Chapter 36: Water Resources

Lin Buwan paused in her motion as she stroked Daodao, then carried on as if nothing had happened.

“What difference would it make if I told you? If you spread the word, would anyone believe you?”

Whether others would believe it or not, she couldn't say. But there was one person who absolutely would—Qin Wei.

However, Wei Qu didn’t really know Qin Wei, and he certainly had no idea how much effort Qin Wei had spent trying to obtain the space. Still, at this point, Wei Qu and Lin Buwan’s group were all in the same boat. Just the supplies he had alone were enough to keep him from acting rashly.

When Lin Buwan decided to reveal the existence of the space, she had weighed all factors. She wasn’t inclined toward keeping everything for herself; if she lived another life only to survive alone, why bring Hua Xiao and the others along? After spending time together, Wei Qu had shown himself to be decent enough. By revealing her secret, she was, in a way, testing him.

If he ever let slip the secret about the space, she wouldn’t mind if the first blood on her hands belonged to him.

Wei Qu stared at her intently, lost in thought. After a long silence, he finally replied in a low voice, “I won’t tell anyone.”

Lin Buwan rose indifferently. She already had a plan and didn’t care whether he would keep his word or not.

The night air was hardly any cooler; they opened the windows, but the outside was just as stifling. To ease the heat, Lin Buwan retrieved bamboo mats, fans, and ice packs from her space. Without a refrigerator, the ice packs couldn't be frozen, but filled with water, they still offered some relief—better than nothing.

They didn’t know if all the rooms on the seventh floor were doubles or if luck had favored them, but having a double room spared them awkwardness at bedtime. The girls shared one bed, the boys another. With the mats and ice packs, things were much more comfortable. Occasionally waving the fan, the breathing in the room gradually grew calm and steady.

Lin Buwan was awakened again by the heat. As she opened her eyes, a bead of sweat slid directly into them, burning so much that tears spilled uncontrollably. As she sat up, Hua Xiao beside her also woke from the heat, followed quickly by the two men in the next room.

“My god, it’s roasting in here. It feels even hotter.” Hua Xiao, sitting up, began fanning herself furiously.

Even the wind from the fan carried a trace of warmth. Looking back at the bed, there were two human-shaped stains on the mat; the pillows were completely soaked with sweat.

“My hair is all hot and stringy.” Hua Xiao pinched her damp, oily hair with disgust, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

“The temperature must have risen again today. At this rate, water is going to be in high demand,” Wei Qu said, walking to the window and lifting the curtain to glance outside. The sunlight stung his eyes and made him frown.

“Even if the temperature doesn’t rise, water is always a precious commodity,” Lin Buwan replied.

She climbed out of bed and rummaged through her space for clean clothes for everyone, then took her own set into the bathroom.

After taking care of her hygiene and changing clothes, she pressed the flush valve and, unsurprisingly, saw murky yellow-black water in the toilet. The water had been stagnant for so long; the water plant had stopped operating ages ago. The city’s tap water was basically out of commission—forget boiling it for drinking, it wasn’t even wise to use it for daily needs.

When she left the bathroom, Hua Xiao immediately went in after her. The two men had packed up their things and were sitting on the floor, fanning themselves.

“We need to find some water sources and start storing up. The weather is too abnormal; who knows what’ll happen next,” Lin Buwan suggested.

She had water in her space, but it wouldn’t last long for four people and two dogs. Who knew when the tap water problem would be solved? They needed to prepare, lest they die of thirst before hunger.

“There’s a water plant not far from here. We can check it out later,” Wei Qu nodded in agreement, offering a solution.

“It’s too hot for driving; walking seems more realistic. Should we bring the people next door?”

Hearing Lin Buwan mention the car, Yu Su suddenly remembered something. He stood up, walked to the door, and took out two white plastic buckets, each knee-high.

“These are the buckets of gasoline Wei Qu and I siphoned yesterday. Who knows when we’ll need them? You should store them.”

Lin Buwan hadn’t expected such a pleasant surprise. Last night had been too hectic and dark, so she hadn’t noticed what the two had carried. Yu Su and Wei Qu had worried about how to transport all their supplies, but with her space, there was no need to fret about carrying everything or being robbed.

In front of them, Lin Buwan stored both buckets of gasoline in her space.

Wei Qu’s brow relaxed. “We’ll need to find a hardware store and get a couple of water towers. Otherwise, other containers won’t hold enough for our needs.”

“Where’s a hardware store?” Yu Su was confused; he hadn’t considered that problem.

“There must be one nearby.”

Before this five-star hotel was built, the area was an old district. After redevelopment, construction slowly began. Previously, this area was filled with hardware shops; though many had closed, a few still remained.

If luck was on their side, they might find several water towers.

When the four of them finished packing and stepped out, they bumped into the group of young men from next door.

Seeing them, their leader, An Zicong, greeted them enthusiastically.

“You’re heading out too? We were just about to ask if you wanted to gather supplies together. Looks like we’re on the same wavelength.”

Wei Qu and Lin Buwan exchanged a glance and declined his invitation.

“Sorry, we have other matters today, so we won’t join you.”

It wasn’t just an excuse—they were searching for water, not other supplies, and these college students clearly didn’t have much to their name. They needed not just water, but other necessities as well, and their goals were different. Besides, An Zicong and his group had an air of misfortune about them; Wei Qu didn’t want to let them disrupt their plans.

“Oh? Well, alright.” An Zicong’s disappointment was obvious, but he quickly regained his cheer. “Will you be back?”

Wei Qu hesitated, then nodded. “We’ll probably stay another couple of days.”

Finding water was one thing, but they hadn’t found a better place to stay yet, so they’d likely spend another night here.

“That’s good. We’ll head out then. It’s really hot today—be careful not to get heatstroke,” An Zicong said with a smile, waving as he left.

The three people following him nodded politely as they passed Wei Qu and the others.

They were actually quite courteous. If only their luck wasn’t so bad, Wei Qu wouldn’t mind bringing them along. What a pity.