank milk, but heard a piece of news on the radio that was not good for ordinary people.
It turned out that the base had issued new regulations, stopping the daily free food supply for each person, and the supplies sold in the canteen and supermarket were also limited.
The free food provided by the base before included grain porridge, crude food bars made of unknown ingredients, and the best was compressed biscuits.
The quantity of one portion is at least enough for one person to eat half full and barely maintain life needs for the day.
However, this also led to the survivors in the outer areas choosing to use their ID cards to collect free food every day instead of looking for work. If this consumption continued, what difference would it make to live off the mountain? So in the end, the base decided to cancel this policy.
This incident was reported for half an hour. In another half an hour, it would be time for Tang Tian and Tang Yi to go to the training camp.
Unfortunately, Tang Tian didn’t think that the base would be as peaceful as it is now.
Sure enough, after another quarter of an hour, there was a rapid knock on the door.
Tang Tian went to open the door, and standing at the door were Shen Boyun and Cheng Jing with serious faces.
"There have been riots in many areas. It's best if you don't go out today and wait until the situation calms down."
Shen Boyun gave this instruction, and left in a hurry without even listening to the reply. It must be that the official summoned all the members of the armed team.
The atmosphere in the office was extremely tense. Emergency situations were constantly being reported, and riots were breaking out everywhere.
This includes not only those who want to get free food, but also those ordinary survivors who can only get extremely low supplies or points coupons every day, and rely on the free food to survive, hoping to save some. This blow is simply a blow to their lifeline.
However, this was a joint decision made by the heads of the three regions. After all, with today's production conditions, it is still impossible to perfectly supply everyone in the base.
Chuncheng has no granary, and if one wants to transfer grain, one must apply and go through a lengthy approval process, so this is the only option left.
Wu Yongming paused, then whispered:
"Send out the armed forces to suppress the crackdown. Arrest all the ringleaders and send them to the labor camp!"
The Labor Reform Bureau was also a new facility established after the base was built, but after the end of the world, it not only detained people, but all of them were sent to labor reform to increase manpower until they were exhausted.
So next, Wu Yongming and Yang Gan kept waiting in the office.
However, in the face of danger, people's potential is simply infinite.
While reporting that the situation has been suppressed, new incidents break out on the other side, just like a whack-a-mole game that can never be stopped.
Wu Yongming's face became increasingly darker, and even his lips gradually turned slightly purple. Seeing this, Yang Gan quickly persuaded him:
"Commander, please take some medicine first, your health is very important!"
"It's okay, I can still handle it..."
Wu Yongming said this and finally took out a pill. But before he took it, he looked at the pill and suddenly remembered something and asked:
"By the way, have Tang Tian and her family entered the shelter?"
"Yes, Commander Wu, and Miss Tang is currently undergoing advanced training in the training camp. I think she will receive her certificate soon."
Wu Yongming's expression brightened slightly. His judgment was indeed correct; he believed Tang Tian was capable.
But...this is not what he wanted to ask.
Seeing that he seemed to be hesitant to speak, Yang Gan seemed to understand what he wanted to ask. He couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart. After thinking for a moment, he replied:
"Commander Wu, Tang Tian and her family only brought their luggage when they entered the base. They also exchanged a large number of points vouchers at the exchange center. I'm afraid they don't have any supplies with them..."
Wu Yongming closed his eyes, somewhat letting it go, but still sighed with regret: "Really..."
Yang Gan fell silent. Fortunately, there was another knock on the door. It was someone coming to report the situation.
…
Now people can't contact each other directly, and Tang Tian doesn't know what's going on at the training camp, but she estimates that in order to quell this series of riots, even the coach will have to go there in person, so she didn't go to the training camp.
The armed team even returned and approached the community at one point, and it seemed that there had been a disturbance in the neighboring community as well.
Tang Tian observed from the window and saw a team escorting prisoners passing by.
Four days later, the turmoil gradually subsided. Most of the prisoners were sent to the labor reform bureau, and several of the most serious leaders, big and small, were dragged to the central square and executed.
It was a bit like being dragged to Caishikou to be beheaded in ancient times, and there were even scattered people watching nearby.
In any case, the original free food has been cancelled, but officials have also stated that they will open and arrange as many jobs as possible at the base.
After seeing that everything had calmed down, Tang Tian and Tang Yi set off for the training camp again.
There aren't that many people living in the middle-class area. When the Tang family went out in the morning recently, apart from seeing the Shen family and the Yan family, they hardly saw any neighbors. It seemed that people only gathered in the community canteen when it was time for dinner.
There is basically no green in the community, but there is always a layer of sand on the ground for no apparent reason.
Especially after the storm subsided, a lot of garbage appeared, especially corpses.
The armed forces are responsible for calming the situation, but they will not deal with those afterwards.
Therefore, the authorities developed more cleaning positions in the logistics department, which can be regarded as the implementation of their policies to the end.
Tang Tian was walking when Tang Yi suddenly pulled her hand.
Following his gaze, the former saw an old woman with a hunched figure and completely white hair, holding a large broom and sweeping the dust on the ground.
You don't often see elderly people in the base. Some of them were killed by natural disasters in the early stages of the apocalypse, so they are considered lucky.
People of this age don't seem to be suitable for any position, especially those at the lower level. It would be nice if they could just have a job to make ends meet.
Looking from a different angle, Tang Tian was stunned.
This person... is actually Choi Sooyoung?
You have to know that she has been fighting with the Tang family for a long time, and you have to admit that she is really good at surviving.
"I heard that the base also has facilities that specifically take in and care for children under the age of twelve. Choi Soo-young's grandson is probably there."
Tang Yi whispered.
Tang Tian nodded. She didn't want to express any opinion on this. After all, Choi Sooyoung would not pester her anymore, so she raised her foot and wanted to leave.
However, she didn't expect that the latter still discovered the two sisters. She subconsciously shrank her shoulders, but perhaps because she remembered the past, she still glared at Tang Tian reluctantly before continuing to clean.
In this base, there are many people who are more arrogant than her, and crushing her is as easy as crushing an ant. Choi Sooyoung finally regressed from her time at Hexinyuan and worked honestly to make ends meet.
After arriving at the training camp and running exercises, Tang Tian and Tang Yi had already stretched their bodies, but there seemed to be fewer people in the venue. It was unclear whether they had graduated or given up and were coming back.
When the former was doing warm-up exercises, the coach came up with someone and said:
"Tang Tian, Tang Yi, this is a member who just came to the advanced training today. I heard that you two know each other, and you can train together in the future."
Tang Tian took a closer look: Wow, he is catching up.
Looking at Qiao Shiyu who was glaring at her angrily, Tang Tian immediately refused three times:
"Sorry, Coach. We're not familiar with her. Besides, when we come to the advanced course, we have to start training from the beginning, right? It's better to take it step by step."
Tang Tian and Tang Yi can be said to be the gold medal students in the training camp. After hearing what she said, they agreed to let others help Qiao Shiyu.
Qiao Shiyu glanced at the two of them grimly and finally left first.
"Tang Tian, Tang Yi, with your abilities, as long as you pass the test today, we can issue you certificates of qualification."
The coach's smile showed a hint of relief.
Although he was assigned to this position, there were actually very few trainees in the training camp who could make him so worry-free, serious, and talented.
The final exam, apart from shooting, is a battle with the coach. As long as you pass all of them, you'll be fine.
A morning passed, and by noon, Tang Tian and Tang Yi had both successfully obtained their certificates of qualification, which were no different from their graduation certificates before the apocalypse.
However, even though they got it, the two have not yet decided whether to start working early. After all, they don’t have to worry about survival at all.
Tang Yi was ready to go home first. After finishing her busy schedule, Tang Tian was ready to go somewhere she had wanted to go but hadn't had time to go yet.
After the two separated, Tang Tian followed the road signs and came to a place similar to a commercial plaza.
The trading market that was previously in the shelter has been transformed and officially moved into this shopping mall, which reminds Tang Tian of Zhang Huaiping's market.
As the base continues to develop, this will probably become one of the commercial entities within the base.
What's more, unlike private markets, you don't need to buy a ticket to enter this trading market.
Tang Tian only had to walk around the first floor before she saw stalls on both sides. The items on the stalls were more diverse than those in the community cafeteria, and the prices were also different.
The prices of rare materials have always been expensive, while the prices of common or even low-grade materials have been fluctuating in the market.
But later Tang Tian discovered that such stalls were actually quite rare - many stalls were actually selling food ingredients.
The most common ingredient is the mutant cactus that was first discovered by the research institute!
After the mutation, this cactus grew very fast, and a lot of land was opened up in the planting area of the base, so many farmers appeared who specialized in planting it.
Moreover, the seeds of cactus are leaves, and the base has also given them to some residents who have the conditions at home, allowing them to grow them themselves, so that they don’t have to go to the community canteen to eat.
At the vegetable stall in front of me, some people are selling cactus leaves, and some are specializing in selling cactus fruits.
Of course, other vegetables in the cafeteria can also be found here.
However, the quantity is relatively small and the price is higher than that of cactus, so few people come to buy it for a while. The person who finally buys it looks like a wealthy person.
Tang Tian looked at the bustling vegetable stall, raised his hand to touch his chin, and his mind became active.
You should know that my family also planted a batch of cacti out of curiosity. Although the cacti have the effect of restoring mental strength, there are more delicious and restorative foods in the system. Those cacti that were planted were naturally stored in the warehouse.
Besides, they couldn't keep planting it forever, so Wei Mingxia stopped after planting, and the Tang family never touched it again.
But compared to the cacti sold at the vegetable stalls, Tang Tian felt that the cacti he grew were of much better quality.
Maybe... this is an opportunity?
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