4 Game Plan #2: Stock Up!

Vermillion cleared out all the air-raid shelters that were built that year and subsequently carried out overhauling and maintenance operations. They also upgraded the bunkers and expanded their capacity in the shortest time, to ensure that the refugees would have a greater chance of survival.　　 

Simultaneously, the underground transportation systems of major cities were rapidly being transformed. Abandoned platforms were being repurposed, subway stations rebuilt and expanded, and underground transportation networks connected...

A series of work was underway in full swing. Despite the news of the meteorite hitting the Earth having spread like wildfire, the overall social situation in many countries was still stable due to strict regulations such as curfews.

Fortunately, Chen Xin's bunker was successfully built. He was able to gather enough food to last himself at least two years because he prepared ahead of time.

However, he did not store much drinking water. Even with large water tanks and sewage treatment systems being installed in the bunker, he still felt huge pressure when considering that humans would face a hundred years' worth of extreme cold darkness.

At that point, the best he could do was to collect as many shelf-stable bottled drinking water as he could.

It was just that everyone was in a hurry to stock up at that time. Bottled drinking water and emergency food supplies had become the most in-demand items. All distribution channels were experiencing a shortage of supply which made it very difficult for Chen Xin to procure more goods.

Fortunately, Chen Xin joined a small group formed by outdoor sports enthusiasts. After the news of the disaster spread, his friends in the group pooled together their resources to save themselves. Many people were busy with preparations for their own bunkers, just like Chen Xin.

Those friends in the group suggested that they could use empty barrels to store tap water, which allowed Chen Xin to stockpile a lot of freshwater resources.

Although barreled tap water was not as shelf-stable as bottled purified water and was unsuitable for drinking, Cen Xin did not have much of a choice. Under extreme conditions, you would have to drink urine or even water from feces. What was so bad about unclean tap water?

The city that Chen Xin lived in was located along the Dongting Lake in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The population density was not high. Due to personal reasons, he did not live in the city but lived alone in the suburbs instead. His residence was near some woods and it was quite convenient to dig a hole for an underground bunker.

With the help of construction machinery, it was not difficult to dig an underground bunker that was capable of defending against natural disasters. Also, the project undertaken by Chen Xin was run by a relatively professional engineering team who was working with small excavators. Under those circumstances, the bunker was quickly completed, and Chen Xin also moved all his supplies into it.

That engineering team went way back with Chen Xin, and he was also close to the foreman. The quality of the construction left Chen Xin very satisfied.

Because of the high temperature and extreme cold caused by the meteorite impact, Chen Xin wanted to dig a very deep bunker. He had found it best to go as deep as fifty or sixty meters, like a subway station.

However, that was a bit unrealistic. The engineering team could do it, but it would take too much time and work. So Chen Xin decided to dig a downward passage oblique to the ground under the mountain near his home, and then build a bunker at its base.

That was also a common practice for building air-raid shelters in various countries. Using the mountain itself as a bunker could effectively cut the work by half and at the same time provide adequate protection.

Chen Xin's bunker was not too big, totaling about 300 square meters. Besides, he still needed to fit a garage, a water tank, a fuel tank, farming equipment, and a greenhouse for growing food. What was left would be the livable area, which was only 30 or 40 square meters.

Nevertheless, for Chen Xin alone, that area was more than sufficient.

As for the living conditions, Chen Xin's bunker was not merely a cave. After the hole was excavated, a set of specially-customized container homes were installed.

Besides good thermal insulation, a variety of living facilities were also readily available. Chen Xin would be able to live comfortably even in extreme temperatures.

That kind of container housing was technologically mature. During the epidemic at the beginning of the year, the emergency hospitals that were built by many countries also used similar container homes.

Compared to traditional reinforced concrete, that kind of container homes could be prefabricated in the factory and be readily assembled when shipped to the site. It was far more time-saving, and it was cheap.

Even so, the entire set of container homes, plus the construction cost of the bunker still bled Chen Xin's savings dry.

On the other hand, after living in his finally-completed bunker, Chen Xin felt that it was well worth the money.

He took a few photos of his bunker and sent them to a small survival group which consisted of himself and his friends. Chen Xin immediately attracted envy. He was very well-prepared, and the bunker would greatly increase Chen Xin's chances of survival when doomsday came.

There were even girls in the group who sent private messages to Chen Xin asking if he lacked a girlfriend. As long as Chen Xin agreed for her to move in, she could even bring another girlfriend if he felt that one was not enough.

Looking at the photos of the two beautiful girls whom Chen Xin barely knew, he almost nodded in agreement.

However, Chen Xin managed to hold back. Although his situation was ideal, he was a little tight on supplies. It was possible to accommodate two more girls, but it would greatly reduce his chances of survival.

After all, according to his estimation, after the disaster struck, many flora and fauna would die, and the source of food would likely be reduced to only mice, cockroaches, and mushrooms. Those would not disappear even if humans were extinct. That was his only guarantee of survival.

As for building a greenhouse, it could indeed provide some food, but its upkeep would require a lot of resources. For Chen Xin, he was not sure how long his resources could sustain the greenhouse.

Therefore, reducing consumption as much as possible and lasting through the post-disaster reconstruction after the environment stabilizes were the key to his survival in that predicament.

Nonetheless, despite all possible preparations, Chen Xin still hoped that he would not need to use them when the time came. He sincerely wished that all countries could resolve this crisis.

After all, who would want to hide in a hole and eat mushrooms, when they could live freely in the sun?