The heavy rain had been falling for over ten days. As the rain lessened and the skies began to clear in many places, many people breathed a sigh of relief. If the rain hadn't stopped soon, they would have run out of dry clothes to wear. Moreover, the constant rain had caused severe dampness in homes, leaving a sticky, moist feeling everywhere.
Many people who had been unable to work due to the heavy rain also resumed their busy lives, as things seemed to return to normal with the rain finally stopping.
Mu Nan lay on his bed, watching the sunlight streaming in from outside, but unlike others, he did not feel at ease. He wished that when he woke up the next morning, there would be no smog like in his previous life, that the sunlight would still be shining, and that the illnesses people were suffering from were just ordinary flu, rendering all his preparations unnecessary.
Unfortunately, the arrival of the apocalypse showed no deviation.
When it was still dimly light outside, many early risers noticed something was wrong: the fog was too thick, so dense that people could not see each other even from a short distance away. Even though it seemed strange, people did not think much of it. This heavy fog, though more intense than usual, was not unprecedented, so there was no need for excessive alarm.
When Mu Nan woke up, the room was still dark. He took out his phone and checked the time—it was nine in the morning. He did not unlock his phone to go online but instead sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the curtains that let no light in, his heart sinking bit by bit.
His home was on the seventeenth floor, which was quite high. From his balcony, the view was completely shrouded in fog. He couldn't see the buildings across the street or the small green garden below. All he saw was a blanket of thick fog, just as it had been in his previous life.
Mu Nan carefully checked the doors and windows again, drew the curtains tightly, put on his mask, and went next door to check. Seeing that the few chickens on Qin Huai's balcony were still pecking at their feed energetically, he returned to his own home.
Mu Nan made himself a simple breakfast: one egg, two slices of toast, two slices of bacon, and a glass of milk. Although he felt somewhat down, he still needed to eat, even if it was less than usual.
While eating breakfast, he opened his phone. Several of the normally active chat groups on his phone already had over 999+ messages. In any random group he opened, people were discussing the thick fog outside.
Some expressed surprise and inexplicable excitement, saying they had never seen such dense fog in their lives, finding it a bit thrilling.
Others lamented how difficult this year had been—first, the heavy rain had kept them indoors, and now that it had finally cleared, the eerie fog made them even more reluctant to go out. But if they didn't go to work, how would they earn a living?
There were also people taking real-time photos of the fog, documenting car accidents caused by the fog, and posting them on various social media platforms to gain clicks.
Mu Nan left those chat groups and checked Weibo. The topic of fog had become the top trending search. It wasn't just their city; many cities were experiencing the same dense fog, and several countries abroad were similarly affected. If the fog had been confined to just one region, it could be attributed to local climate conditions, but the widespread nature of the problem was concerning.
However, official Weibo accounts did not say much, only advising people to be cautious and avoid going out if possible due to the reduced visibility caused by the fog. Multiple car accidents and incidents had already been reported.
Mu Nan sat on the bed, lost in thought. The air purifier at home had changed from red to blue light. He wasn't sure how effective the air purifiers were, but it felt somewhat reassuring to have them running.
After a while, Mu Nan decided to find something to do. The foggy conditions might persist for a long time, and he couldn't afford to be idle at home for too long. He had many ingredients stored in his space and could slowly turn them into finished products. Previously, he hadn't had time to work on them, only buying the necessary equipment. Now, he could follow tutorials to make some jerky and other convenient, energy-boosting foods.
While preparing to make jerky, Mu Nan noticed a mountain of cabbage piled up in a corner. He had specifically sourced this cabbage from the production area, which had taken quite an effort. When he originally prepared to harvest the cabbage, he had planned to make kimchi. He had been too busy buying things to make it earlier, but now, seeing the cabbage reminded him of his kimchi plan. Mu Nan pulled out the previously found online tutorial, retrieved the kimchi-making kit he had bought a long time ago, and took out all the ingredients. He turned on a random movie for background noise and began making kimchi.
Making kimchi is physically demanding work. He didn't have any special secrets; following the online tutorial produced a pretty good flavor. Since he liked spicy food, he added a lot of chili peppers. Seeing the boxes of red and white kimchi, Mu Nan felt quite a sense of accomplishment after spending nearly a whole day on it.
Because time is constant in his space, Mu Nan stacked the kimchi in the kitchen, planning to let it sit for a few days to properly ferment before storing it in his space.
He worked until nearly six o'clock, then cleaned up the house. Pulling back the curtains to look outside, he saw that it was pitch black; normally, by six o'clock, it would still be light out, with even a sunset in the summer. Now, it was so dark outside that he couldn't see his hand in front of his face. He heard people returning to their floors, and in the quiet of his home, the sounds from outside seemed louder. Sometimes he could even hear the sounds of people cooking from other apartments while he was in his living room.
Although Mu Nan was used to this kind of quiet, it still felt lonely during such unusual times. He glanced at the computer, which had finished playing a show he hadn't noticed. To distract himself from the loneliness, he found an old variety show from several years ago. Although it was outdated, its long and lively episodes helped to alleviate some of the solitude.
After dinner and some rest, Mu Nan watched the show and followed the lively chat groups online. The topic of discussion was still the haze. Besides that, the lung disease seemed to have yet to spread widely. He saw people complaining about the strange weather, some lamenting the need to go to work despite it, while others were relieved to stay home. In the alumni group, some were crying about being stuck at school because of their thesis, feeling lonely and scared in their dorms. Mu Nan didn't know how long this calm would last; it felt like every day was a day closer to something worse.
Not wanting to get lost in others' complaints, he put on his headphones and listened to music while running on the treadmill. Exhausted from running, he hoped for a dreamless sleep until morning.
The next day, the haze still hadn't cleared. Many people began to realize that something seemed off. The news was filled with reports of traffic disruptions caused by the dense fog, but no explanation was given for its source. Usually talkative experts were strangely silent this time. Moreover, where news from abroad had been visible yesterday, it was now inaccessible. Reports suggested that net police had started censoring the internet, blocking incendiary remarks. Even his WeChat groups seemed to be missing a few members, likely due to inappropriate comments leading to group bans.
Fortunately, his alumni group was still active, though everyone was being much more cautious, avoiding sensitive topics.
Someone in the group posted about their activities for the day. Seeing that the fog hadn't cleared, they had gone to the supermarket with their whole family, buying so much that their car was nearly overloaded. When they got home, they set everything out, creating quite a spectacular scene.
There were complaints about the elderly people who usually needed to be given a seat on the bus now behaving aggressively in the supermarket. They were pushing through, causing even the young people to step aside, not caring about the possibility of injuring themselves.
People were making doomsday comments online, but few truly believed it. Even among those who did believe, very few dared to stockpile excessively.
News reports continued to assure that the national reserves were sufficient and urged people not to blindly hoard supplies. To prove their point, they released many videos of stocked supermarkets, indicating that supplies were plentiful and advising people not to panic.
In the supermarkets, shelves that had been emptied quickly got restocked, which reassured some anxious individuals wanting to stock up. However, Mu Nan noticed not the stocked shelves but the staff in the photos who, even though not in protective suits, were wearing masks and face shields. It seemed the government was preparing a response to the lung disease, but until it became a widespread outbreak, no one had anticipated the situation would escalate so severely.
People began looking at international news, finding the situation abroad to be much worse. In other countries, government control was still strong, but public restraint was less effective compared to domestically. People abroad valued personal freedoms more, and without strict gun control, the chaos was even greater.
One report mentioned that an airport in a certain country was congested due to the strange fog, with travelers becoming so desperate and agitated that they lost control and opened fire indiscriminately, resulting in multiple casualties.
Many online commenters, detached from the situation, lamented that foreigners were prone to losing control. They praised their own country's gun control and mocked others for being terrified by a bit of fog, their comments tinged with a sense of superior schadenfreude.
Mu Nan sighed silently, then closed the news page. He opened his notebook, reviewed his plans, and made a schedule for tasks he intended to do the next day. Despite being well-prepared, he felt a persistent sense of urgency that kept him tense.
In the middle of the night, Mu Nan was awakened by the sound of an ambulance. Unlike later times when ambulances were no longer allowed to use sirens, the sirens were still active. An elderly person from their building was being taken away. Mu Nan remembered that this had also happened in his previous life around this time, an elderly man who had been sent to the emergency room in the middle of the night. The man, who was eighty years old, had started coughing a few days ago and had difficulty breathing that evening. Fortunately, he had a home oxygen supply, which allowed him to wait for the ambulance.
However, the hospital couldn't save him, and he never came back. He was the first elderly resident from their community to pass away.