I can upgrade the shelter
Chapter 42: The Situation in the Urban Area (Seeking Recommendations and Favorites)

Chapter 42: Chapter 42: The Situation in the Urban Area (Seeking Recommendations and Favorites)

Chen Xin wasn’t much of a drinker, and he didn’t have the habit of drinking normally. But being able to set aside survival pressures and sit down with friends for a drink after the apocalypse was undoubtedly something that soothed his mind and body.

"So you’re saying that the city is relatively stable, and the general situation is still under national control?" While sipping his drink and listening to Mo Qingyan talk about the current situation in the city, Chen Xin finally managed to ease some of his worries.

Mo Qingyan kicked one leg up onto the sofa’s armrest and lay horizontally across the broad sofa, holding her wine glass with both hands as she nodded: "Currently, the three large shelters built by the city government accommodate about one-third of the city’s population, and they have restarted the water plant, power plant, and train station, so basic survival conditions are still guaranteed.

Although we have timed water and power supplies now, with water available for only twelve hours and electricity for eight hours each day, in this current situation, having any water or power supply is already quite rare. I’m also relying on the proximity to both the shopping center and city government’s two shelters to tap into their grid for a bit of water and electricity, to avoid total outages."

Hearing this, Chen Xin couldn’t help but feel a bit envious: "Then your conditions are much better than mine. I just managed to get my water pump working these past two days; I was almost out of water before."

"It’s not as good as you think. Even though the city government tacitly allows us to tap water and electricity, just like before, we have to pay for it; it’s not free." At this point, Mo Qingyan’s face turned a bit unpleasant, and she spat before continuing: "Although the city government is still managing things, the people working below are starting to act recklessly. The guy who came to talk about collecting the water bill actually dared to ask me to sleep with him! Makes me want to shoot both his heads off!"

Although Chen Xin was worried about his friend’s safety in such a situation, seeing her current demeanor, he knew she had already dealt with the trouble.

In the post-apocalyptic world, even though the country can maintain basic order due to thorough preparation, the old moral systems have started to crumble under the threats of the apocalypse, and some dark aspects of human nature have begun to emerge without restraint.

The three large shelters directly controlled by the city government might be fine, but smaller shelters like Mo Qingyan’s home are inevitably targeted and even exploited.

"No wonder I saw Ding holding a crossbow earlier, that’s why. So how did you deal with that guy? Did they willingly let you use water and electricity?" Chen Xin knew Mo Qingyan must have solved the problem, but he was still curious about how she did it.

In response to this question, Mo Qingyan just shrugged elegantly and smiled: "I just had Ning contact Uncle Ding."

"Oh~!" Chen Xin made a sound of sudden realization, immediately understanding how Mo Qingyan dealt with the issue.

Uncle Ding was Ding Ning’s father, the captain of the city’s SWAT team.

As the only legally armed force capable of handling firearms aside from the military during peacetime, the importance of the SWAT team in the post-apocalyptic world is self-evident.

For the city government, whether they can maintain order in the official three major shelters as well as various other shelters in the city, keeping them aligned with the city government’s leadership depends on whether the city government can keep the SWAT team within its grasp.

As for the military, since this city is only at the prefecture level, according to Flame Country’s military system, the military is governed by military districts, while province and city levels have only militia reserves.

Although militia is called "soldier," neither their training level, combat ability, nor armed capability can compare to the permanently armed SWAT team.

So in this post-apocalyptic environment, Uncle Ding’s status as the SWAT team captain undoubtedly rose significantly, and Ding Ning, as his beloved daughter, naturally had no trouble with people daring to mess with her.

However, thinking about the SWAT team, Chen Xin couldn’t help but glance at Ding Ning, who was in the same relaxed posture on another sofa, and asked her, "I remember you’re also a police officer, Xiao Ding? Aren’t you supposed to be on standby at the station? Or did Uncle Ding open the backdoor for you?"

"It’s nothing, my dad gave me an extended vacation." Ding Ning seemed a bit down, and took a swig from the bottle in her hand.

Hearing this, Chen Xin clearly understood her situation.

Evidently, Uncle Ding cared for his daughter and didn’t want her facing any danger in these times, so he gave her a long vacation, allowing her to stay in the shelter with Mo Qingyan sisters, which undoubtedly increased her safety.

Although this might be considered abuse of power, given it’s the post-apocalypse crisis, and considering the SWAT team’s current status, Uncle Ding’s method is actually quite restrained.

And this maneuver merely makes Ding Ning look a bit like a deserter without breaking any laws; even before it would’ve been acceptable.

Despite the emergency situation, in which all police officers would cancel vacations and be on standby, those with a stronger sense of duty would choose to be on the front lines even if suspended or permitted otherwise.

Ding Ning, having just graduated from the police academy last year, is at the vibrant and passionate age, so it’s predictable that she’d feel downcast being reined in by her father like this.

Chen Xin refrained from teasing the dejected young lady Ding and continued to inquire Mo Qingyan: "Apart from the three major shelters, are there other shelters in the city now?"

"I know, I know!" On the side, Mo Qingxin immediately raised her hand to answer, spilling all the information Chen Xin wanted to know like a bamboo tube unloading beans: "Besides the three major shelters, there are shelters built by the nation before the disaster at the city government office building, the city police station, the riverside water plant, the thermal power plant, Lakefront District, and the University of Technology.

Although not as large as the three major shelters, they’re not small in scale, and except for Lakefront District, all belong to government departments with fewer people than the three major shelters, so living conditions are also better."

On the side, Ding Ning also nodded in agreement and added: "I’m not sure about other places, but the shelter at the city police station was a predetermined air-raid shelter when the city bureau building was constructed, making its infrastructure much better than ones converted from parking lots. And with mostly police officers and their families, order is relatively stable, and supplies are plentiful, truly better than the three major shelters."

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