[edited]

Lu Yu didn’t catch the implication behind Jiang Ning’s words. “No, I had a couple of drinks with Zhang Chao last night and didn’t sleep much.”

“What’s up so early in the morning?”

Lu Yu’s smile looked worse than a cry. “Anning, we’re planning to quit our jobs.”

Though they were reluctant, survival was the most important thing.

There was no denying that Anning was impressive. Whether it was typhoons, floods, or extreme cold, the preparations she made were more thorough than theirs, and she often looked out for them.

And Brother Shen was even more formidable; he could stay calm in the face of anything.

While the Zhong family, with their connections, had more information than the average person.

So, it’s much better to listen to their advice and ensure they can eat enough.

They had lived like this before and planned to continue following the main group. With frugal living, their current food supply could last about four years. They decided to follow the larger group.

However, quitting their jobs would take time, so they needed to act quickly.

Everyone from 1803 pitched in to help Huo Yishen move the horizontal cylindrical water tanks onto the rooftop.

Including the ones they had moved before, there were a total of 14 water tanks, each capable of storing 2 tons of water. Two of these were for the Zhong family, meaning the 18th floor could store 24 tons of water.

Even with careful rationing, 24 tons of water would only last three to four months. What would they do then?

Jiang Ning reassured them, “If it really becomes extremely hot, even if the city’s drainage system collapses, two to three months should be enough to evaporate the floodwaters. The city will figure something out by then.”

“Anning is right,” Zhang Chao analyzed. “Before we had tap water, people used well water.”

Zheng Weili worried, “But if the temperature gets too high, how will we store the water for a long time without it spoiling?”

“I’ve got water purification tablets. We can use those in the tanks when the time comes.”

“Anning, you’re amazing.”

Jiang Ning diverted the praise. “I don’t really know much; it was Ah Shen who told me.”

Lu Yu flattered, “Brother Shen is really incredible, a survival expert.”

Forced to take the credit, Huo Yishen replied, “I just know a little bit.”

As they were setting up the water tanks, Grandma Zhong came up to shovel snow.

Upon learning that she had need to store two large water jars, Zhang Chao and Lu Yu, caring for the elderly, helped her shovel snow and carry it downstairs.

With the other members of the Zhong family not around, they feared Grandma Zhong might fall running up and down, so they decided to help her fill the Zhong family’s water tanks first.

This left them with not much clean snow.

Zheng Weili felt anxious, “What if it doesn’t snow again, or the temperature suddenly rises, and we don’t have enough water stored?”

Jiang Ning was optimistic, “It shouldn’t happen. Besides, our previous seven water tanks are full. If we use them sparingly, we should be fine.

You guys quit your jobs as soon as possible. In the meantime, we’ll keep collecting snow to fill the remaining tanks.”

She didn’t plan to use snow water anyway. Once 1803 left, she would fill the tanks with water from her own space.

Alright, since 1803 had more survival experience, they could just follow along.

At noon, while Lu Yu was cooking porridge in the kitchen, Zhang Chao suddenly shouted from the living room, startling Lu Yu into rushing out with a spatula. “What happened?”

“Hurry, the meteorological department just released a statement.”

The radio crackled with the sound of a weather official announcing the latest news. Based on current temperature changes, temperatures were expected to rise rapidly in the next half month, potentially leading to extreme high temperatures. Residents were advised to prepare accordingly.

“Anning and Brother Shen are amazing. Their predictions are spot on and even more reliable than the experts at the meteorological department.”

While they were relieved, they also felt a heavy weight in their hearts.

The extreme cold hadn’t even passed, and now extreme heat was coming. When would it end?

With the meteorological department predicting the extreme heat, quitting their jobs was now a certainty.

That night, the two secretly drank in bed.

The extreme cold was hard to bear, but they had mostly gotten used to it. How great it would be if it could continue like this.

For Zhang Chao and Lu Yu, this job was more than just work. It was proof that they had overcome their frail and sickly past, a testament to their manhood.

They had climbed up with great effort, and when they were just about to spread their wings and fly, they withered before fully blossoming.

Frustrated, they took a couple of hard swigs of liquor, but the coughing violently from the burn.

“We’ll rise again.”

“We’re real men; this setback is nothing!”

Drinking heavily, they passed out in a mess.

The night before 1803 left, Jiang Ning came to remind them, “The weather is abnormal. Although the meteorological department predicts that the extreme heat would arrive in about half a month, no one really knows when it will actually hit.

Why don’t you take the rubber boat with you? If the ice suddenly melts, you might have to swim back.”

Thinking of the filth in the water, the three of them turned pale and quickly fetched the rubber boat.

Fortunately, they had wrapped the boat in warm materials as Jiang Ning suggested, so it hadn’t hardened.

Two days after 1803 left, the temperature suddenly shot up to minus 10 degrees Celsius.

Chaos erupted outside again. Just as people thought they could return to normal life after enduring the extreme cold, they never knew that they would face with the prospect of extreme heat.

Air conditioners and fans had long been ruined by the negative seventy degrees cold.

In extreme cold, at least you could melt snow for water. What would they do in extreme heat?

Those with food reserves scrambled to trade for supplies.

Those who were out of everything just lay down and were ready to give up. They were too exhausted to go on.

Lying there for a while, they realized they didn’t want to die, so they got up again.

After Zheng Weili and the others left, Jiang Ning secretly went to the rooftop in the dark and moved the water tanks into her space, filling them with fresh water.

The next day…

Sleeping uncomfortably, Jiang Ning started kicking off her covers—blankets, comforters, down quilts…

When she woke up, she was left with only one blanket. Bright light streamed in through the curtain gaps, which hurt her eyes.

Bright, blinding light!

Jiang Ning pulled open the curtains, and the dazzling white light was almost blinding.

The sun, which had been absent for over a year, had finally come out.

The gloomy weather was gone. Pulling the curtains wide open, everything outside was brightly lit.

It might have been her imagination, but Jiang Ning felt that this wasn’t normal sunlight.

The indoor temperature was 20 degrees Celsius. Outside… 39 degrees Celsius!

Yesterday, it had been negative ten degrees. Today, it had shot up to 39 degrees. It was crazy.

Jiang Ning stood on the balcony, looking down. The ice reflected the light intensely.

Just as she was about to leave, she saw a few idiots in short sleeves rush out of the building, slipping and sliding on the ice in wild celebration. “The sun is out! The heavens finally smiled on us.”

In the extreme cold, their thick clothes had hidden their appearance. Now, in short sleeves, they looked pale and thin, with skeletal waists and heads that seemed too large for their bodies.

Jiang Ning frowned, picking up her binoculars to observe the survivors on the ice.

These people must have a death wish.

The meteorological department had warned through the radio just yesterday that the extreme heat would accelerate ice melting, advising residents to avoid venturing onto the ice unless necessary.

The neighborhood committee had also been diligent and posted notices in every community.

Yet they dared to mess around like this, thinking it would relieve their stress.

The temperature was rising so fast that she could feel the intense heat just standing on the balcony.

Just as she was about to put down the binoculars, she saw the ice suddenly crack and split into pieces. The running and excited survivors didn’t have time to react and fell into the icy water.

“Help… help me…”