On the 16th day of the apocalypse, the temperature reached 55℃.
Tomorrow was supposed to be the joyously celebrated National Day holiday. Many people probably had their travel plans ready, but now they could only stay at home.
In the last few days, the number of live streamers seeking to capitalize on the heatwave had increased, and more and more people were collapsing.
Jhiang Yuan heard about "heatstroke" for the first time.
All news programs were urging people not to go out during the day and to try to stay in at night as well. Working from home was now mandatory.
However, the authorities neglected one thing, the temperature had reached 55℃, meaning the ground temperature during the day must be at least 70℃.
70℃, what does that even mean?
Simply reaching your hand out into the sunlight could easily cook it, and reporters clad in sun protection suits were still diligently advising everyone not to ignore the official messages, and to definitely stay indoors.
Video platforms were frenziedly sharing footage of people contracting heatstroke due to the extreme heat, with their families weeping desperately in hospitals, met only with doctors' apologies.
While watching, mom muttered, "This is so sad. We better not go out either. Xiao Nuan, make sure you don't go where there's sunlight."
All the bedrooms in the house had their curtains drawn. There were none in the living room, where mom had dried a lot of vegetables in the only bit of space available.
There were plenty dried on the balcony as well, including some meat.
Although she had bought a lot, she wanted to store more while fresh supplies were still available.
Many homeowners in the community had installed sunscreens, which they had purchased in group buys organized in online chat groups. Jhiang Yuan had bought some too but chose not to install them yet as she didn't want to stand out.
Online discussions were non-stop; in the last couple of hundred years, there had never been temperatures this high, and two theories prevailed.
One was the natural punishment theory: it simply suggested that humanity's reckless destruction of ecological balance led to erratic weather and global temperature rises, noting how fragile and helpless humans are...
The other was the apocalypse narrative: The scorching weather was no longer suitable for human habitation, and this global heat event could lead to a major reshuffling of humanity, similar to the extinction of dinosaurs.
The post was hugely popular with many replies, and it had already received 240,000 likes.
Many people were wishing for peace and health, some accused the original poster of worrying needlessly, but of course, many were advising others to stockpile resources for emergencies.
The messages in WeChat groups were also piled up at 99+, she was a member of several neighborhood groups, such as Building 13 homeowners group, courier station group, home renovation mutual aid group, community group buying group, etc.
People had moved from initially complaining about the high temperatures to now being somewhat numb.
If one could go to work, it would be tolerable; if not, then paying the mortgage and car loans would become a real issue. The breakdown of adults could be decided overnight.
Even though the temperature was still around forty degrees at night, disregarding the heat, Jhiang Xingzhi applied sunscreen all over her body and followed her dad out.
Xiao Nuan stayed at home with mom, as the weather was too unpredictable and children's immunity wasn't very strong. Staying home was safer.
Whether it was the effect of the apocalyptic theories or not, she felt that the supermarket was unusually crowded that evening. As soon as she entered, it was chaotic, and even the central air conditioning didn't seem as cool as usual.
Her father pointed out the price tags to her, showing that many items had slightly increased in price, a sign Jhiang Xingzhi knew was not good.
The two of them, without hesitation, grabbed anything they could, with Jhiang Xingzhi focusing on fresh fruits and vegetables and Jhiang Yuan picking up dry goods, snacks, and canned foods.
Buying more now meant extra security later.
Many had the same idea, fortunately, they had arrived early. The supermarket was now crowded, with people pushing against each other, and the checkout lines were a mess.
They used the self-checkout machines, which were much faster.
Having left the supermarket, the two split up to go their separate ways.
This was a large, comprehensive shopping center, with more than just supermarkets offering goods for sale.
The first and second floors were primarily for shopping.
The third and fourth floors housed the food court.
The fifth and sixth floors featured children's amusement parks, cinemas, and such.
Jhiang Yuan went directly to the second floor which, compared to the crowded supermarket, was incredibly desolate.
Clothes, shoes, daily necessities—there was no need to buy them anymore. She headed to the maternity and baby store instead, picking up some milk powder, children's snacks, children's books, phone watches, and such.
Her mother had said, "The weather's too hot, and it breeds bacteria easily."
Children's items are different from adults'; Jhiang Yuan bought every available children's cologne, mosquito repellent bands, children's soap, and hand sanitizer in the store.
Along with her earlier hoard, except for items losing efficacy, they would have no issues using these for ten years.
Apart from the kids' goods, she couldn't overlook the adults'. These types of items were available in boutique stores, so there was no need to go specifically to a pharmacy.
However, she didn't buy too much since they would expire after three to five years.
She had already bought quite a lot online before, hoarding more with the hope that it would make things more convenient later on.
After getting these items, she went to the third floor and bought twenty milk teas. While the waitress was busy making them, she swept through a bakery and a marinated duck neck shop.
Starting from tomorrow, they would not leave the house, and although these items didn't have a long shelf life, it was best to buy while they still could since there would be no chance later.
Jhiang Xingzhi also packed up more than twenty dishes, and the enthusiastic owner helped them carry them downstairs.
Since they were already carrying four large bags of items from the supermarket and now added an array of food, the two of them indeed found it a bit much to handle.
The reason they hadn't put the items in the car first was because of fear.
Although security still existed, the van was too easy to break into; they couldn't let the hard-earned items fall into the hands of thieves.
They also stopped at a gas station to refuel, as gasoline prices had risen to 20 yuan per liter—double the price. Fortunately, their car had a small tank that didn't take much to fill.
They chose to use the underground garage. The elevator stopped on the first floor, which meant they were about to encounter people. It couldn't be helped; they had come back too early today, during peak hours for human activity.
Two middle-aged women and a young man, along with a dog, boarded the elevator.
Jhiang Yuan instinctively stepped back because she was afraid of dogs. She always felt dogs seemed too fierce when their mouths were open, as if they might jump up and bite someone the next second.
Moreover, the dog was too big, unidentifiable in breed, and inexplicably unleashed, which was a bit much...
The two women leisurely complained about the sweltering ghost weather and how the supermarket had taken advantage of the situation by hiking the prices on many items.
One of the women left at the fifteenth floor, and the other at the sixteenth floor. Now left in the elevator were the masked man and the dog.
"Huh, why isn't he pressing his floor?" Jhiang Yuan panicked internally. Had their anomaly been discovered?
The guy, dressed in gray sweatpants and a short-sleeved shirt, had muscles that were subtly visible on his abdomen and arms.
If it came down to a fight, she and her father would likely be no match.
As she thought this, the elevator reached its destination. The man, leading the dog, stepped out of the elevator. Just as Jhiang Yuan was still in a daze, he suddenly turned around, "Do you need help?"