She roughly sketched the topography of the base, but apart from discerning the outline and some official areas, nothing else was visible.
In addition to the map, there were also some regulations.
After flipping through the booklet and getting an idea, Su Nian hastily slung her backpack and got out of the car.
It was nine o'clock when Su Nian left the residential area, but now it was already two o'clock.
By four o'clock, it would start to brighten, and by six o'clock, the sun would rise.
Su Nian needed to find a place to stay before the sun came up.
Just as she walked out of the parking lot, before Su Nian could figure out the direction, she saw someone rushing towards her from the shadows.
Seeing someone suddenly charging towards her, Su Nian instinctively reached for her dagger.
At that moment, the person urgently shouted, "Do you need a guide?"
Su Nian remained silent.
Squinting, Su Nian saw that the person in front of her was a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy.
He wore a black short-sleeved shirt with holes, and matching shorts with more holes. His thin limbs exposed prominent veins, looking somewhat frighteningly skinny.
Seeing Su Nian not responding, the boy's expression became somewhat awkward. "Sister, do you need a guide?"
Upon hearing this, Su Nian asked, "How much do you charge?"
"A pack of biscuits! Or a bag of instant noodles, anything to eat!"
"Why not ask for water?"
The boy pursed his lips. "We have water to drink."
Hearing this, Su Nian chuckled.
The Summer Resort Villa was nestled among mountains and waters, with eight lakes inside. Naturally, water was abundant. Even though it was already June, with only three months left of intense heat, having enough water was still a good thing. This way, Su Nian wouldn't have to avoid people too much when using water.
"Do you know the base well?"
"I do! There's nowhere in the base that I don't know!"
Su Nian nodded. "Then tell me, how can I rent a house in the base?"
"There's a housing leasing center in the base, where all kinds of houses are available."
"Where is the housing leasing center? Can I drive there?"
"You can. I can guide you there."
Hearing this, Su Nian simply turned and walked towards her car. Seeing the boy not following, she urged, "Keep up."
The boy hurriedly caught up, but when standing by the car, he still seemed hesitant.
Su Nian urged him again, and he awkwardly got into the car.
With the boy guiding her, Su Nian drove, and within fifteen minutes, they arrived at the housing leasing center.
This base was built on the basis of the Summer Resort Villa, which used to be a tourist attraction with ticketing halls and service centers.
Now, this housing leasing center was converted from the ticketing hall.
The lobby was clean and bright, bustling with people and noise.
Looking at the scene before her, Su Nian even felt a bit dazed, as if she was before the apocalypse.
"Sister, you can rent houses over there."
Hearing the boy's voice, Su Nian came back to her senses and looked in the direction he pointed.
Su Nian walked over to join the queue and soon it was her turn.
The woman receiving Su Nian was dressed in work clothes, her face expressionless. She handed Su Nian a tablet, saying, "The red ones on this are occupied, the green ones are vacant. You can pick where you want to stay."
The tablet displayed a map, but apart from densely packed red and green dots, nothing else was discernible.
Su Nian reached into her bag, took out a bar of Dove chocolate, and quickly handed it to the woman opposite her. "Sister, I just arrived and don't know much about the base. Could you give me an introduction?"
The woman's actions were even faster than Su Nian's. She quickly tucked the chocolate into her pocket and put on a smile. "Younger sister, what kind of house would you like to live in? Tell sister."
"I'd like a higher one, preferably a small suite with a better environment around."
"That's easy. How about this side? This used to be the palace area, but now it's been converted into residential. You definitely won't get to live in the palace, but there are quite a few small buildings around the palace, with a maximum of six floors. Inside are all small suites. How many floors do you want?"
Su Nian thought for a moment. "Six floors."
"Alright, I'll pick a sixth-floor one for you. Someone will take you to see the house later. Once you confirm, come back with them. Rent needs to be paid here, and registration on the computer is also required."
"Thank you, sister."
"Don't mention it. I'll call someone to take you there!"
The woman made a phone call, and soon a man came over to take Su Nian to see the house.
Just as Su Nian was about to follow the man, she turned around and saw the boy watching her eagerly.
Su Nian took out a bag of instant noodles from her backpack and handed it to him. "You can go back now."
The boy took the instant noodles with both hands, thanking her repeatedly. After covering the noodles with his clothes, he ran off.
Seeing the boy leave, Su Nian followed the man out of the housing leasing center.
"We'll take the electric car there!"
The man referred to the four-wheeled electric cars in the scenic area, each capable of carrying many people.
Su Nian couldn't help but marvel. It was indeed making the best use of everything at hand!
This Summer Resort Villa covered a vast area. The man drove the electric car swiftly, and it took half an hour to reach the destination.
The small building was a six-story residential building, with two units per floor and one elevator serving two households.
Seeing the man take out a flashlight, Su Nian also took out one from her bag, then followed him upstairs.
Arriving on the sixth floor, the man unlocked the security door with a key, and they entered the house together.
As they walked in, the man introduced, "This house has two bedrooms and one living room, over seventy square meters, with a kitchen and a bathroom. Water and electricity are also connected, and you'll have to pay for water and electricity separately."
Su Nian shone her flashlight around the entire house.
The house was bare, with doors and windows, walls only smoothed with cement, without even plaster.
As for furniture and appliances, there were none.
Probably considering the current situation, the windows were not floor-to-ceiling but normal windows with a dimension of one meter by two meters.
The glass should be heat-resistant, or else it would have shattered under such intense heat long ago.
There was a squat toilet and a faucet in the bathroom.
The kitchen only had a faucet.
Each room had an LED light tube on the ceiling.
Looking at the house, Su Nian truly understood what it meant to have nothing but the four walls of a home.
Even so, Su Nian was quite satisfied. "How much is the rent for this house?"
"The common currency in the base is contribution points. This house costs one hundred contribution points per month. If you don't have contribution points, you can use food."
Su Nian didn't inquire much about contribution points and just said she would pay with food.
The two returned to the housing leasing center, where Su Nian paid two months' rent with two bags of rice and all the dehydrated vegetables.
This was because Su Nian's rice and dehydrated vegetables were of good quality; otherwise, they would only have been worth one month's rent.