Chapter 10: Emergency Preparedness

Chapter 10: Emergency Preparedness

The rain just wouldn’t stop.

The government started rolling out disaster relief efforts. The news was filled with warnings about preventing landslides, protecting crops from flooding, and avoiding urban waterlogging. In the lower parts of the city, several floors of buildings had already been submerged.

The neighborhood was on higher ground, so it was spared from the flooding. The residents were grateful and expressed their relief in the property management group chat. Zhou Yun subtly reminded everyone in the group that prices might rise due to the floods and suggested stockpiling food, water, and medicine. Following his advice, many residents started stockpiling supplies, driven by a sense of urgency.

Despite the heavy rain, Zhou Yun finally received a custom-made Tang sword, a swordstick, a foldable Wootz steel short knife, and a matching folding knife that he had ordered a month ago.

Zhou Yun hung up the Tang sword and swordstick and began playing with the Wootz steel short knife.

His long, slender fingers deftly spun the gleaming, sharp short knife in his palm. The knife was lightweight and easy to carry discreetly.

With a gentle press, the slender blade popped out from the handle, swift and double-edged, its formidable piercing power evident. It could easily and unexpectedly slice through vulnerable arteries and throats. This was the kind of weapon suited for the apocalypse—because in the apocalypse, it wasn’t just zombies you had to worry about.

He held the deer antler handle and casually flicked the blade, which shimmered with a snowflake pattern. That same day, he used the sharp knife to cut up purchased lamb, beef, and pork, methodically arranging them in the freezer.

The seeds were vacuum-sealed and stored in the seed cabinet. Common herbal remedies were also neatly arranged in the pharmacy.

The iron door was also delivered. The installation master braved the heavy rain to come and install it. Zhou Yun gave the master an extra rush installation fee. After the installation, Zhou Yun placed a separate set of keys on Guan Yuanfeng's shoe cabinet, with a small flashlight attached to the keychain. Guan Yuanfeng came out to take a look at the iron door but said nothing.

In the endless rain, with nowhere to go, Guan Yuanfeng quickly took up archery.

He always woke up early, so by the time Zhou Yun got up, Guan Yuanfeng had already cleaned the gym, meticulously completing his exercise plan, and then practiced archery.

As they became more familiar with each other, Guan Yuanfeng took on the tasks of washing dishes and wiping tables. Zhou Yun didn’t stop him and continued doing his own things.

One day, Zhou Yun was making wine with market-bought grapes. Due to the heavy rain, the grapes had ripened, and the growers couldn’t handle it anymore. They slashed their prices and offered self-pick options at the vineyard.

Since the vineyard wasn’t far, Zhou Yun grabbed his raincoat, hopped on his bike, and picked up 100 jin of grapes for winemaking.

He had already bought several glass barrels. Now, he methodically crushed the washed and air-dried grapes into the barrels. The plump, glistening grapes were smashed by a stone pestle, filling the room with the fragrance of ripe grapes.

Guan Yuanfeng was washing dishes when his phone on the dining table suddenly rang. Surprised, he came over to answer it.

His mother’s voice was sharp and hurried on the other end. “Yuanfeng! Send us a photo of your veteran ID! The port is closed, and the embassy’s ships are prioritizing the elderly, children, and pregnant women! They won’t let us on the ship...” The noise in the background was chaotic. His younger brother was shouting hoarse, “We are military families! We should be prioritized!”

Guan Yuanfeng’s eyes darkened. “The veteran ID can only be used by the veteran. After retirement, family members are no longer considered military families.”

His mother was furious. “You are a meritorious hero! A martyr who sacrificed for duty!”

Guan Yuanfeng: “...” He slowly replied, “I’m not dead yet, so I’m not a martyr.” Although if he were dead, he might be more useful to his family.

The phone was snatched away. “Brother! My wife is pregnant! The embassy has free ships for the elderly, children, and pregnant women, but I have to accompany her. I can’t let her go alone.”

“Brother! Please negotiate with the embassy! You’re a hero, they’ll listen to you... It’s very dangerous here. Tourists are evacuating. We don’t speak the local language, and the guide and translator have run off! We don’t know what’s happening. There are riot police and military everywhere. Other boat tickets are very expensive!”

Guan Yuanfeng was silent for a moment. “Just buy the ticket. There’s no need to save money on this. Rules are rules and can’t be bent. In an emergency evacuation, civilians are usually evacuated in batches according to priority... If the situation becomes urgent, civilians will be prioritized for evacuation...”

The other end erupted in furious curses. “You’re always like this! Last time too! What’s so hard about asking the government to give me a job? I lost my legs and became a cripple, getting nothing in return! Pretending to be selfless! If you have the ability, don’t let us take care of you in the future!”

Guan Yuanfeng hung up expressionlessly.

He glanced at Zhou Yun, who had been silently staring at him with his dark eyes.

The phone rang again, and Guan Yuanfeng answered it once more. This time, it was his father’s authoritative voice. “The baby your brother’s wife is carrying will eventually be raised under your name. You need to look at the bigger picture. Send us a photo of your veteran ID. We’ll negotiate with the rescue team here. They’ll have to consider your contributions...”

Guan Yuanfeng said, "I send money back home every month, and I gave them a sum for buying a house. It should be enough to cover the cost of the boat tickets. There's no need to save money at a time like this."

However, the signal on the other end suddenly became fuzzy, and he could only vaguely hear his father saying something about how he would need money for many things now that he was disabled and that earning money was hard if you didn't work. Finally, the signal cut off. Guan Yuanfeng tried calling back several times but couldn't get through, and his brows furrowed.

Zhou Yun said, "The connection must be poor overseas. It’s been raining for days."

Guan Yuanfeng said, "It's not raining there." He said gravely, "I'll go check online to see if a war has broken out."

Zhou Yun nodded, "Alright, I'll call you for dinner."

Even if they managed to board a ship, their decision to travel abroad sealed their fate—they wouldn’t be coming back.

The zombie outbreak spread rapidly from overseas, initially hitting densely populated tourist cities before swiftly spreading. International ships, airplanes, stations, and airports—all enclosed spaces with high traffic—were the first to be hit...

Even staying in the neighborhood wouldn’t help them escape.

Guan Yuanfeng rushed back to his room with Comet.

During dinner, when Guan Yuanfeng came over to eat, he told him, "Stock up on essentials like food, water, and medicine."

Zhou Yun, noticing the weariness and sadness in Guan’s face, asked, "Did you hear anything from your contacts? Did you manage to sort out your family’s situation?"

Guan Yuanfeng shook his head, "The borders are completely sealed, and they can’t return to the country. My friend didn’t tell me the confidential details but only asked me to prepare some food, water, and especially medicine for external injuries." He was deeply worried, and his former comrades even advised him to prepare some handy weapons.

Could it really be that a war was about to start?

But no, if a war were really about to start, they wouldn’t reveal such information.

It must just be a very urgent situation, and to prevent the outbreak from spreading abroad to the country, they had to seal the borders. If even citizens abroad couldn’t return, it meant their return would jeopardize the country’s safety.

Zhou Yun said, "I'll go do some shopping. I'll buy some for you too."

Guan Yuanfeng didn’t stand on ceremony this time since he couldn’t go out easily, "Thank you. I'll transfer the money to you. Buy more and let me give you a list. Rent a vehicle to bring everything back. You should stock up too." He appreciated how Zhou Yun stayed practical and calm without prying into unnecessary details.

Zhou Yun agreed promptly and felt his pulse, "I'll pick up some herbal remedies for you along with the regular meds."

After dinner, the rain seemed to have stopped, and Zhou Yun booked a car using a ride-hailing platform to go out.

First, he bought the medicine according to Guan Yuanfeng's list at the pharmacy, noting that the medicine he was taking was quite expensive. He also got some essential herbs based on his pulse and some regular household medicine. He had already stocked up before, so he just replenished his supplies.

After purchasing the medicine, he went to the supermarket and bought the items for Guan Yuanfeng according to his list, and also replenished some daily necessities for himself before checking out.

This supermarket was near the residential area, not in the city center, and with the continuous rain, there were few people.

As he checked out, even the cashier curiously glanced at him, seeing him call a small truck to load the essential items like rice, flour, oil, etc. The cashier and a colleague discussed, "Looks like people are starting to stock up because of the flooding. The rain has stopped, right? The weather forecast says it's finally going to clear up tomorrow. I wonder if they can finish all these supplies?"

Just then, the supermarket manager came over with a pale face, "The boss called and said the community notified us to close all malls and supermarkets. All goods will be requisitioned as emergency supplies and managed by the community for distribution. Everyone, check the goods and list all the inventories to be compiled and sent to the community office."

On his way back to the neighborhood, Zhou Yun saw a message in the property management group on his phone. Community staff informed everyone that there would be an emergency drill across the city that night. They advised residents to stay home, close their windows and doors, and fill out a form with household information, supplies, and contact details to be submitted to the property management office.

The form required very detailed information.

Zhou Yun opened it and glanced at it but didn’t fill it out because he knew it would soon become irrelevant.

In his previous life, there had been something similar, and many people at the time speculated it was just to gather basic information.

Glancing outside, he saw that military and police vehicles had quietly started appearing on the highway. The truck driver said, "The navigation says the roads near the hospital are closed. Weird, why would they close the roads this late? Is something big happening in our town?"

Zhou Yun said, "Maybe something happened at the hospital."

The zombie outbreak began in hospitals and mortuaries, with the dead and terminally ill patients being the first to be infected. At this point, the outbreak had already occurred abroad, and it was likely that there were already cases domestically, but the virus wasn't highly contagious at this point, so the spread was limited. Experts were still unsure about the nature of the virus and its transmission methods, so they couldn't release any official information.

He was suspended from work at the time due to an involved complaint but saw in his work group chat that the hospitals had been taken over, with orders to cremate all the bodies in the morgue and concentrate all terminally ill patients under strict control. Some families tried to request permission to stay with their loved ones, but their requests were denied. Community officials, hospital leaders, police, security, and the military all arrived.

Despite these efforts, the measures proved ineffective in the end.

After the red mist descended, the zombie virus quickly dismantled society's structure.

However, thanks to these measures, China ended up with more survivors and fewer infected individuals compared to other countries when the apocalypse arrived, and it also had the most safe havens for refugees during the apocalypse.

The truck made its way up the hill to the neighborhood, and the driver said, "This neighborhood is a pain, and now I have to climb this hill just to get home?"

Zhou Yun said, "Thanks for your help. I’ll leave you a bag of rice and a jug of oil as a thank-you."

The driver was startled and said with a smile, "I can't accept that, really."

Zhou Yun kindly reminded him, "It looks like they're preparing for an emergency. They might close the roads soon, so you should get home as quickly as possible."

As the apocalypse loomed, most people just wanted to be with their loved ones.