Each person can get two compressed biscuits, but there is no way around water. Each household can only get one bottle, and you can take it home and share it.
Then take out the shares of the two families who were not present, and there are still two biscuits left.
"Since their two families are not here, then we twelve families present here can divide it equally! Bring a clean knife, and we can divide it evenly, with each family getting a small piece!"
This proposal was once again agreed by everyone, and Qiao Qingqing went home to get a clean knife to cut for them.
After the distribution, everyone left one after another, except for one person who stayed.
"How about you let me keep Old Liu's share, and I'll give it to them when they come back?" The man reached out to take it while speaking, but was stopped by Shao Shengan.
"No, I will give it to them when they come back. Everyone has just testified. The things are with me. If the two families can't get the things in the future, you can all testify and report me to the community."
"Oh, forget it then."
Watching everyone go downstairs, Shao Shengan dreamed of returning to Jinyuan Community. Dividing things is troublesome! There are so many calculations and intrigues.
After moving the boxes back home, everyone felt that distributing the supplies was too tiring, but since the things were left on the top floor, they couldn't help but take responsibility. Otherwise, if something went wrong, they still couldn't avoid it. It was better to take the initiative in their hands. This was what Shao Shengan had learned from his wife. He looked at Qiao Qingqing, and the couple smiled at each other.
With supplies, residents who are staying at home to avoid the disaster feel more at ease.
Many places in the base have stopped working, only the factory is working overtime and has never stopped working.
The researchers at the Institute of Agricultural Sciences have not had a good night's sleep since the thick fog started, and now they have received orders from their superiors to expand production and increase output. The pressure is really too great.
The institute was also under great pressure. Acid rain corroded everything. If this problem could not be solved, how would everyone go out and work in the future? Would the survivors of the base have to rely on the delivery of supplies for their entire lives? The delivery of supplies could only be a short-term emergency measure.
In fact, from the beginning of the construction of the survivor base, the relief supplies were greatly reduced. At that time, the construction site provided a large number of jobs, and as long as you worked hard, you could earn supplies. Later, Mayor Luo withstood the pressure and provided supplies to the survivors in the shantytowns from time to time. If it weren't for the thick fog, that item would have been stopped long ago. In the more than two years since the base resumed production, on the one hand, the products produced had to be put into use, and only a small part was saved as war preparation supplies. If the entire base was to be provided, it would not last for a year.
When the flood first started, granaries all over the country were urgently relocated. Yeshan was one of the relocation points. A large amount of supplies were stored on the mountain, which was used to support all directions. However, in the past few years, there has been no return, and the supplies have been almost consumed.
Thinking of the eternal night and great earthquake in the prophecy letter, the leaders are really worried!
While the institute was working hard to research materials that could resist acid rain, the government bought several factories and quickly improved the production chain to produce war materials. The recruitment notice was also broadcast to all directions. Shao Shengan repaired the radio in Building 20. He installed several layers of wooden frames on the radio, hoping to block the acid rain as much as possible and extend the life of the radio.
"You're still hiring at this time?" Father Shao scratched his head, "Didn't they say that people are not allowed to go out?"
"You are not allowed to go out, but working in a factory is also another form of not going out." Shao Shengan was tempted. The factory provides food and accommodation, as well as salary, and the government attaches great importance to safety. It would be a shame not to go.
He looked at his father, and from his father's eyes he could tell that the father and son were thinking the same thing.
"You want to go? But there's no mention of a factory on the radio. Can we do it?" Shao's mother was a little hesitant.
"Dad and I can go. Anyway, we will know what to do when we get there. If we don't know how to do it, we can learn it. If we learn it, we will be kept. If we can't learn it, we will be dismissed. It doesn't matter." Shao Shengan looked at Qiao Qingqing, "Qingqing, what do you think?"
Qiao Qingqing also wanted to go, but she knew that she and her husband were the two backbones of the family. They had always had the same tacit understanding that they could not leave their parents alone at home. Either she or her husband would stay at home to watch over them. It was not that they did not believe in their parents' ability to protect themselves, but that their parents were too important to them and they could not afford any accidents.
As for the couple, the husband always took on all the hard work and never let her do it.
"I will follow your arrangements and take good care of the family." When she said this, Shao Shengan smiled with relief.
Shao's mother still insisted, saying that she also wanted to go to the factory, and Shao Shengan tried to persuade her for a long time.
Just after persuading him, Shao Shengfei raised his hand: "Can I go? I want to go to work and make money."
"Fei Fei?"
"Fei Fei, don't go. You can stay at home."
"I want to go, I want to go to work!" Shao Shengfei shouted, "I am very strong, I am very obedient, I can go to work!"
Shao Shengan used the same excuse as before, saying that he should stay at home to protect his mother and sisters, but this time it didn't work. Shao Shengfei had always been obedient, but this time he was determined to go to work and make money.
Shao's father and mother were at a loss. Shao Sheng'an sighed, "Then take your elder brother with you to apply for the job. I'll send him home later."
The job application was tentatively confirmed, and Shao Shengan and his friends packed their luggage and set off the next day to gather at the square mentioned in the broadcast, where a car would be available to pick them up.
A lot of people from the community set out on the journey. Acid rain caused many people to lose their jobs, and everyone was longing for this job provided by the government.
With three people missing from the house, it suddenly felt much quieter.
Shao's mother complained to Qiao Songzhi: "I can still work, but they won't let me go."
"They also feel sorry for you. We can also help at home. We all contribute to this family. Whether it's big or small, it's all a contribution."
The three of them started cooking again.
The rice purchased in the space before the end of the world can be eaten for fifteen years. Some of it has been steamed, and most of it is still in the state of rice, not to mention the flour and noodles. There is so much work that can be done, and it is impossible to finish it.
Steaming rice, kneading dough... while steaming rice, you can also steam frozen buns, dumplings, and steamed buns made from freshly kneaded dough.
The smell drifted into the air and spread everywhere with the wind.
Someone sniffed and said, "What a fragrant smell of rice. Not only rice, but also buns. It smells really good."
"Fuck, there are too many rich people in this neighborhood. I heard someone stewing pig's trotters a few days ago. How can some people live so well?"
"Don't say that. Every family has different conditions. The family downstairs from us has relatives who run a chicken farm, so they can often get some chicken offal. That's their ability."
"You've never been to the villa area. My mom worked there as a nanny. The rich people there eat even better, with delicacies from land and sea! Big lobsters, abalone, and even venison. God knows where they get all these good things from!"
"Then why doesn't your mother continue to be a nanny? If the master eats meat, your mother can at least steal some soup and bring it back."
"Ahem, my mom is old and I won't let her go to work. You guys chat, I'll go home and cook."
"Hey, are you stupid? Don't you know that his mother was fired for stealing food for him? You are really talking about something that is out of context."
"You mean the babysitter who stole something and got fired? I don't know!"
Qiao Qingqing and the others were so busy that they didn't pay much attention to the outside world. Four days later, acid rain came again.
Mother Shao was worried: "Why didn't Feifei come back? Didn't Sheng An say he would send Feifei home?"
Qiao Songzhi hesitated: "Could it be that Feifei was hired?"
"No way? That's impossible!"
Qiao Songzhi laughed, "Why not? Feifei is a little naive, but he is very obedient. He listens to everything we say. At work, the boss likes employees who obey orders. Our Feifei actually meets the recruitment requirements. He is in good health and strong, so how can it be impossible?"
Mother Shao was stunned for a long time, her eyes turned red, and she rubbed her eyes: "If it's true, it would be good, that would be good..."
As the acid rain came, the smell in the air started to get worse again.
But the impact of acid rain goes far beyond that. Rats and cockroaches have started to appear everywhere again.
At first, when Shao's mother was using the toilet, she was frightened by a cockroach that jumped out of the drain and screamed. The cockroach flew around in the toilet and was killed by Shao's mother with her slippers. Then, at night, Qiao Qingqing heard a strange rustling sound outside. She turned on the flashlight and followed the sound to the kitchen, only to find that it was a mouse.
After she caught the mouse, Qiao Qingqing pinched its tail and looked at it. Seeing that the mouse had no hair and its flesh was covered with red lumps of corroded flesh, she knew that this mouse must be a lucky one that survived the acid rain. She threw it into the trash can and frowned as she began to repair the drain at home.
When Qiao Songzhi and the others got up, they found that the drains in the house were blocked, and Qiao Qingqing even disinfected the house.
Qiao Qingqing said.
"We have been exterminating rats and cockroaches for the past few years, and I haven't seen these things climbing up the building for a long time. It may be that acid rain has flowed into the sewers, squeezing out the living space of rats and cockroaches, so they are running around everywhere again. It's okay, I have blocked the pipes at home, and they can't come up."
"Then the sixth floor will also be blocked, right?"
"I'll go to the sixth floor later to block it."
Shao's mother hurriedly said, "I'll go with you."
Qiao Qingqing didn't let them see the dead body of the mouse for fear of scaring them.
But Qiao Songzhi still saw it. The next day, she opened the door and wanted to go to the sixth floor to water the vegetables. As soon as the door opened, a mouse jumped in and almost tripped her.
From the corner of her eye, Qiao Songzhi only saw a pink thing running past her feet, and she didn't recognize it as a mouse.
"It seems like something has entered the room." She quickly closed the door again.
"Where? A mouse?" Shao's mother took off her shoes and held them up, and began to check vigilantly, and finally caught it in the corner of the kitchen.
"Is this a rat? The hiss is really scary."
Looking at the rat in the cage, Qiao Songzhi and Shao's mother felt a chill. This rat had rolled around in the acid rain. Its fur was gone, and the exposed flesh was bumpy and bloody. It cried shrilly, but it was still very energetic. They had killed many rats in their lives, but they couldn't bring themselves to kill this rat.
"Let me do it." Qiao Qingqing took the cage away and disposed of it.
She didn't let her mother go out: "I'll go!" She was afraid they would encounter mice again. These creatures were running everywhere. She was afraid her mother wouldn't be so lucky next time and would trip and fall. That would be terrible.
The whole building seemed to be in danger of being attacked by desperate and crazy rats, but crisis is also an opportunity. In the evening, they smelled a strange smell of barbecue.
"You smell it, right? It smells familiar, but I can't remember what it is."
Seeing Mother Shao thinking hard, Qiao Qingqing said, "It should be the kind of rats that our family caught. When we passed by the roasted rat stall in the market before, it smelled like this. Maybe it has a little more acid rain smell, so it smells a bit strange."
Shao's mother suddenly realized.
"It's been several days since we last distributed supplies, but the acid rain hasn't stopped, so supplies can't be delivered. Some people may have no food at home. Oh, when will the rain stop?" Qiao Songzhi sincerely hoped that the rain would stop. Even if there would be the eternal night as her daughter said, she thought that eternal night was better than acid rain. At least everyone could go out to work without the threat of death from the damn acid rain.
"I don't know how Sheng An and the others are doing now, and whether their work in the factory is going well. Oh, and I don't know which factory they are going to!"
Qiao Qingqing said, "He must be busy at work. Sheng An will definitely send a message back if he has the chance."
The second acid rain lasted for half a month, and many people were almost out of food.
Once the acid rain stopped, the survivors who were short of supplies no longer cared about the water on the ground. They used all kinds of methods to go out and look for opportunities to earn supplies, leaving their families at home waiting for planes to deliver relief supplies.
After the rain stopped, the fleet of aircraft started up quickly, delivering supplies to the entire base as efficiently as possible. Shao Shengan's message was also sent by someone at this time. The person who came was Liuzi. He was wearing thick and tall wooden boards, with several layers of waterproof wraps on his calves. He was panting when he knocked on Qiao Qingqing's door.
He brought the news that Shao Shengan and his two sons were hired by the factory: "They are all in the cannery. Brother Shao and Uncle Shao are in the production workshop. Brother Xiaofei and I are in the warehouse. Brother Xiaofei is very good at work. The team leader praised him for his strength. This batch of materials includes canned food made by our factory. Brother Xiaofei and I loaded and sent it out of the warehouse together... Our warehouse happened to be emptied, so we are on vacation. Knowing that I was going home, Brother Shao asked me to bring a message. Brother Xiaofei? Brother Xiaofei is also on vacation, but Brother Shao is worried about him going out, so he is still in the dormitory..."
This news made Qiao Qingqing and the others feel completely relieved. Liuzi had to go home, so Qiao Qingqing didn't invite him to dinner, but only gave him two rice balls. He happily went home with the rice balls in his pocket. Shao's mother was so relieved that she could only pray to Buddha. Shao Shengfei could work like a normal person. This joy was comparable to Shao Shengan's initial admission to a prestigious school.
"You should feel relieved now." Qiao Songzhi patted her arm and said gently.
Mother Shao nodded with sobs.
As time went by, the institute finally developed materials to resist acid rain, but because the production could not keep up, the public could not get them for the time being. Many shops closed down and many people lost their jobs. Although the base was increasing production and recruiting many more workers, the entire base had hundreds of thousands of people, and the base was too large. The newly opened factories and new production lines quickly recruited enough people, and the unemployment dilemma could only be slightly alleviated by relief supplies.
In the past, when thick fog hit, people could still go out as long as they took good protection. However, acid rain completely trapped people in buildings. Problems began to arise over time, and cults took the opportunity to grow and spread rapidly.
Doomsday theory is nothing new in recent years. The base has severely cracked down on cults in recent years, but due to the general environment, some people need to seek comfort and support psychologically. Few cultists dare to show up in the open, but there are countless cults developing secretly behind the scenes.
But those cultists did not dare to cause trouble and cheat people for money and sex to satisfy their own greedy desires for pleasure until the acid rain came.
Acid rain always comes and goes, tormenting people's nerves all the time. In the first three days after the acid rain stops, people feel the most secure, but after that, the sense of security gradually weakens until it drops to negative. No one knows when the next wave of acid rain will return, bringing with it murderous intent, so after three days, the streets will quickly become deserted, with no one even left.
This psychological torture gave rise to many suicides by jumping off buildings. The "holy bath" cult took advantage of the situation and believed that acid rain was "holy water" and that bathing in holy water could wash away the mortal bones, gain a new life, and ascend to heaven. The holy bath cultists seized every opportunity when there was no acid rain to preach everywhere and recruit believers. The inconvenient transportation and the lack of energy from the top leaders of the base made the cult more and more intense, and large-scale baptism activities began to appear in various places.
On the floor where Qiao Qingqing lived, there was someone who believed in this and often knocked on the door to preach, and was extremely fanatical. The iron door on the seventh floor blocked the other party, so the man knocked on the door frantically. Later, Qiao Qingqing took out a kitchen knife and forced the man back.
But that man never gave up. He read the doctrine aloud in the corridor every day, appearing to be very pious.
Qiao Qingqing had only one thing to say to her family: "Don't listen! Don't watch!"
Some radical believers will even smash other people's doors, drag people out, and use force to "persuade" them to join in the baptism.
A few days later, the religious neighbor also evolved in this direction. Late one night, the man smashed the neighbor's door with a kitchen knife, scaring everyone else so much that they dared not go out.
Mother Shao listened to the knocking of the door outside and spoke quickly: "Are those people crazy? This is murder, it's murder!"
"They are crazy. Fortunately, there is an iron gate blocking them. Mom, don't be afraid."
It's impossible not to be afraid. There's a madman in the building, shouting that he wants to take you to paradise early. Who wouldn't be afraid?
After the rain stopped, supplies were delivered and we had to go out even if we didn’t want to.
They saw the neighbor who knocked on the door, and the man was smiling and talking, and seemed normal. But this normality combined with the scene of crazy shouting and banging on the door that night seemed weird and frightening.
"Oh, you are so stupid! I thought of you because we are neighbors, but none of you appreciated it. I was so sad!" The man smiled and said, "How about you think about it again? Next time I will take you to bathe in the holy water. Together we can get rid of the sufferings of this world and ascend to heaven and become immortals!"
Everyone felt creepy looking at his eager and crazy appearance.
A neighbor grabbed the family member’s hand and whispered, “How could he believe this? Is he crazy?”
"Hush, his whole family is gone. He must be suffering from mental problems due to the huge shock."
"Ahem! Let's distribute the supplies quickly, what are you standing there for!"
Hurry up and go home and lock the door. What if you stay with a madman for too long and get infected?
After the supplies were distributed, everyone left quickly. The man watched his neighbors leave with a smile. Shao's mother looked back and saw the man nodded to her, which scared her so much that she turned back quickly.
When the security team passed by, Qiao Qingqing went downstairs to report it, and the security team took the man away.
Everyone thought the man would be able to survive. After all, the security team said that people infected by cults were just confused and they would get professional help and sober up. There was a person in the next building who was locked up for half a month and he was back to normal when he came back.
It wasn't until the next acid rain season that a major event happened in Ping'an Community.
It was an ordinary day during the acid rain. There was no one on the street. People hiding at home were checking windows and walls. Some people's houses were old and had holes corroded by the acid rain. The deadly acid flowed into the house, leaving small grooves with bubbles.
"Bring the bucket! Quickly!"
"It's going to break here too. Is the cement ready? Hurry!"
Some people strive to survive, while others choose to end their earthly lives on this day in order to gain a more transcendent eternal life for the truth they believe in or to escape reality.
At the place where projection programs were originally played at the gate of Ping'an Community, hundreds of people gathered silently after the acid rain came. They held various rainproof tools and remained silent in the acid rain.
Many people stood outside the windows, looking out in horror.
The leader threw aside the wooden rain shield, raised his arm, waved his staff, and shouted, "The holy bath begins!"
The believers excitedly threw away the rainproof props in their hands one by one, they chanted slogans devoutly, knelt on the ground devoutly and prayed for the mercy of holy water. When the acid rain soaked them thoroughly, they cheered that their wishes had come true, as if they did not feel the pain of their bodies at all. But the devout faith will eventually collapse in the pain of reality. Some people were in so much pain that they could not recite the doctrine, screamed in pain in the acid rain, and fled in panic. More people strengthened their faith in the pain, raised their heads, opened their mouths, and opened their arms, letting the acid rain cover them completely...
Qiao Qingqing did not see that scene.
But the sound was like a devil's voice, coming one after another from outside. Her home was in Building 20, and she could hear those people's painful yet joyful screams clearly. It was extremely strange and terrifying!
For several consecutive days, Qiao Songzhi and Shao's mother suffered nightmares, and Qiao Qingqing had to prescribe sedatives for them both.
After that, acid rain lasted for twenty days. When it stopped, Ping'an Community became dead silent and almost no one dared to go out.
When the residents mustered up their courage and went out, they did not see any of the horrific and cruel scenes they had imagined at the gate. The place was clean, except that the ground had been corroded by continuous acid rain and was one inch thinner, there was no trace of anything.
It was so clean that it seemed as if the screams that had given many people nightmares were just illusions.
But thinking about it more deeply makes people feel dreadful. Almost no one dares to walk on that piece of land. When going out, the residents try to walk close to the wall and the side, and they only regret that they can't fly away from that piece of land and fly out of the community.
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