I can upgrade the shelter-Chapter 82 - 81 Feeding Peanuts

The supplies Chen Xin asked for, such as steel bars, cement, glass, and vacuum pumps, were delivered a week later.

However, this time, only Ding Ning came to deliver them; Qin Lan didn’t come today.

Wearing a gas mask, Ding Ning jumped off the truck and greeted Chen Xin, who had come out to meet her.

The weather today was really bad, because without rain, there were too many pollutants in the air, making it impossible to breathe outdoors without a gas mask.

"A Xin, the things you wanted have been delivered." Speaking through a gas mask made her voice somewhat muffled, but if she spoke louder, it was still clear: "Steel bars, cement, the glass, and vacuum pump you needed, but I couldn’t get the aquarium, the former bird and flower market in the city is just a pile of broken glass now."

Hearing Ding Ning say this, Chen Xin was not bothered, and nodded at her: "No worries, I can process it myself. Let’s get the stuff inside first."

After saying that, they began to move the supplies from the truck together.

Since there wasn’t much to unload, the two quickly moved everything into Chen Xin’s shelter.

"This weather is really hard to bear. I can’t imagine how one would live outside without a gas mask." After closing the three protective doors, Ding Ning finally took off the gas mask from her face, exhaling a long breath.

"Is the situation outside really that bad now?" Chen Xin looked at Ding Ning in confusion. He had no need to go out recently, so he hadn’t left his shelter and wasn’t aware of the changes outside, only feeling that the weather was particularly severe today.

Ding Ning patted the dust off her clothes and explained to Chen Xin: "Several chemical plants around the city have exploded, especially those tank areas of Flame Country Petrochemical. A Xin, your family used to run a chemical plant too, so you know what kind of effect those things exploding can have."

When Ding Ning mentioned the chemical plant tanks exploding, Chen Xin’s face paled a bit, and he nodded silently.

He knew about those things, as his parents used to work at a chemical plant and were very familiar with them.

In short, to put it simply, all those tanks are national-grade fire prevention units, and once they exploded, each tank was like a mushroom cloud.

"It was somewhat better before when it was constantly raining, as there wasn’t that much dust in the air. But the rain stopped these days, and the temperature has dropped to almost zero, so it’s extremely uncomfortable outside," Ding Ning continued, seeing Chen Xin nodding.

In fact, the outside environment could no longer be described simply as intolerable; it had turned into a place unsuitable for human survival.

Without professional protective gear and gas masks, exposure to the outside environment for even half an hour would result in severe physiological reactions due to inhaling too much toxic and hazardous gases and dust.

Moreover, with the temperature approaching zero degrees, even Ding Ning came fully armed—wearing a gas mask on her face and specially issued winter warm clothing.

"Really? Then does that mean there are no survivors outside now?" Chen Xin couldn’t help but remark, considering that if the environment was as harsh as Ding Ning described, even survivors might not last long.

However, Ding Ning shook her head, disagreeing with Chen Xin’s statement: "There are still some survivors. Earlier, Sister Lan and the SWAT were searching the city for possible survivors and actually found quite a few people."

"They’re really lucky to have survived!" Chen Xin exclaimed, marveling at their good fortune.

Surviving through this series of post-apocalyptic disasters without a sturdy shelter indeed required some luck.

Especially when they were rescued by the SWAT team as the weather turned increasingly harsh; their luck must have been great.

But earlier, Ding Ning mentioned Qin Lan, prompting Chen Xin to ask: "By the way, why didn’t Lan come today? Does she have a mission?"

"Sister Lan and her team went to clean out shelters in the city today. The second batch of national oxygen equipment has arrived, but it’s still not enough for all the shelters, so the city government decided to move some people from the small shelters to the medium-sized ones." This information wasn’t classified, so Ding Ning didn’t have to keep it secret.

Chen Xin understood immediately, but he worriedly asked: "If they’re merging shelters, can they accommodate so many people?"

"No problem. The six medium-sized shelters in the city were designed to accommodate 25,000 people, and after expanding, they can hold 30,000. They’re basically not full now," Ding Ning reassured him with a shake of her head and explained to Chen Xin: "Relocating people from the small shelters may be a bit crowded for a moment, but it’s still better than being outside without enough food, clothing, or even oxygen."

Chen Xin could understand the government’s approach; it was traditional for Flame Country’s government to never abandon its compatriots.

"It seems the country is prepared! It’s good to bring people together; it facilitates management and resource concentration." Chen Xin nodded, showing approval of the city’s approach.

Although the darkness within human hearts is deeper than we imagine, and gathering people can bring many problems, it’s impossible to just stand by and watch them die because of potential issues.

"That’s what my dad says too. Though more people lead to more problems, it’s better than having scattered shelters that can’t handle issues in time." Ding Ning didn’t tell Chen Xin about the unspeakable things that happened in some small shelters.

Those things were too challenging for human endurance, and even thinking about them made Ding Ning’s scalp tingle and back cold.

As for those who crossed the line of human morality, a single bullet was probably their best fate.

Ding Ning knew about these events, Qin Lan knew, and it was even Qin Lan who personally dealt with those people, but they didn’t tell Chen Xin.

The reason? Well, there isn’t always a "why." If forced to explain, it’s because they were police while Chen Xin was just a civilian.

Chen Xin naturally didn’t know, but he could imagine some things, so he told Ding Ning: "In times like these, you never know when something bad might happen. A Ning, spare some time to convince Long Niang to move in with you. In case anything happens there, she won’t even be easily rescued."

"I know, I already tried convincing Sister Yan, but she can’t bear to leave her place." Being Mo Qingyan’s good friend, Ding Ning certainly wouldn’t have missed advising her: "But the official shelter... honestly, it’s just safer and guarantees food and clothing. Compared with your private shelters, the living conditions are far inferior."

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