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Chapter 228: Chapter 228: The Ice Age Approaches
The meteorite event occurred in September, and the alien outbreak was in October. At that time, the clothes sold in the major malls were autumn wear, and most of the new winter collections were also on the shelves. However, since the weather didn’t cool down subsequently, these clothes didn’t sell, which ironically made things easier for Han Yi and his team.
Now, there are almost a thousand people in the Space-Time Base, and the number is continuously increasing as people come here every day to register for residence. Han Yi and Lu Changyuan are quite satisfied with the current pace of population growth, too slow wouldn’t favor development, but too fast could overload the system. The current rate is just right.
After all, if there were suddenly tens of thousands of people added, the amount of clothing, food, housing, and transportation required would also spike. Currently, the base’s food storage mainly comes from three sources: one is collecting supplies from outings, two is trading goods with other bases, and three is relying on Han Yi’s personal warehouse.
This is precisely why Lu Changyuan has been so focused on the greenhouse project. Water and electricity can wait, but food is of utmost importance. Once the Ice Age arrives, there will certainly be a large influx of people into the base, so the rate of food production in the base must keep up.
As Han Jiaojiao pondered this, she began to worry. She didn’t know whether the clothes and grain in the base would meet people’s daily needs when the time came. What if there was chaos?...
"Sigh..." She sighed softly.
Han Yi had already picked out a few sets of clothes suitable for the current weather. Hearing Han Jiaojiao’s sigh, he asked with a smile, "What’s wrong?"
Leaning her head on her hand, Han Jiaojiao responded: "I suddenly feel that having too many people isn’t a good thing..."
With too many people, many things get overlooked.
She remembered the times at the Beicheng Base in her previous life when the Ice Age had hit. The few thick clothes left in the trading center were snatched up, tents and containers provided no warmth, and people died every day... Countless frozen corpses piled up, then more people would desperately scramble to snatch clothes from the bodies, even if it meant tearing off a piece of extremely thin fabric to stick to themselves right away.
Once the bodies had been stripped clean, the soldiers would set them on fire to dispose of them. People would crowd around to warm themselves, and they wouldn’t budge no matter how much they were shooed away, until finally, the soldiers gave up trying to control the situation.
The sight was both chilling and terrifying.
It wasn’t until three or four days later that the base started distributing coal for heating. But even this coal, when handed out to everyone, was extremely limited.
Han Jiaojiao dared not imagine what would happen if the same scene occurred at the Space-Time Base...
It was just too cruel.
"Brother, do you have any regrets?"
"Hmm?"
In a soft voice, Han Jiaojiao asked: "Starting the base, I mean."
Han Yi smiled and picked her up, "Why, my treasure, having regrets?"
With furrowed brows, Han Jiaojiao nodded slightly, "A little... Yeah, just a little."
If it were just her and her brother, they wouldn’t have to worry about so many things... But the clothing, food, housing, and transportation for tens of thousands of people...
If the greenhouse project failed, where would they get food? And warm clothing... they couldn’t just watch them starve to death or freeze to death, could they?
"Don’t worry," Han Yi patted her little head, "not everyone coming here is weak or ill. Most of those who have traveled long distances to the Space-Time Base are young and healthy. We’re just offering a shelter from the storm. Whether they can survive or not, it’s up to them."
Han Jiaojiao tilted her head and thought about it. Hmm... her brother seemed to make a lot of sense.
"Alright, my treasure, come and change your clothes."
"Oh..."
...
Han Yi’s thinking was quite simple: this was a base, not a relief institute.
All resources within the base had to be prioritarily supplied to those hardworking residents. Now, with a mission center and a trading post established, in a few days, they would also form their own army. Lu Changyuan had researched an improved version of Beicheng’s point system, and once implemented, the Space-Time Base would quickly scale up.
This storm came at just the right time.
Crisis spurred change. Only when people realized that their base wasn’t as safe and reliable as they thought would they consider relocating.
Lu Changyuan released the news of the marriage at the right moment—
While other bases were overwhelmed with various problems caused by the weather cooling, the Space-Time Base spread joyous news: the leader was getting married?!
Suddenly, the Space-Time Base’s name became the most talked-about subject.
Having the strength to organize a wedding signified that the base had not been damaged by the hurricane!
Unless one saw it with their own eyes, no one would believe that the Space-Time Base’s only losses were a few glazed tiles.
The Lingchuan Base had thousands of acres of crops destroyed, and the Beicheng Base suffered countless injuries and fatalities, with numerous tents and prefabricated houses being blown into the sky, resulting in thousands dead or injured. Not to mention the smaller private bases.
The feeling was akin to all of us walking by the river, where everyone else drowned—you only got your shoes wet?!
Envy, jealousy, and resentment—
The reason why the Space-Time Base was miraculously spared had everything to do with its geographical location. However, that didn’t matter; in any case, Lu Changyuan attributed everything to the mysterious and profound "Dragon Qi."
Who knows? Maybe Dragon Qi really existed.
Anyway, the wedding date for Han Yi and Han Jiaojiao was officially on the agenda.
Inside the resplendent palace, an expensive and luxurious crystal chandelier was raised slowly, with Yan Xiao underneath commanding, "Higher, yes, yes, good! Just like that, don’t move, hold it!"
As he spoke, he had already reached the doorway of the grand hall, looked inside from outside, ran back in, checked around the Jinluan Palace from every direction, and then raised his hand in an OK gesture, "All set! Let’s take a look."
Someone pressed the switch nearby, and the grand hall lit up instantly; the crystal chandelier was dazzling, and under the transparent light, the furnishings inside the hall appeared even more magnificent and exquisite.
Yan Xiao then had people light all the lotus flower candlesticks on both sides, creating a beautiful blend of light and shadows, classically elegant, and complementing with the crystal chandelier, giving off an illusion of traversing through time and space.
"It feels like something is missing..." Yan Xiao mused, his chin propped in his hand.
Yang Qi entered carrying a roll of carpet, being a Superpower User with strength, the heavy carpet on his shoulder seemed as light as carrying a feather. Seeing him, Yan Xiao’s eyes lit up, urging, "Hurry, lay it out and let’s see."
The maroon carpet with vintage patterns was spread on the flat brick floor, extending all the way to the threshold, while workers stepped aside to avoid soiling the precious carpet.
"Very impressive," Yang Qi said with a laugh, turning to look at Yan Xiao, only to see him frowning. "What’s wrong, Brother Yan? You’re not satisfied?"
Yan Xiao replied with apparent distress, "I remember what’s missing."
"What else is missing?" Yang Qi asked, puzzled, as he looked around at the decorations, which were nothing less than palatial splendor.
"It’s flowers, of course," Yan Xiao sighed. "How can you have a wedding without flowers?... But where can we find flowers now..."
If it had been before the temperature drop, they might have been able to gather some wildflowers outdoors, but with the recent continuous cooling, all the plants had withered...
