The base that Huang Jinghe's parents had mentioned was none other than Lan Jin's ultimate goal: the capital base in Capital. But getting into that place wasn't as easy as Lan Jin had imagined.
For one, the base wasn't even built yet. And even once it was, it would be the central hub of all the bases. Did anyone really think just any ordinary person could stroll in?
To live there, you'd need either connections or some kind of ability. As for what kind of ability exactly, that hadn't been clearly defined yet since the base was still under construction. But one thing was already clear: invitations were the basic ticket in. That alone said a lot about how valuable an invitation letter really was.
Of course, Lan Jin knew nothing about this yet. And even if she did... it probably wouldn't change much. Life still had to go on. If you wanted to survive in the apocalypse, you had to grow on your own. Living under someone else's protection was never as good as standing on your own. If Lan Jin truly wanted the best for Huang Jinghe, the best thing she could do was not help him too much. Letting him grow on his own was the greatest help she could give.
Outside, night had fully fallen. The wind howled wildly, and the heavy rain lashed against the windows like whips. It was the kind of night no one could possibly sleep through.
To make sure Qiao Qiao didn't get scared, Lan Jin gave her a bath and got her ready for bed, then gently began suggesting that she sleep inside the space.
But Qiao Qiao refused no matter what.
She looked up at Lan Jin with that stubborn little face of hers, as if she was terrified that if she went into the space, she'd miss something big—something she would regret for the rest of her life.
In simpler terms, she was worried that Lan Jin would do something "bad" while she wasn't watching. She didn't want to miss the fun of catching someone in the act.
Lan Jin could see right through her, but she didn't push it. She just stayed by Qiao Qiao's side, half-awake and half-asleep, all through the long night.
By morning, the storm outside still hadn't let up. The wind and rain showed no signs of weakening. After washing Qiao Qiao and getting her dressed, Lan Jin stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window on the balcony, staring outside.
She had assumed she wouldn't be able to see much, but to her surprise, the poisonous fog had vanished completely overnight. Yet in just a few hours, the city streets had already turned into a vast expanse of water. The black clouds above were pressing lower and lower, and off in the distance, the sky and earth seemed to be connected by a swirling column of water.
Lan Jin blinked in disbelief. She quickly pulled out her binoculars from the space and looked toward that strange patch of sky.
There, the clouds had been crushed into a low ceiling, and a huge whirlpool of water spun furiously between sky and ground. Within seconds, trees, cars, houses—everything nearby—was ripped from the earth and sucked into the vortex.
Lan Jin's heart pounded. She knew tornadoes had existed in her previous life too, but had one ever come this close?
She watched, frozen, as the tornado swept across the river, tore down a bridge, and then started moving in her direction.
Panicked, Lan Jin backed away several steps from the window. But after taking a deep breath to steady herself, she returned with the binoculars and resumed observing.
Was the tornado actually coming their way?
If it was... what should she do? Hide in the space?
But no, that wasn't right. Sure, hiding in the space would keep her safe during the tornado, but what about after? Her home was on the 32nd floor. If the entire building collapsed and she exited the space afterward, she'd fall straight down from the sky.
Her thoughts spun in all directions.
But just as Lan Jin began to spiral into full-blown panic, the tornado suddenly shifted. It didn't come their way after all. Instead, it veered off sharply and charged in another direction.
That's what Lan Jin saw through the binoculars, anyway. In reality, the tornado had been much farther away than it appeared. Judging by its trajectory, it would never have reached her area. Her fear just now had been pure overthinking.
As she watched the tornado grow smaller in the distance, a deep wave of relief washed over her.
Right then, the walkie-talkie on the coffee table crackled to life.
[Huang Jinghe]: "Sister Lan, Sister Lan, can you hear me?"
The sudden noise startled Lan Jin. Her nerves had just begun to relax after the fright, and now she jumped again. She quickly grabbed the walkie-talkie.
[Lan Jin]: "I'm here. I hear you."
[Huang Jinghe]:"Sister Lan, I was so scared just now. I saw the tornado. It wasn't too close, but the damage it did... it was insane. Thank goodness it didn't come this way."
[Lan Jin]:"I know, I saw it too. It really freaked me out."
[Huang Jinghe]:"Oh, and just now the power and water cut out. Luckily, I stored water yesterday like you told me. I kept my phone charging too, just in case. It has battery, but there's no signal now."
[Lan Jin]:"With what it looks like out there, who knows when the signal will come back."
Come to think of it, she had wondered why the group chats had suddenly gone silent. Just a moment ago, everyone was still chatting away.
[Huang Jinghe]:"Sister Lan, my parents said there's going to be even more rain. It might last several days. Do you have enough water and food at your place? If you don't, we still have some."
[Lan Jin]:"Don't worry. I've got plenty of food. I've been saving the aid rations, so I definitely won't go hungry anytime soon. And I stored a lot of water too. But your parents said it's going to rain for days?"
[Huang Jinghe]:"Yeah, several days at least. They called me yesterday just to tell me. But since you already told me to store water, I figured you'd done the same, so I didn't bring it up. But Sister Lan, if you run low on food, please tell me. I don't care if I have to go hungry myself—I won't let your kid go hungry. We really do have enough."
His rambling concern actually calmed Lan Jin down. She smiled.
[Lan Jin]:"Thanks. But seriously, I've got plenty. Moms like me love to stock up. A few months of lockdown is nothing."
[Huang Jinghe]:"Alright. As long as you're good. Just let me know if you ever need anything."
Before Lan Jin could reply, the walkie-talkie was suddenly snatched out of her hand by Qiao Qiao.
[Qiao Qiao]:"Brother!"
In the three months since the apocalypse began, Qiao Qiao and Huang Jinghe had only met once. But that one time had left a big impression on her.
Despite the brief meeting, Huang Jinghe had given her an enormous candy.
That candy was nearly as big as a three-year-old child. And since Qiao Qiao was only two, it was actually bigger than her head. But none of that mattered. Kids loved candy, and she immediately developed a strong affection for the boy upstairs who gave her such a treasure.
That single piece of candy had sparked a "deep" friendship between them. Sometimes, Qiao Qiao even borrowed Lan Jin's phone to call Huang Jinghe and chat.
So when she heard Lan Jin talking to him just now, she didn't care what a walkie-talkie was. All she knew was that it could connect her to "Brother," and she didn't want to miss her chance.
With her sweet little voice, she called out to him happily.
Huang Jinghe was just as fond of this tiny friend. After that "Brother," Lan Jin simply let the two of them chat away while she returned her attention to the window.
The tornado had vanished completely. All that remained outside was the howling wind and relentless rain.