168 A New Lease on Life
Although the biggest earthquake had ended, there would still be aftershocks. At this time, the most taboo thing was to run around randomly. They just had to find an open space to sit down and wait for the next wave of aftershocks.
It had only stopped for less than ten minutes when the second wave of aftershocks came impatiently. With their previous experience and the fact that the aftershocks were much weaker than before, Du Yue and He Xing did not fall to the ground although their bodies could not stop shaking.
After four consecutive aftershocks, it finally stopped. After five large and small tremors, everyone finally realized what had happened. In the beginning, many people hugged each other and cried, but after crying for a while, everyone’s expressions gradually became serious. There was also some joy from surviving the disaster. Fortunately, they were not in a building, and there were no buildings around that could collapse.
Otherwise, they would not have had the chance to hug their friends and family and cry. The officials of the base quickly stood up and began to maintain order. They held a big megaphone in their hands and began to shout, telling everyone not to walk around casually, let alone return to the base. They were to wait in the square in case there were any more earthquakes that might cause injuries.
After experiencing such a shocking earthquake, no one would dare to go against the base’s orders. Everyone was very obedient, and the base had become their strongest pillar of support.
The base had been preparing for so long, and it was not for nothing. Soon, tents were set up. There were so many people that even if the entire square was filled with tents, they would not be enough. Therefore, the tents were set up all the way to the road. Du Yue and He Xing also took out a two-person tent from their car and set it up opposite.
After the tent was set up, Du Yue did not lay a sleeping bag on it. Instead, she took out a folded table and chair from the car and put them in. After closing the tent to block the view of the others, Du Yue took out two basins of clean water from her space and the two of them washed up. As for their dirty clothes, they only casually patted the dust off and did not take them off. Everyone looked miserable now. If they were wearing clothes that were too clean, they would definitely stand out.
Du Yue only heaved a sigh of relief when she could finally sit on a chair and rest for a while. They had managed to escape the earthquake. Although there would still be aftershocks, the tremors would not be strong and would not cause any casualties.
As long as everyone could survive, it would not be a big deal even if some buildings in the base were destroyed by the earthquake. Du Yue sighed at the thought of all the buildings in the base. “I wonder how the small building we live in is doing.”
He Xing ruffled Du Yue’s hair. “It’s fine. Even if it collapses, we still have a lot of contribution points, don’t we? When the time comes, we’ll just find another house to live in.”
The total contribution points of the two of them added up to more than 100,000. With so many contribution points, they could even buy a house in the base, let alone rent one. Did they not grow vegetables diligently and save so many contribution points just for this day?
Du Yue nodded. “If we can’t stay in the small building anymore, I think we should move to a house with a courtyard. It’d be best if it’s a bigger place.” Half a month after the earthquake took place, a thick fog would rise. During the day, everything that could be seen would be shrouded in thick black fog. Even if a strong flashlight was used, the visibility would only be two or three meters.
The thick fog was not the scariest thing. What was scarier was the various kinds of dangers lurking in the thick fog. If they could have their own door and courtyard, they would set up an iron fence and electric wires. That way, they would not have to worry about people sneaking in. Otherwise, Du Yue felt that she might not even be able to sleep well when the time came.
He Xing did not have any objections. “It doesn’t matter if we can still live in the small building or not. We’ll go and find the kind of house you want.” Du Yue’s heart warmed when she heard He Xing’s words. In the post-apocalyptic world, it felt great to have such a person who supported and believed in him unconditionally.
The two of them had a full meal this morning. In addition, they had just experienced such a dangerous earthquake. They had no appetite at all for lunch, so they only had a few simple bites of biscuits. They drove their own cars out of the base, so they were not under the base’s jurisdiction. Only those who went to the square with the base officials received bread and water at noon. There were no casualties, and they did not have to worry about food and drinks. The base even helped to solve the problem of accommodation. Everyone’s emotions gradually calmed down.
There was nothing more fortunate than surviving a disaster.